JoanneD

I don't feel anything except when I get a fill. Then the doctor really needs to poke at the port to get to it (I'm not very lucky that way) and when he's poking for the port, and moves it with the needle, I feel the band around my stomach. Feels a bit weird, but nothing more than that.

Hi everyone! Just wanted to pop my head in and say hi. I was banded in Winnipeg on Tuesday the 26th, and so far, so good. I live in North Van, so there's absolutely no reason for me not to attend the monthly meetings, except that I travel a lot for work. So I've got my fingers crossed that I can be there for the May meeting.

As of today, I've lost 18 pounds on the pre-op diet (I did a whole MONTH of Protein shakes ) and another 3 since then. I'm 4 days post-surgery, and I was hungry within an hour of getting up. So I broke out another shake. Yesterday, about half of a shake would fill me up, so I'm not yet eating as much as I was pre-surgery. Good thing because I was in pre-op hell for a while. So far so good!

I'm 4 days post op (is that all? It feels likes weeks!) and I started exercising yesterday. I took my dog for a stroll. Can't even call it a walk, we went so slowly. But it was nice to get out, and work some of the kinks out of my back from sitting at home all day. Today I'll take another walk, a bit faster this time. I have to wait three weeks before I can go to aquafit. That's my exercise of choice, with my best friend. I'm looking forward to going back.

I love this thread; I'm glad you started it. These are just as important as any other victory that can come out of this process. My NSV: I know that I'm an emotional eater. I know that I'll need long-term counselling to work my way through it. Yesterday, I had a bit of a meltdown. Just a small one, but my go-to solution would have been to eat until the bad feeling would have been replaced by a full feeling, to be replaced later on by a bad feeling again (for the emotional upheaval AND for having overeaten). So I was feeling anxioud about a bunch of things, and feeling blue too - the weather outside was dismal, and it was just one of those days. And I felt lost because I couldn't turn to food. My husband and I sat together, and I talked it out. For a while I actually grieved that food wouldn't be my best friend anymore. And then my wonderful husband helped me make some intelligent food choices (I ate some cut fruit) and I felt just fine after. So I guess that at the end, this WILL affect the scale in a positive way, but at the time, the victoria was all about my head and my support system.

:DWhat a great team player, for taking one for us - yay Spot! Much more seriously, I`m glad you came out of the other side of that bad experience. Here`s hoping that`s the roughest spot (no pun intended, but effective) you'll come across. JoanneD

Way back in July last year I poked my head out on this board to say that I was thinking about lap band surgery. Nine months later I'm back. Since then I've forged ahead, and right now I'm on a four-week pre-op diet. I'm scheduled for surgery at the Maples Surgical Centre in Winnipeg on April 26, and then I'll get all my aftercare at False Creek. So right now I'm in pre-op diet hell. The weekends are the toughest, but I'm hanging in there. My biggest challenges are weekends and when I'm on the road, and I've had a few successes in both areas, so I'm encouraged. I'll poke my head back to see what's going on, and I was wondering what day the meeting at Lions Gate is now. I saw that there was some discussion about changing the date. Bye for now, and have a good week, everyone! JoanneD

Apparently, after a certain amount of time, you can't edit an old post. So I've decided to post it in a separate message. My apologies to those who had posted their surgery date in the last couple of days. I've been off my computer, and I'm just getting back on today. So if your name isn't on here, and you'd like it to be (or it should be), just reply to this post, or you could send me a private message, and I'll get you right on. ********************************* Hey, I thought I'd put a list together with everyone's name, date of pre-diet start and date of surgery, so we can keep those people in mind on their special day. Here's who has shared their informaiton to date: If anyone wants to add their name to the list, just post in this thread, and I'll be glad to keep the list updated (every day or so) Brenda, pre-op diet March 26, surgery April 4 (Bandster) merriemish, surgery April 4 (Bandster) Woodslass, pre-op diet March 21, surgery April 5 (Bandster) imtoxic, surgery April 5 (Bandster) Spot, pre-op diet March 22, surgery April 6 (Bandster) Carerjem, surgery April 6 (Bandster) EastEndMTBr, pre-op diet March 30, surgery April 6 (Bandster) kkf1979, pre-op diet March 24, surgery April 7 (Bandster) Lukesdiesel, surgery April 11 (Bandster) saundrac, pre-op diet April 2, surgery April 12 (Newly banded!) Bandit!, surgery April 13 (Good luck today!) emptyNest, pre-op diet March 30, surgery April 14 Mmichelle, pre-op diet April 1, surgery April 15 Andytim, surgery April 15 MissMelo, surgery April 18 slm2007, surgery April 18 GlitterG, pre-op diet April 8, surgery April 18 KaylaTX, pre-op diet March 24, surgery April 18 bookwoman, surgery April 19 TerriF, surgery April 20 Annabelle, surgery April 20 Musarion, surgery April 21 Peaches78, pre-op diet April 5, surgery April 26 JoanneD, pre-op diet March 30, surgery April 26 1970MaleJaxFL, pre-op diet April 13, surgery April 28 Jessica, pre-op diet April 15, surgery April 29 mgottbeg, surgery end of April Be sure to check regularly, so you can cheer on your fellow Bandsters on the first day of the rest of their life! JoanneD

