HeatherO

I went to other sites before I came here. I came here because I wanted more band specific topics. I think it is fine to have others mentioned, but I stay on this site because the focus is the band.

I had it initially near the port site, but not anymore. It went away fairly quickly as time wore on.

I was told at least 50 grams at a minimum.

I had it too after I started doing a few abdominal exercises. I backed off on the abdominals for a while and when I started up again two weeks later, it felt fine.

Flouro is actually easier than the standard fill in that you can see everything. There is nothing to be nervous or scared about. The barium is not too terrible and it is cool to see it work its way through your system. I would be more worried about more pokes with a needle through the traditional fill when it is not going according to plan.

I hope everything comes back ok. Try not to stress over too much in that stress affects your band as well. Until you know what is really going on, the best thing to do is just to stay on liquids/mushies. At least that way you can do no harm and your stomach can begin healing a little easier. Good luck and please let us know the results.

I chewed a lot of gum as well, but didn't learn until later through this website that it is a no-no. Sugar free candy or cough drop might help. Drinking tons of water also helps. Best thing is, it goes away on its own and you will feel normal again soon.

This might sound like a silly suggestion, but since the commercials were driving me nuts I just started watching dvd's or avoiding normal television. It is just too hard at that stage. Best of luck to you :0)

I had a pinching sensation as well, but nothing serious. For me it seemed to be related to healing. However, if it gets any worse at all or if you get swelling or redness, call your doctor.

For some of us, like me, this neck shoulder pain lasts for weeks. I have read that it may be an irritated nerve in the diaphragm area but I am not sure if that is exactly it. I know I can not have abdominal gas for 4-5 weeks. GasX never helped it at all. I stayed on Tylenol and had massage and hot bath's (with my neck and shoulder submerged but incision sites were above teh water). Mine was severe but it did go away. However, I get occasional twinges if I have too much to eat.

The whole purpose of banding is to eat healthy food which fills your banded pouch and eases hunger. My doctor said to stop the protein drinks in the morning because I was defeating the use of the band in that it wont prevent hunger if it goes right through. The only liquid diets I go on now are caused by fills or a rare pb. :0)

I really like the Atkins Advantage shakes. They are yummy when cold. Isopure clear Fruit drinks are tolerable, not good, but definitely tolerable.

I have had two fills with a total of 8.3 to reach my sweet spot at the end of April . . . and I am not ready for another one. I am still losing well with what I have and am very very happy.

I would do it before because you have 17 days to feel it out. You also don't get much impact from your first fill, so it will be helpful to get it started. Also, why delay additional weight loss you could be experiencing by several weeks??? After the first fill, most people are able to eat reasonable quantities without a lot of difficulty. I think you should go for it.

For me it is eating wayyy slower than everyone else. My family is welll done before I am.

I am not sure why but I am interested in what the answer might be. I would have expected the exact opposite.

I don't drink pop anymore since banding. I found that drinking diet coke was a trigger for eating for me. I now find myself craving Water now. Most sugar free things don't taste that great anymore and water really seeems to hit the spot. I have tasted flat pop since banding once or twice, and it tastes awful. Did my tastes change or did it always taste that bad and I was just used to it????

Out of all the things ever tried, I have to say a bullet beats everything else.

I agree with the state of mind thing. Losing weight is freeing, and extra self confidence doesn't hurt. I feel freer to express myself openly and I am no longer hiding in the dark if you know what I mean. However, I think age might be a factor, or maybe it is just the right partner. For whatever reason, orgasms are now pretty effortless and regular during normal sex without any help, and it was never like that in my twenties.

I like short time frames because it keeps me focused. This challenge is almost over and thinking of options for the next is an excellent idea. How about two challenges to finish, Labor Day to Halloween and Halloween to New Years? That splits the rest of '08 in half, keeps them in two month increments, and most of us get to wear something special, exotic or even formal on Halloween and New Years which helps to further solidify the goals. Any thoughts????

Thank you sooo much for posting these. This thread is now a very good resource for those in need of filing appeals.

My surgeon's office when I was looking into a different wls surgery previously said they go by the beginning weight and it would not be a problem. Everyone's insurance is different and you do not want to give them any reason to deny you. However, if you are ready to attempt wls I think you should do your best to lose as much weight as possible during the supervised time. It will get you to goal quicker and help to get you in the correct frame of mind. So . . . just call your insurance company. It is always better to know for certain what they require then to guess or have it filtered through someone at a doctor's office that may not be sure. However, your surgeons office staff may be willing to check on this for you as well. Better safe than sorry, and if you can lose the weight preop without risking the surgery being covered you should give it your all.

I have no regrets and love my band but maybe I do have a suggestion. Perhaps you should do a poll on this topic. It could cover no regrets through regrets covering various things such as . . . wish I had a different wls, wish I had tried traditional dieting more, had a complication, lapband was removed, etc. Just a thought :0)

MyTurn, I updated your stats in the chart. 7 pounds down is awesome!!!! I am down another pound as well. Only 2 more to goalll!!!! Name_________Start Weight ____Goal____ Lbs lost____Current Weight *****:cheers2:********** :wub:**********:smile2:******:party:**********:hurray:***** aJoneen............230.........220.......5.......... Bea1128............220.........199.......5.......... Babs0101...........185.........170.......0.......... blesdbyonmzur......159.........148.......4.......... BTTRFLI1432........221.........210.......6.......... Bunkey1965.........212.........195.......15.........197 Chocolate_Snaps....254.........240.......6.......... Darr5380...........167.........155.......3.......... Epm316.............209.........199.......5.......... erikadawn..........199.........175.......0.......... FloridaGirl........235.........215.......0.......... HeatherO...........172.........155.......15.........157 Heft_Bandit........261.........245.......6..........255 JennyPoo...........169.........159.......5.......... KarenG.............160.........158.......6.......... KathyStrick........305.........290.......0.......... Lapbandfan.........258.........230.......2.......... Leslie2Lose........224.........209.......5..........219 LessNLess..........144.5.......140.......0.......... LilMissBand-Aid....234.4.......225.......6.2........ Lunabeane..........209.........200.......11......... Luu2008............219.........189.......14......... Luv2Laugh..........232.........212.......0.......... luvinke............206.........190.......0.......... mamato3............199.........184.......6.......... mcgreen............189.........175.......0.......... mdgarcia31665......225.........200.......0.......... melboyd............266.........256.......5.8........260.2 Missrach...........269.........175.......25.........244 MollyMolly.........192.........182.......2.......... mominlv13..........316.........300.......10.8.......305.2 MSnika3............228.........204.......4.......... MyTurn.............250.........240.......7..........243 NANAbanded.........225.........199.......7.......... Ninja..............204.........189.......5.......... NukeChik...........221.........199.......6.......... Ollie..............242.........210.......0.......... Redtulips..........188.........180.......6.......... Renewedhope........174.........155.......5.......... ronni_NC...........243.........220.......0.......... slgandera..........185.........173.......7.......... StartingOver.......220.........205.......15......... Sunshine2..........187.........170.......8..........179 want_so_bad........170.........155.......0.......... Sades.......(7/16).192.5.......180.......8.6........ Sadie..............220.........199.......6.......... smwww..............189.........179.......0.......... tp78...............212.........195.......7..........

It does sound like you are too tight . . . and if it is getting you away from eating solid Proteins and veggies comfortably and ingesting too many soft calories, that can certainly stally your weight loss. Tracking is sooo important for me when I stall. I usually find that I am ingesting more than expected. A bite here and bite there really add up when you are paying attention. Perhaps some tracking and a miniscule unfill might put you back in a better position to start losing again. Hang in the there.