Crazy4MyK9

Dear acasner, You are not alone! I also have the 14cc band. As of June 2009, I thought I had approx. 8.5cc in there. I was surprised this past Friday when my surgeon told me that only 7cc came out. He put .25-.50cc in this time. I NEVER feel full for very long. My hunger signal is all out of whack. It has something to do with the vagus nerve. My surgeon told me that approx. 40% of patients experience constant hunger, and they don't know why. Therefore, the band can only help with portion control. I've been on liquids all weekend. I've had mild discomfort from the swelling, but definitely no pain. I'm crossing my fingers that somehow things are going to improve with this fill. I've started a new food journal to help me refocus on this journey. I'm hitting the grocery store tomorrow for fruits and salad. We need to remember to make healthy, high Protein, high Fiber choices. My sweet tooth has been an issue, so I'm working on this. Thankfully, I've been off soda since surgery (October 3, 2007). I've slacked off with Water, so this needs to be another priority, as well as exercise. Good luck to you! Anne

Dear Melissa and Maryrose, I'm so glad I came across this post. I haven't visited this web site for a few months now, and this post is exactly what I needed to try to get on track. Emotional eating is my biggest problem, and I'm sabotaging my weight loss. Tomorrow I will work on my comfort strategies list! Fingers crossed. Anne

I've located some old threads on the topic of Barrett's Esophagus, but I wanted to start something fresh. I was diagnosed with B.E. in 2004. I honestly don't remember if I brought this to my surgeon's attention before being banded. I'm wondering if anyone else had B.E. before banding. If so, are there any concerns? Are there any foods to avoid? I'm currently being treated with Nexium. I'm having an upper endoscopy this Thursday. I'm seeing my band surgeon this Friday. I hope I'm worrying for nothing. I'll probably worry all week. :mad2:

Has anyone had chest discomfort after a fill? I had a 1 cc fill on Friday morning, which took me to somewhere between 8.5 - 9 cc. I've been having a lot of chest discomfort all day today. I sent an e-mail to my doctor, and he'll get back to me within a couple of days. If I have to, I'll call the office on Monday to schedule an appt to get some of this taken out. I'm disappointed, but maybe I need a little taken out. I've never had chest discomfort with other fills. Thanks, Anne

Hi jaliani, Thanks for your reply. No, I didn't think of it as being gas. I assumed it was maybe related to irritation, or taking my meds and the new restriction level. Today (Sunday) was much better; although, I didn't take my meds. I'll see how it goes tomorrow morning. My doctor responded to my e-mail and told me to give it some time. As long as I'm not bringing up saliva, and getting down liquids, he's not concerned. I was able to eat and drink today with no problem. Congratulations on your weight loss!!! Do you have any words of wisdom from your success? I know that I fell back into poor habits these past 6 months, and because of this, I didn't lose weight. I'm getting back on track and changing my mind set. I finally found an exercise that I'm committed to -- Water aerobics! My only struggle now is the sweets. I'm working on it everyday. It's getting better through personal strength, support, and prayer. My doctor also warned me about eating too much. He doesn't want me in the habit of "stacking" too much food in the esophagus. For instance, I told him that I could eat a whole turkey wrap with no discomfort whatsoever. Otherwise, I got hungrier in a short amount of time. I need to get back to eating slower and eating less. Thanks again.

Hi Bec, Welcome! Are you new to LapBandTalk? I find the site very helpful. I can't imagine having to wait for a 12-month period. Once I had my mind made up, I just wanted to get it done. What do you plan to do, if anything, between now and surgery to prepare yourself for life with the Lap Band? Are you making any changes? Congratulations to your Mum!! Anne

Hi Sugar Bean, Last week I decided to send an e-mail to my doctor. When I discovered that he was out of town, I then decided to just go ahead and make the appointment. I'm hoping for .3 or .4cc. I know there are risks of having too much restriction, so I'm proceeding with caution. My appointment is July 11th. I'll be sure to come back and post an update. In the meantime, I'm soaking in everyone's advice on this thread. :biggrin2:

I'm glad Amy (kkarryall) started this thread and that I found it. I'm going to visit this thread often, even if there are no new posts. I'm hoping it will help me. I'm seeing my surgeon on July 11th and I'm hoping for a little fill. During the month of May, I was doing so much better at 9 cc. You see, I had gotten a 1 cc fill at the beginning of May. Well, my period came at the end of May and that 1 cc caused problems. I was too tight, vomiting, and had horrible chest pain. The 1 cc came back out. The problem is that at 8 cc I'm experiencing too much hunger. I haven't wrapped my head around making all healthy choices, so I start turning to poor choices. It amazes me that just a wee bit of Fluid could make the difference in my lap-band, but I need this tool to work for me, so I think I need some fine-tuning. I don't think 8 cc is my "sweet spot." My fingers and toes are crossed that I can beat this. I do need to start journaling all my food again because the calories add up so quickly. I'm thinking that I might also start using the Weight Watchers points calculator again.

Have you given up junk food cold turkey? Do you allow yourself any treats? Anne

Hi Amy, Sweets are now my worst enemy. I'm really struggling with my addiction to sweets, and because of it, my weight loss has stalled. In fact, I keep losing/gaining the same 5 lbs. My doctor is pleased with my progress. I always tell him that I know I should be further along in my weight loss. He always tells me that I'm right up there with many of his patients. He has some patients who work their butts off and the weight doesn't come off. He's made it clear that he's being truthful with me, but in my heart, I know I should have lost more weight by now. I'm eating too much crap. The one thing I can say is that I haven't had a drop of soda since before surgery, at the beginning of October 2007. I'm really proud of myself. The band and the risk of complication keeps the soda out of my mouth. I used to drink a lot of Mountain Dew. I'm trying to tackle my addiction. I'm saying positive affirmations every night at bedtime. There's no doubt in my mind that the affirmations are a powerful tool, and I'm going to stick with it. I've started reading a book about food addiction called "Love Hunger." So, do you have a sweet tooth? Are you concerned of sabotaging your weight loss? Anne

Miralax! It works!!! I had to buy mine through the pharmacy, but it's not a prescription. They just keep it behind the counter. It's tasteless and you can mix it in just about any beverage.

Great thread! Great advice! I needed it, so thanks to all.

Hi Tracy, When you say you have good and bad days, are you referring to restriction/tightness, or with your food choices? I think you mean the first, but just wanted to make sure. It's funny... I never noticed feeling tighter during my period UNTIL last month. I had been filled to 9 cc earlier in the month. That 1 cc made a big difference. I couldn't get food down and I had chest pain. I couldn't experience that every month, so my doctor removed the 1 cc, and now I'm at 8 cc again. I'm a little disappointed because that extra 1 cc made a good difference the remaining weeks of the month. I admit all of my choices aren't the best choices. I've never noticed more restriction during periods of feeling run down or tired. I'll have to pay closer attention to this. Stress is a possibility for me. I was under tremendous stress during my last period, which was the ordeal I explained above. As soon as my doctor removed that 1 cc, the chest pain subsided. Just make sure this isn't happening to you too frequently. Living with a band that's too tight could lead to a complication.

Hi Mamalovell, It's completely normal to be getting nervous. A big change is coming! You're fortunate if your doctor isn't requiring a pre-op diet. It would be in your best interest to cut back on calories, and eliminate soda now if you're a soda drinker. Any weight lost pre-surgery can only help your surgery and maybe even recovery. I wasn't too nervous until the night before and the morning of surgery. From what I've learned, most patients don't experience too bad of a recovery. I was in the minority of patients who experience a lot of pain. Take this time to get prepared for your hospital stay and your recovery. Do you have a checklist? One thing that I didn't think of was preparing my rest area before going to the hospital. You may want someplace elevated and where you can recline (not have to lay flat). The best place for me was the sofa (my butt on multiple cushions). I have a 2-piece sectional, so I set up in the corner where the two pieces meet. Have some things ready to help you pass the time; for instance, crosswords or word search puzzles, movies, books, a deck of cards. I know it may be hard, but try to think positive thoughts, think about how your life is going to change after surgery, how your health is going to improve, etc. Don't go crazy with "last supper" meals. If you exercise, keep it up, and if you don't exercise, try to get started now. This will help your recovery process. I hope my message will help. :biggrin: Good luck to you!

Hi Rae, How did she know the band had moved up? Did she compare to previous pictures taken? How did she know the band was working? Has it moved just a little? Perhaps it's just from weight loss. I would express concern to your surgeon, if you haven't already. Sounds like your OK though.

Hi Sharon, Are you hungry every time you eat? Are you grazing throughout the day? My first thought is that you don't have enough restriction, and perhaps your doctor has had your fill amounts too low. Can you get into your doctor's office for another fill soon? Try turning to Water to help with the hunger. I know it isn't always the answer, and the hunger just gets to be too great. If you're always hungry and miserable, see your doctor! Anne

Hi happy... I had my 5th fill today, so now I have 9cc in the 14cc band. I'm going through what you're experiencing. I've had a mild ache most of the day. I called my doc's office. He wasn't concerned, and suggested that warm fluids may help. I'll be on liquids for 48 hours. I sure hope this is normal, and that we feel "normal" soon. ~Anne

You really need to stick to the post-op diet. The stages of liquids to mushies to solids is set the way it is because your new structure (stomach around the band) needs this critical time for healing. Scar tissue is forming around the band to set it in place. You don't want to risk a complication. I remember being allowed to eat Lipton chicken noodle soup (with the tiny pasta) during Phase II (Weeks 3 and 4).

This is an area of frustration for me. Just minutes ago, I sent an email to my nutritionist about this. I think I'm able to eat too much, and I don't stay satisfied for more than a couple of hours. For example, I ate a South Beach Living Grilled chicken Caesar wrap sandwich kit. It has 24g Protein and 14g Fiber. I definitely felt full and didn't want anymore food. I felt hunger 2 hours later. Frustrating! I have 8cc in my 14cc band. My doctor feels that I don't need further restriction at this time. From reading posts, I gather that people are eating anywhere from 1/2 cup to 1 1/2 cups of food, but I don't know how long they're satisfied in between meals.

Hi Amanda, I highly recommend the Worldwide Protein shake in chocolate. It comes in an aluminum can, ready to drink. It's not thick at all. In fact, I don't know why it's called a shake. I'm ok with their vanilla, but the banana is way too sweet. I can buy them at a store called Trader Joe's, but I find it easier to order them online. Good luck! Anne

Hi Tonya, Thank you for replying! I'm happy to hear that your symptoms have gone away. Can your stage 4 esophagitis heal and improve now? My EGD went well. My GI doc and my lap-band surgeon both said that they don't see the Barrett's! I have some esophagitis. My GI doc took 2 biopsies. I also have some gastritis in the stomach. Overall, great findings as far as I'm concerned. I was thrilled to see one section of the esophagus looking very pink and healthy. I'll keep you posted on the biopsy results, if you're interested. Anne

My bariatric nurse told me to use the size of a Tylenol caplet as a guide. Anything bigger should be split or crushed, when allowed. I split my Allegra-D with a pill splitter. I was recently on a short course of Amoxicillin. This was too big, so I opened the capsule and mixed with applesauce. If I really feel the need for Advil, which is rare, my instructions are to buy the smaller Advil tablet.

Your feelings make sense to me. I was banded the day before you. I went through a difficult time in January and part of February. I really think I lost momentum because I started worrying about my appearance (when looking naked in the mirror) and worrying about how the skin will be as I continue to lose weight. The thought of plastic surgery is exciting and terrifying. I really don't know how I snapped out of it. I can only think of two possibilities... time and lots of prayer. I've learned to block out the thoughts and focus on the health reasons for losing the weight. Now if someone asks me about my skin and what may happen in the future, I'm able to respond without worry and getting into a shitty attitude. Hopefully, you will get over this quickly. It really is mind over matter. Stay focused on the positive! Your thoughts will guide you in the right direction if you steer clear of the negative. Focus on being the healthiest you that you can be! Anne

Denise - which website is POF? I don't know what that stands for. Thanks!

I look forward to one day having a breast lift. In addition to waiting until you show stability at goal weight, isn't it recommended that I wait if there's any hope of a pregnancy? Is it better to get two regions (breasts and tummy) done at the same time? The thought of the recovery scares the heck out of me.