NY LAPSTER

Alexandra Thanks !!! The beauty of your response is that it is so therapeutic and based on what is really going on for you in your life...Wow!! I guess I'll strive to find that balance, sweet spot and know-how to manage to keep losing some and then maintain and still allow the ice cream man ( or woman) to ring the bell for me...I too will probably need to have ice cream in my life...I find that exercise is so helpful for me...I have thus elliptical machine that is low impact and when I pop on my Ipod I really enjoy myself...and can eat more ice cram and lose weight...Not that I exercise only for ice cream...that seems a little juvenile but...the exercise has been a really helpful part of making me feel better , sleep better and lose weight...I exercise in spurts..Right now I've been slack and only exercising twicw a week..I feel much better at 4-5 times a week..And I probably eat less ice cream then also because I don't want to sabotage myself totally... Thanks again... Steve

Leatha It is comforting to know that u face the ice cream and chili wars with me..You seem so knowledgeable and together with your banding and leadership on this board...I would love to get involved in helping support others with this stuff and hopefully we'll fight these demons together...The band is so unbelievable in that there is less to fight against but the ones left are still tough..It certainly isn't a free ride to speedo bathing suit land.. Steve ny lapster

Hi Everyone I apologize for not being an active participant here..This is the only board I ever look at and have ever participated in....I was banded in NYC on 11/11/04...I started my pre-surgery journey 2 weeks prior to surgery at 302.5...I am now 226-230 depending on how much ice cream I have consumed recently...I say how much because I seem to always want ice cream recently...This really is no joke or funny kind of thing..although having lost a great deal of weight and feeling sucessful and much happier after being given this wonderful opportunity I am now succumbing to the wonders of Ben and Jerry's, Haagen-Dazs, Starbucks, and all the old and new great ice cream treats out there with or without mix-ins, syrup, etc...Yep..I can thankfully no longer eat big hero sandwiches, little hero sandwiches, any sandwiches...Can't eat bagels with stuff piled on it, tons of pasta, pizza, fried chicken, steak, etc, etc, etc, etc... But I can eat ice cream.......... Help............... I could use a sense of sensibility about this becausre i'm sure i'm sure I'm not alone out there..By the way other way less offensive and harmful demons for me are chili..I have consumed TONS of this chili made at Kings Supermarkets, and Sabra Babaganoush ( eggplant salad )......... What do you guys do about your demons to get to the next level....I even really know that is wondeful to now be able to have an occasional ice crean guilt free but I am kinda worried about it... I'm currently filled at 2.1...Haven't had a fill since early March......I do know that fill or now flu those ice cream cravings have to be managed because the slide is open for that demon stuff......... THANKS STEVE NY LAPSTER

Hi everyone I haven't been on in awhile and I probably should have. You guys offer great support and being hooked in and helping other bandsters is such good therapy. Anyway, all in all I am doing OK but am having some problems..I was banded 11/11 in NYC..Went great..did really well 2 weeks pre-op and 4 weeks post op..lost a bunch of weight..That put me at the holidays and my 50th birthday 1/1..vacation..some parties, etc...I had my first fill 1.2 cc on 12/13 and then had all the holiday stuff and "only" lost 6lbs 12/13- 1/11..Still OK..The weight loss isn't the issue yet or maybe it ius just my inpatience..I keep testing this tool and have been taking too many foolish risks ie overeating, eating around the band , etc..I had a bad exp this week ..had my 2nd fill 1/10..1cc to bring me to 2.2 cc...I was so tight that I couldn't drink anything and was refluxing any liquid..I called the next day..rushed backi in and they unfilled .4cc to bring me down to 1.8cc..This really worked..I was able to drink and then rushed on to mush last night and overmushed with no adverse reactions....Today for lunch one day after my unfill and 2 days after my fill (confusing) I ordered in for lunch at work soft tofu with sauce and just coudn't resist throwing in the white rice.....Oh , i forgot egg drop soup to start...Now all this is better than the pig out chinese I would have had pre-band days but..not good for me right now...I just spent the better part of the last hour in and oput of the bathroom trying to hurl with some success and I am starting to feel a little better..Luckily, I physically was only able to eat a very small portion of the lunch before my discomfort began... I think I am learning from every bad experience and I don't think I've damaged my band yet but why are we so stupid...Most of you don't seem to test yourselves this much or maybe you do...It's just really no fun being in discomfort and PBing,getting stuck, etc...Doing it right is so nice and so fullfilling and I am confident that I will do it not right fewer times.. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL AND THANKS.. STEVE NY LAPSTER 10/30 302.5 11/11 BANDED 282.5 2 fills total 1.8cc 1/12 252.5 -50 my goal is a healthy 199 whenever.......

Greg It sounds like you are doing fantastic. It's so great to hear about people like yourself who are a little further advanced and others who are years into bandland and others who are just researching this approach..As you know it was quite a process getting us here emotionally to be ready to accept and utilize this healing approach..The band is such a remarkable tool and I want to learn to use it well..Right now we are still getting to know each other but the band has been friendlier to me as I am treating it better..My family went out to Chinese tonite --I had some hot and sour Soup and then picked at a chinee eggplant with seafood dish...We had alot to take home which is unusual for us.In my glory eating days not much left the restaurant.The tough part was when the waitress brought over a special complimentary desert for the table with scoops of ice cream, sorbet and fruits...As you all well know ice cream can be our great nemesis sO I did have a couple of spoons but plan to work out extra hard tomorrow...By the way an old buddy got me out tonite for a couple of hours and I drank a shot of vodka and a few sips of wine...I was happy to know that this indulgence went over OK..Now back to work tomw to have a more mundane and less caloric diet...It was fun though..I haven't been out in a bar in many months and just listening to some of my favorite music and hanging out a little as a bandster was great...I had asked my medical asst about drinking an occasional shot of vodka and he said fine..he does too...and no harm done...So, maybe I will reward myself every month or so with something like this. The days of 10 shots are over but one I can handle...Life seems so much more enjoyable being on the road to getting healthier...Came home and drank lots of Water........Tomorrow am planning on doing some aerobics and eating very light... keep up the great work Greg and everyone else. Happy holidays........ Steve 10/31 302.5 11/11 284 band day first fill 1.2 cc 12/13 259.5 12/17 256 -46.5 Dr Ren nyc goal 199 7/11

Dear New Hope My wife is sweet and very concerned ..I think you may have me confused with someone else though..I , luckily was never rehospitalized after banding and didn't have dehydration...I hope that person is doing OK though.. Thanks Steve

Thanks Rebecca !!!! I Called My Doctor As You Suggested..she Feels That I Have Been Eating Too Fast And Not Chewing Well Enough..i Haben't Actually Vomited Any Food Up, Just Spat Up Some White Flemmy Stuff...your Advice And Everyone's Is Great. I Just Have To Re-learn How To Chew And At What Speed.. My Wife Has Been Thru Alot With Me And Has Been Very Supportive Although Like A Typical Man I Always Want To Be Taken Care Of And Am Sometimes Unappreciative..thanks !! Steve

Thanks for the feedback..All is well taken advice but I'm sure will be a learning experience. We're going on a family vacation over XMAS to Florida so I want to learn fairly fast so as not to make my eating or not eating a focal point of attention...As far as an early fill ..it was 4 weeks post surgery and thought to be fine...We'll see....My surgeon is Dr Ren and I have alot of confidence in her .. Thanks Steve

Hey Guys I've got a bunch to unload and ask about and hopefully some other newbies can benefit from you really wise lap sages . I was banded 11/11 in NYC..So far I am doing great weight loss wise. I know men have this weirdly unfare advantage but I'm taking advantage of it. I started my journey 2 weeks pre-surgery at my heaviest weight ever of 302.5. This morning 12/17 I am 256. 46 1/2 loss is really cool and I am so psyched. But............ I started eating solids last Thursday and then got my first fill Monday 1.2 cc...I'm really so unclear about what will go thru and be easy and what gets stuck and will make me feel so sick..My first solid experiment was with my wife. We went out for Chinese lunch last Thursday. I had just had a prostate biopsy done that morning after a pre-surgical exam scare..The biopsy was the pits but thankfully all is well..Anyway, the lunch.....I had 2 pcs of sesame chicken ( i know bad choice ) and a couple of spoons of shrimp with peanuts and I was off to the bathroom 2 or 3 times feeling horrible...No actually throwing up but white stuff coming up many times...After about half an hour I felt better..My wife was pretty upset that I had made the poor choices and ate the pcs too fast... Next...Sunday was at a family party---Had a chicken thigh and some salad...After a few bites of the dry chicken--off to the bathroom---sick, awful feeling, etc---passed in about 30 minutes... Next- Wed lunch---had 2 bites of a minced pork , guacomole, salad thing at a Mexican place and off to the bathroom for the sick run..... Last---last night had dinner with my wife and 2 kids....They had steak and stuff--I had crab meat with cocktail sauce..Took a couple of spoons on my plate of mashed potatoes with some sauted onions..After 2 forks of the crabmeat -ok--then took a bite of the mashed potato with onion and all hell broke loose...Off to the bathroom..Felt terrible and worse caused a bit of a scene at the table with the kids...My son is aware of the surgery but my 11 yr old daughter thinks I had a hernia operation...We feel she is too much of a blabbermouth and she also has her own serious medical issues to deal with...She got scared with my bathroom antics--went to the bathroom off the kitchen like 5 times and made some awful noises in there I guess..Anyway 30 minutes and all was well. By the way mushy stuff goes down fine and some solids with sauce ok too..Had a spicy tuna sushi roll for lunch yesterday and surprisingly was fine.. Sorry for all the blabbering..My point is----my wife feels that I shoudn't inflict this stuff on the family and should get my act together.If I have a problem I should just leave the room and not return until it is over...I guess she is right but I feel it is harsh...Help... Thanks Steve NY LAPSTER

Dear Marie and Everyone I haven't posted much but do read the board alot. You guys are so great and have helped me so much in that you are all living this journey with me..I am now almost 4 weeks post op..I have 2 more days of mushy and then I re-introduce solids. The mushy part seemed hard in that the food was fairly caloric and I didn't lose much the last two weeks at all..At least I didn't gain..I get my first fill 1cc next Mon 12/13....Hope to get a little restriction on my way to finding that "sweet spot ". Doing this around Thanksgiving, a number of family and business events has been very interesting. I've been real good at home and my family is so supportive..When I am out to dinner with friends or family sometimes I forget and dring a little water with the meal- not great. Also, I find that I order like a soup as an appetizer and then nibble on some mushy -soon to be solid main course. Of course I eat so much less now but still I heard that people only order an appetizer for dinner...What do you do when everyone else is eating and is it hard to just do that...I am and plan to be in the closet with this for some time except my immediate family. For the first time ever I am doing something just for me and it feels pretty good.Part of me wants to blurt it out to so many people and then my sanity takes over and I say, nah....... Any eating out tips !!! Also, I am turning 50 in 3 weeks ..This surgery and new lifestyle is my gift to myself and my family but I am a little concerned about being put on the spot by some friends who know that I can usually pack away a good meal and a number of drinks when I am out partying...I guess these concerns are petty compared to the dangerously unhealthy life before.... Anyway, thanks everyone.. Steve NY LAPSTER 10/30 302.5 11/11 BANDED 284.5 12/7 261.5 -40.5 199 WILL BE REAL NICE

Hi Fran Welcome to the other side. Take it easy and slow and you will be fine.The first few days are kinda rough but each day you will feel better..All the advice here is so perfect and such a great resource.But you already know that.I'm 3 weeks into bandland and I'm starting to feel that this is for real and for keeps and I love it..Bandland is great for depression, most physical ailments , etc..It is not an elixir because the band causes us to be much more conscious and responsible for our lives...It feels great to have regained that responsibility.. Good luck and go for it... Sincerely Steve NY LAPSTER 302.5 10/30 282.5 11/11 BAND DAY NYC DR REN 263 12/3 I AM SO PSYCHED AND REALIZE THAT MEN SEEM TO HAVE AN UNFAIR ADVANTAGE..NOT SURE WHY?? GOAL 199

You're right..This thing is a miracle and I feel so lucky to have found this option and persevered to have the surgery..I realize that now that I have the tool I have to learn to use it..Just wanted to tell you that your posts are so informative and I can only imagine how many people benefit from them..Thanks ..