reqgoddess

cracked pepper, i am 5'7", was 285 but was 44.5 when I got banded, so you will probably do better then i as you are younger and probably will have more energy. I have never seen anything that has said you can't move certain ways in order to avoid slippage. i have seen posts where people say becareful about not chewing your food carefully (at least 20-30 chews) as THAT could upset stomach and you could throw-up which if done too much can cause slippage. maximize weight loss...watch those calories and excercise. I drink plenty when I am thirsty but each person is different. I haqve never been able to "chug", not even water, so for me, not much different. Never heard of anything actually getting stuck.. Sometimes it may feel like it, again, if you are rushing and don't chew properly, and that can make you throw up which I guess, right before you do, it does sort of feel like something is "stuck". Hope this helped and good luck!!!

Want so bad, I think you will do fine. You could first try more excercise but you may need a small fill. I plateaued for months because i couldn't get back to docs but once i got my fill again, it was better. first month after new fill, only lost 3 lbs but fill after that, I have now lost another 5 lbs and still going.

I have had my lapband for a year now and still have only told a few folks. I too used the stomach surgery "excuse" and in my profession, most are too polite to ask exactly what kind of stomach surgery (thank God)lol. I just feel that I need encouragement, not jealousy. I already see some in a couple of friends I have told. I don't want to tell them now when I have lost more weight because instead of being happy for me they sort of make a face and very quietly say congratulations, etc. so, i tell my family, especially my kids are always happy for me and very supportive.

Dixiecharm, You must look at it this way..you wanted this, and you still want it, even though it might seem it. Just go easy. i went through a little of that and basically i picked up bad habits. So what if the food is cold. Take a smaller portion, then go back for more and heat it up so that you are re-heating and re-heating. what is the doctor saying? if you are having issues swallowing, in the beginning of eating, then something is wrong, so I would see a different doctor. Don't give up as you don't really want to. If you did, you wouldn't be upset in the least about it and it is very obvious that you are very upset about all this.

new update = 71 lbs lost

I got banded a little over a year ago, and I thought i would be 100 lbs gone by now. I was doing well, then plateaued, had to do a lot of Traveling for work, then had deaths in the family (3 in 1.5 months (all immediate family)) so it slowed me down because of the time I had to take off from work and out of my normal routine. I was so downtrodden ed. But my mom and DH kept after me to go back to doc. I felt embarrassed because i hadn't been there in months, but, I did it. Now I am happy again as I am losing. Not as quickly as I was before, but still they are coming off. if it takes longer then I thought, it is okay, because it is still better then I was. My BMI is still obese, but not in the morbid range anymore, so I am grateful for that. Keep going, keep believing in yourself, even in spite of your self (LOL) like me, it will pay off. every pound off is a nother step to healthiness and happiness and longevity.

You are only human. You went through all the prep work and the operation and you wanted some results, as we all do, that is the human side of us. But you may have a bigger band (there are different ones), or you could have lost more weight while in hosp or your Doc could have set it looser then some others...who knows? What matters is that you did it!! You took the GIANT step (which consisted of many steps to get to that big Giant one). Now, sit back and take a deep breath. Do the right things (see your doc regularly, watch your caloric intake and exercise) and you will be rewarded, I promise. There will be times when the going will be rough, and you may lose your perspective, but hopefully those times will be few and far between. If you made it this far, believe me, you have the stuff in you to tough it out. I can't wait until next month, I bet we will be reading about all the pounds you have lost!!

bergdorfblonde, Yes, and I am going to put both tickers on my profile, I think, but I , in my mind, track it lb by lb (talk about little chunks). LOL< I know it sounds weird, but I get happy EVERY lb. I was plateaued for a long time, so now, each and every lb brings me closer and is important for my brain to say, 'see, you are doing it"!!!

Davyna, I plateue'd in JUne/July. I got an overfill in June, so then in july, they had to take some out. Then I was doing alot of travel for work, and went to greece and then had 3 deaths in family. So, i didn't go back to doctor until january. Bad news was i didin't lose anything from July to January. Good news is that i didn't gain any. My doctor couldn't believe it, but i was exactly the same weight as I was in July. I was embarrased to log into here for all these months. But I am glad i did. BTW, I did need a fill. he gave me one and in february, i went back and had lost 3 lbs more, not much but a start. I got another fill that day and have lost another 3 lbs thus far. It is frustrating because I really thought I would be close to done by now, and here I am , not even half way. However, I am on my way. You are on your way. What was happening to me was that I could only eat a little bit but for 2 hours so therefore, I could eat a whole chicken breast and potatoes and veggies. So, once he put in the fill, it has been better again. Now I have to get off my butt and excercise again. That is something I had stopped doing and it was a bad move. Here's to being back!!!

Sorry to have gone off on a tangent here. When i first started, i was overwhelmed too. It looked like a big number. But you know, as it happens, you start feeling different. You start seeing success (not ALL thee time, so it keeps you humble and you keep trying) but now, I see that I can do it, if I keep at it. Perserverance is the key (and 100 calorie snacks like jjmiles says above).

my doctor wants me to have 150 as a goal weight, but I want 135, because I looked good there, and was able to do all the things I wanted to like run, etc. So, I need to update with both goal weights, it it will let me.

Oh, I must update my ticker tonight. I was on a plateau for a long time, so I felt so ashamed, i wasn't logging on. Silly, aren't I. Now I am losing again, but I need the encouragement of reading others enthusiasm. This is a great site for that!!!

Hi all. haven't been on in a while, but I like the new groups. took me a while to figure out which group to be in (reading too much into thedescription (lol)), but when I started I had 150 lbs to lose. Now i am at 69 lbs lost, so ALMOST half way there.

DynamoMini, I have to say, you are a blessing. You are so kind, yet very wise, I guess from life. isn't it wierd, how even at our age, we can still find freshness and sunshine in the day. we are still optimistic even after all we have gone through. i think it is great that you are talking with a therapist. i wanted to and still do but need to wait just a bit more for a couple of bills to be out of the way. Some folks, once they hit the 40's, sort of give up. Like, they get a why bother attitude. I think that life has just beaten them down, but then there are many on this website that are like Rocky balboa's, can't keep us down. Will NOT hear "defeat". Anyway, just wanted to say that I love to read your posts for I learn something about myself in each one. I think it is wonderful that you are a person so full of love that you can share it with all here.

Liz, Your doctor needs his head examined. You are about 100 lbs overweight, and so the band would work. i cannot answer teh mexico questions, but look in the diffent topics because thee are threads dedicated to those mexican doctor questions. Depending upon your insurance, they may pay. Also, do you know for sure that you don't have things like sleep apnea? They will test you for that prior to surgery, etc. At 230, and 45 yrs of age, you aren't "that" healthy, and you know what i mean, i am not trying to be facitious. However, with the band, you do have to give up some things. You get the band to be healthy, so quit the smoking. You will NEVER really be able to excersie and feel good if you are smoking (I have tried, believe me). Forget soda it is the most unhealthy thing. Each and every ingredient is not just NOT GOOD for you, each and every one is BAD for you. They make you GAIN weight, yes, EVEN the DIET ones. I will be honest with you here, you need to do more research. This is surgery. It is a total lifestyle change. If you are not prepared to make a lifestyle change, then the band is not for you, seriously. Why go through surgery if it is all for nought? However, if you do your homework, and you really want to do this, then the band is a wonderful tool for losing wieght. However, it is a TOOL, you must still watch what you eat, count your calories (don't care if you use points, portion control, etc. it is all still counting calories, just someone else did it for you) and excersise. But if you do, you will love the results. i went down 3 full sizes in 4 months. Yup, that is 56 lbs, but....this last month i have not lost my normal 15 per month because I was overfuilled and so i was able to eat ice cream and fritos but not good food other then yogurt (I don't like alot of soups, etc) so, I have only lost 8 lbs since my last fill. BUt I am going back to morrow and have some taken out . See, at first i was thinking , well, that is allright if it is too tight, it'll loosen soon, and i will lose more wirght, but it isn't the correct way of doing it. Now i feel tired, no stamina, not eating correctly not really eating at all, so not losing weight either, well, not like I was. When i get back to the right feel, I will have energy and can excersize and eat the right things again and look forward to my normal wieght loss. Hope I didn't confuse you. Good luck with your quest!!