HeatherO

Ouchhh . . . I really hope you are feeling better soon.

Congratulations on not gaining anything extra. It will be so much easier to get back on track again. Will you be going in for a fill?

I stumbled across this accidently. My bras before were 40 or 38 D's. Well after losing more than half my weight, I was no longer filling up the cup and the straps were falling off my shoulders constantly. It just wasnt a good fit anymore. Well, I tried on a bunch of bra's in various sizes and discovered that what fit and looked best was a 36 DD. I never would have guessed that my smaller breasts needed a bigger cup with a different band size. Minimizers do just push it under your arms which is none to attractive. However, I found that side shapers work better than minimizers in that you still appear smaller with a better form and you now look good from all angles. However, I guess it probably depends on everyones physical body shape.

I had an emergency unfill last week and have gained 1.5 pounds!!!??!!! I am a little frustrated, but not yet ready to solidify the gain in the charts. I am working extra hard to get back to ground zero - 150 pounds. If it lasts much longer I will have to bite the bullet and update the charts.

On liquids I was between 600-850. Once on regular foods again, I stayed at the 800-1000 range and stopped losing weight. I bumped up the level to 1000-1250 and have been losing steadily ever since.

I bought a kitchen scale and never really used it much. It is easier for me to just measure in 1/4-1/2 cups or to judge meat to be about the size of a playing card. It ended up being just one of those gazillion kitchen gadgets in the closet gathering dust, lol. I have bought 2 digital scales, one of which was pricy and weighed to fractional pounds. They both don't work well in that I can step on and off the scale several times repeatedly and get different measurements. There is no way you can gain or lose a pound or two in the time it takes you to step off and back on the scale. I use a scale with the little wheel that spins around because I always weigh in the same on it. I noticed it is 2 pounds less than the professional bar scale at the gym that I use for my "official" measurements. This scale has been reliable since banding for me . . . and it was only $7 at Target. So out of $125 bucks spent amongst 3 scales, I go by the $7 old-fashioned one while the others are in my bathroom closet gathering dust and will inevitably become garage sale fodder eventually.

It sounds like you are doing wonderful after 2 years. I love that your band is always there for you , even if you decide not to use it for a while when life throws something unexpected at you. It looks like you are halfway to goal . . . I wish you the best of luck in attaining it. I am sure you can do it if you work your band :0)

Wearing something form fitting and not dark colored, take pictures from the front side and back along with a few good face pictures and you should be good to go :0)

I can eat Cereal but I avoid it for the most part. It used to be a binge food for me, in that I couldn't get enough. It also goes through the pouch too quick and leaves me hungry.

Congratulations . . . it will be over before you know it. I can't wait to hear how it goes for you and I wish you the best of luck.

I would schedule another fill as soon as possible. Also, how much have you lost since 3 cc's was too tight. It might be ok for you by now. The sweet spot is elusive and I am amazed at how small the gap between no restriction and to much can be.

I could swing it with shorts, but I don't think I would. I like one pieces because of the extra control it provides.

I guess I am finally brave enough to post a couple of pictures. I really do not have a lot of before or after pictures because I usually avoid pictures like the plague, but I am beginning to see that maybe pictures aren't so bad after all. 75 pounds down and almost at goal. I will take some more current full length shots soon :0)

I wish you the best of luck!!! I am sending happy approval thoughts your way.

Without appropriate restriction, we are just on another diet . . . and if that worked well for us we wouldnt have been banded. I would also like to know how much you have in your band. Also, when you go in for a fill, do you have them withdraw what is currently in there to see how much it is in case you have a leak or something? The difference between restriction and not enough restriction for me is a very small amount of Fluid. At 6.8 cc's I am completely open, at 8.3 cc's I am very tight. If you are just getting .5 to 1 cc's at a time, it is no surprise that you have had a large number of fills without getting to your sweet spot. See if you can insist on coming in every 2 weeks or so until you reach restriction. Also ask if you can get bigger fills as well. You should be demanding if you are still not getting what you need. How about your weight loss? Have you been losing steadily since banding, or at least since the last fill or two? That can also be a sign if you have enough restriction.

I started getting nauseous after the first week until about the first month. I found that even drinking a couple of sips of Water was making me nauseous. It definitely wasnt just food. It kind of felt like early pregnancy and was an all day low-grade kind of nausea which occasionally varied in intensity. I took an over-the-counter medicine called Nauzene that worked beautifully. It is chewable kind of like a Tums and tasted decent, and it didn't have aspirin or salicylates (band-friendly) and only takes a couple of minutes to work. I found it at Walmart and have since seen it at the grocery store (Giant Eagle) and pharmacies (CVS) so it must be fairly easy to find. I probably sound like a commercial, but if it works, it works . . . and feeling nauseous continuously really sucks. I still have some in my desk at work, lol. By the time I reached my first month out, I no longer had this problem (which is why I still have some eight months later in my desk, lol). It went away once I healed and started eating normal foods again.

That is exactly the place where it was taken. You have tremendous powers of observation, lol. Did you like the revolving hallway there??? My husband and son got a kick out of it. I must have tried it about 5-7 times and still couldn't walk straight.

That really sucks that you have to retake it. I also wonder if the answers will be more skewed if you have to consciously think about not making it seem like you are answering incorrectly. I am sure that will have some impact on your responses. Also, with that many questions I am sure you are thinking a little differently in the first half as opposed to the second half. Good luck!!!

I looked pregnant the first week (only a little bigger on the port side), second week I was still pretty swollen, third week almost the same as pre-banding and by a month out I looked like I did before banding.

Getting up and getting moving will make all the difference in the world. The pain meds could also be putting you in a bit of a funk. The sooner you discontinue them, the better for your health and sense of well-being. It is not common to still feel under the weather one week out, but if it persists another week or two you should talk to your doctor. Just get up and walk for 10-15 minutes and then take it easy and baby yourself for an hour or two. If you do this repeatedly it can help you to start feeling better quicker.

First thing in the morning, cold beverages cause greater restriction and more discomfort for me. Somehow warm/hot beverages open me up more. I have tight restriction and start my day with hot tea. However, I know I don't have an issue with swelling, just tight restriction. Hot seems best for tight restriction. If you do have swelling from surgery and don't have a lot of restriction yet after being newly banded, I bet the cold feels really good on your stomach and might be more helpful. Cold seems best for swelling.

It is reflux and it can be a sign that you are too tight. you have already taken the usual first steps to combat it, but if it hasnt worked you need to talk to your doctor. I had an occasional problem with reflux. However, I kept my fill at that level for a long time because it was perfect, great restriction but could still eat and I was losing well. All of a sudden got worse out of nowhere and had to get an emergency unfill because I could no longer ingest fluids. It was an immediate relief. My reflux went overnight from a several times a month kind of issue to an all night, coughing with an inability to sleep for more than an hour without issues. I never knew it would progress that way, but I just wanted to let you know that it is possible.

It wasn't so bad. Kind of like recovering from the flu. You don't want to eat much, it is hard to get enough liquids in and you feel a little sore and easily fatigued. If you are going back to work quickly, it will help if you can take an extended lunch. If you could get even 30 minutes of a small nap, you will feel a lot better the first day or two.

Don't wait, just call so that they can put you on the schedule. They may say they won't see you for two weeks or a month, but at least you can get your fill appointment on the books.

Mom to the rescue . . . that is all you needed, an extra body and you should be good to go. Husbands are great, but if they don't cook then it takes a lot of "directing," lol. I think it will go great and I absolutely think it was a good decision to keep the surgery to yourself. Everyone is correct in that people "don't notice" what you are eating. I have been banded for almost 8 months and only twice has anyone ever noticed or said anything after an untold number of meals with other people. No one knows that I am banded other than my husband, even after losing most of my weight. It has really not been difficult to keep it under wraps at all. Once people notice your new and improved physique . . . you can always say it is from chasing after your new hubby, LOL.