Momto3redheads

I hear ya...as a mother I think our tendancy is to take care of everyone else first....which is how I got into the shape I was in the first place! But it is hard to find time to do things just for me...and I have to decide what is more important....can I bounce on the trampoline with the girls for ten minutes and create memories one evening instead of unloading the dishwasher or folding clothes? MUCH funner to play with the girls! So I just try and do as much as I can...whenever I can.

Are you asking about the It Works or the Body Magic? I did just buy a sample It Works wrap to try as I was curious based on this post...will post my results when I get a chance to use it! These grandma wings are outta control....LOL

OUCH...I have federal BCBS Basic and I paid $100 for the surgeon and $100 for the facility.......and then $100 for each fill. (pre op visits were $35) Course that was all in 2009...and prior to the sleep apnea testing, etc, that I hear they require now. I am very thankful to have my gov't insurance as I was able to get my tubes tied and a hernia repaired at the same time as my lapband and it only cost me an extra $100 for the OBGYN to be there. Woot woot! Being a federal employee has it's perks!

I found the best food for me is chili - Beans and meat and lotsa Protein seems to do the trick. I could live on chili...LOL I also like sloppy joe meat with some shredded cheese on it....YUMMO! Seems like the more protein I can pack into a meal the better I do....I rarely have any room for anything else after the protein.

Hang in there - we have ALL been there! It's no fun...but it is all part of the learning curve.

Hang in there -- make sure you are getting a lot of protein....when I wasn't getting as much my weight loss was NOT moving at all....and then once I hit restriction it has been great ever since. Just be patient and you will get there - unfortunately it doesn't happen as quickly as we would like, but 35 lbs is an awesome weight loss! Keep up the good work!

Boy you are going to make us fess up, eh? LOL I was banded in March 2009 and I have yet to formally work out....being a full time working mother to three young children I haven't found time to carve out for myself on a regular basis....BUT I am quite busy and on the go a lot, so I think that helps. (cleaning house, carrying laundry up the stairs daily, etc) I think working out would definately help with this fantabulous skin issue that some of us get....I am NOT liking my grandma wings at all!!! All said and done I really wish I did work out some/more....but my lifestyle hasn't permitted much...and my sleep is too precious to give it up. (everyone says "just get up twenty minutes earlier" - um...no, not when I already get up at 5am...oh well)

It varies from what I have seen/experienced - some people drop a lot of weight while others (like me) don't....I think I lost maybe 6 lbs or so..it was ridiculous....but I have done well post surgery - it takes time, though, the first probably 4 months or so I didn't lost a lot...but once I hit restriction it has been great ever since. Just be patient - and post op you are letting your body heal for at least 6 weeks anyway - so you don't want to deprive it what it needs to recover....I probably had an extra milkshake or two post op as I wasn't stressing over it. Above all - don't compare your loss/rate to anyone else's....everyone is different. That is probably the hardest thing to grasp - as we want to do as well or as quickly as everyone else....but you will get there - just be patient!:smile:

I don't eat a lot of meat - hamburger seems to be a problem for me at times....but I DO like to eat lean lunch meat, chili, chicken and turkey....

I am the same way - can't handle real food in the mornings.....just a protein shake for me...and I can eat solids by around noonish...but even then I am not real hungry. It's wierd...but seems to be the norm once you hit the sweet spot!

I drank a lot of cafeine free diet coke on my pre op diet to keep me sane. I have three girls, too - but luckily for me during the week they get most of their meals at the sitters...so that saved me. But after the first few days I found I wasn't hungry anymore - so then it was easier to keep to it...that and my fear of having a fatty liver and the doc getting in there and having to back out and reschedule kept me on the straight and narrow! LOL It's hard as now my girls comment on how "skinny" I am and that they want to be like me when they grow up...I try and focus on being "healthy" and not being "skinny" - as they are 20 mos, 6 and 8 yrs old and very impressionable. I am big boned and tall and I explain to them that when you are tall and muscular you will weigh more - they aren't ever going to be stick thin as they are built like me. (though I was a lot chunkier as a child as I was not as active) I don't want to send my kids the wrong message and have them worrying about their weight in grade school! (though the 6 yr old had a rotten girl call her fat on the playground...I am telling you kids are just horrid to one another!) Anyway...you will make it through - keep your eyes on the prize! Kim

I had my surgery when my youngest was 6 weeks old - so she was lightweight, thankfully, but I do remember that after a week or so it did seem like my port was really tender....it took the longest to heal of the sites. I had my tubes tied and a hernia repaired at the same time, though, so I wasn't sure how much was tied to what! Talk to your doc - or nurse - the practice I go to is great about questions like that....do you go to a support group? that's another fabulous place to talk to others and get feedback. Good luck on your journey - you will do great!

I think having the band affects your taste buds, too...don't you? I like some things now a lot more than before...and others not at all. Very wierd!

70? I guess different doctors recommend different amounts? My doctor said to shoot for 45 grams for non menstruating women and 55 for those who are menstruating. I eat a lot of chili - thats great protein! (large chili at wendy's has 28 grams) Also you can buy non flavored Protein powder at walmart and put it in anything...applesauce, yogurt, shakes, etc. I like to make a choc Peanut Butter shake with my herbalife choc mix, a tablespoon PB2 (powdered peanut butter - can use regular lowfat) and then add extra protein - it is like a heavenly chocolate dessert and I feel like I am getting something fabulous like dairy queen. LOL I use the vanilla herbalife shake and put in frozen fruit, skim milk, and extra Protein Powder, too. I know they tell us not to drink a lot of our protein - but I cannot eat more than a cup at a time and even then sometimes I can't eat much - so this is the only way I can get in my protein....and since I hit my "sweet spot" I am never hungry anyway... Good luck to you! Kim

I would worry that the band has slipped...? I thought I had read somewhere that those types of problems could be an indicator? I am so sorry to hear of your struggles and I hope and pray that you find some relief soon. Hang in there! Kim

I am on zoloft - without any problems.....the entire time I have been banded. Maybe you need to try a different med?

Yipee! Congrats!! Way to go!!!

Hang in there...that's why they call it bandster hell...you are hungry and miserable until you get to your "sweet spot". I actually gained a couple pounds post op before my first fill at 6 weeks post op. But after my second fill things were trucking and it has been great ever since..you will get there, just hang in there!

Oops - my website is www.ardysslife.com/figuresforfamilies ignore the prices as those are retail, though!

I am an ultra picky eater too ---- won't touch a green veggie with a ten foot pole. :yesnod: But you adapt and find foods that you can eat - I have found Wendy's chili to be my favorite food of choice...some packed Protein there. LOL As for sweets the one thing that has totally cut my sweet tooth is called LEVive by Ardyss -- it composed of natural fruit antioxidants and it boosts your immune system, helps with blood sugars, blood pressure, cholesterol, etc...you have to order thru a distributor, tho...which is why I signed up to be one, so my friends and family could get it at the wholesale cost. My whole family is on it - and we have all been off our allergy meds ever since....we are SO much healthier - and it gives you energy and makes you not hungry. I didn't believe it until I tried it. :smile: Anyhow - if you are interested I can order it for you at wholesale and have it shipped to your door...just PM me. Kim

It felt like a diet until I hit my "sweet spot" --- hence the term prior to that they call it bandster hell! Once you get the restriction you need it makes it easier - as you don't get hungry all the time and feel like you are depriving yourself....and really I find I don't miss the Pasta and bread at all....I mean they can bring in Krispy Kreme's at work and they have absolutely NO pull at all...I would've never believed it before now! LOL Hang in there....it will become second nature to you...just make good food choices and get LOTS of protein! Kim

It's a fabulous garment that has literally changed my life...sounds so cheesy and I definately wouldn't have believed it until I tried it. I had lost about 75 lbs when I heard about them and I started researching them online - they are made by Ardyss International...as I am in kansas there aren't any distributors here to buy from. (well there weren't then anyway!) The garment literally reshapes your body while correcting your posture and supporting your back...so it is good for skinny folks with back troubles, too. LOL They way they explain it is that fat is like Jello in a mold - so by wearing this at least 4 hrs a day 5 days a week your body will begin to mold to the shape....and I have found the compression on my torso helps to support my back and posture while sitting at a desk all day, as well as makes me not hungry. My hubby wears the mens tank and said when he has it on he isn't hungry - so the compression definately has something to do with that even for folks without a lapband. Anyhow -- I started wearing mine in march - and since then I am down 25 lbs and am in my 6th smaller sized body magic! (that's ten inches!) I had pretty much plateaued at the time I started wearing it - so I give it props for helping me get through the stagnant time....as well as shaping me so I feel better in clothes! I still weigh a bit more than when I got married, but am in a smaller sized clothes b/c of the shaping it has done. I love it. My website is www.ardysslife.com/figuresforfamilies and you can check out the garment there....the prices on there are retail, though, so if you are interested please PM me and I can order for you at the wholesale price, stright to your door. (for example the body magic is $84 plus taxes, shipping and handling) I know it sounds like a sales pitch...which isn't really me at all, I just totally believe in thsi product as it has helped me and a lot of my friends SO much. I became a distributor so my friends, family and i could get the products at a cheaper price....and I am happy to help others do so as well! just give me a holler! Kim

I agree it could depend on the child...and on the situation. I personally know that I wouldn't have been sucessful at 14 - I wasn't mature enough to make the lifestyle changes needed and would've "eaten around" the band...now I am old enough to realize that it wasn't a cure all and it won't lose the weight for me. Does that mean I don't still have days of failure where I eat too much chocolate or ice cream (darn hormones)? :smile2: Nope, but I am old enough and mature enough to know that we aren't perfect and every day won't be a perfect day...so tomorrow I get up and start over again! I love the Biggest Loser as I think it is awesome to watch those folks change their lives, even if it is not realistic as we normal folk can't exercise 12 hrs a day...it is still motivational. It would be nice if the ones who had WLS talked about how it wasn't a cure - as it seems like most folks who don't do well with the band or gain it all back can attribute that to an event in their life - death, loss of job, etc...so it is the emotional triggers that can sabotage the surgery from being an effective tool - sometimes those triggers paralyze us and we don't use the tool. But contrary to popular belief WLS is sooooooooooooooooooo not the eay way out. I hate it when folks think that.....

Hmm...it shouldn't hurt to eat solid food. I can eat solid foods without problem, but if I try and eat bread or Pasta I struggle and it can get stuck....but you have to be really careful when eating and make sure to chew really well - otherwise EVERYTHING will hurt when you try and swallow. (kinda like right after surgery - I remember it hurt in my chest when I ate and didn't chew well) I eat a lot of chili now - it is high Protein and has lotsa good stuff in it.....and I can get it at Wendy's quick and cheap when I need something in a jiffy. I hope you can get things turned around - if you need help with anything this forum is great and I would be willing to assist in any way I can, as well! Good luck! Kim

Hang in there guys -- I am a March 2009 Bandster....and I remember being in your shoes last yr at this time...it was tough! But if you hang in there and keep getting fills until you are at your sweet spot you will best utilize your band - I didn't believe there was such a thing (sweet spot, that is) until I finally hit it and was never hungry or uncomfortable anymore....now I have to remind myself to eat! YAHOO! Anyway - just wanted to encourage you guys! You are doing great! Kim