Cocoabean

Submit what you do have. Did you do anything like Weight Watchers or Jenny Craig? Do you have any pictures of the years in between that you can submit?

Very well written! Best of luck, a prayer just went up for you. Any person with a brain can see that you most likely did not go on a crash diet and dip down into a "normal weight" category in the intervening times where you did not have a weigh-in during 2008! Even if you had, you certainly gained it back, which proves that conventional dieting has failed you. Might you have any pictures of yourself during that time period? Maybe from a wedding that the date could be confirmed?

Hi Jeff, You should be able to, I believe Lortab has tylenol and not NSAIDs, right? The question will be if you can swallow the tablet due to it's size, if not, you might have to use the liquid. I am able to swallow fairly large pills, I use Vicodin for arthritis pain when it gets bad. I can swallow it with no problem. Some banded folk cannot swallow pills that large. It all depends on restriction level.

Not another question about first fills! (rolling my eyes!)..totally teasing you! Yes, this is most likely due to the fact that you are consuming liquids. Think of the band like a funnel. When you pour in a liquid, the funnel slows it down a little bit, but it goes through pretty quickly. When you eat solids is when the tool of the band kicks in to help. The food remains in the small pouch and leaves slowly through the small opening created by the band and the fill. The smaller the opening, the slower it drains, the longer we feel full. When you get onto solids, and if you now have a good restriction level (rememeber, sometimes it takes more than one fill) you should feel the band working for you.

For me it was about a size every 10 lbs, as far as pants go. And some of my good pants I took to a tailor and had taken in. Around these parts it is about $10.00 to have them altered. Worth it if you have better quality clothing. Also of note, as your legs lose weight, your pants drag. I had to have some hemmed! I lost a little less than a pound a week during my active losing phase. So I was changing sizes about every 12 weeks or so. Some support groups have clothing exchanges.

Leigha, that is sooooo funny!!! Lovin', well done at the b-day party! Woohoo. For me, I just asked for my first fill in a year. But I think I had 4 in the year and a half after my surgery. My surgeon is very conservative on fills, though. That suits me fine as mine are covered on my insurance, so I don't have the time constraints. One word of caution, just don't let your checkbook rule too much and be overzealous in your quest for fills. Being overfilled is not fun at all!

Stacie, peppers just kill me with heartburn. Ugh, I love them, but they don't love me. Karen, congrats on VS! Yay! Fun. OK, I did it, Butters and I went for a walk when I got home! Here's my NSV. A friend of mine has a window seat at work that looks over the entry way. She said as I was leaving yesterday there were two men hanging out in the picnic table area near the door. She said as I walked by they stopped talking and turned to watch me walk! hee hee! Not bad for a 46 year old! Now if only I could remember who it was! Drat!

If you can spread them out during the day you'll feel more satisfied. Just a thought. :biggrin: I was worried about dropping below 35 BMI during my pre-op diet. I asked my surgeon what would happen if I got to the hospital and was under. He said not to worry, they'd put rocks in my pockets! Ha! Acutally the hospital weighed me in a gown, and I barely eeked out over 35. But the fact was, once I had approval in hand, I was good to go. It was based on what I weighed when it was submitted.

I am 2 1/2 years out now. I'd put it no higher than a 4. For me the worst was the left shoulder pain from the gas used during the surgery, the port site would be second. I used all the pain meds they gave me. The first 3 days or so were the worst of it. The rest was mostly just tired and achy. But I caught a cold sometime around the time I was in the hospital. So that didn't help the tiredness. My abosolute worst experience was the first night. I was released the day of my surgery. I slept in bed. I woke up in the middle of the night after the pain meds had worn off. I could not sit up or roll over. I had to wake hubby to help me up and get me meds. He was a sweetie!! If I were to do it again, I'd spend the first night in the recliner.

The first three days were the worst for me, especially the headaches. You are nearly done with the toughest part! Keep yer chin up. It will be worth it! When my surgeon said he could tell by my liver that I had stuck to my pre-op diet, all I could do was smile. He said it made my surgery very easy for him, and that I would heal much better.

Morning everyone! I have a confession to make. I hate exercise (ok, I've admitted that before), but I haven't done anything since I was so sick back in April. :thumbup: I lost most of my weight with very little exercise. So, I checked my blood sugar the other morning it was 106. Today it was 112. Yikes! I am not diabetic, was diagnosed insulin resistant prior to banding. I promised my poochie we are going walking when I get home from work. Our heatwave is over. So there is no excuse. Ok, confession over.

Welcome Ajay!! Yes, you are probably entering Bandster Hell! Grit your teeth, you'll get through it. Follow your doctor's orders, and come here for support!

My surgeon and I had a discussion about "snacking." His definition of snacking is brainless eating. Mine was eating between meals. So, when he said no snacking, what he really meant was no brainless eating, but that I could eat healty, well-planned foods between meals if I was hungry. So, generally my between meal foods contain Protein. You are still early on, you may find your hunger increases as you continue to heal. Check with your surgeon as to what to do if you are not consuming enough calories and you are not hungry.

Bobbie!! Welcome back! Bout darned time you showed yer face!! Lovinlife4eva, welcome to our humble abode! Can I call ya LLE? Or perhaps Eva? For short. 18 lbs post-op with no fill is awesome. This is a marathon, not a sprint. One bite at a time, baybay! Tell us about you. Our histories are back in the early pages. I am Elmer J Fudd, millionaire, I own a mansion and a yacht! Ok, NOT! I am 2 1/2 years post-op. Down around 70 lbs. At the high end of a normal BMI. Been about a year since my last fill. Gonna get another one. My surgeon wants me to have an upper GI first to be sure all is OK. So I am waiting for an appointment for that. I am in San Diego, have a hubby and a dog (labrador). Work as an Administrative Coordinator for the Federal Aviation Administration. Am about to be promoted to a Management and Program Assistant (same job, name change only)...woohoo. Big Names for "secretary" . But I do very much enjoy my job and love my manager. Oh, and I hate to exercise.

I do best with the more tender cuts, such as filet. I also do better with less done as far as cooking. Med-rare to rare. Well-done and I do not get along so well. I am very careful with steak and cut it smaller than any other foods I eat. I also chew, chew, chew!

I didn't notice much difference after my first fill, but everyone is different. There is a learning curve after each one. Best bet is to take it very easy. Cut meats into very tiny pieces. Take one bite, put the fork down. Chew, chew, chew. Make sure all is well before taking the next bite. Pay attention to what you are doing. Don't try to talk while eating. This can cause you to swallow before you have fully chewed. This has caused me to get stuck more than once. Don't assume your restriction level will be the same after any fill. Take your time getting used to your new level. PBs and getting stuck are not always in our control, but you can minimize their likelyhood. Best wishes!

Outback Steakhouse will let you order off the kids menu, but there is a $2.00 upcharge, which makes it about as expensive as the adults' menu. I have not found a restaurant yet where there wasn't something on the menu that I could eat. I never got the card, which explains that you had bariatric/gastric surgery, and requests that you be allowed to order off the childs menu at the childs price. I generally order off the appetizer menu. Or I bring home doggie bags and have my lunch for the next day. I have been known to put an insulated bag and blue ice in my car if I knew I'd be getting a doggie bag and we weren't going straight home. When I am going out with a group, and am concerned that I will not be paying attention to what I am doing...thus might get stuck, I will order Soups and more slider-ish foods. My doctor wants me to refrain from liquids with calories and soups, but experience has taught me that this is better than getting stuck in front of people. If I am going out with one or two people for a quiet meal, then I will order a regular meal. My hubby and I will often share or split meals. If somewhere charges to split, then I order a very small appetizer and ask for it to be delivered with his food. Then we share the appetizer and the meal.

Well, I am not a guy, and I only lost 70 lbs, but I don't have a slab of tummy skin. My weight was all over. I think it depends on where you carried it, and genetics. Consider yourself lucky. Congrats on the 100 lb. loss! Well done!

I am 2 1/2 years out and have noticed a slight increase in my appetite. My surgeon said about once a year for a fill. So I called to make an appointment, but he wants to do an upper GI first to be sure all is right with the world I am waiting for the approvals for the test and the fill (due to my insurace..I don't expect any problems). I had my last fill in August 2009.

If you cannot eat solids, it is not a good thing. After a bad stuck episode, I can be tight for a few days and need soft foods. But you should not be relying on slider foods to get you through. There is a learning curve after a fill that gives you more restriction. Smaller bites and cheweing more take practice. But sometimes our bands are just too full for comfort. A 0.1cc can be a huge difference! My edible foods list is similar to Janiece's. I can also eat pork.

Slightly off topic, but I collect dragon figurines. This is one of my favorites. Called "The scales of Injustice." That is a diet book by her side. I feel like that sometimes.

Mine was conservative, also. I think my first fill was 2cc and each after that was 1cc or less. At one point a fill of 1cc overfilled me. I have been at great restriction with somewhere around 5cc in my band. I think if your doctor is convervative, and tells you that he is (mind did--and told me why), then bugging him to go more or faster will not do anything. He is in the driver's seat when it comes to how quickly it will go.

It is more like the scales of injustice! I hop on every night just before bed, in my jammies. Crazy I know, but I can't get to the scale in the morning. I don't record the nightly weight, and I don't freak if it is up/down. It is just for reference. If I see many days in a row at the top end, it is time to adjust my diet or get a fill. When I was actively losing, my official weigh-in was Saturday mornings, naked. THAT weight, I would record. I no longer get on the scale every weekend. It just isn't that important now that I am in more of a maintenance mode. I know my ticker says a goal of 140, but I am not really sure if that is my true goal or not. My blood work #s are good and my BMI is normal. So I leave it there, but could adjust it up.

No restriction? As in zero? Or less than when you were unfilled? If zero, that could be a sign of erosion and you should see your surgeon to rule that out. If less than when you are unfilled, that is not uncommon. It happened to me after an unfill. I had 0.5 removed and a month later I went in and had 1.0 put back.

You could have your doctor write you a prescription for them. Then I don't think TSA could stop you. They allow you to take larger quatities of prescription liquids. Even though what you are talking about is not a prescription medication, if your doctor said you had to have it with you due to a medical condition, TSA would be foolish to risk the lawsuit from not allowing you to bring nutrition on board. Just a thought.