Pegsinthewoods

I was banded in April 2008. So far I've lost about 35-37lbs. Slow is what I was wanting, 'cause I don't want to have further surgery for loose skin. I have totally lost all motivation. I am tight enough that if I eat to fast or to much I feel it. But I'm drinking a little with some of my meals and I know that's against what we're suppose to do. I try to make good food choices. I also joined Curves, but life happened and I don't have a car right now so I don't go as often as I'd like. Guess I just needed to vent/confess...:wink2:

FIRST, let me congratulate you on speaking-up/venting/

confessing. I know that is hard to do especially to a website full of sucessful experts. I think admitting the problem is the start to resolving it. I like your attitude, I think you'll move on and loose more. Good luck! :smile2:

Gypsygirl, thanks for the post. There aren't many who have been banded as long as you that share how things have gone in their journey. I appreciate someone like you who has been banded for so long and has been so successful. I'm sorry for your slippage, I hope your re-banding goes well.

Hi,

There have been times now, when I decided I must be hungry, and go ahead and drink something. Which then makes me feel better. But then there have been a couple of times when I thought I was hungry, drank something, and it just sat there (I am guessing above the band) feeling like a ton of bricks.

I am going to guess that over time, I will begin to understand it much more clearly, but as this is still band-new (pun intended) to me, I am finding the learning curve a little tricky.

Anyone have any tips or hints?

Hey, Randy, I was banded on Aug. 4 and I also struggled with what my stomach was telling me. I put myself on a schedule of when my meals were, and when I should drink. I planned my Water an hour before my meals to give myself 30 minutes to drink a small bottle of Water (or less) and then another 30 minutes to wait before I ate. It has worked well for me. My stomach gets noisy telling me it is hungry but at least I'm sure I'm eating when I'm hungry AND I am getting my allotment of water. It's just an idea. Might not work for you.

I was banded on the 20th with the realize band.

I don't have any hunger right now.......I have been drink Water and Protein shakes, and also creamed Soup. The hardest part is to eat. I am so scared about what I have done.

I am tired. I am still in the recovery mode.

I plan on going for a walk later. My port site is very uncomfortable... is that normal.

Keri

Hey, Keri, You sound perfectly normal to me. I was banded Aug. 4 and couldn't eat solid food for several weeks. My band gave me restriction from the beginning.

As far as being tired, girl, you've just had surgery! Rest and take it easy for a couple of weeks. If you can swing it, get some extra sleep each night. :thumbup:

My port site was so sore at a week's time I went back to my doc. He inspected it and assured me everything was looking great. He did then prescribed an abdominal binder. It is a big elastic band that I wore for about another week and it helped a lot.

Hang in there, it gets better and better! :w00t:

I have also heard of folks using the "Five Day Pouch Test" I haven't tried it but I have read of some folks who have used it to get back on track. You can find it at

Surgical Weight Loss 5 Day Pouch Test

Best of luck.:thumbup:

You do have to give the doctor permission to view your progress. You have the choice to say no when you register on the site.

I too had port pain a week out from surgery. I even went to see my doc because I was so worried. He prescribed an abdomen binder, kind of like a girdle that I wore for about 10 days and it worked wonders! :smile2:

I was banded (Realize Band) on Aug. 4th and I still have not received a fill. I am having good restriction with the band empty. I have lost 27.6 pounds and have been very happy with my results. :smile2:

I am three months out and at about two weeks, my port was very sore. I felt like I had to hold my hand over it. I went to the doc and he prescribed a medical binder. It is an elastic thing with velco that you were kind of like a girdle. It worked great! I only had to wear it about a week but I was glad I had it.

I bought several jars of baby food pre-op. Tried about six different ones. Didn't really like any of them. :thumbup: I did better with creamy Soups while on liquids and then pureed food when on mushies.

Peg,

Please do go on! I have had trouble getting anything on the food journal to register. I can see it and click on it, but I can't update it to make it work. So anything - any tricks, tips, etc., please do send them to me either here or privately. I really need some help. I can click on any icon or bookmark, but then am not able to use the stuff when I get the page loaded (and I have cable access at home and am on a network at work, so it isn't that my computers aren't able to handle it - there is something about my particular site that I must be missing in order to get my stuff to load. I even have to enter my daily/weekly weights weird just to get them onto the site and updated for my doctors).

Thanks so much! I'm printing out your first reply, and am looking forward to your coaching me through more, if you are willing.

Best,

Hey Amy, I'll do my best. IF I remember right, there are several levels of use that a person is allowed on the website. The first level is you sign-in with your surgeon's information and you are allowed to look around. The next level is after you have your band installed, they give you a patient's number. You then sign-on and register yourself and your band with that number it allows everything to be available to you. It sounds like you do not have your patient/band number yet. You are only able to view. If I'm wrong, let me know. If not, get a hold of your doc's office to get your number so you can utilize the whole site and we will go from there. :smile:

Can anyone here help me navigate the Realize My Success website? I can get on and enter today's weight (which I need to do for my doctors office to follow), but I can't seem to get a handle on how to really use the site to my best advantage. I looked at recipes today and none appeal to me, but that is more because I am not interested in what was offered. I can at least access that area.

What other tools on the site do you find to be helpful? I have a hard time loading it on my pc at work and can't always see the entire screen.

I'm fairly computer literate, but this site has me so frustrated! Would anyone with a good sense of how to use the site be willing to coach me along a little?

Thanks so much!

Since you are computer literate, I hope I'm not too basic but I use the site EVERY day. The icons on the left side of the page help you to navigate to different areas of the website. "My food Diary" probably gets used the most by me. I track my Water, Vitamins, and food intake. It keeps track of my grams of fat, calories, but most important, my Protein intake. Sometimes the food I am looking for doesn't come up on "Food Search" a tab, top left, so I add it myself under the "My Food" tab, top left. I also list regularly eaten foods in "My Favorites" a tab again, top left. they seem to be adding to the list of foods regularly. You also can "tag" foods that don't agree with you or foods you hadn't planned to eat so a person can get an idea of possibly weaknesses that cause you to eat things that aren't "planned."

I could go on and on but I probably the best thing is to sign on and just read all of the articles the site offers. Maybe I'm a bit of an optimist :laugh: but I really like the site. It has helped me lose 24.2 pounds in 70 days which is unheard of for me :huh2:. I am so happy with my choice. I can't say enough good things about being banded and having the Realize band.

I was banded Aug 4 with the Realize Band have not had a fill yet. I am one of those that has had good restriction from the beginning. I have lost 21.6 pounds. Not great, but momentous from me. :crying:

I am wishing you the HAPPIEST of birthdays. Thank you for all you do. This site is a true life saver. :smile2: I'd be lost w/o it!

Before I was banded, this was a HUGE concern for me. I too take Motrin regularly. My doc told me I could take children's ibuprophen liquid 3 tsp/dose. If I am really hurting, I have taken 4 but 3 tsp. works great for me. Tylenol does nothing for me. :smile2:

Ask if flaxseed oil could substitute? It doesn't have as strong as side effects.

I also am a Migraine sufferer. I was banded nine weeks ago and so far, so good. I think drinking plenty of Water has been a real plus. I also use children's motrin (liquid) 3 tsp and it works great.

I also had cold/flu symptoms after my surgery. I was guessing the sore throat was from the breathing tube they put down my throat and I don't know what gave me the stuffy, draining sinuses. But I called my doc and he also reassured me I was fine. :wink2:

I don't think I will ever "feel like a normal person" again if being normal was what I was before my band. I am nearly nine weeks out and EVERYTHING I swallow can effect me but I like it. My good friend (eating buddy) still brings me food and I can't believe I ate that amount before! I'm eating 1/4 what I used to and I am fine with that. My eyes have changed because my stomach has forced it to and I love it! I have a 21 year old daughter who has never had a weight problem but eats like what I used to call fussy, now I get it. She eats like a normal person should and I find myself eating a lot like she does - healthy!!! I HOPE I always have that reminder in my stomach saying, "oh no, you're not going to eat that. Swallow it and you'll be PBing." I thank the Lord for allowing me to have this tool. (Side note: I think we should add a smile with praying hands. Can I get an "Amen?") :wink2:

My doctor has okay'd children's motrin for me. I take 3 teaspoons. I also will drink warm tea if I'm swollen. Mostly, I suggest laying off solid and even purees for a day or two. I usually do full liquids until my pouch settles down. :eek:

I'm glad I found this thread. I was banded nine weeks ago and still do not have a fill. I have been back to the doc but have requested no fill because I have PLENTY of restriction and I am losing 1-2 pounds/week. I was worried that something was wrong because so many folks don't seem to have restriction until several fills but it's great to know others have found it sooner. :thumbup:

I'm not 100% sure if ALL pills must be chew-able but I do know that when I asked my doc about Advil he told me to get children's liquid. It is in berry flavor and isn't too bad. Someone on this site told me there is an adult Tylenol liquid but Advil works better for me. I currently take a couple of Rx pills everyday but I split them before hand. I asked my pharmacist if they all were splittable and she said mine were. I am going to take my pills with me next doc appointment just to double check I'm not doing anything wrong. :thumbup:

I received the Realize Band on Aug. 5 and have lost 19.8 pounds so far. I haven't received a fill because I have enough restriction empty. I use the web site daily. I like the recipes, the encouragement and the tracking of my nutrition and exercise. I have been a slow loser most of my adult life. Almost 20 pounds in just a few weeks is amazing for me. I just pray that it keeps up, that I don't blow it by stretching my pouch, and the fact that I have so much restriction early on isn't because the band has slipped or I have an erosion. So far, life with my band is good. Would I recommend it? Probably not until I have lived with it for a year or so but I wouldn't recommend any WLS until that time. :teeth_smile:

I am thankful for Jason's reply. I have an empty Realize Band (placed Aug 5) and I have so much restriction, I requested to for go my first fill. I thought there might be something wrong with me (slippage, erosion, etc) but knowing someone else has restriction with an empty band makes me feel better. Great software with the Realize Band, also. :thumbup:

My doc RECOMMENDS 1000 cal/day. Of that, 65 grams should be Protein and no more than 100 grams should be carbs. I sometimes creep up to near 1200 but I haven't gone over that yet. Truthfully, I haven't been able to. I have extreme restriction without any fill. :frown: While I was on liquids, I got hungry real easy. My doc told me to eat more frequently. He said a 200 cal protein liquid five times/day. I found that if I waited to drink my Water until I was near my next "meal" I didn't get hungry as fast. :thumbup: