Hello and good morning my friends. Welcome to Banders #7. So, I guess I'll start it off by saying how grateful I am today and every day for the new lease on life that I have. I walked to the office today from the train station. That was something I couldn't do before the surgery. I always say how light I feel and I realized it's not a state of mind, but a physical reality. We are weighed down by the excess weight and all that goes with it. When we don't rumble and jumble as we walk, our steps are lighter. I was listening to my ipod and started to dance a little as I was walking. I'm sure I looked ridiculous, but who cares? When one is thin, even looking ridiculous seems OK.

I am grateful for my for my beautiful grandson who I was able to tuck into my lap last Saturday morning so we could play while Mommy and Daddy got to sleep in a bit. I'm grateful that I fit anywhere and everywhere. No more worrying if I will break a chair, or be able to navigate a booth at the restaurant, or walk down a narrow aisle without having to suck it all in just to get past someone/something.

I'm grateful for my health. I take alot of pills, but many of them are supplements and not prescription for chronic ailments. I'm grateful that I can walk again...that I can swim, bike, climb, and yes....enjoy sex. I am surprised at how flexible I can be now that I'm thin.

I'm grateful that I earn enough money that I can indulge my new found love of shopping. I really think I'm one of the best dressed ladies in the office these days...and I know I've upped the game for others. I am definitely seeing more dresses than I did a year ago.

I'm grateful to Alex for having this site available...and I'm grateful to all the folks on it who are part of my success. I know I would not have been as successful as I have been if not for all of you. I talk about things here that I don't talk to anyone else about. You all know the struggles of being fat, and immobile, and feeling like a failure regardless of what we've accomplished..and I know now how much we 'hidden' people have accomplished. It's helping me to not turn that self hatred towards others still struggling with obesity. It also reminds me that I will always struggle with obesity. Under this thin person still lurks the fat girl. She is the one who whispers in my ear all the time that I'm not worthy of the good things out there and I should just order a pizza and eat the whole thing. She and I clash daily and it's why I still go every Tuesday to the therapist who listens and helps me to navigate this new world I inhabit.

Well...I think I've posted enough for today. Feel free to comment on the above, or share your stories, or say hi, or just lurk. Enjoy your day today...enjoy the upcoming holiday, and looking forward to a wonderfully robust Banders #7 thread.

Liz

Oh lord, Lisa... Keep me posted.

Lisa you are to funny but hopefully it won't be to bad & they can take the monitor from you , we wouldn't want you to zap anyone v, but just think of your self as electrifying Lol The movie Grease just popped in my head , I can see your eyes now when the monitor flares up Lol, no but really hope it gets better for you.

Feel better soon, Lisa.

Today I am 10 days post op Lap band. I have a few questions that I was hoping someone could shed some light on for me.

First let me tell you a little about what my doc's post op orders are for me at this point. I am on thick liquids now till Friday when I begin mushys. I have been having a Protein drink for Breakfast and cream Soups for lunch and dinner. If I am hungry in between I eat SF Jello. My first fill is scheduled for 2/5. Here are my questions:

1) Will this gas in my tummy ever go away? Will I always be gassy and bloated? I don't have the pain in my shoulder gas anymore just in my tummy.

2) I only have a BM like once a week. Is this normal 10 days post op? Should I take a stool softener to help? I walk everyday now 2+ miles and drink fluids.

3)I have quit losing weight for 4 days now. I only eat about 400-500 a day and exercise. Just seems like the scale should move some.

I love this site and Thank you in advance for any insight on these questions. I go for my 1st follow up tomorrow to see my surgeon.

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Seraphina,

Just a heads up. This forum(banders #7) is a forum for folks who want to lose 100+ lbs. In the future you should post your questions in one of the post surgery or surgery discussion forums. I know this site is huge and can be confusing but I advise you to post on those forums simply because there are many more people watching those forums and you'll get a much better response.

But, let's talk about your issues:

Your doctor seems to be aggressive with fills if your first one is the 5th. That's good!

Your post op diet seems to be similar to many others and I like it.

1) I'm not sure your gas issues are in your stomach or stomach area? The gas pumped into our body cavity can take a month or more to completely evaporate. Stomach gas should mostly go away once you start eating normal foods. jmo

2) BMs? It's quite normal to have very few BMs at this stage. Not much solid materials in those fluids. I used Miralax and it worked quite well. Find one that works for you? Stool softeners should work too.

3) Stalls/plateaus occur right around the 10 day mark for many of us. It's normal to lose 10-15 lbs the first 2 weeks and then nothing for a few weeks to months after. Here's a link that explains why:

http://www.dsfacts.com/weight-loss-stall-or-plateau.html#.UqP7uBLn-Uk

You have a low BMI for bariatric surgery. Let's hope you lose 10 lbs a month but don't be surprised if it's closer to 4-8/mo?

Let us know how your surgeon visit went?

tmf

@@2muchfun nice to "see" you -- hope you're having a good winter. @@gowalking LOVE seeing that picture of the two of you. So great -- what a lucky guy and I'll bet he knows it, too. @@lisacaron please take good care of yourself -- Choose Lisa First! Your body is telling you something; so much stress for so long.

