Kristin1031

I am 46 years old and have been married for 28 years to my best friend. He is a lifer in the Air National Guard and we have two children, daughter who is 27 and we lost our son Adam in 1988 to Cancer he was 4 1/2. We have 2 grandsons Adam 4 and Cole 1, they are the loves of our lives. I wanted this surgery so I would be around to watch them grow up and so that I could actually play with them and have fun. We have two dogs Kodi (Gordon Setter) Bear (Yorkie) and we lost our other gordon setter in September Amber. She is greatly missed. I am a insurance biller for a Medical group of 200 physicians and 80 offices in 2 states. I love to read, listen to country, go to NASCAR races and do cross stitch and cook.My greatest accomplishment was to raise a child that I am very proud of and who is a wonderful mother. I love my new life so far, and am growing very fond of my band. I have lost 2 pant sizes since my preop diet Nov 4th.

Mine is directly in line with my belly button on the left and it is sore still, but healing very nicely. I think the placement is perfect for me.

My Dr states 2 - 3 ounces per meal that is correct. He said I will never eat above 4 ounces with the band forever. The 4 ounces is after you are at the maintenance phase. So yeap get used to eating very little but being very satisfied, no hunger. And Bye Bye to the pounds.

For those of us in the Mushies stage have you decided what you will eat tomorrow? Curious how everyone is planning on handling this huge feast of overeating and enormous calorie ladien foods...we have all grown accustomed too!! Share!!!

Hey Andie!! We are having Turkey tomorrow the pot roast will be sometime this weekend. Well I hate Creme of Wheat so no worries there girlfriend....LOL I have been having my cottage cheese and yogurt mixed together for breakfast this week. I have not tried any oatmeal just yet. I did have some runny scrambled eggs with fat free cheese for dinner last night that was awesome. I love eggs and forgot what they tasted like...LOL I have no desire for any of the bad food YET!! Thank the Lord.....I am blessed by that I know. I hope you have a wonderful holiday and take care and stay in touch!! Happy Thanksgiving to you and yours...Hugz back at ya!!

I think I am just starting to feel hunger now. This is 13 days after surgery, and my stomach growls and I can feel what I think might be hunger. But I am feeling the tired more than anything......That is what clues me in to it it is time to eat again. I am trying to remember to eat slowly, this is also hard for me. When eating such a small amount...LOL I have a horrible time getting the liquid in between meals, I am full so it is not appealing to sit and sip liquid. I hope this gets better because I know how important that Fluid is. It is what will help with the weight coming off.

Hi Kat: You are one of the reasons I know I can do this, I have read your other posts on here over the past few months and I am amazed at your accomplishments, and since I am wanting to lost so much, I am always happy to hear the true 100 pound plus success stories. I know I can do this......and because of people like yourself that have gone before me.....to help lead the way!! Thanks for your encouragement. I am not at all hungry nor worried about tomorrow....just am curious how folks will be handling it.

Thanks for the insight it is very helpful..... I wanted to share that I too lost my Amber on September 8, 2007 and she is missed each and every day by my family! Hugz

I think it is most likely the tube that they put into your throat to breath for you while you are sleep. My throat was sore as was the roof of my mouth for afew days. I had a swelling in the center of my chest that was the band I could feel according to my surgeon when I told him about it. I am sure it is fine and normal, but always call the Dr just to be on the safe side.

Good Luck Today and Congratulations for your Decision!!! As has already been said here, this is no easy decision to make and the life stayle adjustment are forever. Just keep remembering you are doing this for YOU and no one else!! You will do just fine and I am sure you will recover just fine as well. I was really sore the first few days and even I wondered what did I just do voluntarily to myself....LOL I am so happy that I have done it though and I am on to a new me and one who won't ever let food control me again. Hugz

Hi Andie: Glad to see you are doing well, I did miss you on the board was worried you might not be recovering as well. Glad you are over the worst of it. Be careful with that cold though...ouch!!! I am feeling super really just tired with my work schedule. I am off now for the holiday til on Monday back to it. I am not nearly as sore, it is like it took at turn for the better over night. Your meal sounds delicious, I am going to make a pot roast for my hubby and I will have to try this. I am trying to stay away from the scale as suggested. I just don't see the movement that I hoped, but I know it is because I am still having trouble getting in all the liquid, even sipping constantly just seems so hard. Because my tummy is full.....LOL No hunger hear at all yet.

My spleen was nicked during my banding and I bled and that is why I was kept over night. However, I needed no transfusions of any kind was just getting lots of fluids. I had not trouble since then. I have been tired but I think that was going back to work and 10 hour days.

My Dr recommends nothing to drink 1/2 hour prior or during and 1/2 hour after the meal. He told me for the band to work at its highest potential that the food needs to stay in the pouch for as long as possible. If you drink while eating it just pushes the food right through and defeats that purpose. Also the liquid expands the pouch too much if combinded with food. I knew from the get go that would be the hardest part for me. But actually it has not been too bad. What is so funny is going to a resturaunt and how they look at you when you tell them nothing to drink. Not even Water..... I have stuck to this rigidly since he told me how important it was. I amke sure to drink right up to that point before and I am very hydrated so it has not been an issue for me.

Well just remember I had an abnormal EKG and it showed I might have had a mild heart attack....LOL I went through the roof and was so scared, this was one week before my scheduled surgery. I had to have a stress test and Thallium test on my heart. Need less to say I passed all of these with flying colors. So try not to worry til you know more. That is all the advice I can give. Good luck, and if you do have it better to know before you are on the table wide open. My thoughts and prayers are with you.

I found something that was awesome on this pureed stage, fatfree refreid beans and salsa blended with some no fat cheese in my Magic Bullet and then put cottage cheese on top. It is so good, and it is almost all protein......Can't go wrong there. Longhorn from this site also eats this...... I also have had scrambled eggs with some grated fresh parmesean cheese on them, that is also a double whamie of protein. Hope these help I enjoy both of these.

Good Luck to all of you today.......you will be in my prayers that everything goes well and you will all get to come home and recoup there. You are all just a few hours away from your new life!! Congratulations!!

Hi Elizabeth: I started my mushies yesterday and I know we are getting more calories now, but I was told to journal like crazy, to measure everything and to make sure to figure out the caloric intake I am getting. Sometimes the smallest of things can cause a stall in weight loss, but this is the healing phase remember that your body is adjusting to the metabolic changes inside of your body due to your new band. Don't get discouraged and remember to follow the meal plan that your Dr and nutritionist set forth for you, you will lose perhaps not today but in a few days you will see the scale move. I have lost 11.5 punds since my surgery. I think that is pretty amazing in 12 days.. I don't want to keep losing it this fast, I think it is healthier for it to come off more slowly and will help in my skin also being able to shrink right along with it. Chin up.........remember we are still healing from all the trauma inside. Hope this helps you a little bit! Hugz

Today was my first day back as well, and people at work know what I had done. Most are very very supportive......and they are amazed by how much weight I have lost already. I think the issue with food will be with them not me, they are already acting like it bothers them to eat in front of me......LOL I keep telling them that I don't care they are shoving crispy cremes in their mouths.....I don't even have a desire to have a donut none at all..... Glad you had a positive day as I did too......I am just really tired it was a long 10 hours for me. Another 10 hours tomorrow and then again Wednesday and I am off again for 4 days....

That is my meal tonight for supper......I started the mushies today and so far so good. Yes I have had social situations since surgery. Have been out to lunch four times with family since my surgery. I had no issues at all. I ate my liquids that I brought with me. That was fine with me and didn't see to bother anyone else either. I made supper for my husband yesterday, meatloaf and potatoes and greenbeans with almonds. He enjoyed it very much and I did not even want any, I was not hungry at all. It still amazes me that I am not at all hungry. I know this can't last forever....Can It?....LOL

I hope everything went off without a hitch today for you.......YOu will be up and about before you know it!! Just take it easy those first few days and don't try to do too much too quickly... Hugz

Longhorn I just told my daughter that I felt like I was being kicked slightly.....LOL

I had my surgery with Dr. James Debord and I can't speak highly enough of the Peoria Surgical Group and their Bariatric Program, it is really wonderful and very supportive.

I was banded in Peoria,IL by Dr. James Debord Peoria Surgical Group at St. Francis Medical Center. Thrilled with my whole experience their Bariatric Program is one of the best in the Nation and they are a Center of Excellence as well.

Hey Andie are you out there? Hope all is well with your recovery have not heard from you in a few days! Vanessa how about you haven't heard from you either. Hope all is progressing well with your Curves membership this week. Hope this Turkey Day is truly the day we all will say a Thanksgiving Prayer for our new lives that we will live free from the bonds of food!! Be Thankful that we have had the courage to do this and make such a huge change to our lives forever.:clap2:

Great Job! Congratulations on your great recovery. I think I would be fearful too eat regular food this soon since my stomach isn't yet healed. Glad to hear you doing great though. Longhorn my Dr told me that it is not so much the scale as the Bod Pod that I will have in 6 months. That is the test that shows your body mass composition we had to do it before our surgery and one 6 months out and then again at a year. This where you will see the change from fat to muscle. I just want to be healthy and I think the body change will come with that. I am like you don't want to be a scale watcher. My scale here at home is 7 pounds lighter than at the Dr office, and it was an expensive scale...LOL So I only will get on it to see if it is going down not so concerned about how much.