Vicki J

BrandyII - Just be careful about getting too full. If you're having problems with foods, try and find out why. For example, chicken can be rubbery/dry. Scrambled eggs are a good source of Protein although they may not keep you full as well as good old meat does. However, since you've had problems it might be better to do softer foods like scrambled eggs, cottage cheese, etc. I'm glad to hear you're doing better. Definately keep me posted and if you have any questions that I might be able to help you with feel free to PM me. Vicki

I have a surgeon that is wrapped around the statistics. He keeps trying to tell me I might not loose much more and I keep telling him to hold on to his statistics because I'm going to blow them out the door. I, too, did a lot of research which was fortunate be cause Kaiser in No. Cal just started doing them about a year ago and gave a lot of RNY info. BrandyII and mummybandit - How are you two doing today?

I'm glad to hear the two of you haven't given up. As the banded bariactric nurse on another message board says "only a few people cannot loose weight with the band and we're not that special". She also says that the band is a fickle b***h. Most of us just need to figure out the attitudes of our bands and then we're off and loosing. I went around trying to reach the old "full" feeling for a long time. I caused myself some discomfort before I figured out that that feeling isn't the same anymore. I also have to battle myself because I simply love the taste of food and I have to make myself back away from the table. The old saying that this is the "easy way" out is a crock. It's work and if we don't do it right we get punished. Start easy again and be willing to take time out for yourself. Trust me kids, family and friends will benefit from a healthier, happier you. It's not a race it's a journey. Enjoy it. Keep me posted. I'm rooting for you to get past these problems and find the skinny person inside. Vicki

Hello all - Boy it sure sounds like brandyII and mummybandit are having troubles. Ok, ok, I know that's an understatement. After reading the posts of both of you I have a few suggestions. Keep in my this is just my humble opinion and I don't have any medical degrees. Susan4794 asked why brandyII got a fill if she was already having problems. I'm curious about this too. I'm also curious why when you can only eat small amounts of good food you're switching to the bad food. I could be missing something here. If you can only eat small amounts of good food and you don't feel you're getting enough nutrition in, eat a couple of extra "small" meals. Journal your calorie count and make sure that you don't go over 1200 per day but this would definately be better than eating the "bad" foods. Mummybandit - Grapes have skins that can be a problem with people who may be too tight. I don't mean so tight that you can't swallow your own spit but a little too tight. Also, sandwiches have bread and possibly lettuce both of which are nutorious about being hard on bandsters. Some of us can eat them but a lot of people can't. Try tuna with crackers (start with saltine since they are the mildest). The left shoulder pains can be from the problems with the band and overeating. When I first got my band in December '07 it happened to me if I ignored the soft spot. Now I think that both of you should give your stomachs a break and do a couple of days of liquids, then full liquids, soft food working your way up to regular foods. One of the things about meats and regular veggies are that they are dense or if the veggies are raw they can be hard. My doctor didn't want me to eat fresh veggies (carrots, brocolli, etc.) for 6 months to let the stomach heal. They are very hard to digest. Your meats need to be extremely moist or they too will give you a hard time. Some people suggest ff graveys or something like that to moisten them. Watch what you eat for a while. I still will look at a dinner roll and start to nibble on it...then I squeese the piece in my hand to check and see if it might be something I'll have a problem with. I have learned from others that if it balls up in your hand (like we used to do as kids) then it can potentially give you trouble. Rice and Pasta can do the same thing. Also, consider a slight unfill. If you're really in a bad way, yeah I would do a full unfill but if you're able to eat the wrong things, I think probably a small unfill will help. You might find out that giving your stomachs a break as I mentioned above and carefully choosing the right foods afterwards might just do it. This is a tricky process. Also, try a cup of tea (hot) before eating and let it relax your stomas. Stop eating at any sign of fullness or trouble. Pain while the food is moving down is usually your esophagus spasming. Unless of course you've taken too big of a bite, not chewed well....etc. I hope this helps. Keep us posted and feel free to PM me if you have any questions. This can be worked out and you will be a success once it does. The frustration has to be huge. Keep your chin up and be persistent about making your doctors hear you. Good Luck! Vicki

April - Wow, sorry to hear that you're having trouble. My other girlfriend that goes to Dr. Alami also got too tight. Now, I'm not saying anything about his abilities to do the fills, just saying that she got there too. I haven't heard from her in a few weeks so I don't know how it worked out. She was going to try and ride it out because it wasn't "that bad" but she had to be real careful. I was worried about the getting in the same spot. Dr. Le didn't do any agressive fills on me. He really wanted to sneak up on it. He gave me about 1cc on the first fill (I had 2cc after surgery), then he gave me .5cc the second fill and I don't know for sure what he gave me on the 3rd and final fill but I think probably around .5cc. For me that worked out fine. Some people would think they were loose because I can eat anything except really dry meat. But I do ok at not getting hungry except in the morning. I usually need a snack around 10. So, I just plan it in. The main reason for that is my lunch is around 1. One thing I did learn is if I eat dense protein (steak, chicken, jerky, etc.) I stay full way longer. I was trying to oatmeal for breakfast and I think I made it to work before I heard the rumblings. Carbs and things like cheese just don't last. I usually have my carbs (veggies/fruits) with my protein or for my planned snack. Never as a meal by itself. Dr. Le said to call if I need a fill, otherwise, he'll see me in 6 months or so. He said he wanted a picture when I got to goal. Of course, this is after he AGAIN told me I probably wouldn't loose much more weight. Geez, these guys and their statistics. :tongue_smilie: I think you're idea of easing up on this thing is good. I don't know about you but driving all the way down there is a total pain not to mention the stress of being too tight. Keep me posted on how you're doing. I wish I had some wise sage old advice for you but I don't. This band is a fickle thing. They change daily. Sometimes it's like having a living thing in there with the loosening and tightening they do. Good Luck!!!! Vicki

Hey smilin_apple - I'm doing great. The fill level that Dr. Le has me at seems to be pretty close to the ol' sweet spot. It's nice because it helps me with the hunger but I haven't had any PBing or slimming. I guess I'm pretty lucky. Every once in a while my esophagus will spasm but it doesn't last long. It surely reminds me that I have the band. How are you doing? Vicki

Heartfire - Congratulations on getting started with your journey. There is a person going by the tag Warrior on this board who has gone through the Richmond process and has finally received her date. I suggest if you can get ahold of her to ask her the questions regarding Richmond. I went through SSF Kaiser and will be more than happy to answer any questions I can. Again, congratulations and good luck. Vicki

Connie - The feeling that your are describing sound like you're eating too much, IMHO. Try planning a good meal (protein/veggies) and only putting the amount bandsters should eat on your plate (2-3 oz protein/.5C veggies - eat your protein first). Then cut everything into pencil eraser size. Chew the heck out of it. I mean mush and then some. Once you finish your serving put your plate away and leave the table. Get busy doing something else. Now if you are still hungry after say 1/2 an hour, get yourself a snack. Limit it to 100 cal. or less. I have found that if I use a good source of protein (i.e. meat - something dense) that I don't get hungry as fast either. Make sure you DON'T even sip liquids during the meal or for at least 1/2 hour after you eat. Also, make sure that your calories aren't used for liquid calories. These do not stay with you. Eat no more than 3x a day with MAYBE 2 planned snacks. Keep your calorie intake NO MORE than 1200 calories and ABC (all bites count) in the calorie intake. Should you still be hungry with the above mentioned method in less than 3 hours...you probably need a fill. If you continue the way you are going, (getting where you feel like you are choking) you will stretch either your pouch or your esophagus. This will cause major problems. Feeling full to a bandster does not feel like it does pre-banding as IndioGirl55 stated. Sometimes it's an art to figure out. It may be a sigh or a burp/hiccup. If you get to any discomfort (pain, choking feeling, etc.) you have gone too far. Now my "soft stop" is when I realize I'm thinking "should I stop?". That usually comes just before the feeling of food being left in my throat. I hope this helps. If you have anyother questions, please feel free to PM me. Vicki

Hi Jessica - I'm with Kaiser and started my journey June '07. It started with an orientation on that date and I finally got through all the hoops and had surgery on 12/12/07. Right after orientation I started on their pre-op meal plan and lost 70 lbs before surgery. I figured since I was in this to loose weight I might as well start then. Since surgery I have lost an additional 28 lbs. I went through the So. San Francisco facility and I have to tell you that at times I was so frustrated that my friends and family had to listen to me blow off steam. But I'm glad that I held on and got the band. Please PM me if you have any questions. I'll be more than happy to answer them. Also, let me know what facility you are going through as each of them have a different protecol. Vicki

Ella Bella - I went through the Kaiser program in SSF but there is a person on this board going by the tag Warrior that has just gotten her surgery date for Richmond. Try and get ahold of her. She will be the best person to tell you the way things are in Richmond.

I went through the No. Cal lapband process and it is quite frustrating. The main reason it's so frustrating is because they only do the surgery at 3 of the Kaiser facilities and are, therefore, quite overwhelmed. Their director of bariactrics is changing jobs so I don't know if the new person will get this straightened out or not. Yes, the process is long. The last time I was in the orientation room at S. San Francisco they were saying 4 to 6 months before the next appointments. I'm not surprised it's now 32 weeks. I think the availability of the band is causing a landslide of people to show up. You also have to be the one to "keep in touch". When an appointment becomes available due to a cancellation, they don't call anyone to let them know. It sits there unless someone calls to check. So, my advice to anyone trying to get through the system "faster" would be to call and check for cancellations every week after orientation. Once you get through your appointments and are waiting for surgery I don't think you can do much else than wait. At that point they have a system in place to call and fill the cancellations. I don't know how it is at the other facilities in Fremont and Richmond. This is just S. San Francisco. I was told when I went in and started the process in June '07 that you could not pick your facility. You were assigned a facility depending on where you lived. At our facility they pretty much did the 10% thing. Yes, some people got away with less and some were required more. I lost 70 pounds of the 130 I want to loose prior to surgery. I made sure that they would not cancel my surgery due to too much weight being lost and then proceeded to loose. I figured that I was in this to loose weight anyway so why not start at orientation. That way they had my starting weight to show that I had over 40 BMI. I was banded in Dec. '07 and I'm now down 95 lbs. So don't look at this time as wasted time but look at it as an opportunity to get ahead in loosing weight.

Tarasa - During this time you are not only healing but you're not able to do a lot of things like exercising. Also, from what I understand they pumped about 10 lbs worth of liquids into us and that will fall off of you within the next couple of weeks. Don't be worried about not showing the weight loss this soon after your surgery, it will happen. Watch all the calories in any liquids you drink as they can be really sneaky in pushing up your intake. Also, some drinks like gatoraide have sodium in them. Watch your sodium intake too. It will happen. Good going on keeping track of your calories. You will need that during the period between the time you get to start solids and the "right" fill. That's what's kept me going while we search for the "sweet spot". Good luck on your journey!

Hi everybody. I, too, just found this thread. I don't think it's fair for me to go by my bandiversary because I lost so much while I was on Kaiser's program/waiting list. Also, I wouldn't have 100 lbs to loose if I went by when I was banded and I totally plan on claiming the 100 when I loose it. So, I have the goal to reach 100 lbs by the anniversary date of when I started the process which was June 6th. With only 9 pounds to go I really hope I can make it. Will you guys let me go with that?

Heartfire - Wow, it sounds like you're in some beautiful country. I don't blame you for not wanting to go to the bay area but, unfortunately, that's the only place I know they are doing it. I keep hoping they will do it in other places but we can't even get a fill somewhere closer. It's a real bummer. Yeah, I've been chugging right a long loosing weight. Sometimes I have to work at it a little more than I want because I get where I need a fill but hopefully soon we will reach that sweet spot and I can glide on through. I have about .2 pounds before I reach the spot where I shed that "obese" label forever. Of course, that's when the weight stalled for its monthly pause. I keep telling myself it too will be gone soon. I wouldn't have chosen another surgery for anything. I know that we have to work at it while we wait for the right spot but at least it is forever adjustable and as you said it isn't as invasive. I have (knock on wood) had no problems with this and see the light at the end of the tunnel. That's a first in so many years I can't remember the last time I saw that light. I thought the bulb had burned out for sure. Now all I have to do is get over feeling guilty because I have to buy clothes once a month. My DH gives me a hard time (good humored hard time) about this. I told him I could stop loosing or gain it all back and he screamed NO! I can tease with the best of them. LOL Keep me posted on your progress. I think Kaiser's adopted the mantra of "Go west". Also, feel free to PM me if you want. I see those quicker.

