make33

Ditto to what everyone else said!! DO NOT BOWL--DO NOT EVEN ENTERTAIN THE IDEA OF BOWLING! Even when your stitches on the outside look like they're healing, there's still a ton of healing going on INSIDE! I was told I couldn't lift more than 10# for four weeks (went back to Curves then) and waited for seven weeks to go back to the YMCA and even then I was very very SORE after working out. Please do us a favor and get a sub so we don't have to worry about you...:shades_smile:

By the time I was 38, I was in full blown menopause (hysterectomy at age 35)!! I had severe mood swings and sometimes had these "black" moods that I just couldn't pull myself out of....scary! And then I started on estrogen (the pill back then) and my life calmed down again. When the patch came out, I praised the Lord--and within the last couple of years had the gynecologist reduce the strength of the patch back, until about five months ago when I found I didn't need the estrogen anymore. (Had tried a few times in the last years, always to have the hot flashes and the hair growth!!) Now I'm finally free!! :shades_smile: Of course, it took me 22 years to GET FREE--but I feel great!! (Yes, I always thought menopause was a temporary phase we were supposed to go through:confused2: ) My best wishes to you--hang in there...

I'm always happy with a side or an appetizer--but then my hubby and I haven't been to a buffet since I got banded. It's a shame, but we've eliminated them from our "Go Out to Dinner" list... :shades_smile:

I saw a cardiologist and had an EKG--but also was then scheduled for a stress test at the hospital. Wow, that was wild! So you're on a severely inclined treadmill and your left arm is hooked up to an IV that's shooting solution into your veins and on the right arm is a blood pressure cuff--and a nurse. So when the nurse needs to pump up the blood pressure cuff, she makes you let go of the treadmill and hold onto her shoulder! What a ride!!! Luckily, I hit the max heart rate in no time (but my son had been on the treadmill for one half an hour and still couldn't get his heart rate up--had to go back for the other stress test, with drugs instead of a treadmill...) :shades_smile:

There's a gazillion flavors on the Internet and we all have very different tastes when it comes to these drinks--I always say try to find a site where you can buy samples or just one pound at a time to try (i.e. Amazon.com: Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, books, DVDs & more ). I totally agree with you regarding the canned shakes--they are good for one thing only: convenience! Other than that they taste tinny and nasty! I did buy a case of Zoic which I use in a pinch (for travel) and it actually tastes worse than Slim Fast--BUT it has less calories, fat and carbs and more Protein than Slim Fast. Give me the Protein powder any day--I mix my belgian chocolate up with Water and it tastes fabulous to me!! (from the above website--with free shipping) Again, everyone has their own tastes!

No, I don't think so. Signs of an infected port site would be a redness or swelling in the area and it would be hot to the touch. What I think, m'dear, is that you have the normal port pain. Long after the stitches have healed, you will continue to experience some soreness, especially when you pull in a certain direction--so don't let it surprise you... When I started working out again, I actually thought I got a hernia--and my surgeon laughed at me and said "Silly! That's your port!" Your port is sewn into abdominal muscles and will take a long time to heal--think it was about three months until those sudden pulling pains stopped...

Welcome to the crowd!! Every day I am in disbelief that this tool actually works! And when that scale continues to go down (even though there are plateaus to be dealt with), I am just simply amazed!! I swear I thought I didn't eat much more before banding (except when I sit back and really assess what I was eating) and the scale did nothing but gallop upward! I have no clue, but am so happy someone developed this to give us life again!!

I really appreciate the weekdays because I'm on a set schedule--the weekends are a killer because my hubby and I run constantly, so I'm doing the constant assessment as to where I am in the day and what I've had!! Weekdays are: B 7:00 AM L 12:00 PM D 5:30 PM Ebonie and Luluc, like you I have my Protein shake at about 3:00 PM just to make it through the afternoon. I also have a rough spot in the evening around 8:00, so I make up my 1/2 cup protein instant pudding and that will satiate me until bedtime!! :w00t:

Yes, that strong pressure can last as long as ten minutes with me--I just have to stand up and walk around or sometimes I can get away with just sitting back. With my third fill, I finally got real restriction (it only lasted two weeks, but it was great!)--so I am really looking forward to my fourth fill--and hopefully it will bring me close to the perfect place!! :w00t:

I would say definitely by all means, go with them. Don't make a big deal of it (even though you'll be somewhat nervous) but just order maybe a side salad and cottage cheese (I was allowed both in my pre-op diet--just NO SUGAR) and if they ask, tell them you're having hernia surgery and you have a special pre-op diet to follow. Just eat SLOWLY and you'll catch up with them and have no "down time" when you're looking at the rolls on the table!!! (This is what you'll do as a bandster!) I went out to dinner with my granddaughter a week before surgery and had to do the exact same thing (and she KNEW how much I loved to eat!). Just relax and have a good time with your friends!! :w00t:

That's the very best thing for you right now, Angie--is just to walk on the treadmill. Since today was the day, I'm betting you got maybe 10-15 minutes in on it! You can build up your time gradually--and hopefully you have a television close by the treadmill (I find it verrrrrrry boring without one!). Jeanie was right--it's too soon to begin ANYTHING ELSE! I was able to go back to Curves at four weeks and the YMCA with weight training at seven weeks (and totally had to reduce my weights then--it was four months until I had built back up to my original pre-op weight limits). My surgeon gave me a 10# weight limit for that first four weeks. If you have a Curves anywhere near you, why not try them in two weeks? You can get the first orientation visit free and you can see if you think you'll like it--I've belonged five years now and I find the comraderie with the other women wonderful--and the weights there are geared towards people our size. Good luck, Angie, in whatever you do!:confused:

Kevin and Kat made a good point--once a food gets stuck for the first time, you view that food in a whole new perspective!! I tell my hubby it's kind of like the dog they taught to salivate at the ringing of the bell: as soon as I see a food that's gotten "stuck" before, I want to avoid it like the plague! That being said, my whole life of eating has changed so much: from what I eat to when I eat and the biggest change has been that life will now revolve around YOU. You will be constantly assessing yourself during the day with "Did I get enough water", "Did I get enough Protein in", "Did I take my Vitamin / Calcium today", and it's so-o-o unlike the concentration we had on food prior to surgery, when we only thought "what can I have next that's good to eat??" We learn daily about this great tool and we adjust to its rules. You, too, will be fine--and next thing you know, you'll be advising the next new batch of bandsters!! :confused:

All my life I called myself 5'2"--even called myself 5'3" at one time! Come to find out at my Bariatric Center that I'm only 5.0"!! Now do you think it's that shrinkage / old age / gravity thing? Or is it a "Deceiving myself all along so I didn't seem so fat" kind or thing?? Doesn't it feel funny buying "Petites" in clothing, when in actuality I feel anything BUT Petite!! (Hel-l-l-o-o-o, humungous boobs and butt--nothing petite about that!!) Glad to see I'm not the only shorty in this forum, everyone!!

Bozzj, I had my pre-admissions testing done six days before surgery, so I'm sure the hospital or your Bariatric Center will call you beforehand. As for starting the pre-op diet, my surgery was originally scheduled for October 17th and at my final visit with the surgeon, he told me I had to start on the low carb soft diet on October 1st. If your surgeon doesn't require it and you want to get a jump start on your weight loss, you could start it like April 10th (and Easter will be over by then!!)... :thumbup:

My surgeon said no more than 10 pounds for at least four weeks. (Was able to go back to Curves in four weeks--but weight lifting at the YMCA had to wait until seven weeks and with lower weights). Sorry to be the bearer of bad news, but although your external stitches will seem healed, there's a ton of healing going on INSIDE that needs to finish... PS By that time, your child will be about a year old and hopefully, require less lifting for you...

AND although he lost all that weight, he still isn't a totally personable guy, you know what I mean? He's come out of his shell more but when he's on with celebrities, the celebrity's personality definitely outshines his! I DO believe he lost the weight eating Subway, but wasn't that a great marketing tool for them (regardless of his personality)!! They come out with some low fat subs and this commercial, and ba da bing--at the time, even I'M thinking about starting a Subway diet!

The whole idea behind the band is that we have our little "pouch" and then a stoma in between, which leads down to our great big tummies. At mealtime we fill the pouch with food, and we feel really full and satisfied. BUT if we drink, we wash down all the food we've put in the pouch through the stoma and it goes into our great big tummies. Therefore, we would never feel full, just like we did BEFORE the surgery. So the Band would become a moot point. In essence, we must wait until 45 minutes after a meal (by then the food is pretty well digested) and then we can drink. And I find that 45 minutes just flies by--no biggie!

Julie is right about the calories--and there is a thread poll here that asks how many calories a person is taking in daily. When my weight increased 2#, I panicked and went back onto my food Log for three weeks; (hadn't done one since being banded) and I was quite shocked that even with a Protein shake (100 calories) a day added, I was only eating 600-850 calories a day. However, I'm only 5 foot tall too--read a thread today and someone was talking about the body going into starvation mode with too few calories--but sorry, my brain simply will not let me add more calories to lose weight!! Your exercise seems appropriate (if not a day too much) but perhaps try going down to 1000 calories for two weeks and see if that makes a difference. And get a Protein Shake in now and then...

The best thing I do with unflavored whey protein isolate is to make instant pudding as a protein snack: Put two cups of cold skim milk into a bowl and add two scoops of unflavored protein and stir. Add 1 small box of fat free / sugar free instant pudding (my favs are chocolate fudge or butterscotch) and whip for 2 minutes. Each box will make four 1/2 cup servings and has approx 15 grams of protein (not counting the skim milk too), so I'll have one in the evening between dinner and bedtime. I've also read here that people add it to mashed potatoes, oatmeal and soups--but it must be less than 130 degrees or the protein will clump on you. Good luck with all that protein!

There are a lot of us who thought those exact things before surgery--wondering if it would really work for us. I worked out (and still do) four days a week, avoided fat at all cost, ate no beef, and could not lose a pound to save my life--but gain? Sure, I could gain all I wanted! I was very shocked when the weight started coming off and I still am--even when I hit a plateau, I am just amazed that the scales are actually NOT GOING UP, which is what I would expect with this body!! The biggest thing is to follow your surgeon and Bariatric Center's rules and all should go well for you!

Speaking of toxins leaving through the pores, I have been in and out of ketosis from just what you described: eating Protein and no carbs. The body seems to replace the glucose with ketones--I totally read up on it two weeks ago when I was last in it. Beware of bad breath and stinky urine also--side effect. The advise I got from other banders worked--I just added a few carbs back into my diet...

In the six months I was seeing a nutritionist until now I use Nutrition facts, calories in food, labels, nutritional information and analysis – NutritionData.com All I have to do is input the food I want and it gives me a nutrition label for checking out the proteins and carbs for my Food Log. Sometimes when I'm at a plateau I'll keep a log for a few weeks to make sure I'm not overstepping my food boundaries!

There's been a lot of threads about this same matter--and I always feel the "hernia" excuse to be the best (because you can get multiple hernias, ah--gallbladder is a little different!) The one excuse I liked the very best was from one bander who said she always told the inquisitor it was "women troubles" and it shut them right up!!! :smile2: But your ex's grandmother? Now that's a tough one! All I can say is, how about, Good Luck!

My Lap Band staples were in for six days (surprised yours will be in for ten!) so I always laugh when I read people who say they went back to work in four days! I was very tender and did everything very gently until I had them removed. Can't imagine putting on clothes and going to work every day! Anyway, I talked to the surgeon the entire time he was removing them and I was so surprised at how little they pinched--he was so fast in removing them. I DID have one that was a bugger, but hey, that's not bad considering how many we had! Good luck on Monday--you'll do fine! :smile2:

I got some restriction with my last (third) fill and I've got to tell you, Pachelton, EVERYTHING I allowed to go down the stoma had to be eensy weeensy or I got that stuck feeling. So I've got to say, I'm planning on using chewables for the rest of my life! I do think, in reading this thread, that I'll begin taking TWO Flintstones chewables daily, along with my two Tums EX for calcium. I now also do metamucil (1/2 teas in 1/2 cup water) daily and 1 tblsp. concentrated black cherry juice daily (to keep away the gout I got 3 weeks ago). Boy, it's not fun being old!!!! :smile2: