shortgal

I was away this weekend and good thing my fill appt is tomorrow! I haven't stepped on the scale yet, but I must have gained. For the three months since being banded I had varying degress of mild restriction and this weekend I tested my band and found almost everything goes down very smoothly! That's bad! This weekend was the first time I tried pizza and got down most of one piece. Way less than I would have eaten before being banded, but still! Other than the pizza, I ate healthly food, but too much of it and too often. I guess if the Dr's office sees I gained, it will just reaffirm I need more fill! Since I only had a low fat diet for pre-op, my weight loss over the three months is very disappointing. Hope this fill gives me a new jump start!

Didn't mean there wasn't anything there, just wondered if estrogen imbalances could have caused the sudden apprearance of the mass. Weight loss seems to have such an effect on PCOS, so seems perhaps the two could be related.... but I guess it doesn't matter how it got there... still has to be dealt with. I guess I'm so used to Dr's blaming everything overweight people get on their weight that I'm doing it to. You know they say,well lose weight and your cholesterol will go down and then I have skinny friends with cholesterol problems, so it makes you wonder. Take care and try not to worry.

I'm glad you had a postive thought (losing weight) when you found out about this problem. I probably would have thought... oh no, this will make me gain or stop losing weight... Weight loss can affect our estrogen levels, wonder if that had anything to do with it, especially when we're at that menopause age. Hope everything goes smoothly for you. Please let us know.

Sharona, I'm still here and hanging in. Seems like I've hit a plateau and scale has stalled. I feel like I have no restriction, so good thing next fill appt is Tues!

No, it doesn't mean that. It just means we both have to be a little patient. We didn't put this weight on in a few months and it's not going to come off in a few months. If that was our main goal, then we should have done GBP. Hang in and just keep up your fill appt's regularly. If we work the process and work with our bands, we'll get there.

Sharon2U, sounds like you're too tight and need a small unfill. It is not normal to not be able to eat. The band is not meant to allow you to only have liquids. You should talk to your Dr.

Snowbird, You're confused. The village people did not sing the song, I come from the land down under... "Men at work" sang that song and they do come from Australia. Village people sang "YMCA". Hope that helps!

You've had four fills with no restriction and I've had five fills with no restriction yet. I think our bands just aren't filled to the place we need them to be, we just need more, that's all. I do not taste saline.

I have 6cc's in my 10cc band and no restriction, so it might take a few fills before you get there. In the meantime, take small bites, chew well and I hate to tell you this but until you get good restriction, you need to diet to lose weight. So time to use everything you've learned from previous dieting attempts. Count calories and be sure to get enough Protein in. Yeah, I know bummer! I'm right there with you!

Wow, you've lost 90 pounds and NO fill? I've had five fills and still don't have restriction. Could be lately you're relying too much on willpower and not enough on the band. Hopefully, the fill will give you the answer. It's been three months for me relying on my willpower and I hope my next fill does it's job, because Mr. "will" Power, has left the building! Let us know how you make out after the fill.

Is it possible you are hungry because you need another fill? I do believe in self sabotage but I would be careful to assume that's what you're feeling without checking other reasons old habits are coming back. I think it's natural that after losing weight we do become complacent and need to get back to basics. We like to think, well I'm at a more comfortable weight so I can "treat" myself a little and relax a bit. Remember Rocky 2? ( I think it was 2?). He stops training, thinks he's champ and gets complacent, too. Remember, even "normal" weight people go on vacation or eat too much at the holidays and they need to get back on track, too. That's why almost everybody diets in January and Sept. Just get your head back in the game and become like the original Rocky!

I hope this fill works for you... if I have to wait until I get to 9cc's for restriction. I'm going to be pretty frustrated. I have terrible restriction ( meaning none) right now. I just had lunch... a big lean cuisine AND a yogurt and I could eat more. Worse part is that the Lean cuisine had Pasta in it... too many carbs. I have been sticking to my diet until today and while my calorie intake for the day will still be reasonable, I will not continue to lose weight, if I eat like this. Tues ( nest fill appt) cannot come soon enough. I'm sorry I didn;t call this past week to go in again, but we are driving to VA for the weekend and I was worried I might get too tight and not be near the Dr.

I would add to those questions... are you tracking daily calories and Protein? If you do not yet have good restriction of your band from fills, then you need to "diet" until you get restriction. If you do have restriction, then you are eating around the band... meaning slider foods that go down easily or high calorie drinks or high carb foods. If you have restriction, you need to eat solid protein that keeps your pouch full.

Just go to a BMI calculator online and enter your height and then keep changing the weight until you see where your weight has to be to be under the 50 BMI, as Kat suggested, it might be just 20 pounds to lose, which as hard as it is, could be do-able. You could watch the calorie intake, like weight watchers, or do a week or two of liquid meals and add a small salad at dinner. And yes, call your ins co. and ask to talk to a nurse case manager and explain you'd prefer to go with the less risky surgery.

I was banded Nov 27th, no liquid pre-op diet just low calorie, low fat two weeks before surgery, so my weight loss is post op. I have approx 6 cc's in my band and have no restriction. Next fill is Feb 26 and obviously I need it.

After this whole week, I ended up right where I started! Don't understand it, I'm doing everything the same as before. No cheating on food, getting Water in etc. I guess it's just my turn to not lose anything. Totally ready for a fill, Many days I have that, "do I even have a band" feeling. Name...................Start..........Current..........Goal ......To Go 1. TxArcher............345 ............342................325........17 2. Skinny_Jill..........186.............185................178..........7 3. Momto1plus1......228.8..........229.2.............218.8.........10.4 4, Longhorn...........204.............199.4.............195...........4.4 5. Mariegabrieleee...252.............251................240..........11 6. Teresajo............195.............193...............185.... ... ..10 7. Shortgal............189.............189.................184...........5

Ok, I'll post tomorrow on Week 2 thread, which is really the end of week 1, right? LOL

Kristin, sorry you're sick. Get well and then worry about the exercise, remember no one gains weight when they have the flu anyway. I'll bet all the exercise and healthy eating you've done will help you get better fast! Stay warm!

I thought we were weighing in on Thurs! I'll post tomorrow.

When people want to compare you to GBP people it's because many of them just don't understand the band. I use it as an opportunity to educate them about the band and remind them that GBP people also have malabsorption which we don't. People that comment are so focused on what's visible, which is the weight loss and don't realize that GBP has these other issues. I let them know I might lose slower, but I'm unlikely to suffer from anemia and other vitamin deficiencies.

I don't know about all the bands available but mine is Allergan/Inamed and it comes in two sizes 10cc and 14cc. The surgeon decides which size to place based on your anatomy/stomach. I know there is a Johnson and Johnson band and I think ( but not sure) it holds 9cc's.

I know it's the smaller belly for me because even when I ate slow, I was always dripping something on me. I ruined so many nice shirts/sweaters that way. Haven't had one new shirt spot lately! And another one I forgot is holding on to the stair railing. I find I don't have to as often. I would often support myself even going down to take pressure off my right knee that I had surgery on. Amazing the little things with some weight gone. I wonder what other NSV's will crop up after another 25 pounds!

Thanks Sades, I know I'm just cranky because the scale went up in spite of the fact that I've been eating well and not too much. Today, I have eaten too much, just knowing the scale went up. I know I will stop sabotaging myself tomorrow. And boy, it really affirms I need a fill and I've totally changed my mind about asking for .5 cc's. I want the full 1cc's. I don't even have to overchew my food for it to go down. I guess the dress size thing can be different for two different height people depending on where each person carries their weight. For me, it's sort of evenly distributed but my worst area is below the waist and above the knees all around. My butt has shrunk a lot though. JILL, What a victory! I just can't stand the woman's sizes, they are just not made for short framed people. Pants way too long, sleeves too long etc. The shoulders on the larger sizes would fit a linebacker. Just not right for shorties. I used to be 5" and 1/2 inch. I think I shrunk to 5 feet even. Even petite clothes can be too long for me, especially sleeve length. No wonder I can't reach anything in the kitchen cabinets! Although as my belly gets smaller, I can get closer to the counter and reach a little better. And all this time, I thought I couldn;t reach as well because I was shrinking! One NSV I've had is: I don't seem to drip food on my shirts anymore, as I lost weight I guess I am able to bend over the table better and I have fewer spills. And I can put my shoes and socks on without angling my body to the side around my belly. Ok Thanks everyone, I feel better now! I will salvage this day and make tomorrow even better. I can hang in until next Tuesdays fill. I love my fellow November Nymphs. My husband is just no good at helping me over these hurdles. He's very supportive, but just doesn't know the right words I need to hear. I think it's a Mars/Venus thing.

I'm afraid Linda would give me bad ideas!

Sades, I hate to rain on your parade ( but since I'm in a bad mood anyway)... the six inch difference in height is actually more like 30 pounds difference... as for weight calculations, it's about five pounds for every inch in height. Now before you start to really cry, I'm TWO inches shorter than you and eight inches shorter than Longhorn....... I think I'll go curl up in a corner and weep for awhile. Does crying burn a lot of calories? Gosh, I'm really having a bad week!