lisacaron

Ok question is it baking powder or baking soda? There is a difference I'm sure....just not what it is ????

I agree with @@briefs199 every surgery is going to be work. They all work differently and you have to put a different amount of work into them but they all require you to show up and be accountable for you. Since you already have the band, and if you not having trouble with it why not speak to your Dr. and see what they advise? I know many are switching, taking out the bands and getting sleeved or going for the by pass. I have to tell you that when my surgeon "retired" and we (hubby and I) were kind of left to find our way with the new group that took over or another one...and life happened along the way....I was not losing, I was eating I found my old habits easy to retreat to...I saw I was not losing and I won't lie, I thought about changing up my surgery. The new Dr. even advised that I would be a candidate for a revision, but I had to think seriously long and hard about it. My realization was this: I don't have a problem with my band. My port is working fine, I get filled and unfilled, I eat and don't get stuck or sick when I follow the rules of eating (which is true for all surgeries) so why would I change to another surgery? If I can't make what I have work for me why go through it again and find myself still asking these questions? I know that what I need to do is make behavioral changes, both physically and emotionally. For me I am an emotional eater. Happy, sad, feed it sweets!!! That is what needs to change. I need to remember that all my body needs is a balanced Breakfast lunch and dinner. It doesn't need anything more, and I don't need to use food to sooth my savage beast when she's ready to roar or soothe my boo boo's with chocolate and ice cream. So I am not revising my surgery, I am still down having gained only 4 pounds since my last weigh in when I had an unfill due to virus and I am determined to make the changes I need to make because I know no matter what....if I don't change them I am going to be right here struggling with it.

@@Inner Surfer Girl Thank you I am going to have to look that book up and give it a read! @@gowalking Thank you my friend! I am working on getting a grip really I am. It's one thing after another but you know that's life. At least so far (I am knocking on wood) things are working. Dad is out of the hospital and staying with my brother for the moment and we are trying to get him an apartment in a 55 and over community closer out on the East end by us, and so far he is working with us and not against it. On a good note I did get the scale reprogrammed today, and I have gained about 3 pounds since the last time I weighed which is not a huge amount but still....I would like to refocus on becoming healthier and remembering why I had this surgery to begin with. My family has so many issues, things I didn't know about before that are so clear now. Not only the issues with digestion that I knew about already but issues with metabolism and the way the body processes and eliminates toxins. So far 3 out of 4 of my fathers siblings including himself have had issues with renal failure, kidney cancer, leukemia and lymphoma. it's a bit of a wake up call for me that I need to really take this seriously and take care of myself, eat right and exercise. Sweets are my downfall, but I have to be stronger than them so I can live a long life and not end up where my Dad is at 73 or my Aunt who passed at 61 or my Uncle who has bladder cancer at 56. Couple that with my Mom's DNA...she passed at 51 from a brain tumor. I'd say the odds are not in my favor.

@ if you are looking into going to Mexico for surgery you might want to try to contact some others on the site that have used surgeons there. Adding to that I also think that if we look hard enough for the negative we are going to find it. You have to decide what is a deal breaker for you. Is it someone saying something negative about a surgeon or surgery because they didn't lose the weight they wanted to? Also where is it coming from? How do you know it's the surgeon or the surgery choice and not the patient use of the tool? In that vein let me also say, that the best place to start your research is right at home. Contact bariatric doctors in your area of Canada and find out if they will treat you for follow up if you have surgery someplace else. You don't have to say you are thinking about surgery in Mexico you just want to know if they treat patients they didn't operate on. If you find an office you like in your area that will see you for follow ups, then you are one step closer to the next step of finding a Dr. When your researching a surgeon ask many questions of the surgeon, call their office and speak with the staff see if you can have a phone consultation and get to speak with the Dr. find out what type of surgical post-op they offer, and get a feeling for the Dr. then do some research and try to speak with patients of theirs to get a real perspective. We can read so much mis-information on the internet, when it comes to things as serious as surgery I like to hear it straight from the person. That goes for my own doctors as well. Recently I had to have carpal tunnel surgery and I did all this research and asked my husbands hip surgeon for a recommendation and then I went to meet the surgeon and her assistant and staff etc. I saw 2 practices before I found the Dr. to do the surgery. There were some negative comments on the internet but everyone I spoke to including her patients and the hospital staff some of which were her patients as well LOVED her and trusted her and said she was the best. You know what, I felt comfortable after that and today my hand feels 100% better and my scar is non existent! Best of luck to you and welcome to the site!!! forgot to add in the link for you though it says sleeve I am sure there are other surgery modalities there as well. http://www.bariatricpal.com/forum/486-mexico-self-pay-gastric-sleeve-surgery/

I have the fitbit scale. I have had it for years since the very first one came out and I have to say I love the thing! It does take pretty accurate weights as well as BMI and it allows you to track it along with your fitbit on profile. Eventually the scale I had stopped syncing with the upgrades to technology software in both modems and routers so I messaged fitbit and then sent me a new replacement scale for FREE, and I did not have to send the old scale back to them. I have to say they are one of the most stand up companies I have come across they truly stand behind their products and will replace and trouble shoot them with minimal inconvenience to you the customer.

Wow I didn't know the shows paid for the surgeries and all that. I figured there was some kind of "incentive" and I guess it makes sense though I was hoping they chose the surgery to save their lives on 600 show and were on TV to help others in their situation find hope. I am naive ???? I would not want to do any of that on TV or in the public eye, though I do learn from these shows and it helps me remember that it could get that real if I ever let it. Especially when you see the people that are still walking and driving to the donut shop every morning and not just being waited being enabled by others. You can clearly get there on your own. ???? I was watching the extreme makeover last night and admiring that woman who really got the lead out and dropped 92 pounds in 90 days. Then I think yeah but that was all she had to do all day 100% focus on it and that is not my life. I have to work and kids and animals and family etc. finding the time for fitness and the time for recovery from work outs like that would be impossible with out 100% focus like that. Ah well. I am not a resolution type person but I am committed to working on my health (which has not been the best) this year and making that a priority. That will eventually include getting back to the gym, and I do miss moving especially in the cold weather everything gets so tight and stiff with out it. ????

@@Letsgetskinny first thing is take a nice deep breath. Your band is more than likely totally fine. You were a bit tight, which is why you were having some issues eating and swallowing liquids. So they took out a bit, but probably not enough since you were so tight. At certain times over the course of the month even from hour to hour the "tightness" of my band can change. If I am sick, it's all the tighter as it tries to deal with the excess mucus etc. Sometimes the change in pressure can also cause the band to feel tighter as can happen when you travel. Vomiting no matter how small of an amount or content causes the stoma to become extra swollen as the stomach is irritated both by the mechanics of vomiting and the bile or digestive Fluid that comes through even in small amounts. This makes the band feel even tighter. Once they took the fluid out you had relief and that's great. Stay on the liquids to give your tummy some time to heal from all the stress on it. Then move on to mush and then soft foods before going right back to solid food and things should "reset" and you will be feeling better and able to get back to your normal routine. Let me also say that you should NOT leave the Dr.'s office without having more information or having your questions answered. If you have some that you don't think of until you reach the car or home even don't let them off the hook. Call the office and demand that your questions be answered, they are there to take care of you. All of you not just your band but your well being and that includes making sure you are not feeling stressed out about what's going on

@@Debbie3sons what did you think about the show? I am one of those weird people that like all that medical stuff. Not so much the surgery or having anyone show me how much skin they removed from my body I would NOT want to see that. Maybe on drugs it might be OK cause who would remember it I was really happy for both of them...though I have to say the guy for having gone to plastic surgery practice I was not all that impressed with his scars or the nipple graft that they did at all.

@@gowalking do you think that they don't have to pay for the surgeries? I would think that nothing is for free these days....I have to be honest though, I have a panus and I have not even lost that much weight and I have so much further to go but I have to tell you that thing bothers the sh*t out of me!!! If and when I ever get to a stable weight that would be first thing that goes!!! Not because of how it looks...I think it looks just fine, but because of how it feels. It hangs and touches skin to skin and just irritates me something awful and it's worse in the summer months and when working out. I hate it...and sometimes I think that having more issues like that is what keeps me from really losing more weight....

@@windysample don't dread the fill You will hardly feel the little pinch of the needle as it enters into the port, and then you might not feel anything as they put some Fluid in. It could take a little bit up to 2 weeks to feel any difference, as the fluid settles into the band. How long after surgery you will get your first fill will usually depend on your Dr. when you see them for post-op ask them, or better yet give the office a call so you will know what to expect when you get there. I would also ask them how conservative or not they are with the fill amounts. Some offices will only give .3-.5cc at a time and some will give you 1cc and up. It's always good to have an idea of how your fills will be done for reference. Each person will respond to surgery and fill levels differently. Some are good with no fluid in the band and lost the majority of their weight that way and then some need to have lots of fluid in the band and then some find the green zone at 5cc while others are at 6 or 3. It's really subjective but the more you know the better able you will be to ask advice from other bandsters and from your doctors/PA's.

@@Backer16 You Rock!!! Good looking out and great support!! I wish you all the best as you both move forward on your journey.

I had my RMR done at the surgeon's office, and they read that thing and told me I could eat approx 2000 calories a day and still be losing weight. Yeah right!! I could eat 800 calories a day and GAIN! Sorry I'm not sure where they get all this stuff from. I sat on a machine that measured your Oxygen and breath etc and it was all part of this metabolic test...but you know I am call Bullsh*t here. My body likes to hang on to excess for dear dear life. I could exercise till the cows come home...walking, swiming, biking and more. Eating in a range of 800-1000 calories and you know what...Nothing. In a few days at that rate and my body rebels and I end up sick because my immune system turns on me thinking it's under some kind of attack when all I am doing is trying to be "healthy" so I have to say ladies I am at a loss....I haven't figured it out yet. If you have any insights please share them!! I could use all the help I can get!

I have had to have my band unfilled and refilled several times. One time due to dilation where the top of the stomach pouch overfills to extend over the band. It was a mild dilation but I had to have the band emptied. After that I did get a fill, and I was OK again though I had not lost weight nor had I gained weight and I was grateful for that. Other times I had the band unfilled because I was sick and then again because I had to have surgery. The flexibility of the band is a great thing and I am glad that I have it and I am able to utilize it as such when needed. Recently due to a flu I have had 2cc taken out so I could (sorry for the gross) allow the extra mucus to pass and not create a plug in the stoma as it was. I feel so much better with the Fluid out than in. There are things about the band that I think we forget. It's different for each of us. It's not a golden standard that x amount of fluid will equal weight loss. We have to work at it a little harder since we still have all our hormone producing glands that tell our brain we need chocolate now to feel better because when we were 5 and scraped our knee that worked. So the fight we just had with out spouse, or our child chocolate should make it better, if not one bite then 100 bites. No matter how tight or loose we have our band it's not going to change those signals. We have to change them, and it's a struggle in behavior modification. Those with other surgeries lose parts or re-route parts of their anatomy that stop those signals. Having had 6.5cc in the band and suffering with the flu...not good. Now having 4 cc (in a 10cc band) I am feeling good, and I am not hungry 4-5 hours between meals. That doesn't mean if someone gave me some chips I couldn't eat them...but I have to say no to them because I am not really hungry I just want them and they are not good for me..nor will they help my weight loss or health. It's finding what works for you, and knowing what your pit falls are and how to avoid them and find ways around them that help you reach the point you want to be at. I am still working on it every day.

I know the dreaded hunger....keep following the Dr.'s plan and soon enough your gonna be eating solid foods again and ready for your first fill. Slow and steady wins the race

After reading this I would say it's an awkward compliment from some guys not knowing what to say to an awesome lady.

Ah my friend...eating "normally" again is something that will return to you. It will become your new normal. After a while you won't even think of your band much more than you think about breathing. You will eat your meals, and eat your Snacks and enjoy them as you have never before. You may hear people say that surgery is the easy way out, when the truth is that is so NOT the case. The only thing surgery is going to help you do is keep the weight off once and for all. (do I hear a Woot Woot!!!) The eating habits you have had over the years, those things you are going to have to overcome on your own, and I will tell you that there are days when I wish the band could go around my head and stop those annoying habits but it just doesn't work that way. Being banded has helped me to lose nearly 80 pounds, and keep it off through all the turmoil I have gone through in last couple of years. Having a band has also helped me by being flexible so that I could open it to heal when I was sick and/or after other necessary surgeries and get right back on track. All the food funerals we hold, and trust me my hubby and I held them!! Right before surgery we ballooned up to the highest weight we had ever been in our lives!!! I wish I had someone to tell me that it was OK and I didn't need to do that, that I would eat those favorite foods again and this time enjoy them as the "treats" they were intended to be. You too will get there, and the foods you love you will enjoy again just from a different perspective.

@@windysample here is a tip for drinking shakes and Water etc, especially good right after surgery when our minds have not yet caught up with our body. Get a medicine cup, and/or a shot glass and pour out the shake into that cup and sip from it. Don't down it like a shot but drink from it slowly as you would from a cup. It's about what your tummy can handle post op at one time. When you finish it, pour another and take it slow. It's one way to help you slow down your intake as your body and your mind get used to this new life style. Soon enough you will know the feeling of what one mouth full feels like and you will be able to go back to a regular bottle/glass again. The same will be true as you move to mushy and soft foods. You may find using a toddler spoon/fork helps you. As you move to solids, taking the time to precut your food before taking a bite will help you, and always remember to chew chew chew. You got this!!!

Happy New Year to you all!!! I hope 2016 is finding you happy and healthy thus far!! Though the week before the new year I had to have 2 cc's taken out of my band I am actually feeling better for it. I'm able to eat and not really be too hungry between meals. I need to focus a bit on moving and getting some exercise in but I am hesitant to get back to the gym....not sure I'm 100% ready for that yet. Maybe I will start with the gym at work and just get some walking in daily and go from there. Everyone in my office seems to be sick again. The cacophony of coughing and throat clearing...oh my! I have my classical music turned up loud and I'm conducting them all in unison to spraying of my Lysol!! I'm taking some immune boosting Vitamins as well, because I just don't want to get sick again! I can't say I was fabulous in choices this weekend, pizza was definitely on the menu as well as movie pop corn but at least I didn't eat a whole pie or anything like that, and today I'm back on track and ready to focus on 2016!!!

@@Seraphina Valentina I can pretty confidently tell you that you are not alone!! You are probably feeling like you will never eat these things again and you may be holding some food funerals for your favorite foods as you prepare for your surgery and upcoming pre-op diet. Let me stop you right now. There is no need to hold food funerals because you will eat these things again. That's the truth. You may not eat them with the vigor you are eating them today, you will not eat them in the volume that you are today but I promise you that you will eat them the way they are meant to be eaten some time in the future. You will savor the taste the texture and the enjoyment of these favorite foods in their proper perspective after surgery. So for today, enjoy your meals. Take the time to savor them and enjoy the moments for what they are. When you go through your pre-op do it with your goal of surgery in mind and try to follow the Dr.'s diet to the letter. After surgery, do the same follow the Dr.'s orders and go back to eating foods at the pace prescribed by your Dr. come back to the site often as you will find many friends who will help support you through your journey. Good luck to you, and congrats on your surgery date!!

@@wincha Your doing pretty good, looks like you just had surgery this month? It can take up to 2 weeks for a fill to settle in around the band. Do you know how big your band is? 10CC or 14CC? You don't want to have difficulty eating, that's not the point of how the band works. It's not about feeling "restriction" as much as it's about not feeling hungry between meals. You should be able to eat about a cup or 3-4 oz of Protein without any problems chewing and swallowing. If you find your hungry after that much, eat some vegetables.Just because you "can" eat a whole chicken breast doesn't mean you "should" be eating the whole thing. Start with the 3-4 oz serving and after eating wait about an hour or two assess how you are feeling. If you find your hungry 2-3 hours later then you very well may need an additional fill. If you are not hungry at 4-5 hours after eating then your band is working just as it was meant to and your in a good place. It takes some practice and disapline to eat only the serving size necessary. The band is there to let you know when you have over eaten, but waiting to that point of feeling sick is not fun, and you never want to be so tight you get stuck on food because trust me that is really not fun. Keep up with the exercise and you will soon start to see the pounds melting away.

@@Missariana39 From reading your post it sounds like you are Pre-Op. (have not had your surgery yet) It's pretty normal to come home from school and find yourself bored. When you working no stop at school getting to classes doing home work and projects and hanging with friends coming home to your "old" routines which you have outgrown leaves an opening that your not sure how to fill. Binge watching TV and eating are what most people do when they are faced with such empty down time. It's an easy fix, the TV is there and ever present with all the shows we can access now through various media outlets. While you could consider it feeling depressed it's not something that's clinical like a depression diagnosis. So what to do.... You don't have "friends" at home, you have out grown your usual at home routine...so start a new one! You gave yourself the break and enjoyed some TV and eats and now lets get moving on to something meaningful. Shut the TV off, read a good book...write some letters....create something. Visit the local craft store even a paint by numbers set is something productive to do. Find a project that won't take forever to finish...and will keep you busy while your home. It can be just about anything. Maybe start a walking challenge for yourself. See how many miles you can walk by the time you leave for school again.... When I have big projects that come to a close and I find myself in that down time zone, yes I watch some TV sometimes even binge watch shows everyone is talking about that I have no time for during a project as I am working all hours. When that gets old or I finish the season of the show, I don't fall into that "show hole" I find something productive to do. I'll read a new book, or I'll color in one of those adult coloring books, or I'll put a puzzle together. I'll do things I have to do like organize the closet or take old clothes to the good will etc. There is always something you can find to do that will occupy you and keep you away from sitting and eating. It's good practice for after surgery to avoid those head hunger days. Wish you all the best of luck as you go forward on your journey!

@@gowalking wonderful post! Makes me happy to hear and see all that you have done this year and gives me hope that things will only get better. I hesitate to say that I am trying to get myself back into the gym after seeing the surgeon on Monday. I hope she will say OK and I can get back to some activity. Sitting around and not being able to do much is such a downer and it's true what they say a body at rest tends to stay at rest and it's not going to be easy getting back into a routine again...especially after the new year when the gym is packed full of New Years resolutions, but I'll have to count myself among them and suck it up and get to it. I'm hoping for a happy and HEALTHY 2016 for all!!!

@ let me first say that you have really done amazingly on your weight loss journey. Sure none of it has been easy, and I think most of us could say that is true for us as well. Dealing with issues of self esteem, food cravings, depression and anxiety can pose some pretty serious road blocks to weight loss.Sometimes we need help to over come those road blocks and find ways around them. Do you see a therapist? Sometimes a good one can help to find ways around the road blocks and it could be something simple like changing the anxiety medication to just finding other coping strategies to those night time cravings (which are horrible I know from personal experience!) Your doing so well, don't give up just keep an eye out for those road blocks many of which you have mapped out already in your thread. Once you know what and where they are you can start to find ways around and through them to get to where you are comfortable in your skin. That might mean taking a look at yourself and instead of judging those few pounds, try loving yourself the way you are for who you are. Then perhaps in finding that love and acceptance of yourself, you'll find that road block no longer exist, and your one step closer to where you want to be.

@@wincha looks like you just had surgery? If that's the case it could be residual gas pains from surgery. If that is the case moving can and will definitely help things.

My first goal is what it is every single day. To be Healthy!! To me that means not only making healthy choices in the food I choose to put in my body, or about the way I move or don't move my body through out the day but also to make sure that I am not over working myself, dealing with stress in positive pro-active ways as well as creating and maintaining a positive healthy environment around myself to ensure the success of my goals. I know it's a pretty big over arching goal. To get there I make little goals each and every day. Starting with waking up in the morning and preparing for the day ahead. Each thing I do through out the day is a mini goal marker for me toward my overall goal. Many of us I think take being healthy for granted and we focus on only our weight loss, but for me it's so much more than being able to lose weight. My weight is only one thing in the kaleidoscope of my life, and it all needs to fall into place to create that big picture that is ever changing.