Toddy

I started feeling a little dizzy during the pre-op and it continued to get worse and worse after the surgery. My PCP cut my BP med in half and it helped some, and then she took me all the way off it and I haven't had any dizziness since. I was probably only down about 20 pounds when she took me completely off it, so sometimes it doesn't take a great amount of weight loss to affect your meds.

Congratulations on being a beautiful MOTG!! My son is getting married in 3 1/2 months and I would love to be down another 20 lbs by then!! The MOTB is a workout-aholic AND ten years younger than me! I don't want to be the fat mom in the pics!!

I had a grand plan not to tell a soul except my husband, children and mother. It didn't work. All it takes is getting "stuck" when you're out to eat with friends, then you have to tell them. And after that, it's just easier to tell than it is to try to hide it.

If I ever develop problems with my band, I wouldn't hesitate to do the sleeve. I think your post is very important because it serves as a warning to thoroughly vet your surgeon! Of course complications can happen even when you've got a great bariatric surgeon, but I think they are dramatically lessened! I know a lot of people go out of the country for this procedure and I'm very curious what happens when they have a complication and where they go for the near constant maintenance that is required especially in the beginning.

I didn't feel any restriction until my third fill, for a total of 5.5 cc in a 10 cc band. My last fill was a little over a month ago and the restriction has almost disappeared ;-( I can't wait until June 11th when I go back for another fill!

You need a new PCP that will support you!! Even if you did only lose 50 pounds, you would still be healthier! I think gastric bypass is downright SCARY!!!!

2.3 cc's is not a lot. Try slowing waaayyy down, taking much smaller bites, and chewing every bite until it's total mush. It should take you at least 20 minutes to eat a cup of food. I use appetizer plates, bowls, spoons and forks so I don't overeat or take too big of a bite.

I am very leery of doctors that sell products that you "must" use. My doctor had things available at his office, but also gave me a hand-out of things I could get from the grocery store that would be fine to use. So far the best shake I've had that was on my doctor's list is the SlimFast High Protein/Low Carb vanilla shake.

I'm going to guess that you have tried dieting without WLS in the past, right? You may have been successful for a time, but obviously not for the long-haul because you ended up having WLS, right? At just 2 cc's you probably have very little, if any, restriction and you are just dieting on your own. If you don't have restriction and aren't willing to give up some foods, then why have the band? You obviously had WLS for a reason and I don't understand not wanting/needing to use it to its fullest potential. Here's the way I look at it: I could lose weight before WLS pretty easily, but I've never been able to maintain my weight loss and that is why I got the band -- I wanted something that will help me maintain after losing! If I could have lost all the weight on my own, and then maintained it without the band, I would have never had WLS -- I don't think any of us would! Oh, and congrats on your weight loss so far!!!

My doctor does lap-band with plication and he offered me that option. I opted for the band only. That is the ONLY regret I have had about WLS!

Isn't it fun to shop in your own closet!!!!!

My sisters and I gather at my mother's once a year (we're all spread out across the country), and we had our annual long weekend this past weekend Thursday to Monday. My mother loves us with all our favorite food and we sisters share in a good bit of wine. I got on the scale this morning and didn't gain a thing (of course I didn't lose either). But my point is that banded or not you can still enjoy life as it was meant to be enjoyed. If you're going to waste calories on alcohol, be responsible, and do it with some moderation -- THE KEY TO EVERYTHING!!

I would say the "incident" was probably caused by too big of a bite and/or not chewing well enough. One cc is probably not enough to give you true restriction. Just remember tiny bites and chew, chew, chew and you will probably be fine. The only foods I avoid now are bread and some pastas, however, if I'm not careful with my eating, anything and everything will cause me problems!

Insurance can definitely be a pain! I had BCBS of Virginia and got 100% coverage for lap-band with a BMI of 38 and one co-morbidity (high blood pressure). I've lost 30 pounds and am completely free of my acid reflux and my high blood pressure! Yay me!!! Now we've had a job loss and lost insurance, so I applied for BCBS private insurance. I was denied coverage... for having a lap-band of all things!!!

Very timely reminder for me. Thanks Jean!

I was really unprepared for how weak and lightheaded I felt the first week after surgery. I had very little pain from my incisions; the worst pain was the gas pain and that was tolerable with pain meds and a heating pad. Truly the worst thing was being weak as a kitten -- I got winded and had to sit down just from climbing a flight of stairs. Five days out, I was in the shower and too weak to hold my arms above my head to shampoo my hair -- that's when I thought something was really wrong and I went to the ER -- I was literally getting worse instead of better. They ran all kinds of tests and didn't find anything wrong. The next day I felt much better, but the day after that was awful again! It was just kind of a weird recovery! A couple of years before I was banded I had my gallbladder out and didn't experience any of this stuff. Maybe it was just me. I hope you have a much better experience!! But, on a better note, after that first week, everything has been great and I'd do it all over again if I had to!!!

I used to recommend the Centrum chewables... but now they give me a full body shudder every time I take one!! I think I'm going to have to try Flintstones.

You couldn't have paid me to take a car trip within that first week post surgery!! I had surgery on Tuesday, and spent the following Sunday in the ER because I was certain something was terribly wrong -- it wasn't! I am curious though, if you're traveling to Mexico to have the surgery, who will do your aftercare? The most vital part of this band, for me anyway, has been the aftercare. I've always wondered what people do that have been banded outside of the U.S.

I had a cruise scheduled when I was approved for surgery, but I delayed my surgery until after we returned. Anyway, 30 days post surgery, you'll probably be able to eat just about anything you want, you just need to watch the portion sizes. Don't stuff yourself. Try to stick to less than a cup per meal and you should be okay. I'm in the green zone now, and I now know it would have been easier to cruise at 30 days post surgery than it would be now!! I'm still adjusting to the things I can no longer eat and it's trial and error. Unfortunately, the "errors" usually only happen after I've swallowed something I shouldn't.

I gave up carbonation when I went on the pre-surgery diet. I was addicted to Diet Pepsi before, but switched over to hot tea in the mornings. I've never been a hot tea drinker, but I found there are some marvelous flavored ones out there. Teavana has a Wild Youthberry/Orange Blossom blend that is my new addiction! I don't miss the carbonation now! Oh, and I use a straw in everything -- except my hot tea !

Never had a c-section, but I expected lap band to be very similar to a couple of years ago when I had my gallbladder out. I WAS WRONG!! The incisions for both surgeries were very similar and the pain was very similar. However, I had extreme weakness and fatigue after lap-band that I didn't have after my gallbladder! The pain was a breeze compared to the weakness and fatigue!

A heating pad was my best friend the first few days!

I wasn't going to tell anyone, and didn't for the first three months. Now people are starting to notice my weight loss and it seems like any time someone makes a comment, I'm telling them all about the band!! So much for keeping it quiet!

I slept on my stomach the second day after surgery and have been sleeping soundly like that ever since. As mentioned earlier, if you have animals, watch out. I have a cat that likes to lay on my stomach when I'm reading in bed and I always keep my hand over my port until she settles in. Cat foot directly on the port is still uncomfortable three+ months post surgery.

When I'm eating with people I don't want to know about the band, I go with stuff I know will go down easy, like soup, and make excuses about not being hungry. There's nothing like getting "stuck" when you're with people that don't know you've been banded -- I speak from experience!!