Melissannde

Centrum makes an adult chewable. Then there's Celebrate, Fusion, Bariatric Advantage & Building Blocks which are all focused on the WLS community.

What were you doing/eating when it happened again today? Can you pin it to any certain food or activity? Yes, do discuss it with your doc.

Nope, wasn't told that at all. And I know it's not true for everyone. I've ALWAYS been able to eat breakfast and have lost weight very well. I didn't start doing the coffee first (to loosen the band a bit) until almost a year out. The coffee is a precaution to get my vitamins/supplements down. Some of them are on the large side and I can't find a chewable version of glucosamine (for my joints). Back to my breakfast oatmeal.

Some people think that an enzyme in pineapple juice helps digest foods. The problem with the juice is that it's full of sugar. You might ask if you can try papaya enzyme if the juice stalls your weight loss. The papaya comes in chewable tablets and does the same job as the pineapple. I've usually heard the pineapple or papaya recommended as a help for stuck issues instead of a preventative. I suspect it was the unfill also that made the difference. Glad you're feeling better.

Food addiction will probably also require some talking therapy. I'm slowly convincing myself of that fact as I still can't quite conquer the evening eating even with a really good fill level. As to the band itself, my only regret is that I didn't get this obesity taken care of before it caused cancer. I had a chance and blew it. I'm fine now, caught the cancer very early and have a 97% chance of having a complete cure from surgery alone.. but there are repercussions from the surgery that I have to deal with every day.. not huge ones, compared to other cancer survivors.. but still I could've avoided them completely if I had gotten the weight off sooner. Just something to think about.

For toning, I do body pump. But that's a gym class. It is lots of fun though.. it's weight lifting (small weight for toning, not large ones for body building) to popular music. I enjoy it so much I could do it daily if they didn't require you to take a day off between lifting.

I'm not good at working out at home.. I need the motivation and encouragement of others at the gym. BUT everyone is different!! I've heard that the Leslie Sansone "Walk away the Pounds" DVD's are good. I have two friends who do them and enjoy them. One has even gotten her husband to join her. Do you have an Xbox or a Wii? They both have Zumba available for them. I hear that while not really an exercise program, that Dance Dance Revolution is fun and will make you sweat. When I first started exercising I had a great companion in walking my dog. If you don't have a dog, could you borrow a neighbor's to take for a walk? That could even work into a part-time job if things worked out. What do you dislike (I try really hard to avoid the word "hate", it's so strong and powerful) about the gym.. is it that particular gym or any gym? Could you try another one? Do you dislike working out alone there? Could you hire a personal trainer (they aren't cheap, but some places they are cheaper than others.. )? Just some ideas to explore. Good luck! P.S. One of my sisters (non banded) took Ball Room Dancing classes for exercise. She didn't lose lbs, but reshaped. I bet if she had been careful with her food intake, she would've lost lbs too. There's also bike riding or swimming (indoor pool this time of year for the Northern Hemisphere..LOL)

No, it's not normal at all. Throwing up, while it sometimes happens for various reasons, should be avoided as much as possible. Please call your doctor and get back in as soon as possible. If they won't give you an appointment in the next few days, make sure they understand that you are unable to keep food down. Push comes to shove, go and sit in the office until they can work you in. Daily vomiting is really risking slipping the band or other dire consequences. Best of luck to you.

It is an adjustment to learn to drink so much. Kudo's to you for making it a habit pre-op!! One thing my doctor says in his post-op instructions is to WORK UP TO drinking 64oz of Water or very low calorie (5 to 10 calories per 16 oz) fluids a day. That it may take a week or two to be able to drink that much post-operatively. The other posters are correct, Jello and popsicles also count as fluids. I keep a bottle of water or something to drink beside me all of the time. You'll get there.

Congrats on losing 38lbs.. that's fantastic!! The above suggestions are good 1) try chewing gum. I do this a LOT when I want to eat, but not hungry and it's not "feeding time". 2) looking for a non-food related job. Another thing you might try is behavior modification. This helps to change your attitude and behaviors concerning a certain subject.. in this case, food. A good book on this is "The Beck Diet Solution" by Judith Beck. It also has a workbook. If you read the book and do the exercises, it will help. I'll admit I have the book, have read it, but haven't done the exercises ..yet. But even just reading the book helps a little. The name of the book is misleading.. it's not a diet, it's not even a book about dieting. It's about how to change your thinking and behavior. Good luck!!

spanx(catherines), flexees (bealls, kohls), sweet nothings (walmart). www.aswechange.com

He needs to have his band checked. Either make that 4 hour trip or find a new bariatric doc where you live now. In the meantime, putting a pillow under the mattress isn't enough. You'll need to put bricks under the bed supports at the head of the bed. if this night coughing IS due to reflux (and I'd bet it is) if not tended to could eventually lead to aspiration pneumonia. don't want to go there if you can avoid it. Get in to see a bariatric surgeon asap.

This makes me wonder if you are eating too late at night and therefore aren't hungry in the am. You don't have to eat breakfast food at breakfast time.. anything that appeals to you (well almost anything.. LOL) should be fine. I'm like Honk, I don't do mornings very well, so I get up and have coffee and take my Vitamins and become alive again. I fix my oatmeal the night before in my crockpot so it's ready for me and I don't have to think about it. Good luck on finding something you like.

Texas two-step chicken 1 1/2 cup picante sauce 3 tablespoons packed light brown sugar ( I use splenda or the brown-sugar splenda blend) 1 tablespoon Dijon-style mustard 4 skinless, boneless chicken breast halves Mix picante sauce, sugar and mustard. Place chicken breasts in a 2-quart shallow baking dish. Pour mixture over chicken. Bake at 400 degrees F for 20 minutes or until chicken is done. Tangy-Ranch Chicken 2/3 cup Ranch dressing ( I used Ranch dressing mix, dry) 1/3 cup FRENCH'S® Classic Yellow® Mustard 3 tbsp. brown sugar (splenda or brownsugar/ splenda blend) 4 to 6 (5 oz.) boneless skinless chicken breasts Directions: MIX salad dressing, mustard and sugar. Pour 1/2 cup sauce into serving bowl. COAT chicken with remaining sauce in 3-qt. greased baking dish. BAKE chicken at 350°F for 25 min. until cooked. Serve with reserved sauce. I thought this was too sweet when I made it the first time, next time I will cut back on the splenda. With both of these, try baking with tin foil covering the pans .. this will help make the chicken more moist & tender.

My nutritionist and doctor said that they would never tell anyone not to have their coffee. They do recommend being very careful about the creamer and type of sugar (prefer that we use none or artificial). Those that have nutritionists who think coffee is dehydrating, I'm sorry. Perhaps show them this from Mayo Clinic: http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/caffeinated-drinks/AN01661 I don't remember how long I went before I started drinking coffee again, but I know I didn't have it for at least the first few days. I used to not be a big coffee fan, but I LOVE it now. I have a few cups every morning with fat free half & half (1 tbspn per cup) and s/f torani chocolate syrup with a dash of peppermint powder. oh.. it tastes like drinking a york peppermint pattie. There's tons of s/f syrups out there.. good in tea too (and if you can't convince your nutritionist to relent on the coffee tabu, tea has much less caffeine than coffee..).

And I do low fat because of gall bladder issues (and I do NOT want another surgery): Most days brkfst is Steelcut Oatmeal with chopped apples and 1 turkey sausage link about 10 or 11 am I have a Protein drink or skim milk after working out 1 to 2pm lunch is 3oz protein & 1/2 cup veggies. Yesterday was smoked salmon (chicken of the sea), 1oz of weight watcher's cream cheese, 3 crisp & light wasa crackers and 10 baby carrots. If I need something to tide me over, I'll have a snack around 3 or 4.. generally high protein, low cal. cheese stick & apple, low carb yogurt, 90 cal cottage cheese, etc. 6 to 7pm: supper, again 3oz protein 1/2 cup veggies. Last night was baked chicken and whole okra. I try not to eat after supper, usually fail. If I do eat, I keep it low cal & light. 100 cal popcorn, a container of cottage cheese, 100 cal. almonds, etc.

Actually, some people can have surgery and not have pain. There's a syndrome called "Congenital Insensitivity to Pain". I had a patient with that problem once. It is a problem.. she burned her fingers many times as a child and didn't realize. And some patients get given reasonable post-op pain meds (liquid hydrocodone) and some get really poor post-op pain meds ( I got given Darvocet.. which didn't do a damn thing for me). Yes, cutting into the abdomen is going to result in pain for most. Different people perceive pain differently. The treatment of such pain makes a difference too. Scolding folks doesn't help.

Seems like this would be a good thread to add a link to the article "It's Not about Restriction" http://drsimpson.net/newsletter/March-2010-Lap-band-surgery-newsletter/March-2010-Lap-band-surgery-newsletter.html

Some surgeon's believe that NSAIDs (Non Steroidal Anti-Inflamatory Drugs, which includes aspirin, ibuprofen and naproxyn and others) can cause problems with the band like erosions and such. Some don't think that there's a cause & effect at all. My surgeon will allow very small amounts of an NSAID for a short period of time for specific reasons, but must also take a PPI drug (Proton Pump Inhibitor ..ex: Prevacid or Prilosec) while taking the NSAID. I'm just finishing a week of Ibuprofen to treat some elbow inflamation that's been going on since September. I got permission to try this as recovery was just so very slow without an anti-inflammatory. I haven't been on Ibuprofen since September!! LOL I get 200mg of Ibuprofen AM, another 200mg PM and a Prevacid at bedtime. I'm really allowed 2 weeks of such treatment, but I'm going to do one week on the Ibuprofen and 1 week off, then repeat the week on IF my elbow starts hurting again. The NP told me that they were having to remove a band because of erosion because someone was taking either Aleve or Motrin (forget which she said) for a long period of time. Maybe that patients band would've eroded anyways.. who knows. I prefer to err on the side of caution. I guess you have one of the surgeons who doesn't think NSAIDs are a risk. Sometimes I wish I had one of those too.

Acetaminophen capsules or caplets for pain control. calcium citrate I like Bariatric Advantage in the cherry flavor. But there are other companies who make them too.. namely Celebrate and Building Blocks. Look up their websites and find their emails and ask for samples. My doctor has samples out too.. I know some folks who take the Viactive soft chews for calcium. I prefer not to use those cause they've got hydrogenated vegetable oil in them, but you might have a different opinion.

No, it's not unreasonable to know the size band you have and how much Fluid. BUT, you've only seen one of the practitioners post-op. Granted, they may all think alike in keeping the patient in the dark, but you don't know that yet. Where I go, there was one nurse that she and I always "butted heads" somewhat. She would tell me things that were just so very confusing and gave me different post fill instructions than the other nurses. I liked her personally, but tried to avoid her as my fill nurse. The NP I had was some better, but also didn't educate me on several points. She's since married and moved away and the new NP is much better. The LVN that my doctor uses is the best of all, gentlest touch and listens to me. Don't let the alphabet Soup (LVN, RN, NP, MD) behind the name be the only determining factor on who you chose to deal with. I would give the RN a try and the doctor. If all 3 are resistant to letting you have full partnership in this journey, THEN I would move on. The other thing to consider is that it may take time and some effort depending on where you live to find another doctor to accept you. If you will give the other caregivers at your current doctors office a chance, that will give you time to start lining a replacement doctor up. Hope you feel better about the whole situation soon.

I would advise staying as far away from the diet coke as you can manage. It's really not got anything in it that you NEED and consumption really can lead to a dilated pouch and other troubles. I do understand the desire for it, the scratchy, bubbly feel at the back of the throat. I'm not perfect, I've had a few swallows of DC about a year since banding, but never a full glass or can. I've poured a few ounces into a coffee cup, took a swallow or two and poured out the rest. That was enough to curb my desire for it for months and months. Be as strong as you can. Unless you have others living with you who drink it, don't keep it in the house. Everyday that you can go without drinking one, put a dollar in a special piggybank, after a while you'll have a nice little bonus to spend on yourself!! Go buy some new skinny jeans!!

Blondie, the one time I had to have an unfill (because I was too tight, haven't been too thin) the charge was the same as a fill. They can certainly take just a little out, enough to let you eat a little more, but not enough to let you eat too much. If you find that you gain more than you want.. go back and have fill added again. That's the beauty of the band being adjustable. Regarding the financial aspect, call the doctor's office and ask to speak to whoever does the billing/financial arrangements and see what ya'll can work out. Best of luck to you.

try putting ONLY the amount you are supposed to eat on your plate. I weigh my food, others measure, others use comparisons to palm of hand or deck of cards.. whichever method you use, put only that amount on your plate. Leave the rest on the stove or in the fridge..whereever. Don't put serving bowls on the table. Get a minute timer, one of those little tiny hourglass ones would work great. Put a small bite in your mouth, chew very well, swallow and turn the timer. Don't put another bite in your mouth till the sand is gone. Repeat. Watch for soft stop signs.. they can be anything from a runny nose, to a sigh, to a hiccup. Mine is I start burping. When you get your soft stop, STOP EATING. yes, I know it's hard and I don't always succeed at stopping then. If you're still hungry after 20 minutes you can finish your meal, carefully. Maybe someone else will have some other ideas on how to avoid overeating. Other than just sheer willpower.. LOL

Join the smartbandsters group at yahoo groups and talk to Jessie Ahroni there. She's been banded 12 years and works in bariatrics and has written a book about Adjustable Gastric banding. http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/SmartBandsters