DELETE THIS ACCOUNT!

It's true it's a lie by omission, however, is it anyone's business to begin with? You don't have to answer to anyone, not about what you eat or what surgeries you've had. It's no one's business unless you choose to make it their business, so don't let anyone guilt you into revealing personal information you're not ready to reveal. Band or not, it's YOU that has to do the work. It's YOU that makes the healthy food choices. The credit is yours, not the band. Be proud of your accomplishment!

They say losing slowly and toning exercises can help, but at the end of the day it all comes down to genetics. How elastic your skin is and how much fat you had there originally play a big role in it. I unfortunately look like a Shar Pei because I have TONS of excess skin on my tummy. I will be having a tummy tuck late winter/early spring to have it removed.

Today I had to go see my primary care doctor. I hadn't seen him since January and his immediate response upon seeing me was 'holy cow you lost a ton of weight'. But...here's the cool part: I met another Lap Band success today! The nurse at my doctor's office had Lap Band surgery just 2 weeks before I did, so the end of December 2011. Same surgeon, even the same nutritionist I used. She has lost 113 pounds! I have to tell you I wish I had her pic because she looks freak'n amazing. She is so cute and petite, I'm guessing maybe a size 8 at the very most. Looking at her, I'd have never guessed she was once obese. Like me, she absolutely loves her band. We talked for about 20 minutes about our experiences with food, how we eat now, and the changes we've made. She also agreed that seeing her nutrtitionist played a huge role in her success as well. So anyway, I had to share her story with everyone. It was just cool for me to meet such a huge success with the Lap Band in person.

I can pretty much eat anything so long as I take small enough bites and chew it thoroughly enough. The only exception is dry meat. If meat is moist it's fine, but if it's really dry then I find it difficult to swallow.

Totally normal. I had it too, in fact at one point they hooked up to an EKG because my chest pains were so severe. Gas X will help gas in your stomach and intestines but not from pumping in air during surgery. That isn't in your digestive system, it's in your abdominal cavity. Your body has to reabsorb it and unfortunately that can take a little time. Walking does help speed that process along. I found a heating pad helped ease the pain a little too. Best wishes to you.

All you can do is move on, beating yourself up for it only makes things harder. It's a new day and a new start

Congratulations, it's the best feeling!

I was banded on 1/6/2012 and have lost 132 pounds

Ohhh that makes sense. When I had both they were cooked, so I'm sure that made it easier to swallow. I did take really small bites, too. Especially with the celery because that just felt tougher to me. When you do try it, be sure it's cooked so it's soft, it'll make it easier. Oh btw, I eat raw chopped up celery and onion in my tuna salad all the time. I've never had a problem with either.

I'm not sure why you say they're not allowed? I have had celery and asparagus both since being banded with no problem. The only thing I know of that is not allowed is carbonation. Did your doctor forbid these foods?

That happens, in fact it happened to me the first time I hit the Green Zone too. I was great then about 4 weeks later I was hungry again. It's not uncommon at all. When you go for your next fill, be sure to get a relatively small amount. You're obviously right there on the edge of the Green Zone and I fear if you got too big a fill you'd blow right past the Green Zone and into too tight.

A good Protein shake can really help a lot. Are you allowed yogurt? If so, Greek yogurt is a great option because it's higher in protein. btw, protein is great for appeasing hunger longer, so definitely try for protein.

I've heard of many who have their bands emptied for 2-4 weeks and it fixes itself. Others have to have surgeries to fix it. Still others do have to have their band removed because the slip ends up causing too much scar tissue to revise safely. It really depends on the severity of the slip and how quickly it's caught. This is actually a big reason I always encourage people to go to their doctors if they show even the slightest sign of being too tight, to avoid a possible slip.

I responded to his first post that was nothing more than spreading fears and lies, he responded by calling me a troll and bashing me lol. I have no idea what it's all about.

Egg whites are considered lean Protein, the yolks can be very high in cholesterol so they're not lean. Products like Egg Beaters are a great alternative. Tuna is an awesome lean mean. Loaded with Omega 3, good fat, low cholesterol. I personally eat a lot of tuna because it's an excellent source of protein and very good for you,too.

It sounds like your portions are perfect. I would be inclined to think either you're eating a little too fast or it's your gallbladder acting up.

That is so awesome, I can't wait until I'm in the regular ladies department!!!

Oh wow, I'm very sorry. I have IBS too but I haven't encountered any of that. Have you been to your internist lately? I know there is a lot of new proactive drugs on the market that can help before problems start. I would probably start there if I were you. One more thought, are you possibly lactose intolerant? That would definitely add a lot more complications to the IBS.

Ok anyone have a clue who this moron BRAVOGOLOFTANGO is? Or what the hell he's talking about? Because I'm seriously at a loss at to what the heck he's talking about. EDIT: Oh apparently he's now blocked me so I can't see his posts. Apparently he prefers to spread fear and lies and can't handle the truth so he decided to block me rather than face facts. Now I totally get it

Are you nuts? I suggest you do your own homework before spreading fear and false information. Statistically speaking, only around 8% of Lap Bands fail due to complications by no fault of the patient. The rest, and the case you see here most of the time, is because the patient went into the surgery uneducated on the facts and ended up causing their own complications. Over eating, eating around the band, walking around for months with a band too tight because they are trying to get the band to do something it's not meant to do, drinking carbonation regularly. The list goes on and on. Then there's the people who don't lose weight because they expect the band to perform magic. They continue to make horrible food choices then are baffled why they aren't losing. The band is a tool, not magic, if you don't do the work and make the necessary lifestyle changes you will fail. Statistically speaking, the Lap Band also has the lowest death rate and rate of complications of any weight loss surgery. Regret? I've lost 132 pounds in about 7 months. I look and feel better than I have in my entire adult life. I got my life back and I am happy- all because I chose the Lap Band. That's not hype, that's facts, facts my medical data can prove.

It really depends, if the meal was loaded in fat and calories, it's going to be a bad choice regardless of portion size. I would look into the nutritional content to be sure in the future

I would be going into your doctor immediately and demanding a barium swallow to have your band checked. Those are all the classic signs of being too tight, but being as you have already have some removed and so little in the band, I fear a slip.

That's going to depend on what is causing the hair loss, the anesthetic and drugs or a lack of proper nutrients. If the hair loss if from the anesthetic and drugs, then the Biotin won't stop it (if it's going to happen) but can help your hair recover faster after. If it's from lack of nutrients, the Biotin can help lessen it but not prevent it entirely. I actually asked my hair dresser this a couple months ago and that is what she told me.

Great advice here, especially the Chapstick! I totally forgot that one when I had my surgery and regretted it! I found small bottles of Water were very useful after surgery at home. I had the 8oz Dannon bottles and they were perfect to carry around with me and sip, but small enough to handle when I honestly didn't want anything to drink but knew I had to make myself. I left the empties next to my sink until the end of the day and would count them to track to my water for the day.