lapbandgal

Oh I'm in love. I'm 3 years post op and just never got the PB2. I was always fine without it and enjoyed my Protein Shakes just fine. Well 3 years in and I get tired of the same old taste. I boost my Protein intake with protein shakes for a snack. I got PB2 2 days ago, and I think I've fallen love! . What do you guys do with your pb2? If you haven't tried it, I highly recommend it!

I went to the dietician 2 days ago and am back to the basics as well! I'm 3 years post op and have gained back 27lbs! It is so frustrating, but I am back to measuring cups and following the program, I am seeing my dietician weekly until I get to my goal weight. . You can do this!!! I can do this!! We all can do this!! ????

I went to the dietician 2 days ago and am back to the basics as well! I'm 3 years post op and have gained back 27lbs! It is so frustrating, but I am back to measuring cups and following the program, I am seeing my dietician weekly until I get to my goal weight. . You can do this!!! I can do this!! We all can do this!! ????

I went to the dietician 2 days ago and am back to the basics as well! I'm 3 years post op and have gained back 27lbs! It is so frustrating, but I am back to measuring cups and following the program, I am seeing my dietician weekly until I get to my goal weight. . You can do this!!! I can do this!! We all can do this!! ????

That's great!!! Way to go!!!! I definitely had a jolt of energy after being banded, and major confidence boost once I started losing, which helped with the energy even more!!!! Keep up the great work!!!!

Congratulations!!! My first weeks were difficult, mainly because of the fat person that was living in my head! The surgery gave me a tool, but I still had to work on me. . So exciting this new phase of your life!!! Keep up the great work, and remember..... It's worth it!!! ????

I am going to have to try it

I love it!! I even put it on my chicken to make a Thai chicken

Mix with plain Greek yogert and dip apples in it!

I've fallen in love with PB2 also! I use it in my Protein Shakes mostly. I have mixed it with Water and used it for my fruit too, but that is it. I am really interested in any other uses others have!

YES!!!!

I was banded yesterday. I am still in the hospital but I am going home today. My stomach is sore. Mostly around my port. Pain in my back and shoulder from the gas they filled me with. I ate a Popsicle and just a little bit of broth. I don't know why but it made me so full. I don't know yet how many cc's my band has in it yet. But I was told my liver was normal size so he had no issues getting to my stomach. So happy to be able to post an update in post-op. Y'all have a blessed day:)

Hang in there. It gets easier. I had six weeks of full liquids after LapBand. I just found the best Soups money could buy. Lost 50 pounds before my first fill at six weeks post op. You can do it!

Thank you guys,s o much, for your feedback. I feel a lot better today. Partially because I slept A LOT last night (apparently I needed it!). I just had this weird reality check yesterday. No one tells you that food still looks good and smells good. I mean, early post-op days you don't want to eat anything so it kind of surprised me. It has made me want to avoid cooking dinner for the family because I am used to tasting as I go, etc. And initially I was like, "holidays - phfft - it's all good! I'm not going to want to eat anyway!" and yesterday it hit me that I won't be eating Thanksgiving dinner with my family. It is only the 4 of us so it wasn't going to be a big shebang, but still.
I can't remember if it was you @@gowalking or if it was you @@JustWatchMe but one of you said in an older post that you had to reach a point where you grieved the fact that you couldn't turn to food anymore. That really resonated with me when I read it, and I haven't even hit *that* place yet. But I am trying to be self-aware enough to know that this is going to be as much of a grieving process as a healing one. And today I am okay with that!!! :-)

Lots of people have gone through 'buyer's remorse' so don't worry about feeling that way. Except for a few outlyers, most poelpe will find the success they are looking for as long as they follow the rules and stay strong when chalenges arise.
Just know that I didn't expect this to work for me either and I've lost almost 150 lbs. and gotten my life back so I'm sure that it will work for you as well. Good luck Keeper.

It works as long as you stay true to yourself. I am 16 months post op and have 42 pounds to lose until I am at goal. I fell off the wagon and gained 3-4 pounds and as soon as I realized it and was honest with myself I got back on track. Down 3 pounds in 5 days. Just be honest with your self and make the right choices! You will do great!!!!

So yesterday was all about spoonfuls for me. I wanted stuffing....I wanted sweet potato, I wanted the greenbean casserole, I wanted gravy. I took my roughly 3 oz. turkey with a spoonful of gravy, and took a spoonful of everything else. Was it more than I usually eat? Yes. Did I stuff myself like the turkey? No.
I made several conscious decisions during the meal. I had alcohol...more than usual but I wanted it. Won't repeat that tonight so it was simply a one off. Had dessert and not of the 100 calorie or sugar-free type. Again...a one off.
Didn't even bother to get on the scale this morning. If I gained a bit, so what? Back to eating as usual today. Did not go nuts yesterday...all is well. Hoping this is my new normal for the rest of my life.

After all the sweat and hard work I finally hit that coveted goal. 344 to 220 and I've never felt better. I'm living walking proof that the Lap-Band can work if you commit.
If anyone ever has questions for somebody who's been down the Lap-Band road I'm more than happy to share my opinions just post your questions in here.
 

Almost 2 months to the day of surgery I got the word that my sugar levels are good enough to stop taking the 2000 mg a day of metformin. So happy about that. I was also told that I no longer needed to take my nexium. So here I am just taking birth control as happy as I can be!

For the last several months, I have been plateaued big time. Lose 5 pounds and it comes right back. BUT I have an interview on Monday and I am nervous as heck, first interview I have had in over 17 years. So my wife and I went out to find me a new outfit, picked out a dress shirt and slacks and asked my wife to pass judgement. Her opinion? Shirt was too big, I either needed a slim or a smaller shirt. The long and short of it? I ended up with a full inch smaller in the neck and arms and still could have used a slim cut, but couldn't find one.
So, the scale has been plateaued, but my body hasn't, it is still changing (Shrinking)

I was banded 10/8/14. I lost between 10 and 15 pounds in the first few weeks from the presurgery diet and the initial post-surgery liquid diet. Then nothing, For weeks and weeks. I got my first fill at five weeks, experienced a huge reduction in what I could eat, and still, no movement. I went over a month without losing any scale weight. My clothes were getting looser, but not drastically. Not a single person noticed or commented that I had lost weight.
Finally, this week, 8 weeks out from surgery, the scale is slowly and steadily creeping down. I'm down 20 pounds as of today.
Here are some things I have learned:
1. Losing weight with a lap band can be a very slow process. Patience is key. I am very bad at being patient.
2. I am a very slow learner. I get stuck almost every day from eating too quickly. Undoing a 40 year habit of wolfing down food is not easy.
3. When I exercise, I am more likely to lose weight. Plain and simple.
4. Preparation is key. It is not easy to grab food when you are out with the band. Keeping Protein Bars on hand and not going too long between meals is important.
Almost 2 months later, I finally am starting to feel good about my choice to get a lap band and feeling like I can make a success of this.

Took a pic yesterday and was surprised at the difference. Before 294.5 after 246.7 (nowhere near done) 

I had often told myself during my journey that even if I were to ever possibly hit goal I would never post a success story. Maybe I was being modest or perhaps just really hard on myself or…just not able to forgive myself for ever letting my weight get out of control as it had. I guess a lot of it no matter how you sum it up is really just embarrassment.
Well I had a change of heart. That change of heart came because I can remember so vividly the feeling of the hopelessness and despair. At times I felt I was knocking on deaths door and that there was nothing I could do about it. So I am writing this tonight in hopes that if I can help just one person even if only one tiny bit then it is my responsibility to do so. I believe in paying it forward and giving back. If it wasn’t for the people before me that helped me then where would I be? It would be irresponsible for me not to do the same. You are not alone and there are people out there, really good decent people who can help you but YOU have to want it and at some point you need to swallow your pride and ask for the help. Help will not come to you. YOU have to seek it out.
I have told my story several times and you can read it on my profile. I lost 170lbs doing Atkins between 2003 and 2004. I went from 393 to 220 and felt great…and then I got sloppy and let my guard down and weight started packing on. I went from 220 to 488 in 8 years’ time.
At 488lbs doing day to day activities was quite a chore. My knees were taking a beating carrying so much weight on a 5’6 inch frame. I developed arthritis and serious sleep apnea. Walking from the parking lot to my office was a real task and that was even with the use of an elevator. I had to sit out in the car and have my Wife do the grocery shopping because I couldn’t last more than 10 minutes on my feet. I had to sit and fold laundry sitting in a chair. This list could go on and on about the limited mobility. My amazing Wife stood by me and encouraged me to make a change but we both knew until I was ready to commit to change it would not happen. I am not sure how many other women out there would have put up with what she did. My weight affected us both physically and mentally. I did not feel like much of husband at times and I am sure there were plenty of times she felt more like a caregiver than a wife at times although she never said so or complained.
Something had to give and it finally did and in September 2011 with my wife at my side I attended a local seminar for WLS. We listened to the Doctor discuss all the surgical options available at the time and being new and somewhat naïve we decided Lapband was the way to go. It was reversible and probably the least invasive of all procedures. I signed up for a one on one consult with the Surgeon that night. October 2011 I met with the Doctor and told him I ready to make a life change. He told me he wanted to see me lose 24lbs and work on shrinking the liver. Insurance required me to do a 6 month monitored diet so instead of losing 24lbs preop I lost 38lbs. My Surgeon was impressed and after completing all the preop requirements I finally got a surgery date of April 16, 2012. I weighed in on surgery morning at 450lbs on the button.
So there I was April 17th and getting discharged from the hospital and all that went through my mind is why the hell did I do this? There was no way it would work and I will be known as the fat guy who couldn’t lose weight with WLS.
As much as you research and prepare for this new life it seems at some point you say OK well I had the surgery why is the weight not coming off?? This is so frustrating!!! Well apparently I had never heard of bandster hell. Bandster hell is that time from when you have the surgery to the time you actually get the necessary fills to get the need restriction to control your portions. Some very few people are lucky they have the surgery and automatically get that restriction. Not me, it took me 6 months. 6 months of frustration.
Probably one of the most difficult pieces for me to learn was patience. Lack of patience made this road even longer. I stepped on the scale almost daily these last 2.5 years waiting on a large drop in numbers that never happened. How on earth could you possibly see a large drop if you’re stepping on the scale daily? Do yourself a favor and don’t do it. To this day I still step on it daily but now it is about accountability not so much weight loss.
Always look for other measures to success. We call them Non Scale Victories or NSV’s. Losing weight is not just about numbers. For a while I was buying new clothes every other month because I was shrinking so fast. I went from a size 62 waist to a 34. I went from squeezing into theater seats to have padded space on each side.
I could go on and on here rambling about all sorts of stuff weight and band related. If you’ve read this far then thank you and thank you to those who helped me get here. I would like to especially thanks @@Alex Brecher without him I wouldn’t have a home here and I perhaps would’ve remained lost.
If anyone has any questions or comments or just need someone to talk to don't hesitate to message me regardless how personal you think your question may be.
My name is Jim and I am junk food addict. I have lost 300lbs and the lapband saved my life. 2yrs and 8 months 488 to 188.
Peace!!

I finally hit the 170s. Haven't seen this weight on a scale since high school. Found my high school skirt in a bag in the closet (went to an all girl's Catholic high school) and we wore plaid uniform skirts. This skirt was from freshmen year (1974).
OMG............ it fit and it fit loosely!!!!!!!!!!!

Hello all. I just wanted to give a little encouragement to the newbies out there. Today I am 4 years post op. I am still in love with my band. I have been filled and unfilled, I have pbed. I have gotten stuck and yet I still love my band. It has taken some time but I have learned to live with it as many of my fellow veterans have as well. I have learned what I can eat and what I can't eat with my band. I do drink a little sprite or orange soda every once in a while. I can't stand coke any more which used to be my favorite soda. I can honestly say I haven't had it in over 4 years. What I do drink on the regular is orange juice because I can't eat oranges any more. I can eat apples but I choose to drink apple juice. I still have my coffee every morning and tea every week as well. In regards to foods, well I eat just about anything except Pasta that you use for lasagna. I do eat spaghetti every blue moon and I will eat a little mac and cheese only if it's really cheesy. Other than that, I eat bread, rice, etc. I actually had a couple slices of thin crust pizza for supper yesterday. Speaking of supper. I have learned that I can't eat past 8 p.m. If I do, I will fall asleep but in the middle of the night I will start coughing and coughing and then I'll fall back to sleep. Later I will cough some more and eventually Water will start coming out of my nose. That will go on until I finally throw up the last whatever that was in my stomach before I went to bed. So that means I have to get in all my food and drink by 7 p.m. 7:30 at the latest. When I do eat before 7, I have no problems. I sleep like a baby. What can I say, my band doesn't want me eating late I can dig that. That was a problem before I was banded that aided in me gaining weight in the first place eating late at night and snacking watching tv. Well I can honestly say those days are definitely over. I do eat chips but only when I crave them. I eat popcorn as well but only when I have a taste for it and that isn't often. My last fill was August 2012 which put me at 7.1 ccs in my 10 cc band. So I will leave you with this final note, don't give up. Don't get discouraged. The weight isn't going to fall off over night, every week, everyday, etc. Stop stressing. Follow your bariatric team's instructions/guidelines because all our bodies and problems within our bodies are different. We all have different medical issues so what works for me may not work for you and vice versa. Sometimes it will but in other cases it won't. If you aren't sure about what's happening in your body, don't be afraid to call your doctor and find out. After all, it is YOUR BODY. Take care everyone and happy holidays. I'm 95 lbs down and loving it.