Band Chick

I was banded in Summer 2007. I've had all kinds of difficulties with restriction, life issues (dad passed away, mom cancer, moved, 5 kids, etc), and it seemed like no matter what I tried I couldn't lose more than 30 lbs and then quickly gain it back. I worked out to the point of constant pain and ate like a bird, only to lose very little. And the minute I had a setback the weight came rushing back. I'm grateful I got the band and I believe it's kept me from gaining a whole bunch more weight but it never worked for me like I saw with so many of my fellow bandsters. Good news, bad news.... (mostly good) I found out that I have PCOS and some pre-cancer symptoms. One of the main side effects is extreme weight gain and difficulty with losing weight. I've had all the symptoms of this since I was a teen but nobody ever caught it. Now, it has advanced to an alarming degree and they finally discover the issue! Thank God! I will be having a complete hysterectomy next week and won't have those issues anymore!!! I will have to have my band unfilled for the surgery and then go through the fill process again from the beginning. With a new, unhindered metabolism and a fresh start with my band... I get a do-over!!!! I'm almost as hopeful and excited today as I was when I first got banded! Woohoo!

Thank you all for your support and advice. It has helped a lot! I called my Dr's office. They want me in ASAP. So, I'm going up on Monday. I'll stick to mushies and liquids for the weekend. I'm getting super head hungry for real food. I am anxious to see how much I've lost. I'm hoping this got me under 300 :rolleyes2:

Yep. That's my plan now. I will get in to the Dr for a little unfill on Monday I think. I'm calling today. I read a post last night from a gal that had to have a complete unfill and start all over because of irritation. I do not want that! Good luck on your fill! The way I understood it is... The sensors that tell our brain we are full are near the top of the stomach. Thicker food, like chicken, takes longer to go through the band so the pouch fills because we eat quicker than it can get through and the sensors tell our brain the stomach is full even though it's just the top half that's full. Then again, there is so little known about the stomach and obesity that who knows. LOL! You are probably right about toning and gaining muscle. You may have also hit a bit of a plateau. If you're like me, you'll turn around and drop a big chunk all at once. Just keep doing what you're doing. You're definitely on the right track. Hang in there! :thumbup: Have a great day everyone!

My husband and I both snore horribly! As part of my pre-op I had to do a sleep study and hubby did one too. We both got CPAP machines. Now we don't snore and get GREAT sleep. It took us a while to adjust to sleeping with the machines, but now we can't live without them! Snoring and sleep apnea are dangerous. Tell your hubby to talk to the Dr about getting a sleep study and a CPAP. Good luck! :blushing:

Hi. I think my last fill was just a tad too full. At first I figured the golfball feeling and slight discomfort would go away as the swelling went down. I have been feeling fuller faster and longer, which I thought was a blessing. I was able to get down a little bit of chicken, coleslaw, mashed potatoes and 10 corn chips (not in one sitting) so I thought I was doing OK. Then I PBed and threw up on chicken. Later that same day I PBed on 2 chips. The next day I PBed on pureed chili. Today the most I got down was mashed potatoes. I'm pretty sure now that I'm a little too tight. I can get liquids and some mushies down. It's not like I'll starve or I'm PBing my saliva. But now I'm worried about what effect this might have, if any, on my band. My Dr is 3 hours away and my next fill is scheduled March 6. Should I wait? Do you think this will pass as I am shrinking so quickly? Thanks for your input!

Hi, all! How is everyone doing this week? I think my last fill may have been too tight. I was able to eat well chewed chicken on Sunday, but PBed on pureed chili last night. UGH! I'll take it easy this week and see how it goes. The down side is a feel a little weak and shaky. The up side is I can feel myself shrinking. I can't keep this up for long but will roll with it for now.

Tall, 2%, no whip= 200 cal, 10g pro :tongue2: starbucks® beverages Yesterday was a weird day. Long story short... I had pureed chili for dinner and for some reason after only two bites, and an hour of struggling, I PBed big time. So I'm still on liquid and mush and didn't get much to eat/drink yesterday. Yesterday Breakfast: Starbucks Tall Peppermint Mocha, no whip (200 cal/10 pro) Lunch: chocolate Slimfast (190 cal/ 10 pro) Snack: Jello (80 cal/ 2 pro) Dinner: PBed Snack: Starbucks Tall Peppermint Mocha, no whip (200 cal/10 pro) Snack: Baby Bell cheese (70 cal/ 5 pro) I am so super hungry today. I wish I could eat a great big juicy steak and baked potato.:smile2: My band is so tight from PBing that I'm afraid to have anything more solid than mashed potatoes anyway-- a blessing in disguise I suppose. Today Breakfast: Starbucks Tall Peppermint Mocha, no whip (200 cal/10 pro) Lunch: Chocolate Slimfast (190 cal/ 10 pro) Snack: Mashed Potatoes (119 cal/ 2 pro) Going to try pureed chicken enchilada soup for dinner Is anyone else trying the 5 day test this week?

Hi all! I posted my day one of the diet in the slow losers section http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f137/5-day-pouch-test-53690/ How is everyone else doing? I don't get many email updates for posts to this forum since they changed the layout. I didn't think anyone had posted yet today. I hear ya Jody. Are you sure you should go cold turkey? I did that a few years back and had such bad headaches and nausea that my Dr took me off the diet. All things are good in moderation, maybe? You already got the band. What more can you do to torture yourself, duct tape? LOL!

Day one of the test for me. I'm not eating great but I am way below my daily calories. Starbucks is my FAVORITE liquid protein. Can you tell? lol! Breakfast: Starbucks Tall Peppermint Mocha, no whip (200 cal/10 pro) Lunch: Chocolate pudding w/ unjury protein (140 cal/9 pro) Dinner: Bean and Bacon soup pureed (152 cal/15 pro) will have later tonight... Snack:Starbucks Tall Peppermint Mocha, no whip (200 cal/10 pro) Late snack:Chocolate pudding w/ unjury protein (70 cal/4.5 pro) So far so good. How is everyone else doing?

Monday it is! Anyone else want to join us and start on Monday?

Sorry, Ann. My Dr is in Olympia, Washington. Though he is definitely worth the 2.5 hour drive from Oregon, I think NY would be too far. lol! Hi Anne, I was thinking the 5 day test included the pouch size test. She either took it out since I last read through it or I was confusing too much information together. I have the pouch size test in one of my books too. Basically, how this all works is the 5 day test allows your stoma to go back to it's natural size and then you do the test to see how much your stoma really holds. The pouch size test: Put 2 cups of cottage cheese in a measuring cup. Eat the cottage cheese quickly, until you feel full, within five minutes. Your pouch will fill before there is time for any food to flow out of it. Look to see how much of the 2 cups you consumed; that's how much your pouch holds. Hi Jazzy, Congratulations on your 22 lb loss! I absolutely understand about the real hunger. It's been a while since I had that but early on, about where you are, between fills I would get really hungry. My Dr told me to eat when I'm hungry and that we had to build up to a good restriction. Take it easy on yourself. You're still healing from surgery less than two months ago. You're doing great!

Yep, my Dr said about 1 cup, give or take. That's about what I hit and my pouch has never been stretched when I went in for my fills. I always watch on the screen to see my pouch. I got pictures of the nurse, tech and machine at my last fill: February Fill Ever since I saw this 5 day pouch test I've wanted to try it and see how big my pouch is. Anyone else want to try it too? Surgical Weight Loss 5 Day Pouch Test

I read about the "soft stop" shortly after being banded and started watching for it. Sure enough I had all the classic signs. It's so weird, huh? Here are some other posts about it: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f17/soft-stop-anyone-40434/ http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f17/why-does-my-nose-run-when-i-am-full-25043/

Hi Anne, You have done so many good things for yourself and are losing more than enough weight. Give yourself a break. You're doing great! As for your clueless friend... You teach people how to treat you. Teach her you won't allow people to speak to you that way. I have had this same issue with my mother. She thinks negative comments will motivate me. Now every time she says something stupid I call her on it. She doesn't even realize she's doing it half the time. Ugh! Brag about your victories. You have a lot to be proud of! In public is the worst. I was out to luch with the family once and spent half the time spitting my drool and slime into a toilet :biggrin: To some degree, though not as bad as you mention, it should take a while for things like tuna or well chewed chicken to go down. The guide my Dr told me is take small bites, chew really well, eat about 1 cup of food, don't eat for longer that 20 min. and it should take about 3 hours until you are hungry again. With more solid foods I take a few bites and then have to wait for a small burp before I can eat more. I can tell I'm full when I start to get discomfort and often I will hickup or my nose runs. Weird, huh? My NSV: I made it to water aerobics this morning! This is a big personal victory and I'm proud of myself.