lovegrapes

Hey Gals, What are you doing to exercise? I honestly haven't done any exercise at all. I just wasn't in the mindset to do it the first couple months I was banded. Since November I've had a toe injury and I can't do anything on my feet until it heals which could be many many months. Is anyone swimming? I just love to swim, hate the other stuff that comes with it. Getting out of the pool being cold and the effects of chlorine. I just ordered a fitness swimsuit and goggles and I want to start swimming badly. I know my strokes and I'm a good swimmer, I just don't know how to make it a real workout as I've never really swam for fitness. Any ideas?

How did you come to your goal weight? Initially I took my height and found out what weight I'd have to be to have a BMI of ~24. Recently a girl around my age came in to have a panniculectomy as she had a RNY and had lost 170lbs. Like me she was 5'10" and she currently weighed 180. She looked downright skinny! She ended up having over 10lbs of skin and fat removed so the surgery brought her down below 170. This made me really think that I should change my goal from 160 to 180.

Hope everything goes okay with your appointment. There are a million benign but annoying things that could be causing your problems. I've had cysts many times and I have prolific endometriosis so I know how your feeling. Definetely good to get it checked out.

Thanks for the suggestions and encouragement. I had four people in the last couple days say you look like you've lost more weight, and I'm like no, no I didn't. Well I stepped on the scale yesterday and I've lost 10 lbs since my last fill in early December. It's like 4 lbs just fell off me in one week. I talked with my surgeon today in passing and told him that I was now feeling loose and he said we can try another fill but he's still not convinced that there isn't a leak. Leak or not, I lost and that is what really matters. It's off to Florida tomorrow for vacation from the below zero tempuratures and record snowfall in northern Michigan.

It's good to know that I'm not alone. I haven't lost anything for 5 weeks. I'm more upset about my band not functioning properly than not losing weight. Five weeks ago I was too tight and today I feel loose. I have myself to blame for not eating right, but I think there is something wrong with my band. It just seems weird that I can go from too tight to just right to too loose in the span of 6 weeks with no adjustments unless I have some kind of inflamatory process that is going on that is affecting my band. I've been checked for a leak but there's no obvious leak. My surgeon hasn't been able to pull out all the fluid from my band. I have absolutely no clue what is in my band right now and either does he. I had to cancel my appointment Tuesday because I was just too busy at work to go, and they were happy I canceled because they were so busy. I rescheduled for Feb 9th after I get back from a vacation so I guess I'll just see what happens then.

Thank you for sharing this. I live in a fairly rural area and products like this are hard to come by; so I really don't know what's out there. Looks like there are a few sources online to buy and they even have wasabi flavor which I love! They will come in handy on my upcoming vacation. Any other suggestion for plane snacks? I have a long flight and a layover. I wish I could take an Atkins shake with me, but because of the liquid restrictions its impossible. I like the Atkins shakes because they have a good amount of protein, taste good and are very handy. I don't want to slime or PB a mile in the air sitting next to a stranger!

I was just looking through a Realize band pamphlet and it says that I should be eating 1/2 c at a sitting! It seems like most people here have been saying 1-1 1/2 cups. I'm so tight right now that 1/2 cup is probably what I'm eating but I eat a couple times a day. I'm looking for an unfill soon because 1-1 1/2 c is much more realistic for me.

I think Oprah has yet to have her "a-ha moment" when it comes to WLS. For many years I myself as an obese person bashed WLS as an easy out and as a procedure taken lightly in regards to it's long term outcomes. It wasn't until I transferred jobs and ended up working on the post-op unit where WLS patients come that I had my "a-ha" moment. These people were hurting; they had depression, failing, painful joints, heart disease, high blood pressure, diabetes and the threat of diabetes, infertility and a myriad of other ailments that would bring the thinnest of people to their knees. That goes without mentioning the social stigma that obesity inflicts. Most of these patients, if not all do not have the resources to hire an army of nutritionists, personal trainers, chefs and life coaches to prod them into a healthy sustainable lifestyle. After witnessing what was happing with these WLS patients I could not in good conscience any longer oppose someone doing what they need to do to live the best life possible. Like I said Oprah has yet to have her "a-ha" moment. She hasn't realized that this is a viable, sustainable method to obesity and comorbidities and most important of all she hasn't realized that this is a personal choice that one can not judge without thoroughly examining the individual.

If you compare yourselves to others here you are setting yourself up for disappointment. If you compare the percentage of excess weight lost you have lost more than many of us. Many of us that have many more pounds to lose than you have a higher basal metabolic rate which means that our bodies require more calories to carry out basic body functions, therefore we have a higher calorie deficit that results in more rapid weight loss. If your ticker is up to date you have nearly lost 50% of your excess body weight in 4 months which is excellent.

Orea, sorry to hear about your news. I hope you are right and that you're husband will quickly transition into a new job.

You need to not pay attention to the scale. Not to sound crude, but you could lose 1.5 lbs on a trip to the bathroom. You're two weeks out, don't worry about losing now.

