donali

Whooo hoooo!!! That is absolutely FANTASTIC news!! I could NOT be happier!! :banana:

(((Karen))) Hopefully it's just the gallbladder! Glad you're feeling better - keep us posted. xxoo

Anne - So glad you're on the mend. Congrats on the new band, and best wishes for your new journey!

Kellie - Absolutely amazing! Congratulations, girl! Whoo hooo!! So glad it sounds as though the worst is behind you, and nothing but looking and feeling better is ahead! Whoo hooo!! And a bizillion thanks for posting your pics - you're awesome. xxoo

Congrats!! :confused:

Whooo hooooo!!! I am so happy no "E", and that you seem well on the way to getting healed up and back to "normal". :confused: I haven't been online for a few days, and this was the exact post I was hoping to see!!! xxoo

I would definitely wait at least two weeks before singing. Those deep breaths will push down, and I at least could really feel it. I think I set myself back a week by starting to sing too soon... (paid choir position)

liquids are not subject to the same effects as air under pressures, so atmospheric changes would not affect a purely liquid filled band. I guess it's possible that there might still be a little bit of air in the band system, but their supposed to flush it so it only contains saline. What is more likely is that you are just swollen in general, as some people tend to swell when they fly (even if they never noticed it before). Generally it's due to dehydration and inactivity.

Best wishes and healing light. xxoo

Hi Michelle - Regardless of what your old "sweet spot" used to be, you definitely sound too tight now. If I were you, I would erase from my mind what used to work for you, and start new with what works for you today. And your current fill level is NOT working for you. I wish I could explain why you need less fill now as opposed to then, but it would only be speculation, and probably isn't really that important (I know, enquiring minds want to know!). Bottom line, is you're too tight... Congrats on your new port!

(((Kelly))) I can certainly understand wanting to be done with all the drama. As devastated as I was to lose my band, I did take some comfort in the fact that I wouldn't have any of these worries again. The flip side is, the hungries definitely kicked back in, and so did my weight gain... :mad: So sorry to hear about hubby - wishing you both the best, and good luck with this difficult decision. xxoo

Wheetsin - A lot of docs allow drinking up to eating, then drinking 1 hour after eating. That would certainly help with your timeline. Also, I have never heard of rationing out the Water in oz increments except in RnY patients. I think most docs would say water as tolerated, and not put restrictions on the amount at a time. As your stomach heals and the swelling goes down, most likely you will feel wide open and I can think of no logical reason to restrict your water to mere ozs at a time... Of course, I am not a doctor - I am only relaying info that I've been told and info I've heard. When all is said and done, one must always go back to their own doc for more guidance. I personally would challenge his instructions, but that's me...

My Mom is slightly overweight - 5'6", about 185lbs. She's 65 and has four kids. Her new doc was evaluating her blood pressure meds, and told her, "Well, you're fat. If you drop dead, I'm not losing any sleep over it." :) :Banane40: I'm glad to say she got a new doc pretty quick after that. I've undoubtedly blocked out anything hateful my docs have said to me over the years, as nothing's coming to me at the moment.... :lalala:

The bandster "rules" as I remember them (many of these rules are variations on rules for RnY patients to maximize the benefits of their pouch). These are not necessarily in any particular order: 1. The Water rules: I. Drink at least eight glasses of water a day.<O:p</O:p II. No drinking with meals - the liquid either washes the food through the pouch/stoma faster allowing you to eat more before feeling full, or it makes you "stuck" and you PB.<O:p</O:p III. Waterload prior to mealtimes so that:<O:p a) you're hydrated your pouch gets that initial stretching so that the "full" sensation can kick in sooner. Even though the water should pretty much drain right through, the stretching effect can last 30 minutes or so, which helps you to feel less hungry. To waterload - start drinking water an hour before you want to eat. About 15 minutes for you want to eat drink as much water as fast as you can until you feel full.<O:p</O:p IV. Wait at least an hour after eating before drinking again. Again, this helps the pouch stay full longer, maximizing the stretching/full sensation.<O:p</O:p 4. CHEW CHEW CHEW. Worst case scenario, inadequate chewing can result in obstruction requiring doctor intervention to remove the offending piece. Less drastic ramifications of inadequate chewing can be severe pain and/or recurrent vomiting until the offending piece has been expelled. 5. SLOW DOWN when eating. Eating too fast, even if the food is well chewed, can result in your pouch filling faster than it empties, resulting in the “golfball” feeling (which is really, really painful/uncomfortable), and/or vomiting the overflow. 6. Eat solid foods. Solid foods pass more slowly through the stoma, allowing the pouch to fill and create the stretch that turns off hunger and creates a feeling of satiety. 7. Protein first, veggies, and then if you have room, other stuff. Since your portions will become much smaller, you must make every bite count nutrition-wise. Get your nutritious foods in first before you indulge in empty calories, otherwise you will be too full to eat the stuff your body needs to be healthy. 8. Stop eating after 20 minutes. It is possible to eat so slowly that the pouch empties either at the rate of eating, or faster than the rate of eating, which means you can eat too much in one very long sitting. Limiting your eating to twenty minutes at a time helps keep your portions under control. 9. Avoid liquid calories. Liquids generally pass right through the stoma and don’t create a lasting feeling of fullness. You can really go overboard on calories by consuming caloric liquids. (Yes, ICE CREAM is considered a “liquid”… ) 10. Keep up with your correct fill level - too loose and you will eat more than your body needs before you feel full. Too tight and you will resort to mushies/liquids and eat around the band (or vomit a lot, which is the number one cause of slippage). 11. No carbonation (CONTROVERSIAL - many do anyway) The number one reason cited for this is to avoid “stretching” the pouch, as carbonation expands. Personally I don’t buy that, since the pouch is not a closed system and gas can be belched up to relieve pressure. I would be more concerned about the high acid content and the possibility of that damaging the lining of the stomach. Regardless, some docs say “okay”, some say “never”, some say “as tolerated”. And regardless of what their docs say, some people indulge in carbonation. Some find they are unable to handle carbonation, as it is just too uncomfortable. Others have no problems with it, and still others will make some effort to eliminate at least some of the carbonation before drinking the beverage, either by letting it go flat naturally, or helping it along somewhat by stirring, shaking, etc. 12. NO NSAIDS!!!! These types of medications can cause ulcerations in non-banded patients, so are particularly dangerous for banded patients where the medication in pill form has a chance to be caught in the upper pouch or stoma and lay against the stomach wall, burning a hole in the lining of your stomach and possibly increasing your risk of erosion. Also, it's not just the physical presence of the pill in the stomach that is problematic. There's something about the way the drug works in our bodies that causes increased susceptibility to ulcers and bleeding. Liquid Tylenol is generally recommended as an aspirin substitute, but always check with your doc before taking any medications. ALWAYS check with your band doctor before taking any kind of medication. Many band docs will closely monitor those patients that must take NSAIDs for whatever reasons. http://lyberty.com/encyc/articles/nsaid.html NSAIDs : non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs Aspirin (Anacin, Ascriptin, Bayer, Bufferin, Ecotrin, Excedrin) Choline and magnesium salicylates (CMT, Tricosal, Trilisate) Choline salicylate (Arthropan) Celecoxib (Celebrex) Diclofenac potassium (Cataflam) Diclofenac sodium (Voltaren, Voltaren XR) Diclofenac sodium with misoprostol (Arthrotec) Diflunisal (Dolobid) Etodolac (Lodine, Lodine XL) Fenoprofen Calcium (Nalfon) Flurbiprofen (Ansaid) Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin, Motrin IB, Nuprin) Indomethacin (Indocin, Indocin SR) Ketoprofen (Actron, Orudis, Orudis KT, Oruvail) Magnesium salicylate (Arthritab, Bayer Select, Doan's pills, Magan, Mobidin, Mobogesic) Meclofenamate sodium (Meclomen) Mefenamic acid (Ponstel) Meloxicam (Mobic) Nabumetone (Relafen) Naproxen (Naprosyn, Naprelan*) Naproxen sodium (Aleve, Anaprox) Oxaprozin (Daypro) Piroxicam (Feldene) Rofecoxib (Vioxx) Salsalate (Amigesic, Anaflex 750, Disalcid, Marthritic, Mono-Gesic, Salflex, Salsitab) Sodium salicylate (various generics) Sulindac (Clinoril) Tolmetin sodium (Tolectin) Valdecoxib (Bextra)<O:p></O:p> Note: Some products, such as Excedrin, are combination drugs (Excedrin is acetaminophen, aspirin, and caffeine).<O:p></O:p> Note that acetaminophen (Paracetamol; Tylenol) is not on this list. Acetaminophen belongs to a class of drugs called analgesics (pain relievers) and antipyretics (fever reducers). The exact mechanism of action of acetaminophen is not known. Acetaminophen relieves pain by elevating the pain threshold, that is, by requiring a greater amount of pain to develop before it is felt by a person. It reduces fever through its action on the heat-regulating center of the brain. Specifically, it tells the center to lower the body's temperature when the temperature is elevated. Acetaminophen relieves pain in mild arthritis but has no effect on the underlying inflammation, redness and swelling of the joint. Paracetamol, unlike other common analgesics such as aspirin and ibuprofen, has no anti-inflammatory properties, and so it is not a member of the class of drugs known as non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs or NSAIDs. <O:p * Naproxen Sodium " Naprelan contains naproxen sodium, a member of the arylacetic acid group of nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs)" "The chemical name for naproxen sodium is 2-naphthaleneacetic acid, 6-methoxy-a-methyl-sodium salt, (S)." 13. Be extremely careful of food/products that expand with water. Rice, Pasta, potatoes and bread are the most common food items that people have problems with. These food items either swell in liquids and/or tend to combine in the pouch into large, globby, sticky balls that are too large to pass through the stoma, which results in the “stuck”/“golfball” feeling, and/or vomiting until the offending piece is expelled. Eating these foods in combination with other, less sticky foods can often help reduce the incidence of problems. Fiber products, such as Metamucil and psyllium husks SWELL in water to many times their dry volume. VERY, VERY dangerous if this swelling takes place in the pouch. If you need to add fiber to your diet, try a non-bulking agent such as Benefibre. If you do taking a bulking agent such as Metamucil/psyllium husks, be sure to wash it through with lots and lots of water so that it will bulk in your lower stomach, not your pouch. 14. Avoid Vomiting/PBing (productive burping) at ALL Costs. Vomiting/PBing is the NUMBER ONE CAUSE of slippage. In addition to being the number one cause of slippage, vomiting/PBing usually results in (and/or from) an irritated stoma/pouch, which causes swelling. Continuing to eat after a vomiting/PBing episode is likely to increase your chances of repeating the episode, and people can be caught in a vicious cycle where they eventually will have to get an unfill to allow the stoma/pouch/esophagus to heal. The best ways to avoid vomiting/PBing: a) CHEW CHEW CHEW SLOW DOWN your eating c) Avoid overly dry foods. Help lubricate dry foods with gravy/sauces. d) Avoid/be extremely careful with foods that swell/recombine in the pouch, such as rice, pasta, potatoes and bread. Take extra care to consume these items slowly, and chew them very well. e) Avoid/be extremely careful with foods that do not breakdown well even with chewing, such as hardboiled eggs and rubbery foods like calamari. The “After the Vomiting/PBing” Rules: a) Stop eating immediately Do liquids only until the next meal. c) If you still have problems at the next meal, do 24 hours of liquids before trying solids again. d) If after 24 hours of only liquids you still have problems, you should probably make an appointment with your band doctor, and stay on liquids until you can be seen by them. e) If you are unable to tolerate even liquids after 24 hours you MUST see your doctor right away. Dehydration is a very serious risk. 15. Don’t Cut/Crush Pills without Doctor Approval. You shouldn’t have to break/cut/crush your medications as a general rule, but people on the tight side, or those who must take very large pills oftentimes will have problems. NEVER break/cut/crush a medication without checking with the prescribing doctor first. Some medications are meant only to be taken in whole form, and it can be dangerous to take them cut or crushed. Time-released formulas are a good example – cutting/crushing a time-released pill means you would get too much of the medication too quickly. 16. Get a prescription for an anti-nausea medication and keep it on hand. Phenergren is one of the common medicines for this, and comes in oral and suppository forms. If you have a tendency towards motion-sickness, make sure you take Dramamine or the equivalent BEFORE the motion-sickness activity – I believe 30 minutes is the suggested timeframe. Read the instructions and plan ahead.<O:p 17. Don’t Skip Meals. Eating regularly helps keep your blood sugar stable, and helps keep you from being too hungry at the next meal and then eating too fast or too much.<O:p 18. Exercise. Exercise is always an important part of a healthy lifestyle, and will help keep your metabolism revved and your goals on track. Exercise also increases muscle mass, which takes up less room than fat mass of the same weight. So even if the scale isn’t moving downwards, you’re losing inches – plus, muscle is what burns fat, so the more muscle you have, the higher your metabolism. This is why men generally tend to drop weight more quickly than women – they generally have more muscle mass, so their metabolisms are faster. <O:p 19. AFTERCARE. FOLLOW-UP, FOLLOW-UP, FOLLOW-UP. Regular follow-up with a band doctor will help ensure your success and band health, and keep problems to a minimum or nip them in the bud. If your banding doctor is far away, make sure you line up an aftercare doc BEFORE you get banded. This cannot be stressed enough.<O:p 20. Be your own best advocate. Learn everything you can about being banded, and the common warning signs of trouble. TRUST YOUR GUT. If something doesn’t feel right, CONTACT YOUR DOCTOR. Sometimes relatively minor problems can escalate into major problems because of delay in diagnosis/care.<O:p 21. Find and participate in some sort of support group. Most people are more successful when they have a support group. Plus it's lots of fun, and you learn a lot about being banded, and life in general. 22. Do not lay down sooner than 2-3 hours after eating. Laying down with a full pouch can cause reflux. 23. Do not leave reflux untreated. Reflux is a symptom that something is wrong – you are either too tight, are eating too close to bedtime, or are suffering from an esophageal problem. Unfortunately, reflux is the bain of many long time bandsters. If you are already following the guidelines for reducing reflux then you need to see your doc for prescription antacid medication. It is critical that you do NOT leave this untreated, as stomach acid in the wrong places can cause severe damage, and create pre-cancerous conditions.<O:p</O:p "ACID REFLUX CAN KILL YOU. YOU CAN ASPIRATE STOMACH ACID, GET REALLY BAD PNEUMONIA AND DIE." - GeezerSue<O:p</O:p The only solutions I know of are modification of diet/habits, medication, reduction/removal of fills, band removal (worst case scenario).<O:p</O:p You may find that something specific you are eating/drinking is contributing to this problem. If you're not interested in having a little fill removed, you may try eliminating these things from your diet for a while, and see if that makes a difference: 1. acidic juices/fruits, like citrus 2. caffeine - coffee, tea, chocolate 3. spicy foods Guidelines for reducing/avoiding reflux (in order of least to most aggressive):<O:p</O:p 1. Do not over eat. 2. Avoid acid producing foods/drinks, like caffeine (coffee, tea, chocolate), peppermint, citrus fruits/juice, spicy food. 3. Do not lie down sooner than three hours after eating.<O:p</O:p 4. Do not eat or drink 3 hours before bedtime.<O:p</O:p 5. Switch evening medications to morning if okay with your doctor.<O:p 6. Take an OTC med to control reflux.<O:p 7. Elevate the head of the bed (helps keep the esophagus above the stomach so there's no backflow). 8. Have your doc prescribe anti-reflux medication.<O:p 9. Get a slight or complete unfill.<O:p If these things do not help you, you must seek the care of your physician for additional help. 24. After the fill protocol. Most docs recommend doing only liquids for a day or two after a fill to allow the stomach to adjust to the new restriction and allow any residual swelling to go down. Also is a cautious way for you to test out your new fill level.

Congrats!!! Happy bandiversary, and many congrats on the upcoming bundle of joy!!!

Best wishes!! May everything go smoothly and uneventfully, and may you feel like yourself in no time. I asked for my band per Inamed instructions, and received it in a little baggie. I returned it to Inamed at their request.

40% erosion at 17 months, diagnosed by endoscopy.

Hi Charlotte - I believe it's time for a barium swallow with fluoroscopy to determine: 1. proper band placement 2. pouch size 3. esophogeal function If all looks okay, then your doc should withdraw all the Fluid and confirm that it's all there. Then he should do a barium swallow while adding fluid and confirm that your band is actually changing the flow of barium as he adds more fluid. If the band is not constricting, and all the fluid is retrievable, it's possible that the fluid is being trapped in the port. This happened to ShellyJ, and after many fills and lots of frustration, they finally figured out what was wrong and now she has restriction and is doing fine. If none of the above pans out, then I suggest it's time for an endoscopy to rule out erosion. It is very unlikely that someone could have a band filled to capacity and not feel any restriction if the band is placed properly, the fluid is going into the band, and there is no erosion. Don't let them pawn off this problem - keep at it til you get the correct answers!!

:doh: Sorry it's taken me so long to respnd to this thread - I was looking for things to throw at DonnaB! Donna - you are so right in every way. This ISN'T my favorite response... And I DO need/want/wish to lose the weight. However, in the meantime... Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and suggestions. I got the extra strength SnoreStop throat spray and a nose decongestant spray. SO said he didnt hear me snore the last two nights, so perhaps it's working. That, or I made him feel so bad about waking me up that he's afraid to complain anymore.... I probably DO need to have a sleep study done, but I'm having foot surgery 3/15 :crutch: and will be out of commission for a few months, so that will have to be put on the back burner for the time being. I am greatly reassured to hear that the newer machines are much quieter. Jessie, where did you get the sinus cleanse pot? Thanks again for all your help!

Okay, I have gained back so much weight that I am now snoring. Sometimes bad enough that SO shakes me awake so I'll stop and he can get some sleep. The first few times I just felt bad for keeping him awake. But this morning I was pissed. When he called today, I asked how many times he had to wake me up last night, and he said 3 or 4. No wonder I'm feeling tired, cranky, and weepy!! So, has anyone used anything that really, really, really works, that doesn't cost an arm and a leg? I sleep on my side, so tennis ball in the back won't help. I don't feel congested. I don't want to have to start sleeping on the couch, and I don't want SO to sleep on the couch, either. I just sleep through his snoring, but either mine is worse, or he's more sensitive. Either way, I don't want to get awakened out of a dead sleep anymore!! Help!

DeLarla, WHAT are you doing online?!?!?! I thought this is your big day!!! Get to the airport, Girl!!! Best of luck, and be sure to tell us all about it when you get back!!! :cool: :cool: :cool: DeLarla's going to Bandland, DeLarla's going to Bandland, DeLarla's... (repeat ad nauseum... lol)

Alex, I just saw this post. Results?!?!?!?! Don't keep us hanging!! Hopefully it is nothing that can't be fixed with a little GERD meds... xxoo

All of the above... I think mostly I gained steadily, but then there were the bursts, too... My first really big weight gain was when I was in highschool and started working at McDonalds. I went from a size 16 to a 20/22 in about 6 months... My first couple of years of college I hung around 185. Gained to 200 when I fell in love with my gay boyfriend. Lost 45-50 when I withdrew from college to deal with the fact that my gay boyfriend could never love me in "that" way... :doh: Steadily regained after returning to college. The summer of 1984 I think I put on 30-50 pounds. Left college in 1985 about 230. Got up to 300+ while living with the same gay boyfriend between 1990-1992. Got down to 220 or so and holding while in Europe, 1993-1994 Gained at least 50 pounds from 4/98-11/98. Got down to 200 in 2001. Between 6/2001 and 1/2003 regained to 303. Banded 1/03-7/04 - lost 103 pounds. And the 80 some pounds I've regained since unbanding has been over the last 15 months. Of course there were many more ups and downs over the course of those years, lowest being 185ish in 1986 or so, to highest of 3?? in 1992. The sad thing is, before banding, I habitually ate a large, deep-dish pizza Hut pizza every weekend, OR a bucket of KFC. That was the Friday night/Saturday am binge fest. I don't eat like that anymore, and yet the weight has come back just like I was eating out of control... OY VEY....

:painkiller: Yeah, Darth Vader... Definitely not a good look (or sound!!) for me...

on the slippage photo! And double :) on ThinJen's God, I love this board!!! :Banane40: