lisacaron

Perhaps that is where your port is located? When I was healing it sort of felt like a knot to me it took a while for that feeling to go away, but if you are worried and it doesn't feel right give your surgeon's office a call.

This is true, many surgeons do follow these phases as mine did. However not all doctors do. If your doctor has not placed ay restrictions on you and you are still worried about it, and even if he has and you are worried your best course of action is to give your surgeon's office a call and see what they have to say. If you are that hungry and having that much difficulty they may want to see you sooner then Feb. It never hurts to reach out to your doctor for clarification. They are there for you, and if you have a nutritionist it wouldn't hurt to have a consultation with them as well. Best of luck to you as you move forward on your journey!

Do you have a history of gout? Has your nutritionist told you what the amount of Protein you should be consuming daily should be? I was not getting enough when I was first banded and needed to increase my amount. I usually take in 60-80 grams a day and now feel so much better. If you are on liquids only, you can be having Protein shakes, and Soups to off set that. I usually do liquids for one or two days after a fill, and I will stick to the protein shakes and vary the flavors. I make sure that I am always having something so I'm not feeling deprived or hungry. I will have my Water in between even in the form of decaf, coffee or tea. I'll make some blended smoothies with kale and ginger etc. you can also buy Naked juices if you watch the sugar and carb content. As I move forward I will move to mush foods, and that will include soft Protein Bars, blended chilli, eggs if you can tolerate them, bits of soft cheese, pulled chicken and soft flaky fish. More solid forms of fish, chicken, beef or pork when I am ready to move back to solid foods. I eat the vegetable sparingly to ensure I get the protein in first. I chew chew chew, and rest between bites. For me vegies have to be cooked or they don't digest. You can do it!! I have faith in you!!

Did your doctor put you on any kind of restricted diet after surgery?

Head hunger is really the worst! Those old bad habits are pretty bad too! I have to say...Super Bowl I was a good gal! I didn't eat badly had a few bites of pigs in the blanket and I was all set. There was no need for picking on junk I was so good...then it snowed me in yesterday. No work, in PJ's all day...feeling depressed about a whole bunch of stuff that's been going on in my life and had nothing to do but sit and think about it all. I got myself so miserable I found the Cheetos in the closet and started munching! I was disappointed in myself for giving into a moment of weakness. I could have had a healthy snack, but I didn't want to get up and make anything I just wanted to wallow! So I did. I didn't feel better, and as I really got into the bag...I felt sick. I didn't let that stop me though I ate till I got so sick of them that if I see another Cheeto I might have to yak. Just thinking about it now makes me sick! Serves me right! I am not beating myself up about it, I did it and paid for it, and I'm moving on from it. Since being banded I have not fallen back to that extent before, and this served to prove to me that my life has changed and what once worked for me no longer does no matter how "comfortable" I thought it might be, it wasn't at all!! I felt better after I walked for 30 minutes then I did eating the junk, and that proved to me that my old habits are better left in the past, they were not healthy for me and though I might feel down, no amount of food will make that better. A few endorphins from exercise though helped a whole hell of a lot, so I think that's where I am going to put my focus from now on. I invited my son's friends over yesterday in the snow after they were out shoveling and gave them all the rest of the Superbowl junk and called it a day!

Crying....sniffle....this is so sad!!! Just hearing predictions for more snow is depressing me!

Hi Sherry, If your husband is not going to support your journey you are going to have to make a difficult choice here! That is to eat the chocolate and sweets or not! We can't control other people, the only thing we can control is our reactions to circumstances. If you find yourself in the situation where your husband brings home sweets try to limit your exposure to them. Hide them away, or bury them in the yard. Flush them down the toilet or give them to some kids on your block. Start having parties where the kids come over and eat all the sweets, and then when your husband says "hey I'm not trying to feed the neighborhood" you can tell him to stop bringing home the sweets and you'll stop feeding it to the neighborhood. Sometimes we have to be strong for ourselves, and make a those difficult choices. Maybe next time choose to have a chocolate Protein shake or maybe a Protein Bar or something equally as yummy that will keep you on track. If your hungry between meals you may need a fill to help you feel NOT hungry between meals. Give your doc and your nutritionist a call and see if they can help you get things working in your favor again.

