HeatherO

Well whether it is divine intervention or blind luck whether good or bad, I am still happy that there was a positive outcome for those people.

Perhaps you are just feeling them more now that you are further along. Perhaps he is making up for lost time . . . since it took so long for him to start kicking vigorously in the first place, lol. Maybe all that activity in the nursery kept him awake longer than usual and his sleep pattern is off a little. Did you eat anything unusual for dinner/dessert last night? I feel the kicks so much more a while after eating something, especially if it is something sweeter than normal. I am still in the early stages where I feel the movements lightly and then it goes away. It seems as soon as I really feel her kicking and start to pay attention it stops, lol. I am really looking forward to her kicking up a storm like yours. By the way, I had to tell my husband about your baby's reaction to the water action scene in the Benjamin Button movie. He thought it was hilarious how you had to cushion the sound, lol.

Congratulations!!! I needed an emergency unfill right around the time of conception. I got immediately so tight that I couldn't get liquids down without a struggle. Some of us are affected that way. You are so lucky to learn early. I did not get a bfp until more than 2 weeks after my period was due, lol. I am happy you will be joining us in our pregnancy discussions. Congrats and best of luck to you!!!

Congratulations Alana!!! I am sending lots of sticky vibes your way. I also had inconsistent results on pregnancy tests as well. I did not get a bfp until more than 6 weeks after my previous menstrual cycle. I thought maybe I wasn't really pregnant, but I was told on this forum that any positive line, even faint, means pregnancy. I remember the constant peeing early on and it went away. I drink constantly too. If fact it seems as if being pregnant is making me extra, extra thirsty all the time now. I think it is a great idea to wait a little on that fill just in case. Some of us have gotten extremely tight in waves since pregnancy. We look forward to hearing more from you. Congrats and good luck!!!:wink5:

I immediately got super tight and needed an emergency unfill before I even knew I was pregnant. I got a slight fill again and then needed another unfill. I found that my band got extremely tight after pregnancy. My fill nurse said I had to have a full unfill because it is their policy. I begged and pleaded and ended up with a half fill (4 cc's current compared with the original sweet spot of 8.3 cc's). I will probably have no need to see them again until after delivery unless I need another unfill. They said they will not give me another fill (or if I really, desperately need it they will give me only .25 cc's per month if I am lucky . . . but probably not even that much). If you want to maintain some fill, you may want to find out what their policy is on pregnancy before you go in.

I agree, jerky is a wonderful protein filled snack that is low in calories. Once you are off the post-op diet and all full foods, there is no reason why you can't eat the jerky as long as you chew well.

I think at the very least, it is still good to at least call your doctor. By doctor I mean your general practitioner. Because there are so many causes that can be serious, it is nothing to play around with or to just assume it is no big deal. Most likely it is nothing important, but just in case it is something more serious you should follow up with your doctor.

It was such an interesting and inspiring story, thanks for bringing it up. I fly frequently on business, sometimes domestic and sometimes international. Everytime I hear that your "cushion can be used in a flotation device" or "what to do in the event of a Water landing," I always felt skeptical. Why??? . . . because I have never heard of a water landing where people actually lived to tell the tale. I always though that if we crash landed in the sea, the last thing I would be thinking about would be my floating cushion. I agree that God must have had other plans. It is just amazing.

I am sorry that you had that experience. I also don't bother with the chat rooms because it seems like the overall tone of conversation is not always positive and it has too much of a "gossip" feel to it. You would think, or at least I would, that people who have struggled with obesity or weight to the extent that they would consider surgical resolution would be more tolerant of others struggling with that same problem. What I have found in real life is that others struggling with obesity can sometimes be considerably less tolerant or supportive than the population at large. Why this is, I can't even begin to speculate. All I can say is that you shouldn't let anybody get you down. Do what you need to do for yourself, people in a miscellaneous chat room mean less than nothing in the overall scheme of what happens in your life. I went to Mexico. I did alot of research beforehand, and was very happy with my experience. I found good aftercare for afterwards and made sure that all my options were covered. I have also had excellent results, reached my goal, and I am very proud of where I am today. I have no doubts that some others "poo poo" my decision (it has happened before), but I live in this body and I have no regrets.

pattygreen, You said it perfectly. :0) It is such a personal choice and unless you are ready for it, it is not the right choice for you. If you are ready for that commitment at 190, 215, 270, 350, etc and are obese, than the time is right regardless of what other people say or think.

Wow, that sounds really unpleasant. Especially when you were hoping for a little relief. I am happy to hear the port is not flipped. Did you have any problems getting the fill last week? Good luck next week . . . I hope it will be easier to access.

My office says signs that you need a fill are as follows: 1) Losing less than 1-2 pounds a week. You are losing within range so you sound good there. 2) Feeling physically hungry between meals (or less than four hours after eating). 3) Eating too much during meals. It sounds like you might be OK there as well since you feel tight. It really doesnt sound like you need a fill. However, if you do get one, it should be very, very tiny. Being too tight is not only unpleasant, it actually causes some people to gain because they start eating easier foods that may not be as healthy or might have too many calories.

I would take this with a grain of salt. Yes, it could possibly take a couple of days . . . but that is so incredibly rare, even with the first child. I wonder what the average labor time is, I will have to google it. Sometimes I think you get the worst case scenario so that you can be pleasantly surprised when you do so much better, lol. It is kind of like banding when my surgeons office said I probably wouldn't lose anything before my first fill, then when I was actually losing I was extra motivated. I was told the same thing when I had my son. I wasn't induced but the doctor did something he called "stirring the cervix" which was a bit painful. I think it is equivalent to stripping membranes now. I went to an ob appointment at 9:00 am and before I left I said my back was a little uncomfortable. He was born at almost 4:00 PM that very same day. Everyone has such different experiences, you just never know. It might end up being so much easier than you ever would have expected.

I dont think they can do much now since you were already approved with the information they had on file. What was your final BMI when you got the insurance and what was the BMI at surgery? Did you have any comorbidities?

Two weeks will go by in a flash. Sticking to your liquid diet is really helpful not only for taking off weight, but more importantly for getting your head in the right "banding mindset." You can do this and it sounds like you are off to a good start. Good luck.

Not eating after 7:00 pm can help. Propping up your pillows when you sleep so that your head and shoulders are elevated above your stomach a little more help. Acid reducing/reflux meds can also help. I had this problem as well. The things listed above helped me slightly. Getting a small unfill made my problems dissapear completely. You might just need to have a tiny unfill.

I agree with the others about calling your regular doctor. It is not a typical lapband problem so none of us could have much to offer . . . . and there are so many different possible reasons for it from the simple to the complex. Your doctor would know best, especially if you have a history of h'roids.

I would just track and try not to go over the 6. If it is only gas, it should get better and better each day and in another week you might not be taking gas-x at all. If your gas pains are strongly affecting the left neck/shoulder than it might not be gas pain, it might be an irritated nerve.

I reallllyyyyy want to try the ham and cheese soup. The only problem is that we don't eat pork. Does anyone have any suggestions on a good substitute that would taste good in the soup? Kat817, I hope your DIL is alright. That can be a scary experience.

Wow, it would be interesting to be involved in the rescue efforts. I just heard about the crash this morning. I guess my first question would be if you gained on your six month diet - what do you think the reasons were for the gain? You should analyze what you did at the point to see if there is anything that you could have done to improve your results. As far as the liquid diet now, since your timeline is so short, you should do everything you can to follow the liquid diet perfectly and keep calorie intake under control until February 20th. Lose as much as you can, as fast as you can with no cheating and put in lots of exercise as well. If you lose significantly, even if it is not the full amount, you have a much better shot than if you went in with no loss or even a gain. Good luck.

I am sorry you are having a rough go of it so far. He might just come around with time. He might be scared of the surgery or of what the future will bring. However, you need to do this for you if you want to get healthy. I would give him a few days and then have a heart to heart conversation with him. If you are doing this via email, I think it shows that there may already be significant communication issues to begin with in the relationship. You might want to find out the reasons why he isn't supportive of this so that you can counter that and help him feel better about the decision.

