jnbwilds

It's good to feel missed! I know I do better when I am connecting with the community - it helps keep me accountable. Ezma - I did get back to a good restriction level. Luckily the problems didn't last long - just a hiccup in the journey. It did make me SO appreciative of my band. Being unfilled for even a few weeks was really hard!

Yikes ladies! I haven't been on here in months! It's great to see all of your faces and signatures again! Luckily it hasn't been depression that's kept me away (although I'm sorry that it has hit some of you.) I guess life with the band has just gotten to be my new "normal". I lost the first 60 pounds right away, and then kind of took a break over the summer - just enjoying life, riding rollercoasters I now fit in - running around with my kids and yes... eating a little ice cream now and then. So I did maintain, but no loss over the summer. I got back on the wagon this fall and it seems that the pattern is losing a few pounds a month. Slow, but steady. So I'm at a total loss of 70 lbs and the goal is to hit a 75 lb loss by the end of this calendar year and a 80 lb loss by my "bandiversary". Still lovin' my band and the freedom it's given me from a lifetime of food addiction. Good luck ladies!

The only alternative to the 6 month supervised weight loss program is to go with self-pay. So, it is probably worth it to go through the program! Honestly you will learn some great habits during the 6 months that will be VERY helpful after you have the band. Good luck - and enjoy the journey!

Welcome to the forum! It might be helpful to have your hubby go through the before and after pictures on this forum - that did it for my husband! I agree that including him in the research process and actively asking his opinion will help him feel more comfortable!

Welcome to you both! Congratulations on making a very brave and exciting decision. Hopefully you will continue to learn a lot more from the forum. Best of luck with the band!

Everyone is different! Definately take your time - 3 days is a minimum and most will need a bit more, especially if you don't have a desk job. For me, days 2 and 3 after surgery were the worst, and then I woke up on day 4 feeling much more like myself. Congratulations on your band and good luck!

Well friends, I haven't been hanging out here very much lately. Not for any scary reason like I've lost all motivation and gained all the weight back or anything. It's just that life with the band has become routine. My weight loss has slowed down to about a pound a week and things have become pretty normal. I recently updated my video blog and thought I would let my Victorious Valentine friends know about it. This one is meant to be a motivational episode. If your weight loss has slowed - hopefully this will be inspirational! Hope you all are doing well.

I'm doing the low-carb thing too, and here's a bunch of stuff I keep handy. String cheese (with 2 or 3 mini rice cakes for crunch) Cottage Cheese (with 1 T. of Fiber One yogurt) Tuna - mix with 1 T mayo & 1 oz cheddar cheese and nuke for 30 sec. Salmon Pinwheels - find them at Target, with crab filling. Yummo! Bags and bags of "steam in the bag" frozen veggies - I toss them with a little butter & feta cheese crumbles and eat 1 cup almost every night. Lettuce wraps - wrap turkey or ham and provolone cheese in a lettuce leaf with chopped tomato and mayo. Delish! Veggie dips - raw yellow pepper strips, cucumber and baby carrots go down really well - with a little sour cream mixed with dill. Sausage & Cabbage - simmer hunks of polish sausage with chopped cabbage until the cabbage is fork tender. I also buy a lot of pre-marinated pork loin - just heat and serve w/ veggies. I go to Sam's Club and buy huge bags of frozen chicken breasts and have about 20 low carb chicken recipes I make with them. Here's a few of my family's favs.... 1. Marinate chicken in Greek dressing - Saute, then toss with steamed spinach & feta cheese. 2. Coat chicken with a mix of mayo & garlic salt, then roll in parmesan cheese (w/ a spoonful of breadcrumbs tossed in, if you like). Bake at 400 for 15-20 minutes. 3. Marinate chicken in Italian dressing. Saute w/ red & yellow peppers & chopped onion. Toss w/ parmesan cheese. I serve this to my boys over Pasta - but serve mine just with a salad. Hope a few of these sound yummy!

Gibson, I'm so happy for you! What a great feeling! I'm smiling a big smile for you right now.

From reading all these responses - I'd have to agree that society treats people differently based on size. But honestly - it just never happened to me. I was normal sized until after my kids were born, so I had a successful, established career, a happy marriage and a solid self-esteem by the time I got fat. No one ever ignored me in a store, made a comment about my weight, gave me an ugly look, or treated me disparately. I don't know if it was because I had confidence and a smile, or if I was just a dork and didn't notice people giggling behind my back. So I guess I'd conclude that yes - others are mean to fat people. But a healthy sense of humor, self esteem, a confident smile and an outgoing personality go a really long way toward reducing discriminatory behavior.

I think this depends on the maturity of your kids and also your own maturity as a parent. If you have an open, honest relationship with your children - then tell them. If you want to begin a healthy, frank dialogue about weight, eating and exercise - then tell them. If you prefer not to lie to your children about where you are when you are in a surgery center overnight - then tell them. If you want your children to be able to Celebrate your successes with you as you go through the journey - then tell them. If you value allowing your children to ask open questions about things that might make them nervous, or curious - then tell them. If, on the other hand - your children are not old enough or mature enough to understand, then wait. And of course, if you are so ashamed of your own decision (or of having gotten obese in the first place) that you are afraid to discuss it with your children - then keep it a secret.

Yes! But we weren't sure why. I am thrilled to know that it could be rapid weight loss. I'll talk with my doctor about that. Thanks for posting this!

Ok, I know I'm offering a different opinion, but this happened to me, EXACTLY as you described. After my second fill, I was getting stuck at least once a day, sliming and throwing up. I called my doctor convinced I needed an unfill. They asked me to stick to soft foods and liquids and chew the daylights out of any solids. If after 4 or 5 days, things hadn't settled down, to come in. About 3 days in, the swelling from the fill went down (and I learned that what they say about chewing - they actually mean that) and I was fine. Also, a tortilla with cheese - that would turn into a dough ball with glue in your pouch. Eek! Give it a certain amount of time and try to be very strict about the band rules and if things don't get better - go for the unfill.

Thanks for watching! Actually, my first fill was similar to yours - a few seconds and we were done. No sitting up or anything. This second one took a bit longer to get into the port, so I was actually glad for the local anesth. this time! I'm not sure why it took longer - could it have been that we were holding a video camera over my doc's hand to record his every move for my blog? :biggrin: Also, for my friend who encouraged me to get my "after" pictures up in place of the uber chubby "before" picture that I had been using for my avatar......is this one better? :thumbup:

Just keep saying to yourself, "It's worth it, It's worth it, It's worth it." Because it totally is. As you get all your paperwork and photos and records together, just remind yourselves that you won't regret a minute of it once you've had your surgery. Regarding the news thing - I say go for it! Especially if you are happy with your surgeon and his office. I have a video blog about my journey, and first - it is a big motivation to stay on plan when you know so many people will be tracking your progress! Also, I love my surgeon - the office staff is awesome and frankly - I feel like I owe them for adding back years to my life. I'd hand out his business cards in the Walmart parking lot, if I didn't think people would take offense and smack me. LOL!! Best of luck to you guys, you are a beautiful couple and this is a a great thing for you to take on as a team!