shortgal

Janet: I'm actually ok with my Dr's fill schedule. I can go often for fills and I don't want to be too tight, so I like that we are "sneaking" up on restriction. I don't pay for fills. I do feel like I'm still dieting when I don't have restriction, but I've had a few days of nice restriction and then I feel like I'm just eating healthy. The difference is the level of hunger between meals. Without proper restriction, I wake up hungry, feel hungry between meals and go to bed hungry, just like when I used to diet. So the feeling is the same. I am going through a period where I would normally get another fill, but I'm putting it off because of an upcoming vacation. Not because I want to overeat on the vacation, but I do not want to worry about being too tight while out of the country. A few people have also mentioned feeling tighter after long flights so I don't want to worry about that either. That's another comment I hear that makes me crazy, people that want to be unfilled, so they can eat on vacation. I don't get that, either. I don't want to over eat anymore for any reason. Sure, I plan to have a few glasses of wine on vacation or a treat, but get an unfill? Why? I've been eating this way since before being banded, so it is becoming my new normal, and that's good, but the hunger between meals is wearing me out. That's why I paid $18000! Some days are better than others, but most are still harder than I thought they'd be by four months post op. You're right, age might be against our metabolism but in other ways, age works to our advantage! Older and wiser! I forgot about our conversation previously about DH's love of pork fat! Funny! I might be slow but I'll get to the finish line!

Bunny, sounds like you have the perfect fill now. too often we believe that tight is good. It does need to be tight, but not so tight that solid protein won't go down. You have that and have figured that out! I'm sure my perfect restricton will come soon, too!

Name............Start.............Current...............Goal... ...........To Go Lizzie_07.........233...............233.....................220 .............13 Osangriared.....252...............252.....................232 .............20 Skinny_Jill.......180...............180.....................168....... .......12 Sades.............197...............197.....................185....... .......12 kandiceb..........187...............187.....................175....... ......12 shortgal............183..............181....................175...... ........6 TxArcher..........328..............328......................308....... ......20 Peaches11........217..............217.....................199......... ....18 Momto1plus1.....223..............223.....................210.......... ...13 zippykat...........173..............173.....................160....... ......13 Trixie...............219.5...........217.....................199...... .......18 Shalee04..........196..............196.....................185........ .....11 wnt2lose..........219..............219.....................209........ ......10 plump_princess....215.............215.....................199......... ....16 Mariegabrieleee....250............250......................239........ ......11 Down two, but I lost that right after the end of the last weigh in, but have been holding to that weight since, and I'll take it! April will be a LONG month and I should have know better than to set a higher than usual goal. Don't have very good restriction (still!) and becasue I'm going out of the country end of next month, I don't want to risk another fill before I go! I will march on until next fill appt May 5th.

Janet: AMEN! I still do not have very good restriction after eight fills, but I trod on and count my calories ( and track my protein) every day and do not go over 1200. I am absolutely putting in 75% of the effort ( except for exercising, but I'm getting better with that, too). I choose healthy foods and I keep ALL junk food out of the house. I stay away from desserts. Had a couple bites of a treat on a holiday and still stayed within my calories. I am self pay so I followed my post op diet carefully, I don't drink after my meals etc. Basically, after paying almost $18,000, I am still dieting and THAT'S OK WITH ME! The band does boost my willpower and once I get the right restriction, it will be a little easier. I have experienced a good restriction a few times after a fill, so I know how good it can be and I know I will get there. I could not sit by and just waste all the time after surgery, waiting for the perfect restriction. I'm not exactly a fast loser, but I am losing and I will not sabatoge myself. I'm not perfect but I am doing the best I can do to help my band, help me! Great post! Thanks!

I found this previous post by Dr.Watkins a band surgeon that has posted on the forum. I remembered this post about his description of a perfect fill. His words: My opinion is that the band restriction should always be perfect. It is adjustable so I see no reason why it can't be perfect all the time. In my opinion, if you have your first fill and you can still eat a lot and you feel as hungry as if you were on a diet and you find it hard to lose weight, I think you need more saline in there to help you out. I think a lot of band clinics don't get it perfect soon enough. perfect = full on small meals, not hungry between meals, easily lose 1-2 pounds per week, think your surgeon is miraculous, send your surgery practice a Christmas card that will bring tears to your eyes too loose = hungry, able to eat a lot, feel like you're on a diet, hard to lose weight too tight = heartburn, everything hurts to eat and wants to come back up, the only thing that will go down is ice cream and Cheetos

Sades: Sounds Like your BIL did get lucky and seems like his family was due for some good luck, after two family members died in car accidents. Perhaps he'll make improvements in his food choices as well to help himself. So hard, tho'. I don;t get that full feeling. I know how it feels since I've had it a few times and it was very good. I am following all the rules, counting all my calories (not more than 1200) and getting enough Protein and the scale has stopped going down again. I have to get the walking going more regularly, I am moving in general more. Yard work, shopping etc. I want to run for another fill, but I know with my vacation coming that might be a mistake. Long flight (some people mention feeling tighter after flying). At least I'll be walking a lot on vacation and I have a fill scheduled two days after we get back.

I don;t remember how long I was there. I had a chest x-ray, bloodwork and an EKG. That's all I remember.

What restriction? I can hardly tell any difference from before. I hope I see a different nurse next time for another opinion, if they think this is unusual. I'm still eating like I'm dieting, it's just easier to stay on the diet. It the lack of the full feeling for several hours after meals that I really want, that I don't have. Your BIL has quite a family history of heart disease. All the brothers proably grew up eating the same fatty foods and developed a taste for them that lasts. My husband's family was like that. Everything was fried, had lots of butter or sour cream. My husband has changed many of his eating habits but has HBP and high cholesterol, both controlled with meds. He is working on losing weight as well. Those old high school athletic days of playing football/basketball and eating big quantities of food gets hard to break later when we become older and less active. He does work out a little but it's not the same as hours of football or basketball practice. How is your restriction?

If you type "compare gastric bypass and lapband surgery" in a online search, you'll see some good sites with lots of info comparing both surgeries.

Sades: How is your BIL? Hope it was just indigestion after a meal.

Why would that be surprising? There has been a social acceptance of calling fat people ugly and unattractive, too. So is the answer we should all become 5 feet 5 and 125 pounds? Should we all become blond, too? should we all become exactly the same with identical BMI. I would think that previously fat people that have become thin, would be able to laugh those comments off, realizing that the same people that thought you were once too fat, now think you're too thin! Oh the irony! Please yourself, not anyone else, that is what Grace is trying to do. I really don't know why we spend so much time worrying about what other people think. I doubt Nicole Kidman loses much sleep becasue you don't like how she looks. Yet you find it socially acceptable to state you don't like how she looks. Opinions! We all have them, should be offered carefully and only when asked for them. "me thinks thou does protest too much"

I agree with your advice, but I think your title should be "OVER restriction is bad". A reasonable amount of restriction is the way the band works, but absolutely too much restriction is not advisable. If someone finds they have gotten to that point, I agree they should not wait months before deciding they need an unfill. there has been a recent similar thread "unfill or ??" many examples of why being too tight is bad, in that thread.

Why unfill COMPLETELY? The band does not have to be all filled or all empty. You can unfill a little at a time until you get to a comfortable place for you to eat a little more and not gain weight back. You can then determine if the foods you WANT to eat will go down in moderate amounts.

Congratulations! I'll be watching the thread for all the details. I can see you're excited and you should be, you worked hard to get to this place. I just approached the subject with hubby today. He understands why I want it and is supportive. I'm so bummed we had to self pay for the band, because that was supposed to be my PS money, but we'll figure something out. I'll need a neck lift ( needed it before the band), a thigh lift (or LBL, so far only front of thighs are bad) and I would like a panni. Arms, well I'll cross that bridge later, I guess. I am amazed at how much sagging skin I have after 35 pounds lost. ( I did lose 15 before that two years before banding, so sagging is from 50 pounds lost total). I still have at least forty to go, for my goal. I can't even imagine how much sagging skin, I'll have then. Yikes! Good Luck Julie, we'll be waiting for news.

Sounds like you need more fill. I guess you can go back to the Dr in Mexico or find another Dr to do your fills. For reference: I have approx 7.75 cc's in my 10 cc band and I do not have good restriction yet either. I am four months post op. I do not pay for my fills. I have had eight. First 2cc's, next several were 1cc, one of .25 cc and last of .5cc's. Looks like I need over 8 cc's for restriction. I am ok with the fact my Dr. doesn't put in too much at one time. I don;t want to be over tight and I'd rather sneak up on restriction. I do get frustrated with the length of the process, too. Sometimes, I have gone as often as every two weeks for a fill. This time I am delaying the next fill because of a vacation, out of the county. I don't want to get a fill and then leave and not have access to my DR. I've managed to lose weight, but only by following my old weight watchers type eating. The band does boost my willpower a bit, but I am still hungry not long after eating. A few foods go down slowly, like apples, but most other foods I've tried are no problem. I chew well, but I do not feel I have to chew excessively. I don't know if that info helps you with your decision.

Well then, I guess I'll just have to tell her there is no pain, no needles, no IV. There is just a "lapband angel" that flys down and waves the magic wand and you go to sleep. When the "angel" wakes you up, you just get out of bed and go home with your new band on. You will then be able to eat anything you like, but you will know to stop at the exact right amount of food. You will lose ten pounds every week and be at your goal within a very short time. Your weight will then never change from that magic goal number, ever, ever again and you will live happily ever after with Prince Charming, who you will marry at Snow White's Castle at Disney World.

Ok, put me down for eight fills and four months post-op and still waiting for restriction. I have approx 7.75 cc's in my 10 cc band! I can eat apples with the skin, salad, beef, grilled chicken, shrimp, pork and while I don't eat white bread, I can eat a piece of whole wheat bread untoasted with Peanut Butter. Now don't get me wrong, I am happy I can eat these foods, they are healthy, but you would think a bandster portion of chicken or fish would keep me full for several hours, but no, not yet! Only for a few days after a fill will I have a meal or two that might kep me full for four hours and then a day later, gone. I guess I need over 8cc's in my band before I get to my sweet spot. Next appt May 3rd, by then I'll be past the 5 month post op mark. Thankfully, my band does offer some willpower to resist eating sooner, but I find I am clock watching all the time until the next meal time. And my Dr. allows me to come in as often as every two weeks, so that's been a help. There's been times, I've waited longer than the two weeks because of my own schedule. That includes this month, I'd go back for another fill sooner, but I am going out of the country, if the next fill end ups too tight, I might have a problem while I'm away. I'll use my willpower and wait until I get back.

Yup, normal fasting bloodwork is 65-99 and yes might be higher for someone already diagnosed as diabetic. But I'm sure the lap band and weight loss will help you improve all those numbers and seems lucky to me, you are doing this now before you ended up in a year or two with diabetes. Stick to that pre-op diet and your liver will be good to go!

Grace: Looks like you found a solution to the problem you were trying to solve. Nope, no amateur Dr. Phil here and didn't want to start trouble, just didn't understand what I perceived to be an attack at what you said, since it seemed obvious to me you were not directing your comments to Chickie. The comments you made were about you and how YOU want to look. Overly defensive in my opinion and too thin for my taste as well, but she does not have to please me or you or anyone but her. Same as us. I'm sure she'll think I'm still too fat when I reach my goal, and honestly I will be, but it's my choice, as it's yours. If the world was all made up of identical size people, it would be pretty boring.

andielmt: I like Cereal for b'fast, too and I eat the lower carb, higher Protein ones like Kashi go Lean or Special K high protein, BUT they still have carbs. Maybe you and I are similiar in that it is easy for us to get hooked on the carbs. So try a day or two of all protein liquids (that's really hard I know because they go through the band) but the protein helps keep us satisifed longer. If you don't want the lall iquid, then maybe try solids but don't include carbs, like in the cereal. Eat an egg instead for b'fst, then high protein foods for lunch and dinner. No carbs. Recently, the only days I do all liquids is when I get a fill and it really helps to boost me back on track. A month or two ago, when my weight would stall, I would do an all liquid day. Protein Drink every three hours from 8am to 8pm. I would start at 8am with an Atkins shake and alternate every three hours with a half bottle of the Isopure CLEAR. By end of day, it comes out to 640 calories with 85 grams of protein! A few times, I tried I couldn't get through dinner with just a shake so I substituted ( at the 5pm time) a box of Campbell's select butternut squash Soup ( definitely has carbs, tho") and then drank the 5pm 1/2 glass of Isopure at 8pm. 8am Atkins Shake 15 gms protein 11am 1/2 bottle Isopure CLear 20 gms protein 2pm Atkins Shake 15 gms 5pm 1/2 bottle Isopure CLear 20gms 8pm Atkins Shake 15 gms. If you want to try a day like this and need a buddy, I'll do it with you! Has to be tomorrow or Thurs. I'm going out of town on Friday for the weekend to see a friend. I know I won't do all liquids then unless it's wine!). I also try mixing up my calorie levels, one day 800, one day 1200, just so my body doesn't expect the same thing every day. Hope some of the suggestions work for you.

Wow, you ladies are very impressive with your exercise. several years ago I did a step aerobic program with a DVD and it did shape me up, but I just ate all the calories I burned. Problem was when I injured my knee and had surgery, exercise stopped and the same intake of food did not. Big weight gain and still have almost daily knee pain. So while I want to get back to my 3 mile walk, which I enjoy, I don't want to use heavier exercise for weight maintenance. It's just not a reliable source of burning calories for me. But it sure makes losing weight harder without it. I don't know how women with a family fit it all in! Have to admire your dedication!

Apparently, he is one big polygamist!

I got this info about elevated glucose levels from the internet: ________________________________________________________________ Impaired fasting glycaemia (IFG) is a pre-diabetic state of dysglycemia, associated with insulin resistance and increased risk cardiovascular pathology, although of lesser risk than Impaired glucose tolerance (IGT). IFG often progresses to type 2 diabetes mellitus, a recent study citing the average time for progression as less than three years.[1] IFG is also a risk factor for mortality.[2] It is characterised by an intermediately raised fasting glucose level, but less than would qualify for type 2 diabetes mellitus. On challenging with an oral glucose tolerance test, normal blood glucose levels are maintained after 2 hours, unlike IGT. Criteria fasting glucose level > 5.6 mmol/l (100 mg/dl) and < 6.9 mmol/l (125mg/dl).[3][4] The criteria will continue to change as many endocrinologists believe an impaired fasting glycose may eventually include fasting glucose between a high 95-100 mg/dl. ________________________________________________________________ Many overweight people have fatty livers and that's why so many Dr's have them on a liquid diet before surgery. I guess a rapid weight loss and change in diet can have a rapid positive effect on a fatty liver.

Love hurts!:cursing: