B-52

# of fills is not the question...I have a friend who has had about 10 fills,,,,bet her Dr. only gives 1/2 cc every month....so after all this time she only has 5 cc's total.... MY Dr, had no reservations about what his goal was once after the surgery and all healing has taken place...and tat was to get me into the Green Zone so the band would start to do what it was designed to do..... One month after surgery, he gave me my first fill of 4 cc's....a month after that was my 2nd of 2 cc's, and one month after that was my third, and final fill, of 1 cc....total of 7 cc's in 4 months after surgery...put me in the Green Zone, although it took me another 2 months at least to adjust myself and get everything in "Sync' for it to become all leveled out and easy..... That was over 2-1/2 years ago...have not had a fill since....and have not had any difficulties with stuck episodes, sliming etc, for about 2 years now...once I got it all figured out and learned how to live within that Green Zone.... But those first few months were hard and frustrating as hell, sometimes getting stuck 2-3 times a day...but I knew it was me, and not the band...it was me who had to change if I wanted this to work....and it was Hard!! Since then it has been the EASIEST thing I could have do to loose all my weight and return to a normal weight and healthy lifestyle....no more struggles.... I do not regret this decision at all....although in the beginning I was not so sure....

Thing about sliders......after a while, due to eating so little for so long, our regular stomachs shrink, abbs and tummies get flatter and harder, etc..... So we..or at least for Me, I cannot hold that much volume in my stomach anymore...that is a REAL feeling of getting full, very fast.... I have to pace myself even with Water....if I am very thirsty, say at the gym and I need to Hydrate...there is no way I can drink an entire bottle of water as fast as I used to...I would get a good old fashioned "Belly Ache" So if something is a slider that passes right through the band easily...my stomach will also prohibit me from over eating just as the band does with solid foods....

For me it was the opposite...early on the rules made very little sense to me, and I would question some of them to my Dr. and staff.....they would smile and just say "Just wait...you BETTER learn them now, or you'll be sorry" They were right...after my final fill, putting me in the Green Zone, there is no way I can eat, or co-exisit with the band at all unless I follow the rules....those rules became a necessity, and fortunately, I have gotten use to them and they are now a natural part of my new lifestyle..... Even today, if I find myself in trouble, like last week when I took a bite and swallowed fresh bread at a restaurant, without thinking, I can link it directly to one of those rules.... So, if I do stray, I get in trouble....forcing me to stay within the parameters, which eventually become new habits.

I gave up soda years before being banded...for all kinds of reasons I'll not get into here now, other than to say there is not much there that is good for you.... There is a local place that bottles their own...all natural...I love the Black Cherry and get a 4 pack every weekend.... I'm not afraid of beer either....but when I do, I NEVER eat food hours before, during or after....if I have a beer or 2 at a ball game, party or back yard barbecue......I'm not eating anything! One of those lessons I learned the hard way......

5am...off to gym as usual..run 5 miles, sauna..shower.... Get home to find today's clinics are canceled due to the inclement weather...so, time to catch up on my reports from last weeks evals... 3pm..all finished, climbing the walls with all this energy...so, BACK TO THE GYM....another 5 miles, just me, the treadmill and U2 LIVE FROM MILAN... Feel like a Million Bucks!! Stop at Boston Market to bring home some chicken, mashed potatoes with gravy, and beans.... IT DOES NOT GET ANY BETTER THAN THIS!!! All because of this WLS - band!! Three years ago it would have been a very different story indeed, and I would not be around today to tell this one... Not only did this surgery give me my life back, it gave my life back 10 FOLD! Can't wait for tomorrow....it will be a 12 hour day at the Children's Hospital, working all day with some very sick kids and their families...which makes it all the more worth it... And because of the band, I know my positive attitude and energy spills over into what can be a very grim and depressing situation.... BRING IT...I'm Ready for anything....again, all because of this Weight Loss Surgery that changes everything! No room for whiners....

It IS however nice to know that the band is there....keeping us in check from doing those stupid things....it is a learning curve, and eventually, with the band disciplining me every time I step out of line...eventually I learn...call it Behavior Modification if you like (which I desperately needed).....any event we are FORCED to learn new habits or the band will give me a slap in the face.... That is why I do not refer to the band as a tool...for me, the band is in charge, and if anything, I am the tool being used and manipulated...which is just fine with me...otherwise I would never have changed on my own....... But no matter how well we think we learned our lessons the hard way, we still do those stupid things without thinking sometimes....a few nights ago I took a bite of that brown bread at the Outback....thought my whole night was going to be ruined....before they served us our food.....fortunately it did go down as I was walking to the bathroom........and I was reminded once again who was in charge, and why I have had the success that I have....

I weigh myself every morning after getting out of bed...and usually at the gym so twice a day..... The fluctuations are to be expected...I have been up and down, always within the same 5 lbs, for over 2 years now.... I can up 3 today, down 1 tomorrow, then another 3 the next day, then jump 4 after that...etc, etc, etc.... All perfectly normal.....I'm not even sure why I do it because it is always the same...pure habit I guess.... Bottom line is that I have not actually gained, or lost any more weight in 2 years...things have leveled off where my body wants to be.... I pay more attention to a Body Fat Analysis....

This morning at 5:30am, went to the gym as I do just about every day for the last few years.....normally, it is the same crowd, every morning doing their routine...and we have all known and recognize each other.... TODAY...THE PARKING LOT WAS PACKED!!!!! At 5:30 am !!!! What the heck is going on??? Then I remembered...it is the first Saturday of 2014....Riggghhhhttt! All the people with their New Year's resolutions to loose weight...get fit.. perhaps got a gym membership as a gift.... Repeat after me.....Diet & Exercise....Diet & Exercise....I hope there are some that will be more successful as I was...been there done that, and I always failed miserably, eventually......I could not stop eating...so I needed WLS to do what I could not do on my own. There were more Gym Staff there as normal also....big smiles on their faces as they were doing "Private" training....making the big $$...also probably a gift from someone.... Oh well, had to look for an open treadmill to run my 5 miles....not my favorite location....the weight machines were busy also.... Happens every year at this time....I'll give it a month and it will start to dwindle....give it to spring and warmer weather and it will be all back to normal....

Speaking for myself...an no one else...the band controls my hunger.....it also limits the amount of food I can consume.... For me...that is what the Green Zone is.... If a person has had their band adjusted to a certain degree, it MUST do something...it cannot do nothing....why else would we get the surgery??? I don't see the logic to go through all this surgery, and $$, and not expect the band to do anything.... I will also say...as for myself...as long as the band remains as it is...I will not gain weight ever again...it is physically impossible, without doing some major harm.... Other pay may make their declaration...that is mine...and I cannot be happier with it...I'm not saying everyone NEEDS to be where I am...I'm simply saying to every testimony out there...mine is yet another one...

It seems there are always whose amount of saline in theory band is different from what they believed it to be.... I know a person who has had over 10 fills...but her Dr. only does .5cc per fill...so it is only 5cc's...something I had after 2 fills.... She is always complaining about how the band does not work and wants it out! Also, you say 75% full? How much is that, in what size band? This band DOES WORK....it CAN be a Magic Bullet for some, it sure has been, and still is for me....BUT it took some adjusting and getting used to...co-operation between me and the band, to get to that place.... When someone says there band is tight, and they can still eat and gain weight, then I disagree...if your band is tight, it would be IMPOSSIBLE to eat....THEN the Dr. would have to back it off a bit to find your comfort zone... My Dr., on every visit, pulls out all of the saline into a syringe, where he can measure it and check it's clarity, etc...and compare it to what his notes say is supposed to be there from last visit....then there is no quessing...he then replaces the same amount with fresh saline.

If I told my Dr. what you have said...it would be what he would want to hear in order to justify a fill.....especially about the hunger part...that was usually his first question, and compare it to my weigh in weight. I know it is not proper to compare fill amounts, but I am at 7cc in a 10cc band...prior to that I had 6cc's, and it was 50-50 for me...could get by fir a short while between meals, then the hunger would return in vengeance.... And I could not get by after dinner without having to snack before bedtime.... So he gave me 1cc, for a total of 7....that put me over the top... Again, everyone is different and should not compare the amount of saline to another's...it's whether or not the band is working for you that is the most important.... I always eat Protein first, because I may not be able to get to the other stuff....

I actually have to take 2 bites with a little time in between, to eat one grape!! Then after eating 6-8 of them, I cannot eat anything more.... 3-4 bites to eat one shrimp....and so on...

2.6 lbs is absolutely nothing! I weight myself everyday, sometime twice...once at home and also at the gym.... I have been at my "Optimal" weight, with very low body fat% for about 2 years now, and have nor lost, nor gained any weight since, reaching that point of "equilibrium" and balance... Having said that, my body weight fluctuates within the same 5 lbs everyday since then....I can be up 3 lbs today, down 2 lbs. tomorrow, up 1 the next, down 4 after that...and so on and so on.... People who are worried about a lb here or a lb there are splitting hairs and should be more focused on the big picture...the band is the band is the band...it does not change unless you have some Fluid taken out....one day is no different than the next whether it is a holiday, on vacation at a resort...whatever...the band is a constant. If I was dieting, as the old days, and not having undergone WLS, then it would be another story....but that's why I had to have surgery...

Shrimp and Lobster were a problem for me also....it's one of those foods that no matter how well you chew, it is just not good enough.... I did finally figure out a way to eat it though....

In my case...I am rarely hungry...and have little to no interest in food...I Have to remind myself to eat most days....and when I do eat, there is a limit as to how much I can eat...my portions are limited. But it does not bother me because I'm not hungry in the first place.... I no longer count calories, nor worry about portion sizes.... Sounds weird, the only way I can explain it is..... Imagine you have been eating everything in sight, say at Thanksgiving...all day long to the point it hurts.....some one offers you another piece of pie and you say "No Way...I don't even want to look at food ever again I am so stuffed" Well, for me, the mere presence of the band (adjusted) sends signals to my brain, telling it I am full, satisfied, whatever....to the point I cannot eat anymore, no desire or interest in food, and no hunger either....but I do not have the physical feeling of feeling full...and never have since being banded... Many people say they look for the feeling of being full with the band...I'm still not sure what the means exactly... It is all mental, because I feel that way even if I have not eaten in 24 hours...which I have done occasionally since being banded..(but that's another story). And because of that, I have no real cravings...I can look at something and take it or leave it....although I may take a bite because I am interested in the taste...someone may have put a lot of effort in preparing it.... It took me about 4 months to get to that point, and then another 6 months to figure out what was going on, and develop a new lifestyle with it... I should add that the first 6 months after surgery were extremely hard for me, and very frustrating to say the least....thought I made a BIG mistake and even wished I never had the surgery. But that has all changed now....it's absolutely a miracle! \ \

Question.....if you found your sweet spot, how was it you were able to overeat....did you ignore the pain and vomiting? To the point where your perhaps stretched your pouch way out allowing you to eat large, uncontrolled portions? Example...there was a poster the other day who said how she took one bite too large, too hard, and it HURT for days!!! I certainly understand that if I take one bite, one swallow too many....the band yells STOP! I ask this to learn...I am at a point where I find it IMPOSSIBLE to overeat, unless I like all the bad things that will happen if I attempt to do it... I have been on cruises, for example, where I put my band to the test...EVERYTHING GOES!!!! and I found it was still impossible to eat anything more than the band will allow, again, unless I don't mind being sick and carry the pain, and I think l even lost weight that cruise... People are always referring to their "Sweet Spot" or being in the "Green Zone" Curious how different people interpret that for themselves... Congratulations on re-committing yourself....Hope you find that adjustment and perfect balance with the band. Also, there is NEVER anything people should feel ashamed for....this forum has 1000's of members and everyone has something to share that is important and informative to some one else...

I don't think about my band at all...it was a process, that has been completed more or less....were now I can now take it for granted, never having to worry about my weight or over eating again.... But it was a process to get there...and it was because of the band that I was able to do it and be at the place I am today... ...and in the beginning, going through all the adjustments, the stuck episodes, slimming, food choices...etc, etc...yes...the band was all I though about... So yes, that is all behind me now...as Veterans we don't need to remind ourselves everyday...but there are less Veterans than New People.... .....and for the new people, like the OP, they are just getting into it and have a lot to learn before they get to that finish line.

See...isn't that simple? I wish every newly banded person reads this...there is way too much "Sky Is Falling" hysteria around here sometimes..... Another thing, some people experience what you did, but they keep on eating, continuing to irritate the band, then pretty soon they say they "Can't keep ANYTHING down"..... If you twist your ankle, you need to stay off it to heal and rest....

You just had surgery...theoretically, this time has nothing to do with loosing weight....and very little to do with the band other than you just had it installed, and need to heal...to get back to that place...JUST AS YOU WERE BEFORE the surgery.... THEN...the adjustments start...to get the band operating.....THIS phase is Bandster Hell....the band is there, but it takes a few months of "White Knuckling" until your Dr. gets it where it should be, suited for you.... This phase is also a time for YOU to get adjusted to the Band....start putting the "Rules" into practical use.... Don't worry, everyone has gone through it, unless you have a lot of will power and are good at dieting...but then if you were, then you would not have needed this surgery.... Even as I was getting my fills on a regular 4 week interval basis...I GAINED WEIGHT.....fortunately, my Dr. only laughed at me, and gave me another fill.....

I have not been able to eat a solid breakfast in almost 3 years now....I start the day with a Home Made smoothie, high in Protein with fresh fruit, etc.... My Dr. also said this is not uncommon and warned me of it early on.......have thoughts on why this is, but not get into it now.... Besides....when you look at all the benefits combined in one of my smoothies....how much, and what kinds of foods could could I possibly eat to match it???

Don't give up on the band!! Just my 2 cents, but I read post after post about all kinds of things people encourage each other to do and stay motivated, but the majority do not contribute anything to the Band.... Sometimes it is hard to tell this is is a forum dedicated to those who have undergone Lap Band Surgery.... There is a reason we had this surgery....and I have always focused on that, and never expected anything less.... Again, just my 2 cents.... Good Luck in 2014, and beyond....this thing DOES WORK !!

After browsing through "New Content" posts this morning, I noticed a common theme, and one that is not new by no means with the Lap Band Surgery. Instead of saying the same thing in each thread, i figured I would put my thoughts here in a new topic... The following is just what I have experienced and learned with the band, what it True for ME..... NOT saying everyone MUST do the same. I'M NOT PREACHING!!!! Having this surgery, there is a large learning phase that HAD to happen....the Dr. and staff cannot be all that specific because everyone is different and reacts differently.... All they can do is give us a set of "Rules", tell us to start practicing them, even BEFORE surgery, until they become a habit, without giving them a second thought, because after a few fills, these rules will be the only way you will be able to live and have the band function properly......and then I learned as time went on, that some of the rules applied more so than others, and a few rules fell by the wayside....but it was only after practicing and learning this new lifestyle. I read everyday, where a poster , especially someone new to this, will say "My Dr. said I shall NOT do this, or that" and they would be correct in following and not second guessing that rule....get it in your head now, not when you realize you need it.... I was told, there will come a time eventually, if I followed My Dr.'s band adjustment protocol, treatment plan, I will come to a crossroads where I will begin to get stuck, slime, spit up food, experience pain...etc... This can certainly have this happen if your band is too tight, and needs attention from your Dr....OR.....you can also have this happen because you are not following the rules you were warned you would need to have as a new habit someday.... That day has come...how was I supposed to chew? How big of bites? Should I drink with my meals? How much time between swallows of food? What can be interpreted as a tight band, can also be interpreted as improper eating habits, improper foods, etc... No one out here in cyber space can know for sure how another person behaves when it comes to food..... I was told, pre-surgery, that this will change my life.....IT DID.....but when people think about this changing our life, we immediately think about being skinny....but it is a lot more than just loosing weight....it changed my life in respect to HOW I eat.....WHAT I eat...and WHEN I eat (how often) and also my overall feelings about food and the need/desire to eat...all of THAT was the biggest change of all.....the weight loss and good health naturally and effortlessly followed. Finding that "Groove" that "Sweet Spot", "Green Zone"...whatever you want to call it...now that was the where the hard work, frustration, etc, all took place.....and I needed to start getting ready for it from day one..... Ok, so much for my early morning thoughts...Happy New Year !!! (I'm pissed because the gym is closed today)

I need to renew my Passport....they always say that Customs Agents have seen it all, including weight loss....and up till last trip it was not a problem.... The custom agent looked me over head to toe real hard...held up the line...I told him that picture was over 100 pounds ago...he did not say a word, and next thing I know another agent shows up out of no where and looks at my passport...he must have pushed a hidden button or something because he never physically called for the other agent...she just showed up... Long story short, the 2nd agent said "Congratulations" without cracking a smile and walked away.... and the first agent stamped my passport without saying a word.... Not going through that again....I've got 3 years left on my current passport, but going to renew after the first of the year....

My Dr.',s, including my cardiologist, have been preaching to me for years about the need for me to give up meat...the compromise was if I was to enjoy a T-Bone, etc, at least try to keep it down to once a week.... After being banded, and the 2nd fill, it began to become problematic to eat meat...my Surgeon said this was not uncommon.... So, seeing how I have always been pushed in that direction, I gave it up entirely..... I did not do it for "Bambi", but for health reasons..... I got my health back...100% and then some...was there a direct correlation to not eating meat? can't put a finger on it and there it is, but I am certain there is....all my blood work is perfect, and a lot of that was from no longer eating animal fat, I'm sure. If you are ever around geriatrics, or visit someone in a nursing home, long term care facility, you will see there is hardly meat offered on the menu....it just does not go easy on the digestive process.... NOW that I no longer eat meat, I start to be more aware of the other issues....there was a big article in the news lately about the FDA, and pumping copious amounts of antibiotics into cattle so they would be disease free for humans to consume safley (?) There is a reason Frank Purdue makes his chickens extra "Plump and Juicy"...when their feet never touch the ground their entire short lived lives.... But all that only started for me to notice recently....it was all about the band initially.... The other thing about being banded....because I eat so little nowadays....grocery shopping is not what it used to be...so it is easier to select organic foods, non processed, and also look for "free range" chicken when available... Yes, it is more expensive, but I purchase so little...it all evens out.

You mentioned something interesting...your insurance will not cover a sleeve because your BMI is now low.... I have been at a normal weight for 2 years now...no complications at all....I have wondered where do I go from here....do I keep the band? Go over to something with less maintenance such as the sleeve? But I never considered the insurance not wanting to do anything, because I am not Obese, or even overweight for that matter.... have no co mormidities, and have now have a history of being so for a few years.... Something to ponder...they may not want to do anything unless there is a medical problem that needs to be taken care of...