Bandista

Thanks for that @@VSGAnn2014 -- and @@JustWatchMe for another thought-provoking post......Let's Talk About Me hopefully gives us all the reminder that we are not alone in our struggles. I love reading these posts.

Great article -- just forwarded around to some friends. Love having learned so much about the Vagus nerve system because of having WLS. And so much more to discover with science making strides at last. I experience anxiety at times and, while I get it that this guy is not recommending every one go out and get pro-biotics, I am going to start mixing up my lacto-bacilli with differing yogurt combos and some supplementation (Lest I be one of the mice who figures out the swimming isn't worth it or I become a marble burier.)

Sorry, second post but I can't help myself. I think it is helpful having a second person in the room when seeing a specialist. Sometimes we don't hear everything the way it may have been intended. I still can't get over a doctor who is prohibiting exercise -- perhaps he (big leap there but I'm guessing) meant that whatever you were doing is too much pressure on the knees. There are so many kinds of exercises and a PT and/or sports medicine physician will get you there. A pain clinic is a good route for many people to cut through beaurocracy within a hospital system. And this guy is recommending you lose weight but that you have your band out so you can take NSAIDs? All of us here had WLS because we needed assistance -- dieting was not successful or obviously we would not have undergone surgery. Keep at your weight loss plan, you are getting there. Keep all your appointments with your bariatric doctor; that is key to success with the band. Once I hit the green zone I started to drop and feel more energy and momentum. You can do this! Choose yourself first. Every one else will benefit but this is your time. I wish I had had the opportunity to grab on to my health twenty years ago but I'm so grateful I can do it now.

Like you I had early-onset osteoarthritis -- now twenty years later (I am in my fifties) I am still coping with pain. Joint replacement has never been discussed. I have not responded well to the many oral medications I've tried, but I know a lot of people who have. I use Voltaren religiously and Lidocaine patches as necessary (would need a suit made of them, lol). What works well for me is exercise. I have seen so many medical professionals over the years and there is not one who has ever said don't exercise. On the contrary, it's move it or lose it. I am so stiff and of course it hurts but once I get going -- really going -- there is so much benefit. We have a hot tub. I don't think I could do without it at this point. There is at this point in time so much we don't know about inflammation and joint disease. You are young and there will be a lot of scientific break-through in the coming years. You made the decision to choose yourself and your healthy future when you got WLS. Don't let one doctor's negativity get you down. I'm not a huge fan of western medicine. I dip in to get what I need but I also do a lot of research in my own and use natural remedies. Osteoarthritis can be painful but life is short and we are in charge of our own bodies. Finding a doctor who can really help is key to living a full life, enjoying your children, being able to move freely. Don't get discouraged but do be your own advocate. Best wishes to you!

This is such a timely post for me. I am, I think, 20-30 from goal (still not sure what goal is but somewhere in there seems reasonable for a 5'7" frame). The truth is I have no idea where I'll feel comfortable and finished with losing. Meanwhile, I am so happy with what I have lost that I also stopped losing and even gained several back. But it's not complacency; it's much deeper than that. There is a "don't look at me, don't look at me" voice inside, leftover, obviously from all those years of feeling embarrassed about my weight. Since dropping weight I have received uncomfortable attention and have been trying to sort through that (my boss, so some one with financial power over me), but it's not just that. I am enjoying how much more "normal" I feel and how my introversion over the years is now shifting and I am so much more at ease out in the world. I like to dress up and have fun, talk to strangers and laugh loudly (actually despite being one of those very soft spoken people I have always had a really big laugh, which should be a clue that I was just hiding before and the real me, the laughing one, doesn't mind being out there, quirky, funny and enjoying herself). On biology, I'm adopted and when I met my birth family I immediately understood that not only was my weight gain due to personal issues in my life but clearly genetics played a big role, eeek. Lately I have thought that I may have put myself on pause because I wanted to let not only myself but the people around me and new people in my life catch up with where I am, who I am, how I look at this point in my life. Not 70 pound heavier me, and not 100 pound lighter me, the "me" now. But I am not yet where I want to be and I know that. I am enjoying being able to buy a size 12 suit off the rack and just go to Maine and out it in and look/feel fine. What? But I still have a paunch -- not the Mrs. Winnie-the-Pooh of yore but a belly. I want that gone. And I want to wear the size 10 linen pants I greedily scooped up at a sale and out in my closet as motivation (one pair in purple, one in red -- nice and long so no high waters but they are way too tight), I want to be able to stretch and bend with less stuff in the way. I have arthritis and still hold out hope that less weight on my frame will mean less pain. I wrote myself a letter to be opened at goal and I want to see what I wrote then. It was a thank-you letter. Maybe I will go back to my posts here and see what I wrote two years ago at this time while I was waiting to go to the mandatory information session and start my process. I will be two years out in November and would like to start next winter at goal. I'd like to be someone who can monitor a small gain and catch it. Right now being some one with 20-30 to lose feels like such a luxury, especially in our society where people are heavier and heavier, but I want to take it to the next stage. By now I know how to do it. My dimmed appetite allows me to have a regime which before I coukd do but it was so hard I woukd bounce right back afterward. This my third day of a fast. I'm doing it to try to clear out congestion in my joints and see if I can identify any triggers for the increased inflammation of late (probably more related to the barometer; will it ever stop raining?). But I'm also doing it to get on course. I tend to gravitate toward grazing. An ongoing wine and cheese party is not doing my waistline any favors. So a fast nips that in the bud. I like the idea of intermittent fasting -- a couple of days a week. It simplifies things for me and I think I have he right body type for it. So here I am at day three about to do the Epsom routine with olive oil and grapefruit tonight. It's hard core but I gravitate in that direction and realize I need to do that for my health. A liver cleanse, like the French (back to wine and cheese party issues). I don't know how long I will go. I have done three weeks in the past and it wasn't that long ago I was in pre-op liver shrinking mode for the surgery. I've recently increased my exercise, although mine is walking outdoors so the rain harshes that groove. Still, when I work out I am working so much harder now. My body likes/needs that. So now the brain needs to be on board. No secret folds of self-sabotage -- everything out in the open. If being thinner makes me anxious, what is that about? No longer being able to tamp down anxiety with food means that any anxiety (and there is plenty) is coming to the surface. Well that's good,I'm guess, though it can be messy. We had to pull over the car on the way home from the coast as I was so anxious. Fortunately my new remedy for that is walking it off, not eating it down. So, a therapist? Probably a good idea! I saw one to prep for the WLS surgery and for a little while after while I found my way. Maybe time for another round. But meanwhile very thankful for this place where I can tap out my thoughts freely, knowing that there are people who so get it. Thank you!

Go Nikki! So exciting. You are doing beautifully. Isn't it great! I love having the appetite monster off of my back so I can make good choices, it feels so good. Est wishes to you for this next 70. We can do it!

Lisa, love the pix! Looks like a great way to spend Father's Day.

5K, yippee! Way to go....I find when I am overwhelmed with stress that walking helps so much. Grateful not to be tamping them down with food anymore. You are a beautiful person and wonderful mother -- it really sucks that you have to go through this, but it will come to an end. The main thing is the three of you are no longer in his clutches. You're free. The rest is paperwork and you are showing up for all of that just like you showed up for yourself and your girls. It will come to an end. Think about Italy -- that's what I do when I need an escape hatch. Transport yourself to your favorite piazza and draw on those memories. Pat yourself on the back for everything you've accomplished in this last year. You are amazing!

Thanks for reposting this, @@Letsgetskinny -- like you, I got so much out of this. Best wishes to you!

@@Maddiee congratulations! I got so much support here on the forum from people who had been through the same thing -- all those years of failed diets had made me feel very vulnerable and embarrassed about my inability to lose weight. Now that I've lost a big chunk of weight I feel so much more at ease in the world. I'm finding it much easier to just be mysekf and not give a hoot what others think. Best wishes to you -- keep us posted!

Hi there, getting banded was a big decision and the best I could have made for myself. I never considered anything more drastic -- at 52 I had never been an overnight patient in a hospital before and I am some one who tends toward natural medicine. For me, the band has not posed any difficulties. I still love food, just in small amounts at appropriate intervals. I don't diet, per se, I just make good choices. Because if the band I am able to have a bit of something without triggering the impulse to finish that and then go find something else. I have satiety and that is so great, having the appetite monster off my back. If I wasn't so fond of wine and cheese I would be at goal now, but I'm happy taking it a bit more slowly now that I'm in normal range. We are on vacation and I needed a new bathing suit. Because my size 20 suit could fit two of me. I went into a job lots, pulled a 12 off the rack and it fits perfectly. It's a beautiful thing. Any one who is considering the band may benefit from the links below in my signature. I must have read the Dr. Simpson a hundred times to get it through my head that the band is not about restriction. And the Golden Rules helped me once banded to really understand how it works. It's all about the chewing and swallowing providing signals for satiety. Pretty fascinating. Good luck to you. Whatever you decide, the main thing is you are choosing yourself and your healthy future. Way to go!

My surgeon was of the small frequent fills school of thought. I got my first one a month out then went back each week for, I think, three more. Then I was good for a while. In retrospect I really needed that time to address the behavior modification -- I was a very fast eater and needed to learn how to slow down. Also my body's signals. Turns out hunger is not my enemy. It's healthy! What? I know, crazy talk, but it's true. These days I welcome hunger and I love satiety. The ability to be finished rather than not being able to stop. It's beautiful having the appetite dimmed. You will get there! Keep all your appointments. Keep noticing everything. And keep in touch. Best wishes.

