DELETE THIS ACCOUNT!

It may sound silly, but I say if it works then do it. I think it's actually very clever! As you aptly stated- the biggest battle when trying to lose weight is the mental one. I say do whatever works!

Honestly? I think you're being impatient. It takes most people multiple fills before they have adequate Fluid in their band. You have to trust your doctor is doing what is best for you. Some people can handle big fills whereas others can't at all. My doctor tried to put 3cc in for my first fill and had to immediately take 1cc back out. Even now, 18 months later, I only have 5.2cc in my 10cc band. Remember, it's much easier to ease into the Green Zone than blow past it into the Red Zone then try to back into it.

LOL I was shocked to actually see mine after the tummy tuck!! It was like...*looks down wide eyed*... "holy hell, I DO still have kitty!"

I am so very sorry. I'd be freaking out, too. Is revision surgery an option? Either a new band or maybe a different WLS, like the Sleeve?

That is such an awesome feeling!! Congratulations!!!

A couple things, first I'd see your bariatric surgeon about the reflux, not your reg doc. Reflux can be a sign of complications with the band and it's important to have it checked out. As far as Fluid in the band, it can actually lose a little over time. I'm not sure if evaporate is the correct word to use because evaporation isn't possible in the body- but it's the best word to describe how small amounts of fluid can seemingly disappear over time. There's a lot of possible reasons why you can eat foods you couldn't before. You could have a little less fluid in your band. You could have learned to chew better and not even realize it. You also could have stretched your pouch above the band. When is the last time you saw your bariatric surgeon? We're supposed to go yearly for follow up even after we meet our goal weight. Best wishes and congratulations on your success.

I personally wouldn't trust an unsolicited email from someone wanting to make money off my band any further than I could throw the person who wrote it.

I slept on my stomach from the night of my surgery. I've had many abdominal surgeries and always find sleeping on my stomach feels great- it's like a compression garment holding everything in. The trick is not to try to roll onto your stomach because that will cause painful pulling. Crawl up your bed on hands and knees until you're over your pillow then gently lower yourself down onto your tummy. When you want to get back up, do the opposite, push up onto all fours and crawl off the bed. Don't roll and it won't pull. Best wishes

Everyone is going to give you different answers on the Fluid in their band during pregnancy. You just need to do whatever your own doctor advises- regardless of what anyone else does. Best wishes and congratulations!

The best advice I can give you is a scare- not to be mean but to try to make you understand how crucial your pre op diet is. The bottom line is, if you don't follow your pre op diet and shrink your liver, there is a very real chance you could wake up from surgery with all the scars and pain but no band. If your surgeon gets inside and your liver isn't small enough to safely complete the surgery- he'll simply close you right back up without placing the band. It does happen, and if you search these forums you can even read about it first hand. Next time you're tempted to cheat, ask yourself: Is cheating on a brief 2 week pre op diet worth throwing away your chance at a healthy future with the band? Best wishes.

Your band would be fine, but you need to ask your doctor if it's safe. He knows your healthy history and issues and needs to be the one to give you the all clear.

I've used both coconut and almond milk and really like both with the shakes. I've mixed both with unjury chocolate Splendor. They have different tastes from both each other and from regular milk, but I like them.

Heating pad, to help with swelling. Make sure to have someone available to help you change your binder garments daily. It will be next to impossible to do it by yourself. A trick I learned- use old t-shirts under the abdominal binder. It keeps it from rubbing and chaffing your skin or getting snagged on the staples. Just make sure they're old and you don't care if you get blood stains on them. Because it was warm when I had mine, I actually cut the bottom off the shirt and just used that, so nothing extra over my chest/arms. Just around my tummy. Find out what kind of binders they want you to use (everywhere I assume) and be sure to have at least one extra of each. This way you have something to wear while laundering the other.

I hope not either for your sake. If it has, maybe you'll get lucky and it'll fall back into place with the unfill. Best wishes!

Wow you look like a completely different person! Amazing!! Congratulations!

Congratulations! That is just so awesome!!!

Until you see the report and know exactly what you were supposedly told to do, you're pretty much stuck. You can't do anything until you know what that report says.

That depends. Can you drink fluids and keep them down? If yes, then maybe wait a day or two and see if it's not just irritation. If no, then you have to go in ASAP because you'd be at great risk for dehydration.

You have to think of it in the simplest way possible: Weight loss come from consuming less calories than you burn. The band itself doesn't cause weight loss. It's just a band around your stomach- really no different than a bracelet on your wrist. What the band does is control your hunger and allows you to be satisfied on much longer periods of time on much less food. When your hunger is controlled you eat less food. When you eat less food, you lose weight. You said you lost 9 pounds since the 17th, do you mean of this month? If so, that was only 7 days ago. How is it you think you've "stopped" losing when losing 9 pounds in 7 days? The average weight loss with the band is 1-2 pounds per week- not per day. Here's a really great link that I think will help to better understand the band considerably: http://drsimpson.net/fills/Lap-band-eating/lap-band-not-restriction/lap-band-and-restriction.html Best wishes.

Just a thought, but has your doctor checked your band for a leak?

I really need to not drink water while reading your blogs. It almost came out my nose. Again.

Did I specifically say they were all from you? No. That's because they're not. Some were from your miserable cohorts too. I know how you do love your victim role but contrary to popular belief- it's not all about you.

Dole makes cinnamon apple cups that come with granola to sprinkle on the top. These are my favorite food when I'm craving something sweet. It's like eating a little cup of apple pie. I really love Laughing Cow cheese, too Oh and peanut butter! If I'm low on Protein for the day, I'll have a spoonful. Yummy!

"The band is not designed for longer than ten years" "Do not buy what other say about "having to make lifelong changes..." etc. The band does not work long term no matter what changes you make" "DO NOT GET A BAND. " "The band is not a lifetime device. It's not even a long term device" "It's not a long term device unless you plan on only living for a decade" "Just be ready when the time comes when you vomit in your sleep and wake up choking; the band stops working and all of a sudden you can eat like a horse; it slips or erodes; or worse, it causes long-term damage. " "But today I found out the band is swollen shut" (shut? you'd be dead from dehydration)" These are only some of the blatant (pathetic) attempts to spread fear, not truth. There is no truth to be found in a single one of these statements. What's worse, all these lies came from people who only pop onto the forums to bash the band and nothing else. This isn't "sharing opinions" this pure BS lies. No one is insecure here except maybe the band bashers. God forbid someone else is happy and successful where they failed. There is a huge difference between someone saying "I had a complication and this is what it was" and someone saying "don't get the band because it's evil and you'll die". As I've stated countless times- share your opinion and your experience but stop the fear mongering lies.