1unknownperson

Mine has been visible since day one and when I eat or drink anything it becomes even more visible... AND to top that off, my boyfriend, Whom I live with, has not noticed it yet... Well, I have been real careful to keep my Pajama top on at all times in bed and when we are intimate... He has not seen me topless since December 3rd... He's probably forgotten what my girls look like and when he does see them again, they will look totally different from the weight loss... Only Three people know I have had this surgery so I don't know what I'm gonna say if anyone notices this big lump under my skin... My BF will probably think I have a TUMOR or something... I guess I'll cross that bridge when I come to it...

I had my Band Done on Dec 4th and then 2 weeks later on the 16th I had Reconstructive Knee surgery... Mine started on the day of the Knee Surgery... When I went in to tinkle for the Preg test thats when I discovered.. I hated those little Mesh panties and the HUGE pad they gave me and I would rather have started for the Band surgery... Do you know how hard it is to take care of business when you have a brace on your leg from ankle to thigh high and your in so much pain that you can't move your leg in any direction and you have to hang onto crutches to stand up and sit down... It was the worst experience ever and the Period was a week early! I scheduled both surgerys to be before it so I would have time to recover.... Bah humbug... The best laid plans....

Yep, I really don't want an unfill... After two attempts with runny oatmeal, that was still too thick so I"ll go with my Tomato Soup and broth for the rest of the day... My Dr. only told me liquids the rest of the day of the fill, then Mushy food the next day then regular eating the next day... However, I am going to take advantage of the restriction as a good excuse to only have broths, liquids and drinks for a couple of days. That ought to be good for a couple of pounds right there! LOL...

They are called Lil Critters and they are made for Children... I don't like the raspberry ones so my grandsons eat those and I eat the orange ones... They are super soft and chew up to near liquid... Each one has 200Mg of Calcium and 200 ui of Vitamin D. A childs dose is 2 per day so I take 4... costco actually carries a line of Adult Multivitamin Gummies that I had a free sample of that I'm going to buy next time I go in...

I usually use Laci Le beau Super Dieters tea, but its kinda spendy at 15 bucks for a box of 90 tea bags so I found some Slimming tea which is practically the same at the one dollar store. Like 15 or 20 tea bags... It's not too tasty so you need to add lemon...

After losing a dismal 4 pounds this month I was seriously thinking of going to my Weight Management Clinic where I got my Phen-Fen from 12 years ago and have been on and off with the Phentermine every since.... ALSO, I started taking "black Beauties" and Dexatrim when I was 13... However, After a day of consideration, I realized that all these 30 years of taking diet pills and I'm still overweight so whats the points? Plus, I was scared of taking them and having them get stuck... I was wondering what would happen if I poured the little balls out of the capsule and swalled them what would happen. But since yesterdays fill and the current level of restriction, I don't think I need to go that route yet... So Far today, I've had one bite of a very soft scrambled egg that took 45 minutes and a sip of crystal light cranberry juice to get down and 2 bites of liquidy oatmeal still trying to go all the way down... Yep. I'm gonna be okay without the diet pills...

I found Calcium Gummy Bears with Vitamin D. However they have 15 calories each and I eat 4 a day... But it takes care of my candy fix and my calcium all at once... A bottle of 200 costs about 8 bucks at Costco..

Thanks Leigha, I was just hoping for better results after the first fill but had no new restriction from what I already had with no fill... I could eat nearly a full cup of food with no problems and felt guilty for eating so much but if I ate less I was still hungry and continually thinking of food... Yesterdays fill seems to be very restrictive. I gave up on the eggs and after 45 minutes drank a sip of cranberry juice to get that one bite to go down... Now I'm going to try some very soft and runny oatmeal... If the oatmeal doesn't work then I'll go on liquids and broths for a couple of days... I just want to try some mushies one more time first...

I would love to join... I'm not losing very quickly so I'm going to say 15-20 pounds.. I was really disappointed to lose only 4 pounds since my first fill on Jan 6th till my second fill yesterday (26Jan10)... However, I can really feel a difference this time with Restriction so lets cross our fingers and hope for success... In fact as I sit here, I am still waiting for the first tiny bite of scrambled eggs go down that I swallowed 25 minutes ago... Guess I'll go back to yesterday broth meals for another day... Now to figure out how to make a Special Ticker for the challenge.. Good Luck Everyone!

I bought a pair before I had my Knee surgery on Dec. 16th and practiced walking in them for a week. Post op on my reconstructive knee surgery I was able to use them immediately and I LOVE THEM! I can absolutely feel a difference. My leg hurts when I walk without them... They really make a difference... Plus I am 5 ft 3 and my Boyfriend is 6 ft 2 so I like the additional height... I'm going to buy a second pair in a different color... And yes, my Calves look better too!

My Surgery was on Dec 4th and I still have pain... Mine hurts when I walk so I started wearing a girdle about 2-3 weeks ago and it makes a big difference. I can at least get through the day without grabbing my stomach when I walk which for me was weird because only three people know I've had the surgery and so I can't just go walking around holding my stomach.... My Daughter noticed once and I told her I had gas but I don't think I could get away with that story every single time I see her... Good Luck... Not sure when the pain will stop... Mine is still present when I don't wear the girdle...

So I was talking to a friend who DOES NOT know I have been banded. His wife was schedule to have gastric bypass a few months ago and during the pre op labs they discovered she was preg. She just had the baby on Monday and they will now be rescheduling her for the bypass WLS in about 3 months. I asked him why she opted for Gastric instead of band and he said they researched both and discovered a lot more problems and issues with the band like how it fluxuates in size causing people to gain back their weight and also that a lot of people get infections from the band? I have not heard anything mentioned on these boards about infections... I haven't gone through more than one or two pages into the history at any given time either to look though... So, is infection common? Anyhow, I didn't really say anything to him... I just listened to what he had to say...

Interesting points from all. Thank you... I am and have always been a lightweight when it comes to alcohol... Thats the only thing about me thats ever been "lightweight" Haha... I will be sure to drink plenty of water when I do have that glass of wine....

I too was terrified of my first fill and after the Dr cleaned the area and came at me with the needle I put my hand over "the" spot and and said "wait... Wait... I'm not ready!" and he looked at me all frustrated and said, "why did you do that? Now I have to steralize it again.. It doesn't hurt, I've already done 25 fills today and had no complaints!" then he made me put my hands behind my head... LOL... He doesn't numb the site, and I'm glad of that... One needle is plenty just "get er done!"... Turns out there was more pain in my mind then in reality... I am actually looking forward to going back for my second fill on the 26th... I haven't experienced any burping yet... But my Grandsons will be pleased if I ever do! Boys love that kind of stuff. Haha...

I'm gonna go get one and try it. I recently began experienceing a slight pain around my band when I walk... I have had it since DEC 4th and have always been able to feel it with my fingers and the last few days I have had to kinda hold my tummy/band area when I walk which is weird. Plus since only three people know about my WLS, I don't want to draw attention and have people asking questions... I will post back my results....

Congratulations on your milestones... I have yet to lose my second chin but hey, I just lost the third one... My milestones will mostly be in my arms which are disproportionately larger... I have always hated my arms more than anything and truely think 1/3 of my body wieght was right there... I always have to but blouses that are technically 1 or 2 sizes larger than my body calls for just to squeeze these arms in... A lot of people are commenting on my weight loss, Currently I am down 21 pounds since Dec. 4th however I think my arms are the first to grow and the last to go.... I'm wearing smaller jeans down from 18 to 14 but I still have to squeeze these arms into 18/20... I'm so disgusted in my arms... Over the years I have tried really hard to work them good at the gym and such and nothing helps... Only 3 people know I have had WLS and one of those people, when I told her I was having it done, the first thing she said to me was "that's fantastic and when you lose the weight you should go have arm surgery" That broke my heart becasue I like to pretend that I am the only one who notices... What really burns me up is that I personally know people who are 100 pounds or more heavier than me overweight and they still only have arms half the size of mine... My mother had the SAME arms so I'm guessing its genetics... How else to explain why some heavy people have big arms and some don't.... Hopefully someday, I can quit wearing 3/4 sleeve tops in the oppressing heat of summer! Anyhow, Like most of you, I have gotten so used to taking just the right angle photos of my face, I have forgotten what its like to take a normal picture and look forward to doing so in a few more pounds... (Still waiting for the 2nd chin to be a little less puffy and noticable... ) Keep up the good work everyone and if anyone has any tried and true Arm excercises please share with me...

Thanks everyone. Aside from the tremendous amount of empty calories you have answered my questions. Like I said, I usually nurse one glass of wine all night long so quantity is not an issue for me, but I do like a nice glass on occasion... Lucky for me, two or three times a year is it... I couldn't imagine if I liked to drink a lot... Haha... Just wanted to make sure it wasn't on the total No-No list... Don't want to do anything that would harm the band... Haha...

I know they asked me a dozen times if I am a drinker before my surgery so I'm wondering if that means we can't drink now? I like to have a glass of wine maybe two or three times a year when I am out with friends.... Will this harm anything? Make me sick? I usually sip on the one glass for a couple of hours.... What about mixed drinks? Any Harm on Special occasions?

Thanks for the enlightment... Thats good information!

These noodle things sound just awful... My Dr. said I could eat anything I wanted and what my tummy could tolerate... Even Pasta, potatoes and rice as long as I keep it to small servings. A complete meal for me is about 1/2 to 3/4 cup of food total. If I eat more than that, I am very uncomfortable for the next 4 or 5 hours. His biggest thing is portion control.. When I have those food groups they should be much smaller than the Protein and veggie of the meal... Usually about one or two tablespoon scoops at the most. This way, I don't feel deprived... Considering a serving used to be probably more than a cup just for the Rice, pasta or potato plus all the other food like meat veggie and dessert piled onto my plate... I will add though that I have switched to the whole wheat pasta instead of enriched white flour kind... I guess each person, and Dr. will have different thoughts on these things... But I'm not gonna start eating gross food alternatives or substitutes... ... I'd rather go without altogether... I don't like yucky stuff in my mouth...

I've heard people on this board and at the Dr.s office say the small Chili from Wendys is a great fast food option... Be careful if you get chicken anywhere. Small bites chewed throughy.... I purposely cut mine up into pea sized bites before I even take one bite so I don't get carried away and forget and take a big juicy bit that will cause me trouble when I go to swallow... I have not eaten out yet (Banded 04Dec09) so I can control how healthy the food is that is being prepared as well as the moist/tender factor... I cook 70% of my meat in a george foreman grill and everything comes out so tender and juicy... Fish goes in the toaster oven and everything else is gound chicken, turkey or beef that gets cooked to fine crumbles... Even before I was banded, I kept an emergency packet or two of instand oatmeal or cream of wheat and a can of Healthy Choice soup with a bowl and spoon in my desk at work for days I didn't have something to bring ( I also have powder french vanilla creamer and once I make the Cereal, I stir a tablespoon of that in and it makes it nice and creamy and tasty and it's still got a whole lot less calories than a big burger and fries)... This saved me from going out for fast food... I am lucky that we have 4 microwaves and a huge 6 door refrigerator at work for employees to store and warm their lunches... If you have a microwave at work to use, I have seen a ton of new non parishable food items hit the grocer shelves lately that you can grab from your pantry and go with... One is a new fresh Pasta meal looking thing... It's in the GPS aisles (The commercial says that. Haha... It means GO to the PASTA or SOUP aisle).. Have not looked yet and do not know the calories, carbs data.... Another thing I do is pour a Protein drink into a Water bottle and freeze it... By lunch time it is ready to drink and still cold.. I keep two or three of those in the freezer to grab and go with... This gives me a couple of options and with will power and determination keeps me out of the fast food joints... Sad but true story, Before I decided to change my eating habits, I was a regular at the local Primo burger for so long that the owner asked me out... We actually became good friends just from me eating there every single days for months... Haha... CRAZY huh.... Well the making a new friend and possible new boyfriend someday was okay but the "eating there" part every day was pathetic... lol...

Ok, so I've been reading posts and have experienced a couple of very minor episodes of being stuck... Now mind you, a couple of sips of Water or walking for 20-30 seconds usually works for me. I have not thrown up or had any serious episodes yet.... I'm curious why we get stuck and where it is getting stuck... When I have a stuck episode, it feels like it is at the bottom of my throat and I feel pressure in my chest... This perplexs me... When I initially heard about this phenomenon, I thought it would be getting stuck in the smaller stomach pouch and therefore too large of a bite or amount of food to pass through into the larger pouch as it digests or something... Can someone explain the whole process for me from the time you eat, where it goes initially, then the digestive process... I'm just confused about why it gets stuck in the throat area when the bites are so much smaller than what I used to eat and more thouroughly chewed too... ANd I'm just curious about where the food goes for each phase of the eat/digestive process... Thanks! and Yay... Down 2 more pounds since last monday...

If I wasn't already on Medical leave for Knee surgery, I would have taken Minimum, a Week and realistically 2 weeks... I was so sore and sitting up, or standing up really hurt... I felt like I had been sucker punched in the tummy... Once I was up it was ok but the act of getting up took my breath away every time... Everyone is different though. I suggest you plan the days you think you'll need then have a back up plan for 3 or 4 more days if nessacary... And don't feel bad if you need the extra time... Besides each person's differences and how their body handles this, you also have to remember that the Dr's also vary and some may be gentler/more skilled or practiced at this Band surgery than others...

Let me clarify the no restriction... I have been getting full very easily on Small portions ever since I was banded eating about 1/4 or less what I was eating pre-banding. SO, I have no more restriction that what I have already been experiencing but definately have restriction in general.. For example, I had 1 Cup of tomato soup the other night and my tummy was uncomfortable full for several hours after so now I have cut back Soups to 3/4 cup... But again I've been doing 1/2 to 3/4 cup of food in general since being banded... I was just so starving that my eyes were bigger than my stomach when I fixed that whole cup of tomato soup... Lessons learned... Don't waiting until you think your starving to death to think about eating. Get on a regular schedule and stick to it... Eat whether you think you need to or not and you will not have the "I'm Starving to DEATH" issue...

I got my First fill a few days ago. I was terrified before I went and once the Dr. cleaned the right spot and got his needle ready I put my hand there and said wait wait... Haha. he said why did you touch that I already sterilized it, so he had to do that again then he made me put my hands behind my head. Once it was actually done, I realized it wasn't nearly as bad and I had imagined it would be... I drank my water and was on my way... He was very thourough in explaining to me about the band while I was there. Its a 10cc band and he put 3 ccs in and said he will put 2.5 more in on the next visit and he believes that should do it for me... So far I feel no restriction. I did the broth, soup liguid diet for two days and last night I made Potato soup that has potatoes, broccoli, cauliflower, mushrooms mild italian sausage and cheese and had no problems eating a 3/4 C serving... Everything was very soft and mushy and chewed up very well... It all practically melted in my mouth... YUMMY!