AlienBandit

Here is an interesting link I stumbled across. I can't believe this person.... apparently we made a stupid decision. Thought you might all want to read this. The Lap-Band is Torture! I for one will never regret getting my band even with bumps in the road.

My doctor changed his mind and said no for the lift. He said I should wait longer because my boobs changed so much since he decided I should have a lift ( we're talking a few months). Now a month after surgery I'm glad I didn't have a lift because again my boobs are changing and I dont even want a lift anymore.

A little bump for me to be healthy..... hmmm I'll take it. Though having said that I have tried to find ways to lose the bump. You doc can move the port after some time to a better place. I can't tell where mine is now unless I lie down and poke around for my heart beat.

Here is my stomach before my mini tummy tuck The End is Coming! The End is Coming + Pre Tummy Tuck Photos My doctor more fixed my belly button and got rid of some hanging skin below my belly button so now I have some dead space where my port used to be. It is now under my muscles.

I went from dd to b. I was going to get a lift with my tuck last month but my doc changed his mind ( he saw my boobs at c size and said I would need a lift when they got smaller but then they changed so much he said I don't need to get a lift anymore) Luckily for me with some good workouts at the gym my chest has changed so much. My weight loss in my boobs didn't leave them looking like balls in a sock somehow......

Peoples restriction is different not only because of their stomachs but also bands and fills. I have the 10cc lapband and my fill is about 6cc right now. Most of the day this is too much of a fill and I need to get an unfill because I am living mostly off liquids. I used to have a 11cc SAG band and even at 10cc fill I didn't have perfect restriction and could eat anything! So your sweet spot now might change later because your stomach is changing but you shouldn't compare your fill to others because there are so many reasons to why we're all different.

Hi fellow october bandsters. I am beyond frustrated right now. Its been over a year since I was first banded and I am still not at goal. I tried changing my workout routine, my eating habits and ven increased my calories for a while. That didn't work so I tried reducing my calories this week and I am gaining weight! I must admit being in Korea has caused me to not read the labels on food so that is what I am trying to do now to keep track of my eating. If I don't lose these 14 pounds soon I'm going to scream. Im going to South Africa for Christmas and I want to be at goal but that is not looking like it will happen. Any advice? p.s congrats to all at goal :rolleyes2:

There are tons of us blogging. It is great to ead them all because we all have such different experiences in different countries check out http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f178/any-other-blogging-bandsters-out-here-119741/index2.html#post1538454 http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f22475/anyone-blogging-115923/#post1512687

For the first few weeks after surgery my throat hurt so much. Then my teeth hurt too my doc said it was because of the tube from surgery. It got so bad I had to take meds for the pain and even went to a dentist just to double check my teeth. It would affect me sometimes when I was eating, drinking or even not doing anything. It even woke me up a few times in the middle of the night. Don't worry after a while it will go away, its just a little uncomfortable.

how much of a Protein shake are you having at a time? I find 1/2 a cup will do me for some time and if I drink it too fast it gets stuck. Maybe try to add more into the shake like pudding which makes it thicker or Peanut Butter or fruit. I used to make shakes that like even when I had little restriction and it filled me up good.

First of all whether we say good points or not, it is up to you to decide 100% if you should get the surgery. I researched the band for over 8 years but never thought I could get it because I wasn't heavy enough and I couldn't afford it. When I found a doctor i could afford I jumped right into it. It wasn't until the surgery where I nearly backed out but glad I didnt. Your health is something that is imporant and though you don't have as much weight to lose as others do you want to wait until you weigh more to get the band? I started at 210 lbs ( 220ish being my highest ever weight) with only 70 lbs to lose. Sure I could have hired a personal trainer or done any of those diets in the past that got me to my goal weight but nothing ever helped me stay there. I knew the band could help me with this. As for your diet after the band, it is really no different then thinking that your just eating healthier. Yes there are things you shouldnt eat and yes there will be things that will be hard or impossible to eat but that is just the band reminding you. None of my friends know about my surgery and I can still go out, hang out, go for dinner, drinks etc and still be normal. No one can tell the difference. To them its no big deal if I don't order bread with dinner because I just say I don't need it and that's fine. I have even gone backpacking through countries in ASia and I am always able to find healthy good things to eat that work with my band. This is not going to be the end of your life or anything it is just the beginning of a healthy one. Maybe you should see if there are any local support groups you can go to, to talk with people who are banded as well as talk to us on this website

Well there are two parts to this post so I will only post to the first part. Many people on here like soda and carbonated drinks. There is hope for you yet. Not all of us give up carbonated drinks! Though many doctors recommend not to drink this some doctors ( including ones banded) say it is ok to have carbonated drinks just let them settle a bit. Me personally I don't enjoy the full feeling carbonated drinks give me ( ex diet coke addict I used to drink up to 4 cans a day!) and now I dont like the feeling it leaves on my teeth. This was a huge surprise to my family back home ( who don't know i'm banded) because I used to be such an addict. So it is possible to give it up, though might not be required. good luck with your insurance

I'm in the same boat right now. In the middle of the night I'm too tight to even drink Water (sometimes can get tea down but who wants to boil a pot at 2am). In the morning I can only take in liquids by lunch I am lucky if I can take in yogurt ( must be at room temp) but come dinner time usually from 5-9pm I can eat anything in front of me. Mind you I must still be careful because if I eat too much it makes me really sick but I can still eat more then all other hours combined in the day. For me I find the trick has been drink lots of hot liquids for the first few hours once you wake up and stick to liquids for breakfast. Come lunch time I have something hot or warm ( like Soup or room temp yogurt) just so I'm not starving by dinner time. Drinking warm liquids has helped open my band more during the day. I am trying to avoid an unfill because I am still not losing any weight. Some think it is because I am not getting in enough calories but before I was getting in over 1500 calories and not losing weight so I am trying to reduce my daily intake to lose my weight. This never happened with my first band fancy that. It was an SAG 11cc band and I had a fill up to 10cc in it. My band now is LapBand AP 10cc and I am only filled with 6cc. Not only are people different but the bands are different too.

Even once your banded you will still be able to eat most of the foods you ate before. You can wait a little while if you want but these foods are not going to disappear after being banded. I am banded with good restriction and I can still eat all the bad foods if I wanted to. Heck I can even drink diet coke. Things will change yes but they won't be as easy as simply not being able to eat bad foods. It will still be a challenge to say no. BUt you can do it if you try hard. Good luck on your journey

It is not that Koreans are trying to be rude, it is a different culture and that is something you must understand. Asking if you lost weight etc is the equivalent to asking how you are or if you are in good health ( the exact translation meaning of the korean hello) Koreans are very concerned about health etc. Weight is something that is an open topic here and no one is insulted when the issue comes up. I had my surgery and my co teacher wanted more info for her sister because she thought her sister needed the surgery. I explained that was rude to suggest and she explained that it is in the interest of her sisters health etc. Yes it might be hard for you to understand but the woman is probably simply trying to make conversation. There are many things we do and say in western culture that is insulting to them but we don't understand why.

I was banded on a Saturday and went back to work on the Monday. I never told my employer because I live in Korea and things are different here. If I told them, they would have told me I am not allowed to get the surgery done. I do have sick days but it is like pulling teeth to get a day off. ANYWAYS so I had my surgery and went back to work on the Monday. It was not hard to see something was wrong but I just said I hurt myself at the gym and people left it at that. My one co worker knew in case of an emergency. I think if you take a week off work you can return to work fine the next week. I didn't tell my friends and a week after surgery went drinking with them ( Water for me) and no one was the wiser. Say your visiting sick family or someone is visiting from another country etc. It really isn't anyones business why your gone. As for when you come back, for me at least my week 2 diet was mushies so it was easy to look almost normal eating lunches etc. Again if anyone asks say you got sick while you were gone, have a sore throat and am eating simple things for your stomach. Once you start to lose weight you can say you started at the gym, made a bet with a friend to who loses the most weight in a year etc. Good luck with everything

Does Dr Kwon have an english website?

My doctor never put a time rule for when it was ok to drink alcohol again. I have found that I can't drink carbonated beverages, hard liquor makes me sick even just a little so wine is my alcohol of choice. However I must be careful with it because it does make me drunk fast even after one glass!

An unfill might be a good idea but how about only a partial one? I know going somewhere like Ethiopia might be a concern but if you eat properly and be careful you might be fine. I went back packing with friends through Thailand and Laos. Though some parts of Thailand might have doctors who I could go to for an emergency Laos most definitely did not. At the time my band was 10cc in an 11cc band. I simply ate my food super well, stayed away from anything that could bother me etc and I was fine not one stuck episode in 2 weeks. My friends never even suspected anything ( they dont know about my band) If you do get an unfill don't worry about your weight. This is a happy time for you bringing in a new addition to your family and you should enjoy it and not worry about your weight just for a little while.

I just had a small minish tummy tuck and I notice my pants are looser but I don't think I dropped a whole pants size. However I am better tucked into my pants now. It was more below my waist area where pants sit that I had more skin so around my waist didnt change too much.

Ketosis is so good. It means your burning and going to lose weight. I find sometimes when I am in ketosis my clothes begin to smell more metallic if I am working out at the gym. It is weird I know but after a few diets that monitored my ketons I got used to it. Once you start to maintain more it wont be a factor.

Thanks :sneaky: My stomach has changed so much since that photo :w00t:

I always over packed for all the surgeries I had so I have now learned how to pack better. First of all since you get to the hospital and change, just wear the clothes you will wear when you leave. No need to pack a new pair of clothes if you only wear the first ones for an hour or two. This makes less carrying once you leave ( it will be uncomfortable to hold things). Wear comfy shoes ( flipflops or slip ons are the best) that you will wear home. Pack a package of wet wipes, eye cover ( I dont know what its called but if you want to sleep in darkness it is good to cover your eyes if there will be lights on in your room), deoderant, toothbrush, tooth paste, hairbrush, and a book or something to entertain you if you stay over night. I can now just go to the hospital with my purse and a few things.

Hmmm it might be the old band 4cc or the new band 10cc or 14cc. Hope the surgery goes well :sneaky: Good luck :w00t: p.s thanks for the compliment. I am sure you will do good too

I find that all of my scars heal differently. Some of my scars are red some are pink even if they are from the same surgery on the same day. Here is a link to a photo of my scars marked is the day I had a surgery and the day the stitch was taken out. My older scars are not even visible. My darker scars are from incisions that didn't heal well right away. I have since had a tummy tuck and my belly button scar is thick and dark but the larger incision has healed so nicely it is barely noticeable already! Band and Lipo Scar photos p.s I dont use any creams on my scars. It is hard to communicate with people to try to find something for my scars here.