Annabelle, welcome to lap band world! It can sure be a long and convoluted process. If you want to keep in touch with a bunch of great people who are being banded on the same month as you, come join us in the April 2011 Bandsters board. It`s great to chat with those who are exactly where you are in terms of their weight loss journey. I'm on a pre-op diet for four weeks - two Protein shakes, one Protein Bar, and two cups of veggies a day. It`s a challenge, especially on weekends, or when I host a party (like yesterday). I'm told the pre-op weeks are the toughest, or maybe I'm choosing to believe that. Nevertheless, it's getting me through these days of deprivation. Good luck!

This pre-op diet is for the birds. Actually, it's more for bunnies. I'm having my two shakes, one Protein bar, and lots of veggies. Today I'm done week 1 of 4. Yes, 4 weeks of the pre-op diet! I'm whining a bit but I've had a big success already. I travel a lot for work and one of my biggest challenges is what I eat when I'm on the road. Yesterday and today I had my shakes, and other than that, it was just veggies. dinner was a salad with chicken breast and dressing on the side. If I used 1/8 of a teaspoon of dressing, that was it. I'm also practicing the tiny bites / chewing a gabillion times. So eating about a third of the salad yesterday took almost an hour. Tonight I ate about 2/3, but I was able to do the small bites and chewing, all while chatting with colleagues. So I avoided the emotional eating I'm famous for when I'm travelling, and I was able to eat healthy and a small portion, while my tablemates had pizza and fish and chips. So even though I want to stamp my feet that I have three more weeks of this diet, I'm really happy at what I've accomplished so far. Small victories, small victories. That's my mantra.

We took those pictures last night (with tight clothing, not nekkid). I also took all my measurements, and I've entered them into a handy Excel spreadsheet. I figure we'll take pictures monthly, to see how I'm progressing. Yet another step in getting ready for our surgery, guys!

Brenda, wishing you the best of luck, the easiest of surgeries, and the promptest of recoveries. Check in to tell us how you're doing! JoanneD

Well, I guess you'll just have to come and visit, then! We could visit a few VV's and then go to A&W, for a salad, not a poutine. Cheers, Joanne

If it helps to put it in a different perspective, the reason you don't get a fill right away is to let your stomach heal. After surgery, no matter how minor it is, tissue will swell, and it'll take some time for the swellling to go down and the stomach to heal. So I'd guess having a fill could close you right up. Consider all that's happening a rite of passage. Most have to go through a pre-op diet (I've started to want to chew on furniture I'm so hungry sometimes), and then we have up to six weeks of liquids, mushies, and then working our way to solid food. So in 6 weeks you'll be back to solid food. Six weeks, in the big scope of things, isn't all that long. At least, that's what I tell myself. Good luck, keep your chin up.

Hey, I thought I'd put a list together with everyone's name, date of pre-diet start and date of surgery, so we can keep those people in mind on their special day. Here's who has shared their informaiton to date: If anyone wants to add their name to the list, just post in this thread, and I'll be glad to keep the list updated (every day or so) Brenda, pre-op diet March 26, surgery April 4 (our first surgery of the month - how are you doing, Brenda?) Woodslass, pre-op diet March 21, surgery April 5 (Yay for Woodslass!) Spot, pre-op diet March 22, surgery April 6 (One of three done today - hope all is well!) Carerjem, surgery April 6 (Two of three - Here's to very little pain, or good drugs to deal with them) EastEndMTBr, pre-op diet March 30, surgery April 6 (Three of three - congratulations!) kkf1979, pre-op diet March 24, surgery April 7 (Safe travels to Toronto and good luck tomorrow!) Lukesdiesel, surgery April 11 saundrac, pre-op diet April 2, surgery April 12 Bandit!, surgery April 13 emptyNest, pre-op diet March 30, surgery April 14 Mmichelle, pre-op diet April 1, surgery April 15 Andytim, surgery April 15 MissMelo, surgery April 18 slm2007, surgery April 18 KaylaTX, pre-op diet March 24, surgery April 18 TerriF, surgery April 20 Musarion, surgery April 21 Peaches78, pre-op diet April 5, surgery April 26 JoanneD, pre-op diet March 30, surgery April 26 Jessica, pre-op diet April 15, surgery April 29 mgottbeg, surgery end of April Be sure to check regularly, so you can cheer on your fellow Bandsters on the first day of the rest of their life!