Linds

You definitely do not need a fill if you are pbing regularly - as has been suggested, a slight unfil may be required especially if you are following the bandster rules and making good food choices. The problems caused by pbing can not only damage your band and/or oesophagus but can lead to you being bulimic....yes thats right, so we end up swapping one eating disorder for another. I know of very successful weight-loss bandsters who have achieved it by eating crap and puking it up.....BULIMIA!! Not recommended

I had to do a week pre-op diet of yogurt only!!! Yuk...managed it and lost weight....it was meant to help shrink the liver to aid the lap procedure. Must admit I find it hard to stomach yogurts now!!

Hi Jen, I had my gallbladder removed last friday (gallstone is huge!!) and considering they used to keep patients in for 5 days post-op pat yourself on the back for doing so well!! The opening in my belly button is a bit sore as it came open a bit (glue isn't as super as it once was!!) but I make sure it stays dry and put anti-septic cream on it and seems to be ok now. If your wound is still getting hot, you may have a slight infection and need some antibiotics. We have just survived what was once classed as major surgery girl.....WE ARE GREAT!!! Good luck with the recovery...and here's to no more pain!!

That's what I like about these boards...you find out you're never alone. I lost 168lbs during my first 2 years (had some small ups and downs but thats normal for me if I don't exercise). Well this year has been a bi**h for me emotionally and I have gained 70lbs - yes 70lbs. This is due to comfort eating all the wrong foods and not doing one iota of exercise. The stupid thing, which I cannot seem to get stuck into my thick brain, is exercising makes me feel great....so why can I not keep it up? Anyhow, after having a small op last week to remove my gallbladder (you ought to see the size of the stone) for some reason I am totally motivated again and am living the bandster rules!! I wish you luck as it is a combined mind game along with exercise...but we know we can do it with the help of our bands and this site.

Poor you....don't our monthlys cause us enough problems without interfering with our bands? In future (I know that doesn't help you now) try taking a Water pill a few days before your period - great if you can get your GP to prescribe you one but failing that Aquaban or Waterfall or something along those lines might help. As for getting some form of fluids into you at the mo....try the hot drink theory...must admit never works for me but I know it does for some. You could also try sucking on an iced lolly (pick a nice flavoured one as it will help stimulate your juices!!) this is a slow but nice way of getting a drink inside you!! Wishing you all the best Linds

Hi, I am yet another recruit from across the pond.....this time England!! I am 43 years old, and this time last year I was housebound, retired from work due to my failing health, weighing 383lbs and waiting to die. I am epileptic, have degenerative arthritis in both knees and hips, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, carpal tunnel syndrome in both hands, and depression. I have a wonderful husband and the two best sons in the world who have loved me no matter what state of health or weight I have been in....to them I am me......I just want to be me!! Like nearly all of us, I have tried many diets over the years, I must have lost over 700lbs in total, only to put back over 900lbs which is a scary thought. I have never blamed anyone but myself for the way I am....no one forced me to get like this....just unlucky I guess. The diets all worked...it was me that failed them. Anyhow there I was on the scrap heap, waiting to die. Needing help to go to the toilet, get dressed and do practically everything. I had the use of my sons' PC during the day and had started to research WLS. The Lapband was new to me and looked really interesting so I went to my GP and put it to him.....he said I would need to be under a weight loss clinic at a hospital first but that there wasn't one in our area but he would get his secretary to look into it for me. A couple of months went by and I received a letter asking me to attend an appointment at the Obesity Clinic in Nottingham (about 40 miles away) on 30 April 2003 - it was like seeing light at the end of a very dark tunnel....even if I didn't know what to expect. I went along and met a wonderful physician called Lee Kennedy and a dietician called Anna Reid. I weighed 363lbs and they put me on a 3 x slimfasts only a day + 5 pieces of fruit for 8 weeks to shift some weight quick. But I saw them again within that time....along with a surgeon called Ian Beckingham. He was wanting to introduce WLS to the QMC at Nottingham, but was awaiting funding and was hoping to get it for 2004, but thought he might be able to perform 3 ops by the end of the summer 2003. Needless to say the rest is history. For whatever reason, I was one of the chosen three and am eternally grateful because it has changed my life beyond recognition already. I still have a long way to go on this wonderful journey, and there will be ups and downs along the way, but I have met some incredible people along the road and am so glad to be alive to tell you all my story.

Thanks Auds