lindata

Well, I never make the right choices when I'm stressed!

It is nice to come here and let fly. It's probably like how when "they" tell you to write down your emotions, write what you're feeling when you're eating to get to the reason of the WHY. Except this is funner - you get feedback!

Well, I have a few reasons why I'm being like this.

1. I'm going to go visit my family in a month and they were all raving about how great I looked last time I was there. Well, I've since gained 5 since being there last and I guess the pressure is on. When the pressure is on, I get eating. I thought I'd be ten pounds less than the last time I was there and instead I've gained.

2. My fill is not at the right level and honestly I don't see any point in dieting right now because I've dieted for 10 years and it has never done one bit of good. The only thing that has been working for me is my band, and so without the fill I just plain don't feel like trying. There, that's the honest truth. I know it's anathema to say something like that, that I don't feel like trying unless my fill is at the right level, but it's really, truly how I feel. At the right fill, I lose; if it's not at the right level, I don't, plain and simple.

Having ranted and raved a bit I feel better!

The one thing I will do until I get the right fill is WATCH what I eat and do some form of exercise every day. I'm not going to knock myself out though because there is really no point. Like I said, I've knocked myself out for ten years and it only got me fatter.

I'm going to come here and visit y'all because without you I'm sure I'd gain a pound a day, no doubt about it!

Boy, I sure turned this right around to ME, didn't I? Sorry, Sades. I know what helps me is to start exercising and everything else seems to fall into place - I don't want to eat bad and I feel better. Let's both give it a big effort to do that.

Will it make you feel better to know I feel the same way? Since my unfill I've gained ten, and now they moved my new fill date - supposed to be tomorrow, now in another two weeks. I've got to do something fast if I don't want to gain another ten. bwah!

I love the idea of scaring off the pounds. Do you think if my husband shouted boo at me often enough I'll start losing again? What about shock treatment? I wouldn't mind a vampire sucking out some blood - that's got to be at least 5 pounds right there.

Bradley, there's a search engine you can use at the top of lapbandtalk. If you enter liver cirrhosis (sp?) you should be able to come up with threads that talk about it.

What I meant to say was after surgery gas pains are normal. I didn't mean gas pain from one meal should go away in a month! It took me around 2 months before gas pains finally eased up to where there were no more.

Yup, gas pain is normal. It should go away in a month or so.

Usually your band is unfilled or slightly filled at the time of surgery. After surgery you probably won't be hungry for a week or so while you get over surgery. Then comes a bit of a tough part.

Then you enter what's known as bandster hell. You probably will be hungry. Some people are lucky and never need a feel, they feel full from the beginning, but most people are hungry. This is when you just have to knuckle down and admit you're hungry and you can't do anything about it, period. What you can do is come here and complain about bandster hell. There are many posts about that topic!!

What helped me the most during this time was Protein shakes. They tended to fill me up the best and fulfilled the Protein and Calcium requirements (since I used milk instead of Water with them). chicken broth also tended to fill me up quite well. And sip your Water in between. Water fills you up too.

You are going to be a bit hungry, but it's only a short time in the scheme of things. It's going to take willpower but the results will be worth it. If you eat something you shouldn't, say you skip a step and eat solids when you should be on liquids, you may end up hurting your healing stomach.

I found this time wasn't as hard as later on, since I had a lot of willpower going into this. I mean, I just shelled out $18,000, had major surgery, of course I was going to do it the right way. Just look at it that way and that first month will fly by, really. Keep yourself busy and keep your mind off food and that's the best thing you can do for yourself. For example, that first month I was on this site probably every other hour!! I also read a lot and started taking walks later on.

You MUST follow your doc's rules about eating in this healing stage no matter how hungry you get - but it's really not THAT bad! You're not going to want to gnaw off your arm or anything like that! The worst part is just not knowing how you're going to feel. I mean, it's not like you've done this before! Once you've had surgery you won't want to screw up your band by eating wrong, trust me! You said you know how dangerous it is to eat wrong in this initial stage - that's a good thing! Some people are not scared to screw up their band, so they eat the wrong things, and then they do screw it up or have complications later on. It's good that you're worried. That means that you won't do the wrong thing! Don't worry, you'll be just fine.

Another thing that you'll hear on this site a lot is head hunger. That's probably a LOT of what you will feel after surgery, and that's probably what you're most scared of really. That means the hunger you think you feel, like hmm, I could eat a big mac or a chocolate or some cihps right about now (even though your stomach is not growling). It's when you feel that snacking feel come on. Try to discern between head hunger (snacky, peckish feeling) and real hunger (stomach growling, lightheadedness You'll be surprised how often your hunger is only head hunger. If you can do this before surgery you'll be that much more ahead of the game.

When are you getting your surgery btw?

Yes, actually I saw my regular doc not too long ago and she thought it was great about my weightloss and was really interested in the band in a positive way. Then I saw another doc and I told him I couldn't swallow pills because I had a band. He had no idea what I was talking about for a minute. Then he said well, I'm sure they can dissolve! Yeah, maybe when I puke it up after it getting stuck it'll dissolve in my spit on the floor. I didn't feel like educating him. I just said I suppose I could crush up the pills. But I'm changing the post topic, aren't I? Sorry!

Rarely do I peek my timid head out from the protective wings of the November Nymphs board, but I checked out the rest of lapbandtalk the other day and found a mentors board. I volunteered to be one! It's really fun if you guys haven't seen it yet. I figure I asked a lot of newbie questions and here's a good way to "pay it forward".

Can anyone say HOT!!!! sssssssszzzzzzizzzling!

I didn't have insurance - self pay the whole way, but I have absolutely no regrets. I'd pay for it again if I had to.

About the eating Gosh, I can't even remember what I ate before surgery - I think it was a liquid diet?? Let me know what she told you.

After surgery it's pretty simple. Most doctors follow the plan below, but yours may have a different plan. Follow whatever YOUR doctor tells you - don't compare with other people, it's really important to listen to your doctor. Everyone's doctor has varying times to be on the different food stages.

The first few weeks after surgery are liquids, and don't worry you will not die on liquids! I know it's hard to believe that you can survive on so little, but really you can! liquids are things like Protein shakes, chicken broth, juice - anything that has no "particles" in it. Then for a few weeks you can add mushy things. Basically anything you can process in a food processor (well, maybe not hard things like meat though). Then after that you can eat soft food for a few weeks. Then it's back to eating regular food, except you have to really chew it to a pulp. One great tip I got off of here was when you reach this stage, think pencil-eraser amounts, and chew until it's liquid.

It's very, very, very important not to skip stages because you are healing. You'll think you can skip stages, you'll read of other people skipping stages (heck, I think I even went to solids before I should have), but DON'T skip stages. The longer you let your tummy heal, the better shape it will be in in the long term. I've heard people say that the reason you need to do this is so that the band "settles" in place and you're less likely to slip later down the road.

Some people have restriction right away and some people need months' worth of fills before they feel the tightness when they swallow their food - but that's getting ahead of ourselves!

Let me know if you have other concerns. This is kinda fun!

The biggest bummer is that I'm out $18,000! That's a cost of $400 per pound lost.

Oh God, don't say that. I never looked at it that way before!! Well, sheeooot, if that don't motivate a person, I don't know what will. :thumbup:

Hi Bimbabe. What would you like to know?

Yeah, I'm not so sure anyone would want to see my girls in the strong mid-day sun either.

I watched the show and was wondering if anyone else had. I felt like Dr. Oz was totally against weight loss surgery. It's like he was saying that the lap-band teaches us to eat like we should be eating in the first place. Basically, why can't we just eat smaller portions and make healthier choices without having surgery. I mean it's as simple as that-eat smaller portions, eat the right foods, and exercise! Boy, why didn't we think of that sooner Dr. Off to see the Wizard? He really made me mad. I hope he goes to munchkin land one day and they are all morbidly obese! Maybe they'll strangle him with a lap-band.

:wink2::frown::smile:

Ever feel like 95 percent of doctors are against WLS and 5 percent are for it? Hmmm, kind of like how 95 percent of people who lose weight on diets will regain their weight and only 5 percent will keep it off. I've had it with being in the 95 percentile group - that's why I got the band, and I'm loving it!

Hi, I wouldn't mind being a lapband buddy. I would have liked someone like that when I was going through all my thousand pre-op, post-op and bandster hell questions!

I got banded November, 2007, was self-pay, have lost 55 pounds, have PB'd, slimed, and had one unfill due to being too inflamed, so I am thoroughly initiated in bandster life!

I'm a SAHM, mid 30's, married.

I would like to follow Indiogirl's lead and say I'm here to help, I'm here to "pay it forward" to all the experienced bandsters who helped me through my fears and struggles, and most importantly to be non-judgemental. I'm faaaaar from being a perfect bandster myself!

Sunday at Tiffany's - isn't that a movie?

You'll love Twilight! I put a hold on her third book in the series at the library. It wasn't even in print yet and I think I was hold number 99!

I'm just starting Two for the Money by Janet Evanovich.

I just finished reading Peace Like a River. OMG!!! What a GREAT book!

Well, Sades, wouldn't you know it? I have an excuse. I got sick the day after I posted my challenge. But I did lose weight thanks to being sick!

Hey Linda sounds like a great challenge, it's a shame my body is convulsing in protest at the thought of it!! :smile: :smile: I don't even run for a bus so not sure about a 5K run! I'll try running a block on my next walk and if I make it home, then I'm in!! :wink2:

Too funny! Maybe I should try that too! harhar

Well, after my good intentions, I got sick last week and haven't been out of bed since. Maybe it's my subconscious telling me to keep being lazy! :frown:

P.S., my husband still loves me at any weight, with zits on my face, with bad morning breath, with greasy hair, with my bad attitude, with weight gain and weightloss.

I feel it is a physical addiction, like a drug, more than an emotional response. And I know that drug addicts generally begin an addiction for physicological reasons but then they become physically addicted.

I usually describe my problem this way: If you have a drug or alcohol addiction, the experts recommend total abstinence. Get detoxed from the drug. But if food is your drug, that is impossible since we must eat. Sure we have trigger foods, but to eliminate a trace of those trigger foods ( sugar or carbs generally) forever is very difficult as there could be a trace of sugar or carbs in even the most benign food.< /p>

I am more like Pavlov's dog. I see the food and want it. The larger quantity/choices of food in front of me, the more likely I am to overeat. Isn't this why dinners have those revolving displays of Desserts right at the door? Once I start overeating, the physical part of the addiction seems to begin. Like many families, there is some alcoholism in my family and yet I have escaped that. But I wonder, if I really have and if my body just substituted food for alcohol.

I think that is the beauty of the band. It sort of slows you down and gives you a moment to pause and think about the food going in, rather than inhaling it all and then thinking about it.

Yes, I feel very much the same - a physical addiction, one that came on slowly over the years. I didn't realize at first until it was too late.

If anyone told me 10 years ago when I weighed 123 lbs that I would someday need to lose over 100 lbs' date=' I would never have believed it.

Sometimes I think I gained all of this weight for a deeper purpose. It made me humble and appreciative of what I have. It forced me to rely more on my intelligence than my looks. It taught me empathy and tolerance. I truly believe I will be a better person for this experience.

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Yes for me too! I used to be thin and popular. Just like you, this weightgain has forced me to "rely on intelligence rather than looks, taught empathy and tolerance." I know I will be a better person from this as well.

I never ever thought I would one day be technically 100 pounds overweight. Looking at myself, I would think where would 100 pounds come off of me? Now that I've lost some of that weight it's like blinders have been taken off - I can't believe I COULDN'T see the weight. I really believed I looked way thinner than I did. How is it that we can lie to ourselves and believe what we say?

How did my weight issues start? I always thought I was fat - even when I wasn't. Then I got a great boyfriend who turned into a great husband who loved me no matter what I looked like. I sent him out on little errands just to test him, to see how much he loved me. Would he get me something day after day after day? Sure enough, down to the store next door to get a little treat. I guess they added up. I gained weight, but was too happy in my relationship to even see it, then I didn't even care. Who cares when you're in love and your love doesn't care if you're fat? How much more proof did I need I had found my "one and only" if he loved me at any weight? So the weight stayed on - I really didn't care.

Then one day I woke up and DID care what I weight, I cared for myself. By then I was addicted to junk food. It was a physical addiction. I remember quitting cold turkey and having the shakes. Food was all I could think about. The band keeps my portions in check. Without it I would be lost again. I think my unfill has proven that - I'd gained 10 pounds in two weeks with an unfill. Over time and with weightloss, I hope I can become stronger. Right now I am not strong enough without my band.

Well, I go away for a few months and look what happens - everyone in Arkansas gets banded without telling me! Wow, I can't believe how many people are posting here now, I'm going to have to come visit more often!

I was banded by Dr. Gibbs, btw, and I really like him and his nurse - they take good care of me.

Soooooo ..... ummmm .... anyone want to train for a half marathon? Did I just say that? :crying:

Yeah, it's the crazy alter ego in my brain voicing this very crazy idea that I can do a half marathon this spring. My hubby did it last year for the first time and he wants me to do it this year. Now, keep in mind I'm 5'4", hardly a gazelle, and built like my Ukranian ancestors - in other words more suited to ploughing a field, picking rocks, and hauling Water on my shoulders with my stumpy, sturdy legs, rather than running and leaping and cavorting with legs that are a mile long!