Kime-lou

There are times when I can eat chicken and times when I can't. I do a lot of baking chicken on a broiler pan in the oven. I buy FRESH chicken- my fav is the perdue perfect portions. I coat it with a little EVOO and some seasoning and bake. Always tender and tasty. I cut it in SMALL bites and chew it well and normally don't have a problem with it that way. If I want BBQ chick I use the boneless skinless chicken thighs and baste it before putting it on the grill with some vinager based BBQ sauce. The also comes out very tender.

Dee- call or email the fitbit people. They are really helpful. We had a problem with my husbands and they helped us get it reset. So it is possible to reset one.

I have the same issues as Dylan. I burp more, pre surgery I use to burp quiet and lady like. My burps are belches persay, but louder than before. I gurgle alot. I also have gas- my hubs laughs because I never farted before I had this surgery, but it is horrible now.

I had one, not huge, but big enough. Mine was fixed when he placed the band. I do not believe they charged extra- just a few extra sutures. But hiatal hernias can greatly impact how you feel. If you have one FIX IT!!!! My mom just had hers fixed and she went from feeling like death to feeling great again. My doc said he would not place a band if a patient had a Hiatal hernia and they told him he couldn't fix it. I signed a form before surgery that said if he found one, he could fix it. Glad mine is fixed!!!

Lapband is just the band around the top of your tummy. Lapband with plication is where they place the band and sew the stomach off (make it smaller). From what my doc told me they sew up the "stretchy" part of the stomach to kinda make a sleeve, but with out removing like they do with the sleeve. I do not have the plication. My doc said that he didn't believe I needed it, so I did just the lapband. Carolina Girl has the lapband plus plication and she is rockin the hell out of this journey. She could give you more info about that.

Yep, I have both the Fitbit and the Aria scale. Love the both, Alot!! I got the Fitbit back in Nov and they really keeps me movtivated to move. The scale I love because it links with the site and I can track my weight over time and see trends and it also shows fat %. I find that the fat % isn't always accurate, but fairly close for my purposes. All around I think both these pieces are great tools to help in this journey.

I currently have the Fitbit One, but think I am going to upgrade to the Fitbit Flex when it comes out. I LOVE mine. It has encouraged me to move more for sure. It's like I compete with myself- okay lets do more steps than yesterday! I enjoy being able to see what I am doing. When I got it in Nov. I figured out I wasn't moving nearly as much as I thought- I was lazy. I started at around 5,000 steps in Nov to now 7000-8500 steps a day, some days more. I am going to Disney in a week and I am looking forward to seeing the count there. I also sprung for the Fitbit Aura scale. Also, like that, it tells me my weight and my fat %. All this stuff logs automatically in my computer. This way I can show my Doc what I am doing and see if they have suggestions. I love technology!!

Okay so I am going to be totally 100% honest here on what lapband has meant to me: 1- A chance to like how my body looks. 2- A chance to shop in the "normal" section. 3- A chance to be healthy as I age. 4- A chance to take my life back. 5- A chance to learn. I know many of these are vain, but it's the truth. I mean be honest here, who doesn't want to look in the mirror and go damn I look good- or at the least look in the mirror and go uh, I look pretty good. For the ladies out there, I am sure you will agree- it's nice to lose weight and see that little glimmer of somethin' somethin' in your significant other's eye. I want to be sexy for my hubs and have him be proud of what I look like on the outside as he is about what is on the inside. And, yes, dang it- it feel darn good to be able to buy clothing the size doesn't have a W attached. I am 32 now and while I was healthy when I had surgery with no health issues and rarely ever needed a doctor- I knew that those days were numbered. I knew it time I would likely end up diabetic like my dad, or with heart issues like my brother and grandfather or any other major health problems. I wanted to insure that as I age I can do it in a healthy manner. As far as taking my life back, I had come to the point where I realized food ruled my life. My co-workers and I would spend an hour in the mornings discussing and deciding on where we would go for lunch. I ate crap and would feel like crap. I would over eat and have horrible indigestion and stomach cramps that would make me feel aweful. I wanted to rule my food, not it ruling me. Leaning- I think I will always be a learner/researcher. I love to read and study- I could be a professional student if I had enough money. I have read a lot of health, food, calories- basically how our bodies work. I like understanding things better. Now I know if I would have know some of this earlier, boy it would have made a difference. The way I look at food and what I put in my body is totally different. But, will I ever eat something totally decadent and sinfully calorie loaded again - yep. Being honest here- I fully intend on having some Red Velvet Cheesecake Factory Cheese cake for my anniversary. The difference in pre and post band - that cheese cake slice will not all be eaten by me and it will now follow a huge equally calorie loaded meal and it will not take place multiple time of year. This is not about restricted myself for everything I love, it's about a balance between over doing ( which was what I did before ) and driving myself crazy with restrictions. This journey is going to be long, God willing, (the rest of my life). Everyday is a choice, every meal is a choice - I am the only one to blame or pat on the back for my choices because they are MINE. I want all the things that the band gave me a chance at, but the only way I am going to achieve it is if I do my part. The only person I can cheat is myself.

My first few fills I never felt any effects from until about a week later- odd but that is how I was. The more fills you get the more effects you will have. Don't stress- as long as you are holding your portions down to the alloted amount set by your doc you won't do any harm. Now, if you go out to a buffet and pig out then you might have a problem. Don't worry so much. (I know easier said than done). Many have walked in your shoes and have emerged and been successfull. So try not to stress to much. Walk / move more, stick to your alloted amounts and you will see results.

I like what you said Spaness. I to need to learn to be proud of this "so far" spot I am in. My doc keeps saying I am doing great, but I just always want more- guess I am human.

I started sssslllllloooooowwwww on drinking. It took me forever to get to my 90oz. 9 months out I drink a lot, but it took a good 4-5 months for me to get to that level. I keep a tervis Water bottle with me at all times. I always have ice water, some times I add Crystal Light flavor or Propel flavor, sometime plain. I sip all day long and I pee all day long. So just start where you can and work your way up. You will get there once you learn and your body learn that water is good. Now my body craves it.

I tend to agree with Terry. Everyone is different and every person's body reacts differently. Some lose a lot right after surgery, some continue loss, but slow after they start food again, some gain after they start food again. It so depends on where you are starting and you body, no one can tell you what your exact journey will be. Listen to your doctor and nutritionist. When you hit bumps in your road call them and get advice. This site is great for getting different perspectives and support at time, but the doc is best for getting advice from. Learn now that this will NOT be a quick journey. This will be a life long set of choices, eat day and each meal only you can make a choice what you put in your body. So if you are doing this, commit to it and do what the professionals say!

At 9 months out (50+ down), I don't really feel like I have given up anything. I still eat most everything that I love. I can't handle soft breads, but that really doesn't bother me. I eat a variety of things just far less of it. My BFF who had gastric is now lactose intollerant and also has a hard time digesting a lot of meats. I much rather have my band.

The state of North Carolina tried to put this in effect a couple years ago. Saying any smoker or anyone with a BMI over 38 would have to pay for health insurance. Those who do not smoke or have a lower BMI would not have to pay. After further looking, they opted to dump that and say everyone pays XYZ for this health plan, if you choose a lower health plan you don't have to pay.

Any WLS has the chance to be successful or a failure. In the people I know this is what I have seen: Band: 7 Successful 3 Bypass: 8 Successful 5 and one to early to tell People learn how to eat around the surgery. I had one band patient tell me that plan out. I don't get it, you go through everything you must to get this surgery, you lose weight and then you teach yourself to eat around it and gain the weight back. I really pray and hope I never get that lax.

CG is totally right. Talk to your doctor. Doctors advise patients what to do to make sure the surgery is safest, so check with them. Remember you are not cheating the doctor, you are cheating yourself. My doc told me point blank, if I get in and your liver is to fatty for me to do the surgery safely I have no problem closing you up. I wasn't put on a pre=op diet persay I was just told to cut back, but that was due to what the doctor found in all the test. Doctors advise based on you, no one else, so listen to them.

