Kime-lou

I choose the band due to fear. I didn't want all the fooling around with my inereds. The thought of having my stomach cut worried me, the chance of infection is higher. Also, with the band I only took off 4 days where with the sleeve I would have had to take off longer and I couldn't. Now looking backward, I may would have opted for the sleeve. I guess it's the wishing I would have lost more weight. I have lost 52 lbs in 8 months, not back, but I do wish it was more. Biggest things to look at when making the choice.... Insurance coverage Doctor's suggestion Time off Work (with the sleeve you will be down a little longer) Doc Appt. (with the band you have to go back a lot of fills and unfills) It is really your choice, just education yourself on what both procedures are, have an honest heart to heart with your doctor, make a decision and don't look back!!! Good Luck!

My doctor keeps drilling into my head that plateaus are expected and will happen even if we do everything perfect. Doesn't make me feel any better though. I hit about a month long plateau, then I dropped down one more pound, for 2 days, now back up that 1 pound. I think this is natural. Sucks, but normal.

Have you had your thyroid tested? I have a friend who had gastric, had a baby, when she had gastric her tyroid was fine, after having the baby- she went on a roller coaster of ups and downs. She finally had her thyroid tested and it wasn't working at all. She will be having her thyroid removed next week. Now hers is the extreme, but your thyroid could be off and that can cause the issues you are having.

You will feel pain for a while. My mom just had her monster of a hiatal hernia repaired (over half of her stomach in her chest). She has had horrible pain since. But, take some relief in knowing these things are fixed, you are on the road to recovery, and things will get better! Prayers!!

Also, Slim Fast High Protein doesn't have a lot of carbs, but I know a lot of men (my hubs) will not be seen with a slim fast anything.

Try the Myoplex EAS carb smart. They really are good and they have less carbs than most shakes. I get them from BJ's in bulk. There is a drawer in my fridge full of them since the hub and I both drink 1 a day.

great job!

I had a fill 2 weeks ago. To start with I was really tight and considered going and having a slight unfill. I toughed it out though on liquid and mushy and I got back to normal. Yesterday, my mom had sugery so I was at the hospital all day. Breakfast and lunch I did fine, no issues. Once I got my mom home and was caring for her and trying to eat, I burped and my dinner came back up like reflux - not like PBing stuck. I didn't eat a cup yet. I didn't eat anymore. This morning I ate breakfast, it went down fine, lunch went down fine, but I have this lump in my throat feeling like I have indigestion or reflux. I do have a horrible sinus drainage. Has anyone else had this experience? I do have a call into the PA to find out what is going on and if I need to come in.

While I don't like Tofu that much I have friends who swear by it. It doesn't have as much saturated fat as other Proteins (beef, chicken). If I am going to eat it, I want the firm stuff and cut it up and cook it like chicken, that is the only way I can eat it. Soft white fish is another great Protein. I buy talipia fillets in the frozen section at wallyworld. They are individually sealed, so I take a couple out for me and hubs thaw in cold Water - thaws quick. I season with garlic and lemon and bake. Very yummy soft and full of protein. I was allowed this during the mushy faze.

You deserve compliments, you have done a wonderful job. You are a great spokesperson from Lapband. You success show everyone what commitment can do.

My mom has had a rather bad hiatal hernia for the past 3 years. In the last year and a half it seemed to give her hell- nausea, inablity to eat, not able to drink much. In that year she went from the 170's to the 120's. But my mom refused to do anything about it because she was caring for my dying grandmother. Grandma passed in Oct, so mom finally agreed to see a surgeon. My lapband doc also happens to do these types of surgery as well. I spoke to him about her and he said to get her to come in. After talking he agreed that her nausea and in ablity to eat much if at all was due to having 1/3 of her stomach in her chest and that surgery needed to be done soon. Yesterday was surgery day. I don't mind being the patient, but I hate it when I have to watch those that I love go through pain. The doc came in and saw us pre-op and assured us everything would be fine. Mom went in and in about 2 hours the doc came out and said things went great, however instead of having 1/3 of her stomach in her chest she had over half of her stomach in her chest putting pressure on her heart and lungs. I have not idea what this could have done in the long run, but I am glad it's fixed. The doc said he had an easy time getting everything back into place and he did a plication to prevent her stomach from moving and put mesh in to repair the hold in the diaphram. When we finally saw her she was in horrible pain, which I expected. However, the insurance would not allow her to stay over night. So the doc told her the best thing to do was to go back to my house, which is only 20 min away verses her house which is an hour and a half away. So she came and stayed with me. This morning the gas pain was better, but she said she was sore to just breath. The doctor said this would happen since he had to work in her chest cavity. She is onl liquids for the next couple of days before going to mushy, but I know she can do it. Surgery, while painful and the afterward can often times make the need seem less evil, surgery is an amazing thing. Doctors have the ability to give us our life back. Mom lost weight because of illness and had to have surgery so she can eat, I had to have surgery to lose weight. Thank goodness for doctors with the knowledge and skill to do this. I have no doubt that what my mom had done was more technical since as he said he was looking at her heart, but he was skilled enough to do what needed to be done, to help her get better. A doctor with this much skill and ability to do these procedures well, don't you think we should listen to them. Use them for what they are there for- to help us heal and answer our questions along the way. If you have a great doc, let him or her know how you appreciate them and their ability not only by telling them, but by listening to them and asking questions.

My NUT told me to wait 3 months before eating it, not sure why, but that was the directive. I eat it whenever I want now, which isn't to often, but it is a nice treat. Some say it's a slider for them, but I find that it keeps me satisfied for several hours, so that is good.

Awesome!! All 4 of my fur babies are rescues. Chloe the Greyhound was rescued from the track- she is such a sweetheart!! Molly our Bassett German Shepard was about to be put done in a shelter. Macy and Rocky the cats were also rescue from kill shelters. Whenever we want to adopt a new pet I just can't go get one from a breeder, I want to get a pet love who hasn't ever had it before. I love my precious babies!!

I love food, I mean really love food (which is why I hit 247). I have always been a foodie. While sweets were never a huge pull for me, I find myself wanting them more now, but I have managed to stay away from them except special occassions. I am and always have been a protein / carb girl. I am mildly adventurous, willing to try new foods and such. Since being banded I have found I like: Greek Yogurt, couscous, beans. I eat a lot more fish (talapia, salmon, mackeral). Being that I love to cook I am always researching new things and new ways of cooking. I still, however, do enjoy going out to eat. What I like best is having someone else clean the kitchen! Last night, Valentines, the hub wanted to go to the 1st resturant we ever went to. That resturant is On the Border, which serves southwest style food. I love southwest/mexi, but it is loaded with salt and calories. I downloaded the nutrition and was shocked the my southwest chicken taco's were 1200 calories- ouch. I found that the fajita mix was a better choice, I was able to order the chicken with grilled onion, pepper, zuchini, with no sides (beans, rice, tortillas). I ate just the meat and veggie and ask for sauce on the side (which I only used a bit of). Since I hadn't been there since surgery this really showed how my eating has changes. Before surgery I would eat the meat, veggies, rice, beans, tortillas and a dessert. Last night I wasn't even able to get down all of the meat and veggies. Wow, what a change. My husband said he was so proud of me. I went home feeling good and not over stuffed. Yes, this morning my weight was up by a pound, the salt really worked on me. So today I am drinking my water like a made woman and cutting the salt back. I guess this is what life should be like, not giving up the food we love, just cutting back on the amount and making adjustment for the bad stuff. What in the heck did I learn this years ago??

I used liquid multi's from GNC, this way I could mix it in water or my shake if the taste wasn't good. And due to my particularly low B counts I also take a liquid B vit that is from GNC.

While I did not have to do a pre-op diet I agree with the above each doc and Nut will have "their" way of advising patients. Mine talked more about making sure I got my Protein in and my Water in. When I went back after 6 month post op she looked at my record on myfitnesspal (where I count my calories) and looked at my percentages and told me I need to lower my carbs just a bit, but other than that it was fine. So it all depends on the person. Just make sure you have a good line of communication between you and your doc and you and your nut - they will prove to be valuable as you make you way on this journey.

It all comes down to what you can tolerate. If you have lactose issues avoid the cow milk and go for soy. For me I can do the 1%, but have always prefered the 2%. While I know that the 2% isn't the best for me I eat a rather low fat diet so I use my 3/4 cup of 2% a day. As long as you are taking the calories into account use what you like.

I do not believe that banding can cause this. Nor do I think size has to do with it. I have a good friend who was diagnosis with celiac after about 4 years of issues, she has never been over weight. She has always been skinny as a pencil. I have another friend who they are currently testing for it and she is not over weight and never had WLS. I think it has more to do with your body. Some believe it's kind of an allergy your GI system develops. Kind of like no one in the family has to have a peanut allergy, but your kid could pop up with it. I say this becasuse my cousin's son has a severe peanut allergy, yet no one in my cousin's or his wife's family have an allergy to peanuts. I know it sucks, but from what I understand from my friend a nutritionist can be your best friend.

Surgery totally throws things off. Mine came early 2 days post op lasted a week, when it normally only last 3 days (not heavy, but there). After that I haven't had a period since. I am taking my BC and have gone and had preg test done. Doc said it's normal so I am taking his word for it. He even did an ultrasound to make sure everything looked ok.

You are still VERY early one, give it a few weeks before you write it off. At about day 4-5 I was in the same place. Totally ticked that I had willing had this done, but after that it started getting better.

Totally normal.

I love spicy. I married a Louisana boy and if it's ain't got spice he ain't eatin it. I use a lot of crused red pepper flakes, cayenne pepper, different types of peppers. It's not just those though - I use cinnamon in a lot, ginger, garlic. All of these boost the body. Another great flavor additive is balsamic vinager. It's not just for salad. Add some to marinara sauce for a richer taste. Sprinkle on stir fry.

At the start of this journey in June 2012 I was excited and ready to go. I was determined that I was going to be a big looser. Next week I will be 8 months out and I have only lost 50 lbs. I really did think I would lose more in this time. Even though my doc seems happy enough I am still frustrated. When I went in for a fill last week my weight was up 1 lb from what it was at the prior visit- total bummer. Even though just days earlier I had seen the lowest weight ever on the scales (193) since that my weight in 2 days jumped to 197 then drop right back down to 194- had to be water weight right? Well for the last week and a half my weight has been bouncing from the 193's to the 195's each morning (I weight the same time of day in the same thing so it is constant). I am not over eating, I am not eating calorie loaded things, I have a calorie deficit each day. Right now I am not working out because I have felt like crap from having sinus issues. The hubs keeps telling me it's because I'm not working out. While I know I could find the time to fit it in, it is hard. I am tired, really tired by the time I finish all my have to's for the day. I am taking my C, D and B vitamins that my doctor perscribed. While I know plateaus are normal course, I hate that it happend so early in the game. I have told many people you don't fail until you stop trying. I am still trying, but it is so hard to stay positive. While I feel like I am in a green zone. 1 cup can totally hold me for 4-5 hours and even then I am not starved. My doc said not to miss meals so I have to set a timer on my phone to remind me it's time to eat. I am starting to feel like that is all I do. Breakfast at 6 (Oatmeal) Snack 10:00 (greek yogurt) Lunch 12-1 depends on what is going on at work What depends on what we had the night before. ~Snack - 4 ish depends on what I had for lunch- if I am really not hungry I just can't make myself eat Dinner- 5:30 to 6:30 depending on when the hubs gets home I am feeling like I am damed if I do and damed if I don't.

Thanks Zita- I appreciate that wisdom. God don't create no junk and He created me!!!

Awesome. If you have sleep apnea always use the CPap. Sleep apnea can be deadly. I use to do sleep studies to test for this and I had many patients scare me with how low their blood oxygen levels would get during the night- brain damage low. Depending on the type of sleep apnea you have you may be able to come off of it once you loose the weight. Obstuctive apnea are often caused by weight. Good Luck to you!