Oregondaisy

Not that many people know I am banded. I told my bf pretty quickly though, once I realized we were serious and that I would be eating often with him. He is really into fitness and said he was impressed that I cared enough about my health to have this surgery. No, the port does not bother me at all in any position.

I think Janet needs to take a little trip to Arizona. We could all have so much fun!

Baby, I thought you got to your goal at one time? I was too tight. I was pbing all the time. I went in and got a slight unfill and that was in Dec. I haven't needed a fill since then. It was a lot of trial and error to find the sweet spot. I only live 5 min from my dr. so I am sure that helped.

I would get a sleeve in a heartbeat if anything ever happened to my band. The sleeve has it's good points. No after care, no erosion, no slips, no fills. They are using a part of the stomach now that is not stretchy. I have heard wonderful things about Kat's doctor.

I can eat anything I want. I don't drink anything except for Water though. That is my choice. I don't want artificial sweetners in my body, so I don't do crystal light. Occasionally I have propell water. I eat popcorn when I go to the movies or sometimes I will have a bag of the 100 calorie microwave pop corn. I don't have any no no's!

Yay! Maybe you can join WasA, Snowbird and I . We are going to have lunch at the Landmark in downtown Mesa. WasA has been telling me about it, then Snowbird suggested it too. Hopefully we could do it on a Sat. so you could join us. If not, you and I can work something out for whatever is convenient for you!

Good Luck BBK. You have been through so much! If you think D's are too small, you would laugh at my B!

If you have little restriction, you need to get another fill. Having the right fill is a key to weight loss. That and exercise are a must!

I wish I was going to Chicago. That's my home town. It's a great place to visit, just don't want to live there anymore.

Carol, I am coming down there next month. I will be there from 8-20 until 8-30. If I don't hear from you on this thread, I will pm you. I hope we can get together this time!

I went camping over the weekend and ate like there was no tomorrow. I gained 2 lbs and have already lost them! A guy told me I have a nice butt. That was a nice NSV!

Oh, I have the same problem. I have had insomnia for years. I take different meds or I would not sleep at all. I usually take Ambien, but since my ins. will only let me have 14 pills per month, I have to take Restoril on the other nights. I got sick of being awake all night and gave in to the drugs.

I gave up fast food, junk food, candy, comfort food, I learned to deal with events without organizing them around food, I learned a new way to deal with my problems rather than feeding them, and I learned a new way to commit myself to me. This says it all in a nutshell, BBK. Some people do expect the band to do most of the work. I gave up all that stuff too. I know the difference this time was that I didn't give up when I hit those plateaus. In the old days, I always said "I am not losing anyway, so I might as well eat -----(whatever junk food I wanted at the time) I guess I was more determined this time to just follow the rules and not give up. I have to say, it is a lot easier now. I have perfect restriction and I don't get hungry very often.

What's wrong BBK? Which Sh*t is bumming you out?

Oh we have a lot of AZ bandsters. Have you ever gone to the AZ thread? WasABubblebutt and Snowbird and I are meeting at the Landmark. I will be down from 8-20 to 8-30. Luv rocks lives in Glendale. There are about 3 other people in Mesa very close to my dad's house. You are welcome to join us at the Landmark. No date or time has been set yet.

I really can't answer this poll. In the beginning it was hard. I lost 22 lbs in the 4 weeks on liquids post op. Then I lost nothing for months and I was really discouraged. I really can't say when things changed for me. I never lost weight every week. I went on long plateaus and was sure I was going to be a person that the band just didn't work on. Then all of a sudden, I would drop 5 lbs and the plateau would start all over again. I am sure if I didn't exercise, I wouldn't have lost as well. I already had the exercise habit though before I was ever banded. Recently, I have lost another 5 without really trying. I just follow the rules and slowly my weight went down. I wonder now if I will continue to lose. It's nice to have a little wiggle room now.

Phoenix, where do you live? My dad lives in Mesa. I come there all the time. I usually meet up with some other bandsters for lunch while I am there. It's great to meet people from lap band talk!

I am definitely not too tight. I can eat anything I want and never pb anymore. I really don't even have to chew like I used to either. I was too tight once, and it was horrible.

You are the same height as me. I never thought I would see 140. I bet you will be surprised. If you exercise regularly, you will be able to lose more than you think. Orea, Welcome to one of the best threads on this board! We are all very supportive here.

The reason for not drinking with meals is it pushes the food out of the pouch and you can eat more and will get hungry faster. I always wonder if you're supposed to time it when you start eating or stop eating. My dr. said nothing to drink for one hour after meals. I usually look at the clock when I am done, and I do wait the hour. If I am really thirsty, I do take a sip. If I am eating with other people who don't know I am banded, I do drink a little bit more. It helps so I don't get stuck. Anxiety is not good for the band, and I would rather not worry about food getting stuck than getting hungry faster.

There are many people on this board who have lost 100% of their excess body weight. It all depends on how hard you are willing to work. The band doesn't do all the work. Shortgal, that really stinks. If that happened to me, I would probably have to pay for it. Rugman, I assume you were talking to me and not Lynn. I am glad I could help. That test was a big help for me.

I really don't know what the difference is between the Realize band and the band I have other than mine holds 4cc's max and the Realize band holds much more saline. I am sure you will be feeling better soon Ranger. If you are at 10 days post op, you should start feeling better. I have heard that GasX helps.

Glad we can accommodate you Ranger! We have a lot of fun here. There is probably not anything you could ask about regarding banding that one/many of us will have the answer to. You might get a lot of varied opinions, but we are always glad to help!

Yay! I am always happy to hear someone got approved.

A bmi of 25? Isn't that in the normal range? I would have to go and look at a bmi calculator. I am pretty sure there aren't any insurance companies that will pay with a bmi of 25. If you can afford it, that's great! It's certainly the best money I have ever spent.