lapinND

I have a similar issue. I'm filled 7 ccs in a 13 cc band. My last fill was 5 days ago. Since then, everytime I eat anything (even jello), it feels like I have a mix of heartburn/a pill stuck in my throat for quite awhile. Occasionally, air bubbles gurgle up through it. Then, it goes away. Is this what restriction is supposed to feel like? Water/liquids go down with no problem. I chew thouroughly, and I've stayed away from foods that might get stuck. But still, this lump in my throat. Separately, I do feel full with about 1/4 cup to 1/2 cup of food. But that's a different feeling that this throat thing. Any ideas?

Sorry to not have replied sooner to the questions. 1) No swelling around the port, but I wouldn't think 3 ccs of saline would cause swelling? 2) I'm from Bismarck. I'm feeling this feel, that's for sure! I think I've experienced my first "stuck" experience. Once, with a salad and the other time with some lean roast beef. Looks like this fill definitely hit the mark!

In the month since my last fill, I have felt no restriction at all, and I've been hungry all the time! I was at 3 cc in a 10 cc band. So, I went in for a fill today, and the Dr. said he was getting nothing from the pull back, so I had no fill. He filled me with 3 ccs. Then he explained how fills sometime disappear. He said it could be a leak, the last injection could have missed the port, there could be a kink in the band so a pull back doens't work, etc. This makes me wonder...last month during my fill, the PA could only get 1 cc pulled back. She said she'd bring me up to 3 ccs. Then, she withdrew the syringe before filling, and I felt a cold sensation when she filled it , different than anything I've felt before. I'm wondering if maybe she wasn't in the port and the saline was released around it instead. That might explain both the sensation and the lack of any restriction from that point on. Any thoughts? Maybe I'm just over analyzing?

I only have 3 cc in a 10 cc band, and I feel absolutely no restriction. ANd when I'm hungry, I'M HUNGRY! I'm going back in on Friday, and maybe I can make the case for an increase of 2cc, but most likely it will be 1 cc for a total of 4 cc. No weight loss this past month. But no gain either. Wish me luck!

My doc said "move up the schedule as you feel you can. That diet we gave out was more for full gastric patients." I felt a little like a fish out of water--there went my plan! But, on day four, I moved out of popsicles and Water and had my first scrambled egg. I could only eat about half of one egg. He also said I could move back into Protein after 2 days. I used the Liquid Protein from GNC with flat sprite zero. Between the two--protein and egg, I had a lot more energy and less hunger. After that, I had soft foods for a couple of weeks and slowly added other things. My favorite--crustless pumpkin pie. (Just make the filling part of the pie with low-fat milk and splenda). I got about 12 servings out of one recipe. Froze them in the tiniest ziploc containers, and took one out each night to have for Breakfast the next day. Day five, I had some cooked spinach and crab meat. The spinach wasn't my best idea ever, but the crab meat was perfect. Soft, good for you, easy on your stomach. Go slow with anything with more substance that what you're used to eating right now.

The scale hasn't moved much for me lately, so I was a little apprehensive to go shopping this weekend for some much needed spring pieces. I found a dress that was cute, so I tried it on in a 22 (was in 24s at surgery time). It was big, so I tried a 20. It looked pretty good, so I showed my mom, and she said she thought I should try a size smaller. So I did, and it fit perfectly! An 18! Woo-hoo! And then I tried a shirt in a 1x, and it fit, and I have to say, I actually like looking at myself in the mirror for the first time in a very long time. What a great day!

The question she posed was what she should do to get in the right state of mind, not what to do to get insurance approval.

That was supposed to be "aren't healthy," not are healthy.

One thing that I did during pre-op that helped me gradually get into the right mindset rather than going cold turkey was to start looking at ways I could prepare the foods I loved in a way that would work with the band later. For instance, I love buffalo chicken, but wings and fried foods are healthy. So I found a good wing sauce and I grill my lean chicken in a mixture of a little amount of sauce and Water, so I still get the flavor and not the fat or carb. I also found 100 calorie snack packs of some of my favorite snack items, so I don't feel deprived. There are some great options out there in 100 calorie servings. I even found a moderately healthy frozen pizza made here in ND. I am able to have 2 square pieces (that's how we cut it--probably equal to 1 medium slice) and fit it in with my daily calories and fat intake, if that's what I want to eat that day. It's about balance and paying attention, not deprivation. Since I've been banded, I've made healthy decisions, but I still eat regular food. If I feel like I want a hamburger, I find the healthiest one I can (bison or elk or lean beef--usually grilled, at home) and in the right size for me, and I eat it. You don't have to feel like this is the end of life as you know it. This is the beginning of a new life, but it is what you make it. The days leading up to my surgery, I think I mourned the life I knew--especially the food. That's when it became necessary for me to intergrate my favorite foods into this new life. You can do it. And before you know it, you'll feel better. More free. Good luck!

Good luck with your new endeavor. I do have a few concerns, though: as the daughter of a real, licensed dietician (not someone who calls themself a nutritionist, or even a doctor who has little education in nutrition) who I would consider a leader in her field, I can tell you that the whole organic movement isn't embraced by all dieticians. And a diet that takes out an entire food group, like dairy, is usually not supported by professionals. I think so many of us with PCOS are looking for answers and dedicated to making what ever changes are necessary to improve our health that I hate to see us being guided by people who might not necessarily have solid science behind them. That being said, I hope you have great success on this plan. But if you feel yourself needing to add non-organic beef or dairy to your diet, I wouldn't beat yourself up over it.

I'm right there with you! I get ravanous around my perdiod, too. Nothing makes me feel satisfied. I think it's because hunger feels different after banding, and maybe the cramps feel like hunger in a weird way. Anyway--I try to eat good food that makes me feel full, like squash or good meat. And then, of course, I have a little chocolate, too. :smile:

I'll try to join you, but I'm stuck at week 2. I've been trying to move forward for 3 weeks, and my heartrate, lungs, feet and knees tell me to slow it down. Anybody else need a few extra weeks of 2-3 minute run cycles before they could hit 5 minutes running at a time?

I have hypothyroidism and I was still approved. In fact, it may have helped my approval.