Ok, the last week has been kinda stressful and I know it's only going to get worse. My job is changing greatly over the next few months and I am having learn a lot of new things and work extra to keep up with my job while I learn a new system. So maybe I am just stressed, but I need to rant for a min...... WLS is Easy WTH. I saw someone this weekend who hadn't seen me for a while and told me I looked great. Of course the next thing out of her mouth was how did you lose so much weight? I said that I was really watching what I ate, eating healthier and moving more, and that I had lapband surgery. Her comment was, oh well you are lucky then you can't gain weight. I wanted to expload at that moment. The thing is with lapband or ANY WLS you can gain weight. Gaining weight is EASY, not losing it. I can gain by eating more than I expend- calorie layden thing (milkshakes, chips, ice cream, cake, ect). I can gain just like anyone else. It really bothers me that people still have this misconception that WLS makes it so much easier. Does it help, YES, does it make it easy HELL NO. BMI vs Size Ok so here is another thing that is buggin me. My entire life doctors have complained about my weight. I have been over weight since I was 5. Over 200 since middle school (now 190's). Now that I am losing and I have studied info, I congnitivly know that the scale isn't totally accurate when it comes to my health. I have lost 50+ lbs, while my weight is in the 190's I am far smaller than I thought I would be in the 190's. Why, because of my muscle to fat ratio. It is often said that muscle weighs more than fat, not exactly true. A pound of muscle takes up far less room than a pound of fat. A stick of butter and a ball bearing may weigh the same, but that ball bearing is much smaller. So my muscle mass has increased, and my shape has decreased, but the scale isn't moving these days. Yet when I go to the doctors they look at the scale and calculate my BMI and tisk tisk tisk. WTH- Doc please look at the whole pic instead of one fasit. I am a work in progress not a completed project. Fear factor I will be the first to say that I am scared, paranoid, terrified of gaining weight back. I have tried way to long to lose, now that it has begun I do not want to revert. So yes I am almost obsessive over it. Is this good, not really, but it's me. I look at what I eat, I weigh daily, I move more. Being a scientific person I like to see cause and effect. How does what I put in effect measurment and weight. I chart every thing so I can take it to my doctor. Judgements Ok, so maybe I am paranoid that people judge me when they aren't, but I think that comes from my years of low self esteem. I often see people state, Oh you are doing what your suppose to so don't worry about the scale, don't weigh it just drives you crazy, don't worry the weight will come off. Yes, I know all the data- about the scale doesn't show the whole picture, that we should keep on doing what we are suppose to when the scales stops and in time weight will come off. But, gee am I the only human on here that while I know this, it still doesn't make me happy that the scale isn't going down. Ok, so maybe I am judging others here, but here it goes.... some people post and make statements on here that make them appear that they are perfect. They are losing, they are doing what the doctor says, they aren't weighing daily- happy, happy, joy, joy. It's like they never get frustrated or impatient ever. I honestly wonder sometimes are they really like that, or are they just putting on a front on this sight. Because while this journey hasn't been the tooth and nail climb that diets have been in the past, it has not been all hunky dory and perfect. So my thought for them is be human, I have flaws I get stressed, and I know you do to, no matter if you want to admit it or not. I think newbies need to know and see the entire picture. Yes, you do what your doc and NUT say. Will this be easy - no. Will you hit plateaus- yes. Will you get frustrated at times- hell yes. Will what works for me work for you- maybe/maybe not. Okay so enough of my ranting. If I offended anyone sorry, chalk it up to me having a bee in my bonnett to day and had one straw to many put on my pile. Thanks for letting me rant!!

I tend to agree that if you divorce after WLS you already had some issues. For me and my hubby we have great communication skills. We talk about everything. Some men have issues dealing with their woman who was obese now being "hot" and getting attention from other men. My husband looks at this way- if men whistle at you, then I am gonna be like hell yeah she is my woman and you can't have her. The old adage marry a woman uglier than you, then she'll never leave you. Some woman or men after WLS get "drunk" on the attention they get from members of the opposite sex that would have never looked twice at them before. I think a lot of it boils down to insecurity issues on the part of one or both spouses.

How long had you had your band? This is a horrible out come. Hopefully, as Missy said this will reverse after band removal and other options will open for you. If not prayfully you gained some knowledge during your time banded that will help you at the least not gain. Stay strong.

Having surgery is scary. I was scared. I have an anxiety disorder. Being that I do have an axiety disorder, I do take Paxil to help me. I was on Paxil when I had surgery, yet I was still scared. I managed to talk myself out of a panic attack. I had studied the surgery, I had researched my doctor and knew my medical team was top notch. I ask for some "i don't care" drugs a little early as well as requesting to be the first patient on the line up for the day. Next thing I knew it was over and I was heading home. Right after surgery I had a tough time for about an hour, but after that I felt pretty good. So take a deep breath. Ask for meds if you need to. The doctor can give you some adivan to take the night before and then one the morning of to help keep you calm until they start your IV. Don't beat yourself up. Fear is natural and normal. If this is really what you want, admit you were scared, ask for help and get 'er done!! Good Luck!

I have a fitbit. I wear it all day, no matter what I am doing. I tracks the calories I burn all day. My doctor said from the research that the fitbit is pretty accurate. It tracks my steps and flights of stairs. It really encourages me to move more. I love it.

Cold compress will help.