Alexandra

Hey Chris! Nice to see you here. How did your surgery go?

I think that's a great idea, too. I can't set it up, though--Alex has to do that. Alex?

Hi MK, You'll probably see by looking around this site that there is a wide range of pre-op experiences. My doctor didn't prescribe any pre-op regimen, but it's always possible that he does for other people with different bloodwork. Whether you are "big enough" for the surgery is your and your doctor's call, of course. There is a point below which the risks of surgery are greater than the risk of staying at one's current weight, but that point is something like BMI 31 or so. This surgery is relatively free of the risk of serious complications. I don't think you'd get anyone here telling you you're crazy for doing it. What does your heart tell you?

Interesting, Megan! So we know for a fact that Star Jones has been exposed to the realities of the band. So why on earth would she consider RNY? I just don't get it...

Hi Laura, Glad to "meet" you! Wow, congratulations on 26 lbs. in what, less than a month? Amazing! Are you doing anything special? Hope to see you around here lots!

I considered it a full liquid, absolutely. Just take it slow--it's really filling!

My port also seems to be under my rib cage to the left side. I can't feel it either, which is fiiiine with me.

Hi again Coal, I lost 30 lbs in 9 months leading up to my surgery, largely by following a high-protein regimen. I didn't avoid carbs altogether but really strictly limited Pasta, bread, potatoes, and sugar. I can't see a downside to starting to lose weight now, unless you think there might be a problem with insurance coverage. My BMI dropped by almost 3 points over the last year and if I'd kept going I could have dipped below 40 and jeopardized my insurance coverage. And it was impossible to make a lifetime eating habit out of it, I agree. The 30 lbs came off pretty quickly in the first 4 months, but then it was enough hard work to maintain it. No question--I need my band buddy to help me out!

Hi Coal! I really think some doctors are just anti-any "fad" diet. It's just because you said the word "Atkins" that you got the reaction you did; if you'd described the same eating plan without using that word you'd probably have gotten a different response. I think there's a perception that Atkins is extremely high-fat and that's what they're reacting to. If you said a high-protein, low-fat diet with limited carbs they'd have no problem. Charming.

Congratulations, Mary! Even though we all know that this stage is not about weight loss, it's a great boost to see those numbers changing at the doctor's office. Enjoy your change in diet!! Elizabeth, at 2 weeks out I'm feeling almost no restriction when I eat. But I've discovered that I really HAVE to work on eating slowly, because 3 or 4 ozs. of egg salad fills me up in a way I've never experienced before. If I eat that quickly--and it's really only several large bites, so I could--I can get uncomfortably full before I know what's hit me. Last night, while preparing dinner and waiting for the kids to get home I had several bites of ice cream. The amazing thing is that at dinner time I truly was not interested in putting anything else in my mouth. And I felt crappy to boot--I hadn't had any Protein since noon and my body sure didn't need sugar to get me over that hunger hump. It wasn't until about 2 hours later that I wanted anything. This is really a change for me--I'm going to have to think about each and every bite that goes in because there is just not as much room as there used to be. Yay!

JC, did the surgeon say anything about what might have been causing your problem? Was it just post-surgical swelling and spasms, or was there something else going on? Did they do anything to treat it? Glad to hear you're OK and feeling better!!

I've wondered about this myself. Over the last year, since making the decision to get banded, I'd lost almost 30 lbs as a result of a combination of things. But I can't count that as being surgery-related, so I won't consider it when I start posting stats. Then, once I won my insurance battle and knew I was going to get banded, I put back on about 5 pounds doing the last-supper thing. But I don't want to count those either. I'm figuring that my weight on the day of surgery is my top weight for the purposes of tracking loss. Of course, they didn't weigh me at the hospital so I'm really going by the weight at the doctor's office about 10 days before surgery. But since then I'm 11 lbs down and don't intend to let any of them go uncounted!

So glad to hear it's nothing, Alicia! And now you've educated all of us other recent bandsters who would have worried had we had the same pain. Thank you! Lisa, as I recall my acquaintance did have to have an additional surgery, but I don't know how elaborate it was. I'll see if I can dig up his story and post the details here.

Hey Alicia--the good news is that you're going to see your doctor this afternoon. You don't have to wait and worry and wonder for the space of a weekend or worse! So you'll know what's what in short order. It's probably nothing, a pinched nerve at most, but even if it is the worst-case scenario (which is what?) it's not likely to be difficult to fix. I know someone who had a disconnected port early on and he had it repaired and was on his way. Good luck this afternoon, and don't forget to let us know what your doctor says!

Hi Megan! Welcome to the site; I hope you feel free to ask whatever questions you might have, no matter how silly you think they are. I guarantee there's someone else out there who is thinking the same questions! 1. if you had it to do over again, would you still choose the band over the bypass or other surgeries? ABSOLUUUUUUTELY. I have heard other people say they'd consider bypass if for some reason they lost their bands, but I don't even think that would do it for me. Bypass has just never seemed like a reasonable idea to me. The risk of complications is too great; I'd rather be fat and healthy than skinny and sick. 2. what has been the hardest part of the WLS, what has been the easiest? I can't really speak to this yet with any authority, but so far the surgery itself was the hardest part. It took more out of me than I'd expected. But still and all it wasn't too bad! 3. what is the one thing that has helped you be successful? Ask me again when I'm successful It's funny, I read all these posts (here and on Strugglingbandsters) about people being unhappy with thier slow weightloss. From my perspective sitting here in no-band land ANY weightloss is a gift. I guess it's all in your expectations. I completely agree with you. The very concept of being upset because the scale has "only" dropped, say, 20 lbs in four months is amazing to me. I'll consider myself successful if I can permanently arrest the upward climb of the scale, and I'll be over the moon if the numbers drop at any kind of noticeable rate.

Offended? Are you kidding?? You just made my day!! I'll be 42 in November and am taking my older daughter to kindergarten for her first day today. I don't know how I got so old, but I sure feel better now! :banana Actually, one of the side effects of being so overweight is that I've always looked young. I'm afraid that when I start to lose significant weight I'll start to look my age or older. Time to invest in some Oil of Olay, I guess.

I was banded two weeks ago tomorrow and my doctor recommends mushy foods through at least the third week. So far the scale hasn't budged for me in 6 days, but as long as it's not going *up* I'm a happy camper. I must say I'm *really* looking forward to eating real food again...

Hi Bright, It's really hard to kick a sweets habit cold-turkey, so I'd suggest you not even try. My poison of choice in the sweets department is ice cream--which, thank goodness, is mushy so I didn't have to go without for long. Too much of anything creates cravings for what one is avoiding, I find, so my goal is balance. Protein first doesn't mean I can't have a small dish of frozen yogurt for dessert, if I want it. I'd imagine a WW-type "points" system would work just fine post-band if you assiduously take care to get in all your protein. Remembering that the quantity you can ingest will have been cut in half or so, you'll have to make choices based on nutritional priorities rather than just what your taste buds want at a given moment.

Hi Sparkle--welcome! I'm glad you posted and good luck with your surgery! I don't blame you one bit for being nervous; it's not a walk in the park. But you are so lucky that the band is available to you and I'm sure you'll be able to use it to meet all your goals. As for your clock ticking, don't even think about it. I was 36 when my first baby was born and 39 for the second. I just wish I'd have found the band ten years before that so I wouldn't have had to have them at 300+ lbs! But it all worked out well, thank heavens. Anyway, welcome again and keep posting!

Mary, yep, this happens to everyone. I've lost 11 lbs in my first week and since then, not an ounce. I'm still on mushy foods though and am not really worrying about calories at this point. Right now I'm trying just to keepo from getting famished! Are you eating solid foods yet? I think it's premature to make any judgments about our diets or restrictions or anything until we're back on a regular-food diet. Right now it seems I have no restriction at all, but I'm not really testing it with anything solid so I just assume I don't know. I'll find out in two weeks. Then I'll get upset about the scales not moving.

Cindy, my ankles are thin too! I must say, that's a really cool thing. My summer shoes are finally not pinching! I think you'll do absolutely fine tomorrow. Remember, the mushy food thing at this point isn't to avoid food getting stuck or PBing or anything nasty like that; it's to continue to allow your stomach to heal. You've been out of surgery for 10 days now, and mushy food won't be a problem at all. Have a good day at work! I'm looking forward to going back myself. Three days at home with the kiddies and I'm ready for a good long snooze at my desk.

Hey, it's Kelly & Wendy, my Bandster twins! My port site is less and less sore every day, and last night I found myself sleeping right on it, on my left side. Cool! My loss is right at about 11 lbs in 10 days--can't complain about that, either. I'm exploring the world of mushy foods with a vengeance, looking for things to keep me satisfied between meals. I had scrambled eggs for Breakfast this morning--yum!! But before we left on a shopping trip only 2 hours later I was hungry again, so I had the rest of last might's mashed potatoes. And stomach growling when we returned two hours after that. This is going to take work, I can see that now... But I'm feeling terrific with regard to the surgery ten days out. Yay!

Well, sure, but even a doctor isn't really likely to want to operate on a healthy patient "just in case." Once the patient really did start to gain weight rapidly a doctor might reband, as happened in Wayne's case, but insurance carriers have their guidelines and preventing future possibilities aren't in them. Personally, if my band slipped when I was at or close to goal I'd first want to see if there were any possible chance that my new behaviors could prevent weight gain before having the band replaced. The less surgery the better, IMO.

Sue, thank you for this! The next time I have one of these episodes this perspective will help me get through it calmly. Perfect!

Just for the record, that is absolute hogwash. There may be an office policy on their end about helping patients with appeals, but it's absurd to blame that on HIPAA. All the new regulations mean are that no one can have access to your personal medical information without your express permission. That usually means written permission, but you can grant such permission to anyone: your doctor's nurse, your husband, your postman, your dog. Oh, and yeah: thank your FIL for me.. that's news!