Hollie519

I was told I should consider. They never said i didn't have to at all but they said it would be safer. I didn't chew gum for the first 6 months or drink diet coke. I do now but i drink really slow and my mouth gets annoyed of a piece of gum after a while. Strange because i used to be a BIG gum chewer. the soda just makes you gascious. If you don't get rid of the gases, thats when you stretch your pouch. If your surgeon says no, than don't do it. Always follow what your surgeon tells you because every person's body is different.

Its good to hear you are now encouraged instead of down :] Keep up the good work CHica! You can do it. We are all here cheering you on!

Until i hit 100 :] Than I get a new job. YEAH! I didn't think I would be able to do it but dang. 16 more days until my year mark. Thanks for all the support.

HAHA thanks and i don't think that anyone should be telling me what I should be doing at 18. I live in my own house and pay all my own bill. i work full time as well. No offense, but if i wanted your opinion about what I did in my spare time, I would post a thread asking. Anyway, Kristy Lynn, that is weird. Thanks for lookin for me. I did google sexy costumes and it got me sooooo excited!

Your stomach eventually gets used to having the band around it. So, if you felt good restircion right after surgery, than your stomach had probably shrank a whole lot. I'm pretty sure if you had a leak, you would be getting sick. The liquid in your band will evaporate but not that fast. I have heard of people having 4 or 5 fills and still not having restriction. just stick to your meal plan and keep going until you hit your "sweat spot". Girlie you have com e too far to turn back now. Keep up your hard work. It's hard but you are not alone :]

Ok sweetie, I had this same situation. You just have to get that mind set straightened out. You can do it, you are sooooo close. Just jump back into your routine. I know its really hard but you can do it. You have worked soo hard to get where you are and there is no reason to turn around now. Don't let this be a reason to start eating a bunch of junk. As long as you are eating healthy and you exercise, you will be ok. This happened to me around my 18th birthday and I used it as an excuse to eat junk. i gained 10 pounds and was in a slump for about a month. don't let this happen to you because than you just get into the why even bother stage. Just remember you have worked your tail off. Try to keep yourself full of Water during the healing process. Water can give you a little bit of a false full feeling. I know liquids and mushies suck with no restriction. As long as you have something running through you, it should help. Go through all of your old photos as well. i found that helped me say no to temptation. I even put a picture of me on the day of surgery on the fridge in my kitchen. it really helped me not snack. Good luck ladies. Let me know how it goes.

Jack, no offense, but I'm 18 years old. i'm not trying to be 30. I just let go of the stress of trying to take care of all kinds of crap. i'm just trying to live my age now. I think i will be fine. i don't get super wasted and eat of bunch of crap. lol usually one drink the whole night keeps me on a nice buzz and i go home and pass out. lol Is that so bad that i need to stop doing it? No haha

I know age is wisdom, blah blah blah. i just don't go to school right now and I work in Foreclosures, so i have no peer interaction for the last 6 months. No disrespect, but i just want to talk with people my age. Oh and It only takes me one drink to get drunk since the band. i'm pretty smart about it. I have also matured a lot faster, but I didn't want to. I live in my own apartment with my boyfriend and am still 18. I haven't even hit party mode. I'm just trying to have a good time. I've drank a little bit throughout my journey and it hasn't made me gain or anything. I'm from San Diego, so patying is more of an option. :] So purple girl, how did you have the surgery at 16?

This is my first Halloween being skinny. I have no idea what to be because I've never really had to do this before. lol Parties are a definite so I need some ideas. HELP! I want to show off the new body... Thanks :]

Lol I have been looking and looking for people who are my age who have the lap band. I live in San Diego where there are millions of people. I can only find old people with the band. It's driving me NUTS! So now that i have found all of you, who still parties after being banded?

Sunny San Diego, California. Home of the beautiful people!

I believe mine must be a 4cc as well. I was never told but when I was at 4 cc's it was too full. My stomach swelled too much. Now I believe I am 3.75 cc's and its just right. everyone is different though. You can't base your fill on anyone elses.

you should get help while you have the band. it'll help you more than battling it without a tool. I have the same addictive personality. I didn't start counseling until this month and i am doing fine. i wish i would have started sooner. So get on it girl. You will love the way you feel toward food afterwards. It takes time though. One day at a time. Good luck!

My hair has thinned out as well. I don't know if its from the band or if its because i pull it out when I am bored, nervous, or aggrivated. Try taking some protein capsules. Hair loss is usually from lack of protien. I also have heard vitamin B but that lady could have been crazy. Try protein first and it doesn't work than vitamin B. I'm pretty sure Vitamin B is just supposed to give you energy but who knows.

The port is stitched on the inner dise of your abdomen muscle. The band is stiched between the top of your stomach and esophagus. You should be able to feel your port if you tighten your abs. Lay down on your back and do like a crunch. Thats how they will do your fills. i have the lap band, so it could be a bit different. You should still be able to feel where your port is. Thats how the doctors will feel it too. The band should probably be in the same place regardless if it is a realize band or lap band.

See that where I wanted it. To start from my ankle bone and go up. My legs were like the first real noticable thing that shrunk. And I do have a little bit of sagging skin in my stomach, my arms and my thighs. Not too bad that it won't eventually tighten. Still makes me cry though lol But my surgeon has reassured me several times that it will tighten with the exercise that I am doing. He just said drink A LOT of water. Now the hard part is finding the right artist I want to do it. This tattoo is super personal and i don't want just anyone working on it. So any good suggestions in San Diego?

Girl you are from So Cal! You will be fine :] lol If I can do it here with temptation, You can do it too. After a while, you won't even think about food anymore. You'll just eat healthy because you like it. And you will love the energy you have and the way you feel about yourself. Its amazing. Just have faith!

Does anyone have tattoos who have lost a bit of weight so far? I was continplating getting one but I still have 27 pounds to lose. I don't want it to mess up my first tattoo because what I want is very meaningful. I want to get a wrench with the name Basore in it in honor of my grandpa who passed. He was like my father and I've wanted this tattoo since I was 10 (he died when I was 8). Can anyone tell me their experiences with it?

I know it is not always easy living where there is food that you did not hand pick. My mom still bought ice cream after my surgery :/ Your roommates obviously know that you will be having the surgery, ask them if they could keep their junk food in their rooms. I am the kind of person that if its there, I think about it. If I don't know its there, I don't think about it. I mean the fridge is something you can't help unless you get your own mini firdge or they get their own. Its not a good idea at all for you to have that kind of food in you reach; ESPECIALLY in the beginning. It doesn't matter how much will power you have, there is always temptation and you can't guarantee that you won't cave. Its like trying to get sober. You don't go hang out at the bar right?

So I have noticed that sometimes when I feel more pressure than usual when food is going down, if i move my bra up, it releases pressure. I did it just now and it made me burp quite a bit. could my bra be pushing on my band? I know when i did the test where they messure the pressure in your esophagus that mine was different than most peoples. The doctor said that in relationship to my diaphram, my esophagus is higher than most peoples. Could this be why? Is anyone else having this problem?

I am almost at my year mark and have lost 94 pounds. Losing a 100 is very doable. just like everyone says. Don't be discouraged if it takes you a little longer to lose 100 pounds. My mom's friend has lap band and it took her 2 years to lose 100 but she has kept it off wonderfully. The slower you lose, the less likely you are to gain it back. i know its hard because Americans are used to instant gratification.

The things I have changed since lap band: *the way I view myself *letting go of the anger i have toward other people *GOT OFF THE PITTY POT *Can now cross my legs *all of the relationships I have on a daily are better *Let go of my EGO *became more humble It makes me cry thinking about the opportunity I have been given by recieving the lap band. After trying almost every diet known to man, I have finally found something I can be successful at. And DAMN it feels GREAT!

Realmccoy, Your band could possibly be too tight if you are having that much problems with food and you are picking things that are easier to get down. The band should not decide what you eat, just how much. See if your doctor will give you an x-ray to make sure you aren't too tight. If you get sick frequently when you eat normal food, than you need to get unfilled. I had that problem and my stomach swelled shut. BAD

Oh how sad for you realmccoy. I love food still. I have always loved healthy food. I just never knew when to stop eating. There are so many good healthy choices that you can make. Even as a dessert I can eat frozen yogurt. Its sugar free and 160 calories in a pretty big serving. Granted yogurt doesn't make you stay full for very long but i never seem to be unsatisfied. I don't obsess about food the way I used to. If I'm full, I don't eat. There used to be a time where I could have eaten and someone asked me if i wanted to go out to get something and i would. Uhh it grosses me out now thinking how I used to over indulge myself every single day. The lap band has saved my life.

All people need counseling. Look at the world.