bigsexy

Congrats on being banded - best of luck to you in the time to come.

So being that June 1 is tomorrow I thought I would start a June challenge. There are those waiting to be banded (me june 27th) and those already banded so I am sure results will vary. However the challenge is to walk/run/jog - 40 miles over the next month. Additionally the weightloss challenge will be to lose a min of 2 lbs a week. If you lose 10 in the first week it doesn't necessarily mean you are off the hook for the other 3. The goal would be to have weightloss in every week of the month. Who's in?

All I can say is - you are HOTTTTTT!!!!!!! can't believe your date didn't kiss you goodnight. I defintely would have.

just like any surgery - you can eat through it. My neighbor had Gastric Bypass 2 years ago. He dropped weight like mad - well over 200 lbs. he started out at 450. Well guess what - he is back to his original weight again. He didn't learn a damn thing. now he is back to where he was with anatomy that has been altered, eaten through his surgery and is on a downward spiral towards eating himself to death. The reason I am choosing banding over GB is that it seems that you have more options. Fill level, reversability (although one should consider it a permanent tool), safer, less side effects etc. To me GB wasn't worth the 1:200 mortality rate, nor was it worth the fact that it can't really be corrected. But in either case - you have to be mentally prepared for it. second thoughts and doubts are natural. Surround yourself with a support base to help you though the tough times and you will be fine. To anyone considering doing surgery - if don't think you can commit yourself to permanently changing your life then you arn't ready for surgery. Be ready and you will succeed.

All - just putting some feelers out there for an opinion. I started my liquid preop diet last week and all of a sudden out of the blue i get what i think is acid reflux. never had a burning sensation like this before so I can only assume it is what it is. i feel like acid is coming up into my esophagus. I have been diagnosed with a small hiatal hernia that will be repaired during surgery and one of the symptoms can be acid reflux. However i have never had anything like this before the liquid diet. is this something that is common and likely to go away or is it something i need to keep my dr apprised of. Thanks

brewa2000 - dr okayed me to continue drinking beer but no cabonation for at least a year. As i think you are aware i brew and manage a cellar for a living so i "have " to drink.....errrrr - i at least have to taste for a living. Anyway he was fine with beer in limited quantities and but again stressed no carbonation for a year. The brew this weekend went off w/o a hitch - ended up brewing 2 batches - an american cream ale and a ryepa. Presently I am working on taking the ryepa to one of our commercial brews but unfortunately the general public just can't get past the rye part. you would be suprissed how many people think it will taste like a piece of rye bread. anyway - onto lap band info. Have my preop appointment next week - and then surgery at the end of the month. Already started replacing some of my meals with protien shakes (EAS) to get used to the liquid diet. It is amazing how much weight i have lost just from that despite eating like normal at dinner. Starting back in on exercise today. I am doing the program one of the women mentioned in one of the other posts. basically working up to a 5k run. keep up the good work guys. I would be interested in starting a weight loss/exercise challenge for June if anyone is interested

you probably won't know a difference - depending of course how bad the hernia is. What that means is that a portion of your stomach is poking through your diaphram. This is pretty common and most people go on their entire lives without knowing they have one. basically they will move the stomach into proper position and then stitch up the diaphram around it so it doesnt happen again. im guessing you wont feel anything from it

well the wife and child are headed out west for a week so i will be bach'in it. Plan to golf sat, sun, mon and brew beer on monday afternoon. It will be tough giving up beer after i am banded but i will keep brewing anyway.

jim - my dr requires a preop liquid diet of 10 days. Here is what the nutritionist gave me. Protien shake like eas, unjury or adkins, Calories under 150 with protien btw 15-20. I like eas carb advantage and unjury. but i go with eas because it available at my local cosco/bjs. then light yogurt between meals. i eat the yoplait 90 cal stuff. you can have broth of any kind and non caloric liquids. i have found another drink mix that was right next to crystal lite that uses splenda but i can't remember the name off hand. there are supposedly other drinks that use stevia but i have not found them. i don't worry too much about the aspartame and drink the ruby red grapefruit cl all the time. will edit the post with the name of the splenda based drink later.

Guys - what is the deal with all these people in other forums that continuously post a "woe is me" "i'm not losing" type post. despite not yet being banded - logic tells me that it is work to lose weight. After all the band isnt around our brains. there are people who post continuously that they are only eating 1000 cal a day blah blah blah and haven't lost a lb. My theory is this - 1. they are lying to themselves about the caloric intake or 2. they are lying to themselves about the caloric intake. I may be way out in left field but i'm having a terrible time understanding why these people just don't get it. hopefully i won't be the same post banding.

wow jesse no fill almost makes it seem like the band wasnt necessary. when did you have your surgery? could you please supply a typical menu for the day - My nutritionist wants me to be in that caloric intake range. Also if you guys wouldnt mind providing typical work out routines etc. do you all work out alone or with someone? anything you think will help me get to be a success story such as yourselves would be great

one more thing - my dr doesnt want his patients to eat during or within an hour after each meal.

Caloric intake should be limited to 800-1200 a day with lean protien being the body of those calories. between 60-100 grams of protien a day. How many calories are you eating in your shakes? what are you mixing them with. I have yet to be banded but to get used to the liquid preop diet i have been using protien shakes as meal replacements. I use EAS sport - it is only 110 calories and 17 grams of protien. that normally fills me up till lunch

WOW - my dr said i could not go in the hottub for 6 WEEKS!!!!! he said showers only for that time and i was not to use soap on the glued areas for 2.

I had/have that fear - but the thing i keep telling myself is this. Lapband is far less riskier that RNY. It is a much safer alternative in that your organs and internal anatomy are not being cut or rerouted. That being said all surgeries are risky. So KNOW your hospital and DR. Don't be afraid to ask questions. Make sure you dr requires a battery of tests. it is a pain in the a$$ but it is for good reason. Ask your surgeon if any one has passed or developed life threatening infections under his/her care. its a fair question and if you seem unnerved at anytime in your drs presence - aside from general fear of the surgery, then look elsewhere. if you have doubts about your surgeons skills or bed side manner - then move on and find a different surgeon. I don't know what your situation is so my next comment is not directed to you or anyone in general - just a thought i am having. Maybe I would have a different opinion if my insurance wasn't covering it but i certainly would not risk my life on something if it came down to comfort level, pre/post op care with a dr i trusted vs saving a some money. I would look for a surgeon and a hospital that cared more about you the patient than having another surgery. You also said you suffer from depression. 90% of the people i have met who had bariatric surgery in the US were required to have a psych eval. Some were required to have multiple sessions. It is at the drs disgression. Certainly the dr doing the psych eval would be willing to help you with your depression if you are not seing anyone already. Good luck in you journey. I can honestly say - I no longer worrying if this is the right decision for me. I know it is and now that i have my date I am just checking off the days in anticipation of having a tool that will help me become the healthy person i want to be.

Found out yesterday that I was approved for the band!!!!! Although i will not be banded till June 27th, I am just so happy and relieved to have this part behind me. I was worried because it had been several weeks since I was submitted, and had not heard anything. Turns out the wrong department had the information at the insurance co. When the right department got the information I was approved in 15min!!!!! Wish me luck - I'm sure I will get more nervous as the date approaches</p>

now i just have to wait a bit longer. My surgery date is June 27th. a bit disappointed that I have to wait till the end of june but i have waited this long. Also it is a blessing in disguise - now i don't have to worry about the surgery interfering with my vacation.

:clap2: Turns out my wait for approval was my case being sent to the wrong department at the insurance co. Once the bariatric group got it i was approved in less than 15 min!!!!!! I'm sort of in a happy and disappointed. Happy because i am approved and the surgery will take place after my trip to germany. Disappointed because i have to wait until June 27th. Oh well I have waited this long what is another month. wish me luck!!!!

That i guess was the reason i asked. I should have phrased it - is there anything in particular you would avoid or do over to help prevent the slip. Popcorn it seems could have been a culprit in your case. I also hear that vomitting in the early stages whether it be from over eating or illness can be a cause of slippage. I think i was more curious as to if you narrowed your specific case down as to why or what caused it so when i finally do get banned I will pay particular attention to certain things.

Alexandra - did you ever determine what the cause of the slip was?

Hey guys - any banded golfers out there? I play in a pretty competetive league and was wondering how long it takes in recovery before i can swing the stix again? Dr told me up to six weeks and that even then i should only take easy swings. any comments or suggestions. By the way i am pretty sure my dr has never even been on a golf course. he doesnt count walking 18 holes as exercise.

Age plays a huge factor in skin elasticity - also your initial weight and how you carried it. If you carried all your weight in your belly and had signigificant stretching of the skin, you might be predisposed to having lots of loose skin. A friend of mine lost well over 100 lbs and had very little loose skin afterwards. He is 28 and works out alot both cardio and weights. I myself when i lose weight notice my skin becomes looser. But all my weight has been located in the same area and i have stretchmarks. some people just have great genetics too - and you may never need any post surgery altering. Keep up the great work

How do you guys do it - i'm waiting for approval to be banded but my dr keeps telling me that i will not lose more than 1-2 lbs a week. Redstrat you have lost an incredible 7lbs a week!!!!! Congratulations. I was under the impression that with purly restrictive surgeries like the lapband the weight will come off slower. Keep up the great work CAN"T WAIT TILL I BECOME BANDED:clap2:

i have BCBS of New Jersey, and they have covered every prick,prod,poke and test the drs have wanted. I know there are subtle nuances between what everyones insurance covers but I'm really suprissed that your EKG wasnt covered. My hospital requires an EKG, Stresstest and Echo before any surgery. I would look through your benefits and see if it directly indicates that EKGs etc are not covered. Good Luck

I agree as well - keep doing what you are doing - however the body need 800 calories a day at a MINIMUM to stay healthy. Otherwise organ/muscle tisue breaks down, hair loss occurs etc. In extreem cases Dr's will perscribe less than 800 calories a day but they are monitoring you at every meal. You should also try to get 60 gr of protien in for the day spread out over your 3 meals. Although you can survive on less - this seems to be the magic number to keep your hair and skin looking great. You are doing really well on your own so far - maybe the hunger you are feeling is head hunger. I know when i have been on weight watchers etc before i would be shedding lbs like crazy but then all of a sudden i would think i was hungry and pig out. I was never hungry at all.