Bandista

Hi there, you are absolutely not a failure -- a) you are here, and you're seeing your doctor regularly. You have only been banded six months and there are many people who take this long to find the green zone and discover what works well for them in terms of behavior modification. We all got banded because we could not control our appetites. We need the band to assist with that and you are getting there. Really! Don't beat yourself up. We are in this for the long run. Good luck on Tuesday. And maybe reread the Dr. Simpson piece on the band not being about restriction - I can't get it here or I'll lose my post but a few people (Missy, Jim) have it in their signature and I often reread that to get my head in the right place. I've also been really working on my eating triggers -- started seeing a therapist to try to go deeper into specifics, like I automatically want to prep myself with food prior to business meetings or a conference call, or I'm looking for a reward. Or the old screw this attitude after too much deprivation, the eating from boredom or to Celebrate. When those impulses come I try to break them down so I am mindful. May still want whatever it is but I have introduced a thought process and that makes something into a choice rather than a given. That's what I'm changing, the way I think. Keep us posted! You are going to get this fill and find that place of peace, I know it!

Evenings are my tough time, too. Really trying to increase protein so I'm going to try this. I know I'm not in the green zone because while I have never even tasted a Ho Ho or Twinkie the thought of peanut butter in the house makes me salivate!

Hi Nancy, I just got my first fill, too (Wednesday) and will go back next week to assess for another. I get full on a small amount but am hungry again after a couple or few hours -- I am looking for the 4-5 hour range. It's definitely a process determining whether hunger is real or it's old habit, etc. I'm just happy to be snacking on something like 4 almonds when in the old days I'd have so much more. Then go back for more. Immediately post-band I did not think about food. Looking for that feeling as well. A real dimming of the appetite to the point where the brain chatter is gone.

Wow! Way to go.......

Stressful way to discover you fit into those jeans! Happy for you and that your husband is okay -- good luck with all, and it sounds like you're going to need another pair of even smaller ones hanging in your closet soon.

Hi there, sorry for this setback -- great you will get the correction so soon, and a fill at that. And now the port will be just right for future fills. I have read about this happening to others. Keep us posted on your recovery, now you're feeling post fill, etc. I just got my first one and going back next week. We are going to rock our bands!

So glad! Hope you have a nice quiet weekend...isn't it great to finally be banded?! Yippee!

You've been through a lot -- sending best wishes. I imagine your body is still adjusting. Glad you're here on the forum! Snapi GOT this!

Yippee! Happy for you and what fun you'll have wearing it ("I'm in an 8!, an 8!!!!). I so look forward to enjoying a dress or shopping or anything remotely connected with clothes. There was a time, long ago...... Maybe this spring/summer!

Hi there! I was banded 11/5, too -- just had my first fill a couple of days ago and will go back next week for another (no fluid in band at surgery). I had no hunger for quite a while but then started getting hungry and hungrier sooner -- still seems to be a few hours and I need food again rather than the 4-5 hours my doctor is looking for. I know I'm not having enough protein so today I began having a shake each morning. I have had one stuck episode when I just ate too fast and probably too much (steamed veg -- was craving beets). I have been exercising a lot. My weight loss was good but plateaued recently -- gained a few back just before fill. Had alcohol around Thanksgiving and a trip we took -- doctor good with that but I think it stalled weight loss or just a coincidence. May be time for my body to regroup -- 20 down, rest, now for 20 more! I am down one jean size and just so happy to be less obsessed with food.

Congratulations -- so happy for you!

Congratulations! What a great way to start 2014!

Can't wait to try this!

Hi there, same as Carolina -- cannot feel it inside me but I can feel the port under my skin. Sometimes I put my hand there to remind myself of this amazing step I've taken toward good health and happiness. Feeling a lot of both those things and I'm only a month banded! Best wishes to you!

December 1st~ 227 December 7th- 230. Deep breathing then going to make protein shake.

So inspiring! You look terrific!

A forty pound weight loss is great -- and now you're on your way to getting off the next chunk. Way to stop yourself before you regained anything significant, and to get in to the doctor for a fill. Best wishes for a healthy holiday season!

I say shed the old stuff that's too big -- cause WE ARE NOT GOING BACK THERE! And shedding in general just feels good. Unless you are my husband or son, who rifle through bags in the car to see if I'm throwing out any of their stuff.

Hi Beautiful -- getting outdoors helps me so much, and then one foot in front of the other for enough days in a row and suddenly you are not just walking but you are a walker. Maybe some exercise will make you feel better......and don't worry about how long it may be taking to reach your goal as we are all just works in progress, one day at a time. So glad you are on the forum. It helps me to read how others are doing -- we are all in this together. Best wishes!

This is wonderfully written.....thanks for sharing your creativity. Poetry contest, any one -- how about Haiku?

Hi Jakki, I just had my first fill, too -- it seems like learning to listen to all the body's signals is the key to the whole thing. So happy to be in this place, a month out. Seems like just yesterday we were waiting to be banded! It's all happening, just a process.......good luck to you!

Hi there and congratulations on being banded! Many of us know the dreaded shoulder pain -- sometimes it takes a day or two to set in but when it's there, oh boy. Walk it off! Get yourself up and moving and move your arms, too. You will be feeling so much better in a day or two. I did liquid Tylenol and Ibuprofen as needed and I needed it less and less -- stayed away from the prescription narcotics which, for me, come with their own side effects that I didn't want to have to deal with. The great thing about the walking is that once you've taken those twenty steps back and forth, then thirty, forty -- it's amazing. It's like in a week you are suddenly a full-fledged walker. That was a goal for me, to actually like exercising. It happened, and I am so happy about that. And a month out and today my first fill, I am so incredibly happy to be banded. You have made an amazing decision for your healthy future and your happiness -- great things ahead! Best wishes to you for a speedy recovery!

Yippee! So happy for you!

It sounds like you have really set yourself up optimally -- and that's what your band is there for, right? Congratulations on your son and now taking care of yourself. Sometimes hard for Mommies to do that and you are smart to be taking all the steps needed to insure your healthy future. Good luck to you!

I am so fascinated by all of this.....