Search the Community

That is great! I started around the same weight and sleeved last week! What an inspiration ! U should be so proud!

Hello I am a lapband investigator (5'10", 325lbs, BMI 46.6). I want it but I am scared. I am hungry all the time and worried that the post op food is not enough. I am also worried about missing out on all my favorites postop and what about going out to eat with family. I don't want to be a drag on them. I am trying to start a pre pre pre surgery weight loss. My cardiologist said for me to lose 5 lbs, I didn't ask in what time frame. I have had two heart stents (last one Feb 25th) and have a bad back. I cannot walk but for 20 min without pain and most exercise is out of the question. I cannot even sweep the floor without pain. I do better with pain med on board but was cut off because of an unfortunate incident with an ER doc. All of my regular docs believed the ER docs statements and I can prove that she was incorrect but the docs are unwilling to believe that one of there own is wrong. What really hurts is that neither doc asked my side. I cry everyday because of this. Everyone notices that I am not my usual self, I am just so down about the pain med episode. Whenever anyone asks what's wrong, I just start crying. I need well wishes. My cardiologist is helping with finding a doc to do my surg. It will be at least three months due to blood thinners before I can have lapband. I am hoping to have everything lined up to go when I can be off the thinners for a while. I have an appt with back doctor Monday. I don't know what will happen then. I have to be off thinners for more back injections so my cardiolodist wants me to try acupuncture too. I will tell her to throw in some extra needles for weight loss. I also have mild psoriasis which is flaring due to stress. Dermatologist is also concerned because some lap doctors will not operate because some may think the psoriaisis is a skin infection. Just started going back to PUVA (light) treatments. I have stopped smoking for 1 month during the middle of all this ruckus so I am trying to take baby steps so that I do not start too much at one time and become overwhelmed. There have been times that I wanted a smoke so bad but I have maintained. Back to the crying thing. I know that part of this is because I have hurt feelings, I also feel that I am being treated unfairly and I am worried about the future of my pain relief. I am in pain everyday but I am afraid to ask for help so I am stuck in a catch 22. I also wonder if I have some sort of chemical imbalance because lately I do tear up a lot more often with tender moments on TV. My primary care provider is useless and we have never really clicked. I keep giving him chances but the reality is I should probably find someone else. I am a creature of habit, he is convenient, and I am afraid that I will get something worse. I do like my cardiologist, he is so personable and friendly. I may ask him for some names when I see him on Friday. I am also having problems with insurance (Aetna). They recently sent me an email stating that I was 8000.00 dollars behind in premium payments. I called someone and they said my premium was 1100.00 a month. Even if that were true, their math still does not add up. Besides I think that they would cancel coverage if a self payor was that far behind. I also recently recieved a letter stating they were not going to pay my hospital bill for the last stent because it was a preexisting condition. Well I swear that I didn't know that I had another blockage until I started having chest pain again. Well I know that this is a lot to read and comment on but if you are up to the challenge please support me. You all are my only support that I can really talk too. I am also thinking of making a psychiatry appt. I am not a wacko psycho but feel that it couldn't hurt. Robert

Hello Mandi Thanks for the info. The woman in dauphin Did she get a new band ? I wonder who is doing her fills now? Are you in touch w/ her? I probably would not want to see the doc that made a boo boo. I have booked flight to Toronto for Nov , since TLBC books the first fill 6 weeks after surgery. I am going be spend a great deal of time in Mexico this winter:biggrin1: so I guess I do the reverse of every one else and get my fills there!!!!! Thanks mandi and all the others for all you help and info!!! 5 days till I begin my pre-op diet! Oh my gawd I think I 'm going to puke I just realized my surgery is 15 days away :couch2:

I had a tummy tuck 5 months ago and had my band completely de-filled at the request of my PS. She had done surgery on bandsters before and she had 3 main concerns for a de-fill... 1~ The possibility of nausea following surgery. 2~ The need to take numerous pills post-op. I was on pain meds and a full week of antibiotics after my TT. I was tight enough pre-op that I had problems swollowing pills...I'm not sure I could have taken my meds without issues if I hadn't had a de-fill. 3~ There is certainly a chance that you will lose some weight after surgery but my PS also feels that we need to eat very healthfully after surgery so that we heal properly and quickly. Lots of fruits and veggies as well as good solid protein for a few weeks post-op is ideal for optimal healing. You should certainly talk to both your band Dr as well as your chosen plastic surgeon to see how they feel about all of these issues. I would much rather be de-filled before and have no issues than be vomiting or getting stuck after my tummy tuck...that would ~NOT~ have been very pleasant.

My husband has benefitted from my WLS too. He's eating healthier, cut out a lot of carbs, and joined the gym 8 months ago with me. We go 6-7 times a week...... He's down 50 too. Congrats to you snd your hubby. May there be many more NSV's in your future!

One week liquid, three week purée and two weeks soft.

My doctor has me on two weeks liquids, two weeks puree, and two weeks soft. I get to start puree this Thursday and I'm so glad.

It's not the final digestion so much, the exiting from the stomach and breaking down in the intestines, for me it's more the entry into the stomach and initial digestion. If I eat chicken, tuna, or eggs I can only eat an ounce maybe ounce and a half comfortably and even then it feels like I just ate a ball of concrete. I'm 6 weeks out. On the other hand, I think greek yogurt is the sleever's best friend.

Hi everyone! I was just banded last week and everything has been going well so far until day 4 when I am now experiencing problems drinking the protein shakes I was on pre-op. After even a few ounces I feel so full I could explode, get sharp pain in my chest over the upper incision point (heartburn?). I have not had this problem with other clear liquids thus far, even jello or popsicles. When I feel this pain I also feel it intensify if I breathe deeply. I am making them with milk, could it just be that I'm not ready for this yet or something else. I am now having to take mylanta for the heartburn pain which I have never had before in my life. I havent even been taking the percocets for the last two days because there is only mild pain otherwise, but this is stronger. Anyone out there have a similar problem so soon post op? Should I wait it out and continue the meds for a few more days?

Hi there, I'm due to start my pre-op diet on 27th November....totally dreading it. Has anyone started it? How are you doing....What are you doing? Has anyone cheated? Shouldn't really be thinking that way, but when I'm starving I start to get a little panicky and can't seem to cope with life very well. Anyone else have this experience? I can't wait for the two weeks to be over. :help:

Hey all, im Mary from south georgia! im 27, a mom of 2 girls. married for 2years. and im 324 lbs with a bmi of 61! im so fed up with this life of mine. Im ready to do something different. my mom died in her early fifties and so did her mom. her sister died in there 40's. I was 20 when my mom died. i do not want to put my girls in the same sadness i was with her. I have see my pcp and he is referring me to a surgeon, i have bcbs of anthem ppo. so technically i could find my own surgeon but i dont know ppl like that so ill trust him to find me one. Oh did i mention im only 5'1!!! ive been big since i can remember, never been a small girl. I don't have any contributing factors like high bp or diabetes, no sleep apena, none of it, just big ol me! he said he believes with all of the tests and such i should be done with surgery in about 10 weeks. which puts me around november. How he pulled such a number out of is behind is beyond me. but im satisifed with that. It will give me enough time to process this major life change. i enjoy reading everyones posts and hope to find ppl who are similiar to me in size and such and age. i am nervous about the life after surgery. the doctor said id be pretty limited to 4oz of food if not less once i am on mushu or solids. i put a 1/2 measuring cup on my counter everyday and i just look at it. its scary. i go in for my 2nd plate of dinner and i just sigh and think " i reallllly love food" its my comfort and my addiction. what on earth do you do when u r hungry to keep urself from eating and making urself sick?

Definitely call the nearest Lap Band surgeon. But see a doctor soon. 8 lbs is a lot to lose in one week!

Hi. I was banded this past June. I had my first fill almost 2 weeks ago. So far, I've had just minimum restriction. I just had an experience and I wanted to ask if anyone else has experienced something similar: This evening I made broiled salmon fillets. They were probably between 8-9 oz. each. When I had it for dinner, when it was piping hot, I was able to finish the whole fillet. It was a very moist piece of salmon, it fell apart when you put the fork in. Just now, I had a little more however it had been refrigerated since dinner. I got that kind of "full" feeling after just 4 ounces (half the fillet). I'm assuming this is because the salmon was a little less moist since it was cold? So I guess my questions is, do you judge your restriction level and whether or not you're at your 'sweet spot' based on how hot foods go down or cold (since it seems there is such a big difference)? I also don't eat chicken or red meat, so my primary diet consists of seafoods and tofu (which makes me think I'll probably need more restriction than someone else who does eat meats). Perhaps this is why I don't have much restriction after my fill. Thanks in advance!

:frown:Well so much for the beach day, it has been pouring for two days now, so my granddaughter and I have played dolls, dressup and today it will be the "Tea Party" time. God has given us this time together and I will not grumble about the rain, we must need it. Trying to stay on plan with a three year old in the house is harder than I thought! She wants Chicken Nuggets for lunch! Here we go, Fast Food places are places I try to stay away from now, they tempt me too much! I can't have fries now, they come right back out and no bread, so what will I get a thin piece of hamburger meat? No thanks, I'll save my money. May get a happy meal with Chicken Nuggets??? Have a great day all, and my God bless your lives today.:thumbup:

Just wondering if any Australian people have recently submitted applications to APRA for release of super funds. I put my application in on 12 August and still haven't got a response. I have now started to phone every day. Had a small glitch this week with some wording but resubmitted the relevant letter yesterday and after speaking to them today it hasn't reached my file yet. Just wondering once APRA approve how quickly will they provide information to super fund for release of funds. My surgery is in 3 weeks (4 November) and I'm starting to stress that the money won't be through in time.:thumbup:

I got my third fill on July 1. I have a small band (holds 4 ccs), and the dr. filled me to 3cc. On my previous fills, I had no problems, I was on the liquids for a day or two then mushies for a week. I felt restriction. OK. So I haven't lost weight in a year. (I know. I'd been avoiding having a fill) I get this fill on the 1st. I can swallow Water in the office. So I leave. I find myself burping a lot right from the beginning. I start the liquid diet. No real problem at first. I do notice I have to sip and can't take big drinks at all. I am always drinking water and usually manage to drink about 3 big bottles per day on average. I found myself not even being able to get one down, but then all my meals were liquid too, so I think I'm ok on liquids at first. I notice I have to be careful. Drinking Soup is harder than colder stuff. I pb'd a few times. I call the Dr. and ask if this is normal. I'm assured it's OK, sometimes it takes longer for swelling to go down, I'm told. About a week into it I develop reflux, which I've never had before. I wake up throwing up, horrible...very acid. I get to the point where I really can't lay down and I'm feeling sick to my stomach all the time. I call the Dr. He says to take pepcid and see if I feel better. I do at first, but after a day or so it has no effect. I call again, exhausted because I can't sleep, feeling sick much of the day. I'm eating water ice and ice cream milkshakes. These are the only things that don't make me feel sick. Even water makes my stomach upset. They order a Upper GI. I go for that, and can see everything on the screen. The barium in my pouch is a dark mass, and there are thin threads coming down from the band into my lower stomach. I ask about the threads, and the radiologist says that it is the barium, barely eeking into my tummy. I get lightheaded from the lack of food (I couldn't eat from midnight til after noon the day of the test), and almost pass out. I call the dr. the day after the test, and they want me to come in immediately for an unfill. A doctor (mine's on vacation) takes out one cc, leaving me with 2cc in, a half cc less than before I got the last fill. Immediately I find that I can drink more easily and am able to drink about 8 oz of water in five minutes, which is great. Now, last night, we were taking a family member out to eat at a buffet. (we live in Amish country, it's a really fab restaurant). I get some mashed potatoes and gravy....and it's heaven. I missed eating so much. I just wanted to take the band out and be fat. I dont know how this is going to work for me in the future. I have an appt in six weeks for another fill (probably up to 2 and a half ccs--where I was before this last fill). I don't always follow the rules of the band. I've lost a decent amount of weight but not the ideal. Sometimes I wonder if I should have gotten the bypass. I need the discipline of being sick if I eat the wrong thing. But I was so depressed and flat when I couldn't eat. It was a real torture, as being a mom of 4 I had to cook for everyone every day and I couldn't eat anything. It was very hard and very depressing. I lost 10 lbs, but have to say, it was the hardest ten I've ever lost. In the beginning of the last fill, I thought...wow...this is awesome, I can deal with this for a while, losing weight and drinking shakes. But man oh man, that reflux changed that pretty quick. So many emotions...elated when I lost the weight at first, so quickly...then depression when I couldn't eat, exhaustion and lightheadedness when I couldn't eat. I was out with my daughter after the unfill yesterday and thought I might pass out. The feeling of being able to eat those potatoes yesterday...I was so happy, it was like I could feel every cell in my body be happy over finally eating again. My mind got clearer, I could think, and my mood was over the moon. What a rollercoaster ride. Sigh.

Yes... I'm doing well now, I've been avoiding bad food so far, trying to focus on protien first then everything else....trying to rehydrate myself. I feel so "dry" thirsty....even my skin is itchy. I know what I need to do. I need to eat right and exercise. The band helps but doesn't change that. Interesting about the larger bands vs the smaller. I knew they had to change to the bigger band for some reason. While I was on this three week fill adventure, I had to quit my anti depressants (I couldn't swallow them), deal with some rather annoying teen dramas from my eldest child, and couldn't turn to food for comfort or help with my emotions. I felt like a bug pinned on a board. Trapped and stuck. I couldn't move away from the problems, couldn't medicate, couldn't soothe myself, didn't feel well, and on top of that I couldn't even sleep. I told my DH at one point that I felt like I wanted to just get up and walk away from myself. (if you can understand that) I wanted to just "leave" myself and be someone else.

I went through something similar with my last fill and broke down and went in for a partial unfill and it was the best thing to do IMO. I was eating so little, it actually was kind of stalling my weight loss. I was also totally miserable, never knowing if I'd be able to get anything down or keep it down if I did. Eating became something I was almost afraid of doing, which isn't healthy. It couldn't hurt to get a bit taken out and see if you feel better. Good luck. :thumbup:

Back in December my doctor and I discovered I possibly had a leak in my port. We waited a couple of months to see exactly how much Fluid I was leaking and finally decided to replace my port on February 17th. My doctor only left 5.5 in my band but after 2 days of liquids and 2 of soft foods I could eat whatever I wanted to eat. I called the office and scheduled a fill for Thursday (2/26). After several attempts at finding my port he put me under flo and discovered my brand new port had flipped but after pushing and pulling and maipulating my body he was able to give me a fill. He took me up to 6.2...I have been as high as 6.8 so we both did not see this being a problem. We were both very wrong. I was able to drink Water when I left the office and drank a smoothie on the way home (I was in some pain from all of the pushing and have some bruising so I did not go to work). That night I had some problems drinking a smoothie but just thought that my system is just a bit swollen and irritated (I did just have surgery last week and then the difficulties getting the fill). I woke up a couple of times coughing but did not think much of it. The next morning I got my usual Frap took a couple of small sips and threw up all over myself on my ride to work. I called my boss and told her I would be working from home and explained the situation to her. I went home and threw up a few more times and e-mail the doctors office (I did not want to be too much of a pain) after several e-mails back and forth the patient advocate told me to wait 4-6 hours and try to sip warm tea that my body is swollen and my stomach is irritated. I waited slipped and threw up...and have thrown up several time since. My husband contacted her last night via phone and she told him to tell me not to try anything until this morning....same song and dance. I am completely miserable, I have called the doctor's voice mail and left a message and hope he will call back soon. Any suggestion please???

You know what, Nance . . . I had a feeling that was going to be the case. Darn it all . . . . that mushy stage just had me eating too many carbs, I think. I had a really difficult time cutting them out during that stage. And I *know* I'm one of those people that just does not tolerate carbs well. I've just never been able to restrict myself to such low calories before like I am able to with this band (even unfilled), so I thought the low calories would be enough. I am going to try cutting out some carbs this week. I'm also waiting for that blasted time of the month and I'm hoping it will help me release all of this Water I seem to be retaining, too.

I also had H Pylori and got to take the monster antibiotics. My preop was protein shakes, veggies, no carbs and protein everything including meat! If I was busy at work and got off late I would go to Golden Corral and pick up baked chicken. I didn't cheat once because I was so scared that my liver wouldn't shrink and they wouldn't to my surgery. I had eggs and bacon for breakfast (no toast) and it wasn't bad at all. Surgery went great and now at almost 6 weeks out I can eat pretty much anything. But only a little bit!

Maybe chilli if you're going for fast food like Wendy's or a meatball in sauce if you're going Italian or to a pizza place. Scrambled eggs, fish with a side of mashed pots? Dine's are usually good because there is so much to choose from . I just started eating out again, I will be 6 weeks this Friday. Just take it easy chewing and watch your portions. I share a meal with my 7 year old and I'm still bringing food home LOL!!!! Enjoy it, going out again really made me feel like this is sooo doable and I can enjoy things like a regular person!!

I had to do 2 weeks pre-op liquid diet which consisted ONLY of protein shakes, clear broth, sugar free jello and sugar free popsicles. It totally sucked at first, but by day 4 I felt pretty good...and I lost 20 lbs. in those 2 weeks. You can do it!

Update** tomorrow is my labs, EKG and stress test... getting nervous, we are 2 weeks away and its actually setting now. Next week i start my pre op diet