texasvixxen

Hi everyone! I'm a newbie from Houston, TX. I was banded on 11/17/05. I'm really excited that I found this site. I have been reading a lot of the posts & I find comfort in knowing that I'm not the only one out there. As for my family and friends, they are all very supportive, but cannot relate to my experiences with the band. Good luck to everyone & I look forward to hearing from some of my fellow bandsters out there!

I also have UHC through Methodist. My husband works for The Methodist Hospital, so my surgery was covered 100%. I love my doc - Robert Marvin. He was the first surgeon at Methodist to do the lap band procedure. He has a wonderful bedside manner & he has a wonderful staff. Good luck & best wishes!

Hi Miz Judie! I was raised in Katy & hopefully will be moving back within the next couple of years. I currently live in far north east Richmond - so I'm not too far away. I hope there is a support group in Katy - I would come!

Absolutely no regrets. It is the best thing that I have ever done for myself! Over all, it has not been as difficult as I had anticipated. The worse part prior to this whole experience was the fear of the unknown. I wish you the best of luck with your new life!

Over the past 7 months - there have been many wonderful WOW moments. Here are my top 5: #5 - Crossing my legs for the first time in several years #4 - Pulling a size 20 off of a clothing rack only to discover that I was down to a size 14 #3 - I was running errands and I ran into an old friend of mine & I said "Hello" - she just starred at me - didn't say anything. I asked her if she was OK. She finally smiled & said... "I didn't recognize you... you look fantastic!" #2 - When a male co-worker asked if my husband was a jealous man - then said that he should be because I was looking good! And finally..... #1 - I have a friend that I haven't seen in several months since I was banded. Her 18 yr old son recently started working for my company. At our last get-together, my friend pulled me aside & said that when her son got home after his first day at work he said, "Mom - Have you you seen Tanya lately? She's HOT!" OMG - I haven't been called HOT in several years - much less by an 18 yr old! I look forward to many many more WOW moments!

Jamie, CONGRATULATIONS!!!! :clap2: What an accomplishment - truly inspiring.

:clap2: Congratulations to all of my fellow November 2005 bandsters!! Can you believe that it is already our 6 mo bandiversary?! I've lost 65 lbs so far & I am feeling great! My weight loss has stalled over these past 2 weeks, so I will be going in soon for another fill. Best wishes everyone :gluck:

You have done amazingly well! Thanks for sharing & giving the rest of us inspiration!

I thought of one more... If you no longer get PIS*ED OFF :uwelcome: because someone took food from your plate without asking (you even welcome it now!), you might be a bandster.

I needed the laughs - thanks everyone! If you prefer to eat your meals with your 1 yr old baby because it helps slow you down, you might be a bandster. If you can make 5 meals out of one resturant entree, you might be a bandster.

I had my first fill on 12/16/05 (2 cc). I haven't had any problems until today. We had our Christmas luncheon at work today. I ate 1/8th piece of broiled fish - 3 green Beans - 4 sips of broth from shrimp gumbo & 2 shrimps from the gumbo (cut into pieces first). Then all of the sudden, I had this horrible pain right in the middle of my chest. I had to excuse myself because I thought that a PB was right around the corner. I got so sick - but hardly anything was coming up. I felt better for about 45 mins - then it happened all over again. Felt better again, then about 1-1/2 hrs later, I became hungry & took one bite of chicken & had the pain in my chest again. Could it be that I didn't chew my food enough? I ate too fast? If anyone has experienced this - please help me out by giving me some advise.

I had my first fill on 12/15/06 - 2cc. At the end of my appointment, my doc said - "don't forget, 2 days liquids, then 2 days soft foods..." What?! I didn't know that I would have to go back to liquids & soft foods after every fill :mad: . Is this the routine protocol for everyone or is it just my doc's policy? I'd like to hear from some of you out there... (PS: Happy New Year!)

Oh Crystal, I am so sorry to hear about Astro. I can truly sympathize - I had to put my 14yr old cat, Reese, to sleep 1-1/2yrs ago. I had him since he was a kitten. He was my baby boy. Totally broke my heart. It didn't help that I was 3 month pregnant at time - my emotions were all over the place! The old saying true: "time heals all wounds". Just know that it does get better with time. Take care.

I love the Atkins Advantage Shakes. Chocolate Delight is may favorite! Just make sure that you drink them when they are really cold.

Hi Heather! I recently had my first fill 2 cc. Didn't do the fluoroscope . This is really bad, but I don't even know my band size. I'm going to have to ask when I go back in a few weeks. Since my fill, I have experienced "stuck" food- twice. OMG, I wanted to die! It hurt so bad . I wasn't chewing well enough & I wasn't drinking enough Water through out the day. I've learned my lesson. After my fill, I was told to go back to 2 days of liquids, then 2 days of soft foods. Did any of you have to do that? I HATE the liquid stage!

OMG - sounds so yummy. I'm going to try one when I get home from work today. I love, love, LOVE anything with peanut butter & chocolate. Thanks Theresa for the recipe!

What you're going through is very normal. Everyone has experienced the pre-op jitters. I can't tell you how many times I thought about not doing it. The day of my surgery, I came very close to walking out of the hospital - my surgery was delayed by 5 hours! Deep in my heart, I knew that this surgery was the best thing for me. Even though I am newly banded (11/17/05) I have absolutely no regrets. Recovery was a breeze. The whole process has gone a lot smoother than I anticipated. Best of luck to you in whatever you may decide to do.

OMG that was HILARIOUS!! Thanks for the laugh. :laugh

Welcome Bekah! :Bunny

Kristen, How are you feeling? Did you ever find out what was wrong?

Thanks everyone for your advise. That coke thing was interesting. If it happens again, it's worth trying. I called my Doc's office & they think it was a combination of things: (1) didn't chew my food well enough & (2) didn't drink enough Water yesterday. They suggested that I drink water right away & it may help the food down. So, I started to drink water - had no problems, no pain while drinking it. Within an hour, I started to feel a lot better. I hope that you and your families have a safe & happy holiday!

Hey everyone - thanks for your words of encouragement & all of the advise. I truly appreciate it. I go see my surgeon tomorrow. This will be my 1st post-op appointment (because of Thanksgiving - had to be delayed a week). Keep your fingers crossed that I've healed enough to have my first fill. I'm a little nervous, so wish me luck. Take care everyone - I'll let you know how it goes...

Nope, you're not being a nuisance. It's the squeaky wheel that gets the oil! Stay on top of them. Best of luck to you!!

Hi Kristen, I had problems with kidney stones prior to being banded. In my peronsal experience - doesn't sound like a kidney stone, maybe kidney infection. I don't know if you've ever experienced kidney stones before, its the most intense pain you will ever encounter! It will literally bring you to your knees. Giving birth, having brain surgery, broken bones was breeze compared kidney stones. I hope that all works out for you. Keep us updated. Take care.

Dave - best of luck to you! Everyone's experience with their surgery is different. I hardly had any pain & was back to work by Day 4. I think the hardest part for me was the fear of the unknown. You'll do just fine.