CordovaChick

I believe something is going on with my port. I have had the dull aching pain on the lower left side too.....under the rib cage. I have had such difficulty w/constipation that I went to my gastro dr. & he thought it might be diverticulosis, however, the CT scan was normal. Now I am headed to the bariatric surgeon & will likely have the endoscope or fluoroscope. It isn't a sharp pain, but gnawing pain & hurts especially when I move or take a deep breath. I still have some restriction though. My surgery will be one year next week and I still need to lose 30-35 pounds. We'll see. Thanks to all who posted here. It did help me to realize that my band is most likely the culprit.

Thanks Laurel for responding.....you were the only ONE! My band hasn't slipped & I am thankful. It was quite sore and I went to my doc. All is well now; didn't have to have an unfill. It was a scare tho. I won't be writing here anymore. Seems some people on this board are just concerned with themselves and their travels, not how people are doing on the lap band. Thanks again!! Cordova Chick

Hello everyone - help, I need some advice. Last wknd I moved and although I had movers for the furniture & appliances I have lifted some boxes. Nothing very heavy though or my back couldn't stand it. I was careful not to p/u anything really heavy. Yesterday and today I have soreness in the port area. I have heard of a slipped band but I still have my restriction and do not have any other eating problems like people mention. I plan on calling the doc office on Monday, but meanwhile has anyone experienced this? Not pain, just soreness. I am wondering too if the port is lower than it was. I never felt the port until I had substantial weight loss; when I finally did feel it, it seemed to be about 2 inches below my bra line. Now it is lower than that...maybe 3-4 inches. I'm afraid it is in my stomach! But is that possible since I still feel restriction? Any thoughts/ideas? Thanks.....I hope you all are doing good. I've not lost any more weight.

Lisa, I'm like you. I haven't even tried steak because I have had difficulties with even chicken & fish. Chicken has to be very tender or I get stuck. Very little ground beef either; just in soups. I am at a plateau right now; not going either direction, but staying the same is better than gaining any day. Not having my old standard Dr. Pepper has not bothered me at all; no bread is not a problem; but sweets.....wow, do I crave sweets. Nights especially. Haven't been doing so great w/the exercise so I have got to get with the program again. Slacked off during the summer. But hey I did lose a pound the week of vacation from walking on the beach! Hope everyone's okay. Posts are few & far between here.

MRose, I'm sorry to hear the news about your mother. I can't imagine what you must be going through with the situation. It sounds like you do have a good support system which is so important. Remember to take care of yourself although it will be more difficult than ever. The caregivers get run down so easily. Your pix is great! It looks to me like you don't need to lose any more. I still have a good amount around my middle (stomach) to lose. Have skinny legs & no butt. It's all in the middle....and on my neck :sneaky: Take care.

Hi everyone. Summer has been fun, but I'm still at a plateau. Went to the beach at the end of July then camping another week in mid August. Have a good tan, but no more weight loss. None gained either. I did have some GREAT news recently. When I had surgery they did the liver biopsy & I was told I had fatty liver/enlarged liver/some damage throughout the liver. Was sent to a specialist last Feb. He said with losing weight it might reverse itself. He scheduled me to come back in 6 months (last week). The results were that my liver enzymes were all normal!!! They had been elevated for probably 5-6 years. The last test just before the lap band surgery they were almost twice what the normal range is. I was told to keep on doing what I am doing & come back in six months. Had they been elevated dr. would have put me on metformin, a diabetes drug that has proven to help w/fatty liver. I am so ecstatic over these results. I am definitely healthier even though I feel I have slowed down considerably. Will keep on with my eating habits and surely will lose a pound or two soon. Hope everyone is doing well

Hi everyone. Stopping in to say hello. I am doing okay, but still need more exercise. Work has been so busy that it is hard to get anything extra in. Went to the beach on vacation and had lots of seafood. I let myself indulge 2 nites with my favorite keylime pie. It was wonderful. Yesterday I had a working lunch, ate salad.The dessert was raspberry brownies or chess squares. Oh, how I wanted one. But I didn't eat any. I can't tell you how many times in the afternoon I was thinking about them. Sweets are a downfall for me. Still, I am losing but slow. Down to 186 and keep telling myself if I could just exercise more it would go faster. I was buying size 14 and just before vacation bought a pair of capris in a size 12. My stomach area is still my biggest problem; not much of a rear end & legs are skinny....but my stomach was so stretched I do have a good amount of sagging. Hope everyone is well & have a good week-end. The journey doesn't seem as long as it has been....last Sept. I started WW & lost 22 pounds. It will be a year on Sept. 22 that I began. I am much happier about myself & that I am off of bp meds & everything else (blood work) is normal. Just have to keep working at it every day & some days I just don't want to :thumbup: Take care!

Looks like no one has posted in awhile. I too have sweet cravings & usually it is late at night.....in fact last night. I usually keep chocolate fudgecicles that are 0 fat/80 calories & eat that, but still wanting more. Good news is even though I get stalled for a week or 2, I am still losing. Had several pants altered & got some capris for summer in size 14. Been a long, long time since I have seen a 14. Best news of all is that I am now off blood pressure meds, dr decreased my thyroid pill to half dosage, do not have to take Prilosec & all blood work in normal ranges. Lots more energy....I used to think I had fibromyagia or something because I had body aches all the time. Now it looks like that being obese. Oh, and this week I felt my port for the first time. It was sorta scary when I touched my stomach & felt it. Now I have to quit putting my hand there. Maybe it is because my stomach has gone down now & easier to feel. Hope everyone is doing well.

Checking in to say hi and things are going okay for me. Exercising some (Wii Fit and treadmill), but should be doing more than I am. Try to do at least 3 days but it is difficult to find the time to squeeze it in with LIFE. I'm still sitting at same weight, but happy w/that right now. I hit spots for a couple of weeks and don't lose anything. This week I felt my port for the first time. I can press my finger there & feel it. Anyone else experience that? My stomach has gone down considerably & hopefully that is it. But it is strange to me to be able to feel it. Now I have to stop myself from putting my hand there. Left 3 pairs of pants w/seamstress last wknd to alter & picking them up today. One pair had been altered twice before & she said "no more". Just hate to part with a couple of really nice pair, but looks like I'll be shopping soon. Hope everyone has a good wknd.

The nutritionist is a great idea. My doc actually requires everyone he does surgery to sign up for the support groups that they have every month. You have to pay $500 fee up front and can go as long as you need to. The nutritionist is there one month & the next month is the psychologist. There is also a meeting that is every couple of months and a lady goes over grocery shopping & meal planning. It is at Noon and not close enough for me to go during my lunch time. It's good to be with others that have had surgery & discuss lots of issues. Some there have had the lap band, gastric bypass & the RNY procedure so it's pretty interesting. Try it at least once & see what you think. It's a day at a time & no hidden secrets. For me what works best is to have yogurt at snack (10:00 am) and then a fruit at 3:00. Some people say not to snack in between meals, but for me it has worked. I'm not starving at meal time. Take care,

I thought I would check in & see how everyone is doing. I too have difficulty w/exercising. For about 6 weeks I was going strong on the treadmill & bicycle. Then got busy with work & getting home later made it more difficult. Talked to myself today that I would get started tomorrow!! Always tomorrow, I know, but I am going to do it. My weight has come down but it has been slow. I had hoped to hit my goal by September when I have a high school reunion, but now I can see that isn't going to happen. If I lose 20 lbs between now & then I'll be ecstatic. Stay strong everyone.

Sounds like several of you are doing great - close to hitting the mark! My loss is very slow now, but have managed to get into a size 14 (was a 22) and that made me feel good. Have still been eating small portions & sticking with fish/chicken, veggies, fruit, etc. but I know I need to ramp up the exercise. Have good restriction after 5th fill. Pre Surgery Weight: 263 Date of Surgery: 12/17/08 with weight of 241 Current: 196 Goal: 150

Way to go Mudbug!! I too was size 20/22 prior to surgery and am wearing size 16 now. Size 10 is WHERE I want to BE!! Next dr. appt is May 21; not certain about fill yet. Still having some problems w/food getting stuck & PBing. Not daily but maybe once a week or so. I think it is because I have gotten hungry & when I do eat I am eating too fast/not chewing good enough. We'll see what happens between now & May 21. Again.....size 10 is awesome!