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Hi everyone! I had a great week - lost 6 lbs! I haven't done that since the beginning! I'd say this fill is working! I thought I'd post some pictures since I'm starting to see it now: Before: July 12, 2006 (254 lbs) So Far: October 6, 2006 (211 lbs, -43 lbs) Desiree

Hello! I thought I'd post some pictures for the first time. I'm starting to see a difference! Before: July 12, 2006 (254 lbs) So Far: October 6, 2006 (211 lbs; -43 lbs) Desiree

Hello everyone! Well, I wasn't thinking that I wanted a 2nd fill any time soon, but after not really losing in 2 weeks, I thought I'd ask my doctor about it. He went ahead and filled me another .6cc (1.6cc total now). I prayed for this fill to go a lot smoother and it DID! He hit it on the first try! YAY! He had me on liquids for the rest of the day and then back to normal the next day. I did okay the next day, but yesterday I had my first problem!!! I don't know if I ate too quickly, didn't chew enough or ??? I went out to lunch and my food got "stuck" so I quit eating. I finally felt it move down and thought I was okay, but now I'm wondering if it wasn't still stuck when I ate dinner. I felt okay for the first few bites, and then it got stuck again. Usually, it takes a while, but it will go down. This time it didn't and for the first time, came back up. Then, about 45 minutes later I think lunch came back also. I can't believe it finally happened to me. Now, I am scared to ever eat again! I'm kind of hoping that I'm still a little swollen from the fill and it will be better soon. This experience was so NOT fun, I definitely don't want to repeat it! Keep up the great work everyone! It's a busy weekend for me, so I'll check in again later on. Have a great weekend! Desiree

Hello everyone! Leona - you are looking awesome! Great job! I pray everything is okay with the GYN. Glad to hear our "sickos" are doing better! I went to my first support group meeting tonight with my surgeon's group of patients. I meant to go last month, and I totally forgot about it until 9:00 pm, so I was very excited to make it tonight. Throughout most of the meeting, I was completely not relating because most of the people are by-pass patients. They all talked about feeling so full and not wanting to eat and then my surgeon said (and then confirmed with everyone else) that most don't even have an appetite for 6 - 9 months. I began to think something surely must be wrong with me because I have never lost my appetite and I have yet to feel "full". There were 3 other lap banders there so I talked to them afterwards and they were all thinking the same thing as me, so it was really good to talk with them. Both have had a 2nd fill and are finally feeling more "fullness" and less appetite, and my doctor walked by as we were talking "the same language" and really affirmed us at how well we are doing. I told him that I'm scheduled to see him on Wednesday and am wondering if I'm needing a 2nd fill and he thought so. I asked him if he thought I would be okay because of my torn muscle (yes, it still hurts terribly, but the "support" I am wearing helps tremendously!) and how hard it was to do my last fill, and he said it would be fine. So, it looks like I'm getting my 2nd fill in 2 days! I definitely got my exercise today! I walked 2 stores for about 2 1/2 hours - right after I got cortisone shots in my heel this morning. Then, I was on my feet for several more hours after, so I am SO sore tonight! Keep up the great work everyone! Have a great night! Desiree

Hi girls & Chris! I hope everybody is doing better today! Today was my weigh in day and I didn't lose anything this week (and it's not even my TOM). I see my doctor next week, but I have a feeling he won't want to fill me again yet. Actually, I think I'd rather wait anyway since my torn abdominal muscle (we think that's what it is anyway) is still very sore and my fill was so much fun last time - Not! But, I do want to be losing weight!! I've been wearing a back/abdominal support for the last week and it has helped a ton! I'm so glad because it may actually get a chance to heal this way! I did get out and get a little exercise last night - the whole family (including the 3 dogs) went for a long walk. The dogs provide great resistance and definitely pick up the pace! After suffering through our 115 degree summers, we deserve the weather we have here today! The high is 83, light breeze, sunny & GORGEOUS (just like you beautiful ladies and gentleman!). It makes me want to get out as much as possible right now! We're planning another "family walk" after dinner tonight! Have a wonderful day everyone! Desiree

