Well hello, here I am again, I will be driving the three hours to Dr. Eddie Gomez in Coral Gables, Florida for another fill, I had a fill done on March 1, but didn't get any restriction from it. I was supposed to go back last week, but decided to wait another week to see if the restriction would kick in, well it hasn't but hopefully everything will go well tomorrow and I can finally get some restriction and start losing some weight. I have not lost any weight in a while and it is really depressing me and in turn the feeling of depression is making me eat more, I have gained about five pounds back and I hate myself for it. Please pray that I have a good fill tomorrow, my port is sideways so that concerns me as well. Well I will let you all know on Thursday how my fill went. On the up side I get to see the good looking Dr. Gomez.

Home made lentil soup (yum)

Saute a chopped onion with three slices of bacon (bacon fat seasons it all real good)

bag of lentils and about 8 cups wather or more

1/2 c. shredded carott

1 tlb cardemium

2-3 tsp curry

chicken stock base (enough to make the Water taste like chicken broth) or use canned chicken broth instead of water with a little base

Bring to a boil and simmer about 30-40 minutes...

The secret is the chicken broth and cardimiun (don't know how to spell it)

If you like split peas, make some of that soup. I use a ham hock in it for seasoning and shredded carrotts and onions with bacon. Can you tell I am from the south? LOL

Beans are also good and have protien and fiber, not to mention they are soft.

I had my first fill on Wednesday. It went very well. The procedure was truly painless and Dr. Curry was so fast and acurate. He said you will feel a stick and then he said all done, I swear it took me longer to type that then it did for him to do it. I stayed in the office a bit sipping a drink. Then I stayed in a hotel overnight before driving back home (2 hours away) just in case I couldn't keep liquids down. So far so good. I have only had liquids and a couple of mushie things. I do feel restricted but not overly. And that is fine. I ask him to be conservative so he put in 1cc. He also said I could come back as soon as two weeks for another fill if I am not losing. I told him taking it slow was fine with me and I would probably wait longer then two weeks.

The true test will be when I move on to more solid foods.

Hope your fill has loosened up a bit.

Hope everyone has a wonderful weekend

Where oh where is that sweet spot!

That is exactly how I feel, I think the doctor was too aggressive with this fill, he took me from 1.2 cc to 2, he should have picked a number in between, I'm probably being punished-- I so wanted to have restriction, but not this much...I went ahead and called the doctor's office (had to leave a message their not in yet) so that they know that I'm having problems. If I don't feel better by Monday, do you think I should go ahead and get an unfill??? I probably should. I hope they don't charge me to have an unfill

I wasn't able to eat anything last night and I felt really crappy, I had such a bad headache, I thought my head was going to explode. What a bummer??? I've had to cancel my weekend plans to Orlando, because there is no way I could enjoy myself in this state... I would hate for my family to put up with me all weekend feeling this crappy. Maybe I'll take the kids to the beach instead? At least I can run into the bushes to pb. LOL Well thank you both for being so caring and thank you Alice for the recipe. Today is my little girls 4th birthday, she is having a birthday party at her school during lunch (I took the easy way out, don't have to do any clean up) She was so excited this morning, Those are the little things that make life worth living, I love to see smiles on my children's faces. Well talk to you all later. I have to call and make sure the cake is going to be ready on time..

Love,

Thanks, Vicki, I now am wishing my doctor would have been conservative too. Maybe that's what I should start doing, just plan to stay overnight close to the doctors just in case this should happen again. Its just too bad that he only sees patients on Tues and Wed, smack in the middle of the week.

Well the doctor's office just called and they tell me that the doctor is in surgery all day today and then has a meeting so there is no way he can see me today, this realls stinks, I am having serious doubts about the decision I made to get this band, is it worth all this trouble? I better look like J Lo when this is all said and done and all the weight is gone or I'm going to be really mad...Lol Well, the nurse suggested what you all had already told me, stay on warm, clear fluids through the weekend and hopefully I will feel better by Monday, you know what's bad, that he is not in the office on Mondays either, so if worse comes to worse, I have to wait until Tuesday morning. Please pray that this restriction loosens up a bit.. And today is my little girls b day and I don't get to eat cake with her, what a bummer. Well I better head out, I have to take the cake and pizza to her school.

Have a good time with your little girl and just drink broth for strength if that is all you can get down. Don't let this ruin the other wornderful blessings you have around you.

I am going to pray that you loosen up as I am praying that I too will loosen up.

I once fasted on diluted clear juice for 21 days and did fine. You will not wither away drinking juice or broth for several days.

Vicitoo.... hope all goes well with you.

I am leaving town this weekend to spend some time with my 21yo daughter. She was the inspiration for me to get the band. It was her words I heard while alone in Mexico, no one speaking english in the OR, "Mom, you will NOT regret this".

I am very tight too, still. It has been one week today. I started my period yesterday so I am going to give it a few more days.

I can eat Soups and soft food, but forget meat! I didn't like to eat meat before the band. I always ate Beans and legumes.

I am getting nutrients, but I am so used to eatting so much, LOL.

I will be back online Sunday... Have a blessed weekend everyone!

My doc explained that you normally feel tighter the first few days due to swelling - so all clear for 24 hrs, then full... soft... back to solids on day four or five.

I had the opposite issue - felt no restriction after the fill until I had solids and then it was WOW.

Hot tea has helped me and I can only drink room temperature Water, etc.

Also... if you get dehydrated (at all) it causes the stoma to swell a little too...

Cold beverages/food also cause increased restriction.

Not that I am an expert, lol... read most of these things here and there.

HTH... let us know how it goes.

Honestly, what you describe is what I was expecting and was disappointed when I didn't feel that way... trying to find that thin line between restricition and not is so difficult. When they were adding my fill and asking me how I felt it was difficult to determine if it was good or not... KWIM??? They did it under fluro so the chance of an overfill is less but still.... I didn't want to PB water.

Anyway, long winded here...

Good luck and please let us know how it goes.

Hugs,

HI Estela,

So its been a few more days are you doing better? What about those extra 5 pds are they gone? I hope you can ride out these few weeks without having an unfill. But if not I have heard that sometimes the littlest amount taken out can help tremendously. How about searching some threads on unfills? Maybe that will shed some good advice for you. I hope you better..Thinking of you

Hey, how did you do over the weekend? Could you eat anything?

I am going well this morning, I can eat, I am sticking to mushies for another day and then I'll try solids, I stayed mostly on warm liquids this weekend and i did well. I have lost 5 lbs since Wed, so that is good. I went home Fri so I haven't been online since then and didn't know what happened to Blossom. I am so devastated, she got banded a day after I did and I always felt we had such a special connection, she was so nice, I am truly going to miss her, I feel very bad right now, I am so upset. I don't understand, why these things happen. I pray that her husband finds the strength and courage to get through this time. Thanks all of you for being so caring toward me, I will talk to you later, I don't feel well now.