Cazzy

Mine is placed on my breast bone, it is more common in the UK to be sited here as it is fixed to bone so doesnt move as much and doesnt get in the way if you have abdominoplasty , tt and bodylift like i had .. it does stick out a lot since the weight was lost but its hidden by my bra so no one can see it except me

Totally normal

lmao! ......... u always make me smile

lol @ 'it'

In order for people to try and help you it will always be better to give more information, how many calories are u eating a day, how many calories are you burning on exercise, what are your current food choices, how much restriction do u have i know it sounds a long list but everyone is so different theres no easy answer with so little information.. good luck anyways ...

I know a couple of other people have had this problem, it is rare but not unheard of, hopefully it will get sorted for you

I was the same .. biggest pain was the darn drainage tubes but 5 days later they were out and no more pain just a little sore and uncomfortable but all my scars felt better with the compression garments on, i wore them constantly for 6 weeks post op, and now i leave them off during the day, just wear them of a night now .. it does help the scars heal flatter i was told. U also need to massage them if they heal a little tighter than is comfortable, this stretches the scar tissue, i had to do this where they extended the scar under both my arm pits.. good luck. I had 9lbs of skin removed from all of my surgery lost 9 inches off each arm tho

Food gets digested in the main stomach not the pouch

Good luck to you both this week for your surgeries and i wish you a speedy recovery. I am now 12 weeks post op on my abdomino, body lift and brachio, am completely healed now , just half an inch of a scar where my vertical scar on my tummy meets the horizontaal one, a known trouble spot lol but its almost healed completely now. I started my cycling at 6 weeks post op, and now at 12 weeks can go back on my road bike and start on my abs again. I had a massive repair to be done to my diastis recti , my vertical stomach muscles and now they need some gentle work to get them back working again. I actually really never had much pain at all, it was sore and uncomfortable but thats it, obviously keep taking the pain meds till u dont need them, worst was trying to move around while in the bed, couldnt use my arms or tummy so i was more uncomfortable but i soon figured out a way to get into a good sleeping position. I am having my thighs done next march 2013 but its never going to be a miracle when the skin is as bad as mine is/was. Keep the scars nicely creamed with the vit e cream and hopefully they will all heal up fine. Just be patient on the exercise front, your surgeon will let u do it as soon as u are able to

I am a little tight first thing in the morning till i have my morning tea then fine during the day and then tight of an evening again, still havent worked out why yet .. but am still trying to figure it out

Huggs !

It sounds like u are just very swollen and that should go down in a few days, if u cannot keep liquids down u must contact your surgeon about it. Make sure what u drink is warm and not too thick, some protein shakes can be very thick .. It is essentiaal that u keep up with your liquids even if u cant take the broth etc, water is a must .. Burping is all part of the this process .. the band feels tight because your tummy is swollen .. think of the band like wearing a tight belt, it can take up to 6 weeks for you to heal properly but normally a few days should ease the problem for you .. being stuck even on liquids will make u swell more so keep to clear liquids for a few days till it settles down. Main thing is just to contact your surgeon if u are very worried or liquids are still getting stuck ..

I think u may find 2 weeks post op a little early to go to college .. could u not request some home work for another 2 weeks, not sure really, its all an individual thing how u do post op, I recover well from surgery but wouldnt have been able to do a full day at college, the seating alone would be too uncomfortable .. but speak to your surgeon regarding returniong to college .. good luck with your surgery

I think to be honest the 'any risks involved' should be and most often are discussed with the Surgeon, i think she overstepped her role in the proceedure, after all she isnt a doctor and u are paying for your doctors advice not hers ..

You know maybe this wont be as bad as u think it would be. I dont think any hospital would advocate someone clogging their arteries with saturated fat in order to gain weight. Personally i think u should keep on the low fat side of things like milk and salad dressing but make sure he has those replacement meal shakes for additional calories, plenty of healthy pasta and maybe large amounts of protein like big steaks. Putting on weight in an unhealthy way to me is just as bad as not putting weight on at all. its about increasing good calories and not increasing the bad, i am sure u can find a working solution. Good luck and i wish him a speedy recovery and you your sanity !

I can go for a fill as or when needed, no time prescription here

I had my abdominoplasty and body lift when i had finished losing weight, my surgeon would not have done the operation, for me then to continue to lose a large amount of weight she said it 'could' lead to more excess skin. It could be that this person on the reality show had more of a repair tt on her muscles and that her skin was elastic enough to continue to retract with further weight loss. My skin was past any chance of returning to normal so no choice but to have it removed, i certainly dont want to chance creating any more lose skin that would just make all what i have gone through with my surgery a little pointless.

I have done strength training since day 1 and it helped me lose all my weight, when i weighed my heaviest its all i could do and it burned the calories away nicely, my plastic surgeon said that because i have toned my muscles, she had a much easier job with the removal of my excess skin and i love my toned arms and tummy. Toning up your muscles isnt going to 'bulk' them up. Just because family members say something like they did it isnt necessarily true, next time they say something ask them to back up what they are saying.. i think u will find, like some of us did, getting the last 50 lbs off a little harder unless u keep up some strength work.

Grats on a great weight loss, i recenntly had surgery to remove excess skin, from arms tummy and back with a full body lift, am waiting till after christmas for my legs to be done .. but you are right even without the surgery it has all been worth it.. I always say wear your skin like a badge of honour and be proud u are how u should be and the weight u have lost .. plastic surgery is just the icing on the cake, but cake still taste good wihtout it

It may well be that u hit your green zone albeit a little tight on the green zone/full restriction and u may have to adjust what you are eating and how much. As long as u are drinking enough fluids you wont get dehydrated. According to research starvation mode is something that happens when u are on a very reduced amount of calories for at least a good few weeks, to be honest most of us here never get anywhere near starvation mode as we have enough body fat to maintain a low calorie intake, i was on 600 calories a day pre-surgery for 10 weeks and never got near starvation mode. If your body has fat to use it will use that to burn and not muscle .. as long as u are eating what your body needs then u should be ok. Try adjusting your diet to cope with a tighter band, sometimes its best not to rush off for an unfill unless u cannot keep water and food down .. If you are restricted calorie wise for a while then reduce the exercise to account for the lower intake of food till u get back into balance .. I have never had a protein shake since being banded i eat my protein which is something in the UK that is more recommended, i think also Australia dont go down the must have protein shakes commercial road, but may be u have to use them for a while till u can find other food to eat to get your protein amount in daily .

The hunger is something most of us experienced post - op it will probably get easier once u start on more solid food, but u may not experience any restriction till maybe fill 3 to 6 so u just have to rely on your own will power till u get the restriction u need. This time between surgery and getting the right amount of fill is called bandster hell, there are many many threads oon this forum about it if u do a search .. This first 6 weeks is for healing anyways so dont be too eager to feel full up .. use this time to llearn how and what to eat and keep up your water and protein intake , the time does soon go .. good luck !

I weighed 400 lbs when i first started but had to lose 30lbs pre-op its not just about losing weight its about making sure your liver has shrunk and that u dont have too much fat around the stomach so the band will actually fit , and ofc standing a better chance of recovering well from surgery .. this is the time when your resolve and determination of getting a band will indicate for you whether u can make it work for you post surgery .. good luck !

Can i come to dinner

I recently had to have an some fluid taken out of my band because of plastic surgery and i was shocked at how much food and how hungry i was even tho it was only 1 ml taken out. But although i did eat more as i was advised to help my skin heal, i made sure i weighed every day and if i ate a lot i knew i had to burn a lot in exercise. I didnt put any weight on at this time even tho i was eating like a horse because i was burning it off, hopefully after a fill u may be able to curb your appetite better , but things like using a smaller plate, drinking water before u eat or i eat a weight watchers soup before dinner, all help to stop u over eating at meal times. Make sure its protein first then the veg, make sure u have something like 0 fat greek yoghurt for desert or with some sugar free jello etc , make it a good satisfying meal but not so calorie laden , it is possible to feel full without shovelling in calories that will put on weight . I always had a bloated feeling after eating and some of this was due to IBS but some was also due to my ab muscles not holding my tummy in, its called diastasis recti .. google it as theres a self test u can do. I think also if u were a big eater like i used to be our stomachs are just more stretched and therefore when we eat like a big shopping bag with very little shopping in it, its still looks as big good luck with the fill and tomorrow is a new day just start again and see how u get on

This is a lot harder question to answer than it at first seems. There are many factors which could be responsible for the death of someone that had a lapband. !. Is their illness/problem and death associated with the lapband alone. 2. Did they get medical help when they needed it. i.e go back to the lapband surgeon when problems started arising. 3. Did a non - expert doctor/hospital ER contribute to bad management or inadequate treatment of a lapband patient 4. Were they ill before they had a band fitted. There are so many factors in this it would be difficult to pinpoint any. Risks that would normally be associated with surgery apply to lapband surgery the same as any other operation. There is always the chance of an incompetent Doctor performing lapband surgery, this risk i imagine is the same again for any surgery. This forum does know of One member who sadly died, but to say it was all the lapband as to why she died would be very difficult, she was dishcharged home from an ER after being told to do something about the band otherwise she would die, and boom a week later she was gone. Its a hard judgement call to blame the band, the hospital, the person themselves .. like most disasters its a series of events that leads to a catastrophe and i believe that is what happened in this case. The risks anyone faces from being obese and its associated co morbidities far outweigh the risks directly involved in the lapband, so please dont let any statisitcs put u off from seeking help and intervention. good luck ..