shortgal

Exercise alone ( unless it is very intense and several hours a day) is not enough to lose weight it must be combined with lower Calorie intake. I think the problem with exercise is we can tell ourselves we worked so hard walking etc. that we deserve to treat ourselves to more food. You can go online and type in "Walking calculator" and you can figure out the calories you burned by entering in your weight and the speed you walked. If you walked 3 miles in one hour than your speed is 3 MPH. To lose 2 pounds a week, you must reduce the amount of daily calories you need to maintain your current weight by 1000. There are also web sites to estimate your BMR. For example, if your Daily calories to maintain your weight is 2000, then you need to eat 1000 calories a day to lose two pounds, if you walk one hour you can add about 300 calories, so you could eat about 1300 calories and over the course of a month you'd lose about 8 pounds. Obviously you need to be consistent with this formula, if you don;t walk one day, then your calories would have to go back to 1000. More intense exercise will burn more, like step aerobics. If you don't have a problem with your knees, you can buy a step and a DVD program and do that in front of the TV. Depending on the length of the tape and intensity, you might burn 500 calories or more in less than one hour. That's why the Biggest Losers do several hours of intense workouts and they lift weights to increase muscle mass. You lost 3.4 pounds in about 10 days. That's great. That's not slow and eight pounds in a month is great, too.

Kendra, Very long tiring day for you. I feel terrible you have to eindure this and at the same time so glad you went to the GYN initially when you had the bleeding. I think I'm due in April to go for a Pap and I will be sure I don;t skip this year. I'm sure many of the November Ladies will do the same. I wish I had magic words to say to help, I just don't. Praying for you.

It's not just many fills you need, it's how much saline is put in at each time. I've had six and I'm going for #7 in two days. I hope that one does it for me. Over three month since surgery and I'm ready to feel full. First fill 2 cc all others were 1 cc and I'm asking for .5 cc next visit

I have four very small incisions( like a 1/2 inch or less) and one longer one about 2 1/4 inches ( the port). By two years out, I think it will be hard to find the little ones and the port will be there but faded. I had open gallbladder surgery years ago, way worse. That scar is about seven inches long diagonal. The new Laproscopic way is light years ahead in scars and recuperation time.

Hate to burst that "first fill" bubble, but not everybody gets good restriction on the first fill. It can take some people several fills, some a few and some don;t need one for a long time. Check out the Thread by WENDELL on "how the band works" and "how fills work". Then you understand the process better. Just figured you might as well have this info now, so you're not disappointed if it doens;t work for you the first time. Always makes a difference how much your Dr puts in the band at each fill.

There is a nerve that runs from the abdomen up to the shoulder and ( I thnk to the brain) called the vagus nerve. The band, the surgery and swelling causes the nerve to be aggravated, hence the pain. The gas at surgery can cause it, too. At my last fill, I got some swelling around the band and that left shoulder pain came back ( much milder this time, than surgery), it diminished and was only there if I hiccuped or burped. now it's gone. I suspect I'll get it again at next fill. It's not that bad and I use it as a signal that I have some restriction. For more info on the vagus nerve do a google search.

I have read it's not unusual to lose a small amount of fluid. A big amount I would worry about.

I agree. I always make my next appt when I'm leaving the current appt, just in case. If i don't have restriction with the last fill, I'll have an appt and if I do get restriction, I can always cancel the appt. so far I have not cancelled any appts and have actually moved two appts up earlier. I will continue that approach until I get some restriction. Fingers crossed, that happens soon.

I echo mnn2501. A barium test shows the band is closed. I would call a lawyer and check out the Dr's name on the forum. do an advance search at the very right top of the forum page. ( not the google search one, the search above it).

I agree with southern miss. Have a consult with a second bariatric surgeon. There are many on the forum that have lost more than 100 pounds. Look around, there is a whole section for people that need to lose over 100 or have a higher BMI. I'm sure you've looked into the differences between the two surgeries. Many advantages to lap band with the biggest difference is rate of weight loss. GBP wins that.

I add benefiber to my flavored Water. It helps a little but not as much as my previous higher fiber eating before being banded. Now I avoid the whole wheat bread I used to eat, because of the carbs. I do try to eat an apple every day and occasionally add a Protein bar with fiber. Still not as good as previous. Nuts are used to help me and I avoid those becasue they are high in calories. I know less in, less out, but it's unheathy for our colons to have whatever amount is in there to sit there that long. Seems very hard to get in everything our bodies require through food. Protein, Veggies, fruit, fiber, Calcium and stay within the recommended calories. Once I reach goal and can add a few daily calories, it will definitely be more fiber and dairy.

And his reasons were?

I would say submit what you have. Do you have annual weigh ins from a Dr or Gyn that you can include? I would include the office notes showing a weigh in from any dr. you might have seen over the last five years. I was missing doumented weigh ins from my physician and was denied for lack of documentation. Doesn't mean I wasn't obese all that time, I just couldn't prove it to the ins co. and was denied. I self paid.

Hi Dr. I want to know if most Dr's tighten the muscle under the neck when they do a neck lift? What is the procedure called when the muscle is tightened. I have creping under the neck (had it before I lost any weight) but I don;t want just a face lift. I had one ps consult before the band, but then my husband had some health issues and I realized that if I was going to get banded, I should wait to lose my weight before having surgery. That surgeon did not mention the muscle under the neck. Do you tighten it, when you do neck lifts? I need a lot of surgery. My thighs, my neck and face and a panni. My arms aren't great already, but not sure I want that long scar. Is is possible to lift the arms just making a scar in the armpit? Thanks for any reply. I can how busy you are from the Big Medicine show. I would love info about your out of town programs. I have a friend in Dallas ( I think you're in Houston) that I could stay with for a week after surgery, just to be sure I'm ok before going home.

I hope the .5 cc does it, because by the one afer that, it will be four months post op by the time I get restriction! I had no idea it would be this long! Weight loss is getting slower and the wedding (and dress shopping) is getting closer every day. I don;t have unreasonable expectations of the band, but two pounds every week is what I need. I know that's possible with good but not too tight restriction. I know you're as frustrated as I am!

is this a new thing following a fill? Do you feel your band might be too tight. is yes, a slight unfill could make a huge difference. I had a hernia repaired at band placement and had heatburn before that. Tomato sauce, wine, eating too close to bedtime were always a problem before. And I could not sleep on my left side. Took Aciphex for it for several years. No problem since being banded. But many people on the forum have posted they got it from a too tight band.

Why don;t you call them? You might find more info under the insurance segment on the forum.

JowJow, I think expecting big weight loss to continue after losing over 35 pounds, just doesn't happen. We lose fast in the beginning, we plateau, we lose steady, then we stall again. This is normal, just hard to accept. As stated before a lot has to do with how much we have to lose. Your current BMI is not that high so weight loss will slow down. I know you tried uping your calories a little and gained. What I do when I'm stalled is a day of liquids and then continue my regular intake and then one day have a couple hundred calories additional. I think our bodies get used to stablizing if the calorie intake is the same everyday, rather than mixing the intake up and down. Within a week it might be the same average of 1000 per day, but one day is 800 and one is 1200 another is 1000 etc. Your weight loss has been great, don't worry so much. And nobody here would hate you for doing well! Here's my formula for a low calorie day. Some days I can't make it all the way through, by dinner I cave and have Soup. 8am: Atkins shake 11am: 1/2 bottle of Isopure CLEAR 2Pm: Same as 8am 5pm: same as 11am 8pm: Same as 8am. you can reverse any two, but I find the high Protein every three hours works to keep me satisified. If I feel I can't make it all day, I substitute a box of butternut squash soup at the 5pm time. If you do have soup, change the 8pm Atkins to the glass of Isopure CLEAR. Sades: Made an earlier appt for a fill. Going in on Thurs. Last one brought me to about 7 cc. I had a couple great feeling days while on the two days of soft food after the last fill. Felt full all morning after a small b'fast. Yes! That's what I want! So I'll ask for .5 cc this time and then keep my appt for 3/20 in case I need another .5cc. I can still eat apples as well, altho that is one food I have to eat slowly. The PA that gave me the last fill has been banded and when I told her I could eat apples, she said "with the skin on?" and I said yup! And she said oh yeah, you need a fill! She asked about bread, but I don't eat that often and if I do, it's whole wheat and toasted. But before my last fill, I had a whole grilled cheese sandwich! I know we keep saying this, be we must be close to restriction soon!

Kendra, My AKA is Judy. (I have a niece named Kendra, after my brother Ken). I'm sure my husband had many initial fears that he didn't share with me, just as I had many I didn't share with him. Just many fleeting moments of what if's. Neither of us are alarmists by any means. I think we both feel that would be wasted energy. We listened to the Dr and the choices available and picked one and then didn't look back. Having several choices can be hard because you think "am I picking the right one"? We are still very comfortable with the choice, at least I am and if my husband has changed his mind on that, he hasn't said so, but I truly don't think he second guesses it. He breezed through surgery. He painted our basement with the catheter bag hanging onto a tab (the kind for a hammer) on his painters pants! The catheter was in place two weeks following surgery. And about three weeks after surgery, our son and son in law were outside splitting wood. They got the hatchett stuck and couldn't get it out. We watched from the window. As they both tried several times. Finally, my husband couldn't take it anymore, he calmly walked out, didn't say one word to them, grabbed the handle of the hatchett with the wood stuck in it and whacked it hard on the ground! Wood split open and he handed the hatchett back to one of the boys. In the meantime, I watched from the window horrified he would open his sutures or something! We still laugh about that. My son and son in law and not little, weak men. They are both six feet tall and my son worked on ships for a while around that time, a physical job. And my son in law is a firefighter! Chemo is tough, it drains you of energy. Hence the high Protein diet, I guess. And you've lost some weight and have been eating right for a while now, so that's good preparation. I hope you'll rest when you need to and don't be afraid to ask for or accept help when you need it, from friends and family. We recently helped friends through a VERY rough period. I am so grateful they let us help them. It was so good for us as well as them and we're closer friends than ever. I learned so much from helping our friends. Before that I would have been the strong, silent type and If I had a problem, I would think it's mine to handle and not accept help, except from my husband. Now, I would immediately accept any help from my friends, if I was truly in need. I guess I learned it's ok to be vulnerable. I'm sure this thread will remain active, as you have further testing and start your treatment and let us know how you're managing. It's amazing how connected we can feel to people we've never met and as far as we know have little more in common with than a band inside of us. P.S. I found it much easier to cry in the shower than anywhere else. It rid me of some pent up feelings in a private place. I didn't need to for my husband situation, but I did for our friend's situation... several times.

You could save the $16000 for PS!

Athinnerdenise might be right. Maybe you need some upper body lifting to get your shoulders/arms etc a little bigger as then your stomach and waist look even thinner by comparison. But honestly, we're only suggesting these things because you think something is missing. I think you look great as is! We just can't stop finding fault with ourselves. It's so hard. so many perfect looking people on TV, we start to believe that's normal.

Your are right about the extra tests. I did not need upper GI as I had one because of acid reflux. I already knew I had a hiatal hernia befroe surgery, which was fixed at surgery ( No more heartburn!!) and I had already had my gallbladder out, so didn't need an ultrasound. Already had routine colonoscopy, too. Did not need sleep study. Mammo and Pap were up to date as well. Oh and I had an endoscopy several years before seeing the surgeon because the hernia was dicovered during the UGI and they wanted to rule out esophogus problems from the reflux. so I was able to skip some tests merely becasue I had already had them.

You should check with your DR for pre-op diet requirements as each Dr. can vary greatly on what they want their patients to do both pre- and post op. For a clear Protein Drink, I use Isopure CLEAR. It has 160 calories, no carbs and 40 grams of Protein. Comes in several flavors. Many people hate the taste of them, but very cold over ice, it's tolerable and good if your Dr. says CLEAR only. GNC or Vitamin Shoppes For "full" liquid stages , I like the atkins advantage shakes. 160 calories, 15 gm protein, ? carbs ( forget). Check the food and recipe section on the forum. There are many suggestions for each "stage" of post op eating.

There are different brands, so I'm not sure what commerical you saw. I have the Allergan/Inamed AP 10 cc band. The new one has a scalloped design where the saline goes. The scallop design is supposed to reduce slipping problems. There is also a J & J band called realize.

You could be starting what they call here on the forum " The Last Supper" syndrome. We worry before surgery that we won't ever be able to enjoy our old favorite foods. That thought, combined with stress of thinking of surgery, can alter our thinking about food and many here have posted about stuffing themselves with food before being banded. We tend to think if we found the answer to our weight issues with the band, then why not have a last fling with food before the surgery. Believe me, you will enjoy food again but not in the portions you did before. You might find you enjoy food more. You will eat slower, eat things that are better for your health, look and feel better becasue of what you are eating. The band changes your thought process about food. I did not have the last supper syndrome. I was focused on changing my old habits and didn't want even more weight to lose after the surgery. I think what you've experienced is completely normal.