lisacaron

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Knocking on wood with ya! Keep up the good work!

Killi...let me ask you do you have laundry every day? Do you vacuum and clean the cat box every day? Those are chores that seem to me aren't done every day...but they are also labor intensive chores that you could turn into exercise if you wished. Pump up the volume, put more clothes in the basket or a weight and carry it at a good clip up and down the stairs while the wash is washing walk up and down the stairs a few times. While your vacuuming do a little dance give your self some love...beep bop a loo ba...you can do this! Dishes cooking all these things can be made fun and high energy! No reason to be stressing it. Park that car far from the door I know it's cold in the morning but hey a brisk walk will get your blood pumping! When your on that 30 minute break eat for 20 and then take a walk around the building inside or out up and down if you got some stairs. You don't have to sit and do 101 crunches or 50 dead lifts to be exercising you just have to want to move your body!! Once you do you will be motivated to do more and more and find more and more time for it and you. OK so you say...ah what does she know....I have 5 kids, one who is special needs so I know! I work full time 9 hours a day and it takes me nearly 2 hours to get here and get home at the end of it. I am out of my house more then 12 hours a day, my chair has a buzzer that alerts my boss every time my butt lifts from the chair. Only kidding..but it feels like it most days. He's only looking for me when I'm not in it don't cha know?! You can do it, play a game of tag and chase the little guy around the house! He will sleep better and so will you! You can do this!!!

Put the link up for the wedding! We had our first one at the MGM and then at the KISS chapel the day before we were going home! We had our cake cutting at the Top of the World. Sadly..we were supposed to be having the wedding in Hawaii, and my husbands best friend died in a NYC fire only months before so we scrapped it all, shifted gears and went to Vegas. His friend would have been happy that we didn't let it stop us, it just would not have been the same in Hawaii though without him at that time. I have to say that even a year going on 2 years later, we still think about what a great time we had!! I would share some photo's but they might be huge files...still fun to look at! Both hubby and I were at our largest size then...love to do it again when we are at goal!!

How wonderful a wedding!!! You must post some pictures when you get back from your Honeymoon! I planned my whole wedding (2 of them) and my wedding brunch while I was at work. Thank goodness I had an on location wedding coordinator she was a big help, but since the hubby and I decided we didn't want to have anyone at the wedding but us...I was on my own with the plans. Hubby did help but you know us gals do most of the coordinating. I have to say having been married twice, the first time I did the overblown family wedding (we are Italian it's like my big fat Greek wedding but with Italians) I hated it, it was not my scene. This time it was the hubby and I in LasVegas! We had 2 weddings. One big white wedding and then another wedding at the KISS hotter then Hell chapel! I had them both broadcast live over the internet for anyone who wanted to "watch" and I didn't have to hear a single comment! It was GREAT! When we came home I had a family brunch for all the "family" parents inlaws kids and cousins it was wonderful. I didn't give a hoot what anyone had to say! They had so much food to eat they had no time to make comments I hope you and your soon to be Hubby have the best wedding and are very very very happy!!!!

Greetings from Suffolk County NY. Work in Nassau County and I grew up in Queens! I am an all around New Yorker! We have just pulled together our first NY Meet and Greet in NYC and we are planning another one in the spring. Keep your eyes posted for more details!!!! I hope you will all be able to attend!

Banista, I will have a special tea or coffee or sugar free coffee creamer for those warm need some comfort snugly moments. It helps me to feel like it's something special, and I can relax and unwind. I understand the grazing feeling sometimes on a weekend that will happen to me. I am usually going in 10 directions at once and on a weekend I might have a minute where there is "nothing" I need to be doing, and it's more difficult for me to gear down to doing less if I've been pulling at all ends. What you chose to pick on was nothing bad, some days we may need a bit more calories and it's our bodies way of saying hey put more in here. I find that happens to me also when I am brewing a cold or feeling sick. The cold weather also makes me feel a bit more hungry at times especially if I am out in it for any amount of time or if I have done an especially strenuous work out. Once upon a time a Dr. friend told me this parable: Eat breakfast like a King, lunch like a working man, and dinner like a pauper. It meant to eat your larger meals early in the day and at night eat much less and lighter food. Oddly since being banded and finding my zone, this is what I find happens for me now. My mornings are not King size, they are usually a Protein Bar and coffee but the caffeine, the sugars and other sweeteners in the bar burn off through out the day. My lunch, I usually will eat a good size portion, and incorporate a snack that I will have around 3-4:00. When I get home from work it's usually 7:00 at night and my dinner is usually a tiny bit of food and I'm good with it. I might have half a piece of grilled chicken, or a cup of chilli, or even eggs. It fills me up, I have my coffee and I'm ready for bed. Now her parable makes sense and works for me! It never did before!

So I'm not a runner let me tell you that first I haven't gotten to where I can run more then 1 minute on the treadmill. However...my boss is Mr. Triathlete, Iron Man competitor etc. The reason they tell you in running to go for carbs and light Protein is because the body will use the sugar (carbs) first for a big burst of speed. As a bandster we want our bodies to burn our fat, so we don't consume much sugar for the body to have access to. Protein takes longer to digest and lots of "energy" and body resources are routed to the stomach for breaking down of the protein, where as simple carbs are digested easily and don't require much resources from the body who can then transfer the energy to the muscles that are running and helping you to go faster. Now I'm not sure your competing for time...or you just are looking for duration in your run. That will determine what you want to eat before and after a "race". Carb cycling might be what your nutritionist advises you to do as my boss does. He will carbo load before a race, and then use protein to recover. All good info should I ever find myself running! Since I broke my foot 6 years ago though..sometimes just walking is painful

For me tightness feels a bit like I have just eaten even if I have not eaten a thing. When I awake in the morning and I think for me it's because I have a bit of a post nasal drip that I have had my whole life. I will wake up and that stoma opening where food goes through is just not open enough to allow food to pass. Should I take a bite of something before having a liquid or warm beverage it feels a bit like sandpaper going down. Eventually it makes it there but it's not a pleasant feeling as it goes through. I have not had anything get stuck but it will take an overly long time to pass by the band. For me being "too tight" in the band is that feeling all day long. Where you can't eat any volume of food over a bite of this or that and you are mostly relying on liquids for nourishment. I was banded to help me change my life style and eating habits. To help me control my portion sizes, and hunger not so I can turn into a juicer, and that is what my band does for me. I am losing weight, eating band sized portions of food and I am not hungry or craving between meals. I can swallow my meds with out an issue, (there are some people i know who crush meds and are NOT banded. I think that's a psychological thing with swallowing something you didn't chew first.) I don't drink carbonation because my Dr. advised against it and I follow his advice. He went to medical school, and took certification for surgical use of the band I did not so I trust him when he tells me carbonation is not good for me or the band. The plus is I have no desire for it so it's not a problem. I gave it up long before surgery as did my husband. So that's my opinion on what too tight means...but it is subjective and what I find to be "tight" might be just what another person is looking for and vs.versa. So you find what works for YOU and rock it!

Grace, I'm sorry you are having such issues. Who knows why something works for one person and not for another, or why some people have medical problems and others do not. I can't speak for your surgeon's or doctors as to why they did not catch this issue before your band surgery, but the good news is that you have caught it now and you have a band that can now be removed and you may be eligible to have a revision surgery. You would not be able to do that with either of the other weight loss surgery options. Try not to be afraid, let hope dissolve your fears for you as you move forward to have this situation corrected and into a new journey with RNY. Check out the forums there and ask many questions, and seek support for your upcoming surgery. I think you will find that you are not alone. Best of luck to you! Check in when your all done and let us know how your doing.

When I wake up in the morning the first thing I have is a cup of hot coffee. I drink about half the cup which has now opened and relaxed my stoma enough for me to take my pills. I take them one at a time each with a nice sip of warm coffee. I feel them go down and through the band and I take the next one. That is how I take all my medications, for Vitamins I use chewable gummy mulit vitamins and sublingual (melt in your mouth) vitamins for the special things like B-12, and Vitamin C. When I take my pills at night (cause yes there are more that I take at night cause they make me drowsy) I also take them with a nice cup of decaf about an hour before bed. I use a chewable pro-biotic and a chewable Calcium supplement.

Reading this thread I understand what your saying about not "enjoying" meals like you used to, but for that I am very happy. I still love to share and eat food. When I am busy and on the run, I often have to remind myself to eat something before my blood sugar crashes. That said, I love to enjoy meals with my husband and events where there are "special" foods like holiday's or weddings or other big parties. Today I truly enjoy the food. I sit and I savor my meals at those times. I take wee bites like CG said, and I take the time to chew and swallow before putting the next bite in and I listen to the dinner chatter. I share in the conversation, I learn so much about those around me mostly because I am not only focused on shoveling food into my face. When my food gets cold or loses my interest or I have that soft stop sign I will often push it away from me. Occasionally I will be more hungry then not, and take one bite more and then I know the band man said enough and that will suffice until the next time. I no longer sit with a bowl of anything to make me feel better. I am so happy about that. When I am feeling a bit out of sorts, or just want some comfy feeling I will make a nice cup of coffee (decaf) or tea and just snuggle up with that and it's enough for me and helps me set my self to rights again while I sip it. I try to unwind whatever it was that had me wound up and I relax. I'm happy not to gorge on food, I enjoy eating out with friends so much more now and I don't feel the need to clean my plate every time even if I am paying for the meal. If need be I will wrap it up and have it for lunch the next day or dinner that night if it's lunch. I am in the green zone, where I am not hungry between meals. I eat smaller portions but I am not so tight that anything gets stuck or comes back up not even my pills and I take a few of those monsters too.

Hi Tracy, Your doing the right thing by doing your research and finding out all you can. You have a can do attitude I can tell from your post and I think that no matter what you decide when you do, that you will own it and be successful! My advice is to read and read and then read some more. Learn about the different surgical options out there. Interview a few surgeons and bariatric groups to find one that is the right fit for you and your hubby as well. I can't say enough about how important it is to be happy and comfortable with the surgeon and his staff for your after care. Give your insurance company and your hubbys company a call and ask them what they require for your to have this surgery. This way you are prepared when you do make your decision to go in with a clear understanding of the requirements for each of you. They may be different. My husband and I had the lap band surgery at the same time a few days apart, and we both hold medical insurance policies and are dependents on each others policy. However since my company is my primary their requirements for me to have surgery were different from my husbands primary. (I had to jump through a few more hoops then he did.) I was prepared for that though because I had called and checked out all the information prior to setting up the testing protocols. Best of luck to you!! You will find very valuable information on this site as well as helpful insightful and supportive people!!

tegz, I understand how you are feeling. Now you had some Fluid taken out because it was just too much. You may have been eating small meals and not hungry but you were hurting yourself and your band. So now your adjusting again and part of the fatigue could be that your body is just acclimating to the changes. Bump up your solid Protein dense foods. If your feeling hungry after a work out, or whenever it's OK to eat something. Make it a good choice. That is the biggest part of the battle here. It's not that we eat, eating is normal and healthy it's what we choose to eat. If you can find foods that are high in protein and quality that are low in calories, carbs and sugar then you have made a good choice. Monitor your intake for a while and see what it is your eating what are your calories in vs calories out? Have several small meals more often throughout the day till you find what works for you. If all else fails in a couple of weeks when your all healed up go back to your Dr. and ask him for .1 or .2 cc's to be put back in. Sometimes that is all the difference we need. Best of luck to you!!

I am me that is who I am.

Hehe...I know what you mean as mine fell down in the gym one day as I was changing. Talk about em-bare-assing

I think there are many out there with the BMI of 30 that either have co-morbidity issues and/or have done it self pay. I think the standard these days for most insurance companies is a BMI of 38-40 lowest at 30 with more then one co-morbidity associated with weight. When it came to my surgery I did not let anyone control the information that was sent to the surgeon's office or the insurance company but me. When I took a test, be it pulmonary or cardiology or what ever it was that needed to be done. I had the results sent to me with CC's to the surgeon. If I did not get a copy of the reports at the visit I hounded them the next day for it. I put together my medical profile and kept copies which I sent over to the surgeon in it's completion so there was never a question of them not having something the day of surgery. Even on the day of surgery I had a copy of all tests and results in a folder just IN CASE they were missing something and needed it. I wasn't about to sit there waiting for them to look through files at the Dr's office while I was prepped and ready for surgery. I can't tell people often enough to be your own advocate! Trust in your doctors, listen to and follow their instructions but when you have a question or don't understand something speak up or have someone who will speak up for you present. You have a right to all your medical information including tests and clinical notes. Ask for copies and keep a file on yourself as up to date as possible. Ultimately these guys work for you! When you have your car worked on you keep the receipts from the repair shop right? You keep a log of when you need to change your oil or have your tires rotated and you should at the very least do the same for the vehicle you live your life in. In the end it helps to streamline the process so your not waiting on anyone to fax things to your insurance company or your surgeon. You have it in hand and can present it to them yourself. Getting down off the soap box now

I can so relate to that Jim! I had to run out of the office to see the Dr. today and for all of maybe 20 steps I was loving the sun and being outside that faded by the time I got to my car and I was asking myself why the heck I parked so far away from the door?! I like the walk most days but it was so darn windy this afternoon my nose was frozen by the time I reached the car. Bandista, I love your motivation, your's too Jim. I have my 25 year high school reunion coming up in April. Though I will never be as thin as I was in high school (I think I weighed all of 90 pounds then. Too skinny!) I'd like to at least be in Onederland and closer rather then further away from my goal. Maybe a new dress for me too, some heels a new handbag...definitely some jewelry...OK I know I'm getting carried away (shhh don't tell the hubby)

Good call my friend! You have to make the band work with you and for you not against you. There is no "right" way if it doesn't work for you then it's not right. Hope your feeling great again soon!!

If your a female, one who's had a baby....for me it felt like a horrible contraction in the middle of my chest right under my rib cage where the esophagus was trying to squeeze squeeze squeeze that bit of food through where it just didn't fit.

If I'm correct here and not please correct me I think this POSE is a reversible procedure much like the stomach plication. Area's are just being pinched in in and made smaller with sutures. Nothing is being permanently done to the tissue, cut or removed, so it should conceivably be reversible.

The hubby and I went through about 3 months of "last meal" thinking. We bickered often about not being able to eat certain foods. There is nothing we can't eat, we just eat much smaller amounts of it now. There are some foods I "can't" eat and more because I just don't want to. I used to love McDonalds Breakfast in the morning. Sausage Egg McMuffin, then they came out with that on biscuits oh boy loved it. Today...when asked if I want to go there or have that...my answer is simply No. I might be hungry want/need to eat but I just don't want or need to have that. I am happy with my Protein bar and coffee in the morning. Or simple scrambled egg. If I want to splurge I have bacon. Even when it comes to rice, it's not my first choice but if I want the taste of that spanish rice with my meal a fork full is usually enough for me. If you want to have something pre-op go for it. I would not gorge myself, but enjoy the food. Eat what you like enjoy the texture, aroma and flavor of it. You will be doing that lots after banding and the liquid diet is not forever. In a few weeks/months you will be able to eat those "favorites" again but you may find that you just don't want to.

The lapband does show in the full body scan at the airport. Just an FYI. I flew to Dallas with my husband and we went through the full body scanner and one of the agents just asked us how we were doing with it.....which was fine with both of us but if your one who does not want to share or are traveling with someone like a co-worker that you have not told about your surgery that could cause some odd looks and questions My husband and I have also not gotten a card from Allergan, though I never thought to ask the doctor if he had it.