Pepper28

Thursday, 12/26, I had my Fluid taken all out then back in again w/an additional .5 added & I sat out in the waiting room to see if the Water goes down & it didnt!

As i felt the Water rise to the top of my throat I knew i was too tight, but i REFUSE to have any Fluid removed! Its been 5 long months w/no real weightloss at all.

Soon as i got out to the car it all came out and I slimed all the way to work & used a spit cup for 2 hours until it finally stopped.

Its Saturday & im able to drink fluids now with no problem. coffee, water, crystal light, & half cup of yogurt ive been baby sitting now.

I havent tried anything solid.

Next week, once the swelling is gone I'll know for sure if this is my green zone or not.

Its been a long time coming, if this isnt the green zone im very well on the brink of it

Dr Reilly did a phenomenal job installing my band August 1st, havent seen his beautiful blue eyes since!

Im now in the after care routine getting adjustments every two weeks at the TR clinic on South Main.

Anyone have any issues so far at that facility?

@peedie12

Did u recently just get a fill???

Im always tight after a fill. Morning noon and night.

But as the days go on, maybe the 4th or 5th day i can eat u outta house and home!

Right now your band is just "installed".

Youre starving & your diet consists of sugar free liquids and mushies....

Any weightloss or gain during this time will depend upon your eating and exercise habits.

This will continue until your adjustments begin.

Restriction, how i wished, isnt right out of surgery anymore as they were ages ago.

Your swelling seems to have subsided a bit early which isnt a bad thing.

Call your doctor office & get a professional opinion about moving your adjustment date to an earlier one and keep us all posted!

I get a TASTE of the green zone 1 week after a fill and I can tell u, I can not, stressed or not, eat meat of any kind.

If i try it, i get this horrible pain in my chest as it goes down. It burns so after the first bite I dont even want the meal anymore..

Mornings, 1 week after a fill are the worst.

The 2nd week, after the swelling subsides, i can eat whatever I want.

@cheryl2586

What ur describing is ur "green zone" and how much of the work ur willing to put into dieting & how much u personally rely on the band to do it's part of the work.

Some one like B52 on the otherhand acknowledges & admits, like me, who lack the discipline to control portions, etc

Sounds like everyones entitled to their own specific personalized individualized "green zone"

If dieting was left solely up to me, I'd lose the weight, regain the weight, & it wldnt be much different than my pre-band life.

No 1 way is wrong, but each are specific to each of your needs.

And I like that about the band!!

@dylanmiles23

I saw that episode w/reuben studdard and Wendy Williams's lap band advice.

She also said that the band was not working for some other political official guy up north, who has not lost a ton of weight in a short time.

so announcing to the world that you're on any diet plan or surgery automatically places you under the spot light. From then on out, you're on Weight loss Watch

If you don't lose, they judge you, if you don't lose it fast enough, they judge you..

if you lose too much, or too soon, they judge you..

even my very own partner has his opinions, he shld keep to himself...

@mskeekee01

If I cld do it all over again I'd go for the sleeve.

#1 there's no monthly adjustments searching for a mythical green zone I'm not even sure really exists

#2 w/the sleeve, restriction and your diet begins the next day, out of surgery

and yes, misery does love company...

I've been on the slippery slope of dieting my entire life. if I did muster up the discipline to lose it, I'd always always regain it all back....

so do what works best for you and no one else...don't let her influence your weight loss decisions.

I wish I'd done it sooner I'd probably be at goal weight by now instead of toying around w/this diet and the next.

also, which ever you decide, don't tell anybody, unless you're ready to explain the good and the bad (the bad is often harder to explain)

Just let them look up one day, and say hey!! You're losing weight...only then you can fill them in on whatever you had done...if you so choose...

^@lisacaron

^{I don't let anyone be my monitor, I'm a grown woman and if someone wanted to take care of me and monitor my habits they would have to buy me a 2 carat diamond first before I would even consider it.}

^{LOVE IT!!!!!}

^{U just don't know how long I've been dying to say this (and a couple other not so nice words) to my meddling Mother in Law!!!}

^{My friends and coworkers my age, I can handle....}

@lisacaron

I'm 6.4 in a 10cc band as of today.

We (myself and my fillers) thought I was at 8.3cc's until just this morning in a Fluid check where it was all withdrawn and put back in, that told a different story. Only 6.4 was in my band.

So either there's a leak OR my prior fills were unsuccessful...

But when I got to 7.5 they began to decrease my fills..I was once getting 1.0 and 1.5 every visit. When I got to 7.5 I got only a .5 after that they decrease some more to .3 today I would have gotten .1

So as you get closer and closer to capacity, I find it's like pulling teeth w/them for a descent fill, well at least at True Results in Houston....

So even though we are willing to take it as far as we deem humanly possible to get ultimate consistent restriction, your fillers may not...

Its a sad sad policy that some of them carry...

went in for a fill today & had all the Fluid withdrawn to find that I'm not at 8.3cc's (the fill level documented in my chart) at all....

I was actually at 6.4cc's...what a big difference right?

Well I return in 2wks to see:

#1) If the 6.4 is still there OR if its vanishing into thin air over time, ie a LEAK....

OR

#2) If my prior fillers weren't actually filling my band.

She said once the needle is beneath the skin its a hit or miss!

Now how would I explain this to friends & family who are not banded when they ask the famous question "how much weight have u lost" & "You know why you're not losing weight right?" (2 of my very favorite)

My point is, once you've spilled the Beans be prepared to explain yourself & answer to all the spectating "Food Police"

@B-52

You definitely have a place in this lap band world......

I surely wish ALL fillers felt the way your surgeon does!

You ever think about becoming a licensed filler??? If there's even such a license! I'd be your first patient and/or guinea pig... :D (no pun intended on the 'pig' analogy)

We need someone like you on our side. I like the way you think..you're definitely speaking my language....

Oh wow! Yes, i'm thinking just maybe a bigger band wld alleviate some of the restriction and vomiting that you're having.

There's even an 11cc band.

But it just sounds like you're not interested in having any band at all right now.

I'd be worried about regaining the lost weight. You've come so far but you're right, at what cost???

What if you do replace the band w/an 11 or 14 and just not fill it? in case your weight does begin to slowly creep back in the wrong direction some months later and then decide to take low to moderate fills (just in case)...

I'd hate to leave w/no band at all....

Might I also add, No one expects us to give up chocolates and the unclean foods we love forever.

Eventually and once ur fills start u'll crave them less & smaller amounts will satisfy the urge.

So just count your calories in a journal & wrkout until the band is tight enough to restrict you.

Welcome to the lap band roller coaster!

Strong one minute or for a few days the next day you're weak as wet tissue paper.

My chocolate cravings are strongest during that TOM, after that im strong again.

So stay on top of ur fills once they start.

Also its best to go every two weeks if ur clinic allows it.

I plan to say...my weight was adversely affecting my health thus, my pcp referred me to a weight loss specialist who provided a tool to assist in controlling my weight.

Haha! Cute!

But saying this or anything at all, and if ur friends and family are anything like mine, they'll instantly become overnight Nutritionists & wont hesitate to let u know ur food choices & portions are all wrong!

And when u've not lost the weight in 30 days or less theyll think your wls was a waste of time and money.

Once u say uve had wls, everyone (in my case) will expect an instant transformation.

Omg! Yess!! U ladies have jst summed up the last 4months of my life.

Every one's become my food monitor. None of them have had lap band nor wls at all.

I've become a closet eater even if my meal has no carbs theyre all around poking and asking questions about the portion size.

And theres no polite way to say leave me alone!

I wish I'd not told anyone anything & jst wait until the weight drop off and have them ask me then how i did it

It may take 3-6 months to find consistent restriction.

The restriction u feel the first few days after a fill is due to the swelling and irritation. Once it subsides u'll be able to eat again.

Any weightloss before the green zone will be according to ur own dieting & exercise habits.

Well I had to tell my boyfriend because i needed a ride to & from the hospital.

He told his mother & she told her sisters.

So when they see me for Thanksgiving & im still the same weight its discouraging.

When someone says theyve had lap band surgery they expect to see a changed person especially after 4 months.

What they dont know is restriction isnt immediate anymore & that theres months of fills uve gotta endure.

If i had an ounce of discipline I wldnt hve had the surgery.

Any loss before the green zone is primarily due to our our very own eating habits & exercise.

So it isnt jst abt them judging. Its abt me feeling like ive let them down & myself.

If I cld fill this band myself I would, but i cant.

If i wasnt so hungry, I wld diet more.

Restriction doesnot begin right out of surgery.

Once the swelling and irritation subsides the hunger returns & u'll be able to eat anything just as before the band.

Expect 3-6 months of adjustments. Adjustments will get u to the restriction necessary to see the scale move.

Any loss during your journey to finding the "green zone" will depend upon your own dieting and exercise routine.

So in the end your weightloss begins w/your very own discipline until your bands Fluid have been increased enough to cause you to eat less and feel fuller longer.

If it isnt too late, I'd say get the sleeve, restriction begins right outta surgery & this will save you 3-6 months if time is your greatest issue.

Thx ladies, I hope you're right.

I dont drink my calories but I am guilty of having a slider or two.

My next fill is Wednesday 12/11. Shes going to give me a .1cc to 8.4.

Hoping this works!

This happened to me once.

I took Aleve for a headache & broke out into what i felt reminded me of chicken pox.

I itched & burned for a week or so.

I didnt know it was from the Aleve at the time so

the 2nd time I took Aleve for a headache i broke out into blisters! From my head to my feet. I had a fever a racing heartbeat & vomitting...

I was hospitalized & also given steroids there in the hospital & also an rx for a month to take home.

It was the NSAID in the Aleve which is in every store bought headache medicine now besides Tylenol.

@dylanmiles23

Wow u've done great so I guess there wld be no need for fills. I didnt know 2.4 was working for u.

And its true, I do feel like im in a race.

My family believes Ive wasted my money getting wls bcuz ive spent the last 4 months getting "fills" and u cant really explain the adjustments to people who've not had lap band surgery.

All they see is no results.

Ive had two friends cancel their lap band consultations because theyve not seen my dramatic transformation & it saddens me too.

Im definitely not the poster child for wls.

Me, on the other hand, who have told family & friends that I was having WLS, and ive gotta tell them ive lost nothing, they call me periodically jst to ask how much weight I've lost or when they see me, they expect to see a smaller frame and are disappointed and say its something im not doing when all along ive just been getting "fills" for 4 months straight.

And its hard to explain adjustments to folks without lapband surgery.

They dont understand restriction isnt immediately outta surgery.

My "right hand" bling is tight right now and i was only able to take in 2 bites of left over cold pizza.

I was wondering if it was bcuz it was cold that its getting stuck but also possibly bcuz its morning

Last night when it arrived hot i got down an entire slice!