Knaroz

i was told not to submerge the incisions for 4 weeks (showers only no baths/soaks or pool). Doing any earlier could aggravate the healing and also cause you to expose the wounds to staph.

Yeah there is this awesome behind the ear patch they can call in for you to help with that.

Yeah believe me males go through this too lol. When I started I was wearing a size 60 pants. I bought some new dress pants last weekend size 38. I have never been in the 30's lol I went straight from Husky as a kid into 40's lol. Congratz on your journey and all the good stuff to come!!

are you crushing them or taking them whole? After being banded I was crushing my cholesterol (Liptor generic) and blood pressure pills and taking with apple sauce and it was actually causing small burns on my throat and tongue. Luckly I had blood work done and I no longer had to take the pills.. If you are crushing them you might want to see if there is a liquid or powder alternative you can take.

LOL the image of the band playing pingpong on my internal organs was a bit painful lol. So far I have not gotten sick *knock on wood* so I cannot answer this but I have always wondered this myself. I am actually a lot less sick since I have had the band but I am not sure if it is this fear in the back of my mind that makes me take better care of myself or what

yeah that helps as well we have smaller plates in the house and use cocktail forks (shrimp forks) and baby spoons, which helps too

Everyone is different. Every body is different. I have found that there are "triggers" that my body gives me when I am full but my brain doesn't realize I am full yet. My nose may start to run a little. I hiccup one time. Weird things, but it is just my body talking to me. As you continue down your road you will learn to listen to your body. And if you ever ignore it don't worry it will let you know lol.

I take gummy no issues

Thanks Cat!!!

@Jenn1214, if you ask your doc there is actually a liquid (powder) Antibotic (its made by the same people that make Z Pak) but it is a powder you add to Water. Its pretty nasty tasting but works really well and you dont have to worry about getting stuck. @cat, yes my doc says no pill larger than the size of a pencil eraser. We just crush anything larger we have to take. Anything time released you need to speak to your doc see if there is a liquid or chewable form. Yes we take a multi but it is a gummy. Good luck!!

You are only eatting 500-600 cals a day? AND exercising on top of that? That is your biggest problem. You are throwing your body into starvation mode. Believe me I did the same thing, come out of the gate eatting low exercising high and I ran into the EXACT same problem. Up your calories to 1000-1200 and you will see the weight start flying back off.

Another MFP user as well. So far it has been the best of all the ones I tried, syncs between mobile and pc and has a HUGE database.

Pineapple we just chew really well then spit out the fibrous residue, same with tough meats, although that is a toughie when eating in a restaurant lol. Asparagus we take a knife and start at the seed end and barely push the knife in bit by bit til we meet resistance, and eat that portion of the stalk and throw the rest away. Its a bit expensive so we dont do it often. Popcorn we have no problems with, well on my 4th fill I don't eat NEAR as much as I use to but still enjoy it every now and then

Yeah as long as you can get down clear fluids you should be ok. They will probably tell you to go back to fluids for a day or 2. Could be anything but again as long as you can get down at least clear fluids. If you can't you need to call ASAP because that will only lead to an ER visit when you get dehydrated.

right there with you tnt. I started it right after my release date from surgery ~ the end of August 2010. It took til close to the end of October mid November before I could complete W1D1 and then it got so cold I have not been able to start back. Of course that was about 80 lbs ago too. I am interested in seeing how i can do when it warms up a bit more.

I like those from Sonic but I have found what gets stuck is the tortilla wrap. I just order it and eat the inside out of it.

Also depends on how much attention the Doc puts on stitching it to your muscle. My doc really gets it good so that doesnt happen later.

Yeah I don't think I had a cath either but I did have an issue going after the SG. My Doc requires that you go at least once in the recovery room (to make sure you can ambulate, etc) and my SG took like 1 hour, it took me 3 IV bags and 6 hours on a fast drip before i could ever pee lol. Apparently I am part camel

Same started at close 400 in July 2010 and in Jan I was down 100 and now down almost 120. For guys I hear it is a lot easier, my wife's is definitely coming off slower but she has lost over 50 since Sept. And yes believe me, I have the excess skin to show that I lost the 100 in 6 lol

I know how you feel one of the main reasons I woke up and had the surgery is I was having a hell of a time with my left knee. Take it slow, if you have access to a pool do Water aerobics instead of jogging/running as that will take some off your knee. Also as you loose weight you will notice that the knee will get stronger. Dont do squats or lunges as those can really mess up a weak knee. Go to a sports store or a ortho doc if you have access let them tell you the kind of knee brace that would help you while the pounds come off. I picked up a jumper's brace as my biggest issue was my knee cap felt like it wanted to slide out of socket when I walked/jogged and this holds it in place. Just don't ignore it, the last thing you want to do is mess up your knee and cause you any setbacks.

Yeah I am hoping you misheard him because I have never heard of anyone being at or neat max cap on a band before even the ones that have had the band for years. Does he do Fluro with his fills? I would request a barium pouch test, it almost seems as though your pouch might not be in the right position, or it might have slipped.

Do you remember the title of the post with the samples. I have yet to find that lol. And each one has its own taste, I find that instead of buying a case I go to GNC or local health store, pick one brand on each trip and keep going like that til I find one I like THEN I buy in bulk lol. So far my new favorite is at Walmart. It comes in a big red vial called http://www.walmart.com/ip/Body-Fortress-Super-Whey-Protein-Shot-Fruit-Punch-Supplement-17.4-oz/13274526 That is for a case, or you can buy them singular in the store for around 1.84 They are 26g Protein for 110 calories which comes out to 4.23cal/g. Seeing that protein has 4cal/g that means they are only adding .23cal from other things into it which is really nice.

Below ~ 1000-1200 you put your body into starvation mode. It bottoms out your metabolism and your weigh loss stops, and even in some cases you might gain a bit. 600 cals a day from a doctor is scary. I was losing great after surgery and then it just stopped. I started tracking and I was only taking in about 400 calories a day and was exercising on top of that. I bumped my cals up and the weigh started to drop again. If you dont give it what it needs, it will take what it wants and that will come from lean muscle mass, not fat. Use a site like Myfitnesspal.com that calculates your BMR for you and gives you a deficit to work towards. Heck I have even noticed at 1200-1500 that if my weigh starts to plateau, to have a "good" day eat 2k calories and the weigh starts dropping again. The body is a fickle thing, you gotta listen to it. Good luck to you!

Unfortunately a fill is not gonna help if you are not willing to "unlearn" how to eat around the band. No matter how tight it gets if you know and are willing to eat mushies and ice cream etc you will not be able to get the expectations you want. Also if it is still on your plate 30 min after you start you need to stop and walk away. After 30 minutes you are just "grazing" and you will never really feel full and will not get the results you are wanting. Good luck to you both, maybe even talk to the doc psych person see if there are some issues why you are not eating right.

My doc only does fluro fills. If you are self pay it is 150$. Or they bill your ins. Well with my INS until we meet our DED we pay the contracted rate, then after the DED we pay 15%. So until DED is met we pay like 250$ a fill, but after it is met we pay like 25$. They offered to let us do self pay even with INS but since I wanna get my DED met I will pay a bit more up front now for better savings later.