JoJoBanana

If you are like most of us you have dieted many times before. You must remember your body is like a computer and goes into a "survival mode" and metabolism slows down to preserve your vital organs. It is a defense mechanism and you will more than make up for lost time when your system realizes this is a permanent thing. Hang in there-we do lose it. I kept remembering my Dr. saying everytime I got on the scales~"say goodbye to this number-you won t see it here again" and He was right. i m trying to change my ticker-i m 10# under goal.!

After my surgery I was given a card to carry in my wallet with band type size and date of op.They also told most restaurants honor it if you need proof to get a childs meal.

Don t you all think we make excuses "if I weren t fat-I could~"or "if I was a size 10 I would~ "....and We think thin means happy.So as we approach"normal" it scares us. Then we have to face the real "us".....and we do have issues-we wouldn t be fat if we didn t.! We are self-destructive. Thats why we over eat-over drink- smoke or eat chocolate even when we don t want to.! I remember years ago-thinking I needed to go to overeaters annonymous.I ate when not hungry-ate when over full-ate things I didn t even want. that was before the Lord gave me the BAND. I ve been banded for 3 years and am 10# below my goal for some reason. My daughter says I need to get some fluid out of the band.I always have a "spit bottle" with me in my bag or in bed.It honestly doesn t get easier. I can t eat eggs-bread-pasta-meats-salad-veggies(unless they are mush).I eat mashed potatoes/gravy-sometimes mac&cheese-homemade soups low in salt.and ONLY water.I seem to have a lot of fluid to spit-like the slime. I do not over eat-still 1/2 to 1 cup portion. I eat after noon usually after 4pm.Crackers and crunchys do better than most things. I recently found that refried beans are agreeable.1/2 can.good for you-right. I like getting into a size 10-and the compliments I get.I haven t been a real social person but when someone says "wow you look great-you lost a lot of weight"(almost 90#)i just thank them and tell them i have stomach problems .!........I am still so ashamed of myself~ I couldn t admit I was voluntarily banded.Only my daughter knows.I cannot do it on my own.So I am in this sort of forced anorexia thing-i don t eat or can t eat or eat very little.My choice to be"normal".I can live with it.A smaller size feels better than food tastes. But don t think you ever get over the wanting food.! You don t. I love the food network programs-always have. And watching a nice big red steak makes my mouth water.I miss the meat. My Dr asked me a year or so ago if I wanted him to take some fluid out of my band for Christmas so I could "enjoy the Hollidays"-I immediately said "oh no thank you-I ve enjoyed a lifetime of Hollidays-Thats why I m like I am".I haven t had a fill for probably a year and half. If I had one wish-I would have the fluid out for 5 minutes so I could guzzle a jug of water and then refilled to this level.When i do drink too much or too fast it comes back.BUT I m terrified of not having this band. We are complex aren t we.? Thanks for letting me vent a little. I live alone and my cat just doesn t seem to care.!

Smaller clothing !!! Sizes 10 and 12----a never before for me. And I m wearing Jeans.! Tucking blouses in..!

I have 7 in a 10cc band and could use a little "tweak"

Hope you are doing well..i have been looking for a fill center in upper arkansas or lower missouri...

I still cannot dump food in the garbage.i say i ll eat it later-knowing i wont.i leave my plate on the table and at bedtime it gets to go in the trash.stems from growing up poor and hungry.i just realized recently that i like to feel my stomach growl.......not like when i was a child.

I had the same happen -but there is always a little air in the syringe....that time there was 3/4cc....the doc emptied the air and added 1/2 cc more Fluid with what I had before.Any ninny can understand displacement...I actually was 1/4 cc less after the procedure.!! and NO restriction.I called the next week and went in and He honestly talked down to me....."well what do you think happened-did it leak out"? and laughed.!! I am 62 years old and am NOT a child-I knew what happened but obviously he didn t .I asked for another associate to do my next fill.a month later and 2 #s heavier-I got a good 1/2 cc fill.and good restriction. 2 months later I needed another fill.I am 56#s down with 20 to go.So i am moving down slower...I was amazed I had lost 3 #s.I never weigh myself unless my clothes feel tighter~and always "whew" when I am the same or less.But I do trust the Band.! This new Dr.(the last was out of town)had to stick me 6 times....and moved the needle around a lot.The fluid was bloody when he finally got to it.And (LMAO)this was WITH fluoroscope.!I felt like punching him.He really hurt me. I was supposed to have had 7.2cc in my 10 Band.He could only get 6.5cc....he added .7cc....I will have good restriction I hope-as I am on liquids again for 72 hrs.Of course my belly is sore and bruised.I have never had anyone put such force into a stick.I felt like it would go clean through me.I normally don t mind needles(I was a nurse)but I sure minded this one.!Thank you for letting me vent.......whew. Oh on top of it all He told me we may have to consider that my band is faulty or leaking due to the fluid discrepancy~~I m sure it may be leaky after his Barbarian tactics....but they will pay to replace it if so.

Wow what is wrong with me??? I can eat 1/4 c mashed potatoes and feel like i d better stop===but just ate 16 butterfly shrimp with no restriction-not full /just comfortable/the most i ve ever eaten. I don t even know why. I had a fill and unfil a month ago with what seemed like good restriction....and the last few days things seem to go down too easy. I have 7.2 in a 10cc band. Could i need a fill already? Help..

I forgot to say~I always know when I really need a fill...1st sign is my belly is always grumbly.Even an hour after I eat i m hungry all the time. When I m at a good level~i often have to force myself to go eat or my stomach burns.

i was banded Oct of 07..have just had my 7th fill..to a total 7cc in a 10cc band. i for the first time have the knowledge of when to quit.i am back to eating about 1/4 cup and know i need to stop. it is different than before...it feels like something is stuck but not coming up.Just more of a tightness... i ve never felt "full"in my life..it was either hungry or stuffed..so i don t recognize "full" i ve only lost 55 #s in a year...but i m learning to take less and eat less..and have knowledge that i ll never eat pizza or bread or noodles or eggs again..and it s ok.i have had a life time of those foods. but a new challenge is cookies and deserts...they don t get stuck for some reason and are easy to eat. my staple foods are mashed potatoes and soups....also not good to depend on.But they are easy and don t seem to get stuck. our weight didn t come on in a year and won t magically go off in a year...i understand they are doing a 3 year study on the Lapband...so i figure in 3 years i ll be happy with my loss and set for life. i need to lose 25#s more. Good Luck to all here..........JoJo

even for a DR that isn t the original one that was responsible.IT IS TOO MUCH .The going price for non installing Dr isaround$225-$250.

mine got so bad and so thin around the 4th or 5th month-i finally had to get it cut and permed and now have a very thin pony tail on my bathroom shelf of what my hair used to look like.and i still see a lot of loss in my brush.its been a year.MY LABS ARE ALWAYS PERFECT-I TAKE ALL MY VITAMINS AND EXTRA PROTEIN.

I HAVE A 10CC BAND AND HAVE A HISTORY OF-4 FILLS- ~~3CC-2CC AND 1CC-THE LAST JUST .5CC SHOULD BE 6.5CC BUT THE RECENT FILL DR STATES IT IS AT 6.7~~ WHATEVER!! I DIDN T FEEL ANY DIFFERENCE WITH THE LAST FILL. MADE AN APPOINTMENT TO GO NEXT WEEK AND LO AND BEHOLD LAST NIGHT COULD HARDLY SWALLOW.THIS MORNING I CAN FEEL THE FLUIDS DRAINING FROM"LITTLE BELLY" TO "BIG BELLY"...SO I CANCELLED THE NEXT APPT UNTIL IT CHANGES. I AM AT A STAND STILL WEIGHT WISE THO...NO LOSS IN A MONTH+.AND I AM COMPLIANT...EAT ONLY WHEN HUNGRY-ABOUT 1/2 TO 1 CUP TOTAL. BUT IT SEEMS LIKE I HEAR GROWLING A LOT MORE THAN I USED TO. I AM STILL HAPPY THO BECAUSE I KNOW I WILL NEVER-NEVER GAIN IT BACK. I DON T THINK I CAN EVER IN MY WHOLE LIFE REMEMBER BEING FULL...ONLY HUNGRY OR STUFFED.I VE MISSED THE IN BETWEEN. I APPRECIATE THIS THREAD~IT HAS HELPED ME A LOT~KNOWING I M NOT ALONE.......TY:thumbup::biggrin: