shanricci

Thanks everyone for your responses! I just called to make an appt and I have to go through the HMO hoops for a referral :-( Oh well it is definitely worth it! Thanks Again!!

HI! Congrats on your new lapband! I am 2 years post op and still love it! First of all, don't ya worry a bit...having a fill does not hurt. First the doctor will feel around for the port - this was a bit uncomfortable but not painful at all. Then he puts the needle in- which is weird because I didn't feel it but I heard it pop into the port. Last he fills it with the saline. He had me take a sip of water- I felt it bubble up in my throat so the dr told me he overfilled the band, so I laid back down and he removed some of the saline. Took another sip of water and it went down just fine. My Dr. never used x-rays during the fill. As far as how long you go in between fills I'm not sure. I had one fill a couple weeks post op....then a second fill a couple months later, then that's it. Hope that helps and let us know how your first fill was!

Hi everyone! I was banded Nov 2008, after my 2nd fill a couple months post op I found the "sweet spot" everyone talks about....lost 70 lbs...everything is great...until now. Recently I have noticed that I am not chewing my food up as much as I used to- if I feel something stick it passes very quickly. Is it possible that after this much time since a fill the band has become more open? Is that even possible? Or is it possible that I have stretched out my band? I know you can stretch out your pouch but the band?

Hi everyone! I was banded Nov 2008, after my 2nd fill a couple months later I found the "sweet spot" everyone talks about....lost 70 lbs...everything is great...until now. Recently I have noticed that I am not chewing my food up as much as I used to- if I feel something stick it passes very quickly. Is it possible that after this much time since a fill the band has become more open? Is that even possible?

my eval consisted of me one on one with a psychiatrist- we just talked about my weight struggles- it was totally easygoing. However, my friend who went to a different doctor had to fill out a questionaire- I was with her as her support person and some of the questions had us giggling. Such as "Do you or have you ever wanted to hurt an animal" We still laugh about that question today :-)

I'm excited to hear there is an alternative to nori- That is usually what gives me trouble...that along with too much rice. Thanks!

rice is the one food that I cannot eat. I can tolerate anything if chewed up well...but not rice. I agree with the previous poster- it expands when in your stomach. A small price to pay for losing weight :biggrin:

congratulations! one-der land is a beautiful place to be!! :biggrin:

Surgery date- November 10 2008 Highest Weight- 240 Preop diet starting weight- 240 Surgery weight (Your weight the day of surgery)-230 Current weight- 164.5 Goal weight- 150

I also stayed overnight- I was told it was because of my sleep apnea (not officially diagnosed) . They kept me in ICU. I am glad I did-- not that anything went wrong but it was just nice to have someone take care of me without the distractions which are at my house

GOOD for you!!! You are an inspiration! Congrats on your hard work! :thumbup:

Before by BF had her gastric bypass and I had my Lap Band we were in Sears with our children (6 total) The youngest two (about 18 monts old) started running away from us. My friend tried to run after them and slipped and fell, she wet herself because as many of us know big girls can't hold our urine well....When I saw that she was fine we started laughing uncontrollably so much that I then wet myself. So here are two really big girls laughing hysterically with wet pants in the middle of Sears. We stategically left the store by hiding around displays so nobody could see our "oops" which was very visible from behind. We still laugh about this day but in the back of our minds realize why it happened and it makes me a bit sad. HOWEVER That is in the PAST!!!!

to be honest....NO. I have a pretty low tolerance for pain and it was OK! I was SO totally scared to have it done and was SO anxious- after it was over I felt silly for having been so scared. One thing that did surprise me- the needle going in didn't really hurt, don't get me wrong you can FEEL it but it wasn't painful. What was wierd was the "pop" sound it made when it went into the port. THAT was wierd. Good luck- you will do GREAT!

Thanks for posting this! I am having my first fill the day before Thanksgiving. My family too does not know I have had this procedure. However since I have 4 young kids they will never know that I didn't touch my plate!