Jodi_620

I would definitely go smaller and get the extenders...bras are so expensive! I am in the search of the right bra for my new frame and it is costing me a small fortune. My old favorite was a full figure mimimizer. That style is not available in my current size. I am trying to find something that lifts and mimimizes if there is such a thing. The lifting bras I've tried make them look like pointy torpedos and the minimizers tend to push them down too low... I will say there are plenty of underwire styles out there and they are much more comfortable than they used to be.

I have no doubt she is all of that and more. I noticed how great you look in the picture :sneaky:

100%? I would say 2 months. But the pain you are experiencing now won't last that long though. Give it another two weeks and you should be feeling pretty good. There will still be a little tenderness and sensitivity after that but it will get better every day. Just keep moving.

Now location of the port would probably be a big factor on how we could sleep. I couldn't lie flat because getting back up was too painful. I had to use my arms to pull myself up because the port was stitched into the ab muscles that I would normally use to sit up or roll over, those muscles were useless for a while. So I would get down and be like a turtle on its back. Having the port off to the side might have been easier...

Probably not the big pills. I take Chewable calcium and Vitamins. Larger prescription pills would need to be split if possible (some pills can't be split). Or sometimes certain meds are available in smaller sizes or liquid.

I am just curious, for those of you saying your port is on the left or the right, how far to either side? Mine is pretty much in the middle above my belly button; a little more to the right but not far enough that it made one side hurt more than the other.

That is normal, the port site pain will be the worst of it and will last the longest. I suggest you try to straighten up and walk normally, this shouldn't cause any damage and will allow you to move freely. Try to put pressure on it as you straighten up, maybe use a pillow pressed into your belly. It hurts going from sitting to standing but once you are there, the pain should subside and you should be able to get around normally. It will get better every day and the sooner you are up and about, the better.

Yeah, I agree with Heather. Most bandsters have to wait six weeks to get the first fill only to allow for healing related to band placement. I have not heard of any delay due to hernia repair I don't see how a fill would have any affect on the hernia repair. OT: Heather, I just now noticed that your new bundle has arrived...CONGRATULATIONS!!!!

I'm Losing: Prescription meds/health problems Ugly fat lady clothes Feeling self-conscious everywhere I go Sweating even on comfortable days Mood Swings I'm Gaining: Energy Confidence Money (cut out prescriptions, fast food, junk food, cigarettes, soda) Positive attention and compliments

Is there no chance of convincing them to give you at least a tiny fill? The main guidelines my doctor uses are whether I am eating too much or not staying satisfied. He would definitely give me a fill if I were in your shoes. He only uses fluoro to rule out complications which it appears you do not have. I'd try a little more persistence. In my experience with thyroid disease, the thyroid does not make us eat more or cause hunger it just slows our metabolism process down so that it is difficult or impossible to lose weight. So I doubt that is the problem.

I also had that with two of my incisions, at the port site and the tiny incision in the center below my breasts. The bump and scar tissue healed very well after a few months. The smaller scar is almost impossible to find now and the port site scar is just a faint red line, no bumps or raised scar tissue remains.

What you eat will not affect your port. The port site incision takes a long time to heal and you might have moved a certain way or lifted something that caused irritation to the incision or even that sneeze yesterday could be the culprit. It takes a minimum of six weeks to heal, maybe a little longer so the pain is not so unusual. If you have bleeding or any other discharge or the swelling does not go down go see your doctor to rule out infection. Otherwise, take it easy and keep the area clean and you should be fine.

At restriction I've consistently eaten 3/4-1 cup per meal (around 8 oz). I can eat most of what is in the smaller sized frozen dinners. I have seen a few people here who say they only eat 1/2 cup of food per meal, some even say 1/4 cup and all I can say is I'm glad I'm not them. I couldn't get enough nutrition, energy or enjoyment from such a tiny amount of food.

:ohmy: 'aint it great?!

No kids, I just got it under control at 39, at 40 I am not sure I want to go there.

Good breakfast choices for me are eggbeater omlets with different veggies, meats or cheeses to have variety or oatmeal cooked in milk for extra Protein. I agree with crzytchr, cold cereal does not keep me full for long either. For lunch chili has lots of protein or grill up some chicken breasts in a marinade (not overcooked or dry), or salmon patties or tuna. I cook extra and freeze it so that it is handy for lunch. Put it on a plate with some mayo, shredded lettuce and diced tomato. dinner is whatever I would normally have, a good lean protein, veggie, fruit. How much you eat depends and is determined by restriction. I was told and always followed the rule of eating until I am satisfied. If I was eating too much then I needed a fill. Basically for weight loss, restriction that kept me at 3/4 - 1 cup of food was what worked for me. I never measured or journaled my food...that was too much like the old ways of dieting and does not work for me. But I can eye up around 1 cup and put it on a small bread plate. At restriciton, 3/4-1 cup fills me up and keeps me satisfied until my next meal and the weight came off steady. When I find my self eating more or hungry between meals not losing or gaining then I know I need a fill. My advice, find what works for you, get fills until you find your sweet spot and if journaling and calorie counting sounds like something you need go for it!

