shortgal

Call your original surgeon first for advice. Consider taking a long weekend and driving or flying in to see him/her.

Your band might just be too tight (which can eventually lead to a slip) so just go see the Dr. So many people are anxious to lose weight and they think having an overtight band will do that.... it doesn't. You need just the right restriction to eat healthy SOLID Protein. That's what will keep you satisfied and you will avoid "slider foods" that go down easy. Then you'll lose weight.

I'm glad you did that. That was why I suggsted you talk to the surgeon and get the story in full, so you can understand. Once you understand something, you're in a better place to make a decision. And you did just that. Get the thirty pounds off and you'll be ok. Good Luck, you've endured a lot.

It is possible with the band or with GBP to eat "around" it and regain. Slider foods, high calorie drinks can cause weight gain. Either procedure is a "tool" that you must help to work and neither is a "magic wand".

If I lost one pound every time someone posted a feeling like this, I'd be at goal! My point is, this is a normal thought. Many on the forum have expressed the same thing. You had surgery, you ache, you are mourning what you think it the loss of food ( trust me you will eat again). The anesthesia can do this to us.... keep taking those walks, they help depression. If the depression continues.... see your DR. It's not normal for it to last too long.

At some point you will lose all your weight and reach goal, you will then have to learn maintenance. Why not practice maintenance now? It's a good skill to learn for long term band success. You'll be way ahead in the long run. Stick to Protein, veggies and a small serving of carbs at dinner, you know the right size portions. the time will go by faster than you think.

As far I as know, Bariatric surgeons use the general BMI calculator and your BMI would be around 64. The higher your BMI, the faster you'll drop weight on a liquid diet. I think it's possible you can lose the forty pounds, if you are dedicated to the liquids. You could also give yourself a couple extra weeks to lose the forty by having surgery later in April. I don't see why you wouldn't be able to go on the July cruise. You'd have all of May and June for recovery with surgery in later April instead of Mid April.

Just be prepared and explain all the attempts you've made to lose weight before and how you'd hate to come back to them in two years when you do reach a BMI of 40, becasue you feel that's where you're headed.

At my last fill, I asked for a very small one becasue the meal the night before filled me fairly quickly, even thought the meals before that weren't. I should have taken what fill I thought I needed before that meal, because I'm still able to eat too much ( although I refrain and never go over 1200 calories). I must be getting close tho' and do not want to be overtight, so I have asked for conservative amounts. Next fill appt is 3/20, I want at least .5 cc's which will bring me to approx 7.75cc's. Weight loss is slowing down, so I hope some additional restriction will help that. I do not feel a sensation of being full long enough. I am constantly watching the clock, to see when the next meal is!

Hi Kristen and welcome, The preop diet does help to shrink the liver and an added benefit is the weight starts to come off sooner. I had a low calorie, low fat diet to follow instead of the liquid one, I wish I had the liquid one becasue I would probably have another ten pounds off by now. Don't worry you'll eat real food again. It will take a few weeks to a month but you'll really start to enjoy food again. Congratulations on your surgery date!

and I have the AP one, so we are both right about our max fills! I find these sites becasue I have too much times on my hands... I should be exercising with the time... but we needed the answer.... right? LOL:blush:

If you have followed the pre-op diet, you've done all you can do, the rest is up to the surgeon and he'll have a more experienced one with him. Are you required to do one to two days of clear liquids before surgery?

Here is the other thread, maybe this will shed some light on the subject. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f17/fill-capacities-certain-band-types-55207/

Self pay? Yeah, they'll do you.

You need adobe reader to open it, it's a pdf. anyway there is another thread on here with band sizes and max fill, there might be different bands. I'll see if I can find it. I know I have more than 4cc, more like 7cc in my band, so something is different about them. I just searched Lap band and protocol and found that site that is for physicians with the info. Hey, as long as you are losing, who cares how much is in whatever band!

My anesthesiologist met me in the hospital, not long before the procedure. You can "come to" with "twilight" sleep and sometimes it's desirable for the surgeon as they can arouse you and you can move into a certain position if they need it. They can also just give you more drugs to have you go a bit deeper is needed and you do get "local anesthesia". Depends on the hospital or anesthesiologist, I have been given something in the IV on my way to the OR to relax me and with the band surgery, I walked down to the OR with a nurse, climbed on the table and they started the drugs. I asked them to wait for the mask on my face until I was out more. Ok, really i pushed it away, that was the last thing I remember, except a bit of the recovery room. Opened my eyes twice, don't remember anything else until I was in my room. I was VERY groggy after. The nurse wanted me to get up and walk and use the bathroom, I could NOT stand up. It took awhile for me to come out of it. Had IV sedation during my colonoscopy, woke up and looked at the Dr. she said, "see, there's the polyp on the screen", uh yeah, boom, back to sleep. Torn knee ligament , had IV sedation. Same for endoscopy. Prefer IV sedation, but I know it's not right for all procedures.

That is a LONG time to wait to get to solid foods. I would consider calling the office and tell them you are hungry and it's causing problems for you. Ask what they suggest. good luck, it's hard!

You were banded over two months ago and you're not on solid food yet? When does your Dr. say you can have solid food? You need Protein to stay satisfied, so are you track how much protein in a day you're consuming? Once you start letting the carbs back in, like chocolate, it will make you crave them all the more. I would track my daily calories and daily protein and avoid carbs except for green veggies.

Nobody WANTS general anesthesia, we are given what medical experts think is appropriate for the type of surgery. I've had several screening procedures like colonoscopy and endoscopy with IV sedation ( aka consious sedation, or twilight sleep) and the sedation is commonly used when wisdom teeth are removed. apparently, that type of sedation is not considered "enough" for lap band surgery, so G/A is used.

Do you know if you have high blood pressure or high cholesterol? Have you been tested for sleep apnea? Have someone re-measure your height, sometimes we are not the height we THINK we are.

Not all carbs are created equal. you can find info here. The Glycemic Index Carbs are rated low and high. The low ones are "better" than the high ones. The chart on the web site shows the effect of different carbs. A variety of foods is important to get in the right vitamins and minerals and (yes, fiber and protein) our bodies need. Trying to get them all from artifical vitamins isn't as good.

Usually your surgeon will advise you of financing options (loans) that are available to pay for the surgery. You pay the loan co. monthly NOT the surgeon. I paid well over $15,000 and do not considered my "money wasted". I have a local Dr. available for after care and fills are included. Not everyone can afford (or are willing) to pay as much as I did and I understand that, but I did not want to travel to Mexico or other places to have my surgery, aftercare and fills. Everyone makes the choice that is right for them.

That info is false: http://www.lapbandcentral.com/lapbandcenter/documents/dfu/L013-03.pdf The center column of page 6 shows the maximum fill level for the bands. Perhaps you have the older 4cc band? Why not confirm with your Dr.

Good job Tom. If you need help again, you can count on us. This won't be the only time you will face temptation and each time you learn to "just say no" will teach you something about your self and your relationship with food. Some of those times, food might win and sometimes it won't, but this time it was important for food NOT to win. Way to go!:grouphug: