Cocoabean

Well done, congratulations!!!

You look fantastic! I must say at first I thought they forgot your belly button! Then I saw the steri strips. I am happy you are so pleased with the result.

I did it for my pre-op. I can't say I liked it, but it was effective.

I am happy you were able to talk about it, and that he will hear what your doctors have to say. My hubby wasn't all fired up for me to have this surgery either, and had I chosen bypass he would have outright fought me tooth and nail. This is hard enough to do without having to battle a spouse on top of it.

Mine varies from day-to-day. Usually I can eat something. But each day I never know how much I'll be able to consume. I, too, wish it were more consistent. That is about my only complaint about being banded. If I KNEW I'd only be able to eat THIS much, then great. But one day I can eat THIS much, the next day it is THAT much. I've not found any way of creating consistency from day-to-day. Otherwise, it is all good.

I gotta agree with this one. For me a PB is just that, I burp and up comes something. Generally that doesn't get me unstuck. It might happen, but it is rare. A PB isn't usually related to being stuck. Sometimes I can work my stomach muscles and bring it up. Or I can drink some Water and that will start a launch sequence.

A couple of links are below. The first is for grievances against insurance denials in Georgia. However, if BCBS requires a 5 year history of morbid obesity (or a BMI over 35) you might not have a case. You might also go over to www.obesitylaw.com they are an advocacy group that help to fight insurance companies. See what they have to say. http://www.online-health-insurance.com/coverage-by-region/GA/resources/page-25.php http://guides.wsj.com/health/health-costs/how-to-appeal-a-health-insurance-denial/

The least amount of urping you do, the better for your band. But sometimes it cannot be avoided. I get stuck a couple of times a month or so, and I urp it up. Call it vomit, call it PB, call it stick your finger down your throat. I call it the quickest way to get out of pain with the least amount of trauma for me. Being stuck with my stomach trying to grind the food that is stuck above my band for hours with slime abounding is just not my idea of fun. If I am feeling any discomfort after having been stuck, I go on liquids until that stops. I tend to go in streaks, once I am stuck, I am likely to get stuck several times in a row until all swelling is gone. I get an upper GI every year to check on placement of my band. The last one was in September, before I had a small fill. All was well then. About 2 months ago my band suddenly tightened up significantly. It stayed that way for about 6 weeks. Now it is back to normal. Odd. I have a call in to see my surgeon. Waiting on insurance approval.

Well, for the record, I have somewhere between 6 and 6.75cc in my 10cc AP Standard. Because I have lost count. I -think- it is 6.75. But between fills, an unfill, then being told my surgeon might have put some in at surgery, I gave up trying to figure it out.

You did not come across too strong, but you did say you were going to have the surgery and not tell him. So I tell him that I might need him to be off work for the day of my surgery not telling him the reason but he asked me if it is for me having surgery then he is against it. So, that was a bit of a leap on my part, I took it to mean that you would not tell him you were getting banded. Do you think perhaps he feels you should recover more from your cancer? Or that he feels perhaps that band surgery or WLS in general is a bit vain now that you have had cancer? I don't feel that way, but I am trying to see it from his side. He was probably frightened when you got the cancer diagnosis. He might be just trying to cope with all the emotion from that. If he's never had a weight problem he might not understand the desire/need to have this surgery.

There is no way you can keep this from someone you live with. Not only will you have a port that he will be able to feel when you are intimate, but your eating habits are going to change, drastically. How will you explain if you have something stuck in your band and you start sliming uncontrollably? The pain is hard to hide, but the slime is impossible. When you cannot swallow your own spit, someone you live with cannot help but notice. He will feel betrayed. My surgeon won't do surgery on someone if their partner isn't with them on it. We need the support. My husband had to come to a support group and a couple of my appointments with me, or it was a no go for my surgeon.

All you can do is what you can do. DO get the OK by your doctor, of course. But even if it is just moving your arms and legs in your chair, it is better than nothing. 5 minutes walking is awesome! It doesn't have to be structured. Park a little farther away. Walk half way down your block when you check your mail. Get a couple of weights to lift while you watch TV. Any effort is worth it.

Bypass patients lose a lot during the first few months. Bandsters, not always so much. I didn't really start losing until about 4-5 months post-op when my fills really kicked in. My surgeon didn't have me dieting. Bands don't do anything until they are adjusted properly. He said to expect me to lose before then was just torture.

The amount in your band really doesn't matter. Many people make a big issue of it, but in reality, it is the level that makes you feel right that counts. My doctor doesn't really discuss how much I have either. Other than tracking in case you have a leak, and knowing that fills should get smaller the closer you get to capacity, the total doesn't mean anything. And what I have compared with what you have doesn't mean a hill of Beans. Besides, if I have 6cc in my band and you have 9.5, if I have a 10cc band and you have a 14cc band, that is a big difference.

Well, of all the weirdness, the day I called to request an appointment to see the doctor, was the last day I had trouble. I seem to have returned to my pre-trouble restriction level. I will still go see him once they call with insurance approval, but it is wonderful to be able to eat again.

It was soy and wasabi almonds. I was having them everyday. I am very sensitive to soy, but not salt, go figure. Just a tiny bit of soy is 2-3 pounds or Water retention. Eat it daily and it appears to be a gain. :/ After I eat soy, it is about 2 or 3 days before I get rid of it. So, what I thought was a 5 pound gain was actually a 2 pound gain once I quit the soy and wasabi almonds.

I did not have a choice of the sleeve when I was banded. Honestly, not sure what I would do. I will say that the fear of leaks and stricture is a big fear for me. Gastric bypass IS reversible, though rarely done. Sleeve is not at all reversible, as they completely remove the portion of the stomach that is cut away. Part of what I did not like about bypass is that many people have a gain after the "honeymoon" period where if they haven't truly changed their eating habits--weight can begin to creep back on. With my band, I eat to my satisfied point, and I am done. Portion control was my biggest issue. I did not want to drastically change the foods I eat, and I haven't. So far (4+ years out) I feel as though I have created a lifestyle I can live with forever. The changes I've made are not so drastic from my "old" life that miss the old me. I've been maintaining this weight with ease for over two years now with hardly a bump in the road. When I did post a little gain, I went in for a slight fill, cut back on food and soy sauce, and lost it quickly.

You might up your carbs enough to come out of ketosis. You can buy urine strips at your pharmacy to check levels. http://www.ehow.com/how_2078480_treat-ketosis-breath.html http://www.carbohydrate-counter.org/bad-breath/ http://breath.ygoy.com/2010/07/01/bad-breath-ketosis-how-to-reduce-bad-breath/

Yay jacqui! I am so happy you had a surgery you WANTED! Cannot wait until all is healed and we see the after pics.

Ice cream is liquid, right? I think we so often do these things because our powers of rationalization are so very strong. "I haven't been able to eat for days, I need the calories. Plus I've been hurting so bad, a little ice cream treat will be so great!" "The cold of the ice cream will help any swelling." Big thing is, you have recognized it, and are addressing it. WAY TO GO! Most of us are self-medicating food addicts to one degree or another. You are worth the effort to eat right and make good choices. A little treat once in a while is fine. Just be sure you are aware it IS a treat.

I caught a cold around the time I was in the hospital. I tried to go back the second week. Ended up doing about half-time. If not for the cold, I probably could have done my desk job after a week.

Eating and driving while banded is no bueno! To the OP, you most like irritated your stomach with the original stuck episode. Flying sometimes makes us feel tighter, that doesn't help. If you had some reflux thrown in, that can irritate the throat. After a bad stuck episode, I can be sore for a couple of days due to swelling. That is when I switch to liquids for a while until things feel better. It lets swelling subside and doesn't not invite a stuck episode on top of already swollen tissue.

That feeling is very common.

Yes, being banded is all moonbeams, roses, and glamour! HA, NOT! We have to tell each other like it is. Who else will?

In my book, there is never a cheat. My band is for life. My eating habits are for life. I am not on a diet. I eat small portions. I make good choices most of the time. I enjoy foods that aren't so healthy some of the time. My healthier choices happen far more than my less healthy choices. It is all about balance and moderation.