aeromech

I went yesterday for my appointment and am down 13lbs from 03/20 surgery day weight, 23% excess weight lost so far to their calculations. I was eating larger portions and hungry every 2-3 hours, so they decided to give me a fill. My previous problems with the hernia repair being a tight one and having problems even taking pills, they took all 4cc out. Now I have 2cc put back in. They told me to drink Protein shakes for the rest of my meals yesterday and nothing about what to do today. lunch today was some grilled chicken out of a McDonald's wrap. The wasn't the best choice I know, but I only ate 4 bites before I felt like something was wrong. I had the right size bites, chewed completely, waited 1 min or more between and still had that awful stuck feeling. I did not have to PB, it worked it's way on through, but man that sucks. Oh, and I am not hungry anymore... Lol I know people have problems with chicken, but besides that is there anything else I may have done wrong?

Jackie, everyone is different. Some people get the band and no fills and lose lots of weight and others are near max capacity and are good. It all depends on your body. I think night am going with softer foods for dinner tonight and maybe in the morning too just to be safe.

Been over a year for my wife and she still is dealing with it.

I had surgery on a Wednesday and went back to work the next Tuesday. I didn't have much in the way of pain from the surgery or gas. If you drink lots of water and get your walking in, I believe the recovery time is much shorter. It all depends on you.

Do you have allergy problems? It really sounds like mucus buildup, commonly associated with allergies. It's definitely something to call the doctor about.

Ruby, I am in the same boat. I get a fill on Tuesday and hopefully this hunger gets spaced out a bit. Everyone is different, I hope the first one will help.

Definitely looking like you are well on your way to becoming the new you!

Awesome difference!! I bet you lost more fat than you think, looks like you have gained a bit of muscle at the same time. Lookin good though! Keep up the good work!!

Quick recap of me: I was banded on March 20th, had some problems in the beginning with stuck pills and a stupid episode with metamucil along with an odd tightness from the hiatal hernia repair. I had 4cc in my band at surgery and since then I have had 3cc removed due to these things. Right now I am finding myself eating larger portions than we bandsters should eat, feel no restriction anymore(so the swelling is completely gone) and I am hungry every 2-3 hours. Luckily I go for my appointment on Tuesday and hopefully get a fill.

That's awesome! I have a very similar goal, diabetes, high blood pressure and cholesterol and too many meds! Congratulations on your progress! Keep up the good work!

Can you drink water? If not due to the nausea symptom I believe you may have some food stuck. If you can't drink anything, you should be at your doctor's office or ER immediately, dehydration is not fun at all. Is the pain near your heart area? If it is, it usually means you have some food stuck or trying to force itself through the band. Another symptom is 'sliming', when you have an abnormal amount of mucus produced in the esophagus. You will know exactly what I mean if it happens. If you have ANY problems whatsoever after having the lap-band, now or any time in the future you should call your doctor immediately. Do not wait, just call. It never hurts to ask questions and talk about what is going on. Especially since this is such a new experience.

I don't know how much I have lost, but my pants were falling off the other day. I was a size 40 and went for new cargo shorts. Amazing enough the 36's fit perfectly!!! Surgery was March 20, guess I am really shrinking! I go in for my 1 month checkup Tuesday. We will see what I have lost then, my home scale is different than the office scale. I will use theirs as the "official".

Hi, my name is John. I am 35 years old, 6ft and 270lbs, diabetes type 2, on blood pressure and cholesterol meds. I started off at 335lbs about 2 1/2 years ago. I am scheduled for lap band surgery on March 20th and am on day 2 of the pre-op diet. They say 4-5 Meal Replacement shakes a day and if I have to "cheat" to chew, have 4-6oz of lean beef, chicken, or beef. I have to say this is going to be challenging for me. I am one of those people that didn't gain the excess weight by eating sweets, I love food. My wife had the surgery a year ago and has lost just over 70lbs. I am so proud of her and am happy to have someone right here with me to coach. What have been your experiences, when did the anxiety of "what the hell am I about to do" subside?

Good point

All I was saying was that he is the "professional" and that is what he was trained to do. In no way was I approving that action. A few weeks back a friend from work had to have the same procedure done. He doesn't have a lap band, he has a naturally narrow esophagus and gets food stuck just like we can. In his case the procedure is routine because he has no lap band. Like I said before, every dr has different practices and they hugely depend on how they were trained. It is up to the patient to put other ideas out there, like... "I don't want to be put under, can we try to remove Fluid from my band first?" common sense will prevail in most cases, but the dr may have valid reasoning for what they want to do. The good thing is that Hudgie is ok.

It's not the experience level of the doctor really as much as who trained them. Everyone does things different, and there isn't a real industry standard on what to do.

Hudgie, feel free to message me if you need someone to talk with about your experiences. I am newly banded 3-20, but my wife has had it over a year. I seem to have had a crash course in learning the band... Lol. I am here for you man. Dealing with health and medical issues is no joke, that's got to be the time when you have permission to freak out a bit.

My neighbors haven't seen me in a while I guess... Lol Last time they saw me was earlier in the year when I was in the 270-280lb range. I am now about 240. My wife tells me that our neighbors husband and wife looked out their window to see where their kids were, only to see an unfamiliar person outside.... Me.... Lol They didn't recognize me at first!! The wife had to call her husband over to share her "wow" moment with him... Lol That made me feel awesome!!!

You are still going through bandster hell. That's when you are between surgery and the green zone. It is common for you to be hungry in this stage, but try to limit your intake so you don't gain anything.

Soreness really depends on how stuck or irritated the area was. I have gotten pills stuck and been uncomfortable the next day. So bad that my Dr had to remove a bit of fluid from the band. But I think I was overfilled from the beginning.

Wow, I am usually good in a couple hours. I don't know what to say past what I have told you already. It's times like this that really makes you take a step back and say "those rules are there for a reason." It's the meals where I am extremely hungry or got something too hot and instincts over training prevails, I end up not chewing and getting stuck.... The key is to just calm down and slowly refuel yourself not do a NASCAR pitstop style meal and get is done in 34 seconds. Have you tried tea or broth yet? I found that they went down even if the shakes wouldn't.

Congratulations! That's so awesome! You have got to feel great!

I have been getting hungry every 2-3 hours as I have my first fill appointment scheduled on the 16th and am still on the post-op recovery diet. I am pretty much up to normal foods now. It's usually something sweet that catches my eye when this hunger strikes. Being diabetic (type 2), I shouldn't even consider it, but chocolate is my nemesis. My best buddy told me that he saw a special on TV about diabetes and it included a section on cravings. For you diabetics out there, magnesium is something to supplement if you have sweet cravings. It also is used by your body to get the insulin into your cells. So it makes your body use the insulin your body makes better. I am going to try it. Anyone tried this yet or heard something similar?