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Thanks, y'all!!!

That is sooo COOL!!!! Take an ice pick, an old board and poke some more holes in it to be able to wear it longer. Unless of course you REALLY need a new belt! PS> I don't know the name for the little metal pokey thing either! Asked DH and he has no clue either!

I'm almost 5 weeks out (come Monday) and I'm exhausted. I make myself get on the treadmill as much has possible (that's a bit hit and miss right now) and I'm taking all of my Vitamins, minerals and omegas. I think a big problem, for me, is my nutrition. My surgeon basically is requiring ONLY Protein for the first 3 months. I'm actually adding other stuff, especially the veggies, if I can. I still focus on the protein but leave a little room for my veggies. I get tired REALLY easy. Part of it too is that I've never had major surgery before and didn't know what to expect and I think I'm pushing it too hard sometimes. Just some theories of mine! LOL!

Thank God you DO have sense of humor or you might've been asking for help digging the hole in the backyard big enough for his body instead!!! I think I'd a killed him! AND if you hadn't gone to all the trouble you KNOW they'd have shown up and camped out in your living room all day!! LOL! Get some sleep tonight!

Oh. Thanks! :thumbup:

With your further explanation, it makes even more sure that you are where you should be right now. I think you're doing great! I totally get the fear of failure or not using the band to it's full potential. It's a fear of mine as well. I think it's a fear most, if not all, of us fatties face. We've tried so many things with failure as the end result that we just expect the next "thing" to fail as well. I think that constant failure with our weight sets us up for the fear and sometimes even more failure. We just don't consider ourselves as possibly being successful with weight loss and shoot ourselves in the foot. Doesn't help if we don't have a good support system either. I was just thinking tonight, while I was fixing dinner, that there will be no more munching or "tasting" while cooking. No matter how hungry I am, because if I did that, I wouldn't have room for dinner for the next 3 hours!!! It also made me realize how much snacking I actually did without even thinking about it. I also have realized that it's okay to feel a little hunger. Before surgery, as soon as I felt hungry, I was heading for food. Didn't matter if we were going to be eating soon or not. I'd eat anyway, then less than an hour later (or whatever) would be sitting down to lunch or dinner and eating it all! When people say this is much more of a head game than anything else, I really understand what they mean. I've been learning as much, or more, head-wise as I have stomach-wise.

This whole process is really very different for everyone. The only reason I'm interested in food at all is because I do get a little hungry if it's been awhile since I've eaten. I then have a tablespoon or a small serving of something and I'm fine again. Hang in there. I know it seems like a chore to even think about food, let alone eat, but you really must eat something. You may need to set an alarm clock or timer and eat a couple of ounces of something Protein every 3-4 hours. You need the nutrition so you can finish healing and you need protein first so you don't lose much of your hair. Food is really all about nutrition at this point. We don't/can't eat like we used to. Even when we're hungry, it's just not the proportions of what used to be anymore. It's really an amazing process if you think about it. Take care and let me know how things go for you.

I HIT ONDERLAND THIS WEEK!!!!!! Last week: 202 This week: 198 Week's loss: 4lbs I am SO excited!!! I didn't think I was going to have a loss. And then it's FOUR POUNDS and puts me in ONDERLAND!!!! On the exercise front, I didn't do any this week. :thumbup: I've GOT to get better at that. It's just so hard with a 2 year old in the house! (I know, excuses, excuses!) Take care all and have a great day!

Nena, I agree with Fanny. Don't panic, you're doing great! I go for my first fill on the 7th and I'm not sure I'm going to need one. I'm losing a lot faster than I thought I would at this point. A fill would just mean A LOT faster. I like losing fast but I don't want to lose too fast. I lost 4lbs this week. To me, that's just amazing! I don't expect that kind of loss every week but the week before was almost 3lbs, so I know I'm doing amazingly well for myself. I'm not hungry unless it's been a few hours and it's time to eat. A little bit of food and I'm fine again. I don't know if any of that is happening to you but it sounds like you're doing a fantastic job! Keep up the great work. And again, don't get too caught up in the fills. Get one when you and your doctor feel you need one, that's usually when you stop losing altogether.

Oh My Gosh!! That sounds sooo good! Thanks!!!

Gilta, Hang in there. I'm only 4 1/2 weeks out so I'm not bored yet. LOL! It has been a rollercoaster! All the hurry up and wait, then all of a sudden, it's done and you're back to your normal life like nothing has changed. Is there a hobby you like to do? Maybe just changing your focus for awhile might help. I don't know! :smile2: You're doing great! Keep up the good work!

- When will I feel normal??? I'm 4 weeks out and feel good, except that I get tired very easily and if I sit, scrunched up, too long then I hurt. -When will I be able to sleep on my side without feeling the band/port move around??? I don't feel it move around but I am normally a side/stomach sleeper and found myself waking in the AM on my stomach a couple of weeks after surgery. It was and can be uncomfortable. -When will I ever burp..I feel like i want to but i can't. I have been walking a lot so I haven't had the shoulder pains or chest pains, i did get neck pains and I felt like I had something stuck in my throat that I wanted to swallow or cough up (found out is was normal) I actually only burp after I eat now. And usually b/c I'm pretty full. Otherwise, I don't, sometimes feel like I could though. - Sometimes I feel my right leg tinggle, like weird! Has anyone experienced that? Haven't had that unless I've been sitting funny for too long. Take a look at what's happening as you start that feeling. If you're not sure what's going on, call your doctor. Don't want to scare you but you need to be careful of bloodclots for a bit yet. - When should i start taking my Vitamins?? I started right after surgery. I take 2 chewable children's vitamins, liquid B-Complex w/a B-12 sublingual, liquid Omega, chewable Biotin, chewable Fiber Choice, chewable Calcium w/D, and I swallow my BP pills and acidolphilis pills. They're very tiny. I didn't start those til I started foods though. The multi-vit, omega and calcium, I split in 2 doses. Take one dose of each in the AM and another in the PM, otherwise you'll not get all the benefits of them.

WTG Steve!!! You're looking great!

I was banded Aug. 25th and go in for my first fill on Oct. 7th. Six weeks after surgery. Looking forward to it. I'm stuck this week and actually gaining ounces (I'm back to all foods now). Friday's WI doesn't look good. We'll see though.

I am so trilled for both of you, Tina and Emily's Dad! Emily's Dad, I am glad to hear that you and your DW had a heart to heart. She may not have realized how bad things have gotten or where things could've been headed. I know when you're in the midst of something, you don't always see the bigger picture and I think that may have been where she was. Please keep coming back and let us know how things are going. Don't be disappointed in how your 1st session goes. The counselor may not be for you or you may not think things went the way your thought they should. It could just be a preliminary "get to know you" session. Don't worry. If need be, find another counselor, or be patient with the process. Just some thoughts. I do hope this counselor is the one for you two though so you can get things moving in a positive direction. Take care, both of you and your spouses!

I also think 10 minutes is too fast. We are supposed to eat slower in order to feel full faster. If that makes any sense. It takes 20 minutes for your stomach to alert your brain that you're getting or are full. I'm back to regular foods now. This week, I've been bouncing UP in ounces. No loss so far although official WI is Friday. It's not looking good for a loss this week and looking like a GAIN! I've lost about 8lbs since the day of surgery (15 if you count the 7lbs of surgery gain that took a week and a half to lose!!). I've always been a slow loser. Can't see why this will be any different for me. Speaking of the surgery gain, do you include that in your post-surgery loss or just the other weight?

Aubrie, I'm with you in this department. I'm drinking a glass of lite plum juice and 2 Fiber choice tablets everyday to keep things moving. If I just do one or the other, nothing moves. Before surgery, was just doing the fiber choice and could even skip them and was doing fine.

Hi Everyone!! Kaiser has a support group for WLS at it's Fresno facility. It's open to the community so you don't need to be a member to participate. It meets every 2nd Tuesday of the month from 5:30-7PM. Next meeting will be Oct. 14th. It's free and meets in the Cypress 4 Conference Room. I can give you directions to the facility and the meeting room if you want. Let me know. I'm hoping to make it a regular thing for me but right now I have a hard time getting childcare on Tuesday nights.

I agree. If the policy is posted, can't complain about it. If you know you're going to have a hard time eating at a certain place, DON'T GO!!! No one is forcing you! It was a choice to get banded and it's a choice to go out to eat and it's a choice in where you pick to eat. See? CHOICES!! We all have them.

According to my surgeon, soup is evil!! LOL!! Reasons are that you can eat more, they're usually loaded with fat and calories and they go right through the band. Now, what "I" do is find soups that are high in Protein, preferably low in fat and/or sodium and I measure my portion. I don't always worry too much about the calories and fat but it really depends on the soup. I'm also not eating an entire CAN like I did pre-surgery! I do have to go slow with soup, if I eat too fast, I get REALLY full and it's uncomfortable. I just don't tell my surgeon that I eat soup!! Bean/lentil soups are great b/c of the protein and if you need to, you can blend it and it's nice and thick and hearty!

Oh I'm so sorry! I want to tell you not to giver her that power over you. You don't know her, she doesn't know you, don't give her the power to hurt your feelings. That whole thing was just weird! If she wants to make cabbage rolls, then she can walk her butt over to the book section and buy a dang cookbook!!!! BTW, cabbage rolls are usually cooked cabbage leaves stuffed with a cooked meat/rice mixture of some sort (there are TONS of variations) and baked in the oven with tomato sauce over it. They're really good but time consuming.

I gained 7lbs the day of surgery! Took me a week and a half to get rid of it. I retain Water like crazy. If I don't drink enough, I bloat. And there was no way I was drinking enough the first couple of weeks after surgery. Don't get discouraged! It will come off again, just may take time. Even at a few weeks out, if I don't drink most of my 64oz of water, I show a gain the next AM! It's nuts!!

I would think they do! I've seen bigger people diving and surfing so they've gotta be out there somewhere. Have you tried surfboard or dive shops? I don't know that sporting goods stores would have any. Try this place. I just googled wetsuits. Wetsuit Info How to Buy a Wetsuit I don't know how much it'll help but it looked like it had a lot of good information and tons of different suits. At the very least you could e-mail them and ask them if they know of a place if they don't carry your size.

Don't have much time this AM. We're going woodcutting so I gotta hurry. I'll catch up with everyone later but here are my stats for the week. Last week: 204.7 This week: 202.0 Weekly Loss: 2.7lbs!! WooHoo! I did a mile on the treadmill a few times this week but not as much as I wanted to. It'll get better. I'm working up to it! Take care everyone! Talk to you later!

Here is another perspective. I DID have a new surgeon! I had the choice of going with the new surgeon and getting surgery done now, only an hour from home or waiting 6 months and going 3+ hours out of town for surgery with a more experienced surgeon. I chose to go sooner with the new guy. Here was my reasoning: I'm in really good health (other than being fat!), wasn't worried about my liver and had no hernia that we knew of. I'm with Kaiser and he had to have some experience before they pulled him in AND they proctored him, for several days of surgeries, with one of their experienced teaching surgeons, who does banding, before he was able to have full reign. The support staff was/is familiar with gastric surgery. The entire staff, from nutrition class to dietitian, to labs, to nurses, etc, were sooo excited he was there and thrilled with his training, experience so far, and personality. He is currently going for certification as a specialist in bariatric lap surgery. During my surgery the proctor, that I spoke of earlier, was going to be there in order to proctor the assistants who are experienced bypass surgeons but learning lap banding. Again, the fact that I could get the surgery now and only an hour from home vs. waiting 6 months and having to go 3+ hours from home was a really big deal. In all honesty, I went with my gut as well as my belief in prayer and God and my logical reasonings. I was praying hard about this surgery and felt God was opening doors for me. I'm also very logical and the pros, for me, outweighed the cons. I also didn't ask him how many surgeries he'd done. I was comfortable, Kaiser and its staff was comfortable and God was continuing to open doors. So, I went for it. Now, I'm only 3 1/2 weeks out from surgery. I'm doing well but who knows, down the road, if I may have problems. I was willing to risk it. You may not be. BUT I wanted you to hear my experience and go from there. AND some part of me also thinks that SOMEONE is going to be one of the first 250 patients!!! Think carefully, if you're one for lists, write down your reasonings, good and bad, and go from there. Best wishes on your decision! Let us know what you decide.