April - Good to hear from you! Boy you've had a little bit of a rough time. I know that for a couple of weeks after I get a fill I have a very sensitive esophogus and it tends to spasm whenever I eat. I describe it as the feeling of fingernails going down. I have to be really careful. Then it seems that things adjust and I find I can eat more. I have a problem with my doctor because I don't know how much he really knows. I tried to explain this to him and he just told me that if it continues to call him. Of course, it stops and thanks to others I have discovered what it is. He also has been dragging his feet because I continue to loose weight even if I'm hungry because I stick to the program. I have emailed him regarding this because he doesn't listen to what I'm telling him about how much I can eat and when I get hungry. As to your problem, maybe you should get a small fill, say .5cc. I think it sounds a lot like me and that you're going to have to be VERY careful the first few weeks after a fill with what you eat. If you have a PB episode, go to liquids for a couple of days and let things rest. The best advice is to ask your doctor. Explain the whole thing to him. I wish I could be of more help. Go to smartbandsters.com and ask them. They're old pros and Jessie, a bariactric nurse, is on there and she will get back to you. Good luck and keep me posted.

Welcome, heartfire. Glad to have another member. I was laughing yesterday because I haven't figured out how all of us Californians got to be posting on a thread labeled Kaiser Maryland. But I'm glad we found each other. I don't know where in California you are located but if you're from the Sacramento area you'll probably be going through So. San Francisco. I was banded on 12/12/07 by Dr. David Lee down there and I'm so glad I did it. The journey is long and often times very frustrating but being here now, I would do it again in a heartbeat. I started with orientation on June 5, 2007. I decided right then and there that I would follow their meal plan (pre-op diet) and start my weight loss journey from that point on. To date I have lost 89 pounds from my highest weight which showed up early last year to now. I was worried at one point that they would not give me my surgery because I had lost so much. They all assured me that this would not stop the surgery so I tredged on. Kaiser is in it's infancy in regard to the lap band. They have only been doing them for 1 year. The staff is really paying attention and they are always trying to get feedback from the patients. So it's a learning experience for us all. Please feel free to contact me (PM or online) if you have any questions. Each of the Kaiser facilities (all 3) that do this surgery have a different program. It's pretty easy to get through if you're willing to stay in it for the long haul. Like most other programs, you'll have to go through a psych evlauation (piece of cake), see a nutritionalist, meet with the director of bariactrics, and see the surgeon. Good luck on your journey!

Hey smilin_apple - I've been running all over this last week. Sorry I didn't get back to you sooner. My Dr. is David Lee. I really liked him and I'm hoping that this was just a lack of communication. I need to make sure that he realizes that I'm not going to eat more than 3 oz. of Protein and 1 cup of veggies no matter what. I told him before my surgery that I fully intended to continue with no more than 1200 even if I wasn't at the right fill so I would keep loosing weight. I think I need to remind him of that. He can't go by the fact that I'm loosing weight because of it. Anyway, my last fill has helped and I'm doing pretty good with it. We'll see how it's going as I near the 14th of March. As for your problem, a lot of people are tighter during the mornings. On the other board that I am a member of they talk about this a lot. They suggest starting out with a warm drink in the morning. This tends to loosen the stoma. However, there are still people that just can't eat in the mornings. A glass of milk has something like 9 grams of protein so maybe a couple of these through the day would be good. Make sure that during the hours you can eat to eat 2 to 3 oz of protein FIRST. I have a tendency to still eat a bite of protein and then one of veggies. Since I can get the 2 to 3 oz in it's not a problem. But if I'm tight I do the protein in case I can't get what I need down. I have the problem in reverse. I get tighter in the evenings. It gets better the further out from my fill I get. But the first week or two is a pain. Literally! Since I'm not much of a Breakfast eater by nature I have to make sure the protein is the main thing I eat. If these things don't help, call the doctor. It is possible you need as little as .1cc taken out to make it right. From what I have heard, if you can't eat solids and you are drinking most of your calories you can hinder your weight loss so it's better to have a little taken out. Let me know how it is going.

Hey smilin_apple. Good to hear from you. I got my 2nd fill on Monday (4th) and pretty much had to brow beat the Dr. into giving it to me. He asked me how much I was eating (I told him 3 oz + 1C veggies per meal) and I told him I was getting hungry at about 3 hours. This is about the same as the last time and he gave me a fill. Then he asked me how much I was exercising. I was truthful about it and told him that I hadn't really gotten into a regular routine since surgery. He replied that with that information he wasn't going to give me a fill. My daughter and I both got the impression that I was being punished for not exercising. I finally convinced him to give me a fill and he gave me 1/2 cc. This puts me at 3.5cc. He then told me that I could pretty much figure on not getting anything next time. Hmmmm. We'll have to see about that. If I don't need one I don't want one. However, how can he tell at this appt what's going to happen in a month? This may be something that we'll have to include Dr. Stiles on. I'm down about 16.5 since surgery. I'm coming up on 2 months out next week. I've been plateaued for the last couple of weeks. It sure is frustrating. But this is something every person trying to loose weight goes through. Well, like I said it's good to hear from you again. Keep me posted on how this fill does for you.

Hi Heather - welcome to the board and as a fellow Kaiser lap band member. I went through the program at So. San Francisco and was banded on 12/12/08. I started the program with orientation on June 5, 2007. I, too, was very surprised at how easy it was to get referred to the program. I had one doctor tell me that I would not be accepted because they only took people way bigger than I was. That was about a year before my new PCP referred me. He didn't even blink at my request. I was on their pre-op 1200 cal. diet during my wait and lost about 56 pounds. I'm now down another 13.5 since surgery. I'm down a total of 83 pounds from my highest earlier in 2007. So I'm a happy camper and I really love my band. I hope your journey goes well for you and if you have any questions, please feel free to ask.

JLM - Where in northern California do you come from? Which Kaiser will you be going through. I'm east of Sacramento in a small town called Penryn. I went to the S. San Francisco Kaiser for my surgery. Good luck to all of you starting out on your journeys.

susieQ - I'm doing great. The fill they gave me has me on the loosing track again. Whoohoo! I was feeling ok within a few days. You're port site will hurt for a couple of weeks but that's nothing that Tylenol won't help. I came back to work on day 6 and had a rough first week. I wasn't taking in enough protein and so I got worn out real quick. Once I started being a good girl with my protein drinks I came back pretty fast. By the first of the year I was going good. I'm about 5.5 weeks out now and don't have any problems unless I eat too fast or something I KNOW I shouldn't do.

I went to the same facility. Orientation is pretty drawn out but it's one of the many things you'll have to go through. It sometimes gets pretty frustrating but hang in there. They are very overwhelmed and sometimes it seems like they loose sight of the emotional turmoil it creates. Good luck on your journey and feel free to contact me for anything. I try to answer questions and give moral support. I've met a lot of good people on the internet.

The average weight loss that the surgeons want to see is 1-2 pounds per week. Some people will loose more and some less. Remember this is an average and not an every week thing. Loosing weight right after surgery (liquid phase) usually only happens with people who are 1) lucky enough to have restriction w/o any fills or 2) count calories until they get restriction. There are several things that can effect weight loss such as calorie intake, sodium intake, Water intake, and exercise to name a few. One of the things that can help is to journal your food intake. Fitday.com has a great free program to do that with. Some people need more than 1 or 2 fills to feel any restriction. Keep in mind this is a very individual thing and you should try not to compare your weight loss with others. Yeah, I know, it's hard not to do that. I know that I lost about 14 pounds after surgery while on the liquid phase only to gain 3 pounds of it back when I started solids. This sent me right back to my fitday. On another site it was brought up that people who use non-dairy coffee creamers and drink coffee throughout the day don't realize that they can take in 400 - 500 calories just on that. When you're trying to keep things around 1000-1200 calories a day, it uses up a lot of what you can have. I hope this helps. Vicki

susieQ - Hi and welcome to the board. I'm from the Sacramento area and was banded by Kaiser in December. It was a long process but I'm really happy I stuck with it. How far into the process are you?

Hi Laurel - I'm Vicki and I had my surgery at SSF Kaiser on 12/12/07. I had my first fill on Tuesday and now have around 3cc's in my band. So far I'm doing ok. I'm still waiting for the weight to start going down. I had to wait around 6 months for my surgery and I lost most of my 78 pounds prior to surgery. For some reason I got really motivated to do it. I was on the liquid diet during Christmas so there was no overdoing it for me. I did regain 3 of the 14 pounds I lost after surgery when I started solids. I'm down to eating approximately 1 cup of food at meals. They're going to have to fill me more if they want the 1/2 cup you mentioned. Feel free to contact me by PM if you want to.