Speaking of which, I'm waiting to hear news of a friend's surgery. It's not a good scenario (ALS) and there are kids involved, etc. I want to stress eat. The thing is, my idea of stress eating now is ridiculously different. Yes, I've had some chocolate, so that hasn't changed. But the amounts, OMG. And I had cheese on a rice cake a little while ago. Usually I don't eat so early in the day and this made me worry. But one rice cake with a little cheddar? Come on! I'm doing fine. But yes, always on guard.

Sharpie, I can't believe you got snow in FL and we had nothing here.

Thanks everyone!!! It's electrifying!! That song is stuck in my head now Not a bad thing...well maybe for my co-workers who have to keep listening to me shout it out hehe.

The monitor is finally gone...though I still have a bit more testing to go through I am hoping it involves a simple medication change, cause the alternatives are to shock the heart to get it back in rhythm and if that doesn't work a pace maker..all of which stink and that's if that is the only issue they find after all the tests are done.

Right now I am just too pooped to do anything. My heart is racing all the time at over 100 bmp even while at rest so I feel like I have run a marathon leaving me tired all day long no matter how many hours of sleep I get...it's just not enough

@@lisacaron that is what my Mother went through till they finally put the pacemaker in & she still has trouble , but for her I think it's because of her weight & for the first 3 days it kept shocking her , I hope you maybe only have to take medication & not the alternative but you know We all wish the best for you.

@@Debbie3sons Thank you! I have to tell you that after the halter monitor things weren't looking great and the Dr. was worried because my heart rate and blood pressure were so high. Later that night I had a gyno appointment and they took my blood pressure and it was pretty high 165/98 and they were asking me if I was having any chest pain. I wasn't, but by the next morning I was feeling like I had a dog sitting on my chest so I had my hubs take me to the ER.

They did a cardiac CAT scan and thank goodness all my arteries were clear and they didn't find any damage to the heart muscle or abnormalities. I am going to follow up with my cardiologist and have a few other tests tomorrow. I will probably need to see an electrophysiologist to find out what's going on with the wiring in the heart that's making it works so hard.

I was happy to hear that my arteries were clear. I know my Dad suffered his first cardiac episode when he was 42 which is three years younger than I am now...and I'm sure there is a family history and probably something genetic since I have had this in one form or another most of my life. It's never bothered me until now..but I guess it's something as we get older the heart working that hard is not the best. I am tired nearly all the time, my heart rate is 140 sometimes just sitting in the chair. Makes me feel like I ran a marathon but I didn't.

I have some great benefits on my side that my father didn't have. I eat healthy, I get some exercise when I can, and I don't smoke and the CAT scan proved that it is a plus!

I'd like to lose more weight...of course we all would but right now I am glad I have lost what I did...and that I changed my eating habits because if I hadn't it could be much worse.

@ Lisacaron SO TRUE , but yes follow up & the cardiologist will let you know why or what's happening because they are trained better & know what to look for , I have a BIG History of Heart problems in my family on both sides so my whole family has to be checked every year.

OK Lisa...not good news. Keep us posted and let me know if there's anything I can do.

@@gowalking Thanks Liz. All good here. I went for the echo today and saw the cardio Dr. he gave me some extra meds to take that are going to make me tired...OK as if I wasn't that already but in the long run it should slow the heart rate and balance out. Here's to hoping it all works out according to plan and I can get back to doing some light exercise like walking.

Dad is all settled into his new place, about half a mile from my house so the days of having to drive to Queens at 5 am are over

Today I am actually feeling a little better and that's a plus. I'm still tired but not as bad as it's been. Maybe because the sun is shining today and I'm not fighting the weather....I don't know but I'll take it!

I've had a month and a half of very clean eating and my band is really doing its job. Slowly the weight I gained over the past six months has come off. I know without my band, this restart wouldn't have happened. It's such a gift to have this tool that helps with the hunger if I only do my part. After three or four weeks of no fried food (!!! me!?!?!) and no Thai noodles and no crapcorn, I no longer missed or daydreamed about them. Nothing short of a miracle.

JustWatchMe

I know what you're talking about. I can't speak for everyone but for me the band makes dieting easier. I never wanted to call this banded lifestyle a diet but for the most part it is. Dieting before the band was painfully impossible. Not anymore.

The band makes it so much easier to stop when I feel satisfied. The band makes me more aware of when to stop. I love it. I've lost 7 lbs since Jan 3rd on my way to losing 20 more just to get to my lowest from a year ago.

I can eat bread! Getting on the horn first thing tomorrow for a fill appointment, good grief, why am I even trying to eat baguette (with butter, ugh, my old self, no!). I realize I've been nibbly and hungry and grazing, etc. Duh! I so know better than this. But bread, good grief. For me that is just crazy. It's been building up and suddenly makes sense -- slipped out of the green zone without being fully aware (or not wanting to -- lazy, don't want to be too tight so cautious, or just enjoying the extra calories and the feeling of rewarding/indulging at my least favorite time of year?). Whatever it is, I'm not going down this road.

NOT!!!!!!