Hi folks....here it is....the new thread for our May Crew July Chat.

Happy 4th of July to everyone!!! I wish everyone a safe and fun holiday!!!

Hello May Bandsters, is it too late to join?

Hello to all of you fellow May Bandsters!

My catch up experience with the band:

I was banded first on May 2, 2006 and re=banded May 5 due to slipped band (maybe I should start my own club called "twice sliced??!" :nervous ).

I was in the hospital 5 days in severe pain. Doc didn''t know why, he never suspected a slipped band. Finally they went back in and found the slipped band. Very rare I'm told. I had a very slow recovery but finally feel very good. It took about 8 weeks to feel somewhat normal because of the 2 surgeries I guess. I did lose quite a bit of weight at first because of the trauma my stomach went thru. Guess there is an upside to everything. I was really out of it. It took me a long time before I was OK with my decision to be banded.

THEN I went in for my first fill this week and they couldn't find my port. After 15 minutes of poking around with 4 different needles, longer each time, I cried "uncle" and they scheduled a floro fill in 2 weeks. I now call my port the "stealth port". I have some restriction but I have to find a lot of will power not to over eat. The good news is I"ve never PB'd or had any food get stuck and I can eat anything, eggs, bread, whatever. I ended up with the Vangard band and I'm glad.

I went into the surgery a little naive. I was sure none of the possible complications would happen to me. Now I am afraid that I'll have more complications so generally I am pretty careful about what I eat and really want to avoid a bad fill.

I am riding my bike and swimming and have a lot more energy. The first time I rode my bike thru a field with the beautiful Colorado Rockies as a backdrop, I cried with joy. It's been a long time and I NEVER appreciated being active like I do now! It is glorious! I am a grateful bandster now but still a little gun shy of possible problems I read about. I'll do just about anything to avoid more complications, it keepes me honest.

Sorry this is so long but now you have my updated bandster story.

I'd like to join the September Challenge. I'd like to be under 200 pounds by mid-September. That's 10 pounds in 6 weeks. Do-able excecpt that I am going on vacation and don't have a first fill for 2 weeks. Oh those are jsut lame excuses, I can do it!

I am very grateful for this board and this thread and most of the time, my band!

Barbara

Welcome, Barbara!

Welcome Barbara!! Sounds like you have had quite the journey so far! i am also in CO. Did you have your surgery here??

Yes, Dr. Snyder, Rose Medical center in Denver. You? My first band was also May 2.

Dr Kirshenbaum in Aurora here on May 1. I'm sorry you have had to go through so much with your band already. Hopefully now you are on the right path. I am going for my third fill tomorrow and can't wait. I don't think I have ever had proper restriction but I am afraid of being overfilled so I am just going slow, my doc agrees with that philosophy as well.

It's nice to see someone from my neck of the woods on here!

There is a lapband support group meeting the 4th Monday of every month at Rose, have you been to it? Banders from everywhere. It is interesting to hear all the stories.15-20 people each week.

I agree with the slow fills, that is my plan. What was the amount of your 1st fill and what band do you have?

I feel great now. I just need to figure out why they couldn't do a fill. My mind goes to the worst but it could be the port is just deep. I can't feel it and I have a lot of belly fat.

My port is pretty deep as well since I have alot of belly fat. My first fill took 2 tries to find the port and was 1cc. The second fill also took two tries and was .5 cc. I have a total of 1.5cc's in a 4-5cc band. I haven't been to any support group meetings (other than what I get here.) I always say i'm going to make it to Dr K's monthly meeting and something always comes up. I would really like to go sometime!

:welcome: It's great to have you here Barbara!!

How are you'll doing? I'm at a stand-still until I can get my bowels to move. Maybe it's the cheese? I've taken some Ducolax and I hope that does the trick. I am also very sore from installing laminate flooring in our living room. My DH and I decided to save money.....how hard can it be, right? Well....I'll NEVER do that again. It's only half done at this point and we started ripping up carpet on Friday. I go to the chiropractor tomorrow to get a much needed adjustment.

BTW, I started the new thread for August. Yes, it's August already. Here's the link to the new thread and we'll leave this one up for a few days.

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?p=268482#post268482

LindaV, Thanks for asking about me. I have been out of town and just got back tonight. My last (2nd) fill was on July 12 and I think I am now filled to 1 in a 4 cc band. Not that much really. I can tell that I need to have more fill because I am able to eat anything without problem. That doesn't mean I have been eating tons of bad stuff, just that I can eat rice, bread, etc. without any problem. Another thing I have noticed is that I am able to eat pretty fast, so I have not been as careful as I should be with eating slowly. I need to concentrate on that more because I assume that with a better fill I will need to eat much more slowly than I have been. I think I told you that when I went for my 2nd fill I weighed in at exactly the same weight as my first fill (200 lbs) and then the very next day after my second fill I had dropped 7 pounds. Coincidence I am sure because I couldn't have been affected by a fill that fast. Anyway, as of a week ago I was still hanging in there at about 192-193 but I will be curious to see what I weigh in the morning after my week of vacation and eating out. My next fill is on August 9 I think. Hopefully that will help me some. I have just decided that I am not a very consistent loser. My body seems to hold on to weight for dear life and then let go of a bunch at a time so I just have to be patient and wait. That may be related to my age. I think my body gets more stubborn as I age. Anyway, how are you doing? When is your next fill scheduled?

Hope

Hi everyone. Well I had my 2nd adjustment yesterday and I can already tell a difference when drinking liquids and eating jello. I actually feel it stopping and then passing through my band. I am hoping this 2nd adjustment will be my magical one. J My surgeon has a post adjustment diet that is 3 days clear liquids, 5 days full liquids, 2-3 soft foods and then between days 10-14, begin eating regular food as tolerated. So the first 8 days of being on liquids is always tough for me. I think I am up to 2.5 CC now. I am still determined to be 199 by September 4th!

Good morning fellow May bandster. I just hit (well, 1/2 a pound from it) my halfway goal. Did not think I would be this far along after 3 months. Hope everyone has a great week!

I am requesting this thread be closed. Please use this link for future posts:

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/showthread.php?p=268482#post268482