Humming Bird

I got that comment from a little old lady patient that I had seen every 6 months for eleven years. I love the little lady and she knows I'm a grandmother ..... go figure. She came in and poked me in the stomach and said "you having a baby?" She was not joking. I just told her "no, I'm just really fat." I could tell she felt bad about what she said and we both put it behind us. Since the weightloss she told me how great I look.

This is one of the common soft signs. It happens to me when I eat one bite too many. Watch for another soft sign that may happen just before the runny nose ........ it may be a hiccup or a sigh ...... Sometimes in the morning there is no avoiding it with me. If I drink my coffee too fast I even have a sneezing fit just like allergies.

Thanks for posting this great video!

BINGO ! "when it is filled appropriately" I don't think some people get it. It takes very little "work" when the restriction is at the proper amount.

It is so nice to open a thread and see everyone posting success! Great job everyone For me ........ I lost 100 pounds in 1 year. I had 2 fills at that point, no exercise, no counting, tracking, measuring..... I just folowed some very basic guidelines. You can do it !

I guess we would have to agree to disagree on this one. For me, it has always been about restriction. Fills sure have stopped me from eating. If they filled me up to 6cc in my 10 cc band there would no longer be a hole for things to move through. I know this from experience. If they fill to capacity, then maybe they used the wrong size band. From day one I have not counted calories or anything else. I got the magic band and tightened the sucker up and dropped well over 100 pounds...... easy as that ..... it's all about restriction. I have not "worked" at it at all. I think many bandsters make it so much harder than it has to be.

They do have "shots" and "bullets" you can order online and walmart has some shots too. When looking for them at walmart, they are by all the protein powder/bars and are in a test tube type container. I think they taste better when added to ice water.

I reached my sweet spot with the fluid they put in during surgery and 2 fills. I was good and stayed at that sweet spot for 9 or 10 months. This is when I dropped 100 pounds in the first year. Keep in mind these were all sort of large fills. It sounds like it would be going better for you if you went for another fill.

Diet Coke and all other diet pop/soda are high in sodium and that can cause all sorts of problems.

Me too there are very few pics of me. I always pick them apart.... too fat, red eyes, blotchy skin, bad hair day ....... The sad thing is that now I've lost over 100 pounds and went to a couple weddings since and hate the pics of me at those events.

The EPA has officially removed saccharin and its salts from their list of hazardous constituents and commercial chemical products. In a December 14, 2010 release, the EPA stated that saccharin is no longer considered a potential hazard to human health http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saccharin sweet n low/ pink

I think I read in another post yesterday about how much they put in and take out when they have done these 17 fills/unfills. It really sounds to me like the amounts are way too large and you will never find your sweet spot at that rate. IMHO they should have only taken out .2cc (point 2) , not 2 whole ccs.

It's good that you are aware of what was happening. For me, the first year was all a learning experience when it comes to situations like the one you posted about. I find it helpful to find something else to turn to instead of food like cleaning house or sewing.

crab or scallops work much better than shrimp for me.....yum and no stuck

For me, the 3 meals plus snacks causes me to "graze" all day (yesterday). I find my numbers on the scale tend to be much better when I stay busy and let myself be a bit hungry between meals. Head hunger or real hunger? Who knows, but if I do the snacking thing I get so off track I tend to gain weight. I need to focus my mind so that if I need some sort of snack it doesn't turn into the all day graze thing.

I guess it would also depend on how much he/she is putting in at each fill. I reached my sweet spot at fill number 2 with 5.3cc. I think I went for about 9 months without going back after that and then the next time was another 10 months. Right now I'm at 5.2cc and maintaining. It's frustrating until you find your sweet spot, but then should be pretty much smooth sailing.

If all else fails, there are many surgeons here in the U.S. that charge around $10,000 and include aftercare in that figure. I financed mine and the min. monthly payments started out at around $100 per month. (I would guess you are paying more than that for the health ins.) I did my best to make large payments and paid off the surgery in about 18 months. I had no insurance hoops to jump through and was banded a couple weeks after my first consult. I understand wanting to use the ins. if you can, but just saying all is not lost if you can't do it that way.

For the proper fit I always have to go try on bras. I would have a hard time ordering one without trying it on first. I go to JCPenny and try on many before I find a style or brand that fits my body the right way.

To post a pic: Put the pic in an album in your gallery first. When you open your album, there will be a large pic and then below that there will be a thumbnail size. Right click on the pic you want to post (large or small) choose 'properties' a window will come up with the url you need to copy copy the url then come to this thread and reply click on the insert image at the top of this reply box (at the top of the window you type your post in) clear the http that is in the box and paste your url.

try this thread http://www.lapbandta..._1#entry1568264 To post a pic: Put the pic in an album in your gallery first. When you open your album, there will be a large pic and then below that there will be a thumbnail size. Right click on the pic you want to post (large or small) choose 'properties' a window will come up with the url you need to copy copy the url then come to this thread and reply click on the insert image at the top of this reply box clear the http that is in the box and paste your url.

Mine was at a seafood place, but I avoided the bread. It was very good

At first, the band was on my mind 24/7 just like being fat was before getting the band. Now it has become more a part of me and it isn't on my mind much at all. After almost 2 years, the band almost feels like a body part I've always had. It all becomes sort of second nature. I even forgot what the old way of feeling "full" feels like. There are many foods that I will never be able to eat again, but now they are like the foods I wouldn't eat before just because I didn't like them. Before the band I would never eat things like liver or brussel sprouts just for the simple fact I did not like them. Now my list of foods that don't appeal to me is just longer. It's not like the deprived feeling I thought I would have. After a few episodes of being stuck or PBs or slime, my brain has been reprogramed and it is very rare for those things to happen.

Maybe they were talking about alcohol? Because you do tend to get drunk faster. If not alcohol, I'm not sure why they would make that one of the big rules. I drink coffee, tea, water ...... all the time when I drive. I also live in a very rural area and do a lot of driving. It's nice to have something to drink on the way.

That's great news! Life is good . Nice job Dave.