GuyMontag

Congrats! There's tons of good info on this site. I used it a lot before my surgery and really felt prepared going into this. One warning, stay away from negative people or posts on here. It's natural to get a little scared as the surgery date gets closer but that is completely normal. The more you surround yourself with encouraging people and information the more confident you'll be when surgery day comes :smile: As my surgery day got closer I spent more and more time in the testimonial section of the website. It's really encouraging to hear from all the people that have had their lives positively changed by the lap band.

I was in at 9:30am and on the road by 1pm. I think i took an empty bag to hold my clothes and shoes while I was in surgery. That was it.

I can trace a lot of my poor eating habits and hangups back to the way I was raised. There were always comments about how much I ate...or what I ate...or whatever...and it totally gave me a complex. Taking that to heart I made sure to never even mention eating habits to my children. Sure, I make sure they eat some vegetables and try new things but I never comment on the amount they eat or whether something might make them fat. I just let them self regulate and it has worked AMAZINGLY well. Maybe I just got lucky, but my 11 year old boy and 7 year old girl are both skinny as rails and super healthy. They play all the time and my son even has developed biceps...at 11! Honestly, with all the terrible food i've brought into the home I can't believe that they aren't both heavy...that's always been kind of a justification for me...as long as i'm not hurting my kids and they aren't heavy then i can keep bringing this terrible food into our home. Looking back I realize that robbing them of a father and possibly their mother due to us being overweight and possibly dying early...that's not fair to them. That's one of the reasons I got the band...not the ONLY reason. Ultimately, I go the band for me...but I also realize that others will benefit as well.

That's including my pre-op diet. I've lost 30lbs. in 3 weeks.

lol number 1 = peeing number 2 = pooping

Is any of it just loose skin? I carry the majority of my weight in my stomach and I'm worried that as I lose more weight i'll just have a big flat tire hanging around my waist I have a neighbor that had the RNY surgery and lost a ton of weight...no pun intended...but he still has a belly of loose skin. Just a thought.

Congrats and welcome! I was banded on the 13th If you're doing that good on your prescribed diets already then I bet you're going to be a weight loss superstar!!!

I went through a company called CareCredit and did my lapband self pay. Also, I found a doctor that had a fixed price...that covered everything for 2 years...that way there's no hidden fees to sneak up on me. The CareCredit website is just CareCredit if you're interested.

I weigh myself every morning...PRE-SHOWER!!! It's funny the little tricks that i've learned...I can actually tell you how much I weigh before and after I do number 1 and/or number 2...how sad is that?!? PS - For those of you wondering...it's always better to weigh yourself BEFORE you eat and BEFORE you shower and AFTER going number 1 and number 2...that's always a winning combo for a low score...er...weight...kind of like a video game

Name___________StartWeight___CurrentWeight______Goal_________ToGo *****:willy_nilly:************************:willy_nilly:***********:tt1:********** *** AmethystJade.......231.8..........212.........150.......62.0 Babe...............308............294.........199.......95 Bellaperdente......196............189.........150.......43 Bklyn1984..........317............261.........165.......96 Brandy.............198............189.........166.......21 Cappy..............240............235.5.......130.......105.5 Chocolate_Snaps....244............224.........175.......49 CubsGirl17.........147............138.........130.......8 Clarebear08........192............176.5.......160.......16.5 Donna113...........183............177.........126.......51 Ebonie.............307............307.........200.......107 FalloutGirl........282............278.........165.......112 FeliciaLevy75......200............194.........140.......54 FlordiaPete........413............397.........300.......97 GratefulHeart......226............211.........135.......76 GuyMontag..........325............295.........200.......95 health4life........279............239.........150.......89 janesays...........225............214.8.......160.......54.8 kimaly.............194............191.........160.......31 Lindar172..........246............229.4.......150.......79.4 Linksmom...........234............234.........145.......89 LocomotiveEngineer.311............311.........220.......91 Long2BThin.........216............199.5.......169.......30.5 lotzasunshine......270............262.........180.......82 Loveislovely.......216............210.........175.......35 ltgordon...........284.8..........250.5.......185.......65.5 lucyavery..........205............205.........140.......65 Mair...............231............222.........140.......83 Mamanmidwife.......264............260.........200.......60 mdgarcia31665......220............220.........165.......55 MissNilsa..........180............180.........132.......48 Rhea2d.............283............233.........185.......58 Sandra267..........220............220.........165.......55 Tabithan...........240............240.........200.......40 Tuger..............192............192.........130.......62 Under200...........242............199.........155.......44 vzghj3.............202............202.........150.......52 Wendy_Wo...........242............218.........142.......76 WOWOX7.............173............161.........125.......36

I've lost 30lbs.

Take it from a self-pay...CONGRATULATIONS!!!

I did the liquid diet 1-week post-op then the mushies. So far the mushies stage is a cinch compared to the liquid stage. Just keep your eyes on the prize and you'll pull through. As for port pain, the one thing I notice is right in the middle of my stomach it feels like someone is poking me with a hot poker every now and then. This always happens after I've used my ab muscles too much...like bending over, sitting up, or coughing. Placing my hand over the spot and applying a little pressure while I bend or cough seems to help a lot. It's kind of strange though because the pain isn't where my bandages are but about 3 inches to the right of them...probably where the rubber cord goes through my muscle wall. I'm looking forward to this pain going away and it's already improved a lot in the last week.

That sounds like the right approach...lots of doctor patient dialogue.

Congrats! Keep up the good work. You've found the best lap band family on the web

My wife has already lost 5lbs and I was banded only a week and a half ago. My kids are eating better too because i'm not always bringing fast food into the house. I think it will probably help her.

I was banded on February 13th, 2009. I've lost about 25lbs. and I too am losing weight from my face, neck, feet...but I am also losing in my stomach and my 'dunlap'. Actually, that's the been the the biggest area that I can tell the weight loss is that little pouch beneath my stomach. It must just be that everyone is different...plus, it might depend on where you tend to gain weight. As I was getting really heavy, the last place I noticed myself gaining weight was that little pouch...so it kind of makes sense that it's the first thing to go :tt1: I guess we get small in the exact reverse that we got bigger

What does your doctor say? How many fills have you had...are you at your sweet spot? Have you gone to any support groups after your surgery?

My favorite vitamins are the gummy bear vitamins for kids...yum.

It might also be a good to start with really small portions and work your way up to find that sweet spot. I find that it's better for me to measure out a specific amount of cottage cheese rather than to just go back to my old habit of filling a bowl with it. If you do smaller portions from the start you won't have to worry about overeating and hurting yourself.

Things get easier on the mushies stage. Keep looking forward to it. Remember that this is about healing right now...you don't want to deal with any nasty complications. My wife's food processor has become my new best friend What's the family having for dinner? Lasagna...NO PROBLEM...WHRRRRRRR...DING! Instant mushie lasagna Keep your eye on the prize...it'll all be worth it.

I talked to one lady that needed 13 fills to find her 'sweet spot'. So don't be discouraged...sometimes it just takes some trial and error. Good luck.

You need filled. Don't get discouraged.

I was told I could start treating them as soon as the steri strips fell off on their own. This is usually around week 2.

I've only been banded since February 13th, 2009 and i've already lost 20lbs. I can't tell you how, for the first time in a long time, excited I am to be losing weight and know that it's for the long term. No more yo-yo diets. I know i'll be around for my family longer and my quality of life will be infinitely better. I was self-pay on the band and it's already been worth every penny.