♥LovetheNewMe♥

Welcome Eric and good luck with your surgery!

I always bruise after a fill, but I bruise easily. I have only had one bad episode with an unfill and they could not get into my part and stuck me 10 plus times. I no longer allow them to fill or unfill my band with the x-ray. I will not go through that pain ever again.

Welcome!

Well where it started and where it is now are two different places. Mine is above my waist, to the right, It did not use to be that visible but as you become thinner it is more prominent. I can feel all the way around mine now and if I hit it it hurts, Sorry I know TMI but just so you know when as Kime stated the port is visible once you lose your fat from around the belly. Small price to pay and some people have a revision to what is a low profile port. Have no idea but had enough surgery and will stick with mine, no need messing with a good thing.

Awesome thread everyone, such a positive outcome!

Highly recommend Victoria Secret, they do a great job of making sure you find the right bra that fits and looks good under your cloths and I go free panties to. I had to laugh though, the girl asked me what kind did I want. I must have had a reallly odd look on face and she said do you want cheekies or hipsters. I made the mistake of asking the difference, well I to say the least at 57 I took the hipsters. Even though I am little know still too much cheek to hang our. lol

I have posted honest pictures of myself through our my journey even at my heavest which was some where between 250-260's. I have updated my avatar along my journey to show changes. Check out my gallary and you will see, yes I used to be very obese but yes now I am thin. I posted all of my pictures so it would be encouraging to others and yes it is possible with a lot of hard work. It took me 2 years to loose 122 lbs.

My most favorite holiday of the year and my birthday eve and I am not going any where this year and we have very few kids. I loved Halloween when I lived in CH, I loved to go DT to Franklin street. That was always the best birthday celebration ever. Park and ride and wearing a costume on the bus.

Be safe, I have family and friends in NJ, RI and WV. All are safe but NJ and WV both hit hard one with the direct storm and WV with the snow storm. Glad your family is safe.

My doctor was not as strict, I only did two days of clear liquids than a week of full, a week of mushy and than progressed to soft and than all solids. I read the blogs and referred a lot to Lapband .com in the beginning just so I would get the rules down straight. I read the blogs and noticed that many people were different, I just assumed that some doctors were more strict depending on what outcomes they were having. I used a lot of protein shakes in the beginning, cream soups, koolaid, and SF pop cycles. I found the first 6 weeks to be very hard after banding, there was more to get used to than I had expected. A caution, please ask plenty of questions but always remember your doctor is your best source of evidence for the problem.Good Luck to You!

Immediately after surgery the band has little to know fluid in it so you will be able to drink and eat with little resistance. I suggest you practice taking small sips and small bites to prepare for when your band has fluid in it, if not you are going to find out after your first fill what resistance really feels like. You won't stretch the band with fluid but you may cause gas with big drinks, drinking with a straw etc.

I have one question, you have a lap band and your husband is a diabetic, why would you make a cake?

Well it has been two years this weekend since I had lap-band surgery. Official date for surgery was October 27, 2010. All I can say is wow, I have learned so much these past two years and still learn everyday but only hope and pray it all sticks with me for the rest of my life. When I started this journey two years ago, I was morbidly obese and like many of you had struggled for years with the ups and downs of yo-yo dieting. My medical health had started to suffer under the weight of my added poundage and my life expectancy was being greatly affected by my poor choice of diet. I loved food and what is even worse I am an excellent cook and baker and was so scared I could not change. This journey for me has been a very personal journey like I know it is for all of you. I think my biggest fear in the beginning was that I would fail or I would lose some weight but not all the weight. Can anyone identify with those thoughts? I am sure you can. On the outside to people looking in, I look like I have made this journey easy but that is so far from the truth. I fight back the urges of my alter ego daily. What do I mean by that, I have head hunger just like the rest of you but I know if I allow myself that one indulgence that I may not be able to stop. Everyone has those few things that I chose to call their kryptonyte and those are the things that if presented with them you find them the hardest to resist. Mine are potato chips and french fries. Hmmm, wonderful crunchy salty yummy potato chips and wonderful hot salty FF from of yes McDonald's. Today if presented with these two items I would still indulge in their forbidden goodness. I know, I know, I should be stronger right, well I am human and we all have our weaknesses and that is mine. So how do I avoid them, simple don't buy them. If you were to do a sweep of my cupboards and fridge and freezer you would find healthy snacks. Apples, bananas, natural peanut butter, SF syrups, Dark Chocolate (I buy one bar at a time of Chocoluv Dark Chocolate with Sea Salt and it has to last 2 weeks, that is one itty bitty square at a time), healthy pop corn(no added butter) Raw Almonds and protein shakes and bars. May sound boring but I have found these to be my new delights when I want a snack and actually find myself craving my new found healthy snacks. I still have several obsessions with my weight loss journey, I have to record my food intake daily, (MFP) I have to make recipes for any foods I do in combination (I use the recipe builder on MFP, before I indulge in them), I still 2 years out weigh and measure my food, I still eat off a salad plate. (All of these rituals sometimes drive my husband crazy, he even told a Friend this weekend that he was actually jealous of my blogging and all the time I spend on MFP and LBT, I looked at him and said. Seriously, "Would you rather have the old Diane back?" "If not get over it, deal with it, this is my therapy and this is what helps me stay honest and clean with myself." So now you know my other obsession today, my computer time, this new found love for recording food, responding to blogs and forums is my indulgence and helps me stay focused on why I am doing all of this. So if your still reading my long winded ranting, I am sure you are wondering where the pot of gold, the fairy dust, magic wand and words of great wisdom are? Well guess what there are none, there is no magic, there is nothing special about lap band, it will not help you fix your obsessions with food, it will not cure your head hunger and most important it will not stop you from eating. Now it will give you some negative reinforcement if you chose to break the rules and over indulge in bad band behavior. So I guess one word of wisdom is to get your head screwed on right. You see day after day I read on this web site all the comments from fellow bandsters about needing help because they have fallen off the band wagon, they need to refocus, the need to get back on track, they say they cheated, they say they have been banded for days, months, years and still are struggling with losing weight. Honestly all of this makes my heart hurt, , you ask, Why? Because, these people are still waiting for the band to tell them not to eat (RESTRICTION), their still waiting for that wonderful Sweet Spot they told us that would come. That wonderful spot when the band was perfect, and it would help them not feel hunger and take away all the urges for wanting to eat. They told us this would help, they told us this was going to be a tool and this tool would help us not to feel hungry and help control our hunger. Guess what guys, STOP WAITING because that day will never come and if it does it usually only lasts for a few weeks or months and over time we lose fluid in the band, it loosens and you get a fill and you start all over again. So I guess my one small gem of wisdom is learn to control your head hunger and stop waiting on the band to control your eating habits and learn to control the band. The only person who can really help you lose weight is YOU, yes the band is a tool, you can have more fluid put in to it and continue to sit and wait for that wonderful SWEET SPOT or you can take control of your life and learn to control your behavior and relationship with food. The band is not going to fix you, you have to fix you and that my friends takes time and patience. That is where the word cheating comes in, when you fail to fix you, you continue to make the same bad choices and excuses day after day, month after month and wonder why you are not losing weight. It is easy to blame the tool, after all they did tell us this tool would help us to succeed where we had failed with so many other diets and plans. But guess what there is no full proof guarantee with WLS of any kind. There are many people who have the band, the sleeve and full bypass who continue to loss and gain the same weight over and over again just like they did before. So what do I do if the band is not working for me? I suggest you take a good long look at the person in the mirror because honestly she or he are the only persons who can really help you to get to where you want to be. I want to share a poem with you that I find very motivational and have kept a laminated copy of this on my mirror in my bathroom. Any of you that have followed me these past two years have heard me time and time again speak about positive affirmation's and learning to love your self. The key to my success is not my band but me, I have changed. I am not the same person I was 2 years ago. I don't think the same and I don't feel the same. I have reached my goal weight and on the out side I am thin but on the inside is where I really feel different, I no longer feel like a fat girl. Yes I will continue to work on the emotional me and I will always remember where I once was. After you read the poem below you will understand why I titled this blog, Is it really worth not cheating, because if you fail to lose weight and fail to learn to control your food chooses the only person you are failing is you and honestly haven't you hurt yourself enough! So if you are still struggling with losing, still waiting on the band to fix you, get some counseling, dig deeper into yourself and find out what makes you tick. You are worth it but you have to know that and really believe it. You see I am not allowing my band to control my journey any longer nor am I allowing the band to dictate what I eat or when. i am in control of me and my behavior, yes i have bad days but the success to those bad days is I do not give in to the behavior because i have to face the 'Lady in the Glass" Enjoy and I wish everyone peace, hope and success on the journey we call "Bandster Living." I am not perfect but a work in progress and taking this one day at a time. The Man In The Glass Peter Dale Wimbrow Sr. When you get what you want in your struggle for self And the world makes you king for a day Just go to the mirror and look at yourself And see what that man has to say. For it isn’t your father, or mother, or wife Whose judgment upon you must pass The fellow whose verdict counts most in your life Is the one staring back from the glass. He’s the fellow to please – never mind all the rest For he’s with you, clear to the end And you’ve passed your most difficult, dangerous test If the man in the glass is your friend. You may fool the whole world down the pathway of years And get pats on the back as you pass But your final reward will be heartache and tears If you’ve cheated the man in the glass.

My point is that the band can not stop you from eating the crap we always ate. It will help you feel full but it does not pick and chose what we eat we do, so my point was you get out of this what you put into it. I have chosen not to get any more fills because I hate the way they make me feel. I have chosen to work on my behavior and not rely on my band to control my hunger. I have had to many friends that have lost their bands due to band failure, slippage, etc and if it happens to me I want to be prepared to keep my weight off. My insurance will not replace my band or do any other type of WLS because I am at a normal BMI for my height so If I lose my band for any reason I am on my own unless I get fat again and I am NOT going to do that if I there is anything in my power to prevent me from gaining the weight back. So I have chosen to continue to work on modification of my food behaviors which honestly is what long term weight loss is about. No WLS is permanent unless you continue to exercise and eat healthy. Yes the band did help me in the beginning to control my hunger and learn portion size but it did not fix my head hunger, I worked on that myself with counseling. I am not bashing the band, I know I would never have been able to make a commitment to losing this amount of weight without it, I do not regret my decision but long term, I better have my head screwed on right or I will be right back where I started.

Happy Wednesday everyone. Today I want to offer some encouragement to all the new bandsters and all that have been working hard on their weight loss. While cleaning out the closet I found these pants that I "USED" to wear and they were tight before I stated my journey. I have now lost a total of 112 lbs, (Banded in October 2010) This has been an eye opening experience, I never realized how unhealthy I was or how badly I ate. I wish I could say my journey was over but I know that my true journey is just beginning. I now must maintain this new me, I must learn from the past year and rely less on my band and more on the new behaviors I have been drilling into my brain. Portion Control, Protein first and "No Snacking Between Meals" and let's don't forget daily exercise and if not daily at least 3-4 times a week. This is my life now, "Learning to Stay Healthy" This journey has given me back so much, when I started I was not only morbidly obese but I had sleep apnea, I was on multiple medications for asthma and hypertension. I have none of those issues now. I must admit getting here was a journey but being here is both rewarding and scary. The band has worked well for me, it has it's ups and downs but I have learned to work through them and have modified my eating and life style. I love my cyber family and all the support and encouragement they have given me and hope I can pay it back ten times over. Happy Wednesday! Picture # 2 is me standing inside of one leg, yes one leg of my size 24 draw string jeans. (I am sure we all have a pair or had a pair of these) Picture # 1 is me in my small top and size 4 linen (no stretch pants)

Amen, been there done that before, actually did it today, in a hurry to go to mall with hubby to buy boots for Me. Was not paying attention and then that lump in the back of my throat started, the saliva started forming in my mouth and Katy bar the door off I ran. And I am two years out and have not had a fill in over 7 months and most days don't even remember I have my band because I follow the rules. So it happens to all of us and it sucks.

I started out with 4ozs mixing mine because I did not like them and was only drinking them because it was the right thing to do. I still only mix mine in 6 ozs and I do not mix mine in milk, I use water. I chose not to add the extra calories and I don't do much dairy by choice it gives me gas. I get my calcium and Vit D from supplements.

You should be able to eat at least a cup of solid food at one sitting or close to it. That cup would consist of 3-4 ozs of protein some veggies and if still hungry a little bit of starch. I eat 3ozs protein, 1/2 cup veggies or 1/4 cup veggies and 1/4 cup starch at one sitting. You will lose weight for a while if you are too tight but it will eventually slow down and you will start to lose lean muscle mass instead of fat. But I will tell you that after my last fill in Jan 2012 it took me longer to get back to this routine. I had to supplement more with shakes for about a week before the irritation of the procedure let up. I had an esophageal spasm during my last fill so it was a little different. If you are having trouble with liquids you may be a little too tight.

CG is correct, (thanks for posting this) A pound is a pound is a pound! Think of it this way though. If you would look at a pound of fat (use Jello as the fat) and a pound of muscle (use a chicken breast) which one looks bigger. The fat does. So the reason you get smaller when exercising is that as you are building muscle you are burning fat. Muscle is much toner than fat so you look smaller. I weigh 130 lbs, have 25% body fat and look like I weigh around 120lbs. Constantly I have people who do not believe I weigh as much as I do and think I am now to thin. I am toned, I have done strength training consistently the past 8 months, have only lost 30 lbs but have lost multiple inches. I lost 30 plus inches off my entire body in that same amount of time, I had times when I lost weight and no inches and sometimes I lost inches and gained weight. The scale can not be the only focus of getting healthy, you have to take the whole package.

Wishing you luck and sending you prayers. Make sure they give you plenty of good drugs, versed works wonders and you will not rememer a thing. I promise!

I would follow his orders. Every physican is so different, there are many of us who were eating solids by the time we had our first fill. The only thing you risk by speeding up the process is your band. If you are really hungry and want to eat something besides mushy food, call the office and ask permission. I know that may sound silly, like you said, you feel fine. Just remember why we are all here, we never followed rules very well, because honestly if you did it who would know but you!

Well, I guess first we need to know what you are eating, how many calories, how often, what kind of foods. You indicate from your post that you feel some resistance with the band, I am going to assume you mean you feel full after eating small amounts. When you say you do not tolerate liquids well does that mean you are having trouble drinking? When did you have your fill and are you having any reflux or PBing. If you can swallow food this is what I would suggest. Increase your Protein intake to 70gms or more per day and limit your calories to no less than 1200. In the beginning sometimes you have to eat in order to start losing. I know that may sound silly but if you cut back your calories too far and do not take in enough protein your body will go into starvation mode and it will slow your metabolism and you will not lose fat but muscle. You need to eat to provide your body with fuel so you can exercise so your muscles while working can help you to burn fat. You have to think of your body like a machine that when you feed it and than work it it burns the fuel you give it and by working it it burns the fat. If you are struggling to get in 70 plus gms of protein than do a couple of shake a day. I know they are not the greatest but you get used to the taste after a couple hundred. Good luck and if you give us more info we may be able to help. Also, your physician and nutritionist would also be a good resource. Keep a food diary and than take it in after a couple of weeks and have them review what you are eating to make suggestions.

Niki so sorry you are losing your band, this is one of my fears. I know of several who have after several years and like you ahave followed the rules. We will pray for a say surgery and hope all works out well for you.

Sandy, There are just as many issues with the sleeve as there is with any weight lose surgery. There is no magic genie in a bottle that is going to help any of us become thin. The only person who can help us get slim and stay slim is us, so if your eyes are really open you need to realize that. Read the posts on this web site, over and over again people cheat, they eat poorly, they complain about the band not working or don't understand why they are not loosing weight. Well I will tell you why, we are what we eat, and if we continue to eat the same crap we ate before surgery, we may lose weight but seriously we will never keep it off. I eat healthy, I eat very little processed foods and I sure as heck don't eat fast food. Those days are gone so if you are going to have surgery of any kind you need to make sure your head is on straight and you are mentally prepared for WLS because there is no rainbow and no pot of gold and no magic wand to get this weight off except a lot of really hard work and dedication. There are some of us who may still lose our bands even if we follow the rules due to failure of the band but there are complications with gastric sleeve and gastric bypass also. In your posts you seem way to unsure of what you want to be committed to this process. You need to make sure your head is going in the right direction.