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Hello, I did weight watchers and excercised and lost 45 pounds before my surgery and everything was fine, a friend of mine was not aloud to lose more than 10 pounds but not aloud to gain. I think it depends on your insurance/doctor. Good luck!

Woo hoo ! Way to go ! Keep up the good work ! Since you asked for "1st NSVs " , if I remember correctly, I had also lost my first 19 lbs, and an aquaintance who hadnt seen me in a few months asked me "Have you lost weight ? You look thinner in the face ! ". WOW. That made my day ! That , and cleaning out my closet with bags and bags of too big clothes !! Now, THAT was fun !!

I got mine when I started my liquid diet 10 days pre-op, and I still have it [emoji24] I was sleeved feb 21st! Feels like I've been bleeding forever and just not sure this is normal !

hi i'm claire, i also have two children 6 & 3 and have struggled with my weight since i turned 18 (now 30), they found i had pcos which doesnt help, i also excercise and have been dieting ever since! infact i have dieted my self from 10st up to 15st which never made any sense to me! i finally plucked up the courage and asked my husband and parents to help me fund the surgery and as they know how low i get over my weight they agreed (husband not quite so easy, just concerned i suppose) i was banded on the 23 of june 10 days ago, i havent lost much as yet due to swelling but feel so positive that i have done the right thing and cant wait to move forward with my life. so i know how you feel and its down to you to make the decision, but i'd say go for it ( if youre like me you probably dread the next 10 years feeling trapped in a body you dont deserve, and now i know i dont have to yipee!!!) :Banane30:

Yesterday I had to be at the surgery center by 9:00 for the procedure at 10:00. I think we left to head home around 12:30.

Yes please don't compare. 10 Pds a month is great. Keep it up and don't get discouraged.

I drink soda about once a week. I just shake it up to flatten it a little. I was banded 3/19/2013.

Hello all! I was banded on this past Friday, 10/17 and have been trying to figure out what occurred. I only have 3 incisions- one from where the band was placed, one from where my hiatal hernia was repaired (I'm guessing) and one from where the port was placed. This is unusual, no?

I think motivation is key. That and accountability. That is what the bootcamp does for me. It is led by Jill the nutritionist at TLBC. We start every session by getting weight (they also take measurements at the beginning and end). We also get nutrition tips every week. Week one On our first session we reviewed the “Bandsters 10 Commandments”, the “Daily Nutrition Guidelines” and the “6 reasons for PBing”. In addition we signed a contract saying we will follow the rules and adding a goal for the weight we would like to lose by the end of the boot camp. We then did a very interesting exercise where we wrote out our Hopes, Fears and Expectations when it comes to our weight loss. We went around sharing our notes and it was amazing to see how much we are all alike. It was a great comfort to me to know that I am not the only one who is afraid of failing, of what is going to happen once I loose the weight and I reach my goal. What if I am never going to be satisfied with myself? Week two The second session was titled Awareness. Jill spent the hour driving home the point that “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail”. We had to rate these statements from 1 to 10 like: I am aware that change is necessary/ It is important for me to change/ I will be successful in my weight loss journey etc. You guys can just imagine what scores we gave ourselves. Jill had us erase our scores and give ourselves 10s across the board saying that you will only reach as high as you believe you can. We spent the rest of the session reviewing our habits, that have stopped us from succeeding in the past and what our triggers are. We also keep a food journal that Jill reviews. This week we also had to review the triggers for our cravings. What are the where are we, what are we doing and what do we crave. Week three The last session was titled “getting excited about your life”, about showing gratitude for today, and our successes in life so far. We went around and each of us shared some of our successes and described ourselves as our friends would describe us. (Our friends would never say we are fat or ugly or losers). We discussed how if you’ve got happiness on hold until you get to the “destination”, you’re never going to have it. The key is to enjoy the little things you see along the way and use them to divert you from the temptations that can lead you off the path. I know this posting is kind of long but I find myself in the mood to write lately. I think it’s somewhat therapeutical for me. Let me know if you guys would like more details. I was at a plateau for the last two months before I started this program and I was getting a little down on myself. It’s still me doing all the work now, however the boot camp gave me the incentive I needed to focus on my goal, make some changes and just plain do it.

Going to be "on the table" in just a few hours. I have lost over 15 lbs in the past 10 days from pre-op diet. My mind says do you really need to go ahead with this drastic surgery. Experience reminds me that I always lose quickly on liquid diets but then it ALWAYS comes back! Here I go!!!!!!!!!

Im currently on day 7 and I didn't really turn a corner until day 4. The first 3 days are the worst. It also hurt when I breathed but I mad it a point to take 6-10 long slow deep breaths every hour. My doctor gave me a spirometer to breathe into. I wouldn't worry about throwing up the one time, could have been the pain meds or the pain itself. Just hang in there, the next couple of days will be so much better, I promise!

Clear liquid 1 day PO Full liquids 10-14days as tolerated Mash/soft 10-14 days as tolerated. At 1 month PO I was on my forever diet. I'm 5.5 weeks out and can eat anything now.

Me too! Don't yet feel very restricted at day 10.

I just noticed today that I have stretch marks on my arms, not the inside of my arms but the outside, right above my elbow going all the way up. Those popped up with the last 10-20 lbs I gained. Would they have not been there if I hadn't gained 10 lbs with all my food funeral? Who knows but the damage is done.

Those are great results. You should average a loss of 10 lbs a month. You're doing great. Everyone losses at their own pace. The slower you lose the better your skin will get back.

I too had a very long stall(or a very slow second month). I was sleeved aug 27. My highest weight was 256. My surgery date I was 236. And 2 months out I was 211. 45pounds. Today I am 206. And at the 50 pound milestone. The second month I was sooo discouraged. Because most of that 45 pounds was lost in the first 2 weeks. I talked to some fellow sleevers and discovered that my protein and water intake was way too low. You need a minimum of 60g of protein a day but 70 or more is better! And should also be drinking 60oz of water a day. The other tip I have is keep your carbs under 40(under 30 is better). I agree with everything lollyfiddy1965 says. Because my weightloss was slower then I liked I also began working out. I am on the elliptical 5x a week for 20-30mins. I do some weights 3x a week. And I play rec volleyball for an hour every Tuesday. And I curl every Friday for 2 hours. I eat a lot of Greek yogurt, cottage cheese, chicken and fish. My typical day is also very similar to lollyfiddy1965. I expect my third month to be spectacular as long as I keep following the guidelines. There are still many days where I struggle to meet the requirements. Max 800 calories, max 40g of carbs. Minimum of 60 protein(aim higher) And min 60 oz of water. Keep track of your intake. I use myfitnesspal...a wonderful tool. Hope our tips help you thru this difficult time! And try to remember that it's 35 pounds you'll never gain back! And stay positive it will come!!! I spent my second month in tears(which I'm told is normal) but I've had a much more positive outlook the last 10 days.

Well things have gotten much better since my last fill. 2 weeks of hell afterward seem like a thing of the past now. I still find it difficult to eat anything in the mornings even after I've had 2-3 cups of coffee. Usually I just have my coffee and then a protein supplement. Lunch has been touch and go. Sometimes I can eat sometimes I can't and its another protein supplement. It seems like the flood gates are wide open at night though. By dinner time I'm usually loose enough to eat most things. But I still watch what I eat and keep the portion small, 1/2 to 1 cup of food and I'm done. I did discover today that deviled eggs are working for me. Last night I grilled hamburgers baked beans and deviled eggs for the family. I ate about 1/3 cup of beans, about 3 oz of a hamburger patty and 1 deviled egg. Today at lunch I ate 3 (halves)deviled eggs and had no problem keeping it down. Tonight I went with my DH and DD to a buffet restaurant. I started out with a bowl of cream of broccoli soup It was sooo good! Then I ate 2 small pieces of fish and 2 shrimp with lots of cocktail sauce also a couple of bites of mack and cheese and 2 bites of my DH steak. I steered clear of the desert bar and ice cream machine! Yeah Me! I'm still averaging about 1 pound every 3 days which is supposed to be average. I know it could be more and would be if I would exercise more! The problem is that right now in KY the heat and humidity have put the heat index at 105-110 every day. I'm not a morning person during the summer time and by the time I get up at 8 - 9:00 it's already to hot to walk. I have to wait until 9:00 at night to walk my 2 mile route. But my DS is on 2 baseball teams and for the past week I've been at the ballpark every night, but 1 until at least 10:00. I did walk on the 1 night that I was not at the ballpark. But I know it needs to be more. I just don't like walking that late at night by myself! I am starting to get a little nervous though as it is getting close to time for Aunt Flo to visit again. That's when I went through the 2 weeks of liquid hell last month. The week of Flo being here and the week after. I was filled 2 days before her visit and I'm pretty sure that I'm one of those people that retains so much water during that time that it makes my band tighter! :thumbup: I guess time will tell and I'll know in about another week or so!

In 9/08 I started to exercise daily and progressively improved my food choices. From then through presurgery and after I have lost 109 pounds; with 27 since surgery in 8/10. Personally I think those shows on TV that have someone with huge pieces of extra skin are questionable. MOST people don't end up like that; which is why people that do go on TV. Is sensational. Okay off my soap box. I don't have excess skin at all. Admittedly I need to lose another 100 so my ideal could be a bit off. Everyone loses weight at different speeds. I don't want to discourage anyone but some people like myself are slow loosers. I follow my doctors orders (measure out 3 oz of protein per meal), eat healthy foods, AND exercise every day for an hour. I have lost an average of 1 pound per week. Today was my 6th fill now at 10 CC's in 11 CC band; and really really really hope this will brings restriction. I don't think doctors really emphasize enough that it can take a while for you to see significant loss; probably until you reach restriction. I think I have been slower because I was already dieting and exercising before surgery so my body was not shocked by a huge change in eating habits.

I really liked my doctor and was so disappointed with everything. I went Monday for my first fill and was very excited! The Dr. would only insert 1 cc/per visit this is going to take forever to have restriction.$200/per visit. Then best of all he uses a reg needle and I question him re: using a Huber non coring needle to access ports and he said that this needle is fine!! I said that I would provide the Huber needle for him and he stated that he would not use it! I question myself re knowledge so went along with it since he is the Dr. he would know and he has been doing this for 5 yrs. After 10 attempts to access the port he said that he did??? I really don't mind the 10 x's but using the wrong needle I have a problem with!! I then returned home and question Allergan the maker of the band re: the proper needle.( I wanted him to be right because I didn't want to think that a dr. doing this surgery and fills would put $ first Huber needles are much more expensive) They took me to their website and sure enough there it is in black and white only to use a Huber needle. They said that they would send the sales rep to speak to him???!!! ( a sales rep that is my point also,like he is going tell him) I feel very disappointed in the fact that I am a self pay $10,000 and they will only give me 1cc/per fill I wanted to be thin by my 40th B-day (April) That I had said from the beginning before the surgery to him. I don't see that happening with 1 cc a month. Then best of all I am putting my health at risk with the Dr. using the wrong needle. The port could core out!! I then would require another surgery. I should have waited until I finished school and my health insurance would cover the surgery but then again it was a gift to myself for my 40th! Now I feel stuck I guess I will have to see what happens at the next appointment. I will NOT LET him access my port unless he uses the Huber. I also printed out the info from Allergan to show him. Now how will he feel with me ?? How do I feel with him??????????????? Did he do damage to my port??????? If he refuses to to use the proper needle I will wait until I have a job with the insurance and try to find another surgeon, that I hear is very difficult. I guess this is what happens when you go to a plastic surgery center that advertises on the radio every hour for LAP-BAND® surgery!!!! I did my check on the surgeon before the surgery and found nothing negative. I just wonder what else do they do to save money that puts me at risk???? All I have to say is WOW!!!!!!

It's weird, I was just sitting here on Monday lamenting about giving up an amazing dress that I have in a size 12. It's clearly too big for me, but it looks and feels great so I'm going to keep wearing it until it doesn't look right anymore. Anywhoooooo...went shopping for a dress to wear for a wedding tomorrow and found one that I'd seen at a high-end store for $229.00 at a different store marked down to $49.99 - I'd fallen in love with it at the higher price, but wasn't about to spend that much on it right now...it's not my wedding and I don't even know the people. I was about to give up but it was almost like the dress had a voice and called me because I saw it as soon as I turned in a different direction. I couldn't believe it, it was the same dress I'd fallen in love with 2 weeks ago at a different store - but dratz...it's a stinkin' size 8...I'm sure I need a 10. I decided to try it on anyway, my lunch break was toast and I didn't have time to go anywhere else. Alas! The size 8 fits great!!!! I was in such a shock I almost cried, but called my niece instead to tell her the news. I said "Guess what size dress I just bought"? She said "Size 8?" I couldn't believe she guessed it right off and asked how she knew? She told me that I'm little...I look little and she's known for a while that I was nearing single digit clothing sizes. The kicker is: I can't tell. My brain has not yet caught up with my body. I don't feel little, I don't look little, I feel the same...just more energetic and a lot more lively - but size wise, I hardly see 10lbs. gone when I look in the mirror naked. I guess my mind will catch up with my physical progress soon. This size 8 is a shocker though!

