travelinsnorkel

I was watching the saline come out and go in and it was clear, not blue. I am definitely going to ask for some numbing agent next time. Any idea if eating a late lunch and then going to get the fill would have made it harder to find? I didn't think of it at the time, but wondered if that could have contributed.

Went for my annual gyn appt today. She congratulated me on my surgery and my weight loss and all of that. Then, we got to talking about my birth control pills, I told her I am not taking them right now as I'm not sexually active, but I wanted a script in case I need them. SO, she says, yeah, who knows, when you lose 20 more pounds you might find the love of your life. I really like this doc, but she is very petite and probably just doesn't get it, but I HATE it when people think you can't find love when you are fat. Yes, it is harder sometimes, but not impossible!

I don't know the answer to your question, but I had the same problem today at my second fill. The first time was pain free, but today it hurt like heck and he had to dig around forever! I started panicking that my port had flipped. It doesn't hurt now that it is over, thankfully!

I'm not sure where to find it, but there was a long thread about this and the pros and cons. My doc had a really hard time getting to my port today so I definitely wouldn't consider it, but some people have had no problems.

My doc said any pills the size of a Tylenol or smaller are fine to swallow whole. So, I take my Cymbalta, Prevacid, Synthroid, and Klonopin without breaking them. I cut my Glucophage, which is for diabetes, as it is a very large pill.

So, I went for my second fill today. After not being able to get it 2 weeks ago due to a stomach flu, I was ready! Last time it was painless, he did have to move the needle around to find the port, but it was no sweat. So, today I lie back, do my stomach contraction, then really sharp pain, then he moves around the needle. Can't find it. He pulls the needle out, goes and gets a pillow to put under my back, then I contract again. He digs around a while more, a lot more painful than last time. At this point I am getting a little panicky, did my port flip? Am I going to have to get surgery again? He finally finds it, but isn't able to get much saline out of it. He didn't say so, but I believe that there was less saline in there than he thought last time. So, he put in another 1/2CC, I can already tell the difference just drinking! I'm hoping that this fill gives me good restriction. This past week I was STARVING and it was a major struggle. So, it was a trying appointment, but it worked out in the end!

Yep...I've got it...lovely isn't it? And I work out and tone a lot! I haven't lost a lot of weight yet, but it seems like that is hard to loose!

Money doesn't make you thin, for sure. I am lucky to be pretty wealthy and can afford a trainer twice a week, a pilates instructor, someone to make my meals and freeze them, but that hasn't made me thin. I will also say that I could have afforded WLS many years ago and have been heavy my whole life. I wasn't mentally ready for WLS until this year and that is when I went for it. I don't know why she is against WLS, but you definitely have to be commited to it and if Oprah isn't ready for it and face it, she wouldn't succeed at it anyway. She showed Carnie Wilson on the show who gained a lot of her weight from gastric bypass, but then got back on track. She can afford all of the support and still didn't do well. So, I can see both sides of the coin. It really all comes down to hard work!

This weekend I remembered a new one as it happened again. My friend's son (age 6) commented about how fat someone was on tv. I know that kids do this all the time, but I also think that you should tell the kids that it isn't nice to make comments like that. My friend is heavy too, but I guess she didn't think about it. My aunt's kids always said stuff like, look how fat that person is, I don't want to ever get fat. People don't know how those comments can make you feel like crap even though they aren't directed at you!

I've had both experiences. I either get nothing or a wow, you look great! I'm wondering if some people think you don't want to talk about it? Or they don't want to make you feel like you looked bad before? Who is to say! It is nice to have the positive reinforcement though!

Yeah, that must have been tough! My family is definitely very helpful in the food department. I'm not sure why my friend didn't get it. I could eat the lasagna, but I really try to not eat many carbs because I'm diabetic too. Oh well!

So, I was invited to a dinner party at my friend's house tonight. She was nice enough to ask me what my restrictions are and what I can eat. She told me a menu that sounded good. I told her I don't eat many carbs and that I mostly protein and veggies. So, I get there and what has she made? Lasagna and garlic bread! I thought I had prepared well for the meal, but I guess I need to be more specific and clear. At least at a restaurant there are more options for me to pick from. I guess live and learn!

I ordered it on Amazon. I think you can preview books on there. I like that it gives real people examples in every chapter. It really gives you strategies to get through things. Also, they summarize the strategies in a list at the end of each chapter. Like, one chapter has ways to get rid of head hunger. I feel that this book is the first one that I've read that is truly practical and not just what I would call a lecture.

Keeping with the vain of this thread, I have had my own poop issues this past week. I apparently hadn't been eating enough veggies with all of the holidays. I also found myself eating a lot of cheese to get my protein. SO, I spent half an hour on the toilet only to get a few rabbit pellets out. Then, nearly died on the toilet a few hours later and passed everything. So, I've been living on veggies and beans the past two days! Bet you are glad I shared!

I didn't have to do a pre-op diet and I unfortunately treated every day like it was my last and had many "final" meals. In a way it was good though because I was sick of a lot of food by the time my surgery came up! Good luck!

So, I thought I would start a thread where people can post their favorite Banding and weight Loss books. I really liked "Weight Loss Surgery with the Adjustable Gastric Band" by Robert Sewell. Tell me your favorite!

I was only on Effexor for like a week because the side effects were awful for me, so it wasn't a long weaning process. I would check with your doc, but they may just have you lower the dose and then alternate the days. Coming off of any psyche med takes time. Depending though they might just have you start the Cymbalta. Good luck!

Hi...I'm in Ellicott City. Would love to meet up with fellow bandsters.

Hi there! I'm in Ellicott City, MD. Good to see some fellow Marylanders!

Chicken Egg Foo Young with the gravy on it goes down well as long as you chew it well!

I have been doing pretty well with the temptations at work, but am a bit disappointed that I couldn't have my second fill Friday because I wasn't feeling great. Now it is pushed until January 9. So, I have to get through the holidays with mostly willpower since I dont' have much restriction. Good luck to everyone!

That's awesome! Good luck in the dating scene. I can't say that I've had the same connection, but I do know that when I'm depressed I want to go out and make the effort less and getting fatter I was more depressed than usual so I guess that now I am wanting to go out more. Haven't started dating again yet as I'm only 2 months out and am still trying to work on me! I definitely think that many of us use food as our friend and it keeps us from getting out there as much as we should.

I wasn't a fan of the sweet protein drinks so I got unflavored unjury protein and added that to broth and other salty soups. You can get it at unjury.com. Good luck to you!

I was out for two weeks. The whole first week I was in a lot of pain and then made the turn in the second week, but was really tired. I was still pretty tired when I went back and glad I took the two weeks!

Unfortunately the doc is off next week. I'll make it through though, just have to be tough! I'll definitely look for the meds you recommended. Fortunately I haven't vomited or anything yet...let's keep our fingers crossed!