donali

lol

It did really suck. But it was bearable for four months - the first two weeks I thought the pain was going to kill me, but apparently I was wrong. :cool: After that it was more like a blister on your toe - you're always aware of it, but if you're not irritating it more, it just hurts and doesn't "scream".

Newest compare pics of port and dent:

Bumping for DeLarla. :cool:

Long answer on your picture post - short answer here. I had a severe burning sensation when I tore my sutures that lasted several hours - that same kind of burning sensation when you isolate a muscle and work it with heavy weight - leg extensions do that feeling to the muscles right above my knees. I think I would have been okay, except the port actually flipped, and felt like it was sideways, and was super super painful. Take it easy for a couple days, take liquid Tylenol, and then see how you feel.

Oh, P.P.S. - I read that you can get steroid injections in the keloid and that may help reduce it. Maybe you can check that out?

Ouch! DeLarla that looks really painful - I'm glad to hear it's only tender now. My port would ache when I was full. My hypothesis was, when my pouch was full, it would push back against the inner-tube of the band, which would put pressure on the fill and try and straighten-out the tubing, which would put pressure on the port (think garden hose turned on full blast, and the end waving around in the air). I don't know if that hypothesis has any basis in fact, but it made sense to me, and that's all I cared about. :cool: When I wasn't overly full, my port would ache sometimes, or feel like a stitch was pulling. Not always, just sometimes. All this is normal. Then one day, I was reaching into the backseat of my car from the driver's seat, and could quite touch what I was reaching for. I stretched harder, and then did the little "bounce" thing - pulled back, and lunged. Right away I felt an incredible burning at my port, which got worse with each passing hour. The next day it seemed as though the port was poking out further, and it really hurt - boy, oh boy, did it HURT! I went through 4 bottles of liquid Tylenol in two weeks. That was the end of June. After two weeks the pain had subsided to a dull roar, but I was aware of my port ALWAYS, and it always hurt. In October when I went for my last fill, Dr. Carmen couldn't access the port, as it was flipped (no wonder it hurt! I think it was sideways, not just upside down.) She massaged it back into place, and that night was the first time my port didn't hurt since June. Unfortunately, it did not stay in place, and in November I had surgery to have it stitched back down. Nagging mild pain off and on is normal for me. But boy oh boy, I sure knew when I tore the sutures! P.S. LOVE the purple bra! You ROCK!

Birdee - You have my empathy. I have seen something similar to this on other support boards - the more successful people are treating the struggling people JUST LIKE we had all been treated by the natural skinny folks in the past. I have called people on this attitude before - I don't think it helped for some of them, but hopefully gave others who were still on their journey food for thought so that THEY didn't turn out to be the same way. Sue could probably explain the "one up-manship" tendencies of humans. I don't really understand it, but it exists EVERYWHERE, and permeates everything! Even the most despised minorities have some sort of hierarchy within their lowly group that puts one poor schmuck at the "bottom" of the food chain, and another at the "top". You would think it would bond everyone together, and for the most part it does, but inevitably there is someone who insists that they are "better" because... I must confess that even I defend myself on certain areas of my personality that I consider faults - if someone acuses me of being argumentative, my first reaction is, "Oh, yeah?!?! Well at least I'm not as argumentative as...." lol Feel free to switch out "argumentative" with "opinionated", "overly sensitive", "messy", "disorganized", "unmotivated" when you're discussing my personality flaws... :cool: Knowing it is human nature does not take away the sting, unless we are not sensitive about whatever we're being criticized for. So, I guess that's the answer - if we weren't sensitive about it, it wouldn't bother us. What can we do to make ourselves "okay" with whatever our perceived flaw is? Repeat after me: "I am EXACTLY where I am supposed to be at this time." "I make better choices everyday." "I am valuable and worthy, JUST AS I AM, at this very moment in time." "I own my journey, and it is mine, and mine alone. " I really do believe in the core of my being that we are ALL exactly where we are supposed to be today. That doesn't mean that we are not actively striving to improve ourselves, but we have to start from somewhere. And as much as we have in common, we are so very unique, each of our journeys differ in important ways that we may not even be able to define. So many events and factors influence each individual, it is unrealistic to expect one person's journey to mirror, step for step, another's. You're doing GREAT, Birdee! You really, truly are.

Thanks, Tellie! It is weird, but I've experienced that same thing - where I had dieted for a long time, and stopped losing weight, and then had a small binge, and BAM! The weight started dropping again. Very weird. :cool:

Welcome, Pen! You'll be feeling like your old self before you know it. :cool:

Welcome back, Teresa! I responded to your email this morning. :cool:

My hugs to everyone, too. I so LOVE this board, and everyone on it. I love how everyone can express their points of view, and we are all respected. In spite of some of the unbearably terrible experiences some have had, I am truly amazed and inspired by the genuine warmth and depth of us all. We could have turned into bitter, closed, hateful people - but we did not. We have hurts, and in some places our souls may be a little worse for wear, but we are healing, and taking control of our lives, and that takes a HUGE amount of courage, and faith, and hope. I have always said I LOVED fat people - PREFERRED fat people. I just didn't want to be one. The people I have most cherished in my life have been warm, and soft, and loving, and tender, and funny, and smart, and... fat. I am drawn to fat people and their infinite kindness, empathy, and wit. I trust we can keep all these fabulous qualities on our way back down to a healthy weight. We are such very, very, very special, and precious beings. :cool:

Denise - I am sure that you are right about the other people's insecurities, and possibly also about some of them had no idea they were being hurtful. But, many did know they were being hurtful, and did it anyway. That is human nature. I know I have hurt people unintentionally, and possibly intentionally, as well, although the intentional incidents I hope were few and far between, and directed at NON-underdog people. However, I am merely human, so I'm sure my rosy-colored glasses mask my memories of some of the unkind things I have done throughout my life. That being said, for many people writing out feelings and fantasies is a therapeutic and harmless way of dealing with our emotions. I take these posts in that vein - I may be naive, but I cannot possibly believe that any of us would really make it our mission to go out and punish others for our hurts from the past. But being able to admit how much we were hurt, and fantasize about being in a position of power is, in my opinion, a healthy step towards healing. Just as groups of women enjoy their male bashing jokes (or is that just the groups of women I know?!?! lol) while still loving their S.O., I feel that this thread is on that wavelength. I could be totally wrong, but my participation is with that in mind.

Okay, back to the original intent of this thread: #?: Use Bright as an inspiration, and make a list all the fake diet "secrets" you will be passing on to those girls who've been skinny all their lives who never had the time of day for us before. Quote from beloved Bright: My inventive obscure diet tips so far... 1. Drink 1/4 cup of castor oil before every meal. 2. Eat 2 red chili peppers after every meal to negate the calories of sweets. 3. Eat 1/2 cup of ice cream before each meal to numb your hunger nerves, and then you will eat less. :cool:

This is one of the things I really need to work on. I do so love making people laugh, and I had no idea the damage I was doing to my self-esteem by putting myself down. I think it's good to be able to laugh at ourselves, but not as a defense mechanism so we can get the first punch to ourselves in... Of course, there are many laughable things about being me. So for me it is a fine line between the negative/positive, and I need to remember to be on the lookout for that boundary. Vera - me neither!!! You go first... :cool:

YES, it is true of ALL banded people. You have no problems now, because you have a whole cavernous stomach to buffer the adverse affects of aspirin. However, just because you do not feel any adverse affects right now, does not mean you have not experienced damage, even with a whole cavernous stomach to buffer the affects. Once you are banded, a very, very small portion of your upper stomach becomes the initial repository of everything you swallow. This is a RESTRICTIVE procedure, which means what you swallow does not go immediately down into the rest of your stomach, but is held in the upper portion, helping you feel full. If an aspirin got caught in your pouch and was held against the pouch wall for any length of time, it's going to start burning through. Some people, with the close supervision of their doctors, use these medications. Probably mostly baby aspirin for heart patients. But you need to be carefully monitored, because like I said, you may not FEEL any damage being done, even though it may be going on. You also need to be conscientious about flushing your pouch with lots of Water after taking any kind of medicine that might be a gastric irritant, to make sure it is not sitting in the pouch. Actually, you should do that with any medication.

Hi Sunny - You are NOT going to be eating 1/2 cup of food three times a day. I don't care what anyone else says - there is NO WAY you can get the calories/nutrients/fiber you need on 1.5 cups of food a day. NORMAL people do NOT eat 1.5 cups of food per day. You know this - one of your daughters is a normal weight. The purpose of this surgery is to reduce your hunger, and the quantity that you can consume. You mother is wasting away because she is never hungry, and therefore does not eat. The band will not take away ALL of your hunger - just the hunger that most of us experience as a 24/7 thing. Once you start getting restriction after your fills, you will get hungry, eat, and then be full/satisfied for 3-5 hours afterwards. The band makes it possible to eat less without feeling hungry or deprived. You are NOT going to be starving yourself! You are just going to be eating less. You are not going to FEEL like you are eating less. You will do fine - don't worry!

Hi Del, and welcome. 1. Has anyone had any experience with Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield. I dont know if they cover this procedure and cant call till tomorrow morning. I do know they cover gastric bypass. Something I dont want to do. I can't answer any insurance related questions, as I was self-pay. 2. Is there any kind of mortality rate associated with this kind of surgery. I know with bypass 1 of 200 people will die from it. There is a mortality rate associated with surgery, period. The Lapband procedure mortality risk is reported as 1% at this site. http://www.lap-band-surgery.org/What-are-the-general-risks.cfm 3. I have a voracious appitite. Does the surgery help control that appetite? The band is positioned to rest on the nerves that signal fullness, helping to reduce hunger. However most people need fills before their hunger really feels under control. Fills reduce the quantity of food you are able to consume, as well as reducing hunger. 4. What can and can not be eaten at the begining, and what cant. What about in the middle and toward the end. After surgery, most docs have their patients on liquids for 2-4 weeks, followed by 1-2 weeks of mushy foods, and then on to solids. All doctors' protocols differ in this area. Once you are on solid foods, you can eat any foods that you can tolerate. Once you reach some restriction, most people find they have problems eating bread, rice, Pasta, and fibrous foods like asparagus. Some people have no problems with these things, but have problems with others. Your journey will be unique to you. Things you will definitely have to avoid after banding is anything that is a stomach irritant, particularly NSAIDS, like aspirin and Aleve. These substances can burn holes in the stomach lining, causing gastritis, and you may experience band erosion (where the stomach walls erode around the band, absorbing it into the stomach.) Contraversial substances are carbonation and alchohol. Some docs say no, some say it doesn't matter, some say in moderation. 5. Is the band supposed to be removed after weight loss has been achieved? No. The band is intended to be implanted forever. It is removeable, if necessary, but most people regain all their lost weight after the band is removed. 6. How long did it take to complete all the psyche evaluations, and the preliminary stuff to the date of the actual surgery. All my testing was completed the day before my surgery. Again, I was self-pay, and had the procedure done in Mexico. Let us know if you have any other questions!

Chris, regarding the "full" feeling - what Alexandra said. I don't get the "old" full feeling most of the time. Most of the time it's an "I'm done feeling because there is no room." My "full" feeling that I get occasionally is like my old "full" feeling. I'm not sure how to guarantee it, but I do still get it once in a while. I think it has to do with what Alexandra said - managing the meal well. I don't seem to get that "full" feeling if I only eat one type of thing - having different textures seems to help bring it on.

Sultana - 5 pounds a month average isn't "only". Believe me, no matter what the average, it's never fast enough! It is odd that your sense of restriction only lasts a day or two. Are they withdrawing all the Fluid that was in there before? It could very well be that your sense of restriction was only the swelling of your stomach in response to the fill trauma, and not due to the amount of the fill itself. You will get to where you are going - keep the faith, and keep up on your fills. In the meantime, work on your behaviours, and one day it will all come together. :cool:

Hey Birdee - I am not close to goal, but I think CoffeeWench's advice is the very best of all - try to add in positive things. Instead of focusing on what you DON'T want to do, focus on what you DO want to do, and then there is less room for the undesireable behaviours. So, focus on what you want, but choose only one thing. Make it your priority. Let's say your priority this month is to increase your Water intake. Set a schedule for yourself of 1. how much water you want to get in each day 2. what is your plan to get it in Remember, it's progress, not perfection. If your first week still doesn't see you meeting your water goals, re-evaluate what is keeping you from doing so, and tweak your plan. Once you've been getting your water in for a month, and it is now second nature to you, focus on the next thing you want to add. Exercise? Again, think about what you want to accomplish, and then set up your plan. One of our biggest problems is trying to do everything at one time. It is very difficult to change a behaviour, so trying to change more than one at one time is really asking too much. When you start making your exercise goals, start out small! Make a plan that you think you really can do, so you can be successful. Say, a 15 minute walk ONCE each week. Once you are able to successfully meet that goal, try increasing it. Remember, just because we set our goal small doesn't mean we can't EXCEED it if we want! The point is to not RESTRICT yourself to one 15 minute walk a week, but to commit to one 15 minute walk a week, and successfully meet that commitment. If you do a 15 minute walk 7 times a week, great! But meeting the ONCE commitment means that you are successful with your goal. We don't think starting so small can make a difference, so we either don't start, or we start too big and then can't follow through. BABYSTEPS!! And congrats on your success so far! :cool:

?? I have not heard this, so... I think it's just that nutritionist's opinion. If we can take our regular meds, I would think seeds wouldn't be any problem. I've certainly had strawberries, raspberris, cucumbers, tomatos, and all their seeds. Not to mention sunflower seeds, but at least those were chewed. :cool:

Thanks again, everyone, for all your kind comments. Jennye, we miss you! Alexandra, every few years I get a wild hair and shear it all off. I don't know what comes over me, as it isn't really my favorite style. Sometimes I think it looks really cute, but the growing out phase is always frightful, since my hair is naturally wavy, and starts doing some really bizarre things when it's at the "in-between" stage. I always end up back to the Grand Canyon style, sooner or later. They say women tend to gravitate to the hair-do they had in college... Maybe that's why. It's certainly a good do for a hot summer, which this is turning out to be! And easy for the beach. My mantra, whenever I feel shocked, is "It will grow back. It will grow back. It will..." :cool: lol

Alexandra, I think you're amazing. Now I guess I better get out my old counseling notebook and go through it again, paying particular attention to the "stopping when full" parts... :cool:

Hi Sultana - I think most people do get to a fill level that they keep for a very long time. My last (fourth) fill was the beginning of October 2003. I may have to get another one someday, but right now (even though sometimes I can really eat a lot, particularly if I drink with meals and eat for longer than 20 minutes) I still feel like this is as tight as I can physically handle.