Hi, I'm from Sydney Australia and I chose this forum because it looked to be the best. I am 33yrs old and I weigh 100kg, my BMI 38. I've decided to change my life and have Lap Band Surgery. Some support me and some don't. My best friend said to me that this is a drastic decision. I think getting to 40yrs old and weighing in at 120kg with more aches and pains than I have now is drastic. There a few things I know about myself and some really difficult truths. I'm lazy and do not like exercise, I love my food and don't need to be hungry to eat, usually at the end of a meal I'm thinking of the next. Love Mc Donalds and there is alot that I won't do, my weight does holds me back. My little girl likes the beach, not a chance! Last summer my other half took her and I stayed at home. Sex life? not much of one due to not being comfortable in my own skin. Really the list goes on. A woman that I know had it done twelve months ago and has dropped 32kg now in a size 10, had a tummy tuck and let me tell you she is looking hot! I spent alot of time on forums reading and rang a few clinics in Sydney that do the procedure. I am booked in for my operation on the 1st of October. At the moment I am doing Optifast and have dropped a little in a few days. It's funny when you make such a decision to change your life that you are in a different head space almost instantly. What I won't to achieve from this decision is change in eating habits, change in the way I view food this means no more calorie counting and yo yo dieting. Oh and I want a new wardrobe!!! I wont to be sexy, feel sexy and successful. It's a shame that one of my closest friends can not see this, this is the friend I mentioned earlier. She rang me last night after having dinner with a friend who had lap band done 8yrs ago. Apparently this woman is constantly throwing up, her teeth have gone rotten and she can not eat anything except for bags of chips and lemonade. This woman states that she has not learned anything about eating habits. Has anyone heard of such a horror story? Wow I've said alot, Just needed to get it out and talk to those who can relate. Thanks for reading and I hope to be as successful on this journey as some of you. Cakes

Aug 10 for me!

This is a favorite of mine, from a Middle Eastern cookbook. It tends to be a hit at parties. It also seems to work out every time I make it, which can't be said for some of the other recipes I've tried. The dough is phyllo, so it's not very heavy and won't expand in your stomach and make you uncomfortable. You can make a big pie or just make a bunch of little single-serving triangles (like spanakopita). The ingredient list is long, but a lot of it is just spices. Ingredients: 4 small or 3 large chicken breasts 2 tsp ground cumin 1 tsp cinnamon; another 1 tsp set aside for later 1 tsp turmeric 1/2 cup chicken stock some olive oil 2 leeks, chopped a handful of chopped parsley (about 1/2 a bunch) a handful of chopped cilantro (same) 2 jars artichoke hearts (canned in oil), chopped 200 g feta cheese, crumbled 2 eggs phyllo dough sheets (about a dozen for a large pie) butter, melted (about 2-3 oz) Bake chicken, covered at moderate heat with spices and stock, about 30 mins; chop the chicken into small chunks, reserve about 1/2 cup of the cooking liquid for later. Stir-fry chopped leeks with olive oil (about 10 mins, until they are soft). Combine chicken, reserved juices, leeks, parsley, cilantro, artichokes, feta cheese, egg, and the extra cinnamon in a bowl; mix well. Be careful not to let the phyllo dough sheets dry out (I roll them back up every time I take one sheet). Melt the butter; use a pastry brush to spread butter all over the sheet. Put the sheet into a greased baking dish, so that the edges hang over. Continue until you have about a dozen sheets, arranged all around the dish. Scoop the filling into the dish; fold over the edges of the pastry sheets. If the pie is not fully covered, butter up a few more sheets and arranged them in the middle so everything is covered. Brush the top of the pie with butter. For a large pie, bake for 20 mins at a moderate-high temperature (I usually go for 350); then for another 20 mins at moderate temperature (e.g. 300), until the pastry is golden.

You're on clears - of course you feel hungry. It's pretty common, actually, and persists until you're on solid foods and chewing again. Four days out you still have ghrelin in your system, you're probably still making too much acid even if you're on a PPI (can take 10 days to really take full effect) and you're used to eating...but now you're on a clear diet. It's normal and will pass. And everyone is different. Some people immediately on solids could eat what I was still struggling to eat a year out. We're all different. ~Cheri

So I am 10 weeks post-op and feel like I’m not losing like I should! I know everyone’s journey is different, but I feel like I’ve hit a wall and stopped losing. Month one was great! Month two...not bad. So far this month I keep losing and gaining the same 2 pounds! I do have PCOS, could the be contributing to the slower weight loss? I know if I don’t get all my protein in that could cause me to lose lean muscle, but can it cause the scale not to move? Am I eating all the wrong things? Am I eating too much? It seems as though once I was able to eat solids and started to go to the gym my weight loss has slowed. Has that happened to anyone? I know I shouldn’t be focusing on the scale but it’s very frustrating when it doesn’t move. I do take my measurements so I can see if there is a loss there. I just thought I should be farther a long. Should I just toss my scale? Im worried the surgery isn’t working right!! HELP! Thanks for letting me vent!!