Shoshanna

My experience has been opposite of yours- the longer I've had the band the fewer my food choices. With my band at its present tightness there is no way I can eat enough to maintain my weight. I'm not looking at a big unfill- maybe a quarter. And if it is too much- well, there's always another fill. My doc's prices are remarkably reasonable compared to some I've heard about.

Two years and ten months after I first broached the idea of lapband surgery to my doctor and two years and five months after surgery, I am one pound BELOW my goal of 148. Color me delighted. Now comes the hard part- maintenance. I go see my surgeon for a slight unfill on Thursday and then I find out how the band helps with eating to maintain. Wish me luck.

I've just been wondering what to take on vacation myself. I have a two day drive to get where I'm going and the temptation to indulge in slider foods has been a problem lately. Lucky you to have access to a kitchen. When my children were babies I pureed everything from meat to cauliflower for them. Meat needs a little juice to get it started, but pureed chicken with spices can be really good. I still like my Soups pureed as opposed to having big chunks of meat and vegetables because I like to sip soup from a cup. Pureeing fruit is especially good if you add a little milk for a smoothie.

I found another one yesterday when readjusting my dress form for my new figure. The good news: The dress form at its smallest is too large for me. When I bought this thing, I figured the lowest measurements would still be smaller than I'd ever get. The bad news: I have to buy or make another. Anyone want a form that goes down to 38-30-40 and well into plus sizes from there?

Oh, yeah! The driver's license one is a good one!!!!

Fitting into regular sized Wrangler jeans was a non-scale victory for me- I hated those elastic waist blue denim fakes from the Plus section. The day I wiggled into a pair of size 15 Wranglers I was a happy woman. Now my 11s are loose and I am thinking about (GASP!) springing the dough for a (GASP LOUDER) size 9. Other biggies: my sleep apnea disappeared and I gave up the nightly oxygen. I can slide through the pass gap in the fence instead of having to open the gate. The inside of my upper thighs don't chafe anymore- they don't even touch! I can sit and pull my knees up to my chest without gasping for breath. My wedding ring fits again (actually it is too loose, but close enough!) And the biggest and most recent: my husband took a picture of me and a friend who is a professional dancer and I did not look like a whale next to her! I thought I was half again her size even now, but I'm not. I look normal!

Then there was the babe who got a nice little rosebud tattooed on her left breast. Forty years later, it was a long-stemmed rose.

I had both breast reduction and a tummy tuck many years before being banded. I chose the breast reduction first and it made an amazing difference in my life: for one thing it immediately cured thirty years worth of an aching back! The TT was done in conjunction with other necessary abdominal surgery and I LOOOOOVE the results. I wondered how they'd hold up with radical weight loss and they've done just fine. Wistful thoughts of a brachio cross my mind, but I'll embrace my age and accept the batwings- the surgery looks dreadfully uncomfortable and I'd be as self conscious about the scars as the wings. By the way, be forewarned- TT surgery hurt like the very devil! I'd do it again in a heartbeat, though.

I've lost 88 pounds and it has taken approximately two and a half years. I still have times when devoting myself to the consumption of coconut and mint M&Ms seems the proper thing to do, but the band does help with other foods I used to OD on like bread and potato chips and cookies- I just can't eat them like I used to. The psych eval was interesting and since I didn't have to pay for it, I rather enjoyed the process. Didn't really learn anything I didn't already know: when I asked the doc if I was neurotic or psychotic, she answered, "Neither... but you are unconventional." I was so proud. She did tell me her only concern was that I tended to resist authority and didn't care much for rules and might struggle with following the dietary rules that go along with LBing. And, true enough, I don't follow all the rules, e.g. I never learned to not drink with my meals. That is probably why it took me a couple of years to lose what some folks lose in months, but it was a lifestyle I could live with and it worked in the long run. If you have emotional eating issues, I suggest finding a good counselor and start working through some of those problems now. I saw a counselor every couple of months the first year I was banded and I think it was helpful. Good luck to you.

Talk about your good deed for the day!

Sometimes I am gripped by Born Again Thin Person desires to Spread the Lapband Gospel. Fortunately my mother taught me that it is rude to make personal remarks and I manage to restrain myself. But if someone ASKS me...

Good surprise: I look ten years younger. Bad surprise: fluctuations in band tightness. I thought restriction would be consistent and not too tight one day and pretty good the next.

My doc said as long as I didn't drink the sugared stuff carbonated drinks were okay. I happily drank soda for the first two years of my banding. The one day a few months ago I couldn't drink carbonated soda or water any more. Bummer. But I've learned to live with it.

"How much weight have you lost?" "More than a pound, less than a ton. How much have you lost?"

I am 2.5 years out, within 4 pounds of my goal weight, and there are still times I wish I could just sit down and eat one meal of whatever I wanted. But one meal of whatever I want is never enough and that's why I got the band. I am content. Mostly.

BRAVO!!!!

Another recovering fast food addict here. I just can't eat the stuff any more because of physical restriction and when I do nibble a french fry or hamburger, I find that after a couple of years without the stuff, it just doesn't taste as good as I remembered. I'm sure the majority of my weight loss is thanks to not being able to eat a big hamburger and large order of fries any time I want. Unfortunately, chocolate still goes down pretty easy and I've just come through a phase of being devoted to M&Ms. I've noticed that I'm actually tired of them and have begun to eat them out of habit instead of desire. THat has been a big thing for me- identifying what is true desire and what is habit and acting accordingly.

I decided to get the band to deal with maintenance issues and not strictly in order to lose weight. I can lose weight- I've done it hundreds of times. I have not been able to keep it off, though, and I liked the idea of physical restriction to help me not return to bad old habits as soon as I reached my goal. So people think you're crazy. Big deal. I think they're pretty presumptuous to try and make decisions for someone who has done her research and made an informed decision, especially since they are making those decisions based on gut reaction and not research. Poo on 'em.

I am six pounds from my goal and it has taken me two years and four months to lose 87 pounds. The entire time I've lived the lifestyle I can deal with, which slowed my weight loss down but did not prevent it. I don't regret taking this long to lose the weight or the plateaus I lived on for months at a time. Those plateaus helped me adjust physically and mentally to the changes in my body and life. The trip to your goal is as important as reaching your goal. My advice to you is to regard the next couple of years as an interesting leisurely journey and not a headlong dash toward being "a success story." Your success story is you have lost 36 pounds in six months and that is absolutely perfect for you. It took me a year to lose that much, but I've still managed to creep up within six pounds of my goal. Good luck.

When I compare fat pictures to current pictures, I think, "You've come a long way, kiddo. Hang fast." If pictures from the past upset you, put them away and don't look at them. Beating yourself up over what used to be is a waste of time and energy that can be spent on more positive things. If you can't quit torturing yourself with the past, find a good counselor and talk it out. You've accomplished an amazing physical transformation and deserve to enjoy the results.

I get to the numbers with a zero at the end and bounce up and down a few pounds for a while before dropping into the next decade. It seems to be my body's way of dealing with a new situation since the same thing happened when I lost weight before getting the band. I'm at a bouncing stage right now and know that while it may last a month or two eventually things will work out and down the weight will go. I'm hoping this is my last bounce session and that soon I'll just be looking at maintenance.

I originally set my weight goal just barely within normal BMI limits. When I reached that goal, I lowered my goal another ten pounds. When I reach that, I'll rethink the matter and decide if I want to stick with that or set a goal five pounds lighter to reach my college weight which is the lowest I aspire to.

My psych exam was an interesting process. I answered a bunch of multiple choice written questions, then returned to review the results with the doc and to take an oral exam as well. It was complex and expensive, but my insurance paid for it. The doctor said her only concern was that I might have a struggle with the restrictions since I am "unconventional" and not naturally a rule follower. I was afraid that might be enough of a negative to decide the insurance against the surgery. In fact, the insurance company took so long to approve the procedure that I was sure I'd be refused. Thank goodness I was wrong about that. I don't even want to think where I'd be right now without my lapand,

People didn't start to comment on my weight loss until I dropped under 190 pounds, down from 240. It was worth the weight- er, wait.

When this aunt isn't making unkind remarks to you does she get her jollies from pulling the wings off butterflies? Honey,if you will pardon a usually dignified older lady's language, f**k your aunt and the mule she rode in on. Toss the scale into the closet for a couple of weeks, use the mirror to reflect a smile and pride in your accomplishment, and concentrate on "hell yeah, amazing job." To quote Eleanor Roosevelt, "The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams." She also said, "When you know to laugh and when to look upon things as too absurd to take seriously, the other person is ashamed to carry through even if he was serious about it." Next time the Wicked Witch of the East makes a nasty remark to you, laugh outloud at her. She really is ridiculous, you know.