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Sasha~ I am right there with you! I wanted to shout from the rooftop last week when I saw 249. I honestly have no idea when I weighed this last? Maybe back in 2001 when I got married? I had some short lived weight loss due to stress and IBS....but after the ceremony it returned and then some (as usual). Have you been measuring as well?? I love seeing the inches go down, down, down!!

I'm told three days by my surgeon because the stomach is being messed with (tightened), going on full liquids allows the stomach to adjust and heal. Every doctor is different. By the third day in afternoon I'm ready for a nice thick bowl of soup:)

I had a panniculectomy (fat apron removal) this summer.....my fill doctor insisted that I have my band completely emptied before surgery....he said that if I should have any vomiting or PB's that it could do damage to the abdominal stitches from my surgery (and I had a 36-inche incisison!). About 3 weeks after surgery, I began my re-fills. I had not even thought about it, but he felt it was very important. And why are you playing games with the doctor and not telling him you have a lapband? Don't do that!!

I am 25 and I weigh 308 lbs. today. I started my journey at 324 lbs. I want to know if any one else is on the same road as I am. I have been obese for my entire life. I can't walk a flight of stairs without getting out of breath. Yesterday was the first time in about five years that I got out of the house and walked around the neighborhood. I was always a couch potato. I would eat all day long. Any time my mood changed good or bad I would eat. Anytime I watched T.V. I would eat. I just ate a bunch of junk food like, nachos, bags of chips, candy bars, chocolate chip cookies, buttered popcorn, etc. Even after eating all day I would always take something sweet upstairs to bed. I have even let my daughter follow the same paths as I have. She is five years old and she wants McDonald's everyday after school because her granny always takes her. She is not too big now (51 lbs.) but her doctors always check her blood pressure because she is in the top 10% of her age on the weight chart. When I decided to get my life together and stop killing myself I decided to turn her around on the right track also. She cries out in the stores and throws temper tantrums because her granny won't take her to McDonald's anymore and I threw out all of the sweets and fattening foods out of our house. She is coping better now. I bought sugar free Popsicles, fat free pudding a jell-o, and different healthy snacks that she can have. I also don't let her have these things until she eats her meals including vegetables. I have forced myself to stay on my four week EAS AdvantEdge pre-op diet. I will be banded on June 13th. Every time I see a restaurant or a commercial about food and start craving unhealthy foods, I just imagine myself fitting into my size 12 nightie. I would like someone to give me encouraging words or tell me about your experiences with you weight issues.

GOOD LUCK!! Your doctor or diatician should have given you guidelines for what they want you to drink/eat during the first 6 weeks of post banding. Call your doctor, it seems like everyone in here has different guidelines! If not, definitely look in here for a list of things to purchase before surgery! Happy banding!! Terri

Janet, you are such an inspiration and support! I am so so happy for you that you are in such a great place! Have a great week getting ready for this blessed event!

My surgery date is set, and I started two weeks of liquid yesterday. Wow. This past week was profoundly emotional for me. Being a pretty level-headed, stable guy, I found myself a nervous wreck coming up on the liquid diet. Also, got very weepy with my wife, feeling guilty and ashamed of how I had let myself go. :thumbup: Anyone else experience this?? Starting the process (liquid diet) has re-grounded me... I am focused and ready for this new healthy life, sans high bp, type 2 diabetes, high chol, etc...

AS far as I know you perfectly fine & within a few more weeks you should start to even out. Its normal for your body to go through changes when coming off of certain meds & regiments. The best thing is to talk with your Doc- But I say your just fine:0)

Chrisann, is everything okay because you're still in such pain after almost a week out? Are you just healing slower?

I forgot you had a hernia repaired at the same time. That in itself takes a good week or two to heal from. And the dry heaving sure didn't help. Hope you are feeling well soon!

i would follow exactly what your dr told you to do. you have only done a week or so, i had to follow fluids for 3 weeks. the problem is that if you dont allow your sutures to anchor in properly, and form the correct amount of scar tissue, you could have a much more increased risk of slippage, and other complications down the track, you dont want the firt time you do a PB, you end up with a slip do you.

Wow! You are doing great! I didn't recover quite as well the first week. I hurt bad. I have 6 incisions. Only the big one hurts, though. I am much better now and I am going to the gym. I find the biggest problem is trying to get enough fluids and calories in me. Imagine that! I used to drink 72 oz of coffee everyday plus more! Keep up the good work!

All of the above. Actually, when I slime and get the hurt chest feeling and it's very uncomfortable, etc, even if it doesn't come back up (which is technically a PB) and it ends up passing through, I treat it as a PB and do liquids. So take it easy, or easier! You can really get yourself into a downward spiral with things getting stuck. Some folks will have a fill kick in weeks later, some will have trouble during that time of the month, and many have one episode which brings on another and another. Chew chew, make it your goal to eat things that go on past the band, rather than staying up top like you normally would eating like a Big Girl Bandster. Go back to recovery/healing stage like you did post-surgery and let the area heal. Mushies, etc. Give it some time, especially after all these episodes. And read other posts, too. You are not the only one and you are right on track for diagnosing the problem. It will get better, just go slow.

Sometimes you can have restriction like what you are explaining and other time you don't. In my case I could easily eat a normal portioned meal so I needed a fill. Sounds like you are still early in the healing stage and may have some swelling which feels like restriction. I would be curious if you have the same level of restriction in a few weeks. Glad you are doing well. I love my band.

Oh my goodness, I am the queen of surgeries. 1.)Hysterectomy (uterus only) 2.)Tubes/Overies/Appendix (three years later) 3.)Thryoid Removed 4.)Disk replacement in neck 5.)Carpal Tunnel 6.)Gall Bladder Now Number #7 Lap-Band! You should be fine! I am!

Did you miss me? Or are you saying, Who is this newbie??:sad: I intended to be away for about 12 days…12 weeks later, here I am. So many posts to respond to, so little time. But to give you a significantly abbreviated update on my life… Went on a short vacation. While there, a good friend died. 53 years old. Dead. I got to spend some quality time with her in the hospital, but it definitely was not the holiday I had planned. Did see my ex; in fact, because of the circumstances of my visit, I ended up staying with the ex and the new wife. As my ex and I were always friends, this isn’t as ‘trendy Hollywood Pamela Anderson-ish’ as you might think. We (myself, ex, and new wife) are adults and we act like them…no issues. I flew to and from my holiday/vigil. My observations for what they are worth: small flights (lower altitude) no impact on band; longer flights/higher altitude – great restriction for a day or two after!:smile2: Speaking of restriction: had a small fill (1cc) end of June. Fine in the clinic and for 2 days then suddenly I couldn’t swallow spit…2 hour trip to the clinic for a small unfill (1/2 cc)……ahhh, relief. 2 hour drive back home. Last week, 1/4cc back in…and that lovely feeling of restriction is back. I love my band. Nurse really wants to ease me back up, and I ceded to her experience rather than my ‘fill ‘er up’ whim. So far, so good. The good thing is that I am no longer morbidly obese, am in wonderland, and have hip bones (there was some doubt about that!).:ohmy: My mother has been spending a few weeks every couple of months with me…I love to have her stay, but she drives me nuts!! How ungrateful/bad does that make me??? But as I am reluctant to leave her alone for any length of time (she can’t open the exterior doors as they are too heavy for her, and I’m terrified she will trip over a cat as she sees only out of one eye now, and very limited vision with that one) so it means being really creative with how I get my 8 hours a day at work done! And of course, this is at the same time we are trying to do minor renovations in the house and it is in total chaos. Oh, and I received a promotion ()…need to put in lots of extra hours to ‘learn the ropes’ (rats) and figure out what’s going on before I change everything! And I have upped my exercise variety and frequency…albeit I still have a long way to go to match many others. Nevertheless, I have increased my exercise, and it is helping – if only because I have less time to sit in the house and hear the refrigerator calling to me… OK - now on to reading and responding to all of your posts....

I highly doubt you've gained a true 4-6lbs in a week. That means you had to have eaten over 14,000 extra calories, and that's doubtful. Note that the scale can go up 10lbs in one day, for various reasons. Have you eaten a lot of salt? Eaten a lot of carbs? Are you getting your period soon? All of this can cause weight gain on the scale; again, not a true weight gain. More than likely it's Water weight. I wouldn't sweat it. Stay off the scale for a few days and re-weigh.

My surgeon gives me a little numbing shot first, so I don't feel the fill at all. The numbing shot stings for a second. Also, he has me lying down on my back while he does the fill, so there's no risk of fainting. Did your doc specifically tell you not to eat solids BEFORE a fill? Every doctor is different, but mine doesn't have any requirements for beforehand. He says to "take it easy" for the rest of the day afterwards. One thing that happened to me after my second fill, I was fine for a day and a half right after the fill. Then all of a sudden the band felt really tight the next day. So take it easy for a few days after a fill. Chew very well, wait a minute or two between bites to see how you feel. As it gets fuller and fuller, you'll start to see what it really feels like to have a band. It's an adjustment, but well worth the small hassle. P.S. I've even suddenly felt very tight TWO WEEKS after a fill! Why? I have no idea! The band can be fickle, but I love it anyway....

It might be that u could be eating slightly too much in one go and the food is slow to go down into your main stomach, i had this a couple of times over the past few weeks and i can tell its because i was feeling very full. Also eating highly flavoured spiced/salty/fatty food can all add to the problem, try having 5 smaller meals a day and not eating anything acidic like fruit too .. It migh tbe also that u need a small unfill, if u are concerned go back to your dooctor and discuss with him Colds create a lot of mucus so could be your pouch is struggling a little with that too ..

Hey there - hang in there as many of us were hungry too - it's just a matter of finding good liquids that you like/may fill you up more. Call your doc's office for better instructions cuz this is most imp to not eat anything you aren't suppossed to - the first three weeks are really for healing and keeping that band stiched in place so don't cheat! i had to do Clear Liquids for one week then i could have some more types of liquids for the rest of the three weeks - no milkshakes for me though as those are too thick - i had v8 juice (used to hate it), thinned tomato Soup, sugar free hot cocoa, full strength juices (yum), ramen noodle broth, myoplex lite Protein Shakes, Iwas instructed to not really worry about calories just healing so you can be pretty creative. good luck - this will pass soon.

Leading up to surgery, a good supply of liquids...remembering that this is only for 7 days (in my wife's case). Most people here could do that in their sleep. After surgery, healing. You aren't looking to lose weight. Joy would have a instant breakfast and make it taste a bit better with a scoop of ice cream. As the swelling goes down you start getting hungry...stick to your "heavy liquids". She loved the cream of potato soup and V-8. Joy had her two week post-op appt today and the doc put her on mushies. Her first BIG meal in the last three weeks.......mashed potatoes. Good luck!

My first advice is to ask your doc for what they recomend bcause you will see here you will get many and varied responses. All docs seem to have different ideas of what liquids are. I am in my second week of liquids. I am only allowed my 3 protein drinks a day and broth or sugar free jello or sugar free pudding or popsicles. Hang in and do what your doc says I am in disbelief that I am almost done my 2 weeks this is the best I have been able to stick to something.

Well, about 6 weeks ago, my husband and I attended a seminar for Lap Band Solutions led by Dr. Scott Stowers. In the ensueing weeks I have found out that my insurance has an exclusion for bariatric surgery. My wonderful hubby told me that he would support what ever decision I made and would be there for me every step of the way. (I so love my hubby!) As a result, I am going to be a self-pay patient. I have my appointment with Dr. Stowers on Dec. 22nd. Hopefully my surgery will be in January. I am very excited.

After 19 months I've only just had my first fill a few weeks ago. I am one of the small precentage of banders who had complications. (Not sure what that was about) Still After all these months I believe this was a good choice for me. I was one who had been underweight for the first half of my life. I only breifly was at a normal weight. The rest found me at 279 lbs at my heaviest. a few persons I know had by-pass surgery. I'd even cared for by-pass patients during my early nurseing years. I knew that was not for me. This banding thing, after musch time on the net and my PCP's cry of too many "pre" stuff to name. Another diet, more shots and pills were not going to do it. An accident had slowed me down physically and mentally. I gained back the 45 lbs I'd lost on my last plan and swing dance class plus a few more. After surgery I lost 100 lbs because I was sick then gained back 20lbs once I could eat again. Now. I get to use my tool, learn new coping skills and cooking methods. I 'm learning to understand my relationship with food and make changes to be healthy for the rest of my life. This is wonderful. I love my surgeon. He confrenced with all my doctors during my illness and I count him as my friend. I'm grateful for the person who created this web site and I'm most thankful for a chance to live a truely abundant life. :frown: