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Melissa, You are beautiful! Just beautiful! The weight loss will just be the iceing! You hubly must be so proud! Blessings, Weazer

This is long but I had to post it....it is such good info. Great band fill info for Newbies Thanks again to Wendell for posting this elsewhere. It deserves its own thread. Great information to educate us... This may help you in understanding the restrictive mechanism of a Lap-Band. The INAMED protocol for Lap-Band fills calls for a six-week delay after surgery, prior to any fills. The purpose for the six-week delay is for the patient’s stomach to heal from the surgery, as well as allowing time for the Lap-Band to “Seat” or “Nestle” into the fat pad between the stomach wall and the interior wall of the Lap-Band. Prior to receiving an EFFECTIVE fill, it is VERY uncommon to have any restriction from a Lap-Band. Some patients will NOT lose weight, or may even GAIN weight until they have received an effective fill in their Lap-Band. Normal weight loss with a properly restricted Lap-Band is between 1 and 2 pounds per week. The normal cycle of fills, restriction and weight loss is as follows: 1. The patient's Lap-Band constricts when the patient receives a fill. Swelling for a few days after receiving a fill is very common. Many doctors require a patient to go on a liquid diet for a day or two after receiving a fill. A fill may have a “Delayed Action” of up to two weeks. A “Delayed-Action” means that the fill may not become effective for up to two weeks after the fill. That is why the INAMED protocol states that fills should not be performed on patients who will not have access to medical care for at least two weeks after a fill. 2. The patient's stomach capacity is lessened as a result of the restriction caused by the Lap-Band. 3. The patient loses weight because they cannot eat as much food. 4. The residual fat-pad between the inside of the Lap-Band and the outside of the patient's stomach reduces in size because of the overall weight loss in the patient. 5. The reduction of the residual fat-pad causes the Lap-Band to become loose again. 6. At that point, the patient needs another fill, because the Lap-Band is loose, and the patient has a loss of restriction, which allows the patient to eat larger amounts of food. 7. The patient receives another fill and the process starts all over again. Most Lap-Band patients receive several fills to adjust the Lap-Band as their weight loss progresses, and there is less and less residual fat-pad between the inside of the Lap-Band and the exterior of the stomach wall. Once a patient has lost all of their residual fat-pad, fills become less common. As the Lap-Band patient progresses in their weight loss, the effect of very tiny fills (Less than .2ccs) becomes greater and greater. It is not uncommon for a late-stage Lap-Band patient to experience a significant difference in restriction with as little as .05cc of fill. __________________ Kacee Officially on the a-MAY-zing BANDwagon!!!

Laura, You are doing great..you are almost halfway to your goal! That is amazing. You inspire the heck out of me! I am only about a third of the way there. How many fills have you had? melissa - way to do the eppy machine! You go girl! Mischevious1 - you look great...your face is not fat! Thanks for the recipe for the refrieds...I will try that..if it smooths them out it will help...even the skins on the beans give me a bit of a problem. Blessings you amayzing bandsters! Weazer

The scale is my enemy! Everytime I walk in the bathroom it runs and hides...it is afraid for me to stand on it! Ha Ha! But I always find him...usually hiding behind the bathroom door! He will be getting a break for a month though! Weazer P.S. I had a much better lunch today...no pbing...what a relief! Weazy

Wenjea - These posts sure are encouraging arn't they! I know there will come a day that I have ice-cream again...but, like you..I will get right back on track. And anyway...you didn't eat a cone, a chocolate covered bannana and a joho! So you probably didn't eat as many calories as it might seem. Melissa - you have got me hooked on your FF refried beans. I bought two cans last week and some of that FF sour cream..although, I noticed the regular was close in calories to the FF. I may try the FF kind next week. They were delicious. I ate the whole can for dinner. How do you warm yours up? I put mine in a frying pan and it made a mess...maybe I'll nuc it next time. Well, I decided when I will weigh next. I am going to wait till one month from when I had my last fill. So Sept 28th I will weigh in. The pants that I am wearing today are ridiculously big! They are high waisted and I am still able to pull them down without unbuttoning and unzipping them. I will not be wearing these anymore! I can't weight till Sept 28! Whoo Hoo...life is good! Blessings, Weazer

Ragdoll, I'm a apple...face, stomach and boobs are where I carry the wght! We are shrinking!

You just hang in there ragdoll. It won't be long before you fit in to those 14's. How tall are you? I am into 16's till I get to about 185 lbs. I am 5"6. Actually with all the weight training...you are really going to look good. Keep it up! I am going to a bodypump class next weekend for the first time...I heard it is really good. Boy, I'm talkative today! Blessings, Weazer

NOTICE! We are starting to NSV all over the place! Isn't that going to be lifting our spirits up all over the place!

