tilly

i went through the same thing, fortunatly it stopped, then it started again then it stopped. I have very thick hair so now I have the same as everyone else but it scared the **** out of me I can tell you. I did some research and the general conscensus is FATTY ACIDS or lack of, but nobody ever goes bald, so dont panic (or all your hair will fall out ) lol Flaxseeds are an exceptional source of lignans, a potent anticarcinogen and the richest known source of the essential omega-3 fatty acid, alpha-linolenic acid. it will stop soon, and then grow back trust me !!

the pain in your shoulder blade and right side sounds like theres a possibility of gall stones rather than the band playing up and you having a PB Id get that checked if I were you and in the meantime try to eat slowly and definately very little fat unless you get the all clear on the gall stones

congratulations a waist somewhere in the dim mists of time I can remember what that felt like

yes, the band is odd at times, some days you can eat more than others. I went on a diet the day I got home from the hospital, thinking it was the last one id ever have to do. this advice was given to me by an experienced bandster who had lost over 200lbs with her band so I reconed she knew what she was talking about lol. if I stray from the diet I gain or dont lose, but its a hec of a lot easier to diet with the band than without it, very easy in fact, but some days are easier than others. if only there was a band that allowed a lettuce leaf a day through and nothing else lol

it could be Water, or glygogen re-gain, it could be that her body has now adjusted. I wouldnt worry about 3lbs my hubby is slim, and just as an experiment, I asked him to weigh daily for a week, his weight fluctuated by as much as 5lbs day to day. I cant resist weighing daily and I know I shouldnt, but I can regain 8lbs overnight and have to wait a few days for it to go away again, unfortunatly we overweight peeps can retain a lot of Fluid without even knowing. so if shes only eating the same amount she lost 27lbs on she will keep losing, if shes been eating more (whilst really needing a bit less as she isnt as heavy) that could be a contributing factor. however, to gain 3lbs she needs to have eaten about 10,000 calories too many for her burn off needs, and im sure shed have noticed. so tell her not to fret, it will no doubt sort itself out, we like to see a constant downhill movement on the scales, of course we do, but it doesnt happen. hang on in there and it will start the downhill process again, if the gain doesnt stop, then its calorie counting time again *sigh but give it a week at least good luck

try this it might help http://www.or.org/RecentEvents/ornews/IMPACT_SPR2003.html

so your going to be buisy, Aberdeen is about 200 miles north from glasgow, ayreshire is about 80 ish from glasgow but going south.but youll see the scenery. try to get up to the west coast, isle of skye cos thats where the real scenery is, its lovely.

ooh where abouts are you going???

1000-1500 TOPS or I stop losing there are some days when Im a little devil and eat much much more but then I make up for it the next few days its so easy to down those pesky calories without even realising so I keep a food diary

yep, one of the major sites for trapped wind is in the shoulders, I got it a few days post op and it took my breath away, arms dangling useless by my sides for about 10 minutes my sympathies, best thing for wind is bicarb of soda, its vile but by george it hits the spot doesnt it

Dunoon!!! thats a really really lovely place cant comment on Perth, never been, only to the Scotish one !! lol

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/health/2985388.stm I found this very reassuring when I was going for my op

I was on liquids for two weeks then mush for a further two weeks some docs recommend 3 months on liquids eeeek

when I first looked into the band, I thought I had hit paydirt. have the band and lose weight with no effort at all. well, I realised that it doesnt work that way, though I know a few people who think it does and insist on eating the way they used to without fills and also drinking copious amounts of alchohol without "counting" it in their calorie intake. I know people who insist that calories dont matter, they do in my experience. so I diet, its the last diet I will ever have to do so whats one more after a life time of them. My friend said to me about another friend who has lost almost zilch after 2 years of the band and blames it entirely (so what caused the weight PRE band? she just wont have it that you cant eat cakes candys drink bottles of wine each night and lose weight nomatter what your fitted with or without,) "jeez if my husband spent all that cash on a power tool then flung it in the garage saying it didnt put the shelves up for him or built that wardrobe by itself, Id kill him stone dead" lol there have been times when I havnt lost weight and had to face up to the fact that ive eaten too much, sometimes it seems like youve eaten a miniscule amount but then add up those dreaded calories and find youve eaten about 3000 in bitty food that does you no good at all.

that was what I call a PB a real humdinger of a pb awww it happens when the food sits on top of your band and cant get into your tum because it just wont break down ie bread (in my case) or you dont chew enough or leave enough time between swallows to allow the backlog to go. I had quite a few of those including one where sitting outside a restaurant I had to grab my handbag and throw up into it. when I emerged from under the table my friends were lookign at me in horror at the slime that was hanging from my mouth down to my chest !! you will learn what you cant and cant have as time goes by, I think my last one was about 4 months ago because Im cautious now about what goes down. lol its perfectly normal and gets worse after your fills as your used to being able to eat x amount then it all changes again. worth it though as you see the weight coming off

when your banded they blow you up with gas apperently to help make space inside you to work. this can take a few days or so to go, I didnt suffer from it but I know plenty who have for a couple of weeks then it leaves. good luck

awful isnt it, I had quite a few before I remembered to slow it down and learned what I could and could not manage to eat. well I remember the 4 hours that I PB'd on a minescule bit of prune skin!! they are off the menu since you might be sore today or a bit swollen so try to stick to soup and liquids if you can

my first fill didnt work either so I know what your feeling. the fact my son was getting married in 3 months made me stick to the diet and lose otherwise I wouldnt have lost an ounce. the others are right though about having to wait a few days sometimes for the fill to kick in,thats happened to me a couple of times. I know what you mean about having to diet without restriction, if I could do that I wouldnt have needed the band ! your probably the same, sometimes I wonder where the docs heads are at. for instance, the 1st doctor I saw wanted me to lose 80lbs before I got the band and eat what I would be eating when banded to "prove my commitment" huh ????? the surgeon who banded me has a wife who has been also banded and he knows all the thrills and spills, asks you not to eat meat and bread and candy, fills you then will add a bit or take some out until your comfortable and leaves it up to the patient to judge whether the fill is working or not. to my mind that makes more sense. as for exercise I was far to big to be exercising and Im still not, thats cos Im lazy no other reason, but the weight still comes off at my size even if I dont. no doubt that will change as I get lighter *sigh I read somwhere that you have to run up the stairs of the Eiffel tower and back down again 165 times to lose 3lbs of fat --so thats my excuse, I live too far away from Paris !! after a year (today) of the band, my need to lose it and lose it fast has diminished a lot, this will no doubt happen to you and you will realise that once you get the right amount in your band and you folllow the rules you HAVE to lose weight. Its hard to get the yo yo dieting mentality out of your head which was for me, omg I havnt lost weight this week, omg Im going to stop losing and gain it all back, panic panic panic then I realised that there will be highs and lows and that with the band the general direction is down, with a few bumps along the slope good luck and hopefully he will realise that you need more restriction. fingers crossed for you

thanks for the lovely welcome, I had good advice from an experienced bandster before I went for the band which was DIET ! so thats what I've tried to do, some days ive been naughty but most days Ive stuck to around 1200 calories and found it very very easy compared to the days without the band.

the only time I get reflux probs at night is when I eat late maybe about 4 times in a year ive suffered from it, pre band I suffered nightly, daily afternoonly and morningly !!!!!!

I have the cousin band hich holds 9cc and have 6.5 cc in it. I think this is my "sweet spot" fingers crossed I cant eat meat of any kind, bread, fruit, (mashed banana is fine) rice, pasta unless I chew it to death. And im losing weight fine. my downfall is mints like altoids, I swear I wont eat any each day then cave and eat lots of them, so they are slowing my weight loss a bit but I shall battle on against the cravings.

I cant eat bread, meat Pasta or rice, I tried, lord knows I tried lol but I was in too much pain so ive left them alone. I only eat what I can comfortably break with the side of my fork and I stay pain free. In the UK we call this pain a PB (productive burping) might be the same here but by any name it isnt pleasant is it. after my fills I usually stay on Soup for a couple of days whilst the band adjusts to its new filling. but yes, the restriction your feeling is correct it makes it hard to eat the way you did and it takes a few days to realise that its a whole new ball game once more. try eating more mushy stuf like soup, cottage pie and if you can cut out the bread and pasta as it doesnt break down well to go through your newly smaller opening into your small tum. you will soon get used to what you can have and cant have. good luck and look foreward to a whooshy weight loss !! re the first post saying food was my friend but now my band is, I couldnt agree more I realise now, food was my enemy, pretending to be my friend, it was killing me (410lbs) now I love being in control, and eating small portions, feeling full is new to me, I could never get enough, now I can stop and forget about eating until next time I feel a bit hungry or more correctly "peckish" as hunger isnt a problem for me now

Ive had 5 fills so far and not one of them was even slightly painful. not even when he puts the needle into your skin ! I am also a coward so I was worried when I went to the first fill but honestly it will be fine I have several friends who have had the band and they all agree that the pain ranges from nil, to slight ok this is my experience of the fill, you go in get weighed and then lie down he cleans the port site with a medi swab wipe and then takes a few ccs of saline in the syringe prods about a bit till he finds your port and puts the needle in as Ive said Ive never experienced any pain with this, two of my fills I got a slight "sucking" sensation then thats it, he sticks a little band aid on the site and off you go. My surgeon gives you a glass of Water to drink. sip it slowly and feel it going down, you should feel it sitting there slowly going into your tum, try drinking a couple of glasses at least before you leave. if the water just goes straight down with no problem, its worth asking him if you could possibly have some more in your fill. the best fill I had was when the water was sitting there for about 10 mins before it went down properly,and I kept burping the worst fill Ive ever seen was my friend whom I went with (300 miles) for her fill and it seemed fine. then, on the way home,she realised she was sealed shut !! so we had to turn around and go back another 150 miles, just caught her surgeon leaving,but he took one cc back out and she was fine then --- went on to lose 50lbs before she needed her next fill. the fills are very much a hit and miss thing in my experience, my first one I got 5 cc from a surgeon other than my own, and couldnt understand why it wasnt working, when i went to my own guy, my band was completely empty !! obviously the first guy had missed the port opening. I think I have reached what they call the "sweet spot" which is just right for me. I might not need another fill now ever !! so fingers crossed sometimes you think that you have a wonderful restriction, then next day, its gone and you panic, next day its back with a vengeance, mine is looser at night than early daytime. with two of my fills I thought they hadnt worked much until about 3 days later when the restriction got a lot better. good luck and lets know how it all goes

aww, dont worry, everyone is right, you just need a fill, once you have that you will realise the difference. your tum is made of elastic ! it will stretch to accomodate a lot of food (ie, chistmas dinner) then it simply goes back to its proper size thank heavens or mine would be the size of a bouncy castle by now, so dont panic about stretching your top tum. once you have the fill the band will tighten and leave a much smaller hole for the food to drop through into your big tum and you will be full much faster and providing you dont drink whilst eating (this will wash it through faster) it will stay in the top bit longer thus satisfying you for a lot longer than now. good luck and dont be fretting over something you cant help, by the way that weight loss is fantastic well done

Hello, Im a newby here and wanted to say hello to everyone. I had the band fitted in Belgium a year ago today and have had no complications whatsoever with it, apart from a couple of fills that didnt work, and have lost 112lb so far, I started at 408lbs. I lost lots on the Atkins diet, swore Id never gain it back and voila- 2 years later I was almost back where I started. the band was a last ditch attempt to lose this weight Ive carried around most of my 54 years. So far so good. many thrills and spills along the way but I recon Ive got the hang of it now.