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Hi this is one area i miscalculated so it's good you are getting input from various people. in the past i never lost weight like i have in the past 10 months. so when i went from 24/22 to 18...i went crazy buying expensive jeans, dresses etc. thinking i wouldnt lose more weight "in the near future". i was in 18 for a short time. i did the same thing in size 16 which i barely wore. i am in size 10/12 for awhile and want to end in size 10. so St mary's clothing donation received a "motherlode" this year. if i had to do it over...i would order cheaper clothes and much less. the good news is...my top hasnt changed much...so those clothes are still good. i lost most of my weight in my belly and bottom good luck

I didn't weigh myself in the beginning. I was eating so little I didn't worry about it. My 1st doc appt. was 10 days and I had lost 5 lbs. I was thrilled! I had terrible shoulder pain too! I didn't think it would ever go away. I used a heating pad and GasX. Walking also made a big difference. I applaud you for such a long walk, it is such a great way to start exercising. I think it is the nicest part of my new life! I have dogs and they are surely loving it. Keep doing what the docs tell you, the changes will be coming soon!

Good morning! I was scheduled for my surgery on May17th. The day after my pre-admin, my PCP called to let me know the enzyme levels in my kidneys were way up and my EKG didn't look right. She said she did not want me to go through with the surgery at this time. I was devastated! She set me up with a Nephologist. I met with her the following Monday. She said that since I had been on so much protein, lost 30 lbs quickly, was still on the same meds, and a bit dehydrated, my kidneys just couldn't filter all that out. So PCP dropped all my meds ( diabetic, bp, cholesterol) and put me on one low dose diabetic med. I increased my water intake.They did an ultra sound on my kidneys, no damage. YEAH! I stayed on the liquid diet, hoping that I would be rescheduled for WLS soon. I got the call that surgery was rescheduled for June 15th. So, I was on normal food for a week before starting back on the liquid. Cracker Barrel veggies was my first dinner. Next came the heart issues. I had an ultra sound on my heart. I was then referred to a cardiologist. The ultra sound showed that I had a hole in my heart. Next was a transesophigial echocardiograph (TEE). Lots of prayers were going up!! Dr. told my husband afterward that the hole was not there! Thank you God!! I had my pre-admin Wednesday for my surgery Saturday. All test results came back normal!! I am to report tomorrow morning at 8:00 for surgery at 10:00!!! It has been some journey! I can't wait to be on the other side of sleeved! Please remember, all you pre-ops, DRINK LOTS OF WATER!!!.

Hello, Can someone tell me if Vitaminwater is good for the band? And how much can we drink? Banded 11/08/05 286 01/08/06 255

That is awesome!! Congratulations on your progress!! 5'4" Starting weight 297 VSG on 7/31/19 Surgery wt: 266 CW 215 GW 135 Sent from my [samsung Galaxy] using BariatricPal mobile app

Subject: The Hormone Hostage The Hormone Hostage knows that there are days in the month when all a man has to do is open his mouth and he takes his very life into his own hands! This is a handy guide that should be as common as a driver's license in the wallet of every husband, boyfriend, or significant other!! DANGEROUS: What's for dinner? SAFER: Can I help you with dinner? SAFEST: Where would you like to go for dinner? ULTRASAFE: Here, have some chocolate. DANGEROUS: Are you wearing that? SAFER: Gee, you look good in brown. SAFEST: WOW! Look at you! ULTRASAFE: Here, have some chocolate. DANGEROUS: What are you so worked up about? SAFER: What did I do wrong? SAFEST: Here's fifty dollars. ULTRASAFE: Here, have some chocolate. DANGEROUS: Should you be eating that? SAFER: You know, there are a lot of apples left. SAFEST: Can I get you a glass of wine with that? ULTRASAFE: Here, have some chocolate. DANGEROUS: What did you do all day? SAFER: I hope you didn't overdo it today. SAFEST: I've always loved you in that robe! ULTRASAFE: Here, have some more chocolate. 13 Things PMS Stands For: 1. Pass My Shotgun 2. Psychotic Mood Shift 3. Perpetual Munching Spree 4. Puffy Mid-Section 5. People Make me Sick 6. Provide Me with Sweets 7. Pardon My Sobbing 8. Pimples May Surface 9. Pass My Sweatpants 10. Plainly; Men Suck 11. Pack My Stuff ~ ~ ~And my favorite one ~ ~ ~ 12. Potential Murder Suspect Pass this onto all of your hormonal friends and those who might need a good laugh! Or men who need a warning! And remember: Money talks but chocolate sings. . Here have some chocolate

Four Ideas on advice for crazy Pooch: #1 NEVER EVER give human medicine to an animal without checking with your vet. They may be "like" the human equivalent BUT probably a very very different dose. Please be careful. #2 Exercise your pooch more- typically when you gain FULL control in a walk with a leash the "chain of command" switches to the owner & the dog will naturally fall into a more submisive roll. A well exercised dog is always a calmer dog. A min. of 30 mins a day- everyday!!! #3 The more calm & assertive you are with commands the better the pooch will be in her aggression. Try to AVOID the situations that make her lash out. EXAMPLE: If she bites you when you are walking up the stairs- teach her to come away from the stairs & stay first. Than always tell her good girl(once command is mastered) try not to reward with food & than proceed up the stairs. Once up the stairs give the dog a "release command" like OK(say dogs name) & than if done well "good Girl". You than have removed her from the situation. #4 Work on training even more than before. Only work with her alone - not w/both dogs- give her "special time" with you only. Only train for 10 - 15 mins per day. Never train in the same spot all the time- mix up the locations. If all else fails try & contact a professional trainer in your area that deals with problem pooches-- I wish you tons of LUCK Teresa- You can do this & can create a great relationship- It will just take a HUGE HUGE HUGE amount of patience & time. Good Luck

He will be doing my surgery 10/21 (been resched a few times due to illness). I tried as hard as I could and couldn't find anything negative about him. I thought he was very nice and he made me very comfortable. As w/any lap band office I guess-consider how you feel about his physician assistant (Paul) and the nurse (Sue). You will really only be seeing them so how you click w/them is important. You wont actually meet the doctor on your first visit..just Paul. I would love to hear what you think of them! Good luck:)

I just got my date! Sept 19

My little girl is a huge car fan is did very well with CARS. We go to the drive in because it just isn't worth the fighting with my child and strangers at a theater. CARS played with THE WILD which was pretty stupid. My DH and D fell asleep and I was jealous! It was MADAGASCAR with a little LION KING thrown in. I suppose they wanted to show off the graphics. I can understand the NEMO thing, but we have worn out a movie called ELMO IN GROUCHLAND. When Soren fell big time for the little red one, my husband found the DVD in the discount bin and brought it home. I can quote it at will and perform all of the songs. I mean seriously, it will barely play and freezes in the last 10 minutes! Thats OK, I can do the big finish solo... We NetFlix and love it! Less than $20 for three movies at a time. We barely watch TV anymore. Which is good because TV programming isn't fit for children. We either watch PBS or movies. LAKEHOUSE is on our wait list, as is OVER THE HEDGE. My husband watches MadTV, I heard one of the characters say that WALK THE LINE was RAY for white people, you know what? He was right! Drugs, infidelity, high profile music career...

I had meatloaf 10 days post-op with my doctors blessing and it was devine...I also had mashed potatos and gravy. (exactly half of a kids meal from Boston Market) I eat egg, tuna and chicken salad all the time, on wheat crackers. I didn't get this band to have to count carbs but I do watch my calorie intake somewhat. I have had potato salad, a small scoop won't kill you just don't make a meal out of it and don't have it everyday. I can't have Pasta unless it is angel hair or cut very very small and then only a few bites. My favorite thing at taco bell is that bowl thing they make, it's Beans, (I omit the rice it gives me problems, i usually ask for double beans) meat(chicen or steak), tomotos, cheese and taco sauce. I also omit the lettuce. It is a good meal or 2 Snacks, and it reheats well. Comes in a little bowl with a lid so it's also easy to store. I can eat almost anything I want, but avoid bread as it fills me up with no protien or real nutrition. I can't have rice at all, and pasta also is too filling for it to be a meal. Everyone's band is different, I have a banded friend that lives on gound beef and rice with no problem, I have a bite or two of rice and I am PB'ing for an hour. Everyone has different limitations but you will find a comfortable middle ground and fall in love with your band. ~Mandy

I know the feeling! I am 10 months out from surgery! I have lost a total of 64 pounds I look at myself and I am at a weight that i was for years!! So I am asking myself the same question! I have no idea what I will look like weighing less than I am now! And to make it worse my doctor has my goal weight at 138-140... WOW I probably weighed that in the 5th grade!haha! I can NOT imagine what I will look like at that weight!!! I cant wait!!!!!!!!!! BTW Your feet will shrink... I was up to a size 9.5 and I bought a pair of size 7's yesterday WOW haha

Hi. Please don't think I am saying this to be mean spirited. If you gained 10 pounds while you thought you were dieting I think you should avoid fruit in your smoothy. The reason I say this is it sounds to me like you need to be more focused on serving sizes. I know it's a drag but start measuring everything that you eat. Even in the smoothy. Measure out 8 ounces of fat free milk, don't just glug it in. Over weight people are notoriously bad (myself included) at accurately determining serving sizes. Also measure out 8 oz pour it into your drinking glasses and coffee mugs. I discovered one of my mugs was 12 oz when I thought it was 8. So I would have been having 1 1/2 portions. I was on my own preop diet for 7 months and lost 50 pounds. The week presurgery I did 1 Protein shake for Breakfast and another for dinner, with a low cal/fat high protein lunch. I was including fruit in the smoothy but my nutritionist said post op NO fruit. Post op your stomach is healing and it should not be moving around trying to digest fruit.

Awww, he had to get out of the house. That one day really took it out of him, poor guy. It's hard work you know. Men, they can be real asses sometimes! Sorry any male bandsters, but 8 out of 10 times they are.

Hello all! I am desperate to have this surgery, and lose the weight that has held me back from living a normal life for the past 10+ years. Unfortunately I have an extremely high deductible of 10k, and my insurance won't pay out a dime until this is met. I managed to save up half of the amount, but I don't know where I'm going to get the rest from. I was thinking that maybe I could find a finance company to pay the remaining amount. My husband said he would co-sign for me because my credit isn't so good. My question is this: what is the probability that we would get approved if his score is 660, and mines is 600?

:scared2:This liquid diet sucks! I know its for a good cause....I really need to get my health back. I want to feel better. This is why I have decided to do the surgery. My son keeps telling me that it's "mind over matter"! Yeah, whateva! It's a lot harder then I thought it was going to be. :confused: I can't believe that I have actually gone 4 whole days without eating food!! 6 more to go! I have lost 10 lbs. in 3 days, so that is a good thing, but truthfully that's the only good thing I can say about this. I have my surgery next Monday! 1 week from today. I am so nervous and excited at the same time. I have doubts creeping in...I keep wondering if I am doing the right thing? Am I making a mistake by doing this? What if I die? What if something goes wrong? I guess this is normal. Also, this liquid diet has taken away all of my energy. I don't feel like doing anything. I think I could sleep all day. I'd like to say, that at least when I'm asleep, I don't think about food! However, I can't say that! One night this week, I was actually dreaming of cooking bacon, frying tenderloins and fried potatoes!! The smell was heavenly! Thank goodness it was only a dream...I'm not sure I could've resisted the temptation! LOL Ok, I've rambled on enough...I just want to remember what I felt like at the beginning of my journey....TIRED, HUNGRY, SCARED, NERVOUS, EXCITED, HUNGRY, READY FOR A CHANGE.

Hi Everyone, My name is Sara I am 35 years old, I am in Pre Surgery Mode, I have started my pre weight loss back in December 2009 I started at 321lbs as of today 1/19/2010 I have lost 15 lbs on my own, it is difficult but wow worth every pound lost. :wink2: I have struggled with weight most of my life, I love food nd being married to a latino man and a huge family fixing awsome mexican food every day no wonder I am over weight. I want to let anyone know that I m here for anyone that wnt to become my new friend and want to join the jouney of weight loss with me. :confused:

I was banded on 10/23 and had 2 glasses of wine on Halloween. It was totally fine. My doctor just cautions that you shouldn't drink too much in view of the calories. ALSO -- very importantly -- you should be really, really careful not to let ANYONE talk you into overindulging at this party or to pressure you into doing shots, etc. You need to avoid being hungover to the point of throwing up at all costs b/c you could rip out your stitches & cause your band to slip. Hope that helps! Catherine

hi there. I have been banded for 10 months now and have lost about 45 pounds also. now the eating thing sounds very familar to me. the doctors tell me all the time WATER,WATER,WATER.......i have an issue with water..i hate it .i know that is why my food always gets stuck. so try to drink more water

Thank you guys!! you saved my day! Well, I am suppose to be on pureed/soft foods until day 10 which is Monday, but maybe it’s me being a smart ass, but isn’t every food soft when you chew it to death? Of course, I don’t eat an entire serving, I am eating a quarter of what I used to, but still I am so freaked out that I can do this, and to be honest a little discouraged. This happened at almost noon, and its 5 pm and I am still very full (which is very unusual for me). So that is very cool, and I do have a little discomfort, I don’t like to feel this full… Btw, I forgot to ask, why is that you can’t drink before ,during and after eating? I know they say it will “wash” food down, but I am just so thirsty after eating. What happens if I do? I still cant tell if that really washes things down, since everything I am feeling is new.

I gained 10 pounds in the hospital. It took me 2 days to lose it all after I got home.

OK, so life was great pre-band..with the exception of being fat...and having bad health because of it..but now...oh now..i've got many other things that i need to add to the list: i was a self pay. financially we determined that we could afford it. we are middle class $70k/or more average a year...so we aren't rolling in it, but we are doing better than we could be. So, yeah, we thought of course we can afford the band, why couldn't we. well, let me tell you a $400 a month payment is rough to adjust to..especially at christmas time. and add to that the fact that i NOW WEIGHT 3 MORE LBS THAN I DID PRE-OP. everytime i make that stupid payment..i think in my head..what in the hell did i do..i just spent $15,000 to be reminded every day that i am a failure and i am fat, and now i am paying for it literally. ok, so that is the financial part. everyone has their problems right, so that is no big deal. well, dh and i are falling on hard times financially and i am blaming myself, and he is trying to work more. we used to have enough money in our "bill" account to cover the bills as they came in and to have a month's worth of reserves in case one of us got sick. that way, we didn't have to do the pay check to pay check thing. we have our own individual savings and spending accounts too. well...we've got zilch right now, and i've resorted to finishing up x-mas on cc's. add to that-yesterday i found out that my brother defaulted on a car loan that i signed for him. i have perfect credit...not bragging..but never been late..and i work in finance so..this is a particularly important thing to me. he didn't even bother to tell me, so i get a letter in the mail yesterday that he is almost 30 days late and a payment has to be made TODAY to keep it from being reported (note: previous mention of us being BROKE). OK..so all of that is i am sure circumstanstial..but it is band related. dh and i both missed a week of work without pay when i had surgery. i then have had some days that i have missed in addition due to pains &/or complications. so..that means even less pay. .......again due to the band...then add sick days for problems i had before the band with migraines and fibro. ok..so you get it..money is a problem and it causes extreme stress. well because of it dh and i are both barely on good speaking terms (we aren't admitting that is what the problem is, but i know it is). i'm sleeping on the couch, and i swear that if one more person yells at me or says something negative I'M GOING TO RUN AWAY!!!!!! so i'm stressed..my son is going through a bratty stage..dh and i are having problems, and i'm getting nothing but bitches and moans and complaints and cynical remarks every single direction that i turn. ok...so that is the family related band problems..now i'm taking it to a more personal level: 1. did i mention that i now weigh 3 more lbs than i did pre-op..and i can't button pants that i wore for 6 months prior to surgery 2. i look 6 months pregnant and i have this huge distended abdomen that will not recede 3. i pass more gass than i would ever care to admit. burps come out mid sentence sometimes, and i have these long grotesque 10 second burps that everyone around me can hear even though i am trying to do it under my breath. then..add to that the constant cloud of methane (is that what it is?) that is hovering behind everywhere that i walk. before the band dh had never ever heard me...you know..pass gass...now he hears it like 20 times a night...gross....and it makes me smell. 4. i have no restriction..i can eat what i want..and the tremendous amount of stress that i am under sends me straight to crap food...cheese dip..candy...cheese ball..you name it 5. everyone keeps asking me if i wasted money on surgery and why am i not losing weight 6. i missed my 2nd fill because i had a bowel obstruction, and they can't seem to find TIME to fit me in. 7. i'm having migraines like crazy..(due to stress i'm sure)..and i can't take anything for it because it doesn't work..or i can't swallow it. 8. my work is threatening to lay me off at the end of the year due to absences even though i filed FMLA. there are other things....but i've gone on enough. all of this is causing me to have serious issues with my band. if i could rip it out myself i would, and then i would beat the hell out of a wall or something with it. I HATE MY BAND.... (i hope this will pass, and i already feel better from venting....i had too...i don't feel like i can tell anyone face to face because i am whining..and besides...i don't know any other overweight people with similar issues that i can talk to). i'm sorry for rambling..thank you for reading...or listening. and if you went through something similar, and found success later..please share. i am in desperate need for inspiration.

For those of you who have had or are having the 3 week stall, I found a great article that explains the reason why this happens. It's about plateau's in general, but it really sheds some light on the 3 week stall. It doesn't use that exact phrase, but you'll know it when you read it. The author uses the phrase," the inevitable stall"....here is the crux of it. "A "stall" a few weeks out is inevitable, and here's why. Our bodies use glycogen for short term energy storage. Glycogen is not very soluble, but it is stored in our muscles for quick energy -- one pound of glycogen requires 4 lbs of Water to keep it soluble, and the average glycogen storage capacity is about 2 lbs. So, when you are not getting in enough food, your body turns first to stored glycogen, which is easy to break down for energy. And when you use up 2 lbs of glycogen, you also lose 8 lbs of water that was used to store it -- voila -- the "easy" 10 lbs that most people lose in the first week of a diet. As you stay in caloric deficit, however, your body starts to realize that this is not a short term problem. You start mobilizing fat from your adipose tissue and burning fat for energy. But your body also realizes that fat can't be used for short bursts of energy -- like, to outrun a saber tooth tiger. So, it starts converting some of the fat into glycogen, and rebuilding the glycogen stores. And as it puts back the 2 lbs of glycogen into the muscle, 8 lbs of water has to be stored with it to keep it soluble. So, even though you might still be LOSING energy content to your body, your weight will not go down or you might even GAIN for a while as you retain water to dissolve the glycogen that is being reformed and stored." http://www.dsfacts.c...or-plateau.html

If you just started at the gym take your measurements, get a trainer to do your bodynfat with calipers, keep a food journal, and don't do weights two days in a row and only exercise the same body part every three days. And if you are doing weights, lift the heaviest you can that you can only do 8-10 reps with. Less is pretty useless and more can lead to injury. Most people start with 5-10 lbs weights but don't hesitate to carry a 20 lbs watermelon or 25 lbs armful of groceries.

I have always been a shopper. I probably have more clothes, shoes and accessories than most of my friends put together. I did the same thing - if something fit and looked half way decent, I would buy it in multiple colors or patterns. (And never got rid of anything.) Now, clothes shopping has been fun! I definitely don't feel like I have to settle for something that is half way decent, it has to be spectacular or I don't buy it. It has been very satisfying going through all of my clothes and being able to fill 10 large boxes of clothes that no longer fit. (And finding some "skinny clothes" hidden away that are now too big!!) Shopping online has been what I have been doing a lot of lately. If I am unsure about the size, I order two sizes and see what fits best, and send the rest back or plan a day to make returns to the physical store and do some in store shopping. It has worked out well so far. I can shop online any time (which is very helpful with a busy schedule) and usually online stores have a larger selection than their brick and mortar counterparts. I agree with @gowalking if I can pay the bill, I am okay with it.