susansilver

I disagree Doddie. We have already paid a great deal of money for this suregery and service included. At the Holiday open house in December the theme was all about how the were going to improve post op care and services. They say they are the best clinic in the city - then they have to put their money where their mouthes are and hire sufficient staff to serive their clientelle. Any good business does that - or they risk lowing business.

Susan,

Chris left to start his own business... the new CFO is Don something and he should be able to help too or any of the new management staff

Heather

Thans Heather, I did not know that. I apologize gor the incorrect information. I think it woud be helpful to have management contact info on the site. It would be good if the would consider doing some focus groups with patients.

Susan

Hi OklaBubba,

My one year bandiversary was just a few days ago and up until a few weeks ago, I was feeling very much like you. This turned out to be a very stressful year for me and as in the past, I turned to food to try to make it all go away. I learned to eat around the band and ignored all the bandster rules. I gained back 15 lbs of the original 40 I had lost. But....it was only 15 lbs! That is extraordinary for me because most of it was in the two weeks before I finally picked myself back up. In the past I would have gaine 50 lbs - no joke.

So, I took a good hard look at what I was doing. I decided that I had enough of the self pity let's blame everything on every one else and got my self together. I went to the clinic for a fill and detoxed from all the sweet foods like chocolate and ice cream and stayed away from white foods like potatoes and rice for a while. My first week I lost 8 lbs. and as of this morning have lost 12 in total.

It really is self perpetuating. I am so happy with my weight loss and how I feel, so I am more determined than ever to stay with my plan. I haven't yet started any planned exercise, but I am not being down on myself for that. I walk my dog at least 2x day and that is okay for now.

Coming here to tell us your disappointment show that you are ready to start over. There has been lots of good advice on how to do that from the others. Remember take baby steps - oney day or one hour or one minute at a time. but come on back. We need you and we are here for you!

I am staying on plan today because I am worth the effort to eat healthy and lose weight.

I do think that they are trying. You must make them aware of the problem and that you expect them to return your calls in a reasonable length of time. Call the CEO (Chris Henderson) if you are not getting what you need. It is very important that you feel safe and cared from from your clinic.

I have missed you too! We have to have that get together with Green that we talked about. I Will pm you and her about it later.

Thanks for the info. Count me in for the social event.

Susan

Does anyone know if there will be a Canadian Bandster Bash this year? I have not heard anything about one and I did enjoy last year's.

Also, are there lunches still going on monthly in the GTA?

That is hard to say - everyone is different, but just be sure to monitor your bs many times during the day. Good luck!

Hi Cheyenne,

See my reply on the other thread.

Susan

Often after trauma or stress to the body, our BS will rise in response. Give it some time, once you are more recovered you will see them come back into normal range as long as you are taking the proper amount of insulin.

Good suggestion.

Hi Rob,

I am also and insulin dependant Type II facing the same challenges. I take Novorapid 1 unit/7 grms carbs and Levemir 45 units 1X daily. It has happened many times that I take my dose and then canot eat my portion and so of course go low. Since I realize that I cannot predict if I will eat it or now, I wait until I finish to take my insulin. I know that is not optimal, but it is much better than the lows (which will do more damage).

When I was first banded, I did not have any changes in my insulin dosages and was very disappointed. I fell off the wagon so to speak for a number of months and stopped testing my BS. Recently I picked myself up again and have been following bandster rules and cheking bs 4x/day. I have rediced my Levemir from 50 - 45 units in less than 2 weeks. In addition, when I went to my doc she thought I had switched my bood samples with someone else(just kidding). My fasting was great and my HGBa1C was perfect! Interesting since I was binge eating and not check my bs for most of that time. So, I guess that the band is working on my diabetes now. NExt ...bloodpressure meds! :wink2:

I also am anxious about eating socially. It has happened that I have PBed in public (in front of my in-laws yet) and it was very embarrassing. Right now eating out is not really an option because of my problems with chewing, everything is liquid or puree - do you think I can bring my Magic Bullet to a restaurant? :wink2:

I keep telling myself that when all this is over with my teeth (September), I will have lost a good amount of weight and will definitely enjoy chewing properly and eating solid foods again. It will be a win-win situation!

Also Benefibre or its equivalent mixed into your Water or juice. It is completely tasteless. I did not poop for 2 weeks post op and about 2 months later found myself in the ER with severe stomach pains. AFter tests including CT scan they told me I was severly constipated and it had "backed up" (sorry to be so graphic). It is really important that you start taking care of that function now.

I have loved mine for 2 years 5 months 2 days and 1 hour and have never hated it. I've had days where I've had to allow it to be boss and that's fine with me. Sometimes I need a swift hand over me so that's what the band is to me. I'm probably indifferent to it most days since I don't even think of it anymore. It's there and does its job but it's never a love/hate thing for me.

I do hope that I will get to where you are some day. The love/hate thing is front and centre.

S

I have to tell you guys that I am very jealous. I have been type II for 25 years, on insulin originally, lost weight, then oral meds until I wanted to get pregnant (can't take orals during pregnancy). That was 12 years ago and stayed on insulin ever since. I take 48 units of long acting 1X day and novorapid for each meal with carbs.

I was banded May 07 and lost 40 lbs originally with almost no change in my meds. Then I fell off the wagon hard. One contributing factor was my high expectations of going off insulin and High BP meds. When I did not happen I felt like a failure.

But I am back and taking it day by day. Perhaps one day I can reduce but if it is not in the cards, then it is not in the card. C'est la vie.

I am very happy for all of you!

Susan

I find that there are times when I love my band or hate my band, but I am never ever indifferent to it.

Right now, I am loving my band. My restriction is perfect for this time and what is going on in my life. I am losing weight and feeling good about myself. I have not eaten any junk food in over a week and am feeling "detoxed". It really is a constant struggle to keep this up, to remind myself that I am worth the stuggle and that there are foods that will harm me.

How are you feeling today?

That is a great milestone and a wonderful attitude towards changing your life! Congrats - you deserve it!

I was banded in Sept 2006 and my experiences with TLBC have been excellent. Nancy is a genius at giving a fill; she is in and out of that port without even a sissy like me feeling anything at all. Though she speaks rapidly, a personal quirk and one which might strike some of you as expressing her impatience, I have always found her to be very warm and helpful.

As for Dr. Yau, he helped to save my bacon. I had been having throat problems which I assumed were band-related. He had me into Scarborough Grace, his home hospital, in order to have this checked out by a fluoroscopy. Turns out I was just fine but he urged me to see an ears, nose and throat specialist and offered to set up an appointment with one. Good thing that I did follow his suggestion: it turned out that I have throat cancer.

The TLBC folks are a fine team. You will have to ask for help if you feel you need it as they are not mind readers. For me, a downtown grrl, the location was a big plus.

Green,

I am sorry to hear your news. How are you doing? Have you started treatment yet? You are a tough cookie and I know you will get through this!

Thinking of you,

Susan

Congratulations Andrew! You have worked hard and it paid off.

I am so very happy for you!,

Susan

Binge eating is consuming massive amounts of food 2000-3000 calories in a rapid period of time eating until you almost feel sick or do feel sick... consuming an entire tub of ice cream etc a few almonds isn't a binge but eating the whole bag in a matter of minutes.

It takes time to learn control and sometimes we all fall down and we get up again and start all over again..

Heather

I agree when peaches says that she is beinge eating because even if she is not eating the whole bag in a minute or eating 2000-3000 calories she has admitted that she is obsessing over them - Thinking about getting them how to conceal them etc. She is bingeing in her head and that is the more destructive behaviour.

I was doing the same with chocolate recently. Any kind of chocolate. What helped me is to give it up completely. Cold turkey. It was like quitting smoking the cravings were so bad at times, but take it a moment at a time. After a few days the urges will begin to subside. If you feel up to it, I would also recommend detoxing by avoiding all refined sugars and white foods (flour, rice) etc. This will help with the cravings as well.

Good luck.

Stick with the post op diet. Tell yourself (and it is true) that you will have spent a lot of money just to mess up your band for a cookie! Try Jello (which is a clear), take 1/2 c. broth every hour, sip some juice for flavour, lots of Water, but STICK TO IT! It is important for the band to settle in ordr for the surgery to be successful. Hang in the BettyB - We have done it and you can too!

I think this is a great thread because SusieQ and Jack are being very truthful. One of the bandster rules I need to relearn is to eat what I can and not what I want. I don't want that lesson to be learned with a slip and a trip to the OR!

Thanks for your words of welcome and wisdom. I am pretty much on a full Fluid diet with my chewing problems, but mostly because my band is so tight right now! I am dealing with it, because it is temporary and I know it is the kick start that Susieq was talking about.

Bettyb - I am glad if my story can help you and anyone else realise the truth of the band - we are all told - it is only a tool, but I think I secretly thought it was a magic cure. Not so, but I also know that I would have regained all my weight and more during this stressful time if I did not have the band. Tool = works.

becca77 - congrats on the baby! I know what you mean about the rules. I had even started drinking right after meals again! I was really sabotaging myself.

I continue to put one foot in front of the other...

Susan