Hahahaha!!! That's a good one

I am a slow loser too Having a few medical issues to ice the cake never helps. I agree with Sandy that 1500 cal. might be a little high. The highest both my husband and I were told was 1200. If you can try to cut back on your intake a bit by making some food substitutions if possible. Exercise is good, keep doing that!! When your faced with all the hormonal issues you have going on that can stem weight loss, trust me I know from personal experience!! As of my last fill I find myself finally in that Greenzone where I am not looking for food, and most times don't even think about needing to eat. I am at 7.5 in a 10cc band but the volume to reach that zone is different for everyone. Some never need a fill, and others like me it's taken quite a bit to get there. Keep chugging away cause your numbers are going in the right direction and they are not going back!!!

Let me first say that I am sorry to hear about your Dad. Losing a parent is never easy. You are in the right place for support, so welcome! There are many here who are different phases of their journey, they are wonderful supportive and inspiring people. My advice to you, is what I rely on when I hit bumps in the road. I take it back to basics. If you have not checked in with your Dr. for a while make an appointment with them and check in on the status of your band and fill level. If you need an adjustment get one. Do the 5 day pouch test, you can find it online by searching. It's basically going back to the pre-op/post-op liquid Protein phase. I will do a few days of liquids then mushy then solids making sure I am working my band mechanics the whole time. It helps me re-set my mind and body to get back on the bandwagon again. Stress is a very real thing and it affects us all in different ways, you have been through a lot in your personal and professional life over the last few months. So give your self some TLC and congrats on making it through nursing school!

For me when I had my band placed and plication surgery it did nothing to stem my hunger. 4 days after surgery I was starving and had to have my husband stop watching TV with commercials as I thought I could smell the pizza and hot wings through the TV and we were on liquids only! My husband on the other hand, had NO desire for food. Not to look at it or think about it. His appetite before surgery was enormous compared to mine and here we were post op and the opposite was true. As we have progressed through our journey I have had a few more fills then he has needed and our weight loss has been pretty much the same rate of loss. As of this last fill I believe I am "finally" in the green zone, though I am filled to nearly 7.5 in a 10CC band. I say that I believe I am in the green zone now finally because as of this fill I no longer have that feeling of "hunger". There are times when I simply do not have the need or want to eat. I did not have that before I would always have a "need" to want to eat about 2 hours after having my last bite of something. Now when I eat I am satisfied on a small portion and I can walk away, again something that till now I did not have. There are days when I am "very" hungry and my body tells me that it's hungry and needs fuel, not my brain. In this I mean that I will start to feel weak or have a headache and I know that I have not given my body what it needs to function as it should. The signs are very subtle, I'm not starving myself when I can I make sure to eat those 3 meals a day to get the nutrition and Protein in. Today is a great example...I was not "hungry" for lunch. I didn't want to get up and go get it and eat it. As I sat here working my head started to pulse and a headache was brewing. So I got up and went to the cafe, got a cup of turkey and black bean chilli and now I feel great! My body was needing something, and to sit and not feed it would be to suffer the consequences of what could become a very real migraine in a matter of minutes. So I listen to all the signals my body puts out, and when it comes to eating I give it the best most nutritious choice I can make and keep the portion under control. To me that's what living in the Green Zone feels like....

Congrats! Beautiful!!!

Sometimes when I gulp too fast or swallow something hot too fast I get that feeling and it's hard to burp out that stuck air. Standing up or walking around usually helps me.

That was one big mistake I made from the beginning I never took my measurements and wish I had. I know that I am losing inches even when the scale doesn't move as my clothes start to fall off

What mrsto said is correct give your doc a call. Seems like things are not going down all the way and/or coming back up. I love the hairball reference though!

Ah...yes I have those days too though it's not necessarily from medication but from stress. Here is a funny story...well a couple of them at my husbands expense poor guy! First is a related Vicodine story. Hubby has really bad hips (needs to have them replaced) so the doctor gave him Vicodine for pain, his oral surgeon also gave him Tylenol with codine for pain (aka Vicodine) for tooth extraction. Each bottle had a different medication name, so hubby having just had oral surgery took the meds the doctors had given him. (both were low dose thank God!) After about 10 minutes of talking to me he started sounding like an Indian at a Pow-Wow...A heya heya heya hey...he repeated on a loop in a chanting manor while bopping up and down on the bed. I couldn't help myself I started laughing my face off so he started laughing and we were both crying from laughing in a few minutes. (I called the doc to be sure he would be OK and the doc said yes just let him sleep it off and don't do that again.) He never did that again but we often laugh about it. Second story: When Hubby came out of surgery after getting his band he was screaming and yelling that they cut off his leg. The nurses and doctor came rushing into the waiting room to find me because no matter how much they tried to reassure him that both his legs were still there he would not stop yelling at them for cutting off his leg! I had just had band surgery 3 days prior so they didn't want me to be in the recovery room until he was "stable", but they had no choice as he would not listen to anyone. He calmed down after I got there, as I pulled the sheet back and asked him what do you see, and he said "my feet". I said so that proves that both your legs are right where they should be, and no one cut your leg off and took it away. Medication can make us all a little loopy sometimes. I'm happy to say we are both doing great and I have not seen the One Legged Indian since surgery

PT if that happened to me I would be in BIG trouble with this darn weather we have been having on the East Coast this winter!! It is true my band is a bit tighter when I am in the cold, I am still able to get liquids down though and I'm grateful for that. In this icy weather I will have something warm to drink before my meal so that my stoma is relaxed and receptive. I would probably be in a panic if I could not swallow liquids. If your in the icy weather area's and you are having this same issue, I would totally consider a tiny (.2-.5) unfill until the weather warms up. Sometimes no matter where you go inside or out, that chill gets to ya. I know my bones were hurting those days when it was 6 degree's. There were some mornings I woke up to 1 degree temps...OMG I just gave myself the chills thinking about it

Sorry to hear about your troubles. Perhaps when you go in you might consider speaking with your surgeon about revision to another type of WLS surgery. There are certain compliance's with all surgeries that we have to take responsibility for, and we all need to work in compliance with the surgical procedure the surgeon and our health care team. I'm not saying that this is your fault. What I am saying is that it may be time for you to examine all the events and see where things may have failed for you and be honest about it with yourself this way no matter what the reasons where when you move forward you will be a bit more aware of where those area's are and perhaps be better able to navigate your way past them. I hope that everything works out well for you.

I can't imagine you are on clear liquids for the pre-op phase until closer to your date....Your going to still need some nutrition to keep you moving and satisfied especially before surgery. Taking it one day at a time is great advice. It's doable many of us here can attest to that! You can do it! Just follow your doctor and nutritionists advice and you will do great!

It is really important to get in all your Protein, even if you have to add it to your meals. When I wasn't getting enough I was losing hair and muscle and feeling very fatigued and weak. If your getting that in during the times when your hungry then your good. I will usually stick a Protein Bar or shake into the mix of eating for the day to ensure I get the protein, but I too will only eat when hungry unless I know I have not gotten the protein in then I'll mix up a shake or eat a protein bar.

I agree with Cheryl keep an eye on how your feeling. After my last fill I was OK, eating though less which was good and hunger was held at bay, then a week after I really felt the restriction tighten up and put me into the green zone. If I would have had any more Fluid put in at that fill I might have been too tight today. For me the initial fill doesn't do much, it's after a week or so that I feel it. Not saying this will be your experience just keep an eye on how your feeling and if liquids are not going down give your doctor a call and let them advise you. Welcome to the green zone!

Give your insurance company a call and see if they will cover the cost of surgery. If they do not then call the surgeon and ask them what their cost is and what terms you might be able to come up with to help offset the cost as you need to. The cost can vary, especially if you are going to revise the surgery, or have the band replaced. Best place for that info is directly from the surgeon/hospital and/or bariatric group. Good luck.

Congrats on your date! Is your doctor telling you to be on clear liquids only? Pre-op or post op?

I know the band issue is the priority here...but OMG 10 inches of snow! Please tell me you are not in the NY area!!! If you can try to get to the Dr. on your lunch break or leave a bit early from work. There are some that might say to wait it out but if you can't get liquids down I would not want to wait especially if you get snowed in later in the day...week.... Take care and be safe in the pending snow!!!

It could be something that you ate that did not agree with you. That happens to me sometimes, I have way too many food sensitivities and sometimes I will eat something that will leave me feeling bloated or full of gas and ick for a day or two. When I feel that I way I will go back to basics and give my band and my belly a break. Soon enough my system gets back on track and I mark that food as sensitive. Mushrooms, Broccoli, Cabbage and Kidney Beans are on my list thus far. Mushrooms, and beans were an issue for me even before banding. Broccoli and Cabbage are new additions, for some reason they do not want to digest without causing horrible gas discomfort for days.