Booyah!!

Got banded this morning! Back home by 11am! So far so good. Congrats to the other who are done with the banding and good luck to everyone coming up!
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Clear 100% juices, but no citrus, sugar free popsicles and Jello, low sodium broth, Gas-X, caffeine free tea, Crystal Light. Don't buy too much of thing, because things you like pre-op, may not work for you post-op. You may prefer cold to hot or even room temp liquids. I'm 2 days post -op and added Skim Milk Plus today mixed with my Protein Powder. My doc progresses the diet quite slowly.

Mrs. CMK I just wanted to encourage you... Sounds like your spirits are lifted today...I know exactly how you feel...I have done zumba over the past two years or so and have the same horrible habit of "surveying" the other attendees and not wanting to be the "entertainment" for everyone cause afterall, I can't move like them, etc. I want to encourage you to keep your head held high and don't let the lies of the deceiver creep in and win! You are SUCH an inspiration and encouragement to the other ladies in that class, and other people outside of the class just by being there and doing your best! Keep up the hard work, you are inspiring others to do their best and not quit. Don't underestimate the power of the Father to shine His light SO brightly through even our greatest weaknesses!! (especially through our weakness and our tough times!) You've come so far! over 80 lbs thats amazing!!! You are loved just as you are, right where you are; you are a princess of the Most High King! Keep shining!! :-)

I think that is great, Mrs. CMK. Just moving for that amount of time is a milestone in your journey. I am a spaz and trip walking over lint on the living room floor so Zumba isn't for me at the moment. I try walking 5 days a week and people keep asking how many miles I walk. I honestly don't know and don't care cause I know that I am not as fast as I was 10 years ago. So when they ask me, I tell them it doesn't matter how far I walked but that I did it for a whole 60 minutes without stopping!

It's awesome that you are trying something new. Comparing ourselves to others is a hard habit to break. The important thing is that you are exercising and I promise Zumba does get easier. I take a class at my local gym and it took a while to get the hang of...but in no time you'll be looking like a pro. And this is coming from someone with absolutely NO rythm!

My church has a ministry called FaithFit. 18 months ago and 80 extra pounds ago, I attended the Step Aerobics class and truly felt like I was going to die. I could not do it for more than 15 minutes and seriously was afraid that I was going to have a heart attack. I attended just a couple of times before I knew it was not for me. Now that I am 80 lbs less, I thought I would join the Zumba class that was starting up for 12 weeks. Everyone said it would be fun and not to worry about looking ridiculous. Okee dokee. So....last night I went. It was NOT fun and I did look ridiculous! However, I see the potential for being fun and I will go back. The biggest achievement for me was that I moved for a solid hour. Not sure what I was doing but I was sweating and MOVING and I did it for a whole hour! I didn't feel like I needed to stop and catch my breath. Don't get me wrong, I wanted to stop a couple of times but I didn't.
Here is the one thing that really got to me. I was still the biggest girl in the room. I know it doesn't really matter but it is habit for me to look around the room to see if I am the biggest and I was. Ugh. I had all of these negative thoughts starting with "what's the use?". I felt an overwhelming urge to run out of the room because I thought I was going to burst into tears. I am better today and I know I just need to keep going. I will get there. For me, I am a true believer in the voice of truth (God) and not the deceiver (Satan). It was just a temporary thing that I let get to me. I have worked too hard to let one out of control thought get in my way of achieving my goals.
Thanks for letting me share.

I am so sorry. This must be quite frustrating for you. I agree with Instyle98, you did nothing wrong. It is just one of those things. Keep your chin up and don't give up. You will be quite the inspiration to anyone else who may go through the same thing.
God Bless

I'm so sorry this has happened to you. Just remember that you didn't do anything wrong to cause this and it's just another hurdle to get over. You will be back on track before you know it. On the bright side, you will probably lose some more weight because of the surgery and goal wise you'll either be right back on track or ahead of your timeline! Best of luck with your surgery. l'm sending healing thoughts your way!

We have loads of Muscle Milk powder. It comes in more flavors than just vanilla, chocolate, or strawberry. We have Peanut Butter cup, s'mores, Cookies and cream, etc. Variety helps. Beef broth with taco seasoning was one of my favorites when I helped my wife go through her liquid diet.< /p>

Hello and good luck!, I on day 4 of pre-op shakes, I must say i have not been starving (Yet), I am using the Bariatric Advantage shakes- the iced Latte is superb!! also the orange cream is good. I throw an ounce or two of Diet V8 splash to change them up , and criss cross the two scoop per shake. I have 5 shakes a day and have survived so far. I wish you the best and will follow to see what other suggestions people have too. Have a positvie day

Sorry to hear this - it sounds frustrating.
Please post the name of the doctor along with the clinic. Not only will it be helpful for others considering lapband but it might cause feedback that your provider can see and will take to heart.

Sounds like you need to find a better support team or even a new Dr. You should be able to contact the office of your Dr. with any questions. Maybe some other Dr. in your area will be able to provide you the support you should have. Good Luck

Sounds like you need to find a better support team or even a new Dr. You should be able to contact the office of your Dr. with any questions. Maybe some other Dr. in your area will be able to provide you the support you should have. Good Luck

Just because you can ... doesn't mean you should the more fill you get the less this will be possible. I'm not being a smart a$$ but why do you need to chug... I mean my boys chugged when they came in from excercise ..but I don't get it?? I can tell you this it will hurt when you get filled and may come right back up think hour glass.
I drink all day long from the time I get up until I go to bed, I carry Water with me wherever I go, which for me is a huge change the only liquid I got before was diet pop.

My doctor said 6 weeks - I went back to spin, yoga, running and kickboxing type classes. Feeling really good! Did a full backbend in yoga today worried the band would pop off but I feel fine! I did check with my doc about yoga and he gave me the all clear

Hello everyone,
I finally have my insurance and I am in the process of finding a bariatric surgeon. Well I decided to confide in my friend and she just told me all of the negative things she has heard about the lapband. She said everyone she knows that have had the surgery has had problems. She told me she thinks I can do it myself.she said I may just have too much going on which is making me stress eat. She suggested me going to see a nutritionist. It made me confused kinda. But I'm going with my heart and continuing the journey. I have been on this site for 6 months and have been doing my due diligence in finding out all the information on this procedure. Please give me words of encouragement. By the way I made an appt with a bariatric dr for feb. 28 th.
I know I will be on a 3 month supervised diet. Do people change their minds?

The liquid diet is a common feature of the bariatric surgery landscape, as widespread and despised as kudzu in the South. Since there’s no way around it, you might as well make the best of it by learning the reasons for it and trying the practical tips I’m going to give you.


WHY A liquid DIET?
Bariatric clinics use differing protocols for their patients’ pre-op and post-op diets. Why? When you finish explaining that, perhaps you could also explain the meaning of life? If you asked your surgeon or dietitian, the answer would probably go something like this: “We have adapted these procedures to suit the needs of the patients in our individual practice, based on our experience of what produces the best outcome and the fewest complications.” In the case of adjustable gastric band patients like us, you might expect the band manufacturers to dictate what are called “best practices” in patient education and care, but the fact is that if Allergan and Ethicon-Endo were to employ armies of band police to supervise every bariatric surgeon in the world, no one would be able to afford a gastric band.
However those clinics’ protocols may vary, the liquid diet is extremely common part of bariatric patients’ pre-op and post-op instructions. Contrary to popular belief, the liquid diet is not intended to torture the patient. The main purpose of a pre-op diet is to reduce the size and improve the texture of the liver (any weight loss is a plus). The liver is a big organ whose left lateral segment lies on top of the part of the stomach where the band is placed. The pre-op diet uses up the glycogen stored in the liver, shrinking it and making it sturdier, less slippery, and easier to maneuver with laparoscopic instruments. This not only makes the surgeon’s job easier and quicker, it also reduces the risk of complications for you. If your surgeon doesn’t require a pre-op diet of any type, I would have to conclude that he or she is mighty confident in their surgical abilities, but I would also want to ask them how often they have to abort a surgery or convert from a laparoscopic to an open incision technique because of problems handling the patient’s liver.
The purpose of the post-op diet is to keep you nourished while you and your upper GI tract recover from surgery. Although AGB surgery is usually minimally invasive (when done laparoscopically), it does require incisions and some internal dissection, as well as manipulation of your internal organs. All this can cause swelling. One day your stomach was fat, dumb and happy. Now it's got a collar around its neck. In order for it to digest food in any form, your stomach muscles must expand and contract to break the food down and move it along to your lower GI tract. Expecting your stomach to do that comfortably and safely while wearing its brand-new collar just isn’t wise.
So to allow everything to heal properly, and the band to seat itself against your stomach in the correct position, most surgeons require patients to follow a staged post-op diet, starting with liquids. What happens if you don’t follow your post-op recovery diet?
Food can get stuck in the stoma or esophagus and cause an obstruction and/or vomiting.
Vomiting can disturb the position of the band, which can cause the band to slip.
Peristalsis (the muscular action of moving food through the digestive system) can disturb the position of the band, and that can cause the band to slip.

So don't do it!
"But I already cheated!" you say? It's not the end of the world, but don't do it again!
"But I'm starving!" you say? That's too bad, but that isn't the end of the world, either. Not, it's not fun, but hunger is not a good excuse for cheating your health in such a major way. I'd guess that seven of ten bandsters starve their way through the liquid diet phase. If you absolutely cannot bear the liquid diet for another second, or you think you might be genuinely allergic to your Protein Shakes (which could be lactose intolerance rearing its ugly head), call your surgeon or nutritionist before you put something in your mouth that isn't on the approved list. And by the way, the same advice applies to following a liquid diet after each fill you get, so you might as well perfect your liquids survival technique now because you’re going to need it over and over again in the future.
SOME PRACTICAL TIPS FOR SURVIVING YOUR LIQUID DIET
Don't worry about how many calories you're consuming, but stay away from milkshakes, ice cream, frappes and fancy coffee drinks.< br> Drink Protein Drinks (protein will keep you going longer than sugary stuff like fruit juice).
If you don't like the smell or taste of Protein Powder, try putting the drink in the freezer long enough for it to get slushy, and/or put it in a covered beverage container. Sometimes it's the smell, not the taste, that's bothersome.
If you don't care for sweet tastes, try unflavored Protein powder (from various sources including Unjury®) or Unjury® chicken Soup flavor protein powder (www.unjury.com).
Add Unjury® chicken soup flavor protein powder to blended creamy Soups (follow the Unjury® heating instructions or it will clump up and refuse to dissolve).
Add fat free half-and-half or milk to prepared chicken bouillon or broth for a creamy drink.
Add unflavored or fruit-flavored protein powder when making sugar-free Gelatin. Check out the recipes at the Unjury website. Be aware that “unflavored” doesn’t mean the protein has no flavor, so the end product isn’t going to taste exactly like the original.
Buy your favorite soup from a local restaurant, strain out the solids, and drink the broth (Chinese hot and sour soup is wonderful this way).
Buy or make bean soups, puree and thin them with broth, Water, or milk. The pureed soup must be thin enough to pass through a drinking straw.
Add powdered non-fat milk to soups and shakes to boost the protein.
Crunch on sugar-free popsicles, slushies, Italian ice, or ice chips.< br> Don't hang around people who are eating real food.
Experiment with the temperature of your liquids - cold may feel or taste better than hot, or the other way around.
To prevent boredom, experiment with recipes for protein shakes (you'll find at least a million recipes online).
Keep busy! This is a good time to address holiday cards. Who cares if it’s the middle of June?

AND IN THE TMI DEPARTMENT…
A few final words about your liquid diet. Don’t panic if consuming liquids sends you running to the bathroom more often than you’d like. LIQUIDS IN = LIQUIDS OUT. If that happens to you, ask your doctor to suggest a safe, effective OTC anti-diarrheal medication.
And remember: This too shall pass. In more ways than one.

Sounds like you have a great attitude going into this. Best wishes to you!

Welcome to the fold. I will keep you in my prayers.

The band is an answer to prayer for me also. last summer I was praying for guidance as to what program to use but all I would get Is"be still and Know that I am God" So I just waited to see what He was going to show me. Then in Aug. I had my regualr yearly physical and my DR. said she is going to referr be for WLS. With in a couple of days The hospital called and I went to the orintation and filled out all my forms. It seemed everything went so smoothly and my insurance cleared at first try. I was banded Jan7 and have lost 8 lbs plus the wieght I lost before surgery. May god bless your journey.

Best wished for your success. You seem to have a great attitude and sounds like your will be just fine.

Thank you God for giving me the strength to head in this direction! Surgery is scheduled for 2/21 and liquids start this Friday. My husband is a huge support system and will not let me stray. (not that I plan to )☺
I am so excited and so nervous to start this new adventure, and meet my new friend "the lap band" !! My tool, not my quick fix!!
All your stories have been so inspiring to me, thank you all and I wish you/me all the success!!
Happier Days are coming!!!!
ttfn

Thank you God for giving me the strength to head in this direction! Surgery is scheduled for 2/21 and liquids start this Friday. My husband is a huge support system and will not let me stray. (not that I plan to )☺
I am so excited and so nervous to start this new adventure, and meet my new friend "the lap band" !! My tool, not my quick fix!!
All your stories have been so inspiring to me, thank you all and I wish you/me all the success!!
Happier Days are coming!!!!
ttfn

Thank you God for giving me the strength to head in this direction! Surgery is scheduled for 2/21 and liquids start this Friday. My husband is a huge support system and will not let me stray. (not that I plan to )☺
I am so excited and so nervous to start this new adventure, and meet my new friend "the lap band" !! My tool, not my quick fix!!
All your stories have been so inspiring to me, thank you all and I wish you/me all the success!!
Happier Days are coming!!!!
ttfn