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Before having children I weighed 135 pounds. I remember weighing 180 pounds on delivery day with my oldest daughter and I was horrified! After I had her my weight went down to 150, but I never really lost the extra baby weight. Well after my daughter, I went on to have 6 more children and none of them were twins. With each pregnancy I'd put on a little bit more weight and I'd never be able to lose those last few pounds. When my youngest son turned a year old in March 2007, that is when I seriously looked into getting weight loss surgery. He had been breastfed but now he was weaned, so I would be able to have this done without interfering with his breastfeeding. I had seen the commercial for the lapband and I got excited- this was MADE for me! I had dieted so many times in the past and the thing that always got me was my hunger. Gastric bypass had been around for years, but the thought of having my stomach cut and rearranged scared me to death.So I made an appointment with my Dr and got an appointment with the surgeon at the military hospital to see about having lapband surgery done. My appointment was in June 2007 and I almost cried when the I heard say the words "Tricare does not cover the lapband yet." My heart sank. I had finally taken the steps to start on this journey and it wasn't covered. He told me that gastric bypass was covered and that he hoped that lapband surgery would be covered in the next year. At this point I was so disgusted by my weight that I thought that maybe I could do the gastric bypass surgery and so I started on that journey. ~The Gastric Bypass Diet Class~ So, I was already at the point where I was ready to have my body cut in some shape or form so that I could finally lose the weight that I had gained over my childbearing years. Lapband was not covered yet, so I actually started the process of getting gastric bypass done. The class consisted of about 7 women, sitting at a table in a classroom setting and was taught by the dietitian. I knew I was not going to be able to eat the same foods anymore, but I had no idea that after you have gastric bypass done, that you will be fighting to get the nutrition you need. Sure, you lose the weight, but you can also lose your hair, become anemic, and you have to fight to eat enough protein every single day. And if you ever decide that you want to have something sweet, EVER again, you may have dumping syndrome. I walked out of the class and literally had to digest all of the information. "Non-reversible" stood out in my head. What if when I got older this was something that could seriousily affect my health in a negative way? The amount of vitamins that I had to put in my system was alarming. If gastric bypass went wrong, then this was a life long mistake that I would have to live with. At 37 yrs of age, that scared me enough to hold off. Fast forward to Feb 2008....Tricare APPROVES THE LAPBAND!!! :thumbup: I jumped on the phone and called my Dr for an appointment for a referral, and that is where my lapband journey really took off!

Before having children I weighed 135 pounds. I remember weighing 180 pounds on delivery day with my oldest daughter and I was horrified! After I had her my weight went down to 150, but I never really lost the extra baby weight. Well after my daughter, I went on to have 6 more children and none of them were twins. With each pregnancy I'd put on a little bit more weight and I'd never be able to lose those last few pounds. When my youngest son turned a year old in March 2007, that is when I seriously looked into getting weight loss surgery. He had been breastfed but now he was weaned, so I would be able to have this done without interfering with his breastfeeding. I had seen the commercial for the lapband and I got excited- this was MADE for me! I had dieted so many times in the past and the thing that always got me was my hunger. Gastric bypass had been around for years, but the thought of having my stomach cut and rearranged scared me to death.So I made an appointment with my Dr and got an appointment with the surgeon at the military hospital to see about having lapband surgery done. My appointment was in June 2007 and I almost cried when the I heard say the words "Tricare does not cover the lapband yet." My heart sank. I had finally taken the steps to start on this journey and it wasn't covered. He told me that gastric bypass was covered and that he hoped that lapband surgery would be covered in the next year. At this point I was so disgusted by my weight that I thought that maybe I could do the gastric bypass surgery and so I started on that journey. ~The Gastric Bypass Diet Class~ So, I was already at the point where I was ready to have my body cut in some shape or form so that I could finally lose the weight that I had gained over my childbearing years. Lapband was not covered yet, so I actually started the process of getting gastric bypass done. The class consisted of about 7 women, sitting at a table in a classroom setting and was taught by the dietitian. I knew I was not going to be able to eat the same foods anymore, but I had no idea that after you have gastric bypass done, that you will be fighting to get the nutrition you need. Sure, you lose the weight, but you can also lose your hair, become anemic, and you have to fight to eat enough protein every single day. And if you ever decide that you want to have something sweet, EVER again, you may have dumping syndrome. I walked out of the class and literally had to digest all of the information. "Non-reversible" stood out in my head. What if when I got older this was something that could seriousily affect my health in a negative way? The amount of vitamins that I had to put in my system was alarming. If gastric bypass went wrong, then this was a life long mistake that I would have to live with. At 37 yrs of age, that scared me enough to hold off. Fast forward to Feb 2008....Tricare APPROVES THE LAPBAND!!! :biggrin: I jumped on the phone and called my Dr for an appointment for a referral, and that is where my lapband journey really took off!

Another one in Clarksville here! I also love Dr. Steely!

I FEEL GREAT!!! :biggrin2: Wow, that's all I can say! I started pursuing the lapband journey last year and found out it was not covered by Tricare, and was THRILLED to find out it was covered in Feb of this year. That is when I started by making an appointment with my Dr and started on the road to Tricare approval. The things I worried about most were not ever being able to drink Diet Coke again and crushing up my meds. Well the worst part is actually crushing up my meds. YUCK!!! It's just nasty! But the best part is that I am 19 pounds lighter today than I was 2 weeks ago. The pounds are literally falling off and I can look in the mirror and see a difference. I am not having any huge cravings for any kind of food. I am eating just like I was told that I needed to eat. I am starting to get a little hungry, but I look forward to when I get my first fill. My downfall of diets was that I always got hungry, and this is why I failed. Everything I eat is now sugar free and definitely no bread or Pasta. Physically I feel better and mentally I feel more confident than I have in a long time. I am 110% happy with my decision!!! :biggrin2:

Mine is 2 weeks and almost over! :scared2:

I take Zoloft on a daily basis and since I have had surgery I have been crushing it up and drinking it mixed in something. Some how I think it is not working. I am really feeling depressed and it has nothing to do with food. I'm not depressed because I can't eat regular food, I am just feeling weepy and have been crying off and on all day long. HELP!!! Is this normal? Has anyone else noticed a change in their mood since surgery? I just don't feel like me. :cool2:

Surgery went great! I feel really sore, but I do not feel hungry. I've been sipping on Protein Water, chicken broth and had a few sips of decaf coffee this morning. And tomorrow is my 38th birthday!!! :smile: I can't wait to watch the scale move down and start buying smaller clothes!!! I have a patch for pain that last for 72 hrs and I also have liquid Loratab. Last night I took just a lick of a popsicle and it made me nauseous, so I am also on Phengram. I am SO GLAD I had this done! There is not one doubt in my mind! I will succeed!!! :scared2:

I have 6! I thought I would have 4 at the most, so I was a bit surprised. The one at the bottom is the biggest. The bad thing is that they ALL ITCH so badly right now!!! I can't wait for them to heal!

I take the Centrum chewable too, and I found coupons for the Centrum in the Sunday paper and there is also one in the box. They are orange flavored and don't taste too bad.

It's all very true. If you can't give up the amount you eat and what you eat, then the lapband is not for you.

I'm also dropping pounds pretty quickly. But our calorie consumption has also been drastically cut, so I think it's pretty normal. Congratulations on your banding! :embaressed_smile:

LOL....I've been staring at those little strips too and been tempted to pull them off! They are so darn itchy!!!

I am a week out and honestly I feel very good. I have not experienced growling hunger. I have 3 protein shakes a day, 2 cups of chicken broth and jello and coffee here and there when I feel like it. The only thing I don't like at this stage is I am sick and tired of chocolate protein shakes! I would die for a scrambled egg! :embaressed_smile:

OUCH! I'm also a week out and haven't popped any sutures, but hope yours feels better soon!

Not a doubt in my mind! One week out and I weigh less than I have in 4 yrs!

I am drinking protein drinks, sugar free Jello, protein water, and chicken broth. It's getting kind of boring, but I am losing weight. Protein is the most important thing and fluids as well. Potatoes are pretty loaded with calories.

I just took off my bandages to changes them and I have some itchy red bumps. The incisions themselves do not look bad, but I'm just wondering what this is?

I hate showers and was told to take them for 2 wks after surgery. Do you think it would be really bad if I took a bath?

Yikes! Are you sure that he had a license? I would report him.

Is anyone feeling up to an update? How did things go? Are you sore? How is the eating going?

I have Tricare Prime and started the process in Feb and just had mu surgery done off post July 8.

I weighed 246 on surgery day and I weighed myself this morning and I am down to 233! The only thing I am taking in as far as calories are 3 Carnation Instant Breakfast drinks a day, and everything else is sugar free. I've been drinking Special K protein water, sugar free Jello, and my one luxury is decaf coffee with sugar free creamer. I'm taking mulitivitamisn twice a day and I just hope I am not losing it too fast!

I am so itchy too!!! I hope this stage goes by quickly!!! :thumbup:

Clarksville, TN!!!

I have 6 incisions, and they are still covered with bandaids, but I'll post some pictures later. The scars will not bother me a bit. This is part of a positive new part of a new life for me and I wear them with pride! :thumbs_down: