Oregondaisy

My advice to read every part of this board. You will never be able to find more information anywhere else. This is a great site! Welcome and best of luck with your surgery.

I have been wondering when somebody would bring this up. There definitely needs to be a BL just for women. How do you sign up for Jillian's work outs? Do you have to pay for them?

I don't remember all the questions but I can tell you about my experience. I was banded at 8 am and home by 11 am. I never had any pain. I would have never even known I had surgery if I hadn't seen the little cuts on my tummy. I was out walking 3 dogs the next day. I know everyone doesn't have such an easy time as I did, but everyone is not in a lot of pain either. My port doesn't bother me at all. I would never even know it's there unless I push on it. I can eat bread if I chew very well. I had steak the other day. I am definitely at my sweet spot, so I am surprised I can eat bread. I have been told I wouldn't be able to eat it. I had half a jr. whopper the other day. Most of the time I choose not to eat bread though. The steak I had was about the size of the palm of my hand. I got fills as soon as I noticed that I could eat a lot more. They were about 6 weeks apart. The last few were a combination of fills and unfills. I had too much and was very uncomfortable. Then he took too much out. I am perfect now. I am lucky that I live very close to my dr.

Okay, I did a quick scan of new posts. somebody PM me. I always want to know what's goin on!

Geepers, I go away for 5 min. and there are 3 new pages! Now I have to go and look for that thread.

You really can't go by other people. Everyone is different inside. My band holds 4ccs and I had 3 at one point and it was too much. When you lose weight, you lose the fat around the stomach and the band loosens. I have 3 in there now, and have had since Dec. and I am perfect now. My very first fill was 1.25 and I was getting food stuck and having all sorts of problems. I stayed with that fill until I felt like I didn't have a band at all. Do you know how much your band holds?

- How much volume can you eat at one sitting? I use my hand as sort of a measure. I stopped measuring my food. I eat a piece of meat that's about the size of my palm. My dr. wants us to eat 75% protein and 25 % veggies and fruit. Sometimes my eyes are bigger than my stomach. I will cut up the amount of meat I think I can eat, and I can't eat it all. - Do you count calories? Track food? I used to be very religious about counting calories. Now, I eat so many of the same foods all the time, I can do it in my head without logging in. I used to use sparkpeople.com - How often do eat per day? snacks? I eat 3 meals a day, and usually an evening snack of some sort. Usually it's a sugar free fudgesicle. -How long do you feel full for after meals? 3-4 hours, sometimes longer. Sometimes I actually forget that it's time to eat. In the evenings, it's definitely head hunger. I am not hungry, but I think I have a taste for something. I stay full from breakfast but I know I have to eat lunch before I go to work or I will be hungry at work. I only work part time, in the afternoons. I work out every morning. When I didn't have the right fill, I got full very fast but I was hungry again soon. Let me know if you have any other questions. I am happy to help.

Yeah, we are all a great bunch here in the over 50's crowd. Life with the band is up and down sometimes, but lately it's more up that down. Apples you're just going to have to ignore this person. You're going to be losing a lot of weight after you get the band, and it's almost like your success makes her feel like a failure. I had a bad weekend of eating the wrong things, but now I have no more social engagements coming up where it will just be one big food party. I always say that I wish that bad foods weren't so easy to eat. If brownies and cookies would just get stuck, I would be at my goal. I have a hard time with willpower when that's all that everyone around me is eating.

I thought I read that you had your surgery in Mexico. I went back to read all the posts, so maybe I was taking something for granted. It's so hard on everyone that has to drive awhile to get fills or see their doctor. I know I am very lucky that I live so close to mine. I am able to get in and see him immediately if I am having any kind of problem. I hope whoever you see today is able to figure out your problem and you go back to having your band working perfectly for you:biggrin:

I've had that problem and I hate it. I have a lot of meds to take, and it's horrible to need to get them down, then wait with that golf ball feeling drinking Water, hoping it's going to go through. I am lucky I still have liquid pain medication that I could take if I needed to and couldn't get pills down. I hope your fill loosens a bit more and it gets easier for you. I can tell you that it's wonderful it is to have perfect restriction. It took me a year of getting fills, getting unfilled, waiting and getting another fill, to finally be able to say I am perfect right now.

I honestly get very thirsty. I sip water all the time. I can't gulp a bunch down like I used to. It makes me burp. I drink some and then wait to burp.

You're right. It doesn't make any sense. That has never been the case for me. I can tell the difference the next day after a fill. I have heard a lot of people say their fill takes awhile to take effect. I have no idea why. I have a friend that was banded by my dr. the same day as me that I email with. She had a fill a couple of weeks ago, and had been complaining that it felt no different. Today she sent me an email that all of a sudden she can hardly eat at all. You're right. It's very strange. I will be interested to hear what others say.

I love muscle milk. I didn't even know you could purchase it in powder. I got mine at Costco, and it's little cardboard containers that look like cans. It's delicious.

We will be waiting to hear how things turn out. I don't think you can yourself how many or a portions of a cc will be taken out. Your doctor should know after he evaluates you, where you need to be. I am surprised to hear these things about this dr. I know someone that is crazy about that dr.

That's what my sweet spot is too. I can eat whatever I want, just not very much of it. I stay full for hours. I have never judged my cups, but I know I can't eat more than the size of my hand. My palm would be how much meat I can eat, and the fingers, a few veggies. I ordered a steak the other day, and it said on the menu it was a 6 oz steak. I ate half. So I guess that means I ate 3 oz of steak, and a couple broccoli tops.

That's a good one Phyl. Sometimes I am able to tell myself "No, that's not the way I eat anymore" but if it's a big food fest like my daughter's baby shower was, it's hard to stay away from the food for that many hours. I need to grow a spine.

Does anyone have any suggestions on how to be able to say now while watching others socialize eating cake cookies, etc? I have to learn to say know and find willpower from somewhere or I will never get to goal. It's depressing. I was good all day yesterday but caved in the evening. Then it was bad all day today. I think I need to stay in the house and not see anyone!

Good job, Julie. I seem to do well until there is some event where there is going to be food. I did well all week long but had a band weekend of eating the wrong things all weekend. Too many activities around food. I don't seem to have any willpower when it's around me. If anyone has any suggestions, I would sure like to hear them. I can't seem to look at baked things and watch everyone else eat them. I did good all day yesterday, but caved in during the evening. Then it threw off today too. I have to get a handle on this or I will never get to goal!

I agree. The tiniest removal of saline can make all the difference in the world.

That's a bummer. You have a lot to deal with, now with your new little addition to your family coming!

The only thing I ever drink is water. I drink 64 oz or more per day. It takes me 24 oz just to take my pills. I always warm my water up in the microwave now. Waitresses always give me a funny look when I ask for water with no ice. One time I asked them to bring me hot water like for tea, and I poured it into my glass of cold water. They looked at me like I was crazy.

I wish I could run. I loved it when I was able to start jogging. Then my back started acting up and my ortho doctor told me no more jogging. The time goes by so fast, but I pay for it later

Has anyone seen NW Sunshine around? I haven't seen her post in a long time.

You don't have to get completely unfilled. You just need to have a slight unfill. The smallest amount can make a huge difference. Since I did that, I have not thrown up in months. I can only eat a piece of meat about the size of the palm of my hand, so I know I have good restriction, but not tight enough to throw up.

I used firefox, and my monitor probably is small. It's old. It's certainly not one of those really nice flat screen ones.