anglov

It has been forever it seems since I was on here. So much has happened since then. My blog at http://anglovato.blogspot.com/ can fill you in on the ups and downs of my journey so far. I try to post there weekly at least. This was the best decision I have ever made in my life. This decision has made my life, literally. I have had struggles and made it through each one, learding a lesson along the ways. To those that have the band, CONGRATS, to those thinking about the band, stop thinking and just do it! I don't have a special diet. My band controls my food intake. My head controls the choices I make. I am so much happier with myself and my life and people are starting to take notice of me. They are now noticing my weight but I think my new attitude and the new way I carry myself with pride and self esteem has made them really step up and take notice. It's like all of sudden in the past month people are always taking note of my new look. Can't say I'm not enjoying it. I used to never want people to notice me and I still don't "want" them to but the difference is now I don't mind if they do. Before surgery it would bother me because if I was noticed it meant people saw my morbid obesity. I preferred to remain hidden. I am still obese but now I am more outgoing and enjoying life. I have a long way to go but still going strong.

Hey Congrats! I remember when I had the surgery I no longer needed my reflux meds. Having said that, a few months after the procedure I had a month of really bad sliming episodes and my esophagus was irritated and I had heartburn again. Tums was not cutting it. I went back on Protonix and skipped my fill that month. I only took it for two weeks but I will now keep the meds on hand as a precaution. I have found that tums or rolaids just doesn't help as well as just taking a Protonix when I feel it coming on. It is nips it right away. I have only taken 2 Protonix since then and that was a few months ago. Just a little insight from my situation.

NO reason to be nervous. This was my 3rd fill and the 1st time I had a problem. I also had a different person give me this fill and she had a hard time finding it. All the other fills were done by the same person and she was great and no problems. It's a fluke. I have no idea what caused it but now that I know what to do to help it will keep me from getting panicky.

This is a fantastic journey full of ups and downs but at least here you have plenty of friends to be there for you and have a true understanding of what you are doing and why. You can't always get that from friends and family outside the band world. This was my present to myself. I as banded 5-10-10 and turned 40 in July. Well worth everything.

my doctor never has us on a liquid diet after a fill. It is mushies and no meat, bread or pasta for 24 hrs. I was filled on Monday and Thursday has a sever episode with food getting stuck after one bite. Now today I feel normal again. I don't look for the restriction so much anymore. I look to see that I am eating appropriate portions at each meal and that I am not hungry for 4-6 hrs between meals. That happened to me last month and I was considered in the green zone so no fill. Two weeks later I was getting stuck quite often. Then a week after that I was eating HUGE portions at each meal even though I wasn't hungry for 6 hrs between meals and I still lost. I got the fill Monday and other than getting stuck that is the only real "restriction" I have felt. I was banded 5-12-10 and am down 53lbs so something is working. I don't count calories or fat. I just eat whatever I choose in moderation and stop when I have my full feeling. It's all about listening to your body.

It is true that sometimes a person is too overweight to have surgery safely. That may be the reason for the doctor wanting you at a certain BMI. The surgery has some risks anyway and the heavier you are the higher the risks. I know it seems redundant to lose weight so you can have surgery to lose weight. You may need to find another surgeon who can take a better look at your BMI or simply ask the doctor at your next visit why he feels you need to lose weight to have surgery to lose weight? Maybe his explanation will put your mind at ease or make it make sense. Good luck!

See my previous post for all the gory details but essentially I was SEVERELY stuck Thursday night. When I woke up Friday morning water still was not going down very easy so eating was not an option and since no one was in my doctor's office here in town I had to wait until Monday unless I wanted to drive to another city, which I didn't. Melissa, the nurse at my doctor's office, told me to sip hot as I can stand it liquids. So I went out and got me some apple cider and heated it up hot as can be and sipped on it. I was still afraid to eat at that point but my throat did feel better. I felt I could actually swallow my own spit again. WOO HOO!! I had put some pot roast in the crock pot that morning to cook and by late afternoon it was smelling fabulous and well my stomach started protesting my fast. I decided to cook some eggs. I took a few bites and at first it felt a little like it might get stuck but it went down. I breathed a sigh of relief and so did my stomach. I started sipping my water and eventually I was drinking fairly normal again. I decided to make some Carne Asado for next week and did a little cooking. Boy did that make me hungry given the little food I have had since my episode. Pot roast was done. Carne Asado was done. I was starving! I pulled out some cooked veggies from the pot roast. I ate them slowly and they were soooo good. Then I see it! A little peice of pot roast on my plate. Do I or don't I? I do'd it! Chew, chew, chew...AND.....NO PROBLEMS! So I got a little more and again no problems. I even ate a little Carne Asado, because I needed to make sure it tasted right and that too was no problem. I am back to normal, well band normal. A little hot hot cider and I was good as new, that and not eating anything for many hours. It gave my esophagus time to recover. I have no idea what caused me to get that stuck but I know I have bought a box of apple cider packets(near the hot chocolate in stores) and am keeping it with me at all times. I don't like tea or coffee and those are just as fine. I do like the hot cider so that is my hot beverage of choice. Just a little tidbit I thought I would share. Something to try if you are stuck in a restaurant, ask for super hot tea or coffee or hot water w/lemon.

OMG!! Last night was excruciating. I went in for a fill on Monday. I only got .5cc, so no biggie. I am up to 5cc now. Everything was fine. I was a little tight on and off during the day. Each night at dinner my food would get a little stuck. Each day it seemed to get worse. Wednesday night I was eating dinner and it got stuck. Really stuck! I was at work at the time which made this even worse. I walked around hoping gravity would help but no, nothing helped. I started sliming and well it had to come up. I felt better. Last night was the worst ever! I took one bite of a bean burrito and it was more bean than tortilla. It got stuck and it was painful. The sliming started and I expelled it. I call it expelling becuase it's not really throwing up. It comes from my throat not my stomach. Anyway, I was still stuck. Still sliming. Still expelling. Every 10-15 minutes from 8:30 until 2am. Completely stuck until 2am when it eased up. I called my doctor's office today and they said that once you get stuck your esophagus spasms. Drinking hot liquid, as hot as you can stand it, will relax your esophagus. Drinking cold or even room temperature liquids causes your esophagus to spasm. Good to know. I am to drink hot liquids right before eating to relax my esophagus to see if this helps my situation, if not then I have to come in and get some liquid taken out. No one is in my doctor's office that can take out fluid toda. They are in the other office which is too far away(as in another city) so I am trying this little trick until at least Monday. Wish me luck. Still all in all, I don't regret it. This is the 1st real problem I have had. I am sure there will be others but I wouldn't trade this for anything. The band is the best decision I ever made. I am down 53 lbs. The sliming sucks but this too shall pass.

Easy vegetable-rice soup Serves 4 Of course, you may chop a fresh onion and a bell pepper or two to substitute for the frozen mixture but why? I prefer the convenience. Some frozen onion-bell pepper mixes contain celery or other seasoning vegetables. They work fine, as do larger quantities of the vegetables (if you should find a 1-pound bag, for instance, use that). 1 tablespoon canola oil 12 ounces smoked sausage, such as kielbasa or skinless turkey smokes sausage 12 ounces frozen onion-bell pepper mix 3 to 4 cups minced fresh green cabbage ( I will use a bag of cole slaw cabbage) 2 cloves garlic, minced, about 2 teaspoons 1 teaspoon thyme A 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper, optional 1 quart reduced-sodium chicken broth 2/3 cup white or brown rice 15 ounces canned crushed tomatoes Put oil in a large saucepan over high heat. Chop sausage into A 1/4-inch (or so) pieces ( I cut the sausage in slices then quarter those so I get sausage in every bite), and add to saucepan as you do. When all the sausage is added, cook, stirring occasionally, until it begins to brown. Add onion-bell pepper mix, and stir. Add cabbage, garlic and thyme (and cayenne pepper, if using) as you get them ready. Keeping the heat as high as you can, cook 15 minutes more, stirring occasionally, or until the vegetables are tender and have reduced quite a bit in size. Add chicken broth, 1 cup of water and rice. When the mixture boils, reduce heat, cover and cook 15 minutes, or until rice is tender. Stir in tomatoes, bring to a boil and serve. Serve with garlic bread. Nutrient data per serving: 368 calories, 20 grams protein, 49 grams carbohydrate, 7 grams fiber, 11 grams fat Courtesy of Sarah Fritschner, Courier Journal http://www.blogger.com/home

Tina I agree too. Since the surgery I am off diabetes meds, reflux meds, cholesterol meds, and my BP is now so low we are going to be cutting my meds for that back and hopefully will be off them completely soon. I have more energy and I think I carry myself more proudly since the weight loss. I got my hair done a few weeks ago. Nothing drastic, it was my usual do. The VP of the company walked up to me last week and she had been meaning to tell me that my hair is absolutely cute that she loves it. Now, it's the same haircut/style I always get but I guess with the weight loss it looks different. I was so proud when she said that. I know I look people in the eye more when I say Hello whereas before I tended to look down I assume so no one would notice me. Things have definitely changed for the better. The Lap Band Experience

Have you tried just spreading peanut butter on hot toast? The PB melts and is gooey! Fantastic with a little milk. I grew up eating that for breakfast each morning I had school.

CALLING ALL COOKS....I AM LOOKING FOR NEW RECIPES THAT ARE BAND FRIENDLY AND/OR JUST PLAIN EASY AND DELICIOUSLY LOW FAT/CALORIES. SEND ME AN EMAIL OR POST AS A COMMENT. I WILL COMPILE A NEW RECIPE LIST FROM ALL YOUR INPUT AND POST FOR EVERYONE TO ENJOY:thumbup:!! angela.lovato7@gmail.com or you can visit my blog and post a recipe... http://anglovato.blogspot.com/

Remember that you are the priority not the weight loss. Take care of yourself and everything else will work itself out. Find someone to talk to that won't be judgemental. Sometimes talking it through can help you realize the cause of the issues that are holding you back. Definitely the illegal substances are not a good thing but you know that. Anytime you want to chat, give me a holler. Every one needs somebody, a friend. We are all in this together.

I was banded on a Wednesday and was driving that Monday. I went back to work Thursday of the following week. No problems. It all depends on what you do. I sit at a desk all day. I was a little sore but fine.

Isn't it nifty? I've lost 50. 50 lbs that is! July 31 I turned 40. Today I hit the 50 lbs mark. 80 more to go and for the first time in my life it doesn't seem impossilble. Oh Happy Days!! Banded 5-12-10 Hit my 50 lb mark 8-06-10 I would love to have you follow my blog!:tt2: http://anglovato.blogspot.com/

Check out my blog... http://anglovato.blogspot.com/

Sometimes two hours before bed isn't enough. I had reflux for 20 years before surgery. They fixed my hiatal hernia and I was acid free for nearly 2 months. This last time I didn't get a fill and a few days after I started getting reflux again. I can say anything acidic, tomato based, fried, heavy, carbonated can all cause problems. Not eating can cause reflux too. I slept on 3-4 pillows every night for some 20 years too. That helps. Over the counter reflux meds may help too. Check with your doc like they said. You may need something different.

I have heard that weight loss can cause hormonal changes. That may explain why I get super emotional and have severe cramps like I did as a teenager. That sucks!

I have had 2 fills and was told I was in the green zone. I was on vacation and eating more than usual but I lost 8.5 lbs in 3 weeks and wasn't hungry for 5-6 hrs between meals. I didn't get a fill on the 26th. I go back in a few weeks and I think I need a fill. I am not hungry so much as I am grazing and eating all the time which is not good. They told me too about 5 fills is average. I think they were wrong when they didn't give me a fill.

I had my surgery on a Wednesday and went to my daughter's first dance recital the next day. My hubby took me and I did fine. No real discomfort. I only took meds the 1st day and then at night only the next two. My doc wouldn't let me drive regardless for 5 days. It's a crap shoot at best. There are some who had loads of discomfort for a long time and then there are those that have no real issues at all. If you aren't telling anyone then the hard part would be to explain why you aren't eating or drinking. I would suggest not going since it is a real outing with drinking, eating and dancing. That is a lot. My recital only required sitting there. You do need tofocus on you and your recovery and that might over stretch yourself.

Just remember to take all that you hear onsite as opinions and personal experiences. I too was self pay. I paid over 15k for mine. It was the best investment. I was scared it wouldn't work and then I would have wasted my money. Remember it is a tool and how you use it will be the deciding factor. I started with needing to lose at least 120 lbs. So far I am down 46.5 lbs and I was banded May 12th. Anything is possible but it is up to you. I look at this way...15k divided by 3 years(that is what my doctor said it would take to lose the 120 lbs) divided by 52 weeks is about $95 a week. I think I save that much a week by not eating out as much and also not drinking soft drinks anymore. The best investment.

What a mean thing for him to say. Why would he purposefully put your port farther back? I'm sorry you are having trouble. It shouldn't be that way. I hope it goes better.

everyone is different and everyone has had different experiences with the band. For some the weight loss is fast and others it is slow. In the end, it is a personal decision. As my doctor told me, the band is ONLY a TOOL. It is not the magic cure all. The benefits you get from it and how you use it are up to you. It may only help you stick to weight watchers or Jenny Craig better or it could help you make a major overhaul in your eating habits. It is simply a tool and nothing more. I had my surgery May 12th. I have lost around 45 lbs or so. I have had some bad eating episodes but overall I am very pleased and wish I had done this years ago. I didn't have any surgical problems. My health is improved and I believe my quality of life. Just remember, everything you read on here is our personal experiences and our opinions. You can definitely gain weight with the band because there are ways to get around it. Again the whole it's a tool thing. Good Luck!

It definitely is an experience. With sliming you can feel the excess saliva building up and you feel like you need to spit. That is your body sending secretions to help the food slide on down. At some point if it doesn't go down you will feel the gag feeling and well heave ho but for me it only comes from the throat so its like whatever was in there "pops" out. Sandra is right, you feel panicky but dont. There are times when it is so severe that I feel pain in my chest. Walking around helps some. It allows gravity to give you some help. Sipping warm water, not cold, but warm water helps it go down too. I have had a single bite get stuck the moment I swallowed. I have learned that 1st thing in the morning everything gets a little stuck. You get used to it really and then you learn what works and it's just another thing. It doesn't happen all the time. There are times I can eat bread no problem and then I can eat the same bread later and it gets majorly stuck. Same thing with pasta. Sometimes it gets stuck and sometimes it doesnt. I find that if I am really hungry I rush eating and hence the getting stuck.

We are both in the green zone then. I haven't used my card to get smaller portions. I eat half the meal and bring the other half home for lunch the next day. Win Win for me. Great job! Keep it and slow is the key. If you lose it slow you have a better chance of keeping it off.