Hey, I just came on to post a NSV and I saw someone had beat me too it! Way to go Cindy! I went and had lunch today..they had some baked talapia (fish) I thought would be a good thing for me to eat. Well, ate about half of it, but I was going real slow cause I could feel it kinda sticking. Sure enough I had to get up and run to the bathroom, praying the whole way i would make it ontime. PB'd that so went back and had a couple of slices off pickled beets that came off the salad bar..nice and soft so I thought they would work... again, I had to excuse myself and run to the bathroom (sliming and trying not to look like it). So I went back to the table and grabbed a to go box and told the girls at the table who were all looking at me like...do I need to worry about you? I just told them I was having some gastro problems. Anyway...I have some yogurt and a bananna in my office, I will try that later. wow, this third fill is really different...I have to get used to it. I am hoping it settles in a bit better than this. If not..I am going to lose weight fast. My NSV is that when I was walking back to my office...I got chased down by a skinny coworker who I havn't talked to in several months she said, (no hello how are ya) I need you to write down everything your eating because I want to loose weight too! Can you believe it...someone noticed! Yeah! Yippie....she made my day. Blessings

Sandra, Wow! You set off a blitz of fantastic emails! So much encouragement and good advice. I think we are all on the right track. We are all going to succeed at this. I agree that we should be able to have a snack every now and then, just like a "normal person". The good thing is that now like so many of you said..if we have one too many we are able to get back on track. We just had our bands in may...not enough time to be at our goals yet...next May will come up fast and I bet some of us will be at goal...and many of us will be close to it. I am beginning to think of the scale as the enemy. It has the power to send me into a blue funk..and into that bag of oreo cookies if it wants. It is slowing down the time for me...I decided I am not going to weight again until these cloths are baggy. (I am wearing some of the smaller cloths at the back of the closet now). I can't wait to get into the smallest sizes at the very very back of the closet! Blessings, Weazer

All I can say is I am jelouse that you have 10 kids and raise goats and make cheese! Believe it or not...that is my dream. Cept maybe 5 kids ...ten might even try my patience! Bless you, I think it would be really hard even with the band to be around food that you love everyday. I have to keep the stuff out of my house of I eventually go for it. Hopefully you guys will have a better will power than me. Plus the band will help you allot. I would still have the band even if I was married to a 5 star baker. I think it would make a huge difference. Blessings, Weazer

Morning Amayzing Bandsters! Well, that third fill really did the trick for me. I am finally feeling full after a cup of food. I am determined to not weigh in today. I want to weigh in next Monday. I think it is going to be good! I am able to eat steak with no problem. Sometimes I pb the first bite of something...but that seems to losen my band up and then I can eat the rest of the food. I suppose your not supposed to do that but I always have. Well to work. Weazer

oops..I mean cloths! I can't spell!

I have lost between 25 and 30 pds..They are now complimenting my closes everyday. I have had a few people notice the weight..but most of them say..nice blouse. It's funny.

Love your ticker Sandra...I have tried several times to get one too but I gave up! Maybe I will get my computer savvy daughter to help me fiqure it out one day! Melissa - good for you resisting the pizza. I think I am going to try and go two weeks without reading the scale...I swear that for me it is a trigger to overeat when the scale dosn't say I what I think it should. I said I would try to go two weeks....

Ragdoll - I just read your post from yesterday about the weights and not seeming to lose wght. Well, just keep up the good work. That wght lifting is going to do awsome things for the shape of your body. I love it better than arobics. I know we should do both...but it's hard to do something you don't like to do. One day you are going to have and hourglass figure..you just wait and see! Sue11 and Cindy - I've been stuck on a plateau for awhile now too. About a month so I can relate! I am going to just keep on keeping on and not get too discouraged...if my daughter can lose 150pds in a year and a half..I know I can lose a significant amount in a year or so too! We just gotta be patient! Raysbabe - you are a babe! you look so pretty! Twinmommy - I just got my 3rd fill yesterday too! 2.5 cc in a 4cc band. Why did your doc tell you to stay away from liquid protein after the 1rst 24 hours? I am curious. Maryumc - you are doing awsome! I am so happy for you and glad you are going to Maui for your 100# celebration. Honestly, I am so far from goal that I havn't even fiqured out what to do to celebrate when I reach it. I am not one to spoil myself much..so I didn't even think about it, but ya know, your right on...I will celebrate when I reach goal. I am going to go somewhere special too! Wenjea - I havn't tried the sorbet..but I am addicted to the sugarfree popcyle brand popcycle's. they only have 15cals each and taste sooo good. I love the orange and red. blessings all, have a wonderful weekend. Weazer

Hello all, I went to the "Fillin Station" and had my 3rd fill today. I was sad to see that I gained 3 pds and had to change the weight on my signature from 203 to 206. The good news is that I had a fill and I have not been hungry all day! This is the first time that I havn't been hungry in along time. I will go home and have some broth or some sugar free pops for dinner. I am on liquids for 24 hours and this is the first time that I feel like it won't be any problem. Hopefully this fill will be the one that works. I have been hovering around onderland for too long. I was getting discouraged. I now have 2.4cc in my 4cc band. Keeping my toes crossed. Blessings, Weazer

Hello all! Sandra I noticed I didn't tell you congrads on the onderland victory. That is a momentous occasion! I am extremly happy for you. I was thinking I had a fill scheduled this morning but it turns out it is this Thursday. I am feeling thick today. You know, like Barney rubble...or like a thumb. I don't know why this is getting discouraging but it is. I am hearing a nice complement from someone each day..like today a lady walked in my office and said..your face looks thin...well, you know how I was whining the other week about having a fat face. Well, her compliment should have sent me over the moon, but I am still feeling like a sausage. Grrr, it might just be my brain telling me I am fat (or the devil more likely) I need to get past the poor body image and enjoy each and every pound that falls off. That's it, I refuse to wallow, I am going to be in good spirits no matter how my brain is trying to trick me....I win! Blessings, Weazer

Hi all! I can understand the frusteration. I am still at 203! So close to onderland yet so far! I do go in tomorrow for my 3rd fill at the filling station! Ha, I heard someone call it that and I thought it was cute. I must say though that this last week..the fill that I had about 3 weeks ago finally seems to have kicked in. I am have the same thing mentioned here about super tight in the morning and can eat anything in the evening. Seems like the first meal and the second meal are getting stuck after I pb two or three times..I am fine. The last Pb I had after one bite of low-mein got me so nausous that I slimed and pb'd for around 15 mins. That has never happened before. But the dinner meal, I can eat any amount I want. I am trying to stay at a cup...but it does take a tremendous amount of will power. I think this 3rd fill is going to make the big difference. I honestly think I will be stopping with the fills for a while. At least until Nov or Dec. I will see how it goes. I will be suprised if it dosn't take me where I need to be. Well, Blessings girlfriends. Talk to you soon, Weazer

Twin Mom, Great idea to sell the cloths on ebay. I have just been getting rid of mine one piece at a time. I am kinda in a stuck mode right now. Not losing any weight. I just called the doc's office and moved my fill up to next week (3rd fill). I would get it today if they had an opening. I had hot chicken wings today for lunch. They didn't have any good lean meat selections...so I thought what the heck, I'll try these. At least it is better than no protien. I had no problem with it getting stuck. I think I def need a fill! Trying not to be discouraged. This is the slowest process...I need to not complain though cause I don't want to rush my life away. Or I will be skinny but older ! Blessings,

Changes in diet can sometimes lead to hair loss Tuesday, September 13, 2005 By Tara Parker-Pope, The Wall Street Journal Dieters hoping to lose weight are discovering they're losing something else -- their hair. The little-talked-about secret of the dieting industry is that a successful diet can also trigger hair loss. As Americans struggle with obesity and tackle countless fad diets, some dermatologists say they are increasingly hearing complaints from perplexed dieters about thinning hair. After Esther Sokol, a New York City records manager, lost nine pounds on the Atkins diet a few years ago, her hairdresser noticed her usually thick hair was beginning to thin. It was only after talking with doctors and hair experts that she learned her diet was the likely culprit. "Diet was the only major change I'd made," says Ms. Sokol. Hair loss can be triggered by a variety of factors including pregnancy, stress, surgery and age-related hormonal changes, to name a few. But few people realize that weight loss can also cause hair to shed, likely due to a nutritional deficiency. Although iron deficiency is often associated with diet-related hair loss, a range of nutrient deficiencies can result in thinning hair, dermatologists say. Changes in levels of zinc, magnesium, protein, essential fatty acids and vitamins D, B and A can all trigger episodes of shedding hair. The problem affects both men and women, but women are more likely to notice it and seek treatment, say doctors. The fact that so many different nutrients can be the culprit in hair loss means any diet can take a toll on the tresses. The threat of thinning hair shouldn't discourage patients from losing weight, but it should convince them to avoid fad, quick-reduction diets, says Wilma Bergfeld, head of clinical research for the department of dermatology at the Cleveland Clinic. Such diets often lack proper nutrition, and rapid weight loss in itself is a stress on the body and can also trigger metabolism changes that affect hair growth. For hair health, doctors say the best weight-loss plans are reduced-calorie diets that promote gradual weight loss with healthful foods from all of the food groups. Diets low in protein and iron, such as vegetarian diets and very-low-fat diets, often result in deficiencies. But high-protein diets like Atkins that initially discourage fruits and vegetables can also trigger hair loss, says Dr. Bergfeld. The typical patient complains of thinning hair after losing about 20 pounds in a relatively short period of time, she says. "We see it all the time," says Dr. Bergfeld. "If you start eating only one thing and you're not well balanced, you get into trouble." A spokesman for Atkins referred questions to the company's Web site, which addresses hair loss in its frequently asked questions section, noting that any weight-loss plan can trigger hair loss. The site contends the Atkins diet is the "least likely" to cause hair loss. However, dermatologists say no scientific study has ever determined whether certain diets are more or less likely to cause hair loss. In a healthy person, hair typically grows about an inch every two months. Hair has a three-phase life cycle -- the growing phase can last two to five years. A second, less-active phase lasts only about six weeks. A final resting phase lasts three to five months, before the hair falls out and new hair grows in. About 15 percent of hair follicles are in the resting phase at a time. Abrupt changes in nutrition can disrupt the hair-growth cycle, causing hair follicles in the growing phase to convert to the resting phase too soon. This can mean a 20 percent to 30 percent or more increase in the number of daily hairs shed. For many people, diet-related hair loss is temporary and may last only about two to six months. Once a person starts eating a more balanced diet, hair eventually comes back. In some people it may take one to two years to regain a full head of hair, dermatologists say. Some dieters aren't even that lucky. A hair-shedding episode triggered by dieting may become a chronic problem if the dieter has a genetic predisposition for thinning hair, says Dr. Bergfeld and other doctors. In addition, hair loss triggered by dieting can be exacerbated by hormonal changes, stress or medications -- sending patients into a chronic cycle of hair shedding. Ms. Sokol says she stopped the diet and has since regained the weight -- but her hair has never recovered. She says that if she had been aware of the link between weight loss and hair loss she probably wouldn't have tried the diet. Dermatologists say they often advise dieters to take a multivitamin with iron and keep weight loss to a pace of one to two pounds a week. Dieters with a family history of thinning hair or baldness should be especially careful about proper nutrition and slow weight loss. Patients considering obesity surgery, which often results in rapid weight loss, should also talk to their doctor about ways to protect their hair. In addition to nutrition supplements, patients who experience thinning hair after dieting or for other reasons are advised to avoid chemical treatments like bleach or permanents that weaken hair. Minoxidil, the active ingredient in the topical treatment Rogaine, is often recommended for chronic hair loss, although it doesn't work for everyone and has to be used consistently or the hair shedding will return, notes Brooklyn dermatologist Morris Westfried, medical director of the New York Hair Loss Center who published one of the first reports on minoxidil. For men, the oral medication Propecia may also help improve thinning hair. Hair extensions and transplants are also an option, but they can be expensive.

Lizrbit, I am not sure why you would only have lost 10 lbs. That would drive me crazy. Now, why did you have the revision? How many fills have you had? What does your Doc say? How much weight did you lose initially the first time you got banded? Sandra, I'll bet that was a pretty site (the scale saying 200 lbs)! I am happy for you. Hopefully by next Monday, mine will say the same. I want onederland so bad! I just called the doc for my next fill. So Sept 6th I will have my third fill. I would like about another 1/2 cc to bring me up to 2 1/2 cc. I think I am doing pretty good, but, I can eat a giant steak if I want. But, it is funny, I can eat it one day, but the next if I try to eat a big steak I PB. So yes, somedays I can eat something, then the next day the band won't let me. Strange. Blessings girlfriends, Weazer

Sandra, whoo hoo! 201 . I got on the scale this morning and I was 203.2 I was so happy! You will be to onderland any day now. I will give myself a week or two. I tried on a pair of jeans that I used to wear when I was 185. I wanted to see how much more weight I needed to lose before I could zip them over my tummy. Well, they zipped right up. Fit perfectly. I guess I must be loosing inches. Even tho the scales don't show it! Macysgranny, you look great! Keep up the weight lifting. It is amazing how it will change the shape of your body. I just got my "Bender Ball" in the mail. It is a small ball the you put under your lower back to help with sit ups or crunches. It is still hard (darn the ball dosn't do them for you). But, at least my back dosn't hurt while doing them. Look out six-pack, here I come! Oh and Melissa, I pray that God blesses you with that job! He always knows what he is doing. Blessings, Weazer or Mini...

Wenjea, Sorry about the pain...at least you have the pain meds to help you along. Hopefully it will heal on it's own and you won't need the cortizone shot. It may take 2-3 months though before it feels right again...maybe longer. I am prone to injury in my shoulders and arms when I weight lift so I know what it feels like and that it takes along time to heal. Blessings, Weazer

Macysgranny, Wow! 46 pds and only two fills. That is incredable! You must be feeling great. Keep up the good work. Have you ever trained with weights before? I have my own at home that I use. I love how they make my arms and legs look. Keep in touch, Blessings, Weazer