Although I really don't want another surgery, I want my band replaced if there is any leak no matter how small. At this point my insurance covers everything. I don't want to look back down the road to only find out that the defect got worse and it has to be replaced and now my insurance doesn't cover it fully. Thanks for the info though!

I bought the QVC version of the Magic Bullet and I used it daily for about a month after banding. You probably could get away with your blender, but the Bullet-type gadgets are so convienient. They take up little space, they clean up in a snap and you can drink right out of the cups. I use mine now just to do quick cooking tasks like shredding cheese and chopping onions quick. I've also made quick Soups with canned tomatoes or broccoli and cheese with a little milk mixed in.

My doctor took a second look at the fleuroscopy pics from my band study and he now thinks I have a leak. Worst part is that he thinks it's in the band itself which means a whole new band. I'm going to go in on Tuesday for a fill and will go back in a week or two to see if it holds, but at this point I think I'm out of luck. So I'm pretty sure I'm looking at another operation uggggh!!!

Looking good Sunshine!

I had my band checked for a leak today and everything is good! There were no immediate leaks so I will go in next week and will probably try a little fill.

The band would be great for you because you are young and active. Also being male helps too, because guys seem to loose quickly! Personally the band has been good for me because it has made me more mindful of what I eat without feeling deprived. What you do eat after banding is a lot of lean Protein. Being prepared and having things ready to eat is helps so much. One thing I often make is chili. Tons of protein, easy to throw in a to go container and go. I also eat a lot of Boca bugers--just throw them in the microwave and slap some mustard, ketchup, pickles and low fat cheese and you have a meal. For quick Snacks on the go I buy light string cheese and light applesauce cups. There are also lots of different ready to go Protein shakes (Atkins is my fav). Just having these things on hand helps me make good choices when it comes to snacks. The biggest plus is that you can endulge. If I'm at a party I can have what everyone else is eating and cake and deserts, just not a ton of it. I would say go for it!

I bought 1/4 cup and 1/2 cup tupperware before I was banded. I have used them quite a bit. I would suggest getting the 1/2 cup ones only, because after two weeks post op I rarely use the 1/4.

I decided to do a total unfill Tuesday because I've been having stomach pain. My doctor went to take out the 3cc's I had in the band and there was nothing there. So one of two things happened, there's a defect or damage to my port or the tubing or the PA that filled me didn't fill me right. Best case scenario is that the PA hit the wrong spot, but I don't really think this is the case. It was very obvious that she hit the right spot, she was able to inject, aspirate and reinject the 3cc's when I had my fill. I go in on Monday for an x-ray to check out my band and to check into my stomach problems. So I might be looking at a revision. The silver lining is that I've lost 35lbs with no restriction, imagine where I could be if things get fixed.

Joiful, it doesn't seem that you've grasped what the band is all about yet. The band is a tool, not a magic wand. The band doesn't do all the work for you, you have to make the band work. Have you ever thought that maybe your not being "bitched" at? I'm sure that your health care team is trying to get you to better understand your band so the tool will begin to work for you. I'm sorry if you feel offended. It is not my intent. You just need to realize that there is a lot of work you need to do. The band will not do it all.

I'm right there with you. It makes me sick that I have so many beautiful clothes that I cant wear anymore. I have many suits, blazers and slacks that have hardly ever been worn as I changed to a job that requires scrubs. I've had some luck selling items on E-bay in the past. If you have high quality or name brand plus-sized clothing you can get decent prices for them. I sold a pair of jeans for $20 and a used denim jacket for $32! I actually paid less for these items than I sold them for due to sales and coupons. The sentimental value is what really sucks. Wanting to keep something because it's beautiful or you got a great deal on it is all too real.

I'm having such terrible acidy stomach problems. I don't have reflux, but I have extremely overactive acid pumps and I've had so much stomach pain in the last two weeks; I think I'm going to ask if I can have an unfill today to maybe help facilitate some healing. I have mixed feelings because I don't yet have restriction and was hoping that I'd feel some with my next fill. On the other hand I don't have restriction now and I'm losing at a comfortable rate so taking the fluid out of my band wouldn't change much. I am taking a quadruple dose of Prilosec and have felt no improvement. I hope that the doctor has some kind of solution that can control this ongoing problem. I've always had an overly acid stomach, but I've never felt so much discomfort.

The psychological exam is an important step twards bariatric surgery. It is used to gauge your mental preparedness for surgery. If the mental health professional finds some type of issue during the exam contingencies may be placed on your surgery. For instance, people who have untreated depression or serious addiction issues they may need to go on medication and/or have counseling/treatment. My appointment started with taking two long tests. I met with the psychologist for about 30 minutes and he asked about my weight, my partners weight, my family's weight and how proactive I was about my eye, dental and physical health. It's really no big deal unless you have some serious psychological issues.

I can't eat lunchmeat turkey or chicken. It gets stuck everytime. Ham however is fine. I just eat a slice of ham and pair it with something else like applesauce or veggies.