MustangGirlRN

I'm in the same boat, I think I'm working on pneumonia or bronchitis. I have a fever, I'm dizzy, and I can barely move. My kids who are living at home are 12, 14, and 16, and you would think they really wouldn't need much, but they do! (My oldest two are 26 and 19...and don't live at home anymore). :tongue2: It's rare to get any rest when you have kids, and they seem to become more needy when I am sick. I still love them to death, but know that I couldn't handle 14 kids!

Cool and our band dates are close too. :rose:

Yeah, me too:cursing:

Well, it seems to be working for Octo-Mom. Seriously, no, it doesn't bother me. I think sometimes it just helps to vent.

My last supper was the night before I started my pre-op diet. I had a steam pot from Joe's Crab shack and all of the trimmings. I also had some beer and a mixed drink. It was wonderful, but I was so stuffed and miserable afterwards, I was more than ready to start my pre-op diet.

I'm a clinical nursing manager in a pediatric emergency department. We are a level one trauma center and just found out that we were granted "Magnet" status!! I also have 5 kids, ages 26, 19, 16, 14, and 12. They certainly keep me busy!

I always use warm liquids to loosen up my band. The first drink I have almost every morning is herbal mint tea. YUM! Occasionally, I'll have a cup of coffee, but I'm addicted to my mint tea. I still enjoy my cold drinks, especially decaf iced tea, just not first thing in the morning, and I can't gulp them like I used to.

I completely agree with you. I work in one of the busiest pediatric emergency rooms in the country. I have 5 children and I worked night shift for many years, (I'm a manager on day shift now...yippee). I can't tell you the number of times that a registration clerk would ask a mom if she "worked outside the home" only to hear the mom get irate and say something like, "my kids are my job, I have to stay home and take care of them", then the mom would hand over her medicaid card to the clerk with expensive manicured hands and fake fingernails that curled like fritos and dressed to the nines. I work hard to be able to afford my five children. One is grown and married and one is in college, but I still have three teenage boys at home. I do not have nicely manicured fake fingernails and I do not have medicaid. I chose to have five kids and do not think anyone else should pay for them. Likewise, I do not think I should have to pay for another person's children if they are milking the system. I absolutely think there are times when people hit hard luck and need some TEMPORARY help, but to have 6 kids you can't afford, then decide to have 8 more without a plan to pay for them really irritates me. It's not the kid's fault....and for the record, my feelings have never once influenced the care I provide to the children. I just wish people would take responsibility for their actions and not expect my hard earned tax dollars to pay for their kids when I'm working hard to pay for my own. Pheww, sorry for the rant. I feel better now and will get off my soap box. I love my job and the patients I care for, but I love my family more!

I just got banded in November, and I spent a lot of time on her pre-op. I didn't think that post banders were snobbish. I asked questions, and they helped me. I found them to be kind and supportive for the most part. I don't think I'm snobbish now that I'm a bandster either, at least I hope I'm not.....:thumbup:

When I lose all of my weight, I know for sure I'll need a breast lift. If it turns out that implants would be necessary, I will definitely get them. My only concern is paying for the surgery. I've had a large chest my entire adult life, so it would seem strange to not have boobs like I've always had. :thumbup:

I don't have an aversion to any food since I've been banded. I do know what I can't eat because it will make me pb or feel sick, but I still miss some of the things I know I can't have. I still crave pizza and can eat a small amount if it has a thin, crispy crust, but the really cool thing is, I only eat a small amount. I can't eat donuts because they get stuck, but I still wish I could have one when I see others eat them. Having said that, the cravings and urgings are not nearly as bad as they were pre-band. I know I have a tool that is designed to give me the results I want and it makes it easier to say no to the bad things. When I know the bad food is going to be around, I make sure I have something with me that I know I can have. :thumbdown:

I miss drinking with my meals. I used to drink 2 or 3 glasses while I ate, and now it's so difficult to not drink while I eat. It's especially hard when having breakfast and not being able to have unlimited coffee with the meal, but also to know when we go out to eat, I can't drink gallons of iced tea. I have to plan my liquid intake around my meals. :tongue: However, I love my little lapband and what it is helping me achieve so I will just work hard to accept it. Lisa

When I first started looking in the lapband procedure about 6 or 7 years ago, I found my insurance company didn't cover the procedure. I was devastated and angry because they would certainly pay if I had a heart attack or developed diabetes. I work at a hospital, and it just didn't seem right. Eventually, the hospital felt the same way, after many people complained and requested that WLS be added, and added WLS into the insurance several years ago. Now, I can't even count the number of people who have had some form of WLS at my organization. I'm just saying that even if insurance doesn't cover your WLS now, it could possibly in the future. Make your voice heard to your company, they get to choose what they want to include in the policies offered their employees. As far as going to Mexico, if you aren't comfortable with that and have a physician who you want to do the procedure, don't settle for anything less that what you want. There were several less expensive program fees in my area, but I chose based on the surgeon and hospital I wanted to do the procedure. I looked at his record including the number of surgeries performed and complications. I met him before the procedure and was comfortable with him. I'm still comfortable with him post-op and enjoy getting my fills and follow-ups by the same person who did my surgery. I don't think I could get the same support if I had my surgery away from my home town. Although I know many people have had great success by going to Mexico, I wouldn't choose to go there either. It's a completely personal choice, but I understand your feelings about having chosen a surgeon you are comfortable with. Good luck to you! Lisa:wink: P.S. I've used Care Credit before for a different weight loss program and was very happy with it.

Hi Erika, I have found this site to be a wealth of information. Everyone is supportive, understanding, and just plain fun to talk to. Congratulations on completing all of the referrals and I hope your wait to hear from your insurance company is short. I only had to wait about a week to find out! Lisa

I have similar issues. I can honestly say I have only PB'd one time, but some days it can take a lot to fill me up and other days, I get full quicker, but..... It seems like I get hungry sooner if I get full quicker. I'm not sure if that's normal or not. I think I may need another fill. I've had 2 fills so far and I've got 6ml in a 14ml band. Lisa

Welcome, and congratulations on your decision. I have found this site to be a wealth of information and support and spend a lot of time browsing around, (sometimes too much time according to my family):wink_smile:. Good luck on your journey. What part of KY are you from? Lisa

Mine did the same thing. My numbers looked great pre-op, but then about 2 weeks post-op, I went to a healthy check sponsored by my husband's work. I expected my numbers to look even better, but they were a mess. I had to explain my WLS to the nurse at the healthy check and she still wasn't sure if that was the problem. I let my dietician know and she suggested having my blood checked further down the road. It's good to know that it's a common occurence. Thanks for the information. Lisa

Amy, Get your fill, you deserve it. Last year is finished and gone with a brand new 2009 ahead of you. You've already lost 70 pounds and that's phenomenal. Get back on track, get your fill, and stop back here soon to tell us about your success! I've found that sometimes when I think I'm hungry, I'm just really thirsty, so that may be something for you to consider until you get your fill. A protein shake is very filling for me, or even just some crystal lite or protein water. Just an idea that works for me, maybe it will help you too. Good luck, and congratulations on your weight loss so far! Lisa

My moment was more gradual and I started getting serious with looking at my wedding pictures a year ago and not liking any of them because of the fat, (and the "dress" I wore to make myself look good). I seriously did not want to share the pictures with anyone and never took them to work. I was tired of being tired and feeling yucky all the time too.The final straw was hearing a statistic that said overweight people automatically take 7-10 years off their life because of their weight. There I was with a new husband that I adored, and 5 children aged 26-13. I wanted those years so I could enjoy my family and grandkids some day. I know our time on this earth is not guaranteed, but I wanted to increase my odds! My band is the best thing I've ever done for myself!

My surgeon uses a bit of lidocaine to numb the area before he does the fill. I've read a lot on here about fills and I think he may do it a little different than a lot of surgeons because he doesn't use a bent port needle, he uses a straight needle, but he tells me to push my belly out, finds the port and then when he hits the site, I can relax. It's a pinch and then pressure, but definitely manageable.

Hopefully I can ease your mind by saying that my surgery was moved up due to a scheduling issue, and I only had 10 days of my pre-op diet. My surgeon wasn't at all concerned about only 10 days. He said that sometimes he goes in to do the surgery and can see strings of meat in the intestines of his patient. Apparently, some patients think that because the surgery isn't on the intestines, he can't tell. The main purpose of the pre-op diet is to shrink the liver enough to be able to do the procedure laproscopically. Of course, all surgeons are different, but I hope it will be ok for you. It sounds like you didn't do too bad. :Yawn:

Count me in! I would like to lose 15 pounds by Valentine's Day.

I started getting more hungry about 3 1/2 to 4 weeks post-op and I was told it's because the post-op swelling was finally gone. If you have followed your physician's orders, chances are good that you'll start to feel restriction again after you begin to get your fills and get to that sweet spot that we all strive for. Good luck and pretend that you have restriction for the time being it will get better!

I was banded on 11/7/08 and had my first fill 12/5/08. The Dr. withdrew about 2 cc from my band that was used to check the band before it was put into me, then pulled back into the tubing just kind of sitting there. He added 3 new cc and pushed it all on for a total of about 5cc in the band/tubing. I felt the band tighten around my stomach when he inserted the saline, but still do not feel restriction. I have my second fill 12/18/08 and I can't wait. I did catch a stomach virus earlier this week and truly believe my stomach was swollen because I absolutely felt restriction until I got better. That was wierd, but it did show me what restriction felt like. I couldn't eat any bread because it felt like it was getting stuck. I didn't PB or anything, but it hurt until I got it moved through. I'll definitely be careful after my next feel!