RestlessMonkey

Lynmcg, once your diet is advanced, just carefully try everything. I've got pretty good restriction and don't have any food that's off limits as long as I chew it well and take small bites (and that includes chicken and white bread) So don't assume you can't eat something unless you try it yourself first! Just follow your doc's orders on food progression, follow the directions on chewing well, and you'll do fine. Until you have restriction you probably won't have any issues anyway (most people don't). Until your band is tightened enough you won't really know it's there. Good luck!

The problem with weight loss is you have to sustain it. So unless you want to take the "pill" forever, then don't. Further you lose well with the band and honestly if you wanted to lose faster, you could do bypass. It may not be "as" safe as the band, but then neither are many of the pills out there. Just my thoughts....

You need to make sure the policy you are purchasing covers lap band. Not all do. And yes, insurance is horridly expensive. People fuss about their coverage and don't really know, I don't think, how much it costs employers. It's insane. A good broker will be able to tell you what's covered and what isn't, or do more for you than "give you the books"...I know because I was responsible for insurance for my company for 20 years. They can do more for you than just a cost comparison.

I agree you should ask your surgeon.

You'll need to check with your surgeon. You will have lifting restriction for at least 2 weeks, maybe longer. THe limit ranges from 10-15 pounds. I know the kiddos need to be picked up etc but it's really important that you not strain while you're healing. Your surgeon can give you some coping tips, too.

Here's a link to an article...it can last up to 5 weeks and is caused by trauma to the diaphragm...not gas (which abates in a few days)....which is moot anyway because whatever the reason, it hurts! :smile: SpringerLink - Journal Article

I took it slow and my hair fell out...but that doesn't mean taking it slow is a bad thing. You can certainly ask your surgeon, and some are aggressive, but from what I've read (not a doc) aggressive fills are more likely to cause trouble down the road. It has taken me 5 fills and a LONG time to finally get restriction, but my doc said he feels it's the best way to do things and that he's setting me up for long term success. That doesn't mean I don't wish it had happened earlier, but he IS the one with the experience, not me. However, you should ask your surgeon what his policy is and express your concerns to him. My doc had no problem discussing with me why he believes in going slowly etc...

The broker is making money by selling you the policy. Get him to give you a comparison, including which cover WLS. If he won't, find another broker.

It can go away within a few days or linger for weeks, unfortunately. It's "referred" pain from your diaphragm and there isn't too much you can do about it. Personally I had my husband rub my neck and it relieved the cramped muscles. Some people use heating pads but they didn't work for me. Mine just hurt when I exercised and breathed deeply so fortunately it was transitory. Hang in there....hopefully yours will pass quickly!

Good luck! :ohmy:

Honestly I'd think it would have to be a good bit of weight loss, unless you did something to make you lose it just around your stomach. Losing CAN cause the band to loosen, but as I understand it, it takes a few months (or more) not just 2 weeks. You're safest, though, to ask your surgeon. :ohmy:

Sorry you're frustrated but you're safer and smarter to find another doc rather than self medicate. You'll run out of drugs taking extra anyway (or you should...) I know it's frustrating but you don't want to mess with the endocrine system. If a PA is reluctant to change it that should tell you something.

If you'd like, send me a PM and I can talk with you about anesthesia and how it feels. I'm a nursing student (graduate in May YAY!) and a person who's been through 3 surgeries, so I can maybe help alleviate some of your fears.

It was easy. I've had dental appts. that were worse. I had little pain, I recovered fast. The preop tests were nothing, either. (I had upper GI, ecg, blood drawn, chest x-ray, and an abdominal ultrasound, plus the psych consult. Easy breezy all) It's your call...a life of health for a little discomfort...to me it was a no-brainer.

i don't know, but I do know our nutritionist said if we eat pasta (and rice) to make sure it's very well done so it won't swell once we eat it and make us fuller than we intend. It makes sense since pasta keeps absorbing liquid even after we cook it....

I am another one who dieted about a million times...very successfully...then quit eating rubber cheese or only baked chicken and POW gained it all back plus another 20 pounds or so. Each time. Diets do NOT work for me. The band works because I eat "normally" but less and lose weight. As I lose weight I am more active and do more and exercise and eat less and lose more weight. It's a great cycle. While there are successful bandsters who weigh and count and chart and journal, that is not me. And that's the beauty of the band; you make it work for you. I lost 2.8 pounds the last week and i had some birthday cake (love that icing!) I had pizza (couldn't finish even 1 piece but I had it and enjoyed it and it was plenty) and even bean and cheese nachos. Also had a rib eye steak and a baked potatoe one night. OF course I only ate about 3 oz of steak and 1/2 of the potato, but I was happy, it was delicious. See? You have to be ready emotionally, though. If you aren't there, don't force yourself!

I think you should be calling your doc, not posting here! Good grief if it hurts enough for you to double over, why are you waiting?

Hi and welcome! I bought a couple "WLS RECIPE" books and they gather dust as I type this, because pre band I was on a very restricted diet and didn't need a recipe because I couldn't have much of anything, post op for the 1st 2 weeks I didn't need a recipe because I couldn't have much of anything, and then before I knew it I was through mushies and soft and back on real food. And Post band, while you CAN diet, you don't have to. I just make good choices (Most of the time) and practice the guidelines I was taught (small bites, chew well, no liquids with or for a bit after meals) and no carbonation (aside from the fact that it HURTS, most usually carbonated bevs are just empty calories) She will have to break the Pepsi habit; don't proceed until she's ready. Bands can "fail" and that's one way for it to happen....for the calories as much as the mechanics of carbonation, the band, and the pouch. Good luck! :ohmy:

I'm shocked your surgeon won't do a slight unfill! That sounds really wrong to me! Per the chart in my surgeon's office, when you can only eat "slider" foods then you are TOO TIGHT and need an unfill! If I were you I'd demand that it be loosened a little; it's not healthy and it isn't the point of the band, to suffer through meals!

Alisa, I'm a nursing student (graduating in may YAY) and one thing we are taught is that if the patient is nervous, there's a reason. Please talk to your surgeon. Make an appt and go. (If he ignores or belittles you, don't have him do your surgery) You are right to be aware that clots are an issue, but unless you have a predisposing factor of some sort, the odds are very high that you'll recover well, as do most of us. For most of us, frequent walking, wearing those support hose, staying hydrated etc means no clots, but there are additional measures that can be taken if there's a medical necessity. For example, if they are needed, your doc can prescribe an anticoagulant for you. So talk to him NOW. Yes, presurgery jitters exist and are usually just "nerves". But if you are worried to the point of nightmares this far out, take steps now to educate and inform yourself. Better safe than sorry, as they say! Your doc will know best what to do for you.

Hey SLIM! HI! Jetsy...they explained it pretty well. A chart in my doc's office calls it "the green zone". It's when you are adequately restricted so that you eat about 1 cup of well chewed food and stay full for up to 6 hours. If you can't eat most foods, or can't eat at least 1/2 cup, or find yourself going for mushie or "slider" foods that don't hurt, you are too tight. If you can eat more or get truly hungry (not emotionally snacky, but really hungry) in less than 5 hours, you are not tight enough. And I have a 14 cc band and didn't feel restriction until I was at 5.5 ccs It's even more obvious now that I have 6.25 (and it makes a HUGE difference...that's what the band is all about). So hang in there. It took me 5 fills too and I'm not in the zone yet.

Welcome! It's good to "meet" you since I started out at 405...not many people here start out as high as you and I did. Perhaps they are directed to bypass instead? Anyway you GO losing another chunk of weight. From what I've read, the band is only limited by us. You can keep losing 3 years, 4 years, etc. Good luck; I personally will love to watch you succeed and blaze the trail for others of us who want to lose more than the "stats" indicate!

CarolAnne, if you are a volume eater, then as long as you maintain the band (fills) and follow the rules (chew well, small bites) the odds are very high that it will NOT fail you. If you are a snacker or a grazer and aren't ready to give that up, then you are right to wait. Good luck to you!

JENfs5 Thanks for taking the time to clarify for me without blasting me for fussing at you! I'm sorry you've had so many tests but glad for you that nothing will stop your band. Good luck! I'm sure you'll be very successful!

Yes but is downtown Texarkana on the Texas or on the Arkansas side? Very important info, that! :tongue_smilie: