Summerrain

I drink two litres per day (8 glasses) more in hot weather. I have a pop top type bottle that is a permanent attachment now and take it everywhere.

Absolutely stunning, what an amazing success you are!

You look fantastic, congrats and well done! Love reading these success stories, they keep me motivated, Ty for sharing.

Congratulations and love your attitude too! Every pound lost is a success regardless of whether you loose ten pound or 100 pounds. Well done!

Wow that nurse is an idiot, does she actually know how the lapband system works? She needs proper training and educating. As others have said don't have it removed, your team is failing you because they don't seem to have an understanding how fills work with the band, get yourself a more responsible aftercare team so you can be on your way like you're supposed to be on this journey. And you can also tell her the people on these forums are better educated than her!

As others have said walk as much as you can, heating pads helped me and I also found if I walked then lay flat on my back did some deep breathing for a few mins then walked some more it helped.

5 months today so still a newbie and wish I had done it years ago.

How about an exercise video, there are so many out there for different ages, fitness levels etc, your grand kids can even join in with you. If you afford it hire out a treadmill that way you can walk whenever you have a few spare minutes, even ten min walks a few times a day is beneficial. I only walk, outside if weather is good and on my treadmill if weather is bad or I've been too busy during the day so I jump on at night time. I don't like the gym either it always kills my back but so far walking/ running has been enough for me.

Like many of the above posters I preferred lapband because it meant my insides weren't going to be chopped up and that scared the bejesus out of me. I wanted a way to help me control my never ending hunger and a way to be in control of food not the other way around. It's still early months for me being banded but so far so good and I no longer have an obsession with food and my hunger has gone apart from the natural hunger when it's time to eat. I no longer think about food 24/7 except when it's time to eat and I feel a lot is because of the lapband taking those sensations away for me.

To be honest in my opinion you are wasting your money. We need to eat Protein first, then vegetables then good carbs if you have room. The way I see it the whole idea of being banded is to stop all the yo yo diets, etc. and to make healthy choices. It's an awesome tool once you hit greenzone to keep us on track. The money you have to spend on weight watchers put it away each week then have a splurge on the new clothes you'll need when you loose weight. You would be better to spend the money on a good Bariatric nutritionist who will teach you how to eat with the band and how to fine tune your diet when you hit a hurdle.

Ouch you poor thing, hope you heal quickly. What you did is a huge achievement and what a great weightloss you have had. Next year you'll be able to complete it!

Nope sorry you gotta jump on those scales! Just tell your nutritionist honestly how you've been doing, it's his/ her job to help you work things out. None of us are perfect but with the help of our aftercare team they can help us get back on track.

Don't be scared to drink, stick to your liquids then move to mushies then to solids. Just be certain you take very small bites. It is a lot in one go and it's possible you won't notice the full effect for another week or two so in the meantime sip slowly and chew thoroughly and you'll be fine.

Lol carolinagirl I think she meant its nuts that she has to force herself to eat not its nuts she is consuming.

I'm not counting calories but I am careful with what I eat. Always lean proteins first then my vegetables/ salad and loosing with portion control and good choices.

I was feeling pretty much the same as you till about the end of third week post op. I was told only to eat when hungry and to stay hydrated. Wasn't too concerned about calorie intake at the time. I was feeling a bit tired so I took liquid vitamin to give me a boost. You're still swollen and once that goes down your appetite will return.

For some reason youve taken my reply to the video you posted as personal. I have not attacked you or your rules as being incorrect. I said the info in that particular video was incorrect . I just went back and watched and I stand by my post. Food that you have eaten does not sit in your pouch and dribble through slowly till the pouch is empty. The tiny bites that you eat are squeezed through the band in a minute of swallowing. If you drink as soon as you've swallowed your food then the liquid will make that food into more of a liquid consistency and push it through the band faster. If you have eaten something that swells with liquid then you can get stuck if you drink right away hence wait one minute before you sip a bit of fluid if you need too. Again my drinking rule is not everyone's rule but it is one that doctors with updated info are also giving their patients. If your rules are to not drink and it's a forever thing that's fine and they are your rules, if my rules are I am allowed to drink following the instructions in how to do it that's my rule. I have never said oh you are all doing it wrong, I have put it out there that that is not a rule for some of us. Your rules you posted are like mine except for the drinking part. I am not doing whatever makes me happy, I am following the set of rules given to me by my surgeon who happens to be professor O'Brien in the video tmf posted. So again I was commenting on the info the guy posted about in the video not you personally.

I love your attitude. I had close to 200 pounds to loose also and felt so overwhelmed thinking I would never get there. I'm a third of the way there and like you set myself small goals and that's all I concentrate on till its time to set a new one.

Donna sorry to hear about your upcoming op. I wish you a speedy recovery and you'll be fine.

Well done, you look great!!

Absolutely gorgeous!!!

First of all regardless of whether I have been banded four months or four years I have educated myself with this lapband process. I researched it for one year prior to making the decision so I fully understood what I was getting myself into and to be 100% that this was the right decision for me. My surgeon is a the leadind lapband pioneer here in Australia. Before my initial appointment with him I had a list of questions which he answered thoroughly. My appointment was one whole hour, I wasn't rushed through, it was easy to talk to and I felt comfortable with him from day one. Now lets roll forward to me being banded four months and having a "vast knowledge" in that time in relation to the lapband. No, I do not claim to know it all but if I come across something on the forums that hasn't come up with my surgeon or nutritionist I query it with them when I go in for my appointments, gaining more knowledge along the way. I am one of the lucky ones, had a smooth operation, smooth recovery, everything has gone smoothly so far. I have followed the rules given to me by my surgeon and after care team. As you read on these forums there are different sets of rules for so many different people and of course we are always to follow our own surgeon's instructions but to go out there and say you must never do this or that is wrong, you must follow your own instructions but as you can see so many people have been successful with different instructions. So many people who have the lapband really do not know how it actually works. I was confused by it all too but I made it a point to understand 100% how it works by reading, researching and asking questions even if I thought some of those questions were silly at the time. And of course I came across the no drinking rule in these forums (and I respect each person's individual rules) so even though it had been explained to me by my surgeon and nutritionist about the drinking and eating, I still queried it with him over and over and he explained that in the past they believed that if you did drink whilst eating then yes the liquid would make the food too much of a liquid and it would pass through the band and not help give that satiety feeling. He then went on to explain that after studies, conducted by him and his team that it was ok to drink provided you followed the one minute rule as you do with food to give whatever you have above the band to pass through so it helped trigger the communication between the brain and the stomach and at the right consistency. The video you posted is very outdated. When you take the right amount of food into your mouth you chew, swallow and wait a minute, the reason why you wait a minute is so your food passes through the band, the food does not sit in the little pouch above the band, if it does then that's when you get stuck episodes, pb's vomitting yada yada yada yada. Then and only then if you feel you need to drink then you sip, swallow and wait a minute. Not saying that's what you or others have to do, that's what my instructions are. I've dropped 80 pounds since pre op diet, which is 5 months and if I have needed to drink whilst eating I have done so by following the rules and have been fine and proof that drinking whilst eating is not something that should not be done. Now I am sure others who have been given the it's ok to drink whilst eating don't do well, one set of rules does not work for every single person. So yes only been banded four months and yes have been drinking with my meals and yes I have gained a lot of knowledge since being banded through experience and through asking questions. I'm sure as time progresses I may encounter issues and if I do then rather than say oh I know it all I will look into it further and be in contact with my care team to sort things out.

Congrats!!!

Ouch!! Have you tried taking the pill with some yoghurt? Apparently it's supposed to help pills go down easier.

Ditto to what everyone has said and patience. Also it's important to be in contact with your carers and be honest about everything. Part of being successful is the ongoing support after being banded with your team.