linksmom

Try putting your grapes in the freezer. They make a really interesting snack. Plus they last longer.

Has anyone had a problem with a fill and then days later going on a trip on a plane? I am going to a wedding in California in October. I will have had 3 fills by the time that I go. The third one being just 2 days before I leave. Do you think that the pressure will do anything, like make it tighter?. Just wondering. The voices in my head are freaking me out, so I thought I would ask those of you who might have more experience with this.(I get my first fill Sept.3)

I was banded on July 24, and had a 2 week liquid diet to do prior to surgery. After surgery, I had 2 days of all liquids than a week of mushies then the 2nd week anything that I wanted. On my 2 liquid diet I cheated alittle bit but with the best thing that I could think of. Egg Drop Soup. I figure the egg white pieces would just be a little boost of protein. Now I'm not saying it was right or right for anyone else to do. But I did still lose. And it seemed to stick with me more than just broth. Thicker or something. It was the only soup I could stand just for the fact that it was around 95 degree's here. Too hot for soup!!:thumbup: And of course I had some of it after my surgery too. Boy it sure tasted good.

I was just getting ready to write the very same question. My restriction after surgery lasted about a week and a half. Then nothing. Here I am 5 weeks tomorrow since I had my surgery and I can eat just as much as I used to before my surgery. I do try and not to do that. I keep a journal of everything that I put in my mouth. And really haven't been eating until I'm full. I always stop short of being stuffed. It's times when I can eat more than I think I should that I start to get worried that maybe I've done something wrong. I do realize that the 6 weeks after surgery are for healing. I have my first fill Sept. 3, I cant' wait....for the scale to start moving again. THankfully I haven't regained any of my inital weight loss from my all liquid pre-op and my surgery. :thumbup:

Thanks everybody, I'll definatly ask my doctor prior to my 3rd fill about it. I live in Missouri and I'm flying to California. It's a 5 hour flight. I'll be there the rest of Friday and then come home on Monday.

Name.............StartingWeight....Current.....Goal.........To Go FeliciaLevy75 .......240.................240............190...........50 Hollie ...................154 ................154............125........... 29 areellady............. 189................189............159...........30 klmsilva................216................216............190......... ..26 Boos02................258...............226.............200........... 26 Dionna113...........213...............199.............160............4 0 BIGB....................342...............342.............300......... ...42 Liz_hager.............161................161.............130.......... ...31__________________ linksmom.............251.................251..............200............51

Burping club....My burps are vicious. Usually I would only burp like this when I had pizza and a soda. But now I have non-lady like burps when I start to get full. Oh well, it's a great indicator to stop eating.

my first fill is Sept. 3. But I do bruise very easily. When I went to the hospital to give blood 2 weeks prior to surgery, I had a humungo bruise just from where they took my blood. And she only stuck me once. Here I was only thinking about the needle going in, forgot all about the fact that I'll probably look like some one played Rocky on my belly.

Even though the surgery wasn't as extreme as others, it's a major change for the body. My father (a retired OBGYN) suggested that I stop taking the pill about 2 months prior to my surgery to reduce the risks of blood clots. Plus he also said he went to a semiar and a doctor said that the pills affect is less if your BMI is over 35) I've been on the pill since I was 17. And now 21 years later, I'm off of it.I don't know if it's the not taking the pill or from my surgery, but my every 28 days is now every 6 weeks. I would like to stay off of it until about January, then start fresh again. It's not like I have a big sex life right now anyway.

Gallbladder!!!!!!!!! That was me about 5 years ago. I had the problem for about 2 years before I figured it out. It would be around for 2 or 3 days and then be gone before I thought, I should see some body about this. It was and intense pain straight in the middle of my abs like under my ribcage area. The pain was so intense it felt like it was trying to come out of my back. Hot showers were the only thing that made it go away. Until I got out of the shower that is. I ended up having emergency gallbladder surgery on the day I was suppose to be seeing a doctor about having it removed. I did have a sonogram and they said they could see gall stones.

The nurse practioner said it would be on my left side, but it is on my right. It's right under my rib cage between my scar and my belly button. I only feel it sometimes when I bend over or twist weird. I get my first fill in 10 days. I'm so excited. I haven't had any full feeling since 1 week post op. (that is with just an ounce or two) Right now it's more like 6-8 oz.

This "card" is it the card stating that you had a lap-band procedure done. I did get one of those from my surgeon after my surgery. But I assumed it was only for security at the airport in case something made it go off. I guess you could try and use the card for a food purchase. I just get an appetizer or a meal and take half of it home.

Hi, I was banded on July 24. I am 4 weeks out (this Thursday) from my surgery. I've been doing really well. I've been holding my own. I have not gained any of the weight back. My first fill is Sept. 3. I also learned that it is NOT unusual to gain weight at this time. This is the time that your stomach is healing. Weight loss is not expected at this time. I lost my feeling of fullness ( 2-3 oz), a week and a half after my 1 week post-op check-up. I've been concentrating on protein. It feels kinda weird.. like I'm doing the Adkins thing. I've been staying away from bread. Whether it be at resturants or if I go out for a burger, I just eat the meat and loose the bun. I've been eating a wide variety of things, but concious of how much. I can eat about 6-10 oz at a meal. I also stop eating before I feel full. I figure that's enough, and I was lucky to have it. I know once I get my fill, I'll be back to 2-3 oz a meal. BUt that will be OK and I will be satisfied. Hang in there. The flat tire has been fixed now it 's just smooth sailing on the road to being thin.:wink2:

Are you happy with your decision to be banded? YES Do you have any regrets and if so what are they? NONE, EXCEPT FOR MAYBE GETTING IT DONE SOONER Would you do it again if you had the choice to make over? HELL YES!!! What are some of the physical difficulties you've faced post op..such as diet, health? I HAD TO DO A 2 WK ALL LIQUID DIET PRIOR, HARDER THAN THE SURGERY Did you have any complications and what was the outcome? NONE Do you feel better or worse now compared to pre banding? BETTER, I'M 3 WEEKS OUT FROM SURGERY AND I FEEL LIKE I NEVER HAD IT DONE(NO FILL YET) Did you tell people you were having or had the surgery? How did your friends and acquaintances react? MY FRIENDS, FAMILY AND CO-WORKERS ALL KNEW. EVERYBODY WAS VERY SUPPORTIVE How hard was it for you to stay on the pre and post op liquid diets? ALITTLE BIT HARD, BUT I FELT THAT THIS IS WHAT I HAD BEEN IN TRAINING FOR MY WHOLE LIFE AND THAT I COULD DO IT BECAUSE THE RESULTS WERE GOING TO BE SO GREAT How hard has it been for you to learn new eating habits? NOT REAL HARD. THE BIGGEST PROBLEM I HAVE IS TELLING MYSELF TO SLOW DOWN WHEN I EAT. SMALL BITES AND CHEW MORE How do you overcome eating temptations or do you even have them anymore? FEAR OF BEING SICK REALLY KEEPS ME GROUNDED. EXCEPT FOR WHITE BREAD THERE'S REALLY NOTHING THAT I CAN'T HAVE. I STILL HAVEN'T HAD ICE CREAM OR CANDY BAR, COOKIES ETC. BUT THE DESIRE IS NOT THERE AS MUCH, MAYBE BECAUSE I'M ACTUALLY ABLE TO SEE THE WEIGHT COME OFF Why do you think this surgery was successful when so many other dieting attempts failed (assuming you are like me :tongue_smilie: in this regard)IT FORCES YOU TO EAT LESS. MOST DIETS YOU ALWAYS HAD TO DEPRIVE YOURSELF OF SOMETHING, NO FAT, LOW FAT, NO CARBS, SUGAR-FREE, ALL PROTEIN, IT WAS ALWAYS SOMETHING. FOR THE FIRST TIME I WOULD EAT AND FEEL COMFORTABLE ENOUGH THAT I WAS DONE AND DIDN'T WANT ANYTHING ELSE. I WAS LITERALLY FULL!:biggrin:

My dtr told me that I should at least eat alittle something, so my body doesn't go into starvation mode. Alot of times I'm not even hungry but try to have alittle something. Mainly protein. :tongue_smilie:

Hi, I work at a warehouse receiving merchandise. I also do alot of lifting, forklift operation, walking, bending and twisting. We need to be able to lift 50-75 pounds also. They told me I couldn't lift over 20 pounds for 2 weeks. I took 4 weeks of sick leave and then another week afterwards of vacation time. I wanted to be 100% ready to go back to work. Plus I couldn't think of a better way to not have to work in the NON-AIR CONDITIONING of my job during the hottest time of the year. Oh darn, what a shame!:laugh:My first day back in Sept. 2.

Hi everybody. :smile2:Well my last 48 hours have been worse than the surgery and the recovery. :sad:Last Wednesday was almost a solid week after my surgery and I felt like I had to go...you know. Well, I'm in there trying to push something out that clearly does not want to come out. The bad thing is that this went on about 5 or 6 more times thru out the day. Same problem that evening and the next day.:wink2: Finally I went to the drugstore and picked a laxative and took it at about 5:30 Thursday nite. The box said it could take between 6- 12 hours to work. Great that means more of the same BS. Well, about 5 hours later my stomach started to roll and cramp. So I happily and scared, I headed off to the bathroom. Without giving to much detail. It was like I didn't have the strength to get it out. I actually strained soo hard that I guess I got my stomach all tight, I had that cold clammy feeling come up like I was going to toss my cookies. Then I didn't know whether to kneel at the bowl or sit. Now in the past I've had some constipation but nothing like this. And usually I just had a trigger food to help it along. ie Popcorn, but couldn't do that just 8 days after surgery, let alone maybe never. So to some it up last nite it finally came out with little pushing. And I was left with a rump on fire. Wanted to get in the tub and soak, but was afraid that I wouldn't be able to get out. :blush:Now the bad news, Yes, I did say bad news, like that wasn't bad enough....I think I still have some of that laxative in my system, because now I feel like anything that comes down the ol' colon, thinks it needs to be released immediately. So I'm still running to the bathroom every 2-3 hours with not a lot of results. Now after all of this I talk to a girlfriend today and she says,"OH Susan, why did you take a laxative? Those things are murder! You should have just had some of the fiber chews and let nature do it's thing."(Go ahead and laugh, if your not already) I know that it's food after 2 weeks of all liquids and the anestheia, but the surgery was like a walk in the park after my experience. Just wanted to share my "Crappy" story. Staying home today to 1. be closer to my bathroom and 2. to relax alittle bit.

Listening to my body means, I get this feeling like a tightness or if someone were putting there hands around the base of my neck. It just gets a tight feeling. And that is one of my signals to stop. Also if I burp while I'm eating. Then I know to stop. And it's not like I'm miserably full after the burp. Actually it takes about 10 minutes give or take before I actually feel the fullness. But those apparently are the signs that my body tells me that I'm full. Also I stop or slow down and like feel myself (not like that) like how your eyes shift around your sockets like your trying to ponder something, and maybe it's partial fear, but I stop thinking that I've had enough and I sure don't want to eat too much and be miserable, let alone toss my cookies, especially in a resturant. Hope this helps. Susan:eek:

It sounds like you may not be chewing your food enough, if it actually feels like you've got to drink to make it go down.( I used to have that feeling awhile back. It was a compulsive disorder, it felt like what I was trying to swallow, was getting stuck in my throat, and I would panic and feel that I was strangling, like no air was getting through, and I would wash it down with a big gulp of liquid. I was frantic, not realizing that I could still breathe through my nose and reminding myself to calm down.) Just slow down ,chew alot and take things slowly. I have to tell myself to slow down at every meal.

my vote is the gas from the beans in your tummy. Also cheese was my problem out of the gate. Its hard to digest if you have to much. I still have pain on the side of my stomach. I think it is where the port is. I also can't lay comfortably on my stomach yet.

I'm having that problem now. I had surgery 2 weeks ago this Thursday. I lost 22 pounds between my 2 week pre-liquid diet and a week after surgery. Sunday was the first day that I felt "not full." No restrictons. I'm still trying to eat the same portion sizes that I was eating when I felt the restriction so maybe I don't regain too much. So far I've only regained a pound and a half. But Yes, it is scarey to see the scale going the wrong way, just when you thought you were on your way. My first fill isn't until Sept. 3. Then I have one each month up until Dec. I can't WEIGHT until Sept.3:unsure:

You may want to consider going to a nutrionist or dieatician. Either single or as a couple.She could give you or your wife pointers on how to eat and what is considered a nutrious meal. What fats are acceptable and needed to maintain a healthy body. Or a psychiatrist or someone to talk to to help your wife realize that that thin person in the mirror really is her. She has worked hard for it and the body image that she thinks she is, is not who she is now. I can also understand her reluctance to eat because of the fear of regaining the weight. I wish you good luck!:thumbup:

Hi PennyLane, Yes my stomach where my port is, is still very sensitive. I still can't lay comfortably on my right side. I also can't lay flat on my stomach yet. (So no tanning bed yet:sad:) Also sometimes just twisting funny will make it hurt. I had my surgery 1 and 1/2 weeks ago. I read that where the port is, it takes the longest to heal or feel normal again.

That's no lie about the hospital fee's. Thank god my insurance covers 90% after my deductible. My day I spent 1 week prior to my surgery at the hospital, was $625. All they did was the paperwork, took 3 vial of blood(bruised the hell out of my arm), peed in a cup. I then talked to the annesthsologist(sp) and the respitory guy gave me one of the breathing things. My cost is $75 and some change.

I like the "Veet" cream. I think it works really well. I don't use it all the time, but like for vacations or a special occasion and I want a really smooth appearance with out stuble the next day. Now they make a Veet that a gel that will stay on while your in the shower and come off when you physically start to take it off. Haven't tried that yet. Today I get a pedicure, and thank god the lady I go to I have gone to for years, because I can't bend down to put water in the dogs' bowl let alone try and shave. :thumbup: