MajorSam

My mom was banded on 12/18/08, three weeks later she had her first fill. A week after that she had some removed because restriction was too tight. The beginning of Feb we flew to San Diego for a few days. After we got back she was no longer able to eat solid food, and it progressed to the point where she couldn't even swallow her own saliva. She'd gone in and had fluid removed again, went back in again and they tried to remove more and her band was dry. She though it was spasms in her esophogus and needed that dialated (she'd had it dialated twice before years prior to surgery) due to damage from a lifetime of acid reflux. They did an endoscopy to check out things. Her esophogus was fine. The opening from her pouch to her lower stomach was almost non existant. They had to dialate the opening. The docs said this can happen in patient who have had severe problems with acid reflux prior to banding. There is sometimes a bad build up of scar tissue as a result of the years of damage. She went in three weeks ago and they're proceeding with tenths of ccs of fluid rather than whole ccs with her. She'll probably always require smaller adjustments as a result and won't require as much fluid in her band to reach her goal.

When you realize it's been nearly 8 hours since you last ate and you're only just now feeling hungry. The samples at the grocery store/costco/sam's club constitute a meal. You walk into Godiva chocolate store and they hand you a small chocolate drizzled raspberry and it's enough to satisfy your sweet tooth for the next week. You're out to eat with your mom and you have a coupon and need to spend $20 on food with it, and she goes, we could splurge on desert and you look at the deserts and absolutely NOTHING appeals to you. When you're fighting with your mom over the croutons in the salad because they're about the only bread you both can eat and keep down. You and your mom order ONE shotglass desert at Chili's or Applebees and split it and it's more than enough.

I'm beginning to feel like I'm the only one who's proud to tell everyone and anyone that I've been banded. I was even showing off my surgical scars to people days after surgery. I'm not ashamed to admit I needed help to lose the weight and if anybody wants to listen I'll tell them all about it. My mom and I did this together also we were banded three days apart, we each had to drive the other home so couldn't do it the same day. I only told a couple of people at work, but I knew word would get around, it was a small office, and there were some people who's business it just wasn't, and it wasn't like I talked to them much anyways. Until I had the band, I used to think Lasik surgery was the best thing I ever did, while I think that's still cream of the crop, the lap bad has now moved up to the number one rank, I've lost more in four months with this, than I did in three months of watching what I ate and going to the gym almost every day. Sam

You know you're a bandster when: 1. You feel like a bulemic from all the purging, but haven't had the joy of binging. 2. You and your banded mother can go on vacation and the two of you together can eat for less than $40 a day. 3. You realize just how screwed up clothing makers are, why isn't a size 16 a size 16 no matter who makes the pants? 4. You feel a bump under you breasts while showering and wonder if you can feel your band. You ask the question to the doc at support group and get told no. A few showers later you feel the bump again this time on both sides and realize you're feeling your ribs for the first time in god knows how long. 5. Boxes of iced tea bags replace the diet coke 12 packs and two liters in your shopping cart. 6. You've actually grossed out an entire gate area at the airport with a PB because the nearest bathrooms were too far, and the nearest trash can was almost too far too. Four months on and I'm five lbs away from my second mini goal. It was 1997 the last time I saw 225 on my scale! Sam

Hey are we going to have one this month? We haven't done one since February. Sam

There was talk about us getting together this weekend at our last meet up at Firefly. Are we all getting together? Sam

Sam and Mom will be there with (ok probably not) bells on. :-) That's one of our favorite restaurants.

Felicia! Thanks for the welcome. Mom and I will be there with bells on. Did anyone else have their surgery at SWCC? I tried to mention this get together at the last meeting but no one seemed to have heard me. There was probably at least 30 people or more at the support group. Sam

My mom and I are recent newcomers to the world of Lap Band. She had her surgery 12/15 and I had mine 12/18. We'd love to come and meet with others who are further down the road. We both had Dr Atkinson from the SWCC do our surgeries.