ava

My MinPin's name is Caesar. For your little fluff-bunny, I like Coco (like Coco Chanel). I think little dogs should have BIG names. :bananajump:

Big Dog, you rock! I'm so happy for you and your family.

Interesting question and one I've struggled with myself. When I chose to be banded, I only told 5 people. I had to explain to each of them what the surgery was (reversable, laproscopic, etc) before they would be supportive. Each thought that I was going to have RnY and they were worried about me having my insides rearranged. Okay...that's nice. My friends were worried about my overall health. Since having the surgery, I've told many more people because I want to scream from the rooftops about how great it is. I have yet to find anyone who has blatently said "you took the easy way out" but I have one friend who won't discuss it with me at all. She was about 400lbs and has lost over 100lbs through diet and exercise. I KNOW that she's jealous and angry because she thinks I did it the easy way. However, I also know that, if she'd had the money, she would have chosen surgery too. It's a conundrum.

Prior to surgery, I never weighed myself - didn't even own a scale. Post-surgery, I was going in to either the doctor or the nutritionist every week for 4 weeks so I got weighed there. I don't see the nutritionist again for a couple of months so I was forced to buy a scale - I'm supposed to weigh myself once a week and keep a diary of my weight loss. This helps me ensure that I'm losing 1-2 lbs a week. Now I tend to weigh myself every morning (my nutritionist said it's better to weigh yourself in the early evening because most people are dehydrated in the morning) but I try to only take the weekly weight to heart.

I'm a hard-stop girl. I can eat just about anything (except super-spicey food) including breads, rice, etc. so I have to be very careful about eating my proteins first, veggies second, starches dead-last. By the time I get to starches, one bite makes me want to puke. That's when I know I'm full - usually 1.5 to 2 cups of food.

I had the option of going home the same day or staying overnight. Since I was self-pay and had already paid for overnight, I opted to stay. I was too tired and it was too cold to try to go home. My surgery was Monday at noon and I was giving the okay to go home at 6pm. I went home Tuesday morning at about 11.

This idea of looking older after weight loss has been a concern of mine for years - even before surgery. I'm 44 but consistently get mistaken for being in my late 20's or early 30's. I'd hate to actually start looking my age.... So, when I started this journey I looked into lotions that would help restore the elasticity of my skin. Cocoa butter seems to be the best but then you go around smelling like chocolate all the time. I don't know what the answer is - I'm just keeping my fingers crossed.

I've found, post-op, that I can eat just about anything in moderation. The simple act of eating about 1/3 of my pre-op intake is enough to have me losing an average of 1.5 lbs per week. Today I officially hit the 20lbs loss mark! - I guess I should update my ticker....

Yeah...I've been doing it. I made myself sick last night because I ate too fast, too much, and something that wasn't "technically" mushie. The thing is, I'm not a puker or a slimer or a productive burper so I end up just feeling incredibly uncomfortable. I keep thinking that, if I could just have a little diet cola, I'd feel so much better. Anyway... I guess I'm just looking for some words of encouragement (or a slap on the wrist?) from my peers. Oh...and a question. Does everyone weigh themselves? I've been waiting to go to the doctor's office because I don't want to get obsessive about it but I guess I need to know if I'm actually losing the whole 1-2 lbs a week. Thoughts?

Since I was just banded a few weeks ago, I feel a little silly filling out this poll. But I love my surgeon and, so far, my experience has been very, very positive. Run this poll again in 6 months and let's see how I'm doing then!

Wow! Brad got the deal of the century there. It would be worth a trip to UT for that price and that value. I self-paid in WI and it was $18K for all hospital and clinic fees plus lots of pre- and post-op visits/support/fills included. I get a year of nutritionist visits (actually, she's watching me like a hawk!), my fills for a year, my surgeon visits 90 days, and a free monthly support group. Regardless of the price, I feel like I got a great deal. I love my "team" and feel like they're always available for me. My experience has been very positive. (Plus, the clinic is walking distance from my office! Perk!!)

Prior to banding I was a carbonation junkie. I drank carbonated mineral water primarily and was addicted to the fizziest one I could find. I only ever drank diet cola at lunch-time (and I miss it badly) but my doc said no carbonation AND no caffeine. I think I'm better off without it. I switched to Propel and that seems to satisfy my thirsties.

I haven't had much head-hunger since being banded and, when I do, I find it easier than BB (before the band) to walk away from the craving. I've also given in a little - I figure, better to have a tiny nosh than to drive myself mad by denying the craving. Then, I usually end up regretting the "cheat". I'm actually finding it incredibly easy to eat well.

Mine was $7,500 for the Bariatric Clinic costs (including all pre- and post-op testing and fills for 1 year) and $12,000 for the hospital. So...just under $20,000 total.

Mine is just above my belly button and a little to my left. I'm only 10 days post-surgery so I feel it a lot. My port scar is still very tender too.

Wow. I'm not alone. Thank you, everyone, for sharing your stories.

I'm the Prozac poster-child. It saved my life twice...and now I take it in liquid form.

I had my surgery on 12/19 at the Dean Bariatric Clinic in Madison, WI. My surgeon is Dr. Huepenbecker (they call him "Hoops" for short! ) The thing I like best about Dean Bariatric is that you are required to go through a "program" in order to have surgery. I've noticed a few people on-line here who had virtually no pre- or post-op support and I simply can't imagine what that would be like. Here are some of the elements of my program: Pre-op: Meet with program coordinator Meet with nutritionist Meet with psychologist (take psychological test) The "team" then meets and reviews my file for surgery approval or recommendations Required attendance at a lap-band support group Meet with surgeon and program coordinator again Post-op: Lap-band support group 2-week and 4-week post meetings with nutritionist, monthly meetings after that 2-week post meeting with surgeon This is all I have scheduled right now but I know that I'll be having an ongoing 3-month post-op relationship with my surgeon and, like, a 12-month relationship with my nutritionist. I highly recommend this program. I really feel like I've been given every tool necessary to make the most of the band.

Unjury powder in chocolate, strawberry, vanilla, or unflavored. No weird protein taste. Look for it online.

I had my surgery on 12/19 so I'm technically still on liquids. As with many here, I got sick of clear liquids pretty quickly and found that I could tolerate a thicker soup so now I'm blending damn-near any soup that sounds good. Campbell's Selects are good because most of them are lower fat. The Italian Wedding Soup is, like, 1 gram of fat and tastes great blended. I'm also making my own sugar-free applesauce so I can get the consistency really smooth and vary the sweetness based on my taste. Splenda is gods gift. As for the protein shakes, I recommend trying Unjury powder. It comes in chocolate, vanilla, strawberry and unflavored. Mixed with 1% milk, it's awesome and doesn't have that weird protein after-taste. You can buy it online. Good luck!

Thanks for the suggestion. Right now I'm doing sugar-free jello pudding and Unjury chocolate protein powder in milk for my chocolate fixes.

I was banded on 12/19 (can't believe it's only been a week!) and I'm still figuring my liquids out. I find that I can tolerate a lot of variety and did right away but I can't tolerate a lot of quantity. I tend to get hungry about every two hours and 1-2 cups of "liquid" fill me up fine. My doctor's post-op liquid diet is pretty restrictive and I'm not a big fan of broth so I bought some broth-based soups and have been blending them. This has helped a lot with my need for something different to eat. After about day 4 I thought I was going to kill someone if I didn't get a new texture in my mouth. Jello and protein shakes only go so far. I guess I'm really letting my band tell me what I can tolerate...