kacee

Gas with the left shoulder and neck pain was about 2.5 weeks. Gas itself (burping and farting) about 30 days.

I would think open surgery would be worse. They say it is because scar tissue from other surgery has interrupted the blood flow through that area of the stomach. I had an exploratory surgery at 16 and have a very wide vertical scar from my belly button to groin on the right side (wound up being appendix rupture). I had no problem with laparoscopic surgery because the incisions were well away from the scar and very small. My surgeon never commented on my scar or that it would be any problem at all.

I order a ton of clothes on line... Roamanns, Lane Bryant (smaller sizes), J.Jill, Coldwater Creek, Willow Ridge, Newport News, Chadwicks, Blair, Silohuettes...

Dare I say it...it sounds like you hate your life and your band just happens to be the one thing you can blame it on. If you don't follow the "program" you won't lose...period. If you are eating because of stress and you are stressed you guys need to start finding out how to alleviate the stress in your life and stop chewing on each other and pointing blame. Your band is in so you need to start working with it...you made that commitment. If you are finding the whole thing is a big "Oh s&%t" because you didn't anticipate the impact of the payments for it...sounds like you guys should have a lot more pre-planning. It never ceases to amaze me how quickly people find a way to shoot down what they have supposedly been working toward (some for a very long time) and I seem to see more and more folks who within days after getting their bands announce to the world that it was a HUGE mistake and (some) are ready to have it yanked out in the name of "Oh I didn't know it was going to be "like this." Sorry, guys. You can ignore my post. This just gets kindof old to hear all this whining when there are so many people out there who would give their left tit (literally) to be where we are. Nuff said.

<p><p>Well, mostly the sick lookingfolks are the bypass folks who lose DRAMATICALLY. As a guy, you are probably going to lose pretty quick, but if you keep your protein up and take vitamins religiously you should be fine.

You are feeling your port. I can feel mine too. When I lay down sometimes it pooches out. Doesn't bother me at all.

What do you love about your band surgeon and their practice? He's been around doing the band since it was authorized by the FDA....he is NOT a newcomer. He has done thousands. He is totally non-judgmental. What do you hate? Nothing to hate at all, except he's in the meical center area which is a bugger to get to in Houston. What do we do well? Just keep doing that voo doo that you do so well! What could we do better? EDUCATION!!!!! The doctor gives you LIMITED ammunition before the bandster hell period. There needs to be some serious education about what to expect. Don't you notice that a MAJORITY of people who are newbies are going "Why am I feeling this way? Am I screwing up? Why can I eat?" right after banding. People need to be educated that the band itself isn't doing the work, it is the restriction, which may not come sometimes for several MONTHS (and yes, I know you said that every fill should be perfect...and my fills were all done with a flouro., so they were dialed right in....but for some reason, whether it is the fat deposits on the stomach or what and the relative large loss up front after banding, the first few fills notoriously don't produce excellent results and they have to "keep at it" for a while. (I am speaking in generalities of course because everyone is different....I'm looking at the "numbers" here). I know doctors are hesitant to give anything but 1. This is what you COULD do with the band 2. These are potential complications However, I think they need to cowboy up and provide more intensive education for their patients on handling the pitfalls that will probably be experienced after surgery. I know I read between the lines and picked up a lot, so when the feelings of extreme hunger, ability to eat what I though were large amounts, etc., came on me...I was able to go..."Okay, this is phase two. I knew it was coming." Didn't learn that from my doctor. Maybe doctors are afraid of "scaring" their patients away with the information.... What more could we do to help you succeed? How could we improve your customer experience with our practices? Just keep having knowledgeable staff on hand to answer questions and encourage your patients to call regardless of how silly they may feel.

Third fill was a major difference. Then after dropping another 20 pounds I had the 4th fill because it was starting to loosen up because of the weightloss. Had a little "top off" for the holidays because I could feel that I was just turning the corner after losing more and didn't want to get caught during the holidays with a sudden ability to dive into the food. I am pretty much perfect now, and continuing to lose. Within 11 pounds of my (first) goal!!!!

It is totally normal to be able to eat a lot in that period after surgery between when you heal and when you get your fill. The operative word here is "slowly". Eat until you are full but eat slowly. You WILL feel filled up faster this way. Eat, but eat very slowly (like put your fork down between bites) and chew chew chew, and eat the right foods. You should have no problem.

I've also never had a numbing agent used. I asked about it the first fill, and they said Not necessary because the stick of the numbing agent is exactly the same as the stick of the filling needle so you are not gaining anything by being numbed". They were absolutely right. Numbing ould have been an unnecessary waste. Each time I go in it becomes more and more routine and such a NON-ISSUE!!!!!

Hmmm. I've had 5 fills and never felt ANYTHING or heard anything as it was done....nor did I feel different after. Of course I do have a 4cc band, and I know a lot of you folks have the bigger bands. Maybe that's it....

I was the 2nd fattest kid in my entire school (grades K-6) by the time I was in the 3rd grade. I began gaining at 7. I had only a small period of time in my college years when I did every diet drug known to man and was able to starve myself to semi-normalcy, but after school it shot back up once again. I've been obese other than that period for my entire life. You can see my stats bellow. I consider myself a HUGE success story. I figure if you've been stable for a while (I was stable for about two years before surgery) you're at your set-point and your body is adjusted to the intake. Regardless....it can be done!

My mother said she could tell when I was born, compared to my brother and sister born later, that I was built dramatically different from the two of them. They had little butts and slender legs. I was round and plump with a big butt....the day I was BORN. She said she cold look at me and tell that the fat cells were just sitting in there waiting to bloom. Neither of my parents were dramatically overweight. They also did not have bad eating habits and I was not raised with sweets or sodas in my house. There was no such THING as ME going into the refrigerator for food by myself...EVER. I ate what was given to me at meals, or what was allowed between meals. I never ONCE in my life "raided the refrig" at night. We had cooked meals, for every meal (except lunches at school). All that being said, I have been dramatically obese since the age of 7. By the time I was in the third grade, I was the second fattest kid in the entire school (which went up to 6th grade).

An addiction is a lifelong affliction. When people ask me when I lose all my weight if I will be getting the band removed I tell them "No, this is a disease that is under control, but if the band is removed I will more than likely go right back to my old habits in a very short time." I am confused as to what you think the rest of us are doing that doesn't "qualify" as overeating. I am an overeating QUEEN. I not only can sit down and pack away a 7 course dinner, I can do it in about 5 minutes flat. I eat FAST, and a LOT, and I STUFF my face when I do eat. I actually ate a 32 ounce prime rib steak in one sitting (along with a baked potato, salad and several glasses of wine) once (a long time ago, tho). Of course this was all "pre-band". No more over eating now. My definition of overeating has been dramatically altered. But if I didn't have my band, I know exactlky where I would be.... eating two to three adult-sized dinners at a sitting and packing on the pounds. It is a compulsion.

It is typical to feel uncomfortable/pain when drinking for the first week or so after surgery. Everything is swolen and irritated. You just gotta take it very slow and very small sips. It will get better.

Give em a call. Can't hurt.

<p>For those of you who are afraid your life will come to an abrupt end after banding and that you won't be able to eat anymore... I just went downstairs to the cafeteria to see what was for lunch. My appetite kicked in when I saw the eggrolls they had and I really started salivating. Then I saw the chicken tenders and reacted the same way. I initially got two chicken tenders and one egg roll and then thought more about it and got only one tender and one egg roll. Sat down at my desk. Three bites into the eggroll everything "hit bottom" and lt me tell you, when you have good restriction and you eat slowly and you don't drink with your meal, and your food "hits bottom", you could CARE LESS if you have any more. I did finish the one eggroll but it's like my taste buds turned off or something. I took the remaining tender and tossed it, and I am FULL! The appetite can kick in for foods, but it stops pretty quick being an overwhelming force the minute you put the food in your mouth. Now if I can just convince myself that one lonely eggropll on the plate is PLENTY...and not consistently feel like I have to ADD something!</p>

Yep, now THAT is going to change. Everyone has this idea that their life ends after the band, food is forbidden and they'll never again have what they had before. Wrong. Burger King will still be there and so willl the cheeseburger. You will probably be able to eat at least some portion of the burger....maybe...if you can do breads down the road...but never again will you stuff a burger and fries in your face and go back for seconds. THAT's what's gonna change, and for us that's what we need. Lots of people eat burgers and don't gain loads of weight....but they eat them sensibly, occasionally, and in small quantities. I was reading somewhere the other day and I saw this quote from a doctor... There are no bad foods. There are only bad portions.

Old habits are hard to break. We're like little children who have to be supervised while we learn to walk. Problem is, we are supervising OURSELVES!!! WHOA what a concept!!! I just ingrained in my head the things I definitely needed to stay away from for a period of time until I was more under control to experiment. The reason the chicken went down is probably because the pasta was wet. Pasta goes down fine (let me qualify that...it goes down your THROAT)...it just doesn't STAY that way...and it swells. Pasta, rice, bread....BEWARE. I agree going from fluids to solids all at once is not a good thing. Stear clear of ALL meats except things like fish filets (very soft meats) during this time. Meat was one of the LAST things I introduced. Get creative.

Things feel very different post-band and pre-restriction, so this is kindof a "no man's land". You have to kindof wing it here, but this will not last forever. When you start getting fills, and you start getting actual restriction, you will KNOW when to stop. Good restriction is a very "AHA!!!!" moment. Especially since you do not have restriction, your band isn't working yet, so some of the "rules" don't apply. You have to use good judgment here....err on the side of conservatism. It will pass.

I don't mean to correct, but that's "girdle" and I haven't heard that term since I was in school (all of us who weren't rail thin wore them instead of "garter belts" to hold up our stockings, and then we kept wearing them without the stockings to try and keep our fat under control!!!! ) I just purchased some SPANX about a month ago and I recall wearing them to a party and being a little concerned about eating with them on. It does tend to constrict you more in the gut (and I don't mean just holding the fat in), and since you are already pretty constricted, I would think twice about eating with something like that on. Girdle.....wow.....flashback!

Everyone talks like food as they know it is going to END after the band. SO NOT TRUE. That is the way everyone thinks. It's just not so. Food will taste the same, look the same. The difference is that you will not be able to take both hands and shove a cheeseburger down your gut in 15 seconds flat. THAT is what is going to change. Everything else will stay the same. Personally, I don't miss the gorging. Oh, you THINK you will....but it is just a habit. After 7 months, if I sit down and eat a full bowl of soup...I consider THAT gorging. I actually went to a restaurant with a girlfriend last week who met me for lunch because she is getting the band by my doctor right after the first of the year. We both ordered these wonderful stuffed baked potatoes which wound up being the size of half a SHOEBOX! When we brought them to the table...she pulled hers over and started stuffing. I took one look at mine and started laughing and said "There is NO WAY I will be eating all of this!" She finished hers down to the skin. I ate the good stuff off mine and enjoyed mine thoroughly. Over half of mine was left at the end of the meal, but I felt like I had had something very forbidden and I felt satiated, full, and happy.

I looked into bypass about ten years ago. I couldn't meet the parameters to qualify and did not have the kind of money to pay for it myself. It also seemed so drastic. I didn't find out about the band until March and by May I was scheduled for surgery. THIS was the answer for me. Less invasive, no gut re-directing, reversible...however I do have one HUGE regret. I just wish I had been able to have this done 20 years ago. It was the best decision I ever made, and my last and final hope of getting healthy. You are only in your 30's. I spent 25 years hiding from the world due to my weight....I lost all those years. If you do it now you have a chance to get out there and LIVE those years. I feel like I have been reborn...and I am 56.

"Once you've had your first fill and are perfectly adjusted" Word of warning here. Do NOT, I repeat do NOT ASSUME that first fill equals good restriction. More often than not that is NOT the case. Many of us did not feel ANY restriction until our 3rd-5th fills, and this is not unusual. What you are experiencing is COMPLETELY NORMAL. Until you get your restriction (and it could be a while depending on your doctor and how he does his fills) your band is NOT WORKING for you. They don't call it "Bandster Hell" for nothing, but THIS WILL PASS. This is NOT an omen of things to come, at all. We ALL go through this on many levels. It is strictly a PHASE you are going through, albiet a frustrating one. Do the BEST YOU CAN right now. If you are hungry, by all means EAT, but just try to eat the better choices. Don't fret over weight loss right now. This will come.

Ahhh, there lies the rub, as they say. This is where the learning curve kicks in. You have to redefine the word "full". Full no longer means you have a "bowling ball" in your tummy. Full is now "higher up". Full for me is more like a tighter feeling in my mid-chest. Try sitting down by yourself in a quiet room and eating a meal very very slowly. Consider each bite. Consider what it feels like going down. Feel the sensation when it "hits bottom". Generally, even without restriction, when I first was on solids, I could eat about 4 bites and then get this "feeling". At that point I could slow down or stop completely. Sometimes if I continued, I would get nauseus. Sometimes not. Try eating meals in this experimental way to get in tune with your body and what it is telling you. There will be very subtle hints and you'll have to reassess the meaning of the words hungry, full, etc. These are new sensations you have never experienced before so you have to LEARN what each one means.