momlambert

My doctor didn't say anything about it but I have heard on here that some dr.'s advise against it because of the danger of it sticking in the stoma or blocking the opening.

non-scale victory

Congrats, Rosi! Good for you. You've done SO well!

Yeah, I don't get that either. Although the nurses that do the fills at my dr.'s office to acknowledge it and nod their heads when I talk about it. That's good, I guess.

Just got back from my 12th fill--I'll know if it works in a few days, most likely. Or a few weeks? As always, I'm hopeful that this will be THE ONE. It's so hard to decide to have a fill given that Christmas is so close and all my kids are coming for the holidays and, at our house, FOOD IS LOVE! But I decided I got this band for a reason and the holidays are no exception. I do have some restriction but not enough. I can still eat a whole piece of pizza with the crust for dinner and this morning we went to breakfast--my husband and I shared a plate but I ate 1/2 of a scrambled egg, 1/2 of a link sausage, and an entire huge pancake. That's too much for breakfast, I think. Anyway, I'm crossing my fingers!

:clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo::whoo: WELCOME TO ONE-DERLAD, ELLE! AND CONGRATS!

Sunshine, you might want to try staying on liquids for a few days and then progress to mushies and see if that helps. That's why my dr. recommends anyway and I know a lot of people who PB say you should stay on liquids for a few days after. You just might need to settle things down a little. Good luck!

Even if someone rains on your parade, it doesn't mean you can't dance in the rain! Go for it, if it's what you want for yourself. Your husband will see your commitment to the new and healthier you and be glad you followed your heart and didn't give into his misgivings. You are right about lower bmi-er's losing more slowly. I've only lost 34 lbs. in 9 months. I think my age also is a factor and the fact that I have really messed up my metabolism with constant dieting. Anyway, I don't think anyone would ever suspect I had weight loss surgery. I saw some friends the other day who live in the city where we used to live (haven't seen them since surgery) and they all noticed my weight loss. When they asked how I had done it, I honestly told them "diet and exercise." That's the truth. Good luck with your decision. My husband had big misgivings (especially because we were self-pay) but was very supportive in the end and still is to this day, for which I am grateful. I hope the same for you! Keep us posted.

I had surgery in March and didn't tell anyone but my husband and kids. On my way home from the hospital my mom called to say my dad had just been diagnosed with colon cancer. I told her I couldn't come to the hospital then but I went the next day. I was moving pretty slowly--especially when I went to sit down in the chair. My sisters and mom asked what was wrong--had I hurt my back? I told them "no, I had some minor surgery." When they pressed I told them I had a hiatal hernia repaired (which is true since the dr. found it during the lapband placement). That was the end of that. They still don't know. I went back to work on Thursday after my Monday surgery and not having been able to rest much because of trips to the hospital every day for my Dad (an hour drive each way). I have a desk job so was able to take it easy but I think it was a bit early given all that went on that week. Anyway, that's my story--you can probably get around it just fine; I do think the flu story would work if you want to go that way. There's no way I'd ever tell my mother either. I totally understand. Good luck!

Wow, Tann, over 200 lbs. lost! Amazing. Congrats! You are an inspiration. And congrats to linndata, too. ONE-derland is ONE-derful! Good luck to everyone getting close. I'm doing the up-and-down dance right now with all the goodies coming into the house but I'm staying firmly in onederland, so I'm pleased. We CAN DO THIS!

Happy Birthday, Sunshine! How is your hubby with band friendly food? Hope you can enjoy your special dinner! Have a great celebration of the new you.

So glad to hear from you, Tammyj! I've missed you and hoped that all is going well for you. Your weight loss is tremendous! Congratulations. So close to goal and in onderland...you go girl! Thanks for checking in. Congrats, Barb on your new BMI. Aren't these milestones great? Success can be measured in so many ways. Hope everyone is doing well. My dr.'s office had a holiday bash last night and it was lots of fun. I won a door prize--a thing-a-ma-jig that you wear around your waist while you are walking (there is a walking video with it) and it's supposed to strengthen your core and firm your muscles. We'll see. Right now I'm doing water aerobics 3 days a week and Curves 3 days a week as well so not much time for walks. They had "band-friendly food" at the get together--it was really good. Ham, turkey, cheese and crackers, vegetables and dip, fruit, and even cookies and brownies. No drinks of any kind in sight. Then they gave award pins to people who had lost 75 lbs. and those who had lost 100 lbs. Wow! There was a man there who has lost 216 lbs. in 1 1/2 years. Amazing. Father Christmas came--he has the lapband as well and came looking very jolly but explained that he has played Father Christmas in this outfit for years (he's 6'8"!) but now has to pad it. He showed us how much weight he has lost by removing his belt (from a 56" to a 32" waist) and then taking out five pillows from inside his costume. Well, I'm motivated! There were lots of before and after pictures on the wall, too. It really was inspiring. Enough rambling. Off to try to finish Christmas decorations--we moved to our new home one month ago and just barely finished unpacking boxes but now with the Christmas boxes all over it looks like we are just moving in again. Argh. It's fun finding new places for all of our treasures but daunting as well. Hope to finish it today. Good luck, everyone! Thanks for keeping in touch and sharing your triumphs and struggles.

Maj Jongg, huh? Wow. I haven't met anyone who plays except for me--I learned in Japan and have a great set but no one to play with. :cry Want to come to Utah? Do you play American rules or Japanese/Chinese. Just curious. Have a great time! I'm so envious.

Go to the top of the page and look in the dark blue area for the tab "thread tools." Click on that and then when it drops down click on "subscribe to this thread." You'll get emails when there are new posts and you can just click on the link in your email and it will take you right to this thread. Good luck!

WOW! Congrats, Janey. You are doing GREAT! :clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2: Welcome to LBT.

So sad to hear that, Sweetviolet. You have done fantastically! You can succeed again with bypass--you are so close to goal! Good for you. Best of luck and thanks for letting us know how you are doing.

Oh, you'll know! :scared: It's rare to get so stuck that you have to go to the ER. Usually a good cough brings the food back up (PB) and you just take it easy for awhile with liquids, etc. My doctor suggests cutting food into "M & M-sized pieces" and then chewing and chewing until it's gone. I'm not restricted that much yet (after 11 fills) but I do get stuck now and then if I'm not careful with chicken and steak. Congrats on your surgery date! You'll do great. Good luck!

Sounds like a lot of work for you, losing, but probably better in the long run. Here are my stats: name momlambert; challenge start weight 194; current weight 194; challenge goal 184; to go 10 lbs BTW, I like your comment about "lose" and "loose" but it's "it's" as in "it is" not "its" as in "its fur is soft" :scared: Thanks for starting this thread!

Janine, I plan on eating a few bites of most things and very little turkey (maybe some with cranberry sauce to make it easier to go down). I found I have to stop eating after the first 2-3 bites and wait a few minutes for things to go down before I continue to eat or else I'm bound for a PB for sure. We had company over today and I fixed their favorite--Hawaiian Haystacks. I almost had some serious problems. The chicken (even in gravy) and the brown rice just didn't do well. It was a bit embarrassing because I hardly ate anything and my plate was still full when dinner was over but at least I prevented a run to the bathroom (or worse). The hardest thing for me is to continue to converse with people while fighting the urge to run to the bathroom. I've got to plan my conversations better! Good luck to all of us!

I was banded 8 months ago, my port is on my left side, and I have pain in my left shoulder area whenever I eat. Sometimes I get it after just a few bites (probably first bite syndrome) and it always happens when I'm getting full. It gets worse when I continue to eat and I know if I don't stop I'll slime and PB. The pain is really my first signal that I need to stop eating and wait a few minutes or stop altogether. It can be very miserable.

Congratulations, Karri! It feels GREAT, doesn't it? :clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2::clap2:

I liked that, too, Sophie. I read it on Sparkpeople.com. They have lots of interesting articles but that one was particularly insightful I thought. thanks for sharing.

CONGRATS, Jeni (on ALL accounts!). That is just awesome. What a wonderful day! I'm happy for you. Thanks for sharing!

That could be--hadn't thought of it but maybe people aren't posting because they aren't doing as well and they aren't doing as well because they aren't posting? Hmm. Vicious cycle? It could be, though, that everyone has settled into band life and just don't have the need for as much support or aren't taking the time because they are just living life with the band. But, the Marchies threads have never been as active as so many other threads on this site--that's been a complaint of many from the beginning it seems. Well, I don't know but it would be nice to hear from people! It really is a great support when people use it as such. Thanks for sticking it out, all you old faithfuls!

OH Juli--thanks for your commitment to this thread! It really is a ghost town more often than not. I think of the "old regulars" often and wonder how they are--kyethra, tammj, etc. Maybe everyone is just plugging along without much to report. I'm doing much better. I had a fill a month ago that finally helped me feel like I have a band. I'm going in tomorrow for just a little more--I can still eat several cups of food at dinner and am not very restricted as to what I can eat--steak, chicken, etc. is all fine. But finally I do have to take small bites and chew to avoid some discomfort. I'm still hungry a lot but not as much as before so I do think I'm almost there. I canceled my fill appt. from 2 weeks ago because I thought I might be at my "sweet spot" (if such a spot exists) but have decided to get a little more before Thanksgiving. Hope I'm not sorry about that. I'm only an hour from my fill dr. so if I have to go get unfilled it's not a big deal for me. Anyway, that's what's happening in my world. Life has settled down immeasurably since we moved to our new house--I wouldn't want to relive the first six months after banding for anything (don't know if anyone remembers but my dad was diagnosed with cancer the day of my banding and died in September plus I had three grandchildren born in different parts of the country, sold two houses, built and furnished another house and moved in two weeks ago. Crazy! All the while not being filled enough and struggling to lose any weight at all or, more importantly, to not gain). But everything is going great right now--looking forward to all 25 of our family gathering in our new home for Christmas and seeing the "new me." Here's to hope and optimism! You guys are such an inspiration. Thanks for your example and for sharing your ups and downs. I'll do better at posting, I promise!