SageTracey

I've been banded for more than 18 months, on regular medications, including blood pressure tablets, and have never crushed them. The important this is to go with your doctor's instructions.

Does it feel like a stomach bug like you might have had before getting banded? If so, then that is probably what it is. It is quite tempting (and probably normal) to worry that every ache, pain, cramp etc that we feel in the stomach region is related to the band, but it won't always be so. Funny part (for me) is that when I crashed off my bicycle last week, it was the next day before I even wondered whether I might have hit/damaged my port. Guess that is what multiple other injuries does for the mind-set! Just be careful if it is a tummy bug because you don't want to be vomiting with it. Take care.

A powerful message that I heard was that you can have excuses or you can have results but you can't have both. I'm not in the same situation as you as my children have grown up and left home, but I have had to learn that a messy house can wait while I go for my morning walk, cycle or swim. Or that I can turn up the music loud and dance around the house as I clean up to burn a few extra calories. My motivation is NEVER going back to where I was before because I was, quite seriously, killing myself. I hope that you find a way to incorporate more exercise into your (busy) daily routine. Good luck.

Stress certainly affects my band! Sounds like you will be more comfortable and able to live more normally if you have a slight unfill. Living with a band that is too tight is a sure recipe for slipping into bad habits with slider foods etc that will reverse your success to date.

I haven't had the surgery but a nurse told me that she recommends cycling shorts.

You are normal. And the advice offered above is good. Hang in there, keep following your dr's guidelines and you will enjoy success.

Your dr is right, but I also feel your frustration. I suspect you chose the lap band because you want it to act as a tool and support you on this journey. At the moment you are doing really well, but it is all your willpower. Sounds as though the only way to get more fill is to relax your willpower, stop your success and fall back into old habits that got you into trouble in the first place. Or you could congratulate yourself on how well you have done, keep on doing what is working for you, and know that you have the band there as a back up when you need it. With the fills that you have to date, you are much closer to restriction than if you had had no fills, so when you really do need the band, you may only be .5 away. Congratulations on your success and keep up the great work!

the best way to approach this is to be an example that they choose to ask you about. Let them know how great you are feeling, let them see your energy and enthusiasm for life. I would suggest that you try not to be too evangelical about the band because that can be a turn off for some people. But let them know that you are happy to share/talk about your success when they are ready to hear about it.

I am in complete awe that you have achieved so much success with a leaky band! Congratulations. You are awesome. Regardless of what you have to go through, just remember that it is all worth it. I'll bet you are feeling so much happier and healthier with your weight loss to date. Imagine how much better you will continue to feel as you get even further down the path! Re having to do the pre-op diet again - personally, I would be surprised if you did because the purpose of the pre-op is to shrink your liver and the weight you have lost will have done that already. You may have to go through the post-op phases again Be sure to take and follow your surgeon's advice.

Best wishes for your surgery. I know that this is an exciting time but please also keep your eyes on the long term and remember that being banded is simply another step on the road to your healthier self. You will not wake from the anaesthetic as skinny, healthy person, nor will you feel the immediate benefits of your band. But you will be that much closer to all of the above!

For 20 years I have dreamed of being fit and healthy enough to participate in the Great Victorian Bike Ride, an eight day ride of almost 600km in my home state of Victoria. This year, 18 months after getting my lapband and losing 63kg, my husband and I set off from Lakes Entrance on our first ever Great Vic. First two days of riding were fantastic. The whole event was living up to my expectations with the riding, the camaraderie, camping and spending time with my husband. Day three dawned bright and sunny and we were on the road nice and early out of Briagalong. Morning tea stop in our former town of Maffra and then two and a half km down the road, disaster struck! I crashed out big time over the handlebars and onto the road. I was in agony, convinced that I had broken my leg! An hour later I was in an ambulance, six hours later I was finally released from the ER with a puncture wound and severe haematoma to my upper right thigh, along with a collection of bruises, scrapes etc that have developed quite colorfully over the days since. Yesterday, still on the camp for the ride, I decided to give it another go but wasn't even able to pedal. The physiotherapist then confirmed that i would not be able to complete the ride. I was devastated that I have not completed my dream or my NSV but am going to support my husband right through to the end on Sunday. And next year, I WILL complete my NSV and finish the Great Vic!

Thanks so much for all your encouraging words! My husband finished the ride yesterday and immediately went and signed us both up for next year. So now I have another mid to long term health goal to keep me focussed, not to mention the support of the greatest man in the world!

Unfortunately that may be out of control. How you choose to deal with any delay is totally in your control. You could see it as a major disaster, a sign that you weren't meant to get this surgery. Or you can see it as an opportunity to be as healthy as possible going into this new phase of your life. good luck

If I was vomiting blood I would be heading straight to the ER. Now!

Look for any sort of compression wear from a sporting outlet. Works well for me.

You have had surgery with all that that entails so some degree of pain at this point is normal. Severe? What is severe pain to you may be moderate to someone else because we all react to pain differently. Therefore it is impossible for us to say what is causing your pain. If you are concerned, then definitely contact your surgeon. He/She will guide you through this time.

Once your band fill has you in the green zone, you won't feel hungry for four to five hours between meals, therefore, you won't need to eat Snacks. (But you will still have to battle the head hunger demons!) Good luck

Most of us have been there and done that. I promise that you won't starve to death. In fact, be pleased that you are feeling well enough to feel hungry. It means that you are healing well.

But at one week post-op, clear soup is appropriate.

Best to keep your meal portions to one cup you until you achieve restriction. Your dr will let you know how often he/she will give fills. All dry are different on that one! re slips - most occur due to the patient's eating practices so learn as much as you can pre-surgery for best results. good luck and keep on asking questions.

I know what you mean. I don't like riding my bicycle when the computer isn't working because I don't know how far I've ridden, at what speed (max/average) and what the temperature is!

Some of those test results seem to contribute to your approval or denial, i.e. diagnosing co-morbidities.

Communications Manager and trainee Project Manager for a software development company in Australia.

Chilled water with a couple of chopped strawberries or a slice of lemon is delicious. But really, I have just become so used to drinking plain water that it tastes good to me. And I used to drink about 1 itre of Pepsi Max EVERY day pre-banding! Now it smells bad, tastes bad (I have tried a sip), and it's just a big no no with the band. My tastes have changed for the better.

From your profile it seems you might be a couple of days post-op. Did your surgeon give you any anti-nausea meds? You really need to avoid vomiting at this time if possible, so get on the phone and give him/her a call right now.