qtney1

I was banded on 9/30/10 and also can eat larger portions than what I like. I am reducing them with each fill, but also becoming hungry 2 hours after I last ate. I think it is just playing with the right fill you need. Try not to compare yourself to others, as it will be hugely discouraging. You will get there! A friend of mine had to have 4-5 months of playing with fills. Now, 11 months later, he is down 101 pounds.

That's a good idea... I have slacked a little on my shake routine. I will HAVE to start adding those in more.

Good luck on your journey until the next fill. I need another fill, too, and I can't wait until I can go in.

Yes, tomorrow is a new day to climb back on the positive train. I think after one more fill, I will be good. I, too, have Just Dance and LOVE it. I need to get back to doing that nightly. Thank you for the supportive words!

This process seems to be soooo slow. I had to cancel my doctor's appointment yesterday because of all the snow we got here. I can't go in until a week from Thursday and know I need a little something in my band. I can eat more and I"m not thinking I like it very much. Everything seems to go down with ease. And, on top of that, it takes more to make me feel full. Also, I don't like feeling hungry after a couple of hours. Grrrrrrr! I have lost a whole pound in 8 days. I am down about 33 pounds total. About 15 of that after I got banded. I feel good about the weight I have lost so far, but also look at crazy envy at those banded around the time I was who have lost 50 or 60 pounds. Eeeek! It's time to kick up the exercise in high gear while I wait, I guess. Does anyone have any good items to soothe your sweet tooth? I can't do any jello or sugar free bars for a long time. If you have any suggestions of something to curb it, while tasting sinful (yet lower in calories), please let me know. I usually do pretty well, but today I have a crazy ice cream craving and can't seem to overcome it :-( What's funny, I'm not really even an ice cream person! Thank you if you are still reading me spew negativity. I am just having one of those days :-(

I'm getting the hair loss, too....Grrrrr! I swear, I feel like I am sweeping hair off my counter every single day when I'm blow drying my hair. And, not one hair, a good amount of them....lol. I just keep drinking my protein and chewing my vitamins. I have heard it passes........

Any can usually stomach any kind of protein shake, but it has to be blended in the blender or in my blender bottle i bought. However, Costco brand and Unjury are my favorites, so far. The first few days of the pre op diet are the worst, but you will stop dropping weight and it will be soooo motivating!

I had fluid already in my band when it was put in, unknown to myself or my doctor. So, you might have some in there.

Thank you all so much! I love everyone on LBT...you guys give so much support!

Thank you, roseyposey!d

I expected big things from 2011...just not me! I was banded on September 30th, 2010. It has been a long, but quick process, if that makes sense. I have gone from 325-327 (by my at home scale) to 293.6 , as of this morning. It seemed so daunting when I first started the insurance process, seminars, etc, in April of last year. But, it truly went by quickly. Before I knew it, I was banded. If anyone is reading this and is overwhelmed by insurance hoops, don't be discouraged. Just take it one step at a time because the payoff is HUGE! My last fill, # 3, they put in a little more in my band. That was 3 weeks ago and I've lost about 6 pounds since then. Slowly, but surely! Fill 1 was okay...no real restriction, though, fill 2 was an overfill---followed by some being taken out, then fill 3, I feel, is my sweet spot. I feel like I eat too much (i'm so paranoid about overeating), but my husband says I hardly eat anything. In comparing what I ate before, he's probably right. I still keep track of everything on sparkpeople and really am trying to watch everything. It certainly something that isn't easy and is something that we all have to continually work at. Each day, I still argue with my body about what to put in it. I think it will get easier and easier, but it has hard not to stop at McDonalds in the morning for a breakfast sandwich (not that I can really eat it without getting stuck anyway!), but my mouth would still try. I have just started really trying to get serious about working out. I don't really have time for an actual gym between my kids and my husband's crazy work hours. I have picked up Zumba and also love working out to my Wii! My doctor's office has a program they refer to as 'Bootcamp'. It is 3 nights a week for 6 weeks. Of all of the places in my city, it happens to be held just a few miles from my house, which is great. You work out with a personal trainer those 3 nights, meet with a counselor for a few minutes on 2 of those nights and meet with a nutritionist the other night after your workout. And, as long as you don't miss more than 3 sessions, it is all free. So, I will be beginning that on their next session start next month. I really can't wait! I am starting to have loose clothing, which is great, and my knees are already feeling better when I go upstairs. I love that. When I met my husband, I was hovering around 270. Still fat, but nothing as to what I turned into over 5 years! I guess my happiness was directly correlated with my weight gain, which, ironically, caused unhappiness. But, one the road to being a better me feels good! I recognize I will never, realistically, be 135 pounds ever, but I'm okay with that as long as I can get down to a healthy weight of maybe 170. I really can't wait to to do things with my kids this summer! I can already tell I'm getting more energy and can't wait to see how that goes up, too. Anyway, those are the thought that are in my head today. I hope everyone is doing well after the holidays!

Just go by what your doctor recommends and you will be fine. The time really does fly by. Congralations on your banding! I was just done September 30th, 2010. I have to make exercise fun. I have Zumba at home and also Wii....which, has LOTS of fun things to do on it.

Mine seems to be going slow. I have lost about 30 pounds since my journey began (preop). I have only lost about 10 pounds in the 3 months I have had the band.

I think after all of the putting fluid in/taking fluid out, I have finally hit my sweet spot. I feel restriction and I feel full for several hours in between meals. It's been nice. When I went to the doctor with for the 2nd fill and they overfilled me, I had some fluid taken out. I actually had less in there than with my first fill so I was very hungry. I gained several pounds back. But, with this fill, I have lost about 5 pounds this week, which was good. I have also noticed not only are my clothes starting to feel a bit looser, my pants also seem longer......anyone else have this? Strange!!! Other than busily scurrying to get last minute Christmas stuff together, life has been pretty vanilla. How is everyone else out there doing? Any good weight loss goals met recently?

You look wonderful in both sets of pictures but I'm sure you feel FABULOUS in the new ones! Congratulations!!

Soooo, I'm getting a bit discouraged. They unfilled what they put in last time. And, I gained back the weight I lost. Of course, I realize that it is all water weight I lost and gained back, but that means I'm still at a standstill. I know my magic number should lie between 6.5 cc (where I can eat anything) and 7.5 ccs (where I can't drink anything). I yearn for the day I can feel restriction. Sometimes, I feel it and sometimes I don't. I can still eat bread and all of the things I shouldn't be able to eat and that actually makes me sad. i need to know something will get stuck if I eat it so I won't WANT it. I'm still working through the food issues, but it makes it harder when you can still have what you probably shouldn't be eating. Eeeeeek! When I try to measure out my food, I am STARVING after just the 4 ounces of protein and half a cup of veggies. How much in your band did it take to reach your "sweet spot"? What foods can't you have and how much can you eat?

I'm so sorry you went through all of that Debi...That is horrible! I can't imagine living that far away. The right number definitely is hard to find. I have some restriction where I'm at, but, (eeek!) I can still eat bread. I think that's a bad sign. If I stall out losing, I may ask for just a touch more in the band, but otherwise I think I am good. I really am staying full longer.

Definitely call your doctor and get your band unfilled. Same thing happened to me this week. My band actually had more in it than they thought. I was supposed to be at 4.25 cc's and was actually at 7.5 and couldn't get water down. They unfilled me a bit and it was glorius!

So, I went in for my second fill on Monday. It was 2 months to the day of my surgery. When I stepped on the scale at the doctor's office, I was happy to learn I had dropped 4 pounds over the past two weeks without really trying. I was ultra bad on Thanksgiving, caved in, and had 2 rolls....eek! Those went down fine, so when i went to the doctor's office, with 3 cc's in my band, of course I told him I could use another fill. He filled me with another 1.25 cc's and sent me on my way. I had a few sips of water in the office that really went down okay. However, by the time I got home, I felt soooo nauscous! Luckily, since the rest of the family has the stomach bug, I had some anti nausea meds on hand that I took. I did try to eat mashed potatoes and those came back up. I had a sinking feeling I was overfilled. But, I blew it off as swelling and tried to get liquid down in small sips. It was crazy. I would take a sip of water and feel stuck for 20 minutes. Since my baby girl came down with the stomach bug really bad Monday night and Tuesday, I couldn't get away. But, after waking today with an incredibly thirsty body and not being able to even drink, I knew I had to go today. The husband stayed with the baby while I made the 40 minute trek to the doctor. He wasn't in, but his nurse practitioner was. She took me back to unfill under the big fluero machine. She first unfilled me completely. We were both shocked to find that I wasn't at 4.25 cc's...I was at 7.5 cc's! My band must have been partially filled at surgery and there was no record of it. So, she took out 1 cc, leaving me with 6.5 cc's. I can get water down now, FINALLY! And, did I mention I lost 5.5 pounds since Monday? Probably from being so dehydrated! So, I think I should be good here for awhile. I felt a little restriction before and, once I add full foods again, I'm hoping I will be at my sweet spot. Word to the wise------if you think you might be overfilled, go see your doctor ASAP! On a plus side, I'm now under 300 **applause** Have a great day, everyone!

Thank you so much! They overfilled me on my second fill and had to take more liquid out today. I'm curious to see what I will be able to eat and what I won't be able to eat. I should be at my sweet spot, though....or close to

It's good to here from you Fran! Oh, do I have a story for you! I am about ready to blog about it, but long story short, they overfilled me and that SURE sparked weight loss...Haha! Don't worry, they will get restriction soon for you. How much do you have in right now?

How are you doing now? i had my second fill yesterday and am having a difficult time drinking. I hope it has loosened up for you!

Good luck on your journey, Erin! Hang in there....I found a few of my friends who weren't supportive were secretly jealous All that matters is that you and your husband are okay with it and YOU truly want it for yourself. Your story sounds a lot like mine and I wish you only the best!

congratulations! Recovery won't be horrible at all. Just remember to walk, walk, walk as you heal. I promise it will help you heal faster :-) Good luck tomorrow and welcome to the banded world!