Hey all.

So there's a bunch of us in this group, all split up into our different banding days. I was thinking that it might be a good idea to have one master thread as we move through the month, in which all of us could post as we go, from the pioneers going on March 1st to the finalists on March 31st.

I'd love to talk about our anticipation and any worries as we approach our banding date, for people to talk about exactly what happened from the moment they walked into the hospital door until the second they walked out, about how recovery is going, about weight loss and plateaus, about non-scale victories and challenges.

I was thinking that if we all contribute to one thread, it'll form a more substantial channel for information and support. At the moment, I was thinking that we might be too spread out into individual date, and that a central thread would be a really good backbone for the group, in addition to the date-specific threads.

What do you think?

Fenton

Happy Birthday Carrie!!

Hey Shamrocks!

Carrie - Happy Belated Birthday!!!!! Your post made me laugh. I finally looked at some pictures of myself from a year ago.....then some more recent photos. It made me want to go find someone who saw me last year!

I agree about the plateau thing. Last week I had a day where I know I went over the amount of carbs I normally eat. I didn't starve myself the next day, just ate well. Now I am losing weight again. Even on the show biggest loser they have a "high calorie day" once a week. I have to admit having a 'high calorie day' sort of scares me. I have that slipperly slope issue. But, to have one day a week that is a little more food than usual.....

Hey Harley...good to see you back. Sorry to hear things are tough right now emotionally. DH and I are having a rough time, but he refuses to go with me to get help. So I enjoy the times he is away on trips and find lots of work to do when he is home. Sad but true.

Amanda....sorry to hear about the bike accident. Glad you are sort of OK. Not sure what to say about the gain. Let me know if you want to get together. Hugs!

Carrie...Thank you for your support and Happy Birthday!

Hope....I've used that method many times to break a plateau. Not sure if it's the best way to do it, but it has worked for me.

Christine

Edited April 22, 200917 yr by nycm00

Delayed Gastric Emptying!

So, I had my Upper GI with small bowel follow-through yesterday. The likely diagnosis is Delayed Gastric emptying.

It took 45 minutes for the barium to start moving from my stomach (my band is empty) to the small intestine. It usually takes about 5-10 minutes (according to the rediologist)

At the 45 minute mark, I had the same pain I would normally get after eating and then the barium started moving. The GI doctor had mentioned this as a possible diagnosis....though he did not feel it was likely. There is another nuclear medicine test that we will probably do next to see the extent of the delay. I am supposed to meet with the GI guy next Friday, but I may call to get the ball rolling faster...since I may need another test.

The treatment sucks! The medications have bad side effects and I will most likely just grin and bear it for a while and make dietary changes.

I find it really ironic that I had a band placed around my stomach to keep food in my stomach longer, help control my appetite and now my stomach is doing it on it's own. If I have a salad with chicken for lunch....larger portion than when my band was filled...I am good for the day. That 2 oz of steak and small amount of broccoli I had last Tuesday was probably still sitting there on Wednesday when I was unable to eat and having so much pain.

It's good to know there is something going on besides to occcasional flair up of gastritis. I don't have the official diagnosis yet, but feel like this may be it.

Christine

Edited April 22, 200917 yr by nycm00

I also finally broke through a plateau and it was after being sick...go figure. I had dental surgery and had to be on pain medicine and antibiotics for a week followed by a bad allergy attack that had me on antihistamines and gunk to get my eyes to stop watering and nose from running and then suddenly that stubborn weight that was keeping me from my 100 lb mark went away and I'm down 2 lbs below that now. So, the long and short of it is.... hang in there for the long run, it will come off.

Edited April 22, 200917 yr by SpecialK

Hungry...sorry to hear you need a port revision. Go to the complictions board, there are a few threads over there about the procedure.

Good luck!

Christine

thanks all... glad to see that most everyone has been relatively complication free. nyc, looks like you and i are the "lucky" ones.

a quick update: assuming my upper gi confirms the leak is NOT in the band, i'll have my port and/or tubing replaced on may 18.

i'm pretty much fill-free at the moment and a little panic-stricken. i'd honestly forgotten what it feels sustained physical hunger feels like. despite the problem i'm having, i feel even more sure now that i couldn't have lost as much weight by myself and i really doubt i could have kept it off without my band.

looking back on my fills, i always noticed my restriction disappear after a couple of weeks. now i'm thinking i may have had a slow leak for months. if i had it to do over again, i would make my doctor completely unfill and refill me during each fill appt. had i done that, i think i could have, well, pinpointed when the leak began. at any rate, i'm looking forward to getting back on track.

meanwhile, i'm allowing myself a +/- 5lbs until my revision surgery.

nyc, thanks again for pointing me to the complications thread. it's very informative.

Hungry-

be weary of the complications thread. I have noticed folks just bitching and moaning. What you need is information.

I know of one person who had their port changed. Came through it with flying colors. Minimal recovery, just sore at the spot.(Dr even said it could have been done under a general/local) If your port was stitched to your muscle deeply or with a re-enforcing web it might be tender for a while there too.

Keep up your good eating habits.

My computer was down for more than a week. It crashed and was actually able to be fixed. I didn't realize how addicted I am to the computer.

Speaking of plateaus, I finally broke mine. I started the high Protein low carb diet. 3 days of protein only and the 4th day add fruits and veggies. The scale finally moved. I'll post my loss this Friday. I missed last Friday because my computer was down.

Christine - I have never heard of delayed gastric emptying. Is there anything they can do for it?

I have one more test to quantify the delay. I will go and eat a meal (eggs) laced with some radioactive isotope and then they will watch to see how long it sits in my stomach. Once the delay is quantified I will see what the MD has to say about medication for it.

From what I have been reading on-line, I really would not want to go on meds until the delay is unbearable....meaning I have lost too much weight, am vomitting regularly, having unbearable pain when eating all the suggested foods and staying away from the foods I should avoid.

The meds have side effects that I feel I would not do well with....depression, fatigue, irritability, mood swings. I have been on meds for depression in the past and very prone to going down that path. So, I will do the dietary and lifestyle stuff first.

My problem is that I was trying to do Protein and no carbs and I really have to limit the tough Proteins. I will be doing more fish.

I am not sure what the surgeon will have to say about the band with this issue, I figure I will wait until all the results are in before going there.

Christine

nyc... good luck with the tests today!

fyi, i was online earlier and came across the smart new york magazine article re: adjusting to life in smaller bodies. here's, um, a taste of the story:

"Dramatic weight loss has a way of exposing not just the architecture of people’s bodies but of their lives—the subtle economies of power in their relationships, the suitability of their work, the limits of their own strength—and that architecture may not look nearly as lovely. A woman may discover that her marriage of twenty years was predicated on a dynamic of disrespect and condescension, or that her best friend since childhood required a sidekick who didn’t threaten her somehow. Then again, she may also discover that the man she’s been married to is made of even kinder, sturdier stuff than she ever imagined, and that her friends have a capacity for generosity more profound than she’s ever known. It simply depends. Results, as they say in diet commercials, may vary."

you can find the rest of the piece here: Stomach Surgery to Get Thin, But Not Necessarily Happy

Thank you for posting the article. The article spoke about what I am feeling right now with my weight loss. I am having a hard time dealing with people and the way that I am treated now vs. then. So this article really spoke to me. It is so nice to know that I am not the only person who feels this way.

Thanks for posting the article. It touched on many points that I am dealing with right now. Thank you!

Christine

Just an update I'm continuing to balance at a plateau mark, fortunately my first fill is coming next friday. This should make a difference. My frustration is I keep wanting the other food, not the high protein stuff. It's difficult to say no...

I very happy to say that the 8lbs I was up over last weekend have gone back to where ever they came from.

I went on a liquid diet for Monday- Wednesday, yesterday was liquid until dinner and that was mushie. I think I will stay on a modified diet for the rest of the weekend. I'm also doing a bit of liver detoxing with teas and juices.

Im at that weird stage where most of my clothes are a little big but I don't want to buy anything new because I really want to buy smaller sizes. It was easier to go with the baggy over the winter now with summer coming I just looks messy.

Oh-hum the trials of weight loss.

Everyone have a wonderful weekend. The weather here in the East is going to be GLORIOUS! Im planning on being out as much as possible.

Harley I hope you can get out on your bike.

I went to my hospital's bariatric style show where they have a group of about 10-12 post weight loss patients that get to be dressed in great clothes by the Mall stores, they do professional makeup and hair for them and then tell their before and after stories. It brings tears to your eyes and most importantly it brings HOPE that I can get there one day too! I have to tell you the last lady in the show was a lady who had lost 180 lbs and they had her dressed in a Jessica McClintock red floor length gown with beautiful bling jewelry and she looked incredible! Nobody would have ever guessed she had lost 180 lbs. I did hear some people behind me say she must have had some plastic surgery post weight loss because she had the flattest stomach and cutest curvy body -- not overdone on top but she just looked so beautiful. I said to my friend I was with, okay, I am trying to also lose 180 lbs and I want to go up and meet that lady afterward and tell her how her story inspired me and ask if I can take her picture and I did. She was really nice and said you'll get there! I swear I am going to print that lady's picture off and put it on my refrigerator to remind me what I could look like with this 180 lbs gone forever.

I got really ambitious today and did a couple hours of yard work plus took a really long walk so when I uploaded my Bodybugg today, it says I've logged over 14000 steps today! I'm trying to keep on moving some way every day.... One more day closer to strutting my stuff someday in a red floor length gown!

Edited April 25, 200917 yr by SpecialK