WOWOX7

oh my... not at that weight any more.. I am sitting at 165

I am so glad I found this post, I have been having trouble since April of this year. I was banded in Jan of 08 with a 138lb loss. I took vacation in April, on the plane on the way there, I felt like a tight sensation. when I landed I went to drink coffie,, threw it up.. that night,, I coughed all night. Woke up in the morning, with no voice. I went on liquid diet mode.. for 3 days while miles and miles away from home. called to get appointment at surgeon office as soon as I landed home. they took out some fill. was better for a while, gained about 15 lbs, went to have a fill, and have not been the same since. I have had the coughing, stuff running out of nose and mouth during sleep. sitting up in chair did not help. I have been to General Practioner, My ear, nose and throat dr. talked to er drs at work.. all thought it was sinuses........ fianlly at the end of my rope I called my surgeons office, talked to nurse, she said it sounded like esophagitis, and went in for slight unfill,,, took care of it, they suggested having scope done.. did that. Band fine, but Esophagas was enflamed, and irritated. gave me meds. They say,,,,,, I was tight, food was sitting at the top of stomach, causing it to irritate my esophasus. thus,,, causing acid reflex . It has been a roller coaster for the last 5 months,,, tired of not being able to sleep.. no problem eating.. restriction ok. I have just not understood it all. so glad I am not the only one with these issues. been made to feel I am doing something wrong, but yet they can not tell me what...... another unfil last week, after nurse practitioner put in WAY to much fill two and a half weeks ago. Paid way to much money for the band, and way to much effort on my part to gain it all back,,, it has to work. thanks for listening.

All, Today is my one year anniversary of my surgery and I was wondering how everyone is doing on their Anniversary. I would love to hear from all of you as your DAY approaches. As of today, I have lost 115 since the begining of my journey. I can not tell you how much better I feel and all of the NSV I have had. I started out in a 26 jean or 3x and am now wearing 12p jeans and some med tops. I went from 3x scrubs to wear to work, to now buying mediums. More important, I feel so much better. I can breath, I am not short of breath anymore, I can walk from the parking lot to the store, or into work. I can reach things so much better, not knocking stuff over with my butt.... My chances of diabeties has lowered, my blood pressure has lowered. I can now sit on the floor if I want, I can cross my legs... My thighs dont rub as bad. I feel healthy... finally. I love, love ,love my band and want to hear your stories. Following those band rules. Lois

You know what.... You can live with less pain... YOU CAN......... I understand the feeling of failure, but.. I DID NOT FAIL THIS TIME. I gave it my all.. my110 % I sent you a private message on the letter I sent my family about my band. read it... Lois

Dean, You have had some very good advice and experiances replied back to you. The only thing I can add is.... Yes, I was nervous before surgery,, about the surgery itself, failing AGAIN. BUT... I WAS MORE NERVOUS NOT TO HAVE THE SURGERY. I was so close to diabeties, had high blood pressure, out of breath.. all of the things that go with being Morbidly obease. I HAD TO DO SOMETHING. I was self pay and do not regret one cent that I spent. I do not regret it for one minuite...... only wish I would have done it sooner.

Chellz, I am so sorry for your road block. My Surgery was canceled the day before it was to happen.. I had been on a two week liquid diet. I was self pay.BUT>>>>> When my lap band Dr had done the pre op testing, they found a problem with my calcium levels... VERY LONG story short. I had hyperparathyroidism, and they had to take a parathyroid out before I could SAFELY have the lap band surgery. So I had to wait from the end of Aug... Parathyroid surgery in November, and the Lap band surgery in Jan. I know it is a bummer with the insurance company doing this.. I was self pay and still had a cancel. BUT.... If they had have done the surgery in Aug.. who knows what would have happened... A Blessing in Desquise? I will say a prayer to calm your nerves... I have been there girl... Lois

Tonya, Congrads on your decision on the lap band. It is understandable to be nerveous about ANY surgery. Have you looked into a lap band Dr local???? I just "personally" could not have have my dr within a few hours distance away. I guess it is a comfort thing..... As far as something going wrong.... that is with any procedure you have done.. to me it was worth the risk. I was way to close to Diabetes. had High blood pressure.. to me it was more of a risk NOT to have the surgery. As for the rate in which you lose !!! I lost an average of 10 lbs a month. YOU have to be commited to it.. the band does not do all the work. I was very restrictive on what I ate and how much. I did not have surgery to cheat and fail. Now I am slowly adding in starches and things I had restricted. You are right,, you have so much to live for... Four little ones.. what a treasure. You have to weigh out the risks and do what is right for you. I would suggest that you find a FREE seminar local and go to it.. talk to the Dr.. ask questions... see what they have to say about the band.. I guarentee they will probably have someone there that has had the band.. talk to them. I am just so glad I had the surgery... my health is so much better, I can do things I have NEVER done before. You can do it also... for yourself AND for those 4 little ones. LOIS

ALL, I may not be looking in the right area, but I am needing ideas for Bread substitutes.. also any and all ideas and comments on tortillas, taco shells ect. I am just now adding breads, carbs back into my diet and having a little trouble with breads. Am I eating it to fast? do I need to toast the tortillas shells???? Long timers.. help me..... Lois

Oh my goodness.. thank you all for your help and suggestions. I was away for the weekend, and loved coming back to info... thank you all again.

Like they all said, protein first. I ate alot of Egg salad and cottage cheese. I even put the cottage cheese on my lettuce salad for extra protein.You can cut down on the amount of salad dressing that way also. I have also added tuna to my egg salad, made it about half and half. VERY Good protein. Canned chicken works well to. Lots of veggies and tried to stay way from the pasta,rice,potatos. Now that I am almost where I want to be, I eat either fish or chicken with a salad at work every night "work 10:30p to 7a" during the week. eat a sincible other meal and then splurge on one thing over the weekend. Eat alot of baked Walmart bagged chicken breasts, alot of pork and ground turkey instead of beef. You can get real creative, focus on what you can have instead of what you should not have. lois

Wonderful job everyone. It can be done with the band. Dont let anyone tell you it cant. Mrswilson, you are right, alot depends on the amount of effort you put forth. The band is a TOOL, so much can be determined by what we do and what we put in our mouth. WE STILL HAVE TO BE ACCOUNTABLE. Best of luck to everyone.

Hello all, From Kansas city also. Dr Malley did my surgery and I have absolutly no regrets with him or his staff. They are absolutly wonderful. I am self pay and started out looking into wlsc, they flat out lied to me just to get me in the door to get my 250. They were rude and uncaring. Just my experiance !!!!! would not change having the band for anything. Life is so much better. Lois

Indiogirl, What a wonderful success. Thanks so much for your story. I recieved my band on Jan 3rd of 08 and met my first goal in April of 09 (-139lbs) , and slowly working to my second goal. Second goal to be considered "normal" weight by the BMI calculations. I am still trying to get used to walking into the NORMAL size section to buy my 6 jeans instead of the full figure to get my old size 26 jeans. It takes such a long time for your mind to catch up with the weight loss. Still working on that. You are so right that it takes work and will power. ALOT OF IT.... but the band makes it so much easier to stay on track and not BLOW it. You have to have a certain mind set. I was self pay and I made up my mind I WOULD succeed THIS time. I was sooooo restrictive the first 9 months and really watched my diet. I am slowly adding items back into my diet. Jeepman, I can only tell you that you CAN do it... if I can... anyone can. IT DOES WORK. It is not always easy or fun, but set your mind to it and dont let anything or anyone stand in your way. I can not believe the difference in my energy and my life. I have ALWAYS, ALWAYS been heavy, and I am doing things that I have never done before or would even attempt to do before. I would do it all again in a heartbeat... pay double if I had to. Best of luck in your journey, let us know how the seminar turns out and how you are doing. Lois

Rebecca, I do agree, your tastes do change along with your wants. I stocked up wayyyy to much on jellos, puddings,soft soups,ect. Another thing you can do during the soft stage is egg salad, you can make it as thin as you want, and it is WONDERFUL protein. As I started to get restriction, I would drink hot tea or coffie to relax it in the mornings. sometimes broth. Like someone stated earlier,,, get rid of the no-no's. so they dont tempt you. Good luck Lois

Megan, You can do this, trust me.... you have to want it more than anything else in the world. To be healthy, and live longer... hell yes. The first 9 months, I was very restrictive on what I ate.. as in starches, snacks,ect. I did this to lose the weight, and I was going to succeed. Now I am more relaxed and have been slowly adding back into my diet. I still eat pretty much what I fix my boyfriend for supper, just not the quanities and the starches. As for the protein drink, I use the EAS protein drinks you can get at walmart. I get the one with the lower protein count. I found, FOR ME..... it works so much better to sip it through out the day. I had one open in the fridge, and every time I thought about it , I would take a sip. At the begining,, I of course drank two or three a day. If I drank it all at once, I did tend to have diarreah. Siping it sure helped that. Not only am I a teller,, I am a shower... I took pics along my journey, and keep them in my purse, IF someone seems really interested once I tell them I did the band. I will show them the pics.. Sounds weird, but when I look at myself in the mirror or just looking down,, I still see myself as larger, but in pics... I see the NEW ME. Good luck, you can do it.. just make up your mind to give it your all... and....... FOLLOW THE BAND RULES. LOIS

Mickey, Congradulations on your date and having insurance pay. I was self pay, and would do it all over again in a heartbeat.One thing I will say is that your eating wants do change. Thank god I am not a bread-a-holic, I have tried so many times, and just can not eat it. it swells way to much. I know my wants have sure changed, chips, rice, potatoes, soda were my vice.. now... I can pass them by. Follow the band rules and you will do great, best of luck... Lois

Dont forget egg salad,,, or cottage cheese. both are wonderful protein. I fix tuna salad,, half tuna, half egg. I put cottage cheese on lettuce salad for protein.

I have found I can no longer drink any carbination drink... not from the lack of trying... tried keeping the lid off, pouring from glass to glass. nothing helped. The pain that I have is just NOT WORTH IT. plus my favorite drink "diet cherry coke" just does not taste good anymore. way to sweet. I know everyones body reacts different, but for me,,, it is out. as well as any citris type drinks... and Margarettas..........:wink: Lois

I have a 10cc band and it took 3 or 4 months for me to get TRUE restriction. I got soooo discourged, I thought I wouldnt be hungry, and could not eat alot at the begining.. boy was I wrong. Now a year and a half later,,,, the restriction is so fickle... I just never know,,, tight one day,, lose the next... Like others have stated before, I REALLY notice a change as stress and emotions change.. sucks.. but... this is my new way of life. I WOULD NOT CHANGE IT. Lois

I agree that she probably only took out what she said... you were soooo tight and it has had a chance to relax a little. I dont know about anyone else, but it seems it takes two weeks or so for a fill to level out. After the two weeks, it is pretty well set. Lois

Every one looks sooooooooo amazing, keep up the good work. After 2 years of looking at this thread, I am still in awe when I look at these pics, and how much of a differance this band makes in one's life. I know what a differance it has made in mine. This is my favorite thread... no doubt. Lois

Restless, Thank you for the words of incouragement you added. I wish I had those words the first few months of my journey... Would I have changed anything I have done... ABSOLUTLY NOT. Hang in there everyone... it is sooooo worth it.

Hello, 1. was nude under gown, except those wonderful socks. 2. ask doc about swimming. 3. Was told to use common sence and go slow. 4. I wish I had been made to understand that it would take a while to get restriction, and that I would be hungry until that time. first 3 months were very hard. ..... Once I got restriction, it was much easier to lose. I know I was told..... but it did not sink in. I was VERY VERY restrictive what I ate and how much I ate during that time, or I would not have lost. I could have ate the same amount and foods as before if I had CHOSE to. best of luck. Lois

ELL, Only you can decide to do this, you have to feel comfortable with the decision.All I know is it is the best thing I have ever done for myself. My health is sooooo worth it. I have extended my life and my quality of life. I can do things now, that I have never.. never.. never been able to do. I did not want to spend the rest of my life overweight and waiting for the next Weight related health issue to show up. As stated before, it takes real COMMENTMENT.. I was self pay and gave it my all. I was probably to restrictive in what and how much I ate at the begining until I got restriction. One thing I did during mushie stage was to get soup and purre it in the blender. My favorite is chicken noodle, just watch the calorie and sodium. I also eat alot of cottage cheese, which you can mash up for mushie stage. Put a little Mccormicks season-all on it.. IT is WONDERFUL protein. Also, fix runny egg salad, again very good protein. In time your food wants will change, Mind did. You are lucky to like tea so well, I miss my Diet Cherry Coke. I drink hot tea when I first get up, that is when you are the tightest. The hot tea seems to sooth it and relax it some. best of luck and let us know what you decide. Lois

Hey,,,, I have been there, I know how you feel, I was supose to have surgery on aug 31 of 07, started my two week liquid diet, and one day before surgery they canceled me because of hyperparathyroidism. I had to have Parathyriod surgery in November and did not get my Lap band until Jan of 08... I FEEL YOUR PAIN. But... in the end it is soooo worth it. your few weeks will pass by slow. I am sorry, I know the anticipation. Lois