jayeedee

It's been a week and a day since I was completely unfilled. That part has been wonderful. Things are finally calming down and I am happy with my level of restriction with no fill. However, the pain never went away after the abnormally bad pain following being unfilled (it was two days after I had a partial unfill). In fact, as of yesterday evening, I think it is getting worse. I started having some sharp pains but thought it was because I was laughing maybe? But it is just hurting for no reason today, and my incision has also been a bit sore. I'm wondering if anyone has had this happen before? Is it normal to have pain at the port this long after an adjustment? If I'm still having the pains on Monday I'll call my doctor's office. If it gets any worse, and if I start having other symptoms over the weekend, i'll call the weekend help line.

I was unfilled on Thursday. I had 3cc in a 10cc band and was just too tight, had 1cc taken out on Tuesday. Went to liquids, pain going down. I had been eating soft foods, but they were making me make a bunch of extra clear mucous and I'd cough and it'd go flying out of my mouth... quite nasty. So, now I am unfilled. I am eating, still soft foods. No pain. But... I am starting to produce the clear mucous again. I am chewing, not eating more than I am supposed to, not eating to fast... but within 30 minutes of finishing I am congesting, and coughing up little bits of clear mucous. Anyone have this problem? I have no more Fluid to take out, and my doctor doesn't want me on liquids. I overheard my the assistant who was unfilling me as they were going through my charts outside the door speaking with someone and them saying they think I might have a sensitivity to the band... I'm not sure what that means, and I didn't feel like asking at the time (was tired and uncomfortable). I am hoping that all of this is being acerbated from my allergies and once they are over I won't have to deal with the good.. but for now. bleh.

Okay. I have been a bit swollen after the last fill I had two months ago. I thought it was my allergies and the my menses hit and it was bad, bad, bad. I thought it would get better when it was over. No go. So I went to the doctor and had 1cc taken out. I went from 3cc to 2cc... and I was still having pain with liquids. So I went back in today, two days later, and had them take everything out. Cool. I can eat soft foods, so yay! However, holy moly my PORT site is sooo sore. What can I do to help with this? Silly me, I went and hit the tennis courts with my family, and I think that just made it worse. I've never had port pain apart from right after surgery so this is... so uncool.

thanks. I am trying to rest today. Not very fun lol.

Didn't feel a need to tell anyone other than my immediate and close family and friends so I had a core support system that knew me, and would be supportive no matter what. Everyone has to decide what is best for them.

I have a hard time with sugar free. I had to switch to a stevia sweetned shake for the pre-op because I couldn't leave the bathroom.

I was in the hospital for 2.5 hours. I think that the immediate discomfort is more with SILs because everything is through one spot, so there is more going on there. I know the amount of pain I had the first day was more than I thought it would be. But the healing after that point was not so bad. I was pain free in about 2 weeks. 1 week out had a bit of discomfort but it was manageable. I'd have to take tylenol at the end of the day. I was back at work three days later. Good luck!

Experiment with fruit tisanes and herbal teas. There are some really good ones out there. I tend to like ones described as "tropical". Cucumber Water as mentioned above is also fantastic.

I'm 5'4 and my goal that my doctor is cool with is just under 170. For my build, 165-170 puts me in a 10/12. If I lose more, so be it, but I'm happy in a 10/12. If your profile image is you, make sure to stick with sizes and body fat % as there have been a few studies that show BMI isn't an accurate measurement for black women. We tend to have less fat that women of other ethnicities. Good luck!

Mine were horrid! The first one was late, and then I was an emotional wreck for the next one. I had really bad cramping before though (I'd dream I was in labor the night before it started), and didn't notice a different in cramps until this past one. The cramps were less, and there was no PMS this time around, and I am grateful for that.

No two bodies are the same. I do not lose weight if I don't take in carbs on a low calorie diet. Others do. Play around with how much and the type you are eating until you find a balance that you can stick with a majority of the time, and that still keeps your scale moving down. If you lose weight too fast, even with the lap band, by doing something you can't keep up long term, you can sabotage yourself. Good luck getting in the dress!! I'm sure you'll be able to fit. Resistance/weight training also helps with inch loss, so if you haven't been doing it, you should add some 2x a week (that's all you need!!).

Mmm... I think it also depends on how your weight is distributed. I didn't have the lowesst BMI, but I tend to not get as big in my stomach as I do in my hips and rear, so I was a good candidate for it. I jdid have to do a 5 day liquid diet before hand since I gained a bit of weight after my initial consultation just to be safe and make sure the liver shrunk a bit.

I had SILS. My surgeon does it from the belly button area. I think I have some photos from the first month after on my profile. I think that, since it is a single incision, there is more discomfort and a bit more swelling immediately after surgery, since so much more is going on in that one place. They also tend to use the lowest profile port, so it is less visible as you lose weight, etc. I am happy with how it all came out though. My scar is invisible to people unless I show it to them. I also was happy to only have to worry about one incision instead of multiple ones. If you have any specific questions, feel free to message me.

Remember, restriction shouldn't make drinking difficult. It is just supposed to make sure you take small bites of solid foods and chew them well, and it is also supposed to keep you hungry for longer. You aren't supposed to have discomfort or difficulty swallowing and eating though. That is a bad thing because it will make you turn to things that are easy to get past the band, which tend to be high sugar, calorie dense foods.

so... I've been saying I would stick with my doctor's office for the first year... but I am kind of at my breaking point with them again I think. I needed to cancel this up coming appointment. They called first, wanting to move the appointment to a day that I wouldn't have been available anyway. I asked if I could just cancel it and keep the appointment after. She said "hold on let me look at your file" ... I need to try and come in. To which I explain that I do not have the freedom in my schedule to just come in any day of the week, and that is why I scheduled all my appointments on the same day at the same time. It worked with all the conflicting schedules in my life. To which she replies that I should have gotten a different surgery then, because I knew when I got this surgery that I'd need to come in every month. To which I reply that as I am in school, will be traveling over the next month for family and work stuff, and working, I would rather not have to deal with the stress of trying to make it to a rescheduled appointment. She said some curt thing and said Fine but she was going to mark in my file that I CANCELLED the appointment. and then we got off the phone. I am so... like... really? REALLY!? This is so unprofessional. Between this and some of the comments I've received from the surgeon's assistant, and his refusal to give me information about my band (like how big it is and how much liquid is he's put in it), I am at the fed up point. I shouldn't have to deal with this type of stuff when it is health related. Has anyone switched surgeons within the first 3 months of surgery? Was it difficult?

elcee, yes, it is rocket lol. I've loved that, broccoli, spinach, and cilantro (coriander) since I was a child. Pesto was also my favorite sauce on pasta. I think I was a weird one though. I've always had a thing for bitter greens. Someone earlier said they also don't like beets!! Beets are like candy to me lol.

I have a juicer. I get cravings for Vitamin k rich foods a couple times a year (always have... i'm sort of addicted to green leafy vegetables) and I <333 arugula. Arugula juice is a very special thing. I am trying to get in turmeric root for inflammation since we are supposed to avoid ibuprofen and I have joint problems. I juice ginger to help with stomach stuff and these colds I keep getting. I also drink beet juice for blood pressure, since the high amount of nitrates are supposed to help with that. I have an Omega masticating juicer, but since I juice mainly roots and greens it gets more out of them, and it is a lot easier to clean (just need to rinse it) so I use it daily, like I should to get the benefits from the turmeric and beet juice. I had a centrifugal juicer years ago, and it was such a pain to clean and it made such a mess it went in the cabinet and stayed there. This one stays on the counter, so for me, it was worth paying more for it. If you want to get a home masticating juicer, Omega is the way to go Juice can be high calories, so it is something to be mindful of. If you are just juicing high sugar fruits, that is not really a good thing. I <3 my green juice though.. and I can't tell you how happy I am to have the leafy green cravings under control. I also have a power blender to make green smoothies, but I am finding I like the juice more personally. Plus, it is easier to digest. I also learned that on days that I have to have Protein shakes for one reason or another mixing it in veggie juice makes it something I can stomach.

ahahahaha I <3 beet root. It is one of my favorite things honestly, and it is good for blood pressure I guess I lucked out

I have these huge canisters of Protein powder that are disgusting to me and tend to kill my stomach. I'd tried mixing them with regular skim milk, 2% milk, goat milk, coconut milk, almond milk, Water... and it never worked. I got a juicer for my birthday and needed to go on liquids as my allergies were making me swell. DREAM IDEA: Vegetable juice for the Protein Drink!!!!! So, I can no drink the Protein shake, and it seems there's enough of a barrier that it doesn't care my digestive system either. The taste and fake sugar are also masked enough that I don't want to gag or drink too quickly. The brand that I can't handle is Bariatric fusion. I have what I would like to call "blood juice" I juice the following: 4 carrots medium/small carrots 1 small beet root or a piece of a large one 2 cups of greens (spinach works best) half a thumb of ginger root I juice all of that, throw it in a blender cup with the giant scoop of ick. Shake it... and it looks like blood and is totally drinkable. I couldn't bring myself to throw away the powder, given the price... and now it looks like it can be a liquid diet food. This is what I'd like to call a win.

I saw your before pics and posts about this happening. I am happy all went well and you are so pleased with the results.

I mean allergan said they are no longer supplying doctors associated with 1800lapband with bands: http://articles.latimes.com/2012/feb/02/business/la-fi-lap-band-20120203 They do not want them to be associated with their brand, because of all the problems, and proportionally high incidents of complications and death their clinics were/are having. Also, I would highly suggest that, if it is at all possible, to have the operation in a hospital, because we never know how we might react to general anesthesia and it is just safer to have that done in a fully equipped hospital when we have the means to do so. The centers of excellence are selected by BCBS, and that is where you will get the best coverage. If you log on to the anthem site, you can look up the procedure and the cost by location to choose the most affordable center of excellence.

Yes, avoid 1800Get Thin. There are a ton of lawsuits against them happening right now, and band providers have ended their relationships with them in the past month. Generally medically necessary means a BMI of over 40 or a BMI of over 35 with two co-mobidities (blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea etc.). I went through anthem and those were my requirements, but I would call and speak to someone and double check, and go through a doctor that is associated with a center of excellence. Anthem likes those. Good luck!

Hey everyone! I was also plateauing at 35lbs I think? I broke it with a fresh juice fast day and now I am back to losing it seems. I'm sad that we are all plateauing but grateful that we have this board so we can see we aren't alone, and maybe this frustration point is a normal part of the process. I think moving forward I will cycle my calories so I can attempt to avoid/minimize plateauing. It wasn't enough to do the one day of more calories, I also had to do a day of low calories before it stopped. I started using my fitbit yesterday. Amazon has them for $86 I think. So far so good. I'm not tracking my food with it, because I can't do calorie counting. I get OCD about it and then starve myself. But everything else is good to monitor, and having the graph of movement is forcing me to do something even if it is just for a minute, more often than I would otherwise. So I think it will end up being a good purchase, JustDoIt, I didn't realize you were in the triangle too! I am happy that everything looks reversible, and that you all are going to Duke. They do a good job.