Jim1967

I was going to wait on making a blog entry until next month as April 16 is my one year mark of my surgery. Today I stepped on the scale and I was 321. I had a sudden realization of how thing have changed in just a short month and a half. I'll explain shortly. Since I was banded in April of 2012 I always had this thought that weight would slide off seeing that I was so big and typically big people lose quicker. As time went on I realize that is not how it works and I begun to accept that. Even though I understood slow and gradual movements on the scale I never seemed quite pleased. Now before you scoff or judge me because yes I have lost a ton of weight in a short time it still didn't seem quite right. It seemed I would lose two pounds then the scale wouldn't budge sometimes for like 3 weeks. Sometimes even longer. I often times got really frustrated in the beginning but slowly I adjusted to it. So going back to today. Today I weighed in at 321 and when I got my last fill on Jan 29 I was 341. I have lost 20lbs since my January appointment. My food intake changed drastically as did my attitude. Eating a cup of food is more of a chore then ever as of late. I thought before this latest fill I was in the green zone but as I crept closer to January not so much. Now since this last .5cc I am actually there and for the first time I am seeing the weight move like I originally expected. I am hoping it keeps up for a little while but I know the more I lose the slower it will become. So take it from someone who is someday hoping to become an actual veteran bandster that the green zone can be very allusive but once you find it...WOW. Missy (Mis73) told me time and time again that .5, yes a just half of cc can make a whole world of difference. She wasn't kidding!! I hope the downward trend continues and I hope you're all losers....just like me. Have a wonderful healthy day and weekend! -Jim

It can be a rough start mentally but it does get better...

I am allergic to Nickel as well. It was discovered when I was in my early 20's working at a nickel plating factory. I broke out in severe hives so I went to an allergist specialist and he tested me and confirmed. I ended up transferring out of that part of the factory. I have also been banded 1 year next month with no issues at all. Still follow up with your Doc but I have had zero issues. I have the Realize band.

33 pounds is amazing in such a short time!! Sorry but your expectations are a little out of whack. I really mean that with no disrespect intended. A lot of us go through surgery and then automatically we have that expectation that the weight is going to fall off. It does not work that way at all. Slow and gradual that's how it goes. Sooner you get acclimated to that idea the better off you will be. Took me a long time and a lot of frustration to figure it out. I wish you better. Not trying to push my blog on to anyone but if you give this entry a read it may or may not help. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/blog/6807/entry-25584-patienceband-requires-much-patience-especially-at-the-start-of-it-all/

Congrats and welcome to the other side!!

BariatricPal.com appears to be the center hub or maybe even the portal of all of Alex created WLS sites. Maybe Maddy frequents more then just LBT but it's all part of one big family.

Thank you very much!!

Awesome Patty!! Congratulations are in order. Missy is great and I told her in a private message once if she ever left LBT after reaching goal that I would track her down. LOL. I just gave her a shout out in a blog entry earlier this morning.

Hi Draven, First thank for the kudos. That is very kind. Secondly you bring up such a huge point here. Some folks need a full face mask and others prefer just the nose and there are also different types for each. Like I have the one that covers the entire nose where my Mom has just nasal pillows that go in the nostril. It is very important you find the right fit and balance for you. Getting the mask adjusted properly is also key. Feeling air hitting your eyes is usually an indicator the mask is not snug enough and the air is leaking. As time goes on the straps for those masks stretch and need an occasional adjustment. Also, it is very wise to properly clean and change out supplies on a regular basis. I have two cats so I am forever always changing filters and cleaning the thing. Jim

Hi there and sorry to hear your having a bit of struggle. I have been a cpap user for 2 years now and the first year was before the band. My Surgeon didn't even have to discuss sleep studies with me because I was already on the cpap. Your score is not pretty at all but let me tell you mine was over 200!! My Doc and the one who did the analysis were so concerned they fast tracked my cpap order and got me one sooner than a lot of patients. I can tell you it took me a good month to get used to wearing a cpap and sleep was up and down for a while. Do you have humidifier on yours? I do believe most come with it now. Make sure that has distilled Water in it every time you plan to use it. That makes a whole lot of difference..I top mine of nightly before going to bed so I know it will not run dry in the middle of the night. I do not sleep well at all if it is empty. I cannot really comment on the weight loss side of it as I did have the cpap a year before I was banded. I can tell you my sleep is much more peaceful and when I wake up I feel refreshed and I most importantly I am not falling asleep at work or driving anymore. A lot of people look forward to losing weight so they can ditch the cpap. Well I can tell you I am the opposite. It will take another sleep study to convince me I don't need it anymore. I would say give it a full month and if no improvement then let your Doctor know and perhaps they should double check the machine settings to ensure you're getting the proper pressure. Oh and by the way I have not dreamt in years and I mean many years like I dream now. So I know I am finally getting into rem stages. Wish you the best. Please keep us updated. - Jim

Congratulations!!

We are all guilty of it at one point or another. I know tmf did not mean to offend or scare you off and I know he was trying to also help you get more attention to your issue. Please do not let this deter you from using a valuable support tool. Start a new thread and I promise you get all sorts of help and advice.

First off yes you may be more sensitive or perhaps more aware of food passing through. I know I can tell when some foods pass. When you say the first two bites hurt does it feel like it's stuck and will not go down? Is it all foods and is at any time of the day? Or certain foods? It sounds to me like perhaps those first couple of bites are either too big or you are not eating slow/chewing enough. Bite size should be about the equivalent of your pinky finger nail. When you say you are getting hungry 2-3 hours after eating are you sure it is pure physical hunger and not head hunger? Also with the band your belly may seem to be more vocal like stomach growls. This is perfectly normal and does not necessarily mean hunger. I am not a doctor but the last thing I would suggest is a fill until you figure out what is going on. I would bypass the nurse and talk with the Doctor and explain what is happening. I have to get out the door for work but I will check back in a bit.

Personally, I do not put a lot of stock in studies. By the way that article was published in 2006 and not only have surgical techniques have improved but so did patient education. There also have been newer and better revisions of the bands themselves put out by the manufacturer. Don't take this personal but this type of post is the kind that will bring out the Anti-bandsters causing defensive backlash by pro bandsters. I am sure that is not your intent at all but I have seen these type of threads go south time and time again.

This is a pretty good rule to go by. How big are the meals and how long can you go without getting hungry. For example I had Breakfast this morning at 8AM and I had a half cup of egg beater scrambled, mixed with a 1/4 cup of shredded mozzarella and a half a slice of whole wheat toast followed up with a decaf coffee 40 minutes later. Here it is 2:10PM and I am not hungry at all but I know I better eat something or my protein/caloric intake will be way to low for the day. I would say if you cannot go a minimum of 4 hours without getting hungry then you need the fill and I would call the Doctor's office and ask for a physician call back and explain it to him. Best of Luck, Jim

I agree I would go on liquids or the very least a soothing protein shake that will slide down nicely..

Interesting I have never been told I should get one or discouraged from getting one. They give me their opinion and then let me decide what I feel is best getting one or not. They gave me 5cc for the very first time and from then on it is my decision after discussing. Every Doctor is different.

What she said. Plus I didn't want to give up ice cream forever. LOL

I have 11cc Realize with 9.5cc fill

I started the process in October 2011 and had surgery on April 16, 2012. My insurance at the time Cigna required a 6 month mandatory supervised diet. I have heard Cigna dropped this requirement down a while back to 3 months.

Karen your expectations are a bit high. First month is generally all about healing and not weight loss. It seems that a lot of people seem to think because they just got out of surgery days ago weight is going to fall off. I went through a period of that. I didn't lose much weight at all the first month and when the weight loss did kick in it was slow and gradual. Please take a look at this thread I think you will find it helpful. Patience is a huge key in being successful. As the old expression says "Rome was not built in a day". http://www.lapbandta...d/#entry1956331

I agree with a lot of what is being said here. Most people know I have the band. Most people who know me know I have struggled with my weight going as far back as elementary school. I am a proud Bander and couldn't be more happy with the progress I have made. On the flip side out of all the people who know I had surgery only a small handful have actually took an interest in how it works, what I went through to have it done and what the recovery time was and how different my actual nutrition is. What I find is most people ask "how much weight have you lost?" For many it's all about the numbers especially the ones who have never had weight issues. I am sure people around me thought I took the easy way out but no one has ever said it to me directly or indirectly. Going to back to what Missy said earlier in the thread (paraphrasing here) : I was afraid of telling a lot of people in the beginning because I was worried about failure and being known as the fat guy who couldn't lose weight even with WLS. I felt like a lost cause then and I was in a bad place mentally because of my weight. I had lost a ton of weight and gained it all back and then some and I had a lot of anger/depression because of it Now I will tell almost anyone interested but again most just want to hear numbers. Only time I get really probed for information is when I go to a seminar at my surgeons center and act as an patient ambassador and give those who are taking the first baby steps what I hope is some very useful information. Going back to what tmf said and my earlier statement about losing a lot and gaining it back, I tried all the fad diets and the most successful one was Atkins. In 2003/04 I dropped 174lbs. I looked and felt great but it all crept back on plus another 95. In 10 years time I went from 393 to 219 back to 488. I feel this time it is different. I am not depriving myself of anything like I did with Atkins. Thanks to the band my cravings no longer exist. I do not snack between meals and the meals themselves are very small. Anyway, this got very long winded and if you read this far I say thanks and sorry for rambling on... Jim

Hi There and congratulations on your surgery. A noisy stomach is quite common for a banded person. Digestive system is a lot more different now. Gurgling, belly rumbles are quite normal and at times a stomach growl will have you second guess as to whether or not you are hungry. These things are all normal and is not typically a sign your food is coming back up. You will know if the food is coming back up as there could be some discomfort associated with it. For the second question all I can offer is practice, practice and more practice. I put my fork down between bites and distract myself with something else. Be careful though you don't want to be distracted as you eat or that could lead to a problem as well. We've been eating a certain way all our lives so this new training on how to eat has a learning curve. What type of diet are you supposed to be on? Are you supposed to be back on solids yet? Broccoli can be really tough going down so you have to cut it real small and chew the heck out of it. Good luck Jim