I am a fairly new member and was here just before you got banded Sunta.

How is it going, new banders?

What do you think?

I was banded 3 weeks ago. It's going very well.

What do I think about what? There's a lot of room for interpretation here.

Im at 23 days, so far so good!

I was banded 3 weeks ago. It's going very well.

What do I think about what? There's a lot of room for interpretation here.

Lol,

I guess I was wondering what your immediate impressions are of the band post op?

Are you amazed?

Are you disappointed?

Are you tickled pink?

Are you mourning food?

TIA....

I am still pre op still in awe of all of you......

I was banded one month ago today. I feel fine, but I really, really need a ill. I am scheduled for one April 11th.

Hi!

Yesterday was my one month bandiversary. Have you checked out the "February Bandsters Unite!" thread in the support forum? Lots of new bandsters there and everyone is soooo nice! Ok, let's see...

Are you Amazed:

I guess I could say I am amazed. I'm amazed that I had the courage to go through with the surgery!!! I'm also amazed that I did make it through and that it's a whole month later! I'm amazed at how sucky I felt for two weeks, and then conversely how pretty darn good I feel right now. I'm amazed I joined a gym, amazed I've been going every day, and amazed that I've lost 20 pounds!!!

Are you disappointed:

So far, I have to say I am not disappointed. I'd have to say I'm "cautiously optimistic"; things are going well for me right now and I'm just hoping and praying that they continue to go well for a long, long time. The one thing I am disappointed about is that I think the band was kind of misrepresented to me at the seminar I went to as being "for life". Then recently I came to find out that Inamed is now saying we should not consider it a lifetime thing. I am not 100% positive I would have made the same decision had I known that it was not geared to being permanent. However, since I have it now, I'm going to try and make the most of it for as long as I have it.

Are you tickled pink:

Umm.. that's a hard one. I wouldn't say that right yet. I have to see if I keep feeling good for the long term with no complications, slippage, erosion, reflux, etc. and with continued weight loss. Then I would say I would be tickled pink.

Are you mourning food?

Surprisingly, not really. Ok, it was hard yesterday when a client came into the office and brought us all Famous 4th Street Deli (that's 4th street in the gorgeous and charming South Philly!!!) fresh baked Cookies as a thank-you for building his Website, but that's about it. Honestly I have not really thought too much about food since banding. Maybe because I know I just can't have it right now? I don't know. I'm still on mushies and am pretty satisfied after one cup, so I just know and accept I cannot have solids right now and have been occupying myself with other things. But so far I don't feel in any way depressed, upset, or lost or anything like that. But then again, I'm kind of a lone ranger in that I feel my weight problem is totally not my fault and is purely genetic and that I don't have any kind of eating disorder. So far, having the band has just reinforced that belief because I don't feel any mourning for food. It's actually pretty awesome to be liberated from being starving all the time!

--Becky

Great posts thanks all.

I JUST watched a new show about plastic surgery. A woman had problems with her breast implants and had them removed. They said these breast implants do have saliene in them but the outer part is made of silicone and eventually the silicone breaks down. So they should only be viewed as a 10 year implant......so if I can pull that information from breast implants Iand apply it to the band can we assume that the band would break down with time similarly.

I guess the only difference between the two would be that the 'lining' of a breast implant is much thinner. A band is harder more dense.

Becky, I can understand your feelings that you weren't fully aware of the lifespan of the band. But I can say as a pre op looking at this information. I will still get banded knowing that in 10 years I either should have it removed or replaced or some alternative may be available by then.

??????

I'm 5 weeks out. And personally, a new band every 10 years would be worth it to me.

I guess I was wondering what your immediate impressions are of the band post op?

I was frustrated immediately following the surgery. You don't have restriction at that point... you still get hungry (or at least I did). I had swelling for 2 weeks, so wasn't starving, but after that I could have eaten a horse! Thank goodness for fills!

People warn you that the first 6 weeks is for healing & that any weight you lose during that time is from will-power & is a gift... but you don't realize it until you're in it. It's a long time! And of course everyone you've told is looking for your weight loss, lol, and you're sitting still. Irritating.

Are you amazed?

I am amazed at how quickly the pain faded. At the time, it seemed unending, but it really was gone quickly. I wasn't this far along this quickly after knee surgery!

Currently, after my first fill, I'm amazed at not being hungry. I know I'm still able to eat more then I "should", but it's SO much less then I used to eat. I can be patient & wait for my fills to limit my eating further. What a tool!

Are you disappointed?

I was disappointed with myself & my will power during the healing period (I didn't limit my calories at ALL, lol). I'm not disappointed with the band at all. It's too early to tell, but it seems to be working amazingly!

Are you tickled pink?

Maybe light pink, lol. I am excited & thrilled to think that this is actually going to work. That even if I cheat... even if I binge... the band will limit how much damage I can do. What a blessing!

Are you mourning food?

Yes. I don't think I was really prepared mentally. I'm not sure there is a way to GET prepared. You don't know how you'll react until it's gone. I can actually eat anything I want -- bread, Pasta, rice, steak, you name it. But I can't eat as MUCH as I want, lol. It irritates me, lol.

I'm sure I'll get over it in time... I'm working on it!

Are you amazed?

I'm amazed at how easy the transition was for me. I assumed I had restriction from day 1 and have eaten accordingly, even now into my 4th week of being banded. I'm also amazed by how little food I need to be OK if I really take the time to eat slowly and listen to what my body is telling me, in terms of hunger queues. I have no fil and my swelling has subsided but on my biggest eating day so far I still only needed about a cup of food (and that was my biggest meal of the day) to feel that I was no longer hungry. Part of what helps, I think, is that my Protein shakes fill me up.

Are you disappointed?

I have no reason to be disappointed in the band. I never thought going into this that the band would do it for me. I knew about 70% or more of it was on my shoulders. I also would never have expected significant results without so much as a fill. I mean -- a soggy cast doesn't help mend broken bones, so why would an unfilled band lead to weightloss? In terms of personal disappointment, my biggest challenge is the drinking -- not drinking after meals. I can do this about 70% of the time. The other 30% I just can't stand it, so I put enouogh Water on my tongue to get the sensation of drinking, but hopefully little enough that it is absorbed in my throat before it gets to my esophagus. I wish I was better about this aspect.

Are you tickled pink?

I'm thrilled so far. Like I said - IMO - it's unrealistic to expect weightloss from the band before you have any fill, let alone the right fill. My scale shows a 45 lb loss it's also that time of the month for me to be retaining water, so the loss-on-scale could be accurate, or it could be about 8 lbs low. I know that whatever percentage of that number can be equated to fat loss is mostly my doing through making good choices, telling myself to stop eating, joining the gym, etc. Almost 50 lbs in less than a month - I'm thrilled!

Are you mourning food?

No, but I think emotional eaters are the most prone to do this. My overeating was behavioral, so for me it was more a matter of breaking habits (e.g. eating when I do this, getting fast food for convenience during business travel, eating late at night, etc.) I never saw food as a friend, or a crutch to get me through a situation, so it had no presence in my life to "mourn", so to speak. There are things I know I will eventually crave, but right now the only thing I'm craving is carbonation. Not soda, just the carbonation itself... weird!

All your answers are AWSOME! Thanks, I am going to read them over and over and over........

hugs all