Hi guys! It's been really busy again this week, so I haven't been on much. My "sneeze injury:doh: " is still hurting just as much, so I finally went to see my doctor instead of just talking to office staff on the phone this time. He had me lie down, do a leg lift to tighten my ab muscles (OUCH!) and felt for my port. He said it felt fine and that I probably either pulled or tore a muscle. I'm supposed to go back in 2 weeks for my normal follow up and he said if it's still this bad then, we can do an xray. He said athletes are usually out for 4-6 weeks when they do something like this and I asked if there was anything that could be done for it. He said I should take my pain medicine and rest:notagree - ha! I have no time for that right now! I did go and buy an abdominal support brace that binds that area and it really seems to be helping me not keep tearing it. It would feel like it may be starting to heal, and then sure enough, I would turn wrong or something and it felt like it tore again. I've only felt it hurt once since I started wearing the brace yesterday. So there's my excitement for now! The timing is not so great (when is it?) because we have the San Genaro feast in town this weekend. It is a huge carnival, fair, and Italian feast:hungry: - all my favorites in one! So, now not only can I not "feast" on the amazing italian food, I also can't ride any rides. I know, boo-hoo for me:think . I still want to go and let my kids have a ball and have a "taste" of the good stuff! Stephanie - your second fill sounds like my first. I'm so sorry you had to go through that:phanvan . I'm even more scared for my second now - especially after this injury of mine. I just don't know what to expect. My band holds only 4 cc's and he filled me 1 cc the first time. There is no set schedule for fills for my doctor. He has us come in every 6 weeks to check on things - if I've lost 1-2 lbs a week and I'm not starving, no fill. I'm in no hurry to get another fill right now, so it will proably be at least 8 weeks more for me - I guess we'll just have to see. I hope you all have a great weekend! Desiree:)

mysherrijo - I feel your pain!! I didn't even do anything stupid - I just sneezed too hard and I really feel like something tore around my port area. It's been hurting so badly since Thursday - especially when I move while sitting. From what I hear, it should feel better in about a week and we won't know if we did anything to the port until we get filled again. Let's just say I'm in no hurry for a fill right now - the pain is horrendous. I hope you feel better soon!

Hello everyone! It seems like an eternity since I've been on here. I am not a teacher, but I feel like I live at my son's school. I am the President of our PTF (same as a PTA) this year and I just haven't stopped since school started! My husband and I cleaned, remodeled and stocked up the teacher's lounges with goodies; I designed and ordered name badges for all the staff (54) and spirit shirts for the kids; got our 1st fundraiser set up; set up 2 "family night out" dinner fundraisers; started the set up and planning for our "International Night"; held an all day & evening Open House at the High School; and this coming week I'm having another all day & evening Open House at the Elementary School, a Principle's coffee Hour meeting, and then our first PTF meeting. I'm exhausted!!! And I have totally missed being on here! It is all worth it though! We started the year with happy teachers and staff, and hopefully we'll have more parents helping throughout the year! I am definitely happy to be helping! The looks on the teacher's faces when they walked into their new lounge was the biggest reward ever! I was so happy that I got to be there to see their response! Okay, enough about all that! I have a concern that I need your advice on! The day before yesterday I had one of those sneezes that "comes out of nowhere" and it came upon me so quickly and forcefully that I didn't even get a chance to cover my nose/mouth. Gross - yes, I know. When it happened, I felt a horrible pain in my port area - like maybe something tore. It has been hurting my terribly ever since. I finally did call the doctor's office yesterday because it was still hurting badly and I was afraid maybe something bad happened and if I didn't take care of it would get worse or not be able to be fixed or something. I thought maybe the port tore off of the muscle it is sewn to or something? When I called the doctor's office, they said it is common to have pain in that area and said I'm fine. I didn't talk to the doctor, and I doubt they did either since he does surgery on Thursday & Friday. The pain hasn't changed at all. Could I have pulled the muscle or torn something? Is it possible to rip the port off the muscle? I don't want to make a big deal out of nothing, but it kind of freaked me out and it makes me nervous that it is hurting this much still. Please share any advice you have! Have a great weekend everyone! Desiree

Michelle, I too was laughing hysterically and my husband had to find out why! We both had a great laugh - thanks! We went out to eat tonight and it was so nice! We went to Applebee's and I ordered HALF of a steak cobb salad w/o the blue cheese (it's nice that they let you order a half). It's great because by the time I eat all the good stuff out of it, I am satisfied and don't feel badly about what I leave behind (mostly lettuce). It was wonderful! Ruthie - you'll do great tomorrow! Thank you all for sharing your lives! It is so great to have others in the same boat! Have a wonderful 4 day week everyone! Desiree

1. My husband does know how much I weighed before surgery and where I am at now. I would not let him know my weight for many years because when we met I was very fit and when we got married I was at my very best (even wore a bikini on our honeymoon). Life happened!! Anyway, I wouldn't let him know how much I weighed until I finally was so desperate not to be morbidly obese anymore that I knew I had to do anything and everything to end this chapter of my life, which I was hoping would be through the lapband (thankfully, it is!). I had to make myself vulnerable and accountable so there would be no turning back! I too, can't wait until I weigh less than my husband! 2. One of my worst "fat moments" was at a church picnic where I had gone to sit down at the end of a picnic table. Other people were sitting at the table already, so I guess I set it over the edge - the table actually collapsed!!! And of course it was the fat girl's fault!! It may have happened to anyone who sat there next, but it had to me - I was so embarassed.

I think you may be on to something!!! LOL! You mentioned how you were embarassed by people knowing about your surgery. I kind of felt the same way. I didn't tell anyone except my immediate family until the day before or day of surgery. I just didn't want to hear everyone's opinion and I felt like people who don't really know enough about it think of it as "the easy way out". Boy, we sure know there is no "easy" to it at all. I finally decided that I should proud of my decision and I've been amazed at some of the responses I've gotten from people. Most didn't think I was heavy enough to get the surgery (I hid it pretty well mostly because I'm tall), but they were happy to see that I was happy about it. One person that I thought would definitely think I was crazy was like, "I'm so proud of you for doing it." They see so many people who just make excuses for their weight or who keep talking about doing something about it, but they never do. It's nice for them to see us do something that is so positive for ourselves!

Michelle, I am definitely not an expert in this area, but I have gained a little understanding of a warped body image perception. When I was in high school, I honestly thought I was fat. When I looked in the mirror, I saw a fat person. My reasons may be different than your daughters (I am 5'10" tall, so my 150 lbs. and size 12/14 was HUGE in comparison to most of my 5" tall, 100 lbs friends), but ultimately it was more than that. I really did "think" I was fat. When I look at pictures of myself then, I only wish I could be that "fat" again (with the help of my lap-band, I do hope to be someday!). My pictures look different now than I remember seeing myself then. I could never understand how a person with anorexia could starve themselves so much that they would look like a skeleton with skin on and not SEE it when they looked in the mirror. I understand now that they do not see what we see, they see a warped image that, to them, really exists. I don't know if your daughter is struggling with a warped perception of what her body looks like or not, but she may be. There are, of course, many other reasons she could be saying that she is fat. Maybe her "ugly" cheerleading uniform doesn't flatter her body as well as it does the other girls. Maybe it's her TOM - hormonal teenage girls cannot think rationally and the whole world seems to fall apart and as we all know, we retain Water, become bloated, etc., etc., etc. Another thing to consider - again, from my own life - Most of my preteen and teen years, my mom was overweight, constantly dieting, and always saying she was fat. I can't say for sure, but I imagine that didn't help me either. That is one of the reasons I wanted to be banded. I have an 8 yr old son and a 4 year old daughter and I didn't want them to grow up watching me struggle with my weight and dieting. We've discussed that I had surgery to help me become more healthy, which is the bottom line. I don't want to be, and I don't want them to be, constantly obsessing about food and weight in a negative way. Now, food and my weight are a more positive, encouraging thing in my life and that's what I want them to know. I think your daughter and other "obviously skinny who complain about being fat" are different subjects. Your daughter may need to have a "heart to heart" with Mom for you to know what's really going on in her head. Maybe she's just looking for a little reassurance that she's beautiful exactly the way she is. Those "other" people most often deserve the "shut up" or other eloquence you spoke of or they're just fishing for a compliment or some type of validation. I think you will feel better after your fill! When I got mine, I felt like I was finally able to officially begin this journey. I didn't really feel any restriction before being filled, so it seemed to defeat the whole purpose in being banded. Now, I'm filled only 1cc and it helps me to eat smaller portions without feeling so hungry - again, the whole point of the band! Good luck to you! PS - tell your daughter that her ugly uniform is not a reflection of her since it will be obvious to everyone that she wasn't the one who picked it out. I don't know if it will help her, but my sister (13) had the same problem with her cheerleading uniform and for some reason, hearing that helped.

BaylorMom - I found this on one of Stephanie's previous posts: After you make your ticker, highlight and copy the address in the box above it. Then go to your signature to edit it. Click on the box that looks like it has a mountain (insert image). When you click on the icon a box will pop up in the upper left part of your screen. Paste the address you just copied from the ticker site and then hit okay. It should appear in your signature box. Then click update signature. That should work. She describes what I do and it has always worked so far. I tried the double clicking and it didn't work for me either. Hope this helps!<!-- / message --><!-- sig -->

Deckedout asked about breakfast - I've tried a couple new things in the last week. I bought a couple SlimFast High Protein bars to keep in my purse for those days that I run off forgetting to eat breakfast or when I need something healthy in a pinch. I was eating oatmeal, scrambled eggs with cheese, cottage cheese, or a protein shake. I really like cereal in the morning and my nutritionist recommended the Kashi Go Lean cereals. I tried it today and it was pretty good. Another added benefit with this cereal is that it is higher in fiber than most items I eat and I think it helped me drop another pound today if you know what I mean. Not to be gross, but has anyone else noticed a change in bowel movements? I'm trying to figure out if it's just me or not. I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome and used to have BM's (diahrea actually - ok, now I am being gross - sorry if I offend anyone) every time I ate - 5 or 6 times a day usually. Now, I don't even always have a BM every day and it's mostly normal again. Is it just me or has this changed for anyone else? I am very thankful for the change in my case!

Hi guys! I just got back from a "mini-vacation" with my husband and 2 kids (8 yr old boy & 4yr old girl). We haven't done anything all summer (mostly because of my recovery time and the money spent on my surgery) so we went away for the weekend to a small "resort" town nearby. It was nice and relaxing. We ate out for all of our meals, and it was a little different for me - that's usually the best part of vacation! Our first meal was Chinese and my food felt like it got "stuck" after just a few bites, so I didn't get to eat much and I was definitely feeling bummed. The next morning it happened again with scrambled eggs. My husband realized that both were pretty dry and maybe that was why. We got to eat dinner at a Cracker Barrell in St. George, UT, which is one of my favorite restaurants in the whole world. I was a little worried that the same thing would happen and then I was really going to be bummed. I ate a little bit of my husband's meal and a little bit of my daughter's meal and everything went down perfectly! I got to have a little chicken fried steak, mashed potatoes, macaroni & cheese, salad, and fried apples. I felt so wonderful! I ate everything that I wanted and it only took a couple bites of each to be totally satisfied - that is what this is all about! We ended up driving back there for breakfast yesterday and I had another wonderful meal - scrambled eggs with cheese (these weren't dry and went down perfectly!), bacon and grits! Today was my kids' first day back to school. I am our school's PTF (just like a PTA) President and I haven't seen many of the parents since last year. A few of them know of my surgery and couldn't believe the difference already - they were calling my "skinny" - what an amazing thought! I'm not skinny yet, but it was sure nice to hear! I also caught many of the "double takes" of others trying to figure out what was different about me. Wonderful NSV's to start the school year with! I can't wait to hear about Stephanie's first day back! Also, Arcael, how did people react to your amazing change? Keep up the great work everyone!

Baylor Mom - I had my first fill a week ago and I was very nervous about it. I thought I would probably not feel good all day and I was wrong. My fill didn't go very smoothly (I have 9 holes and a nice bruise) and I still felt just fine right afterwards. I drove myself home and really felt good. I had to finish out the rest of the day on liquids and then I was able to start eating the next day. I was a little cautious with the food at first because I have a phobia of pb'ing, but I did just fine. Most people don't have any trouble with the fills, and even though I did, I really was still doing fine afterwards. As for what to wear - I wore bottoms that were a little baggy and had elastic so it wouldn't be tight on my tummy at all in case I was sore. No worries - you'll do great!

I think I need to make an appointment for some cortisone myself - in my heels. I had pretty bad heel spurs and got the shots for the first time back in March, and then went in for a second dose a week later. The pain definitely went away. I would feel strange feelings in my heels, but no pain. I also had ordered special inserts for my shoes to help prevent them in the future. I really didn't have any problems until a few weeks after surgery - I wasn't up and about very much for that time and then it seemed when I started back at things, it was pretty full speed. That's when my left heel started hurting again. It finally dawned on me yesterday that I'm acting like it's just going to go away, but why would it? I think I'm just afraid to go back for the shots again. I need to be a "big girl" and get in there and do it, and then hopefully, as I lose more of this weight, then I won't need them anymore! I'm such a wimp sometimes! Stephanie - I bet your shots will last longer now! I hope you're feeling great soon!

Mbprn - thanks for the info! I assumed that if I ate all the protein I needed that I wouldn't notice any hair loss - I'm still hoping for that! I have only been mentally keeping track of everything, so now thanks to Stephanie, I will check out Fitday.com. That sounds like a very good tool!

Hi again everybody! It is so great to hear how everyone is doing - keep up the GREAT work! Someone (I think it was Stephanie) asked about the non scale victories. I had one yesterday - it was wonderful! My husband's grandma came through town and she had just seen me about 2 weeks ago. She couldn't believe the difference in that time! She told me that I had a waistline again - imagine that! It felt soooo good! Gotta go - Big Brother is on! Have a great night everyone!

Hello everyone! I'm not sure how I missed out on this thread, but I'm glad I found it now. I was banded July 13th, so I'm one of you! It is so great to find a group of people that are at the exact place that I am in - we can "feel" for each other! I just had my first fill yesterday - 1cc out of 4cc's. Mine didn't go as smoothly as most - for some reason my port was kink of deep and being really stubborn, but it finally did work! My surgeon didn't use XRay and seemed surprised at the difficulty mine presented, so I'm sure it was a fluke. Hopefully this fill lasts a while, because I'm not really in a hurry to do it again. Then again, maybe next time I'll get the "norm" and it won't be a biggie. I had lost 21 pounds yesterday at my visit and my surgeon was almost reluctant to do the fill, but I told him that my scale had not moved in over 2 weeks, other than that morning, when it moved UP a pound. I was also not experiencing any restriction at all. I am so looking forward to that feeling of being satisfied with small amounts of food! I was put on liquids just for the rest of the day and back on food today, so I've started off with almost 1 egg scrambled with some cheese on top and about 2 oz. of natural, unsweetened applesauce. Before yesterday, I could eat more than double that amount and still be hungry. So far, I'm feeling pretty satisfied. I'm a little nervous, so that may be part of it. I'm being very cautious - I've always had this "thing" about not "PBing" and so far haven't done it. I am scared to death for it ever to happen! Oh yeah, just for fun, I got on my scale this morning and it went DOWN 3 more pounds since yesterday. Go figure! Congratulations to all of you! Keep up the great work! I look forward to getting to know you all!

I just had my first fill yesterday. It sounds like I must also have the same size band, because I was filled 1 cc out of a total of 4 cc. My experience didn't go as smoothly as I'd hoped. It finally did work out okay, but it made me really nervous. For some reason, he had a really hard time getting into the port. He started by putting novacaine on my stomach and then giving me a couple shots to numb me. Because it took several tries, I ended up having to get the numbing shots over and over. I don't do well with shots - especially when they are in my stomach and burn. (Last night I counted 8 or 9 holes in that area from all the shots.) I began to wonder if my port had turned over or something else was wrong. When I was in the hospital the major pain I felt (besides the gas in the shoulder) had been from the port - the muscle would spasm so bad. I started wondering if it spasmed so bad that it ripped out the stitches and turned itself over. Anyway, I don't know what the problem was - my surgeon mentioned that it was really deep? I can push down and feel it myself, but I don't know where the opening is or anything. Maybe the fat above that area is just really thick on me? My BMI was only a 36 when I started, so I wasn't as heavy as most of his patients, but I know we are all made so differently! He didn't do the XRay at all - maybe that would have been better. Honestly, he seemed surprised to be having this trouble. I have a feeling he is really good at doing this and has it down to a science and I, of course, just have to be difficult. He just had me sit up and drink a glass of Water to make sure it would go down okay and then had me stay on liquids only for the rest of the day. I'm doing great today and just so looking forward to feeling that satisfied feeling with smaller amounts of food! I'm 5 weeks out today and I've lost 21 pounds so far. During that "honeymoon" phase after the mushies and before the 1st fill I was definitely able to eat more than I should have been, but I would make myself stop. I just didn't really feel any restriction, so I'm excited now to be onto the next phase of this journey and able to get down to business on losing this weight! Has anyone else had this kind of experience with their fills? I'm hoping this fill will last a long time because I'm not in any real hurry to do it again. Does anyone have an explanation for it? Maybe it won't be this way next time?

Hi everyone! I am a native Las Vegan (yes, they really do exist!) and a patient of Dr. Francis Teng. I started researching the Lapband years ago, originally with other doctors, but when I went to Dr. Teng's seminar, support group, and then a one-on-one visit, I just felt that he was the right surgeon for me. I can honestly say that I have been nothing but pleased with him, his office staff, the hospital, and the band so far. I was banded on July 13th at Mountain View Hospital (which would be a good hospital to go to in a Lapband emergency - they are VERY familiar with Lapbands and Dr. Teng is right next door). I've lost 21 pounds so far and just got my first fill today. I will be 5 weeks out tomorrow, which is a little earlier than Dr. Teng likes to do the fills, but he did do it. I have Clark County Self Funded Insurance and was actually the first patient to have been approved by them to have the Lapband. Previously, they only approved Bypass surgeries. It is so nice to have this website and it is nice to be able to talk to other locals to hear about their experiences. I don't get a chance to get on here as often anymore, but I do look forward to getting to know you all!

I was banded 2 1/2 weeks ago (July 13th). I have finally graduated to mushies!!! Right now, it's a small taste of heaven to me after a week of clear liquids, then a week of full liquids. I don't get a fill for another 2 1/2 weeks and I can definitely eat more than I should be. I have been trying to be such a "good girl" and follow my nutritionist's diet exactly, which is only 3 meals a day. He only wants me eating about 4 oz. at a time, but I can eat between 6 - 8 oz. (3 oz. chicken, 3 oz. mashed potatoes, 2 oz. peas for example) and still be hungry. I stop eating, but I am definitely still hungry. I read that this is supposed to be a time for healing and adjusting to my band rather than concentrating on "dieting", so I'm not sure the best way to handle things. Is it better to eat until I'm actually full and only have the 3 meals or is it better to eat the 4 oz. at a time and eat more often? I'm not having anything to drink for an hour or more after I eat, so it's hard enough to time that. I'm trying to do things right - what advice do you guys have?

Thank you all for your wisdom!

I was just banded in Las Vegas last Thursday, July 13th by Dr. Francis Teng. I was so excited about this and couldn't get it to happen fast enough, but now I am going crazy! I have read this site from time to time over the last few months while in the process and it has been a huge help to me, so I thought I'd turn to you guys for help now. I am SO HUNGRY and miserable right now that yesterday I was so wishing I could just undo this band I fought so hard to get. I am on clear liquids still - 3 x a day I am having 2 oz of broth & 2 oz. of sugar free jello, liquid vitamins and calcium, and sipping water, crystal lite, etc. I guess I wasn't prepared to be starving like this - I mean literally, my stomach growls so much it hurts. I also have unbelievable amounts of gas that don't seem to want to come out even with mylanta - and the bubbles seem to love to be in my shoulder and behind my port. I am so drained and just feel like a limp rag. I just didn't expect to be like this still. I thought I'd hang out with my kids (4 & 7 years old) and relax a bit, and it would be a mini-vacation for me. I am so tired of laying around and I have no energy to do anything. I also feel terrible for feeling this way after I wanted so much to have this surgery. I know it will be worth it later, but I am really struggling right now. I am usually so "tough" and able to deal with things so well, but I am a mess! What can I do to make the hunger, gas, uncomfortableness, lethargy, etc. go away or at least be more bearable? Does it get better when I switch to the thicker liquids? Is there anything else that I'm not prepared for to come? Please help this wimp out!!! Thanks!:help: