stinaNYC

I've set my goal weight for between 190-200 (I'm 5'7"). I recently had my body composition measured (calipers, Water displacement, etc.) and it was calculated that I have about 160-165 lbs of lean body mass (stuff I don't want to/can't lose). My goal is to be between 20-25% body fat, which would put me, after all the math, at b/w 190-200 lbs. I remember feeling my best at 160, but that was back in high school. I'm not a teenager anymore, so I guess I shouldn't be expecting myself to return to the weight I was as a 17 year old in my adult life.

How do I handle it? I just give in...have what your body is craving...we all know it's the hormones. It's totally okay to be a slave to them a few days a month. The upshot, for me, is that I lose a TON of weight twice a month...during ovulation and the few days leading up to my period. I could suck on a stick of lard and lose 4 lbs during those times. It's the other 2.5 weeks I have to be careful about. *sniff*

I was banded by Dr. Fielding (my friend was banded by Dr. Ren)...you could not ask for two more experienced LAP Band surgeons. Plus, they're just wonderful people...when George heard I was going to Las Vegas, he wrote down a page full of recommendations on where to eat, which clubs to go to, which shows to see. He also then took out 1 CC from my band so I wouldn't have to worry about it on vacation...told me to eat, drink and be merry! They are very realistic about the band and how it fits in with most people's lifestyles. Fielding, in particular, because he has the band himself...he just gets it that we shouldn't obsess about all the little rules and just live our lives happily. If we lose a pound, GREAT! If we don't, it's not the end of the world, hop up on the table, and let's get you a bit tighter! Also, Dr. Fielding has, apparently, a fantastic track record when it comes to band slippage. He really knows how to anchor that sucker in there so it won't budge! You won't be disappointed with him. He loves to answer questions and his laid-back attitude is so refreshing.

I don't count every calorie, but I try to keep a mental note to fall between 1000-1500 every day. If I wanted to count calories like it's an exact science, I would have stuck with weight watchers or Jenny Craig. There was an srticle I read somewher erecently that said one of the reasons (besides metabolism) that men have greater success than women in weight loss is because women think "CALORIES!" while men think "I HAVE TO EAT BETTER!". Men end up making better food choices, regardless of calories, according to this article, and focus on the kinds of food they are eating instead of their calories content. Take that for what it's worth.

I was curious what kinds of patterns people are seeing with their bodies due to the band. I was trying to explain to a friend why I've not been eating solid foods lately: my fills are usually scheduled right at the beginning of when I ovulate, and during this time, my band gets super tight beyond the normal swelling from the fill. One day of liquids and one day of mushies doesn't seem to cut it...I usually have to go the liquid/ice cream/broth route for about a week before I feel normal again, lest I have terrible PBing. Also, I've noticed that the weeks I experience the greatest weight loss (from 3-5 lbs) is the week of my period. Something about my metabolism just skyrockets during that time. What about others...notice anything about you bodies since you'd been banded?

WHen I hit my first goal...having the proceedure done in the first place...I bought myself a pair of expensive shoes I'd been eyeing for a while. After I met my first weight goal, I bought myself a flat panel TV! When I meet my second goal (in about 18 lbs), I'm going on a $500 shopping spree for new clothes (and having a tag sale for the stuff that's too big for me. When I meet my final goal, I am going to spend money hiring a trainer to help me train for the NYC marathon...my goal is to run it in 2008!

I have a screwy schedule...I really only eat once, *maybe* twice a day, and not until around 2 or 3 PM. I'm seriously not hungry until then...I'll have coffee out of habit in the AM, but eating early on usually has disastrous results for me. I'm much looser in the afternoon and evening, so I just eat then. I probably still take in about 800-1000 or so calories, so I'm not too worried about not getting enough calories in.

Alright...so I knew I couldn't hide out from my family forever. I was just hoping that I could stretch it out a bit longer! I am about 14 weeks post-op and have yet to attend an all-family get together. This weekend will be the first time that all of the family is there and I'm extremely nervous. Only my mom and dad know that I've been banded...they are incredibly supportive and think what I did for myself is just wonderful (plus, my mom has a crush on my surgeon! Hee!). I've been around my Grandmother a few times, and while I haven't told her anything about being banded, I know she knows *something's up*. Like many grandmas, she watches you like a hawk at meal time...always ready with a plate of food for that second you finish what's on yours. The past 2 times I've been around her with my band, I hadn't had much restriction, so eating wasn't too much of an issue. This past weekend I was only 3 days post-fill at 2.5 cc's, so I was being very careful about what I ate, getting used to my restriction. She kept making comments like "Christina, what's wrong? Do you not like your food? Here, take more...you've hardly eaten anything!" I've managed to politely refuse, but you can tell she thinks something's wrong. Plus, this past weekend, the food just wasn't going down, so I'd have to excuse myself immediately after dinner to PB...I'm positive she thinks I have an eating disorder now! For Memorial Day weekend, the aunts are coming over, and they don't miss a thing either. Especially one aunt, who has always been on me about my size and weight...she notices if I lose a single pound and then tries to get me to talk about how I'm losing the weight, am I exercising, etc. She'll criticize me for anything I put in my mouth. Needless to say, I'm not looking forward to having to come up with clever and convincing ruses for 3 days. Part of me just wants to shout from the rooftop "I HAVE A SILICONE BELT AROUND MY STOMACH AND NO, DAMN IT, I DON'T WANT ANYMORE POTATO SALAD!!!" The other part of me knows how judgemental my family is and how bad of an idea telling them about my band is. I don't like feeling like I've done something bad that has to be locked away so no one finds out about "what I've done". The other reason I haven't just come clean with the family is because they'll see the "drastic" measures I've taken to lose weight as a mark against my mother and her "worth" as a mother. They'll blame my obesity and my "lack of willpower" to lose weight the "normal" way as some sort of indication of her flaws as a mother, and I really just don't want to bring that kind of criticism upon her. Oh...did I mention we're having *steak* for dinner on Saturday? :omg: Any suggestions on how to deal with this greatly appreciated...I knew thatt if there were a group of folks who'd know how to deal with this mess, it would be you guys!! :help:

Hey everyone! Well, the weekend has come and gone...and I'm still in the band closet. The issue really didn't come up, and eating was rather easy this weekend (no PBs!), so there wasn't an opportunity or reason to talk about it. One close call with Grandma, who is still trying to figure out why I only ate half a pork chop in mushroom sauce when I usually have two, but other than that...nada. We didn't have steak after all, so I guess I'll have to wait for my big opportunity! Thanks again for all your help, everyone! How did everyone's else's weekend go?

Wow...I am totally amazed at how long some of you are able to wait through a sliming episode! As soon as I feel my mouth start to Water and things start getting a tad "flooded" down there, I can wait no more than 20 min before I'm off to the bathroom for a good cough. And it's so weird...after I get rid of whatever was bothering me, I'm totally okay to go shead and eat what I was eating that caused the problem in the first place! So weird... On the matter of eggs: Like some of you, scrambled sometimes gives me problems. I like my eggs cooked well, but La Femme Bandita doesn't, so omlettes and hard scrambled is out now. And as for chicken...I had a really embarassing chicken salad episode about a month ago and since then, haven't touched the stuff!

It's so interesting to hear how everyone else has dealt with this issue. I've told my parents, all my friends, co-workers...but when it comes to these particular family members, I'd rather poke my own eye out with a rusty fork. Guess it'll just have to be like pulling off a band aid...do it real fast and it'll only be painful for a second! Bensmum1109: Thanks so much for the kudos, and for promising a safe haven for all of us! My dad thinks I'm overthinking all of this...then went on to say that if they gave me crap, he'd be there to back me up and support me. Between him, my mom, and all of you, I know I can do this! sisterfunkhaus: I just noticed in your signature that you're getting banded tomorrow!!! Congratulations...I'm so excited for you! I'm positive everything will go smoothly...good luck and welcome to the club!

Your point about this being like any other surgery is so right on...especially with this problematic aunt. I haven't developed any major diseases/conditions yet due to my obesity...the Lap Band was *preventive* surgery, if you think about it. It's no different from my aunt's decision to have the fat sucked out of her eylids to prevent signs of aging (a point I like to throw at her when she talks about how I "disfigured" myself with a tattoo)...or her decision to have a total hysterectomy to stop her heavy periods before trying any other treatments. And geez...my grandfather just got out of the hospital, where he was diagnosed with congestive heart failure due to his crappy eating habits! Two arteries nearly 100% blocked in each, and *no one* pointed fingers at him for either his poor eating choices OR his decisions to ignore his doctors' advice and warnings all these years prior to his first heart attack. Okay...now I'm all worked up about this. Thank you, everyone...I'll let you know how it goes this weekend. I'm not going to look for opportunities to blurt it all out, but if I get cornered by the family, I think I'm just going to be up front about it. I really appreicate everyone's advice and insight, but I think I may just go the old "honesty is the best policy" route. I mean really...how much crap can they give me, and for how long? No more hiding! :clap2:

NewSho: I've been struggling with this question, too. All the height-weight charts tell me that I shouldn't be above 160 lbs, but I know myself...when I start dipping below 175lbs, I feel awful and look too thin. I consulted my primary care physician as well as my band surgeon and they both agreed that, rather than focusing on a weight goal, I should focus on achieving at body fat percentage goal. Both agree with me that I should aim for below 200lbs, but after that, I should focus on aiming for about 25% body fat...which would put me in the healthy, "average" range. Ask your doc if he/she is able to measure your body fat percentage right now...knowing this will help you calculate how much of your weight is fat and how much is Lean Body Mass...all your bones, guts, muscles, etc. SOmetimes, a weight we think is achievable and reasonable is completely not safe for us...women in particular, need b/w 10-12% of their body weight to be fat in order for everything to work properly...including our reproductive functions. A good website that can break down how to calculate everything can be found at http://www.healthchecksystems.com/bodyfat.htm . Good luck!!!

I paid about $23,000, which includes: -Surgeon's fee -OR costs -anesthesia -recovery stay in hospital (i was out 7 hours after surgery...hmmm, wonder if i can recoup some of that!) -12 months of aftercare visits (for fills, nutritionist, etc) -90 day "warrenty" should something go wrong...if i had slipped of some other complication, i wouldn't be charged for endoscopy, surgeon's time, x-rays, etc.) -free support group It was a lot to pay, but I wanted this done by the best LAP Band surgeon out there, and I did! I don't regret paying more than a lot of other people did at all.

You're right...you shouldn't freak out! :eek: If I'm reading you correctly, you're only 2 weeks post-op. You don't have any restriction in your band right now...the first 6-8 weeks is all about healing, not losing weight. There's no saline in your band, so it's totally normal that you'd be able to eat more food than you would if you had restriction. I'm about 9 weeks post-op, and I had the same worries as you at first...why am I able to eat so much? It's all good...just remember that we're supposed to use this time to practice our new eating habits for when we do get our first fill and beyond. Just because we have no restriction doesn't mean we can (or should) revert back to bad habits. You are right about the soup...it's liquid, so it'll pass through quickly (especially with no restriction). You shouldn't worry about your pouch stretching from that...unless you, like, slurped it all down at one time or something. Just remember to take it slow when you eat and check in with yourself before you take another bite...do you really *need* it, or are you good for now?

I think I've reached that point post-proceedure where I'm starting to think that I'm one of those people who is "the exception to the rule". I had my first fill done about 3 weeks ago (1 cc in a 4 cc band), and I expected to feel a dramatic difference. I was mostly expecting to be able to eat a whole lot less and have slower absorption. Well, color me disappointed. I am most definitely eating much, much more than the 1/2 cup- 1 cup of food I have been told is what my new stomach pouch will be able to hold. WHat's worse is that I'm not feeling *ANY* discomfort from it. I still only get hungry 3 times/day (at about 5-6 hour intervals), and I rarely snack, but I am definitely taking in more food than I should...and that I as told I *could* take in. Am I doing something wrong? Is there something wrong with me? The other frustrating part is that I'm 8 weeks out from surgery and have only gone down from 281 to 268...and I haven't lost any weight for 3 weeks. I have this nagging feeling that I'm being too hard on myself, but the voice telling me I'm screwing up is louder. I'd appreciate any insight you all might have. :think

God...thank you *so much* everyone for helping to assuade my fears! I feel a lot better knowing that my experience isn't uncommon...I thought maybe I screwed something up! So good to know that I'm not a freak! I started to wonder the other day if maybe I was chewing my food *too* well...like I'm liquifying it to the point where it's just passing right through and emptying out of the pouch at a rate that's faster than my intake of food, and maybe that's why I can eat more than I've been told I should. Of course, I'd rather err on THIS side of caution... I have, unfortunately, experienced how unlovely the feel of half-chewed pork chop is. Ow. Jack, you wrote: You're so right about this...I have definitely noticed that my food intake, natch, is SO MUCH LESS than it was, to be sure. When I went in for my consultation with Dr. Fielding in December, he mentioned the half-cup to 1 cup food intake thing and that just stuck in my head. When I haven't stayed in that range (which is most of the time), I start to feel like I'm screwing up and piggin out, when in reality, I'm eating so much less than I used to. Like last night, I probably ate about 2 cups of food over 45 minutes (pasta and meatballs) and I started freaking out...why was I still able to eat? WHy isn't there any discomfort? Of course A) it's mushy food and I chewed it into oblivion, so it's probably passing through pretty quickly and it's STILL probably abut 2-3 cups LESS than I would have eaten pre-band. I think I need to work on keeping this all in perspective...thanks for helping me with this, everyone!

Congrats on your first fill! I had my first done today...1cc in a 4cc band, like you. I'm curious: Why would they have to anesthetize us for the fill? I've never heard of that...it was so painless that I wasn't even aware that my doc had stuck me with a needle when he declared me to be "done". DO other people get anesthetized for it?

Wow...you're on mushies already? I was on liquid for two weeks post op and I still got that same pain you described. It did go away eventually...the hardest thing to learn, IMO, is to slow down and not take as much food/drink in at once like I used to. I still catch myself doing that and...lo and behold!...i get pains like the one you described! It took a lifetime of bad eating habits to get us to where we are now...it's going to take longer than a week or a month (in my case) to unlearn them all! I'm glad you're feeling better.:clap2:

Congrats on your band! I was banded earlier this month and I also had problems getting my Protein in. I went to GNC and got a Protein Shake mix...there's one called Nitro-Tech that has 20 g of protein per scoop and only 100 calories (before the milk). It's whey protein, so it can be a tad heavy/thichk, so just dilute it with milk and ice cubes in your blender and it should be okay! ANd you're lucky about your gas! I had a hard time getting rid of mine...ow!

Unfortunately, I can't go to the March dinner, but I do want to go in April. Dr. Fielding was the perfect doc for me: straight forward, no handholding, and a dry sense of humor...he's been such a delight, and I'm sorry I'm going to miss "Dinner with George"....let us know how the first dinner goes!

Just got banded on Feb 11th...proceedure went smoothly and was actually released later that day w/no overnight stay necessary! Day three from the hospital and I feel fantastic! Except... I am terribly constipated. I am drinking liquids as instructed: Water, juices, tea, but I haven't had a BM since the Friday night before the surgery. I am afraid of taking anything like Pepto Bismal or Metamucel...the nurse told me to just keep hydrated and everything will be okay. Problem is that I feel incredibly gassy now, and it's affecting my ability to take in liquids. Even though I've barely had anything today (one Slim fast shake and a 1/4 c. of V8 Splash), I feel completely full, and I fear taking in water or coffee (hoping it'll jump start my intestines) will make me feel nauseous.:cry Anyone have any advice on this?:help:

I think I'm confused as well. If my doc injects saline into my band, how would I *not* experience restriction? Why would there be a delay in experiencing restriction? Thanks for any answers. I'm not due for my first fill for another 5 weeks, but I'd like to get a better picture of what the experience is like.

I feel absolutely ridiculous posting this but... I had a BM! On my own! FINALLY! :confused: :clap2: The glycerin suppositories worked like a charm, but today my body finally decided that it wanted to take the plunge on its own! I'll be so glad when this liquid phase is over with. 5 more days til fork mashed!!!! My kingdom for some stewed prunes!!!! Thanks again, everyone!

Thank you so much for all of your suggestions everyone. I have an update: I called the MD's 24 hour line and explained what happened. The doc told me to go to the Emergency Room and that she would call in to let them know I was coming. That was Tuesday night...it's now Thursday afternoon and I have just been released from the hospital. Bottom line: I had an allergic reaction to the V8 Splash...we think it was the beet juice. It caused havoc for my tummy and bam...insta-vomit. I vomitted about 5 more times after I posted, and I was so scared that my band had slipped. My surgeon (Dr. Fielding) came by early on Wednesday and we talked...he stated that if it was an acute band slippage that I would be his first one *ever* in his entire LAP Band career, so the odds that the band slipped were slim. An esophogram confirmed that he was right...the band is doing well, and I had an allergic reaction + stomach irritation to the juice. 48 hours of nothing taken orally has done wonders...my stomach is right as rain! As for the *other* problem...a stool softener suppository helped a little, but not enough, so I'm off to the drug store to purchase an anema and the glycerine suppositories as suggested. I'm okay now...thanks to everyone for their help!