leatha_g

After awhile, the growling tummy thing will subside. It's funny, how we're conditioned to think that because our tummy is making noise that we're hungry or empty. In fact, the tummy may just be doing it's job of digesting OR we learn that just because it growls we don't HAVE to feed it. I know I surely have enough storage already on board that I won't starve until the next mealtime. lol

Very sorry to hear this, Lauri. I know you were really looking forward to getting the band. Alot of times, these insurance companies deny you first try just hoping you will give up and they will save money. My brother's insurance told him the same 12 month story. I'm not sure of the objective here. To see if your determined to lose weight or are they hoping you'll lose weight on a Dr. Supervised diet and you'll no longer need surgery? I'm not sure, but it stinks. I agree. There are appeal letters on this site and some of the other Yahoo Bandster sites that you might be able to model something for yourself to appeal with . It stands to reason, if you are taking medications for weight related co-morbidities, it would benefit your insurance to help you to get more healthy in the long run. Something to this effect with backed up facts relating to the band and people who've had success with it might help you get approved. Don't give up! Show them how determined you are. But first, do make an appointment with your PCP, find out if you have ANY documentation discussing your obesity in your current records and see if he will back date his documentation of your weight loss to any reference he has documented in the past. I don't know how much this might help, but it's a start in the right direction. Good luck!

Great job Betty!! That's spectacular loss so far!

http://www.inamed.com/products/obesity/us/patient/lapband/prodinfo.html

Many of these foods are 'no no's' because of their fibrous nature. Many, however, have nothing to do with tolerance - they are not weight loss friendly, plain and simple. White starches just dont help us to lose weight and that is the reason we became banded, after all. It would, however, be nice, if there were one set standard, such as Inamed recommendations for the band, but it does seem that the bypass 'diet' (which we were trying to avoid) is creeping it's way in since so many new docs are switching from bypass to lapband.

During my first year, my port regularly got 'sore' with certain situations. Sitting, bent at the waist for long hours, wearing jeans that fit, anything with a waistband, certain activity - like exercise. I really think it's like the band itself, this thing has to seat itself in the tissue surrounding it and since we move alot at the waist, it just takes it longer to find it's place. My port was right on my waistline. It sometimes became very painful to wear clothes with a waistband that fit. Now, it has moved over more to the middle of my tummy, above and slightly to the left of my navel. It is much more comfortable now and I hardly ever notice it. Of course, if this persists or becomes seriously painful - more than a nagging reminder of it's presence, I would consult my physician. He may want to look at it to make sure everything is where it belongs. I feel your pain. Been there, done that.. I think it'll get better with time.

yummy.. buttermilk pie is gooooooddd.

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Yes, dear, but not all of them started where you did or have your unique body chemistry. 10 lbs in two months is right on track for 5lbs per month. At that rate, you will have lost 60lbs by your one year date! Now, if you get a fill that kicks in and you find an exercise that helps you to burn more calories, then who knows where you might go??!!I lost the largest part of what I have lost in my second 6 months with the band. The first 6 months is generally trying to find your nitch or that 'sweet spot' and getting used to the changes in your eating habits. You're absolutely doing FINE!

Jessie Ahroni says if you can eat 2 cups and still lose weight, you're doing okay. Some docs say your pouch is only large enough to hold about 4 oz of food at a time and any more could stretch it. I'm of the mind that as you eat, things are moving through in most cases, so it is very possible to eat more than 1/2 cup to 1 cup of food at a sitting. I've heard it said that if you eat longer than 15-20 minutes, you're eating too long. This is considered pouch-packing too. Only you can answer the question. Did you answer the questions on the questionaire Michelle/La_Madam sent you? If you're eating only 3 small meals a day, chewing 15-20 times per bite, stop eating as soon as you feel full, do not drink while you are eating, not snacking and ARE exercising, sounds like you're doing okay to me. Personally, I have started using only dessert plates and cup size bowls/cups for my foods. That way, I am roughly not taking in more than 1/2 cup to 1 cup at a time. How much are you trying to lose? Sometimes, higher BMI's lose very well in the beginning without much restriction. Again, as long as you're losing and doing all the things you need to be doing, you must be doing something right. Maybe you'll want to wait for a fill until you are no longer losing, especially if you are a cash paying patient. Not sure this helps.. but it's my 2 cents..

Who is your wifes doctor? I sincerely hope she was able to do some research before making this life changing decision to be banded. There is much to learn. What to expect, what should and shouldn't happen. What to eat, how long. Is she walking? This is the best medicine for gas after banding. Walk, walk, walk... Has she read the Patient Handbook?? ---->>>http://www.inamed.com/products/obesity/us/patient/lapband/information.html#booklet Here's wishing your wife a smooth recovery and much success with her new band!

11/19? I'll bet you men 10/19. 23lbs is awesome! Rule of thumb is, if you are losing 1-2 lbs per week, you don't need a fill. I'm sure you've heard it said before, regarding the 2 cup amount - Just because you can, doesn't mean you should! lol. It's all a learning curve, but you're doing awesome! Keep it up!

Good luck to you Fran! I hope everything goes smoothly for you and wish you a speedy recovery! Please let us know how you are doing when you feel up to it!

Thanks Betty!

Don't feel alone, Kim. My body hangs on to every ounce for dear life! I felt so inadequate when I was telling people 3 months out I'd ONLY lost 15lbs. I felt stuck on 35lbs FOREVER, then one day I looked up and realized 55lbs was quite a ways from 35. The weight loss is so subtle that you sometimes don't even realize it's moving until large chunks come up missing. I am a slow loser, probably as much by choice as anything. I've chosen to eat most anything I want and not go the deprivation route. Of course my volume is greatly reduced, but now that i'm 40-50lbs from goal, it's becoming even more apparent that I'm going to have to work for this. Either I have to step upt the exercise or take down the calories - that's the only choice I have. I've been stalled now since Labor Day, this last stretch is NOT going to be easy. Keep your chin up! It'll happen!

Awesome Job!! That water thing must definitely be a big denominator in weight loss. I've got to find a way to make water work for me instead of the grazing that I am so guilty of. Way to go girl!!

I think it's perfectly normal to be scared. Not only are you submitting yourself up physically to the unknown. There are risks with any surgery. You should be cautiously concerned. However, you should be cautiously concerned about the impending health problems associated with obesity (which I'm sure you are, since you are here). This surgery is also a lifetime committment to having your food intake restricted. It is a declaration that all the things you have tried have not worked in the long term and you care enough about yourself and your family to make drastic changes in your lifestyle and eating habits so that you can hang around a bit longer in their lives. That's a big committment, but a very honorable one. How long have you researched? Do you feel you know all the possible risks and complications. Are you aware that you will not wake up skinny? Is it okay with you that you will NOT lose 100lbs in 3 months like bypass patients do? Do you understand that you may have to endure several weeks of liquids and mushy foods and you may not lose any weight at all until you actually have enough adjustments done to get your own unique body to a restriction level to begin restricting intake? If you understand some of these basic things and you are willing to do what it takes to work with the band. Then you're obviously in good hands. We've all been there. It is definitely a big step, but guess what! In a year, you'll be so excited because you can buy clothes in a smaller section. You can ride the rides at the amusement parks without worrying about bars that don't fit over your lap. Bicycle may be a new word in your vocabulary. You can go to bed at night feeling more trim and not totally bloated from having eaten all the wrong things. You'll feel your collarbone again. It's amazing the changes our bodies make as we lose weight. Best of all, IF you follow the guidelines (Protein, Water, exercise) on a consistent basis and you develop new eating habits, you will never have to lose this weight again. Good luck on your decision!!

It is a common misconception that you will feel 'full' in your belly after banding. But, think about it. You're band is placed up under your esophagus, which is the bottom of your throat -above the belly. Unless you are eating soft foods that go around the band (eating AROUND the band) you will never feel that 'tummy' Thanksgiving full again. Your food should now stop high above the tummy and yes, to me, it definitely is in my 'throat'. I'm real glad you had some taken out as this intolerance to anything, even liquids is quite dangerous, both to you and your band. Also, many many bandsters report an intolerance to scrambled eggs. If I try them, I mash them up very finely with my fork, like I did for my babies. Even then, they tend to 'settle' in your stoma, like potatoes do. Mostly, they're too uncomfortable to enjoy, so I rarely even try it anymore. In 18 months, I've pb'd about 6 times and eggs was one of my first culprits.

I'd like to have one of the furry brim - black I think. They're really cute! PM me with how much I need to send ya!

lol. me either. but those are really cute vera!

I do know of one lady on Yahoo Groups Smartbandsters who was banded in Lyon. Those doctors there have much more experience than the one's in the US. Some of them were actually in on developing the surgery.

Please note that this is a post by Robin/Coffeewench taken from another forum. It's very useful for new people in that Bandster Purgatory of Pre-fill/No Loss and something that should be required reading for those in that first 6 weeks of being un-filled. ************************************************************* This is a recurrent theme on all lists, so let's just address it. The Lapband was designed with a purpose. To be emptied if we ever needed to be able to eat fairly normally again. I say "fairly" normally because even with no Fluid it usually cuts our portions at least some. But mostly this is because we haven't been forced to superchew our food yet. Now, we understand this purpose when we go into it. But it doesn't really SINK IN until we're actually healed from our liquid phase (or even before that) and we decide to TEST THE BAND. And we can STILL eat!!! And we PANIC! And we convince ourselves we're doomed to fail! And we stress out and eat more. And maybe gain back some of the weight we lost during the liquid phase. We're convinced the band that seems to have worked for thousands of others isn't going to work for us. That we're some freak of nature that is going to be fat for all eternity. It's normal to feel this way. Really. You're coming down from the drama and high of the surgery into the day to day boring liquids and you expect to start really losing some weight. I mean, you had surgery didn't you???? Well don't expect much until you're restricted. Use this time to HEAL. See ANY weight loss before your first really good fill as a BONUS and NOT a given, okay???? If you're lost weight, consider yourself that far ahead. There are some lucky ones who experience great restriction out the door. Most are in between and some experience none (like me). You're NOT GOING TO FAIL. Your tummy is healing. It's anchoring that band in place so that it won't slip. If you've had one fill and you need another, make it your priority to get one. Otherwise you're just spinning your wheels. I've had my band so tight that a couple of sips of coffee and ONE bite of a strawberry make me so full I'm on the verge of barfing for hours. I've had it so tight that chewing gum was too much for me because swallowing all that saliva was causing it to back up. Right now I'm kind of at a happy medium. When you get your band to that "just right" spot a switch goes off in your brain about food. You stop caring about it. I'm serious. Suddenly you have to come to grips with the fact that you just CANNOT eat like you once did. And that has a lot of issues unto itself but it comes with the reward of weight loss so it doesn't leave you feeling as vulnerable and schitzy as the prefill stage does. If you're still healing and haven't lost much weight--please try to just get through this time and preoccupy yourself with other things. Did you know that Dr. Fox in Seattle prescribes his band patients diet pills to take during the prefill stage? Why? He understands the difficulty. He feels it's better to kill the appetite chemically while the band heals that subject his patients to all that stress. And he happens to have one of the highest band success rates in the country. And as always, it's better to ADD to your habits then to try to take away. Add more Water, more Vitamins, more exercise. But don't try to take away food because it throws you into dieting mentality. Adding will naturally balance out the other problem. Robin Lapband 8/24/00 310/175

bumping for newbies.

bumping for newbies

Preventing e-thrombosis: Keeping Healthy Through Inconvenience By June Campbell Are you at risk of developing e-thrombosis? You spend your day at a computer workstation or executive desk. The furniture item fills up the corner of the room, holds your computer, fax/phone/copier, scanner, filing basket and a year's worth of office supplies. There's enough space left over to spread out a picnic lunch if you are so inclined. You settle comfortably into a big executive type chair on casters and get ready to call a few colleagues in for a meeting. As you wait, you talk into a telephone receiver that you're squeezing in place by crunching your shoulder up towards your ear. That scene is SO nineties, workplace experts tell us. The trend of the new century is towards office furnishings and office equipment that encourage mobility. Get rid of all that big, expensive office furniture before it kills you, they say. Replace it with a smaller "just big enough" desk and equipment that encourages you to move around as you do your job. In other words, get rid of all that "convenience." Force yourself into healthy action by making your environment inconvenient. In the first years of this new century, the health hazards associated with a desk job have moved beyond conditions like repetitive strain disorder and carpal tunnel syndrome. Not that we can forget about those conditions, but there's more to worry about now. e-thrombosis is a newly-recognized condition that afflicts people who sit still for extended lengths of time. And, sitting still for extended periods of time in the workplace is usually associated with computer use. E-thrombosis (medical terminology is Deep Vein Thrombosis or DVT) is similar to the condition suffered by long distance air travelers. It's no laughing matter. E-thrombosis can be life threatening. A blood clot forms in the legs due to long hours of inactivity. The clot can break off and move into the lungs with sometimes fatal results. Although only one case has been diagnosed at this time, researchers believe that e-thrombosis may have contributed to many cases of pulmonary embolisms, but gone unnoticed. Sitting still for hours on end leaves us vulnerable to this and possibly other health hazards. And, according to physiotherapists, working out at the end of the day isn't the solution. By that time, the damage has been done and the workout could do more damage. Prevention is not difficult. All that is required is that you move about regularly throughout the day. Get a desk that’s just-big-enough, or an e-work station with movable modules. Put that fax machine in one corner of the room and the copier in another. Provide yourself with articulated arm rests for computer use. Get both an adjustable chair and a fitness stool. Switch back and forth between the two, and at intervals throughout the day, sit on a fitness ball instead of the chair or stool. Sitting on the ball forces good posture and strengthens core muscles. Have room so you can pace about as you think. Get a phone with a wireless headset that allows you to pace during phone conversations. Have standup work surfaces so you can sort papers, read reports or talk to colleagues while standing. Look into foot switches that allow you to transfer some of the computer tasks to your feet instead of your hands. Walking around only five to ten minutes each hour is all that it takes to substantially reduce your risk of e-thrombosis. In short, get moving! It's good for you. Interested in publishing this article in your ezine, website or print publication? This article is available for your use provided you include the info box below. ========================================== How to Write Business Plans, Business Proposals, JV Contracts, More! No-cost ebook "Beginners Guide to Ecommerce". Business Writing by Nightcats Multimedia Productions www.nightcats.com