Mariasha

Perfectly normal. You don't have any restriction before your first fill, and you don't have a pouch yet to stretch. The right after surgery is for healing, not for losing weight. You will start to lose after you get your fills and hit your sweet spot.

Good for you man! Mighty inspiring!

There are surgeons in the USA that would definitely be ready to work with you? Where do you live? Are you limited to Mexico?

You may want to visit this forum dedicated to that very topic.

A fill is a relatively simple procedure. You don't need to have it done by your doctor. Of you are willing to go to someone else for your fill you could have it done before you go on that cruise. If not, that is a very long time to be without any restriction.

I had surgery three weeks ago and haven't had a fill yet. I never feel hungry now and get full from very small meals. It seems to me that for some people just having the band in place provides some level of restriction.

How about the fact that your chances of dying are significantly lower with the band than the bypass?

There are two aspects to deal with, the intellectual aspect and the emotional. For the first, if you do your research you will see that the only effective method for people who are morbidly obese to keep of the weight long term is to have some form of weight loss surgery. All you need to do is look at the statistics. The emotional part of it is more complicated and different for everyone. Although I intellectually understood that I had to have this surgery, emotionally I kept telling myself that maybe I can manage without it. The morning of my surgery, I was packing to go to the hospital and had to get a pair of slippers out of my closet. They were somewhere in the back so I had to get down on the floor to retrieve them. While I was down there I started thinking to myself, maybe I'm making a mistake? Maybe I can do this myself. The effort it took me to pick myself up off the floor and the discomfort such a simple action caused me was enough to send me on my merry way off to the hospital to be banded.

I was banded 6/21 - started my pre-op diet 6/7 So far down 40 pounds. Enjoy it while it lasts, there is no way that you will continue to loose at this pace.

Powerade Zero is great stuff!

It doesn't really matter what your doctor says. The insurance companies determine if it is medically necessary or not based on your BMI. You need a BMI of over 40, or over 35 with weight related health problems. You can calculate your BMI here.

Wow!! Congratulations! Keep it up! You are an inspiration to all of us!

Wow!! Good for you! Keep it up!!

Just take it slow and easy. You'll feel when you need to stop. The reason you will feel full now is not because of restriction, but rather because of swelling from the surgery. It will get better as time goes on.

Sure! He is an Australian Doctor and was doing lap bands there long before they were being done in the USA. He was one of the first Doctors to bring this procedure here and taught it to many of the surgeons who now perform it. One of the great things about him is that he also has a lap band himself, so he really understands what your going through. Here is a little more info to help you. Here is a link to Dr Fielding's Bio on NYU's website. And here is his page on lapband talk. If you scroll down to the bottom you will see in the patient reviews and comments that everyone who has used him is very happy with him.

As a 24 year old who struggled with being obese all through my teens, I wish I would have done this sooner. My surgeon Dr Fielding at NYU is one of the pioneering surgeons of the lap band and has operated on hundreds of adolescents. I see you live in CT so if you are interested I would make the trip in to the city to meet and discuss this with him.

I was also a self pay, but luckily managed to borrow the money from family and friends. One small advantage to being a self pay over having insurance is that you are much less likely to cheat on any of the rules that your doctor sets for you. When you spend this much money on something you'll do whatever it takes to make it work

If you are sure that it is a lap band you wish to have, and your current doctor prefers to do other surgeries, then why not try a new doctor? I'm sure you can use these forums to find a good lap band doctor in your area.

It is. But for many of us, if we just have that commitment and not the band we will not be successful. It is simply impossible to succeed at dieting if you are constantly feeling starving hungry and craving food. The band is the tool that allows us to be successful in our commitment.

Every surgeon has different requirements. Your doctor should provide you with a detailed diet of what you can eat before and after surgery. If you have not received this from him I would make sure to try and get it.

Thanks everyone for your responses. Today was much better. I got down two shakes and some Soup. I think my body is getting used to the band. Just wondering, is there any way of knowing or being able to calculate at what point a persons body enters "starvation mode"?

Thanks HappyMom. My only concern is that I don't want to try and eat to much and then throw up. I'm trying to balance that with making sure I get enough calories. As soon as I take a couple of sips I feel very full and start getting the hiccups. I'm scared of trying to have any more after that.

Thanks, I'm going to try that. Yesterday I managed to get down about a half a shake and then I felt full. We'll see how it goes today.

So I was banded this past Monday and am feeling great. I seem to be one of those guys that feels restriction just from the band without even having a fill. I feel full all the time and haven't felt the least bit hungry since my surgery 5 days ago. I am able to drink liquids by taking small sips. As soon as I drink a little I feel full. I am making sure to stay well hydrated by drinking small amounts throughout the day. My question is if there is any concern that I may not be getting enough calories? Almost everything I have been drinking this week is zero cal and I have had less than 100 calories every day this week. I feel great but just wanted to make sure this is not a problem. Thanks for your feedback

I have a friend who loves steak but he can't handle it with his band. Sometimes if other people are eating it, he'll take a piece and chew on it for a while and then spit it out. He says he gets the flavor and the taste but he can't actually swallow it. Each to their own...