janieb

I read the posts here today and feel so much better about my weightloss journey. I've felt like a failure, after having lost 45 lbs. and now have come to a screeching halt on the scales. I haven't lost anything in 8 weeks and wasn't going to call the doctor to schedule an appointment because I thought he'd be mad that it looks like I haven't been trying hard enough. The thing is, it's actually a miracle that I haven't gained in 8 weeks. That never happened before. So, now I'll be seeing my doctor in mid January and I'll get back on track.

You're starting the process? Hang in there. I was on the edge of becoming diabetic and in as little as one month after surgery my blood tests showed that my numbers were excellent. I was absolutely shocked that it took so little time to get good results.

Michaele, We all send you positive thoughts and we understand what you're going through right now, concerning worrying about the tube thing. I was more afraid of that than of anything else, practically. BUT...everyone's right, you won't remember a thing. Not when they put it in (you'll be "out") and not when they take it out. Seriously. Stay brave and you will have wonderful results and will feel great as the pounds go off. And, they will go off. That's the great part of the lap-band. I'm not so hungry as I used to be so that in the past it was so hard to stay on a "diet." Now, I can't eat the amounts I used to, and I'm not wanting to anyway. All the best wishes to you. Let everyone know how it goes, K? Jane

Wow! Penny, you did it! And you were on the computer the next day? LOL Wasn't the pre-op fast the hardest part? And how about all those tests we all had to go through before surgery. For everyone who's just about ready for surgery, it really isn't bad, it's just the waiting and worrying about the unknown. Best of luck to everyone and enjoy the results. (Some lose faster than others...yeah, like me, for example...I quit looking at how much weight others have lost who were banded around the same time as I was because I was driving myself nuts. I'm losing slowly, and it's taking time, but I've lost around 45 lbs. so far, in 5 1/2 months. I used to be able to lose faster on WW, but then I always gained it back and was totally hungry most of the time. So, now I get filled up and am satisfied with a much smaller amount of food and all I have to do is be patient and the weight will come off.) All the best to all of you who are "waiting."

Susanna! Ooops, I hadn't read all the posts when I thought you were to have your surgery THIS Wednesday. But, you already had it done, last Wednesday? I'm so happy that it all went well and that you're back home. Now, for the rest of your journey...it only gets better.

Oh, Susanna...we Baby Boomers will never submit to being the age it says on our drivers licenses. LOL :-) We still rule! Age is only a mindset, as we all know. Check out Bette Midler, Cher, Meryl Streep. You will feel and look mahhhvelous, dahling! Just be kind and gentle with yourself before and after surgery. Soon, I can assure you, you will be feeling great...take baby steps, though. It may feel like a struggle with the fluids only part of the journey, but that won't last that long. Really. Just do it and you will be so happy! All the best of wishes to you on Wednesday.

Hey Sades! How's it going so far? From what I understand, your doctor put in another band? You were wondering if you would have to just get your original one out and that would be it. But, he re-did it? You sound up-beat and I just wanted to say hi and send my best wishes! Jane

Pat, you will not regret it if you decide to go ahead with this surgery. Honestly, all the hard work you've done in the past, successfully losing weight and then (we all can identify) gaining it back, it won't be like that for you after you have the lapband put in. Best of all, I was pre-diabetic before surgery and within a month after having surgery my numbers went down drastically. I had changed doctors and my new one was (what I thought) very hard on me concerning my weight. I couldn't believe how seriously he spoke to me about the dangers of being overweight and to my amazement I burst into tears. (Crying in front of people is not something I do, normally!) Any other doctor I've ever had would say, try harder to lose weight...I would always leave the office and say, THIS time I'm going to succeed. I'd go to WW and sit through the same old same old. But, now things are different for me since I had the surgery. I'm not "tortured" by food anymore. It doesn't take center stage in my life. I've lost 45 lbs. without starving. Normal quantities of food fill me up. What a relief! I hope all goes well for you and your decision about the surgery. I really think you'll be pleased, even though the months leading up to getting ready seem a little difficult, it will all be worth it!

Four days to go! You'll never regret your decision to have this surgery. For me, all the stuff you have to go through before having your procedure is the hardest part. Just like you, I slipped up and didn't do everything perfectly. The liquid diet leading up to surgery was torture. If you ever want the corn and rice soup again, just strain it. I was allowed to drink Instant Breakfast before and after surgery. That didn't taste as yucky as the Protein powder. (There's flavorless Protein Powder you can get, called unjury.) Here's the best part. Your band will help you with your appetite. Now I know that before banding, I was hungry allllll the time. And, the quantity I could eat...tsk. I used to be able to eat a LOT of pizza. Now, I eat a reasonable amount of food and feel satisfied. Diets used to be torture for me because it felt like I was holding my breath and starving. Like everyone else, I could loose weight, couldn't keep it off. Now I'm at peace with food. I feel like a "normal" person dealing with food. Anyway, we all wish you and everyone else who is scheduled for lapbanding all the very best of luck and good wishes.

Sades...I was looking on this site to see if you were home from your surgery and what happened. How are you feeling? You said you got re-banded. Last I read you had not known what was going to happen. All the best to everyone tonight! Jane

Yay! That's great news. I'm not surprised because the main incision hurt like heck for me for awhile...a lot longer than the other incisions. As Sades says, it's normal. Keep an eye on it and you'll be fine. I saw my Dr. today and, since I had been on vacation I only lost 2.5 lbs. He did a fill today and now I'm on fluids for 2 days and soft foods for a day. I'm supposed to ramp up my exercise, though. Whaaa. :-( I knew that, but.... Okay, I'll do it. Sades, how're things going for you? Hope all is well. Jane

About the incision, the largest one, and the one that gave me trouble, is located about 5 inches up and to the left (my left as I look down at it). I've had 2 fills since my surgery 5 months ago. The actual port site where the saline goes is several inches below the main incision and to the right. I've got other one inch incisions here and there. The other site that gave me a bit of trouble was where they put the camera in. That's all settled down too.

This is going to sound strange, but if you suspect a surgical site infection, take a pen and draw a circle around the outer-most part of the redness. I've had two such infections in my life and both doctors drew a line around where the redness was in order to see if the circumference changed, (grew beyond the pen line). You mentioned your other incisions seem to be healing, but that this one larger (?) incision is still red. That may be normal, but you are right to contact your doctor. Mention the word infection and the doctor's office will take you seriously. My doctor started me on Augmenten (sp?) and eventually the redness subsided and all is well, thank goodness. So, call your doctor and you will be fine and you'll be happily on your way to losing weight and feeling much, much better. But, it does take some time to heal and to get stronger from the surgery. All the best of luck to you! p.s. It was Sades who helped me through the fears I had when I was in your situation! Thank you Sades, I'm doing much better now. (Not exactly losing fast, though. tsk.)

:cool2:Hi Everyone! The Weather Channel is talking about big storms going through the mid-section of the US. I hope all of you are safe and doing fine. I am interested in learning about fills. I've had two fills in 4 months. I'm losing weight slowly, but feel overly concerned with noting how much everybody on the whole site is losing. I scroll down and do mental math constantly, noting who has lost a lot of weight and then comparing my weight loss with others. I've gotta stop this. I never knew this about myself, but seems like I must be really competative, or something. Does everyone else dred the needle for the fill? My doctor has a hard time locating my band and he pushes hard on my stomach, makes me do a partial sit-up and keep that position for 10 years, it seems. This hurts. Maybe it's because my stomach has lots of muscle because I've been doing sit-ups for years to help keep my back strong. (I used to have lots of back problems until I started doing strengthening exercises.) I dred the needle and so I turned down a third fill about 2 weeks ago. Now I'm sorry I was a chicken. My next appointment is July 8. I'll accept the fill then. Until then my eating is just slightly ...sort of ...not too good. I'm not as bad as my "old self" when I didn't seem to have a stopping point when eating. Anyway, does anyone else not like getting a fill? Am I a big baby? Maybe? Also, I don't know how to put in photos and icons and stuff like that. How do I do that?

Elaine from Scotland, Hello from the US. I know how it is to be sort of nervous...okay, a LOT nervous about lapband surgery. When I found out that my surgerly date was postponed for a day, I burst into tears and could hardly speak. BUT, the day finally arrived and everything went fine and I did have a complication (surgical site infection that my doctor treated aggressively with antibiotics). That was scarey. But, a fellow lapbander from Australia shared with me her similar experience and she got better too. I have lost steadily, but not a lot, every week. So, in the 4 months since my surgery I've lost nearly 40 lbs. I'm not sure how many stone that is. Anyway, I can lose that much on my own without surgery, however, when I tried to lose weight through the years on my own, I always had a difficult time curbing my appetite, and my weight always came back ...and then some. So, now with the lapband, my appetite is not totally gone, but I now feel "normal" in the sense that I don't always want to be eating. Also, and this is biggg for me...I actually don't always finish eating what's on my plate. I never in my life experienced that before! I always ate whatever was on my plate, even if I was full. You will feel full much sooner and will be able to manage your appetite without a lot of stress and emotions weighing you down. All the best to you. You will be glad you took this leap for the best and you will be able to enjoy your family and will have energy to do more things with them! Sincerely, Jane

I am identifying with your situation! I'm losing very slowly, since "being banded on January 30, '08) and was able to eat without much of a restriction. BUT, on my second fill recently, I experienced for the first time, what the banding is supposed to do. Finally! Yesterday, I was feeling that old attitude, "I don't care, I feel sad so I'm gonna eat." I ate a sensible dinner, and then decided to add on some bread and butter. That went down well, so I got another piece of bread, buttered it and BAM! It wouldn't go down! I got scared because my swallowing of the extra food came to a complete halt. There literally was no way I could continue to eat. That inability to over-eat was due, I believe, to my second fill that was done this past Friday. I'm glad this happened because until just this week, I feel I could have eaten mostly any amount, though I kept myself from doing that. I do believe I will continue to lose slowly. I mean, the wieght's GOT to come off eventually. But, yeah, my doctor told me what I already know and have been doing. Ex. no soda, ice cream, sweets, etd. I don't think he believes me that I don't eat that stuff anymore.

Hi Gordon, We all wish you the very best on the road to your new adventure! It's normal to be a bit nervous and unsure of the unknown, but you will be glad you took the leap of faith. My lap band surgery was on January 30th of this year and as of Feb. 29th (My Leap Year birthday.) I have lost 26 lbs. But, the absolute best thing that has happened for me now is that I am not hungry allll the time and I don't long for potato chips/crisps, chocolate, hamburgers, etc. I was always on a diet or failing to be on a diet and disliking myself for not being able to control my weight. I feel free of that now. (Not to say some of the psychological hunger won't pop up now and then.) Before the surgery I had a "long goodbye" with my "friend" food. I was afraid I'd miss this part of me, but I don't. I am looking forward to joining the world of regular sized clothes. And, to be honest, after I gained weight in the past, I could see that people looked past me/through me. That is not a fun experience. Again, all the very best to you! Keep us posted. Jane from Pennsylvania

How did your doctor's visit go on Friday? I had an appt. on that day too. (on my leap year birthday!). I'm still on Augmentin 500 and the redness has cleared up significantly. Give yourself some time and the redness will subside, but it's not fun waiting, is it? I had my band placed on January 30 and maybe a week or so after that I was put on antibiotics. Can't wait to stop taking the med. because I have some yukky side-effects. By the way, Benson is my "maiden name." Hi to Sades, Summer87, Punkytres and everyone! Hope all are fine.

Thank you for sharing your picture of what your site looked like. Mine hasn't spread as much, but isn't responding well ...yet. On Friday the doctor said he wanted to keep me on Augmentin 500, but I asked for the liquid form. (yuck!) He said to call anytime, 24/7 if my temp. went to 101, or the redness gets obviously worse. So far, so good, except that the redness doesn't budge.

Hi! I just wrote something on another post about my worries concerning my port site infection. I keep looking all around to see how everyone did after taking antibiotics. Please keep your fingers crossed that the doctor finds an antibiotic that works and that I don't have to go to the hospital. Yikes. But, everybody here is brave and has endured, so I will be strong too. :-) ....mostly.

Hi Guys, You just don't know how grateful I am that you, Sades, Summer87, and all, have shared your experiences with infections and I am learning and taking strenth from. I feel very alone, even though I have a supportive husband, I don't want to worry him any more than he is trying to hide that he is. (Does that make sense?) My band was put in on January 30, '08. All of my other incisions are healing well, except for the port site. The incision is dry, but it's still red, swollen and sore at least an inch or so, all around th 5 inch incision. I just took my temp. and burst into tears. It's slightly elevated. I see the doctor tomorrow morning at 9:00. Last Friday he put me on Augmentin 500 after a couple other antibiotics didn't work. Then he drew a line around the redness and said to keep an eye on it. Some of the red has gone a bit beyond the his pen mark, so this Augmentin isn't working either. To know that you guys have been where I am, and have experienced a healing, gives me hope and helps me not to be too sad...and feeling sorry for myself. I hope things are still going well for all of you. And, Summer, we are rooting for you and a successful port installation. (so to speak) Thank you for your reply Sades. All the best to you! Jane From Erie, Pennsylvania, USA

Sades...did your port site infection resolve itself? How are you doing now?

Tinywishes, how are you doing now? Did your infection go away? I am taking Augmentin 500 for a port site infection and am so worried and sad that things will get worse before they get better. I was "banded" on January 30, '08 and am okay otherwise...no fever, white blood cell count is fine. Anyone else out there who can share experience with port site infections? Thanks! Janie B

Wow! At first I thought you meant the doctor couldn't complete the surgery and sewed you back up without the banding. Then, when I read your post again, just to make sure, I understood that you did get the band but they had to go in the hard way. I'm so happy for you that you didn't go through the operation in vain. You will heal and will be just absolutely fine. I had gall bladder surgery a few years ago and they were going to do it laproscopically, BUT when I "came to" I discovered a huge 9 inch incision and learned they had to do the surgery the old fashioned way. Lots of staples, pain, but I soon recovered and am fine.