Ang1982

*big hug* I'm sorry you are having such a hard time of this right now. It seems like you realize you are making mistakes in choices, etc. So why not take a moment and sit down and write out a list of why you want to lose weight and how losing this weight could affect your life. Then when you are done with that list why not take a moment to write out a list of things you dislike and are unhappy with about your life that you feel is related to being overweight. Review your lists, maybe post them somewhere on your fridge (if you are comfortable doing so) as a reminder. Then take a deep breath and remember that the band is only a tool and will only work as good as you want it to and work with it to. Recommitt yourself to living the bandster lifestyle. You can do this, you have already noted that you are making a mistake and not taking advantage of the fabulous tool you have inside you. "Every passing moment is another chance to turn it all around". You can do it and we are here to help. Perhaps read and print out the following which could help you get back on track: Adjustments How to Tell When You Are Perfectly Adjusted You are losing 1-2 pounds per week. If you are not losing 1-2 pounds per week: A. You may need an eating adjustment 1. Are you eating 60 grams of Protein a day 2. Are you eating 25 grams of Fiber 3. Are you avoiding all liquid calories a. Soup can be sign of "soft calorie syndrome" b. Alcohol contains a lot of calories – 7 calories per gram (1) It’s also a stomach irritant c. fruit juice is just sugar Water 4. Are you making healthy food choices from a wide variety of foods? a. Are you avoiding soft foods b. You can’t just eat what’s easy c. cheese is glorified fat 5. Are you drinking 6-8 glasses of water a day between meals 6. Are you eating too much junk a. chips, chocolate, nuts, ice cream, Cookies and other highly processed junk foods are too calorically dense to be regular parts of a healthy diet. But don’t avoid them completely to the point where you feel deprived. b. Stay out of fast food places 7. Are you getting in two servings of Calcium daily 8. Do you always eat the protein first 9. Then the vegetables or fruits a. Five servings a day b. Potatoes are NOT a vegetable 10. Is your portion size appropriate? a. meat or fish (1) 3 ounces – the size of a deck of cards b. Vegetables (1) ½ cup – the size of your fist c. Starch (1) If you eat the protein and the vegetables first you don’t need much (2) Avoid: rice, potatoes, Pasta 11. You might try avoiding artificial sweeteners a. Some people think that artificial sweeteners stimulate the appetite b. They are HUNDREDS of times sweeter than sugar c. They teach you to like things too sweet d. There is no evidence that people who use them are any thinner than people who don’t 12. Avoid most diet foods a. Real food usually tastes better b. Real food is more satisfying than low calorie substitutes c. When you are only eating a tiny bit the caloric savings is not that great (1) Use a teaspoon of real butter instead of a tablespoon of diet margarine (2) The body has no way to break down artificial fats a. They may go into permanent storage b. Some people think liposuction is the only way to remove hydrolyzed fats from the body B. You may need a behavior adjustment 1. Are you eating only when you are hungry? a. If you’re not sure drink 8 ounces of water and wait. 2. Are you eating three meals a day? a. With maybe 1 or 2 small Snacks 3. Are you sitting down to eat? 4. Are you eating consciously? a. No distractions, turn off the TV, put the book or newspaper away, pay attention to your food and your companions 5. Are you eating slowly? a. Put the fork down between bites b. Take 20 to 30 minutes to finish a meal c. Taking longer might cause the pouch to begin emptying 6. Are you taking small bites? a. Tiny spoon, chopsticks, cocktail fork 7. Are you chewing well? 8. Are you drinking with your meals or too soon after your meals? a. Practice water loading between meals b. You won’t be thirsty if you are well hydrated before the meal 9. Are you stopping at the first sign of fullness? a. Sometimes it’s a whisper: not hungry, had enough b. Hard stop versus soft stop 10. Do not eat between meals. Stop grazing. 11. Do not eat when you are not hungry C. You may need an activity adjustment 1. Are you getting in 30 minutes of physical activity at least 3 times a week? a. Over and above what you would do in the usual course of your day b. Could you make it 4 or 5 times a week? c. Could you make it 45 or 60 minutes? 2. Are you taking advantage of opportunities to increase your physical activity? a. Taking the stairs instead of the elevators or escalators b. Walking on the escalators instead of riding c. Parking your car further away from the entrance d. Getting out of the car instead of using the drive through e. Getting off the bus one stop before your destination f. Washing you car by hand instead of the car wash g. Playing with your kids D. You may need an attitude adjustment 1. Are you committed to your weight loss journey? 2. Are you totally honest with yourself about how much you are eating and exercising? a. Log your food and activity on ww.fitday.com for 3 days 3. Are you using food inappropriately to deal with emotional issues? a. Have you identified what the emotions are that drive your eating? b. Can you think of more appropriate ways to deal with those emotions? c. Are you willing to seek help from a qualified counselor? 4. Are you attending and participating in support group meetings? 5. Have you drummed up some support from your family and friends? 6. Have you dealt with saboteurs realistically? 7. Do you have realistic expectations about the weight loss journey? 8. Are you still obsessing about food, weight, dieting, eating? a. Obsessive – compulsive thoughts (1) Obsess about something else b. Perfectionism (1) All or none, black and white thinking c. Patience with the pace of healthy weight loss 9. Are you acknowledging your successes with non-food rewards? 10. Have you learned how to take a compliment? 11. Are you giving up diet mentality? a. Stop weighing yourself several times a day or every day b. Stop dieting c. Stop depriving yourself d. Stop defining food as "good" and "bad" e. Stop rewarding and punishing yourself with food 12. How do you feel about all the changes taking place? E. You may need a band adjustment 1. You feel like you are making healthy food choices in appropriate portion sizes but getting hungry between meals? 2. You can still eat white bread, fibrous vegetables and large portions. 3. You are having to struggle to lose 4. You are gaining weight in spite of eating right, exercising and having a good mind set. F. You may need your band loosened 1. There are times when you can’t get fluids down 2. You are vomiting too much a. How much is too much? 3. Do you have frequent reflux or heartburn at night? a. Do not lie flat or bend over soon after eating b. Do not eat late at night or just before bedtime c. Rinse your pouch with a glass or water an hour before bedtime d. Certain foods or drinks are more likely to cause reflux: (1) Rich, spicy, fatty and fried foods (2) Chocolate (3) Caffeine (4) Alcohol (5) Some fruits and vegetables a. Oranges, lemons, tomatoes, peppers (6) Peppermint a. Baking soda toothpaste (7) Carbonated drinks e. Eat slowly and do not eat big meals f. If you smoke, quit smoking g. Reduce stress h. Exercise promotes digestion i. Raise the head of your bed j. Wear loose fitting clothing around your waist k. Stress increases reflux l. Take estrogen containing medications in the morning m. Avoid aspirin, Aleve and ibuprofen at bedtime (1) Tylenol is OK n. Take an antacid (Pepcid complete) before retiring o. Try other over-the-counter heartburn medications p. See your health care provider 4. See your health care provider immediately (or call 911) if a. You have a squeezing, tightness or heaviness in your chest, especially if the discomfort spreads to your shoulder, arm or jaw or is accompanied by shortness of breath, sweating, irregular or fast heartbeat or nausea. These could be symptoms of a heart attack. b. If your symptoms are triggered by exercise. c. If your pain localizes to your right side, especially if you also have nausea or fever d. If you throw up vomit that looks like black sand or coffee grounds. Or if your stool is black, deep red or looks like it has tar in it. These are symptoms of bleeding and need immediate attention. (Note: Pepto-Bismol or other medications with bismuth will turn your stool black. Iron supplements can also make the stool tarry.) e. If your pain is severe This was written by Jessie H. Ahroni, Ph.D., A.R.N.P., C.D.E., B.C.-A.D.M.

To me the spelling of "definitely" wrong is eh - whatever but the "mai" thing makes me crazy .. mainly because I assume the OP knows the correct spelling of "my" and chooses to use "mai" instead as "l33t speak" or whatever you would like to call it. The rest of her post is relatively well said. (Not knocking you nicolerose - wish you best of luck in your journey).

Fantastic! What a smile that must have brought to your face even with the kiddos being annoying. Very exciting :thumbup:

Yay! what a great NSV, congratulations :thumbup:

Thanks for all the support ladies! Hang in there we can do it. I've decided to start trying to track all my food as much as I can for the next little bit to see if that helps with things. I have given myself a calorie goal of not wanting to go past 1200 calories a day. Also, yesterday I made myself go back to Curves for the first time in... many many months. So I will make a point to go at least 4 times a week to Curves. I know I am definitely in need of another fill but at least I do feel a bit of restriction right now so I am looking forward to my fill appointment on April 4 (I booked it on my first fill appointment which was Mar 10, that was the soonest I could get in). Hehe, I know what you mean I feel the same way. How awesome would that be if it did work that way :biggrin: Thanks! We are all doing great and I do remind myself that I wouldn't have lost that 27lbs as easily and quickly as before and that this time I know it's not coming back and bringing revenge lbs with it!

Oh girlie how frustrating! Is your band a 10 cc band? so you are now 5cc in a 10cc? Hopefully this fill works great for you. Continue to work it the way you have been as you are doing great with working out, journaling and whatnot. *big hugs* hope this fill is a success for you. Hang in there!

Thankfully I have never yet had someone tell me that it was "the easy way out" (although I have heard the diet/exercise line once or twice). And as much as ALL of us know it is most certainly not "the easy way" I think if someone said that to me I would probably have to say to them that believe me it is not the easy way but if you feel that it is then I guess I'd take the "easy way" and lose weight and get my health back than struggle YET AGAIN with the "hard way" and remain fat and unhealthy. But really, it's your body, your Quest to better health if they don't like it they can take their opinion and shove it up their... :biggrin:

This is my puppers, Zak, he is 7 this year. He's a Papillon. And this is my lil trouble maker kitty, Skittles. He is just over a year old - he's a Bengal.

Best of luck in your decision. Personally when I had my band done I wasn't even considering RNY, not because I don't "believe" in it but that it was just not that for me. I know 4 people who have had the RNY and are all 4-5+ years post op. I thought I would share some information on how everyone's experiences are different and it is just a tool and it affects bodies differently: 1) My best friend - lost ALL her excess weight and has kept it off, she has done fantastically. She does have some Iron absorption issues that she is working through as well as the standard malabsorption of other vitamins/minerals. She to this day still gets the dumping affect from eating high sugar/fat foods. Has not had PS. 2) My best friends cousin - she too lost all her excess weight. She however, has VERY BAD iron issues. So bad to the point where even the injections, oral supplements, etc. she was taking were not absorbing enough that she had to a have a partial blood transfusion. She will likely struggle with this for the rest of her life. (By the way, those iron injections in Canada are $400 a shot, not covered by medical). Has the other vitamin/mineral malabsorption issues. Has not had PS. Still suffers from dumping. 3) Friend - lost all her excess weight, suffers from dumping slightly, has had a PS. Do not know about her other issues (She went bitch mode and haven't talked to her in a few years). 4) Friend #3's sister - lost some of her excess weight, found a way to eat around RNY and gained a lot (if not most) of it back. So as you can see everyone will have a different experience or result with either surgery. It's only a tool that you can work with. And yes there are the possible side effects of the band of erosion or slippage but the RNY has the side effects of dumping (and if you've ever seen someone dump oh my gosh it does not look fun), malabsorption, B12 shots, other possibilities (ie: friend who has to have mini-transfusions due to iron insufficiencies). Recovery time 1 week (band) vs 6 weeks (RNY) (and related to that, I lived with my best friend at the time of the RNY recovery and oh man it was not fun for her although if they do it lapriscopically now [?] then it may not be as bad but she had a big huge like 8" incision on her). Of course I'm more band partial just because what I have seen first hand from my RNY friends, can both be successful if you work with them? You bet, you just need to decide what's right for you.

1 lb from onderland! WOOHOOOOO very exciting :shades_smile: keep up the great work.

Woo hooo. Isn't he great, he's like a big ol teddy bear, it's hard not to like him hehe.

So it has been just over a week since I had my first fill! And while I know I will need another one for sure I do feel that I have some restriction from that fill. However, now I really need to get back on track. While I can still seemingly eat anything (I don't have problems getting anything down) I do get the fuller feeling so I don't eat nearly as much but I am not measuring my food or counting my calories and I know that I really need to start. I also admit to besides my moving day I have not done any exercise this month. I want sooooo badly to make this work - WHY am I having such a hard time doing the things I need to so that it does? I KNOW I need to measure servings, count calories, not eat chocolate or starbucks, or treats and I need to exercise otherwise I am wasting this $14,000 tool inside me. WTF is wrong with my brain that I am not doing these things? It has almost been two month since my surgery... ARGH. Why do I have to be a lazy procrastinator? Geeez.

Woohoo, grats on the first fill going well. Sounds like you are well on your way and congrats on the few more lbs since Fri. My doc after my fill had me do Clear Liquids the remainder of that day - day two was full liquids (cream Soups, yogurt etc), day three mushies, day four resume eating but start with soft foods.

I'm sorry, how frustrating girlie. I hope everything goes well for you. Good luck!

RedTulips - thanks for the Atkins info, I am definitely going to keep that plan in mind. My general plan is - I am counting calories but not really counting more like - watching calories. I do not want to count calories for the rest of my life on everything I eat so I am trying to make wiser choices in food and to eat premeasured amounts or stop when full and then if that doesnt seem to be cutting it then I am going to reevaluate the plan. Sorry to hear about your slime episode, that does not sound fun at all. I am not looking forward to my first one thats for sure. I have had my first fill on Monday and yesterday/today was my first days of eating "normal food" after the "liquid stage post fill". Last night I had an omellete for dinner that went down good, not a big piece, I made one big omellete for my DF and I and I cut a small piece off the end. I didn't even finish the last two bites because I was starting to feel full and stopped eating. I am trying to teach myself that if I get that kinda full feeling I do not have to finish my plate because a) the food is there and :biggrin: it tastes good. Today for lunch I was invited out to the Pub with some of the ladies at work - they make a fantastic chicken quesadilla that comes cut in 3 sections. I ate one section for lunch and I feel full. I packaged up the others to take home and I'll have another section for dinner and feed the other piece to the DF with whatever else I'll make him. So with my first fill, I think I do have restriction as eating 1/3 of a quesadilla did fill me up (same with my small omellete) but I don't think I have a whole lot - while I am careful to chew I do still take what I would think is larger than would be required with great restriction type bites. But, it's a start!!! :smile:

I think I'm lucky... besides the fact that all my friends know I've had the surgery.. my best friend is about 5yrs post op gastric bypass so it works well.

Well... I admit that I counted 4 hours worth of my moving as exercise. The past couple weeks then the weekend with moving had me so exhausted and in crazy sore pain that exercising was not going to happen. I'll admit to being lazy and hating exercise but when it hurts to stand up and walk after 8 hours of moving + unpacking time I just don't care haha. Oh well.

Yikes! I am not looking forward to my first stuck/pb/slime episode. For breakfast during the work week I always have a Protein shake (has 38 grams of protein in it) otherwise I will never get enough protein in

Oh my gosh! Congratulations that is so exciting. I am very excited for you and your DH. :smile2:

I'm so sorry for asking this and feeling very stupid about doing so (although I'm probably not the only person to wonder), how do you use the internet and post on forum sites, and all that? Are there computer programs that read it to you? I am one of those people who have never been in contact with a blind person and I don't mean to seem ignorant in my question. And I agree with Wheetsin's post that it is very admirable for you to open yourself up to questions.

:smile2: I have to say that I like Lane Bryant. And where I live (west coast, Canada) we do not have very many options for plus size stores and the couple that we do have - are more expensive than LB's and not even as nice in styles. I actually drive the 1hr cross border trip to shop at LB's in Washington whenever I can. It's CHEAPER than here (even when there was a dollar difference it was still cheaper).

O snap, I thought you meant March 1 not Jan 3. My bad. Yah I don't know why you aren't on solids then girl. I know with my first fill I had to do a couple days post fill of "liquids" but to not be on solids at all?!

Anitai, you need to talk to your doctor about it first. Most people do not go on solid foods until they are about 4 weeks post op... and for a good reason. Not allowing your body time to heal properly can attribute to slips in the future. And by slips I mean your band moving to a place it's not supposed to which can cause to have the band removed if they cant correct it.

*hug* I know it's frustrating but just keep on chuggin. The way I look at it when I lose and gain the same couple pounds... at least it was 2 not 20! You are doing great!

So I have to ask - I moved over the weekend and on Saturday I was on the go from 9am to 4pm without stopping/sitting/resting carrying, lifting, walking, loading, unloading... how many hrs worth of exercise do you think that would count for? By the time I sat down every part of my body was in agony.