vinesqueen

Darcey and katerzz! wow, you've both done so great! Katerzz, I espeically love that you are wearing the same clothes, it makes it sooo obvious that you've lost weight! you look deflated! Yay!

Excellent Julie! I had my fill later than most too. Some of us are just late bloomers

Wow! Officially overweight! That's great work. It makes me laugh, but great work. Can't help with the big fibroid though.

Once you move to solid foods, you will have little trouble getting in your full allotment of calories. Also, please don't worry whether you are losing weight now because you are still in the healing phase. Any weight loss during this period is bonus.

Thank you for letting us know Greg. Nancy, my heart goes out to you and your family in this difficult time.

Here is a Bandster Self-test created by Susannah Malarkey, who used my surgeon. I hope it is helpful, and if you need, or would like it in a different format, such as Word or Excel, please give me a tell, and I'll e-mail the document to you. bandster selftest.bmp

the scarsdale diet. I forgot I did that one too...

I can't speak for Teresa, but Letha, you gave me a much needed smile. This is a very difficult thread.

Teresa and Robin, I'm sitting here abolutly crying for you both. My DH thinks me very calous for putting down our Tipper, because he was just a little puppy. He was turning into a dangerous animal, and my physical safety was in danger just by having him in the house. When he was a good boy, he too was just the sweetest little dog, but he was unpredictable and waking up with my chin in his jaws with him growling was more than I wanted to risk. Ever. Christina I'm crying for you too because I'm going to have to put my poor old Astro down soon. I know your heart too is broken, and I wish I could offer something more concrete than electonic words on an electronic page. I know how hard it is to read any post about dogs right now.

Welcome to the BandWagon!

Sensy I really sounds like you are not getting enough calories. Lots of folks like fitday.com, but you really need to track your calories for a full week. If you are getting less than 1000-1200 calories, then you will go into starvation mode. If you are active, you will need even more calories. must must must. If you don't get enough calories, you cannot lose weight safely or in a healthy manner.

Wonderful! Welcome to the BandWagon Jen!

yup, Lots of women have reported greater restriction around TOM. Of course, my period hasn't stopped since March...

oh Trish, Honey! Just remember, you may be fat, but she's stupid. You are changing and loosing weight, but there aint no cure for stupid.

Oh Teresa, I"m so sorry. I know how you are feeling. We had to put Tipper to sleep, and we were all crying for a week. I know that this was not a situation that your arrived at easily. Two different trainers we used refused to work with Tipper because he was so visciou. There was just no way that I, as a normal person, could have kept him. I firmly believe that he was half coyotee, and that this cintrubted to his problems. (Mom was a stray) Christina, those are very wise words, but Teresa did try a professional trainer. ((((((((((((((((((hugs for everybody)))))))))))))))))))

Probably better than I expected. I have sort of expecting the Band to not work for me. but like Jessie says, "what makes me think I'm so special?" I've lost 30 pounds, and I can't help but want to put the "only" before the 30 pounds. Good gravey! I've lost 30 pound in 4 months! I didn't gain any weight! I LOST weight! I've had countless NSV (okay, I can probably count them) but my DH was banded before me, so I kind of knew what to expect. I dont' know if I answered your question.

Best luck! Not just good luck, but the very best! Here's hoping you have an even easier time than I did, and I was shopping the next morning!

Part of the deal I think is what type of BR you have done. One is where they pluck the nipple off the breast and pop it in the new position. I think this will negate any future breast feeding. I'm afraid that I won't meet the Notch to Nipple test for my BR. We shall see once I lose weight though. (I was a MM while BF my Spud.)

Yesterday Jessie said something interesting to me. "The Band is NOT meant to be surgical bulimia."

Welcome Janice! I don't know of a specific place for you. I think you may be our first VBG. I believe we are all the AGB, or are considering it. But don't let that stop you. I firmly believe that there are issues that face everybody who faces a major weight loss, no matter the cause or tool. It may be that we will not be able to offer truely helpful suggestions or experience. Good Luck in your journey

oh my gawd Jane! You look AMAZING! You have done such wonderful work with your band. I love your fairy party! I hate to break the news to you though... YOU DO NOT HAVE A FAT BUTT ANY MORE. Zoe, get your boot... Darcey! your boy-oh got his BA on the 3 year plan? Man, I'm on the 25 year plan... Love the expression on your fur baby... and yes Trish, next year you will climbing those stairs!

Hippo birdies Greg! (I'd sing "may the cities in your wake burn like candles on your cake" to you, but being the wild man you are... well, not taking any chances, you wild man!)

Oh man! that is wonderful! Break a leg! and a size 18 soon! oh man!

I was pretty freaked out by the thought of having something ... weird and foreign in me. I got over it I think the only hard and fast "rule" for the band is CHEW BABY, CHEW. Some people can tolerate carbination, some cannot. Some continue to drink soda, some have given it up and have never looked back. I've given up sodas 99.9%, although when I make the treck to ID, I will drink Red Bull. (but no Vodka when I'm making the trek...) I know my band is there when I don't chew something well enough, or eat something that is too dry. And I can always feel my port. Some people have to make major changes in the foods they can tolerate, others don't have to make a large change at all. Each bandster is different. My husband was banded almost 2 years ago, and his experience with food is different than mine. Yup, you might have to have that many fills, or you may have to have a dozen or a score over the course of your lifetime. I got the band for life, so I expect that I will probably need to have tweeks when I'm 70, 80 or even into my 90's. (We live a long time.) Of course, with the band, I have a much better chance to make it to my 95th birthday than I would if I was 300 pounds. At the rate I was going, I probably wouldn't have made it to my 80th birthday. the Band is NOT a quick fix thing. One thing to understand about the percentage of weight you will lose. Because you are a big fat boy or girl, and are walking around (presumably) and being somewhat active, your bone density is probably amazing, and you will also have a higher muscle mass, simply because you have to have great musculature in your legs to move your mass about the planet. (I'm currently a big fat girl ) With the bypass, there is the very real possibility that you will lose muscle mass due to malnutrishion. Bandsters don't have that issue. Do not listen to the scale, it lies anyway. I will never, ever weigh 125 pounds, which is the "normal" or "desired" weight for a woman who is 5'5". Besides, I would look terrible at that weight--I actually have a very athletic build, under all my fat, and I'm quite strong for a middle aged mom. One thing to understand is that with the bypass you will loose weight very quickly, but you only have a limited time frame in which to lose your weight. The folks that get the band lose very slowly, maybe "only" a pound a week, maybe slower. Some folks loose a bit faster, in the 2 or 3 pounds a week range. After the first year, it is true that we hae only lost a much smaller portion that bypass patients, but in my opionion, there is not enough statistical information available to say who has a better long term success rate. WLS has not been a popular or viable solution for more than a few years, so to say who has better results is simply not available. So why did I choose the Band and not one of the many bypass solutions? My DH has had great inital success with his band. He's lost so close to 200 pounds, but he's healthy. Also, if something goes wrong with the band, it is 100% fully reversable, and no one has played plummer with my guts. Good luck on your jouney. Only you can decide which is the right WLS for you. Not your mother, not your surgeon, no someone on the internet. Welcome to LBT, no matter what you decide.

They lie! Lie! scales lie, lie, lie! The BMI scale lies! Lie! Lie, lie, lie! The Tape Measure doesn't lie, nor do the body fat % mreasure things lie. (although the % measure things can be thrown off because of hydration or edema issues.)