I agree about Sam Elliot. He just has such a cowboy cuteness factor going on, and I like his voice with the slow drawl but could go without the lengthy mustache. I find Billy Bob Thornton cute in a strange way as well (just not the sling blade version, lol). I think gray hair can be sexy on the right person (and the right shade of gray). Jennifur, I agree . . . a good kisser is very important. I am happy your girls are back in order, lol. I would be scared to death to get the jewelry back in if they wont go on their own. Laura, I can't wait to see your nursery once it is put together. I have to start coming up with ideas for my own, lol. TracyK, I am suffering with back pain as well . . . so I hope you get some good drugs and feel better soon. I am also happy you are moving. I could never feel comfortable in a neighborhood with frequent robberies all around. It sounds like the next house is going to be so much better anyways. Also frequent moves keep you lean and efficient as far as "stuff" is concerned. Moving after you have been in the same place for 10 years is an exercise in insanity if you have packrat tendencies like me. Good luck with your move. Suziecat, I think I like your psych too :0). TracyinKS, Is the Twilight series a good read? I keep hearing about it. mdrai, Zumba is soo much fun. I miss my class, lol. I hope your DD is feeling better.

It is the first time i saw somebody write about this. I feel unusual in the fill office as well. I have never seen anybody close to my size during my appointments in the waiting room, most are still somewhere between obese and morbidly obese. I am sure there are plenty of others who have lost most of their weight, but I just don't seem to run into them during appointments. The first thing that happens when I go to the waiting room is probably the same thing that happens in all of the WLS office waiting rooms across the world, everybody kind of looks at everybody else in a discreet fashion kind of sizing each other up and wondering if they are up for talking. Next comes the small talk about the weather, or what have you, but I can see the questions on everyones faces (when did you have the surgery, how much have you lost, etc.). I also notice that a lot of eyes are focused on me, but I think it is because of my current size more than anything else. I am always happy to talk if someone wants to talk (probably no surprise to anyone with my lengthy posts, lol). The part that makes me feel a little guilty during this is that many people have lost more weight than me, sometimes alot more weight than me . . . but we don't look the same. I feel like some people feel that I had an easier road with less weight to start with . . . and you know what, I think that is absolutely true. It might be a little hard to exercise if you are out of shape with 50-100 extra pounds, but at 200+ extra pounds it would be extremely hard. If you lose 50 pounds it looks a whole lot different (and the size changes are a whole lot different) depending on how much extra you had to begin with. Even general overall health tends to be different depending on how much weight you have to lose. Even with this, I still feel like banding should be available for everyone who struggles on a daily basis with their weight, even if they only weigh 200 pounds. I really wish it was easier for all of us. I have heard that medical knowledge roughly doubles every 10 years. If that is true, then I do think it is going to get easier for all of us. Perhaps we might just be able to truly beat this obesity epidemic in the future so that those of us who struggle don't struggle in vain.

Somehow, I get the feeling that you would like to decide for all of us. It is the sanctimonious Realize bashing that is getting hard to swallow after a gazillion posts. Research is definitely important and anyone who gets a band without doing their own research should not have a band. You have valid points and I appreciate your posts stating objectively what the research has shown. But please, don't go out of your way to try to make people feel stupid for choosing the J & J Realize band. I have the Realize band, have lost 100% of my excess weight, have been lucky enough not to have any significant complications, and I feel very lucky indeed to have my band. My results may not be typical, but I am nonetheless pleased with them. I probably would have had good results with the Lapband as well but I am not ashamed of my choice.

Are you just trying to make the poster feel bad with this statement? If I had to guess, that the surgeon was probably trying to put differences in laymens terms and the purpose of any port is to be accessed. If a surgeon is stupid for making any statement on a product that they placed seven times . . . all I can say is that you are making these statements, how many Realize bands have you placed??? If you have personally placed less than seven, does that make you stupid for making statements???