nomadem

see even Tova said to try the prilosec....its NOT the same as Zantac...ask Dr R. I had a bout of heartburn and it went away after a week or two of the prilosec and me being VERY careful and not PBing..that meant some days of eating mashed pototoes but I got rid if it. Also if I ever have a bout of bad pbing or when I was too tight I used the prilosec to protect my belly. I wont harp on it anymore I swear. I havent been on the scale in WEEKS. :eek: Who knows what I weight now. I made an appt for in a few weeks for a fill. Been unfilled since Dec when I had to have 2 unfills in as many weeks. I know I can only tolerate a tiny fill bc Ive been filled/unfilled 2x at this level. I am ready to get serious and ON my plan again and I hope my darn knee heals so I can work out like I used to

thank you for the great posts my friends. I appreciate your honesty and I too share the same struggles. I really like when notatee said " We're fellow fighters in this battle who have had some amount of success with the same fight."

sing I too appreicate your honest...most of the time all you hear is how great WLS is when the reality is far from the truth. Ive had a VERY hard road with major complications and I tend to bite my tongue bc people dont want to hear it. That being said I too thought the band would take my hunger away and honestly it only did right after surgery and a few times the day I had a fill. Every pound lost was a struggle and Im still not done. Whats the magic formula? Still figuring that out as Im sure most people on the weight loss journey are. Keep in touch and DO NOT GIVE UP

thinkingaboutit sorry to hear about all the stress you are going through...that IS a lot to handle. And yes It is HARD. But guess what you can do hard things. :thumbup: Believe me we understand. It sounds like you do need that fill. Knowing that there is usually a wait for an ideal time for an appt, maybe you can call now and book it for when you think they house stuff will be over? Then you can have that to look forward to? In the mean time try to do follow what band rules (chew chew chew, no drinking with meals, Protein first, etc) you can, so that you will master those skills.

BlueSam if you can go back and read the packet from the dietitian it does have most of your answers. At this point you may be able to tolerate almost all foods but you should still follow the rules of chew chew chew, small portions and protein first....etc. LAP-BAND® Postoperative Diet Every person is different in what they can and can not tolerate also it can vary day by day. One day I can eat cups of salad other days a bite or two clogs up my stoma. This will become more prevalent as you progress with your fills Welcome g_2000 There are support meetings at the Faulkner the 2nd Monday of the month and the third Tuesday of each month at the Brigham. Have you been to the pre-op seminar yet? Weight Loss Surgery Support Groups ~Mel

way to go Jay!!! You've inspired me....I havent logged my food in a few weeks and I need to get back to it and ditch all those dry carbs that I tend to overeat. Im gonna start asap!!

and he shouldnt give you a fill either...you need that esophagus to heal and that takes time. I know you are struggling but you CAN DO this! I was reading a blog post about weight loss surgery and how its "hard stuff" and guess what??? Us bandsters are able to do" hard stuff" look how far you've come Tova. Well I just my first clearly identifiable stress pb...I know this without a doubt bc Ive been eating this same food all week and at different times without an issue...as a matter of fact its been quite a while since I have pb...then today. But at least I cant put the blame on myself like I usually do.

Great to hear blue! Oh I remember that weak feeling, sure you are getting all your protein in? I remember feeling very dizzy and I was getting in all my shakes but what made me feel better was when I adding in some salty broth. Heidi sometimes you need a pity party but you need to turn around and pull yourself up when you are done crying. When my port flipped I had no symptoms or pain, I guess it happened right after surgery bc we didnt know until I went in for my first fill post-op. Like I said above, Dr V repaired it and I went back to my office the same day all numbed up. Well Im in physical therapy for a sprained knee so no running for me plus Im getting over the flu. Its been a heck of a few weeks!!!! Still mulling over a fill bc the scale hasnt moved but my level is allowing me to eat with out intolerances. Heck I ate a piece of whole grain toast this morning for b-fast. TTYL :wub:

pulled it where? on your port? If so you wont need a new band. They replace and move ports without touching the band. I had to have my restitched 2 months after I got my band and Dr V numbed me and did in in a day surgery. I went to work after. Then again I didnt have the pain symptoms you had. So your band is okay right Heidi? . Are you having other symptoms or pain? Removal of your band is more complicated than fixing a port that is under your skin. Glad to hear the flax oil and Miralax is working for you Paige. I am really liking the flax (getting used to the favor still) since Ive been taking 2-4 Colace for many years and I might not have to if I cont to use it. Plus its got omega 3 fatty acids; heart healthy. :frown: Was VERY sick most of this week and lost a few pounds bc of it. Im sure it will come back but for now its nice to fit into my clothes again. Hope ya all are well.

Heidi DONT panic! You may have pulled a muscle or even torn something...they wont open you up to fix it. Is it red, raised or does it look infected? If not you should be okay. Your port is attached to the muscle below your skin and fat. So IF it needs to be repaired (which I doubt) they can do it with a local. Try ice and some pain reliever and see how that helps. Blue glad to hear you are hanging in there you have endured the worst its down hill from here. Like Paige said...you will hear us complaining about how hard this is journey is (bc it is) and the foods we miss..but I havent any regrets. I am VERY glad I had surgery Yeah um Paige did you see me eating the nacho chips right before I left? They were the only thing I ate the whole night bc I wanted to have those deadly yet tasty drinks. Well they didnt stay down. Oh and they were colored. lol. No drinking for me!

Lap-band has redesigned their website and are offering all kinds of tools like appt reminders, recipes, tracking your weight,FAQs etc. Its about time wish they had this when I was starting out Home - LAP-BAND® resource center: Resource Center - LAP-BAND®

Paige here is something new to try....flaxseed oil. You can get it cheap at Trader Joes. Add a tablespoon in your smoothie or make it into a dressing. Ive been using it for the past few days and its been working if you know what I mean. Id still use the Miralax as well until you feel normal. well my knee is better and I have an appt with the ortho dr tomorrow...it may be waste of time when they tell me to rest and ice it. Also Id like to report I havent lost a single pound in months...whoopie

best of luck Bluesam. I hope you are able to get some rest tonight. The waiting right before in pre-op holding can seem like forevah! You will do great and soon you will be banded like us! paige did you get another fill? Tova you are still waiting for some time to pass right? I was going to call for a fill but had some bad heartburn for like over week despite using Prilosec 2x a day. thankfully thats gone but then I twisted my left knee :thumbup:. I miss going to the gym

I guess I failed to sign up properly. lol Can you see your surgery reports? Is there a section for requesting appointments?

a friend told me about how you can access all your records and tests from Brigham on-line. I was with her when she was looking up her blood work. I signed up and it says they will send you authorization via USPS https://www.patientgateway.org ***************** Good to hear about your progress Bostonlady and Heidi. :redface:

I am currently reading this book as I have struggled with IBS issues even before surgery and now its out of control. Amazon.com: 4 Weeks to Healthy Digestion: A Harvard Doctors Proven Plan for Reducing Symptoms of Diarrhea,Constipation, Heartburn, and More (9780071547956): Norton Greenberger, Roanne Weisman: Books You probably arent eating enough fruits and veggies and drinking water. I know I know neither am I. :sad: But I did read that if you are working out more you are sweating more...which means you need to drink water to replace what you lost. Are you drinking at least 8 glasses of water a day? If you havent yet try Miralax...they now have it in generic form at Walmarts and Target. I am going to try to really focus on my fuild intake and see if it makes a difference before I see a specialist

meeting is tomorrow Monday the 8th at Faulkner. I am going to go. I am still gaining weight. I may need a fill or just a brain re-set...did I forget how or what to eat? Is this just old habits creeping back?

bluesame getting the approvalwasnt as big as of an a deal as I thought it would be. Sorry to hear that Tova, did you recently have a fill? Is the shoulder pain gas? It could be your diaphragm being sore? Heidi try prolosec otc for a few days...did you have a bad stuck episode? If not I might suggest a slight unfill just to let things settled down a bit. Well after last weeks meeting it all went down hill for me too. All that talk I had about having time to work on me went out the window. First got hit with a time consuming project at work..then I got sick.... skipped the gym....then I ended up stress eating. Since my unfill before xmas Im pretty much able to eat anything with no intolerances and while I feel good....Im not losing any weight at all. I join in everyone's frustrations. So today felt like back to square one all over again.

I started a new thread under the MA section for tips or hints...this would be a great thing to add. Thought it would be helpful and not get too buried.. If anyone is interested the thread is here: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f42/tip-favorite-thing-share-here-107711/ see you Monday!

way to go Heidi...its so hard and I cant even imagine how you do it with the little ones at home. Tova in my experience when I travel or fly I can retain water and that makes me tighter (same with time of the month) and I think that makes the tissues swell and therefore the band seems tighter. I could be wrong with this theory. But if you think about it when we get tighter the amount of fluid in the band doesnt change its the tissues that surround it.Hasnt happened many time but I have been nauseous drinking water on an empty stomach. Maybe you are trying to take too much in at one time? Not sure about next week mtg but I think I can make it. Finally seeing movement in the scale: been counting calories, working on my water and protein, and going to the gym...you know all the things we are supposed to do :smile2:

Hey Heidi I think you figured out it was probably bc you werent up to your normal intake of liquids...its always seems to happen to me when I take a trip or fly...I never can get in enough water and then I have a problem with my normal foods. I was doing great last week...then these past few days and I was with a very who eats poor and I joined right in. UGH! Nice to meet you BlueSam.... I like to shorten everyones name. Welcome to our little Masshole home here :smile2:

honestly I can not imagine traveling even in the US that close to my surgery date. What if there is a complication? Ask your surgeon they are the ones who know best How is everyone doing during the holidays?? Ive been just enjoying them and not worrying about good or bad foods. I went for another unfill last week...I couldn't deal with it anymore. Dr V only took another .4 out, which puts me around 7.4cc in my 14cc band so I still have some restriction BUT I can eat healthier foods with out all those intolerances! I ate a salad (!!!) yesterday for the first time in many many weeks. No I haven't lost anything thing...in fact Ive gained due to eating so many slider foods but I know I am back on the right track.

just want to say it was great to see everyone at the Faulkner meeting and to meet you bostonmama :smile2:. Its not easy to get to the meetings but I never regret it once I get there. still struggling with this fill level and getting stuck but gonna keep at it. will check out your posting ms$

oh Paige I hear ya...my pants are tight and I dont own anything bigger. Not a good feeling. Ive been struggling with eating poorly and been in that cycle of eating soft foods bc of food intolerances. Going to give it a few more days of liquids and mushies before I even think about an unfill. Bc if that is the case then I'm prob done with fills. Next meetings: Monday Dec 14th @ Faulkner, Tues Dec 15th B+W Bostonmomma congrats on your surgery date!!!

Hi all- sorry Ive been out of touch after rounding up everyone. I totally flaked out and missed the Nov support meetings. I will try my best to make it in Dec. Its been a long time. Well like I expected the honeymoon of that last fill only lasted a week and I gained back the few pounds I lost. But overall I feel okay. I did have one night that I woke up with reflux and choking but I think it was bc I had eating right before I went to sleep. Thank goodness it was only one night and I started taking Prilosec just in case. Oh and I got to experience a full blown hangover when I was out of town...horrible! Kept heaving and felt so horrible I had to have a friend drive me home. Once I got home I took (well you know what I mean) Phenergan and it worked like a charm. Oh and last friday was my 2 year anniversary!