spudgirl

I haven't had any soda since I was banded over a year ago. I am too afraid of my band slipping. Someone once told me that the carbonation could make the band slip. I usually don't grave soda, but every once in a while it just sounds so good.

Seriously?! You think I'm making excuses because I do not have enough money to afford a fill? How can you say I'm making excuses when you have no idea what kind of a situation I am in right now? It's not as easy as you think. I live in Hawaii. I live on the island of Maui and my Dr is on the island of Oahu. Not only do I have to pay for the fill, I have to pay for the plane ride there and back, and for the rental car for the day. Please, do not tell me to stop making excuses when you do not have any idea what type of a situation I am in. How do you know that I am working, that my husband is working, that we're not about to lose our home? You do not. So, please don't judge me. I stated in my post that I know I need to work harder on myself and not rely so much on the band because of my money situation. I know what needs to be done. Thanks so much for your not-so-wonderful advice. :redface:

I also feel exactly the same way that the person the posted the original message feels. I'm finding ways to eat more than I should. I also eat until it gets stuck and then once that feeling passes, I eat again. I know that I'm sabotaging myself, yet I don't know why I do. That is where my problem lies. I was seeing a counselor because I am addicted to food. Plus, I am an emotional eater. After a few months of seeing my counselor she told me that she thought I was strong enough to do it on my own. I don't think I am. I will probably call her to go and see her again. I appreciate all of the posts that everyone added. It has made me realize that me and only me can change my weight, and the lap-band alone isn't going to do it. I know deep down that I've always known that. I just don't understand why I choose to ignore it. You all have opened up my eyes to what I need to do. I've been sitting here reading all of the post and crying because everything you have said is 100% true. I guess I'm just really sad at myself because I've done this to myself. No one else is to blame for my weight gain and lack of weight loss. Just me! That's why I'm sad. Another reason I'm having a hard time with my band is because I have to pay for all of my fills out of pocket, and I just can't afford to do that right now. I've only had one fill since my surgery (oct. 30, 2008). My husband and I are struggling with money and so it's very difficult to get filled. I know that I need to do more on my own to help lose the weight, but having a fill would definitely help. Thanks again for all of the wonderful posts and I'm glad that I read all of them. It was like you all were talking to me, not just to the other person. Thanks again. I hope I can do better from here on out. Wish me luck! :redface:

I'm not sure if I can help you, but I do have a similar story. I also started losing a lot of hair about 3 months after my surgery. I was eating all kinds of protein and my doctor was even having me take protein shots twice a day, and that still didn't seem to help. I'm still losing the hair, but I don't feel like my hair has gotten any thinner, if that makes sense. I also feel like my hair has stopped growing. Even my husband has said that it doesn't look like it's getting any longer. So, I'm scared, too. If you happen to find out anything about what we might be able to do, please let me know.

I do the 10 days of liquid after my first fill. Not by choice! My doctor tells me to do 10 days of liquid after a fill and then mushies until I feel comfortable getting solids down again. I think I made it 6 or 7 days of liquid after my first fill. I have to have a second fill now and I am definitely not looking forward to another 10 days of liquids. But, I am excited at the same time cause that's when I start losing weight.

I've been lucky enough that I haven't had to have my second fill for quite a while. At least I think it's been quite a while since my first fill. I'm not sure when most people get their second fills. I had my first fill on Feb 4th and now, tomorrow I need to go call my doctor for a second fill.

So, I noticed that when I first had my surgery and my first fill I was extremely tight. However, as time went on I began to be able to eat more and more. I had my first fill on Feb. 4th and I could hardly keep liquid down, let alone food. Now I can eat a lot more again. I can almost eat as much as I want. So, I am going to go have another fill. My question is what happens when you can't get anymore fills and you can eat as much as you want? And another question is why as time goes by am I able to get more and more food down? I know that I need to learn how to eat less on my own, but now I'm worried that if I can't figure out how to eat less by the time my band gets filled all the way, I'll never be able to lose weight.

I was banded on Oct. 30th, 2008 and I've only lost 41lbs since then. (sadly, I still have 100lbs to go) I know that it's still really early to be wanting a baby so close to my surgery, but I'm just wondering how long everyone waited and how much weight most of you lost before you decided to try and start having babies. My doc told me that he wants me to wait at least a year to a year and a half before I start trying for a baby again. (I have a 2yr old son now.) But, I really miss being pregnant and I really want another baby incredibly bad! I'm hoping that by the 1st of next year I will be close enough to my goal weight that I'll be able to start trying again. I also miss having a little one around so any chance that I can even discuss pregnancy I get all excited.:smile2:

I'd have to agree with lapbandtalker. It sounds like you definitely need a fill. I also do what you are doing sometimes. When I feel full I don't stop eating. I continue to eat. I'm slowly learning that I actually need to start getting away from the food after I feel full. Whether it's getting up from the table or giving my plate to my husband and telling him not to let me have anymore. I had my first fill almost 2 months ago now and it's helped a lot. I do still find myself eating even though I'm full though. I hope that you're able to get the help that you need and eventually you will just make up your mind that you are not going to keep sabotaging yourself.

I am in the same boat as you, Camikat. I feel good about the weight that I've lost, but I can't get my mind off of my even saggier stomach and flabbier arms. My skin just isn't bouncing back like I wanted it to. I've been having difficulties feeling good about myself, too. I have a horrible self-image. I'm hoping someday that I'll be able to fix it, but I'm not quite sure how. For now, I just try to focus on all the weight that I've lost and how much more I'm going to lose and that makes me feel better. Someday I might be able to have plastic surgery and get rid of all the extra skin, but for now I've just gotta learn to deal with it. I ended up buying a body suit a couple of days ago from Spanx to help hold in all the flabbiness of my stomach. It seems to help a little. Maybe that's something that you could look into.

So, I get my bariatric vitamins online and I was on a site today called bariatric choice. They also sell food specially designed for bariatric patients. Has anyone tried this food? If so, does it work and how does it taste? I'm thinking about trying some. It's fairly inexpensive and it's loaded with protein. So, if anyone has any advice about this I would appreciate it. Thanks for all of the advice in advance and I hope everyone is having a good day. :thumbup:

I used to eat scrambled eggs with turkey sausage and cheese all mixed together. It was really good and very filling. But ever since my 1st fill (Feb 4) I can't usually eat breakfast now because I'm so tight. The last couple of days though I've been having yogurt for breakfast. I could really use some new ideas for breakfast, too. Especially now that I'm tight. I hope this helped you out a little bit. Good luck!

Good luck everyone!

I had my first fill last Wednesday and it went great. My dr gives me an numbing agent first which felt like a little stick just like when you get blood drawn. Then he had me push my stomach out tight so that he could feel around and find the port. After he found the port he had me push my stomach out tight again and inserted the needle. After that he has me sit up and then has me drink a big gulp of water while he fills my band. He has me tell him when the water won't go down anymore and then when that happens he unfills me until the water goes down. We did this a couple of different times until we felt like we got it just right and then he lays me back down, takes out the needle, puts a band-aid on and it's all over with. It was not a big deal at all. I thought it was gonna be worse but it wasn't. So you should really be ok. It's a lot easier than you would think. Good luck with you fill and try not to worry.

Holy Cow! 4cc's for your 1st fill?! That seems like a lot. I thought I had a lot put in mine for my 1st fill but it's nothing compared to yours. I had 2.5cc's put in on Wednesday last week and I'm extremely tight. Especially in the mornings. Sometimes if I take to big of a drink of Water it won't go down all the way. It just slowly goes down. Good luck with your fill and I hope it works out for you. :thumbup: