lisacaron

When I was banded I was given a pamphlet of information from Allergen about registering the band. It was supposed to be a "support" site in case you had any issues with the band. I sent in the card, they sent it back to me because we didn't fill out what size band we had. So I filled them out again and sent them back. Then I called and registered and they were supposed to send a card in the mail for travel since you have this "appliance" in you now, and it will show up on body scans. Kind of like an ID card, but I never heard from them again or received any information, it's been over 5 months now.

You are so right the band is a big help, but the mental struggles we face are tough ones to over come. Set myself up today by bringing in some vegie chips from my son's birthday party yesterday! Baaad. I should just eat the salad I put away..but no snacking on the vegie chips!

Awesome good luck with everything Rosemary and keep us up to date on how your doing!

Gah! I used to have a mother in law that would tell me your a pretty girl if only you weren't a Gordita! Her way of telling me in Spanish that I was fat! She used to be my mother in law...and since being happily divorced and remarried, now she only wishes she still had my awesome self to call daughter in law My Mother in law...can be Mrs. Negative on a stick waving high above all the others and louder then a bullhorn, but I will say she is always nice to me and treads softly now where hubby is concerned for fear of alienation. I/We no longer tolerate negative comments. Constructive criticism I can learn from, negative degrading comments get kicked to the door. Laid that foundation early in the relationship, so they know where they stand with me. I don't pull punches. My Mamma told me if you don't have anything nice to say don't say anything at all, but if your looking good..and feeling good then flaunt it and live it up!

I have had that same issue. I even called them up and did it over the phone...and NOTHING. No info...just alot of nada.

Hi friend! So the biggest test for hubby and I after our bands was we had a HUGE event for my nieces communion! It was about 2.5 weeks out from our surgery date and we were just moving to mushy foods. As you know there are all kinds of appetizers and Pasta and salads etc that come with one of those sit down affairs. So while the cocktails and appetizers were circling the hubby and I had our sweet tea mio mixed into nice tumblers with swords and ice cubes the bar tender was so happy to comply. We socialized and chatted through the salad, and then gave the pasta dish to the kids. When the dinner was ordered, even though my father's girlfriend offered to take our dinners home to her "friends" (didn't love that comment too much) we ordered the fish dinner which we were able to mash up to a mushy consistency with our forks and we ate and enjoyed the event like everyone else. I go out to eat ALL the time! I'm always working or having to attend one function or another lunches or dinners. I order from the menu like everyone else. Some places know I"m coming and bring me a to go cup for my drink which is usually UN-sweetened ice tea. I don't hesitate to order steak or chicken, always grilled and lean. Fish is always an excellent choice as well as Western or Spinach omelet. I am careful while I eat, and I allow my guests to speak while I chew. I try to put my fork down and wait to swallow before taking the next bite and if I need to speak I stop eating and do so. I find that doing those together do not work for me. If there is food left on my plate I ask to have it wrapped but I don't separate the food first so as not to appear rude depending on the company I am in. I am careful to eat only what I am hungry for and to stop when I am full. Don't be afraid to eat out, just follow all your band mechanics of eating and your fantasy's will come true!! I love the band it's my life time partner now :wub:

Congrats to you! Glad your feeling better and welcome to bandland!

Looking good feeling good it's the band life for me!

Hi Ann, I can understand where you are coming from. This last weekend I was at an after funeral "party" for lack of a better word there.It was a big affair, akin to some weddings. There was food galore, and as each new plate came to the table I thought I really can't wait to dig into that! Then I took a bite, and that was enough. The band would not allow me to eat all that my eyes saw, and my mind wanted to eat. I was sad, I was stressed, I was overwhelmed by the last couple of weeks and I really wanted to stress eat! The band would not allow that. I was grateful and resentful at that same time. Grateful because I know it's the right thing for my body and my health and resentful because I was floundering and lost! What would I use to sooth my shattered emotions? I couldn't use the food, so I turned to the people at my table and my husband and we talked and shared and laughed and cried and it worked but I miss that old coping strategy, and let me tell you the food was to die for...even just the one or two bites I was able to eat of each thing so I understand how you feel. Try not to beat yourself up, and after this slip...when your back on the bandwagon try to explore some other coping strategies to turn to when you need them vs. the food. I'm still working on that because I know if that band wasn't there the other day I would have ate myself under the table. I've been experimenting with chewing gum..though some don't appreciate the bubble popping as much as I do

My surgeon also starts you out with nothing in the bad but a primer fill and then small increases every month or so. I know this doesn't sound ideal, we all want to lose weight over night, but it didn't take overnight for us to gain it and we have to remember that. We chose this surgery because it did not rearrange our digestive tract and is not mal-absorptive like some of the other surgeries out there. I liked the fact that I moved slowly to find my green zone, and honestly I am not even there yet. Let me explain why... During the time from my surgery to my first fill my body was healing. The swelling was going down and my band was finding it's seat around my stomach. Yes it was stitched in place, but waiting the 6-8 weeks gave it a chance to full heal and seat itself adding a bit of extra prevention against a slip. After my first fill, I was grateful for the 4 weeks of learning and putting into practice those eating mechanics that are so necessary to band eating. I was able to eat more then that cup of food, and my weight loss was not and is not rapid, but I learned how to eat. Each month after that I was able to learn something else, sometimes learning what NOT to do. What foods not to eat and how eating too fast, drinking with my meals, and/or not chewing my food well enough can cause me discomfort. I was glad to learn all that with some wiggle room in my band, so I was not having a violent lesson or un-seating my band causing a slip if I were to get sick from making a bad choice or mis-step. In fact I have never thrown up, I have never gotten anything "stuck" though I have had that pressure, and that uncomfortable feeling more then once it was all able to pass thank goodness and I learned from that what to do and what not to do as my band got tighter. Work with your surgeon's office don't strong arm them to give you fills you want them work with them to get them as you need them and so you can learn to live with your band. It's yours for the rest of your life, so use the courting phase to get to know each other well. It's a marathon not a sprint. The weight will come off, but it's going to take work and patients. Trust me I'm still working on mine

Same here, I take the Biotin, and I use Nixon for shampoo and conditioner make sure to get my Protein in daily and I have noticed a slow down of hair fall and lots of new growth coming in!! Try the best you can not to stress about it, stress only makes the situation worse I have found....but I haven't found the remedy for that one yet

I'm going to have to try and start using mine. I am always so pressed for time in the mornings. All my kids are grown, if only they would all move out of my house! Getting the two youngest off to college in the morning neither has a car yet, and myself off to work leaves little to no time for more then coffee. I usually don't eat until I well settled at my desk, which is about 3 hours after I get up in the morning. (I am NOT a morning person.) I'd like to change that, but no luck so far I watched my sister in law mix up a shake for my niece, not a good suggestion for me..(she put oreo's in it) but it did show me how really easy it is to use. Mine just decorates my kitchen counter. (I know I'm bad!)

I love that idea!!! Don't do anything to hurt them Your a gem and deserve one for all your hard work and love of your family!

Welcome to bandland!!! Hope you have a smooth recovery!

Go for it girl! Get it re sized and then do it again when your at goal! Or even again if you need to. My husband and I had the same problem, and have both had our rings re sized once already and we haven't hit the 50 pound mark just yet. I love my jewelry and paid lots of $ to enjoy them, usually sizing down is not as much money has having to add and size up. So go for it girl and sell the hunk of gold back to the jeweler for the cost of the sizing and resetting of the diamond. Or save it and make a pinky ring from it later!!

Yes, I was told by my Nutritionist that it was not good. That we should be eating solid foods for the band to work properly. Maybe because of the level of restriction? I do notice when I drink rather then eat or have mushy foods rather then solids they do tend to slip right through and I'm hungry sooner rather then later.

B-52 what do you make in your Vitamix? I have one also..and I never use it. Spent all that $ cause my sister in law said I really needed to get it, but...I just don't use it much at all.

Looking great Lizzie! Keep up the good work!

I had a bad respiratory infection and I was coughing quite a lot day and night. I pushed my fill date back by a couple of weeks at the advice of my PCP who said that having that type of infection could make my band feel tighter even without adding more fill to it. Might be worth having a bit removed until you are feeling 100% better and then if it's not green for you then put some back in. Hope you Feel better soon!!!

Jiffy Pop! I love it CG!!! No heating required

That's good to know about the coding. What I meant was more the "reason" for the band. If they used a gastro to say that it was necessary in addition to the weight issue and any other co-morbidity. If it's excluded for only weight but not for a medical necessity. There are procedures out there now in gastroenterology that place a ring similar to lapband but a metallic kind of spring, to help with digestive issues, I myself have those digestive issues and the lapband is serving a duo purpose for me, even though I did not have any such employer exclusion on my UNHC policy. I would never ask anyone or suggest to anyone that they commit fraud but to see if there are other avenues that can be explored to go around the exclusion.

I used Premier Protein at 30 grams of protein it helps hold your hunger at bay for a longer period of time and the calories are lower as well as sugar content. The flavor was good, I did not like the muscle milk light it had a strange after taste. You can do it! In between shakes try drinking your Water, and see if you can have some sugar free ice pops they count as water but give you that bite and crunch. Good luck! You can do it!

Are you sure you need to be banded? If I could make any of those moves, I'd leave the band alone In any event, it shouldn't affect your insides, and that's where the band is. The port is another story it's right below the skin surface, so just be careful when it comes to the location of where your port is and you should be fine. Rock on girl!