luvinke

Welcome Linda, I'm sorry to hear you have been down but that's a small part of the process. We have to get use to our new lifestyles and it may take some longer than others hence the weightloss. Once you are banded you do have restriction (think about) it may not be restricted to the point where you eat 4 ounces of food but you wouldnot survive at a buffet. Remember the band may not have any saline in it but it is around our stomach so we do have some restriction maybe not to the junk food (which we need to leave alone) but it's there. You have to get use to the band, learn to listen to the band and your stomach in order to know when you've had enough to eat. I am a slow loser too but guess what, I haven't gained any weight and I feel great. I am now starting to lose more frequently but that because I'm eating healthier and exercising (see I've just started working out). I now realize that with my body type because I've been eating healthy for the last 3 years or more with the occassional junk or takeout but my body requires exercise. I am to the point where I actually like to exercise now. I've had either 3 or 4 fills, I can't remember but I think its 3 and I can now honestly say that I can't consume over 4 ounces, if I can eat 4 ounces. The key for me is to measure my food and use those small bread plates for my meals along with children's plastic ware to help me eat less. It's okay to be a slow loser (we have our own thread on this site - check us out). Join our summer/independence day weight loss challenge to give yourself that push-it might just help, I know I enjoy it. Continue to surf the site as many of us go thru similar situations. I hope everything works out for you. Work on trusting your band and yourself and you will do great. Best of luck to you!

Congratulations Jen! I'm sorry to hear that you are feeling bad. Are you having gas pains or are you just sore from the surgery. I don't really know what to tell you as I only experienced the gas pains and they weren't that bad, I simply walked around a lot and kept a heating pad on it when I layed down which I was told helped me to escape the pain. As for pain meds I didn't use any of those but the Doctor told me to buy Liquid Tylenol just in case and I was able to find that at CVS Pharmacy. I'm sure everything will be okay, just remember the good (band/weight loss) will out weigh the bad (pain). Keep us posted on your progress.

Welcome Shelly! I would totally do it all over again. I love my band and can't imagine life without since I have it. It is a great tool. We have to do our part in order for the band to work. Do your reserch, check out this site, people ask different questions everyday and everybody helps everybody here, this is a great support group. Best of Luck to you!

I'm staying on plan today because its the only way for me to achieve weightloss success. I can see a rainbow!

Wow Gillie that must be some type of drink. I would probably say treat yourself to it once a month as a special treat only if you have lost a couple of pounds during that month as I can have 2 meals and a snack for that amount of calories. I agree with a couple of other people that said try to drink half of it to cut the amount of calories. In the end the decision is yours to make just think healthy when you do. Good Luck!

Hello BabyCat, I'm just checking on you. I hope all is well! Let me know how you're doing.

Thanks, I just signed up. Good Luck!

Thanks minpin for the recipe, I just made a copy of this one. I think I'm going to check out some of the recipes on this site and tape them to some index cards.

I love them too, they smooth me out especially in white so that my legs don't look like mashed potatoes. They also give me a little tummy control which it never hurts to have. I just wish I can find a shorter pair for my petite frame. The regular short ones fit me like capri's.

I will like to suggest that you attend a WLS seminar in your area. In those seminars they discuss all 3 surgeries (Lapband,Bypass and RNY) to determine which may be best for you. They will also help you locate a surgeon in your area and you can then talk to them and discuss your options. I haven't heard anything about this Doctor you mentioned but based on all the responses you received I will say he sounds like a quack. Do your research, weigh your options and then make a decision that you can live with. I love my band and would do it all over again if I had to. I am losing weight slowly but that's what I wanted. Everyday delivers something new for me. I love my lapband family here on this site. We all look out for one another, we help each other through the good and the bad times, we encourage one another and basically I don't think we could ask for more. This site has a great group of people, there are threads on here where people seek advice about the different surgeries and get great responses you may want to check them out. Just remember that this is your life, the decision you make will have a life long impact on you. Be smart in your choices, take your time. Best of luck to you! I hope everything works out.

Welcome Maeven! You are on your way to an exciting part of life. You can get help with any question about the band here on this site. The people here are friendly and you will find that someone else has experienced whatever it is that you may be going through. Everybody helps one another on this site and we are a family. Best of luck!

I'm staying on plan today because that's the only way I will be able to feel thin again. I can't wait to lose weight so I've got to keep on moving that scale down.

My husband and sister told me on yesterday that they can see my collar bone, now that has been covered under fat for years. I feel so good hearing that I just can't stop smiling. People are really starting to notice.

I'm staying on plan today because that's the only way I will lose weight. I've got to look good in my bathing suit when I go on my cruise.

Welcome all, let's have fun!

I'm sorry BabyCat that you had to go to the hospital! I wish you well. Rest assured that you will do fine with your diet until you can get a fill, remember that everything happens for a reason. I'm glad that you feel better. We do have to remember to take care of ourselves. I'm doing a lot better as I had to learn how to deal with restriction because I'm not using to having any. I'm not getting sick anymore, I have learned to recognize when I've had enough to eat. I tried to eat a hotdog off the grill last night and could only eat half before I got the full feeling so I was proud of that. BabyCat I am going to remember what you said because I do not like to be in the hospital and will do anything in my power to avoid having to go even if it means having an unfill. Hopefully this one will last me for a while and I want have to go in for another one for some time. Thanks for sharing. You take care of yourself and remember that if you need us we are here for you. Check back in and keep me updated on your progress. You will do just fine.

I'm staying on plan today because I feel Great! I have great restriction and can't eat more than 4 ounces so the weight is now coming off...

Congrats Denise! I'm so happy for you! I've got a long way to go but you are my inspiration. Thanks for everything. I'll catch you on another thread. I'm sure you will be around here. Try the merry losers thread.

I too had my hernia repaired during my surgery and it didn't bother me at all. I didn't know I had a hernia until after my surgery that's when my Doctor discovered it and I too signed a statement that gave them permission to repair it if needed during the surgical procedure. So rest assured that if it is there and poses a problem as long as you signed a release your surgeon will repair it.

Yippee, I've got another NSV today! This is my second one, I'm to excited. I went to the store yesterday and was walking past the Juniors Department, they had all these beautiful bright spring/summer colors so I started browsing. Low and behold I ended up buying 3 sundress and a tube top all size XL (Juniors). Talk about feeling great I'm on cloud nine. To me it means I will soon be out of the plus size for good. Granted everything had a little elastic but I'm on my way.

Hello Everyone! I'm doing much better today. I am getting the hang of this restriction now. I know that once I'm full off of my meal I shouldn't try to eat anything else only my real meals because if I do that's when the problem comes I guess one would call this eating around the band. I'm doing strictly 3 meals a day and maybe one snack. I'm still waiting to be able to get my Water down a little better but I'm not going to complain. This time when I got the fill it was in the office so I had to drink water instead of the barium. I felt better in the office and the 2 days after when I went to musy but the next day was the pits. The scale is moving in the right direction so I'm not going to complain.

I'm staying on plan today because the scale is moving in the right direction. I feel slim even if I'm not so that's enough to keep me focused.

Welcome everyone! Let's get this weight loss started. We all agree to start our lost column at Zero as we will change it once we start losing starting today. Let's go for those bathing suits! We can do it! Smoking hot bodies here we come!!!!

I too was a smoker but once I got my anticipated surgery date (you know the fake date) I decided to quit. I started by taking only 2 cigs with me to work daily for about 3 days and then decided that I didn't want to smoke them at all and that I would have to do it for my health. Each time I got the craving to smoke I thought about getting the band and thought about how much it meant to me along with a daily prayer maybe even two prayers a day as needed and that was enough. I had also gotten to the point where I wanted to jog daily while I walked the track and smoking the cigs just didn't fit into the equation. Here I am 15 months later and a non smoker. Mind you all my close family members smoke including my husband and we are all amazed at how I haven't had the urge to even pull on anybodies cigs. Granted my family doesn't know about my WLS but still it's an acomplishment. Just remember it gets easier. You can do it!

Welcome Ladies, I meant to start my weight loss over with 0 pounds lost so I corrected my scores. We can do this.....Summer Bodies on the way!! Name........................Current.......Goal....... Lost.......Still to Lose luvinke.........................217............190.............0....... .. ............27 Leslie2Lose................233............160..........24.....__...... 25 (by 7/4) kathystrick..................318..............288............0.......................30