Let's see if we can get everyone to move over to this new 60+ thread!

I'm celebrating today.... my 6 month bandiversary!

Well, I have just turned 65 in April. I am having my lst pre-0pp meeting on 6/3, I have to do something. I am alittle over 6' tall and weigh 298 lbs. I have by-pass surgery in 05 both my Heart Dr. and My family Dr. say I should have this done. Right now I am taking all the info in. What is a fill and how many times do you have to get that done? I'm going to be talking to you-all alot. Having it done at Univ Of Penna Hospital

John Michael:. A fill is given to you to inflate the band over a period of time. You will have to heal after the surgery before having your first fill. That is usually a small amount. You probably won't feel restricton until two or three or even more fills. My suggestion is to you to remember the band is a tool not a miracle worker. You must still eat properly and follow the guidelines on amounts. Take the fills slowly. For instance, I am a fast eater. If I had my band to tight, I would be vomiting up the food in chunks. Until I learn to chew my food to smitherines (pulp) I must keep a loose fill. Others like a tight fill. I am sure your clinic will guide you through this. The effects of not following the rules can cause, band slippage, band erosion (most serious) and other problems. Used properly the band is a wonderful assist to losing weight and keeping it off. Doddie

Welcome John, There is so much real good info on this site about how the band works. I hope you read it all. Fills are tiny amounts of fluid that is inserted through the port into the band to make it tighter. The tighter it is, the more restriction you will have. There's a very fine line between too tight and too loose, so for most people they have to have many fills and some removals to get it just right. They call that their "sweet spot". I haven't gotten to mine yet! Just keep reading through these posts and you will learn all there is to know and more.

Thank You all. I would be kidding myself if I did not say I am abit nervous about all this. But I have convinced myself that this has to be done for my own health. I want to enjoy my Grandchildren and my retirement years with the Bride. Like I said in my first post, I will be talking to you-all alot threw this whole thing.

Thank You all. I would be kidding myself if I did not say I am abit nervous about all this. But I have convinced myself that this has to be done for my own health. I want to enjoy my Grandchildren and my retirement years with the Bride. Like I said in my first post, I will be talking to you-all alot threw this whole thing.

I just wanted to say hi to you. I had 5-way-heart bypass surgery in 2001 and all has been well. I had the lapband surgery 2 years ago and I've lost over 100 lbs and I'm feeling great. The surgery went just fine and I'm feeling a hundred times better then I used to. I wanted to wish you the best of luck. It is much easier to have the surgery when you have had the heart problems corrected then trying to get clearance with heart problems :party: Keep in touch. By the way I'm 66 and feel oh maybe 45 on a good day :party:

Hi group, I haven't posted for a long time. I am still waiting for my LB but have have several set backs. I visited my surgeon Jan 21 and she said as soon as the insurance approval we'll get satarted with pre op. Well on the 23 my husband of 46 years passed away in his sleep. After 4 weeks the insurance reported that I did not have insurance, so I called right away and found out they changed my subscriber number without me knowing so I called my Dr office and gave them the new number to re apply. About 7 or 8 weeks later the heard that I met all the requiments for the surgery but they couldn't find my hospital and surgeon in my program! My husband had 5 surgerys in that hospital, and the surgeon had done many operations on their plan.

I called yesterday to the insurance myself and found out that I am approved and called the Dr office again and am playing phone tag with the insurance girl. Maybe Monday she will return my call or I will call her again. I've gone through my grief consling and feel i am more than ready to have this done. Have good thoughts and prayers for me.

Blessings Opus (Judy)

Hi group, I haven't posted for a long time. I am still waiting for my LB but have have several set backs. I visited my surgeon Jan 21 and she said as soon as the insurance approval we'll get satarted with pre op. Well on the 23 my husband of 46 years passed away in his sleep. After 4 weeks the insurance reported that I did not have insurance, so I called right away and found out they changed my subscriber number without me knowing so I called my Dr office and gave them the new number to re apply. About 7 or 8 weeks later the heard that I met all the requiments for the surgery but they couldn't find my hospital and surgeon in my program! My husband had 5 surgerys in that hospital, and the surgeon had done many operations on their plan.

I called yesterday to the insurance myself and found out that I am approved and called the Dr office again and am playing phone tag with the insurance girl. Maybe Monday she will return my call or I will call her again. I've gone through my grief consling and feel i am more than ready to have this done. Have good thoughts and prayers for me.

Blessings Opus (Judy)

I'm so sorry about the loss of your husband. I am also a widow so I can definitely relate to what you are going through. I will send up prayers and good vibes that you can get your lapband. Keep on plugging away and please don't give up. Feel free to PM me anytime.

Opus, I am so sorry to hear of your loss. DH and I will have #48 this October. I can't imagine how difficult it would be to lose him. You have my thoughts and prayers. I hope your path will be easier now that you have so many roadblocks behind you. God Bless.

Joann

Joann and Skittles108, Thank you for your prayers. Still having trouble with insurance but my Dr's insurance girl in looking into it again.

I took a 13 week greif course with my church and just finished it last thursday. My husbands best friend passed away 3 months before him so his wife and I went together. I would recomend grief classes for anyone who has lost someone close. Husband wanted me to have the lapband for my health, he never cared what I weighed, loved me any way I was. I want it for my health, too. I'm diabetic and want to cut down or get off insulin. Thank you again, Opus----Judy

Hello, I will now try the 60's thread. I am not getting to much in the way of response from any of the other threads. I'm 60 and I will be seeing my surgeon on 5/12. I have one burning question to ask. I will be having this procedure done at the Richmond Kaiser. I don't want to ask the surgeon this question because I don't want him to think I am not going to be sincerely dedicated to the program. Can you ever bring bread or pasta or rice back into your diet ? I hope this thread is more congenial and responde I really feel discouraged about all this writing with no response. nonnad

HI! I am still waiting to be banded and I don"t have too many answers yet. I just wanted to let you know someone is reading your post. I have read that some people have trouble with rice and others don't. It may be if you can do it. Good luck. Linda

Hello, I will now try the 60's thread. I am not getting to much in the way of response from any of the other threads. I'm 60 and I will be seeing my surgeon on 5/12. I have one burning question to ask. I will be having this procedure done at the Richmond Kaiser. I don't want to ask the surgeon this question because I don't want him to think I am not going to be sincerely dedicated to the program. Can you ever bring bread or pasta or rice back into your diet ? I hope this thread is more congenial and responde I really feel discouraged about all this writing with no response. nonnad

Hi,

I can give you some answers.

It's really an entirely individual thing.

Lots of people cannot tolerate rice, pasta or bread at all. I can eat all three in moderation and very carefully. But, I think you will find that as you make changes in your dietary habits, your desire for these things will begin to fade.

Like, yes, I CAN eat bread, but I very rarely do because I want only quality foods on my menu, and with limited space in my stomach, I don't want to fill it up with bread! I want my meat/fish & veggies!

Every Wed we have lunch at church with our 55+ group. There's always desert and I usually indulge in a couple of bites and pass the rest to my hubby. Today it was rainbow sherbet and sugar cookies... those waffle kind, you know? I started to eat this one little cookie, and YUCK!! I'm not used to the sweetness anymore and it was almost sickening!

Pasta.... oh, my.... one of my very favorite foods!!

But we just had "spaghetti" for dinner and we had the meat sauce on french style green beans!

And I'm perfectly content to have it that way.

But they did have macaroni salad on the menu at lunch today and I had a spoonful of it. That is definitely a weakness of mine so I just can't have it in the house. Out of sight, out of mind. They offered everyone leftovers to take home but I knew better. If we took some home, it'd be talking to me from the refrigerator until it was gone.

Rice seems to be a BIG problem for some people, too, but I haven't had any trouble with it. Again, though, I very seldom have it. We don't fix it at home at all anymore, so the only time I have it is if we go out for Mexican and then I'll have a little but I mix it with my beans and maybe that's why I have no trouble with it. I have had one little sushi a couple of times because one of our neighborhood grocery stores often has sushi samples out for tasting. It's that sticky rice, which I have heard causes many a BIG problem... but I can eat one of those things and haven't experienced any trouble. So, go figure???

So I hope that helps you a little. Really the biggest thing I can say to you is... trust me... your whole attitude regarding your favorite foods will change! Honest! They will no longer be that much of a temptation for you. And you can have most anything you want to have if you just "budget" it... if you want to treat yourself to say a piece of chocolate or little bit of ice cream once a week...

you adjust your calories to make room for it.

Hello, I will now try the 60's thread. I am not getting to much in the way of response from any of the other threads. I'm 60 and I will be seeing my surgeon on 5/12. I have one burning question to ask. I will be having this procedure done at the Richmond Kaiser. I don't want to ask the surgeon this question because I don't want him to think I am not going to be sincerely dedicated to the program. Can you ever bring bread or pasta or rice back into your diet ? I hope this thread is more congenial and responde I really feel discouraged about all this writing with no response. nonnad

Pasta and rice don't agree with my band. I don't know about other people, but with the band protein is the key word, then veggies and if any room left some potatoes etc. I try hard to stay away from things that are high in carbs to be honest. I have no luck with bread, rice or pasta, but things are different for different bandsters. I'm sure you will get a variety of answers on this one.

Hi NonnaD

I have not been banded yet, still in the application/testing process, so I cannot answer your question - but I'm sure glad you asked it! Thanks, Phyll and Skittles for your answers, as I 'm sure a lot of us newbies were wondering the same thing. It sounds as if it's like a lot of things - we'll find out for sure when we get there. I have read from several posts that your tastes change and the things you worry about missing the most will no longer be an issue after a while. I'm willing to go with that! I'm a big fan of protein, and I think the protein requirement helps to satisfy a lot of hunger issues.

Good luck to you,

Joann

Welcome. I was banded on April 14 and have lost a total of 25 pounds including the pre and post op diet. Yes, you can have Pasta and rice at about 4 weeks post op. Bread, I don't know when that occurs. Follow your doctor/nutiritionist's instructions - it makes life a lot better. There is a thread on food and nutrition that is great. Be blessed.

Grammy in Columbus