Mine never gave me a food plan either. I am supposed to eat normally making sure I get some lean Protein and veggies with each meal. I am not supposed to eat between meals or eat liquids and soft foods. My meal size is around 1 cup per meal. Plateaus are perfectly normal and do not mean that you have reached your limit. I went through three major plateaus and a bunch of little ones. They will happen throughout your weight loss journey and don't necessarily mean that you are doing something wrong. Keep doing what you did to lose the first 50 lbs. and it will eventually pass. Make sure you are getting enough calories but not overeating. If you are eating too much and not staying satisfied until your next meal get a fill, keep hydrated and keep exercising. Don't let this get you down, you are doing great!!!!

I'd venture to guess that most of that would be okay with your doctor as long as you are healing okay; maybe not the situps though. It pretty much has to do with avoiding strain on the abdominal area. Lifting could affect the healing of the incisions. Strenuous abdominal exercises could cause problems with incisions and the muscles where the port is stitched. Most of the stuff you listed would have been do-able for me at four weeks. I wouldn't have been able to give it 100% but I could get out there and do it.

You should be fine by then, any remaining pain will be pretty minimal. You shouldn't do anything too strenuous for six weeks but most phys-ed stuff should be okay at four weeks...just listen to your body and if it hurts, stop doing it. Let the teacher know that you are recovering from surgery and may need to take it a little easy. I had a little nausea for maybe a week or so but my doc gave me pills to take care of that.

When was you last fill? We all respond to fills differently; my response changes with each fill. You probably still have time to get a fill and see how it feels before your Vegas trip but I wouldn't push it.

If we had answers to some questions it would help to give you better advice. About how much are you eating per meal? How many meals per day(are you eating between meals)? Are you hungry between meals? Are you eating solid foods, lean Proteins etc.? What is your approximate calorie intake per day? Are you exercising?

I couldn't, not that early; I could only sleep propped up for at least two weeks. I was not able to sleep in bed so soon because it was too painful to lift myself back up. It is unlikely that you damaged anything, not by simply lying down. All of the healing, tender tissue and muscle was simply shifted one way for a while then you moved and it shifted back causing pain. You are going to have that for a while. It is okay to sleep however you want as soon as you want, how you sleep is more about comfort.

If you are going to give up food and live the rest of your life on Protein shakes, then why get the band? I don't think that is something anyone would be happy with for a lifetime, with or without the band. Once past the healing stage I was not allowed liquids and soft foods. My doctor said eating those foods defeats the whole purpose of having the band. solid food is what stays in your pouch and keeps you feeling full for a long time which is the key point of having the band. Liquids pass through much faster leaving you hungry much sooner. Seems like a lot of money and extremes to go through if you are not going to use it to its full purpose. I don't throw up with the band and I rarely PB. PB'ing is not the same as throwing up. You do not gag and heave when you PB, you do not expel stomach acid when you PB. You simply burp or cough up a little undigested food. It is not a projectile type thing and I would take PB'ing over vomiting any day. PB'ing happens if we eat too fast or eat too much. Getting stuck is a little more uncomfortable. It is a pain in the middle of the chest that quickly teaches us to take smaller bites. But you can typically get it to go down without too much drama unless you really swallowed a huge mouthfull. Sliming is most uncomfortable but something I have rarely done. It happens when you eat something that can't pass through the stoma. You should try new foods slowly to learn what might make you slime. Dried fruits and pills are two things that I have slimed on. If you do eat in public don't eat anything that you have not yet tried with the band. I rarely PB or slime now that I've gotten used to having the band. Eating becomes a relearning process and once you get through the initial process it is no longer a constant worry, it becomes second nature to eat slowly and choose the right foods. I do still get stuck on occasion but mostly when I've allowed myself to get too hungry then I tend to eat too fast. You definitely should not eat solids in public right away but once you get used to eating with the band you really should not have a problem.

There are very specific guidelines that UHC has for your particular policy. At least some of the tests you are holding off on are probably required for final approval but unless the results of the tests make you ineligible, they can't deny you the surgery if it is a covered procedure that you are entitled to.

Biotin is a supplement that you can get in most stores that sell Vitamins. It usually comes in a "Hair, Skin, and Nails" formula. If you are having hairloss and it is being caused by a lack of B-vitamins and biotin,then it will help with hairloss. But your hairloss may not be due to a Vitamin deficiency so you need to make sure you are covering all possible causes. With weightloss surgery the typical causes for hairloss are: 1.) Vitamin deficiency: Make sure you are taking a good daily vitamin and getting plenty of B-Vitamins. 2.) Protein deficiency: The general requirement for WLS patients is 60G of protein per day. 3.) Stress: Surgery and the sudden diet change can cause stress on the body triggering it to shut down non-essential processes like hair. Making sure you take care of 1 and 2 above and give yourself time and rest to heal and the body will eventually recover. Your hair is on a 3-month cycle. So if there is hairloss it usually starts around 3 months from surgery as long as you are getting your vitamins in it should come on slowly and slowly peak then slowly lessen within another 3 months. Then keeping up with a good diet you should see regrowth within 3 months. Although Biotin will only help with hairloss if the lack of it is the cause, it doesn't hurt to take it. Either way it does make you hair and nails healthy.