My insurance company had only one requirement, a BMI of 40, no exceptions even for co-morbidities like high bp, etc. I was close to that, so, irony of ironies, I had to be careful not to lose too much before my paperwork was submitted. Just bringing this up in case you have something similar. As for age, I wish this had been available to me at your age. The creeping on of weight over time took me up ten pounds at a time. Sure does add up. I would have loved to have been healthier and less self-conscious all those years. Good luck to you. I love my band and how I feel now.

For me weight loss surgery was really about choosing myself and putting my needs first. This was something of a shock, not only to me but to the people around me. Your brother may be afraid he's going to lose you -- maybe a little reassurance, "no matter how much weight I lose, I'll still be your sister and you'll always be my pain in the %# brother." Meanwhile, pat yourself on the back. You are doing beautifully!

Congratulations! Better start practicing your dance moves..... There are a few things I gave away years ago that I'd love to have back now. I'm starting over with shopping -- so happy when I find something at a thrift store. Have a wonderful time at your daughter's wedding! Lots to Celebrate, including your health.

You are almost in Onederland, yippee! Sounds like you are doing beautifully and really learning how your body and band work together. If it were me I wouldn't want to get too tight and risk the red zone, but every one is different. I have had several fills and also two small unfills in-between -- now it's been many months and I probably need a fill again, or at least a visit with the surgeon to assess that. I find it a little tricky when I'm so close, but I'd rather have a little less than too much. Best wishes to you -- you're doing great!

Congratulations new Banders! The walking helped me so much from the get-go......hope you're both doing well today and excited about everything that is ahead. It's a process but I loved every minute of it -- getting my appetite dimmed was the best decision ever. Out of food jail!

Be careful about replacing eating with drinking and smoking -- this is called transference. It may be helpful to work with a therapist to discuss food addiction, triggers and the feeling of having given something up and what that means. I benefitted from working with some one to break down my behaviors around food. I used food for various things -- mostly tamping down emotions. Now I experience them and they are not so bad. Don't drink and smoke to make yourself feel better. So many side-effects and you did not have this surgery just to be thinner, did you? Hopefully you did it to be able to get healthy and have a healthy future. You can do it but don't get started with bad choices and substitutions,

Congratulations on your upcoming surgeries -- life-changing. For me it was about choosing myself and my healthy future, putting myself first. Turns out every one else benefits but the main thing is I am centered and happy with my new body. The pre-op diet was hardest the first few days so both if you are doing well. Great to be as healthy as possible for the surgery and for me, those pounds lost were the first ones I knew I'd never be seeing again (unlike all those diets). Best wishes! Oh, I should say I was really happy I upped my exercise during this time. I didn't want to but I did. I just walked, a little further each time, and this gave me something to step into, literally, right after I woke up from surgery. Impress those nurses with your hall-walking! And meanwhile, for now, it will help with nervous energy and clearing out toxins.

Hi there and welcome. I am some one that needed several fills to reach the green zone. You can do this!

Hi there, I don't have all my stats but I have lost 75 since November 2013 without dieting. I make good choices and enjoy having my appetite dimmed. My band is not tight -- I should probably get a fill to address these last 20-30 pounds. For me, this has not been a difficult journey.

Hi there, no California connections but I just wanted to say how great it is to hear from long-term banders. We have very similar stats...... Enjoy that new baby and good luck finding the right place for fills. Bet it's easier in LA than here in New Hampshire!

Sorry for typos -- can't edit on my iPad.

Hi there, do not despair -- you are in Bandster Hell. You've had your surgery but have not had fills to dim your appetite. Don't worry, hang on, you will get there! Pay attention to everything -- this time is all about listening to your body. Try to nail your triggers down and "be" with your cravings. This will help you as you work with your doctor to get the folks you need to have the band working properly. Meanwhile kat yourself in the back for all you're doing -- don't beat yourself up. Make good choices and know that the band, properly adjusted, will help you do just that. For now you need to suck it up and do it on your own but it won't always be this way. Put those medical professionals to work! I had my first fill at one month out and am some one who needed several to get to the green zone.

Hi there, congratulations on your surgery. I remember everything felt so weird in the beginning. The incisional discomfort was better each day for me and the walking really helped -- I walked and walked and now I am a walker. One thing I had trouble with oisr-surgery was constipation. Even though I didn't take pain medication I still had to address this issue at 4-5 days out or so. Don't hesitate to call your doctor's office -- that's what they are there for!