HeatherO

I have talked about pregnancy previously with my fill nurse. She pretty much said that we could be by with a small defill or even keep it filled throughout most of the pregnancy if you are not suffering from morning sickness and you are not overly restricted. I needed a slight unfill (thinking maybe -.25 or -.5) and had an appointment yesterday afternoon. My usual fill nurse was not there, I had someone else who I have seen before . . . but not for a long time. Anyway, this is my first post-pregnancy appointment, I am 7 weeks plus and I spilled the Beans. The nurse just gave me a look, asked how far along, and told me she was going to empty the band. I pleaded and argued my case that I do NOT want an empty band, only a slight unfill and I have no morning sickness now and never had it for my first pregnancy either. After all that, and she even said it was against her better judgement (and the doctors would not feel good about this decision), she left me with 4 cc's. So what is 4 cc's, well for me it is absolutely no restriction. I probably could eat a horse now if I tried. It also means that I can eat absolutely anything, because at 6 cc's I could eat bread, rice, you name it with out a single hiccup. :0( I talked to her about fills later and she said if I have a rough time, she would consider giving me additional fills after a month but only in increments of .25. .25!!!!, My baby would be walking before I get any restriction again. For the first time in my life, I wish I could have kept my medical status to myself even though I know this is wrong. I was so sad and disheartened. She could see that I was really distressed and she said not to worry. 1 in 3 bandsters eventually ends up in my position, and she was the same. She said she only gained 56 pounds during her banded pregnancy but she had no will power and she ate anything and everything she wanted with gusto. Only 56 pounds???? So I left, and before I ever got out of the office and into my car I was sobbing, in public, like a crazy person. I can not remember ever sobbing in public before. I called my husband in the car to tell him the news and he said I was so upset he couldn't understand me at first. He said his first thoughts were that something happened to the baby and he said he had goosebumps and his hair was standing up on end. He has not seen or heard me sob like this since my mother passed away . . . it is not usual for me. So I expected different. I know other people have been forced to empty their bands, and 4cc's is essentially like empty for me. How can I make it through this pregnancy without becoming as big as a house? I am scared to death. I gained 67 pounds with my son. I feel so depressed and disheartened today . . . why it makes me want to eat away my feelings, surprise, surprise. It is just an unpleasant reminder of why I became obese in the first place, stuff my feelings with food and insulate my body from the rest of the world. Ugghhhh!!!!

That is such a lovely response unless I am misreading the tone . . . kind of like saying if you are still around, or if you don't get hit by a bus, or if your stomach doesn't explode, only slightly more subtle. Anyway, it is always better to be cautious and there are good providers and bad providers of any services. It is best to be informed of potential problems in advance, expecially where health is concerned.

Thanks for sharing the story. We all need to be aware of certain risks that can occur by believing in unscrupulous people.

Tracking makes all the difference in the world. There are so many good sites out there. I still use fitday.com primarily because it was my first and has sooo mucchhh history on it now, it is hard to leave. :0)

I just want to caution everyone about comparing labels. Too much of a good thing can be a bad thing . . . you don't want to go way over on some vitamins by doubling up. Make sure you are comparing both the posivites and negatives to any combination of supplements as compared to a good prenatal.

I am not far along now at only a little over 7 weeks. However, I know that I am continuing to lose and am currently down about 10 pounds since conception. I know it will start heading the opposite direction eventually. I am not trying to diet right now, only trying to eat healthy. I guess we will see. If I gain anywhere between 10-25 pounds I will be pleased with myself.

Good luck . . . banding certainly helps when weight is contributing to difficulties conceiving. Happy banding and I'm sending loads of baby dust your way.

I think you should just communicate your desire not to have the port where the underwire sits, but in all honesty most of them are not located where the underwire sits. I think it is a non-issue for almost all of us, but I really feel bad for anyone that had a doctor who did not think of this particular issue before placing the port in an uncomfortable place. Mine is under the rib cage on the left side by about 2-3 inches . . . perhaps that is a good idea for the next poll . . . where is your port located in the poll with discussion about why this placement does or does not work . . . just a thought.

I could have protein immediately after, but the doctor did say that it would not hurt if we did not do protein supplements during the first week. I got the impression that they wanted us to stay away from protein shakes for the first week due to the consistency, but clear Isopure premix drinks were fine.

1 more down and 13 to go, I am still on track :0) Name_________StartWeight___CurrentWeight______Goal________ToGo *****<?xml:namespace prefix = v ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:vml" /><v:shapetype id=_x0000_t75 path="m@4@5l@4@11@9@11@9@5xe" stroked="f" filled="f" o:preferrelative="t" o:spt="75" coordsize="21600,21600">:w00t:</v:shapetype>***********:seeya:*************:tt2:***************** agreatknead........204............198...........180...........18 areellady..........189............189...........159...........30 BIGB...............342............342...........300...........42 BellaPerdente......287............230...........200...........30 Boos02.............258............226...........200...........26 Brandy.............221............214...........191...........23 BrownBear..........240............235...........200...........35 Cadets71...........223.4..........223.4.........189...........34.4 Claudine...........250............250...........225...........25 Bunkey1965.........194............178...........170...........8 CubsGirl17.........172............164...........150...........14 Cutiew/booty.......251............243...........220...........23 cQQlgirl...........195............195...........175...........20 crzytchr...........276............275...........246...........29 Dionna113..........199............195...........160...........35 Ekat...............527............172...........152...........19 feefee57...........262............212...........180...........32 FeliciaLevy75......240............225...........190...........35 GillieBean.........304............296...........264...........32 HeatherO...........150............143...........130...........13 Hollie ............l54............154...........125...........29 Jeni 85............182............182...........160...........22 Jillbeme...........235............207.5...........185.........22.5 Josie74............260............255...........215...........40 klmsilva...........216............212...........190...........26 legster............183............183...........160...........23 linksmom...........251............240...........200...........40 Liquidbluegal......225............220.4.........199...........21.4 Liz_hager..........161............158...........130...........28 Long2BThin.........253............231...........215...........16 lotzasunshine......292............284.5.........250...........34.5 Luu2008............230............199.5.........153...........46.5 Mamanmidwife.......295............295...........260...........35 MELISSA AGUIRRE....266............233...........160...........73 Melody2006.........223............223...........173...........50 MiniPearl#2........???............???...........???...........?? Minxz..............299............287...........270...........17 neefam.............238............189...........158...........31 odizzzydori........242............242...........199...........43 paige65............252............242...........220...........22 rainer.............236............233...........199...........34 reif78.............294............195...........140...........40 RichardCranium.....338............276...........200...........76 soontobehottie.....201............191...........165...........26 srknepler..........285............262.6...........255.........30 squale.............353............353...........325...........28 Sunshine2..........177............171...........160...........11 Suzzzie............305............305...........285...........20 stevegoad..........370............341...........267...........74 Terilynn112........240............230...........199...........41 Truediva...........299............285...........235...........50 thininside28.......255............255...........215...........40 Turler.............219............217...........194...........23 youcandoit!........196............191...........165...........26

1 more pound down and 3 to go, I think I am going to make this challenge :0) ******NAME**********START WGHT****CURRENT WGHT*******GOAL********LBS. LOST *****:seeya:************************:tt2:*********************:w00t:* 1dayatime..........263............261............243............2 2BHealthE!.........194............179............194............0 ahsem2bme..........244............244............225............0 aJoneen............223............216............213............7 Aphrodite1984......208............208............190............0 Ariel..............199............196.4..........180..........2.6 ArmyWife4life......209.5..........209.5..........190............0 Barb12590..........228............218............213...........10 Bea1128............210.5..........205.5..........188............5 blueriley..........206............206............190............0 Brandymom1234......227............151.9..........135..........4.1 Caramia71..........208............202............195............6 cQQlgirl...........194............191............180............3 Crzytchr...........281............270............265............11 DebinFl............181............181............168............0 georgiagirl........245............229............220...........16 HarleyGirl.........188............185............175............3 HeatherA...........210.5..........202.1..........200..........8.4 HeatherO...........155............143............140...........12 Ivyrose325.........212............212............199............0 Jazzyywan..........255............255............190............0 Jodi_620...........196............179............177...........17 KikiVal315.........237.5..........229............220..........8.5 Lana24.............208............195............185............0 laurigee...........180............176............160............4 Leslie2Lose........220............214............205............6 lindar172 .........274.2..........262.6..........256.........11.6 LisaB..............205.5..........196............180.........10.5 livn4thm...........235............233............210............2 Long2bthin.........248............231............230...........17 Luu2008............203............199.5..........183..........3.5 Mamanmidwife.......299............285............280...........14 mamato3............186............186............170............0 MarinaBleu.........226.5..........226.5..........216............0 memom..............210............210............170............0 Minxz..............299............286............280............9 mominlv13..........299.8..........286.4..........280.........13.4 Momof5.............192.5..........187.5..........175..........5.0 nip50..............175............166............160............9 NukeChik...........218............218............208............0 NurseNiki..........258............246............239...........12 odamay.............242............242............225............0 paige65............252............242............235...........10 Peaches11..........205............205............194............0 pj_txlady..........220............220............200............0 Redtulips3.........180............171............167............9 Renee74............214............213............199............7 Renewedhope........171............167............150............4 reif78.............294............195............185............0 savimama...........216............216............200............0 shaversd...........230.5..........225............210..........5.5 SpecialK...........294............286............280............8 Sunshine2..........177............169............167............8 Tess...............304............299...........280.............5 thatDEgirl.........211............202.6..........195..........8.4 tp78...............201............192............180............9 Turler.............225............217............210............8 wendyw.............192............188............172............4 wowox7.............195............183............170...........12 WyominGirl.........327............321............312............6

I think we all have a slip up in the early days post banding. The secret to losing the weight is to chalk it up to an "oopsie," don't repeat repeatedly, and move on to eating healthy again. It sounds like you are on track and have a good attitude. It will get easier in the near future once you have restriction.

It is not unusual to get something stuck for 24 hours, it just happens very rarely. Hopefully you are back to normal quickly and feeling good. Some people suggest papaya enzymes or pineapple juice or even a little meat tenderizer in a tiny amount of Water to help break it up. In the mean time, it will be better and more comfortable for you to stay on liquids until it clears completely.

Ang1982, your new signature picture is beautiful and I love your hair. You have come a long way.

I am 4 pounds from goal at a little over 8 months out. It has come off pretty quickly for me. I also did not have a large amount to lose. Have you always lived in Cyprus? It is such a beautiful place. I will be traveling in neighboring Turkey beginning next Friday . . . so in the same general vicinity.

It is great to have you back. The journey is sooo much easier when you can share it with others.

We haven't had the heart to heart conversation about it yet. However, over the summer I kind of put the feelers out there and he said it would be better to wait until he is in college, lol. He has always been a single child. It will be a little bit of a shock to him. He likes small children so I am not too worried.

Everyone has had great suggestions to start. I would also suggest going to fitday.com, thedailyplate, etc and posting everything (even a bite here or there) to be sure you understand how many calories you are taking in daily, how much Protein you are getting in, etc. I have always found that when I track what I am eating, I am actually ingesting more calories than previously thought. If you can do this for two weeks, you can then analyze what is being eaten and what changes may need to be made to put you back on track. Exercise, exercise, exercise . . . this is always an important part of the equation. Some people are lucky in that they can forgo this and still lose weight, but most of us are not that lucky. Even if it is just walking around the block, you need to get your metabolism moving and this will help. Last but not least, you need a good support system. I noticed that you have not made many posts on this website. If you were banded in Mexico, you probably do not have support meetings available to you. If you can join a local support group, that would be great. Otherwise, becoming an active, contributing member on any positive wls forum helps to provide support to you as well as others. Please stay in touch . . . it really helps.

Drink something warm before you eat and that will help. If things are getting stuck a lot than you might need to slow down or chew a little more, unless you are too tight and then maybe a slight unfill. I was having trouble with this earlier in the year, then I realized that eventhough I thought I was chewing and eating slow enough, I wasn't. I am much better about it now.

I am doing really good so far. No morning sickness, only band tightness problems. I feel fairly normal, no complications or symptoms other than being moodier than normal.

I have only known for about 2 weeks. I am still getting used to the idea. I was a little nervous that my weight might start going in the opposite direction, but I am only 4 pounds from goal so I think I will be OK if I gain a few. I am still really careful about diet and exercise. I am also thrilled that I get to have a cute baby bump on a normal sized frame this time around, lol.

The deed is done, lol. I am expecting late May/early June. I am still losing but my pants are already feeling uncomfortable around the waist, go figure.

I think some people just don't know what to say, so they put something out there to be nice and it kinda falls flat. I have only heard it a couple of times, but everytime I have I know it was meant in good spirit. I just kind of brush that stuff off.

I'm not looking either . . . because what difference does it really make. I would never make major changes during a downturn . . . and what goes down will eventually go back up again. History shows that if time is on your side and you are diversified, you can't help but win in the end. :0)

I think it is inspirational but I don't always like what they have them wear or how unflattering the challenges are . . . but then again, that is what keeps people watching.