LSU Mom

I felt the heavy pressure in my chest too! It lasted about 5 days. Doctor said it was the swelling around the band which is higher up than I thought. Hang in there! It's worth it!

Hey y'all! I was banded on 8/6/09 (I weighed 265 the day of my first appt with the doctor and then more the two weeks before surgery on the liquid only diet - lost about 17 pounds after surgery but gained 4 of those pounds back before my first fill which was this past Monday 9/28/09. Got 5 cc's in an 11 cc band. Since the fill I've lost 7 pounds! I have not felt hungry at all since the fill. I had to be on liquids for 2 days after fill and ate some black eyed peas last night. I wasn't hungry but I ate a small bowl knowing I had to eat and finished it all but did not feel stuffed, just content. I do have a tootheache that is not letting me think of anything but pain right now so I have not even thought about Breakfast and it's noon already. Once I see the dentist at 1:30 today it might be game on with the food, don't know yet. My doctor told me DO NOT weigh yourself between my followup visit and my first fill. He did not want me to get frustrated because I probably would gain a little weight. He said he would be happy if I maintained but if I gained he would not berate me because he said, let's face it, you got the band for a reason - dieting wasn't working for me so he did not expect me to lose during the bandster hell period. I didn't listen and weighed myself every day. Fortunately I did lose so he would not have even known about that 4 pound gain since I had lost 13 according to his scale and the last time I was there! They do have a new rule they explained to me though. My next appointment is October 28th and if I want/need a fill then I have to bring a food journal with me to show them that I am trying but it's not working. I have to show proof that I am actually dieting instead of just getting the fill for the heck of it. Don't beat yourself up over the weight gain. Apparently the doctors are prepared for it! Oh, and GEAUX TIGERS!!!

I am 6 weeks post op yesterday and TODAY is by far, the hardest day of my banded life! I don't know what triggered it but today I am HUNGRY all day!!! I had my shake for Breakfast which I do every morning and today I was digging in my drawers at work looking for something to eat about half an hour later! I have not gained any weight back yet and I don't get my first fill until the 28th of September but now I am scared that - like I've seen on here - the fill won't REALLY be enough restriction! I did just start back to the gym full time since I got the go ahead at 6 weeks - and now that I actually typed this I'm realizing that MAYBE I'm hungry because I did a full workout and had not done that in the past six weeks! Gee, I think a light bulb just went off in my head! Does anyone else see it or is it just me? LOL! Hmmmm, anyway, hang in there buddy! I hope the hunger passes for you AND ME!!! GEAUX TIGERS!!! :biggrin:

Congrats Danyett!!!! It gets REAL exciting from this point on now!!!! Everything you think about - you associate it with your surgery date. When someone said oh I'm doing this or that on such and such date, I found myself thinking hmmmm that's 2 days before my surgery. August 6th, 2009 will be etched in my brain forever, like my children's birthdays or anniversaries, etc. It's YOUR date!!!! The first day of the rest of your life!!! You go girl!!!

Kimo - I am 6 weeks post op tomorrow. 4 days after surgery I was eating chicken salad with the ok from my surgeon. Just put it in a food processor and pulverize the crap out of it. I used the new Kraft Olive Oil light mayo and some relish and pulled a whole rotiserrie chicken apart and made it with that. I was able to eat about 4 heaping tablespoons of the chicken salad and I was stuffed. I ate slowly and let it sink in before I ate more and decided I was full after those 4 tablespoons. The Protein makes you feel full. Stay away from the bread and rice. Boil some eggs and keep those in the fridge for when you feel like you need something. I have not had a fill yet and don't get my first fill for another 12 days so I am anxious to see if that helps me. I'm not hungry but I stopped losing. I've lost 37 pounds from the 2 weeks liquid before the surgery till today and I feel blah because I have had no loss in the past week. Anyway, don't beat yourself up! Just please try to stay away from the bread. Eat chicken, I promise you it will fill you up! AND it helps you meet your protein requirement!! GEAUX TIGERS!:tt1:

Don't worry! I got worse before I got better too! My port area was swollen for about 2 weeks and I questioned my doctor about it. A few things he told me was that the swelling takes about 3 - 4 weeks to go completely down, the port area will have some discomfort as the swelling goes down because your abdominal wall is reacting to a foreign object attached to it and you will feel some "spasms" as it reacts to it. My port area is still protruding somewhat but I have noticed in the past few days that its getting "flatter" and - am almost 6 weeks post op. Hope this helps ease your mind.

I had not heard that if you drink too much it can stretch your pouch!!! I drink like 32 oz at a time and have no problem getting it down. I'm scared!!! I have not had a fill yet, I'm scheduled for the 28th of this month. Should I be concerned? I thought that water would just go straight down to the big stomach. Am I wrong?

I had the same thing about 3 weeks after surgery. I put on a "spanx" and it went away! I was surprised and found it out on accident. Was going to a funeral and had to wear a dress so I put my spanx on and was like WOW!!! This makes everything feel better!! I guess holding it all in and together helped. I don't have that issue anymore (5 weeks post op now) so I don't wear it anymore. Hope this helps.

If I had it to do all over again I would not have told a soul other than my husband. My coworkers have me under a microscope watching everything I eat or drink and offer unwnted comments all the time. I would suggest you tell everyone you are having second thoughts or that you decided to save some more money and just do it and tell no one. As you start to lose you can say you joined a gym or started WW, etc. Believe me, you will be much happier doing it in secret. Good luck and ignore the nay-sayers! Focus on yourself, your son and partner and screw everyone else! Oh, and GEAUX TIGERS!! Mom :tongue2:

Like many posters I have spent a lot of money and time trying to find what works for me. The smell and taste of the Vitamins makes me gag. I have finally found one that I actually feel like i'm drinking a milk shake! I use the EAS powder with Water and 4 cubes of ice. I bought a small blender for $13 at Walmart and this is how I do it. I take 8 ounces of water, add 4 ice cubes and put in one scoop of either the vanilla or chocolate powder THEN I add two teaspoons of the Jello Brand fat free sugar free pudding mix flavor of my choice! It only adds 15 calories and makes it thick and flavorful. My favorite is adding banana pudding mix to chocolate shake! My daughter actually walked into the room just as I sat down to drink my shake and she took it and tasted it and got upset that I went out for a shake and didn't get her one! She did not believe it was a Protein shake! I have come to like them so much that I refuse to eat or drink anything else for Breakfast now. It has 20 grams of protein and only 170 calories. I hope this helps. The cost of the powder at Walmart is only $8 and it lasts me about 2 weeks. I didnt taste a difference between using water versus skim milk so I figured why add the extra calories when it tastes just the same with water! HOpe this helps! GEAUX TIGERS!