HeatherO

Why wait for your first fill . . . there is no time like the present

I wish you the best of luck for high HCG levels tomorrow.

LOL, that was priceless. I have never heard that quote before . . . I am going to have to use it in the future. Jenn, 2 hours talking on the phone is an excellent start. :0)

You were in the hospital and going through a medical crisis. I wonder if you went to the bank and asked to speak to the manager if they would waive your fees due to special circumstances. It is worth a shot and the worse that can happen is that they might say no - 10-20 minutes of effort might save you the $105 in fees.

The doctor wants to remove part of your body that isn't even a problem in order to get insurance to pay for an issue reoccurring twice after surgery by the same doctor . . . that is fraud and just wrong on so many different levels it is not even funny. Because the same issue occurred twice, I think he just needs to fix it. Did he give any reason why you have had 2 kinks in a row . . . when this is not an issue for most bandsters out there???

I am so happy to hear that you are feeling better . . . and what a great doctor to see you at 11 PM at night, you are very lucky.

You can never stretch your band, but you can stretch your pouch with carbonated beverages like diet pop and regular overeating. I would agree that it sounds like you might need another fill but I am not sure how much you have lost, when you have had fills or what kind of restriction history you have had. If you have been losing weight over time, you may have lost a little fat around your stomach which will make your band feel looser.

I use Spectravite chewables from CVS. They are cheap, taste good and meet my nutritional needs. Amazingly enough, my obstetrition said they were also sufficient for prenatal Vitamins as long as I have a folic acid supplement as well . . . so for me they are working as a regular Vitamin, bariatric vitamin and prenatal vitamin and are still cheap and taste good with none of those icky vitamin burps or queasiness.

I have the Realize band too, and I agree that there is a mix. I have lost almost 100% of excess weight with this band . . . and I just like this forum so I post mostly here.

It is definitely the weight loss . . . but the band helps make the weight loss possible so you could say both indirectly. I had my only child 16 years ago and wasn't blessed with another . . . until I got banded that is. I lost almost all of my weight, went off the pill and within 2 weeks I had conceived. It has been a miracle for me and I know I am not the only one who has become ultra-fertile post banding.

My husband bought me an outfit for my birthday in July . . . that looked great and fit perfectly. He would never have done that when I was heavy, but now that I am not he wants me to wear flattering clothes in younger styles.

Banding is the only thing that has ever worked for me . . . and I have lost almost 100% of the excess weight and am now considered "normal." I struggled with my weight all my life, but never had this degree of success before banding. I love my band.

For me it was when I crested 220 again after staying under 200 for almost 1 1/2 years. I just couldn't handle another failure and always ending up higher than before.

My family was rather shocked over the holidays. They knew I lost weight but haven't really seen me much since summer. The last few pounds have really made a huge difference. It was really nice to receive the compliments and made for a fun Christmas. This is my first normal sized Christmas as an adult, lol. What I noticed even more than the compliments were that peoples eyes followed me around everywhere, lol. That showed more of the surprise in the change than the compliments :0)

The quote makes sense to me as well and I wouldn't take it too seriously :0). Live life to the fullest. With all your concerns with your father overshadowing everything . . . perhaps you should have a heart to heart talk with him to let him know how you feel and how worried you are about him.

I like fitday.com because it has charts that show my progress over time. I also save my favorite foods there so it is fast and easy.

Great post and excellent information!!! Thanks for sharing.

Have you considered that you might have a carb addiction? If I eat carbs like chips, crackers, Cookies, potatoes, Cereal, snack cakes or anything similar, I am hungry in less than an hour and I have no energy at all. It could be the carbs affecting your blood sugar that might be making this so difficult for you. If this might be the problem, the best way to overcome it is to cut out the carbs/processed sugars completely for two weeks and see how you are feeling aterwards . . . it might just make all the difference in the world. The 5 day pouch test is a great way to get back on track . . . here is a link if you would like to check it out: Surgical Weight Loss 5 Day Pouch Test I highly recommend it. Why don't you try one thing at a time? Commit for yourself that you will do one thing to help yourself on your journey for two weeks . . . and then add in a new piece so that it is not so overwhelming. They could be things like the following: 1) I will not eat junk food. Either it is a Protein, veggie, fruit, dairy, or whole grain food. 2) I will not snack between meals. (but scheduling a snack into your day at a time that you know you will be hungry is fine if it is healthy). 3) I will eat my lean proteins first, veggies second and everything else last. 4) I will chart every bite of my calories and proteins either online on thedailyplate, fitday or any other site or even with a pen and paper to see what I am taking in. 5) I will exercise for at least 20 minutes every day, even if it is only walking. 6) If I become very hungry between meals or I am eating more than one cup at a sitting - I will eat non-starchy vegetables as filler. You can do this and we are all here for you. We are all in the same boat and trying to find our way through to the other side. The band is there for you to make it easier, and you have to ask yourself . . . is your second band failing you or are you failing your second band . . . . by not putting forth the effort to make it work. Now it is up to you to hold up your end, get the weight off and be the best and healthiest that you can be. I think if you follow these steps, you could be looking a whole lot different and feeling like a new person by the time summer comes around.

My name is Heather and I am also a certified scale addict, lol. I swear I will weigh myself both before and after using the bathroom . . . first thing in the morning, last thing at night and sporadically during the day. It is really too bad they don't make a shoe scale so you can stand on one foot and know where you are at a moments notice anywhere and everywhere, lol. If they put the read out on the bottom of your shoe, it might even improve the flexibility of the wearer, lol.

I lost my taste for Crystal Light as well post banding. I used to really like pink lemonade and after banding it just tastes sour on my stomach. I also tried a sip of diet coke that was sitting out for a while and was flat and none too cold . . . it tasted awfulll . . . how on earth was I drinking 4-6 every day before banding . . . was it just the bubbles and caffeine??? Banding changed my tastes in other ways as well. I seem to crave water or milk more than before. I do like tea with splenda and I like coffee with creamer only. I also found that stuff I used to like (potatoes, rice, even sweets) are kind of bland now and not too interesting. A fast and easy way to make ice tea (if you don't go the sun tea route) is to boil some water, put about 8 tea bags in a big pitcher and pour the hot water on top and let it soak for about 10 minutes, take out the tea bags, add cold water and it is done. You can then sweeten it as a whole or just in individual cups.

My step-mother had R&Y several years ago. She was losing sooo well, even now, years later, she is 5'3 and around 115-120 pounds and maintaining well. I had a BMI of 40 so I started the journey myself early the next year. My doctor said I was a better candidate for the band considering age/weight/health but my insurance only covered R&Y . . . and I could not afford surgery without insurance. I did the 6 month supervised diet, took all the tests, was ready to finally schedule a date and my company changed their insurance plan immediately before surgery and had a nifty, new WLS exclusion in November of that year when I was scheduled for early December. Needless to say I was devastated. More than devastated, I couldn't even appeal what I didn't have anymore and I felt like life was over. So in desperation, I took my step-mom's diet and plan and followed it to a T starting in early December of that year. I lost 70 pounds fairly quick . . . it worked and I found like I had hope again . . . until I started to slowly but inevitably climb the scale again the year following. Yes you can follow it and lose the weight with motivation and ambition . . . but the really difficult trick is in the long term maintenance. Hungry is hungry is hungry and it can only be denied for so long, and the band can help with that part of it so that you can find success.

You still have a pouch but the bottom end of it that empties into your stomach is more like a funnel right now (everything passes easily) but later will be like an hourglass (a slow trickle into the lower stomach).

I have been hungry lately but it comes on in such a rush. For instance, tonight I was working, got off work and decided to go to the grocery store with my husband. On the way to the store, I was sooo hungry my stomach actually ached. I was so hungry it was like a physical pain. I bought some marinated/pickled mushrooms and artichokes and ate them in the car on the way back to the house. That in itself is strange because mushrooms and artichokes are not my usual choice of a hunger buster nor eating in the car, lol. This has happened several times in the last few weeks. Just strange episodes where I am fine and could eat in another hour or two . . . until 5 minutes later where I am just physically aching with hunger where I feel like I could gnaw the bark off the trees if I don't get something fast. It usually only takes a couple bites puts me back in shape (if I eat more than this I will get sick). I have also had episodes with severe thirst as well where I feel like I am dying for Water and could drink a gallon (of course I can't but it feels like it at the time). Has anyone else experienced these hunger or thirst extremes? I never really felt this way before or after banding where it is just so excessive.

I think your answers are there in your initial post. Exercise is important and you have to build yourself up. If walking for 25 minutes is all you can do at this point, then you need to work your way up to doing better by regular exercise. Even if you only started with 25 minutes 3 times a week, by next week you would find it easier . . . before long you can go longer and faster. It is never easy to start from scratch but it gets easier over time and you get more energy. You are going for your 10th fill, but why do you need another fill? You say that all that passes is junk food - then you are too tight. You will always feel hungry quickly on slider foods, that will never change. If you can't eat Proteins or veggies or fruits or other healthy foods, then you have bypassed your sweet spot. If you really want to make this work, you need to make exercise a part of your life (and it doesn't have to be 2 hours a day of intensity, you can start simple and just do it regularly). You need to eat healthy foods and proteins. Cut out the junk food, you can't lose if that is a staple of your diet. Many people are going on the 5 day pouch test diet to get back into weight loss mode and the banding lifestyle. You might find that this is a good way to recommit and get started again with the new year upon us. Good luck.

You really should go back to the doctor and get it checked. If you did stretch it than they might unfill you for a while in hopes of getting it to go back on its own.