HeatherO

I wouldn't let my child starve . . . but I would certainly allow him to learn a lesson. If he spent his lunch money on something else other than lunch, he could take a peanut butter and jelly sandwich for a day or two. I wouldn't give him more money. There is value in learning to budget. My child is great at budgeting his money now and I think he will be better geared at going away to college in the next couple of years . . . and at life in general. However, if I knew someone who is hungry, I would help them out no questions asked. Be it prostitute, smoker, etc. Again, that help might come in the form of actual food rather than money.

I stayed sore for a few weeks - not pain, just soreness. It went down to almost nothing but an occasional twinge by week #4.

It is entirely possible to have indigestion on liquids. Being newly banded, even the liquids might be going down slow. During this early stage, you are already doing the right things in taking it slow and giving it time to go down. This is only temporary and will get better once a couple more weeks pass.

My sweet spot lasted 5 months without change until I got too tight due to pregnancy. It can be a longer term sweet spot . . . but I think it does have something to do with how much fat is deposited around your stomach. As you lose weight, it affects the fat deposits everywhere, having more or less around the stomach may affect how often you will need adjustments as you lose.

One last thing I should mention. When you pb, it can cause a little swelling, which can cause you to pb a little easier and it can repeat repeatedly in a cycle. You should always go on liquids for a day after pbing to let your stomach settle a little. Also, I learned the hard way after my first couple of fills that even though I thought I was eating slow enough and chewing well enough before the fill, I had to change my habits after to do an even better job of it. What is entirely workable before a fill may need to be adjusted after a fill as far as bandster rules go.

I agree, it does sound like being swollen and a little tighter at the same time my have affected you negatively. I would stick to liquids for a few days . . . and as long as they are going down well and you can eventually progress through mushies and solids, you should be fine.

Stretching isnt a problem unless you are consistently overeating on a regular basis or if you start drinking a lot of carbonated beverages.

You need a tiny unfill . . . I had the same problem. I did try drugs to combat it, sleeping semi upright, no eating several hours before bed, etc. All of these things just made small improvements, but a small unfill eliminated it completely.

I would get a new outfit every so far down. A manicure or pedicure, or maybe a change in your hair is also great.

I traveled from California to Ohio 3 days post banding and it was not a problem. I only drank a little juice on the plane. I was a little uncomfortable in the seat, but it wasn't too bad. It is very workable to travel right after if you are careful . . . the walking is no big deal, you just want to avoid lifting and have a seat when you can.

You would have to check with your insurance company to see if they could possibly pay for it. If you get a newer model of band then I don't think you will have much of a problem with gain. Do they think by staying unfilled for a while, the band might resettle into position?

pennreporter is correct, unless there are comorbidities you probably need a BMI of 40. At 5'5 and 220 your BMI is 36.6. You wouldn't hit the BMI of 40 range until you reached 241 pounds. Checking with the insurance company is the best way to go. Also there is a difference in qualifying for surgery and getting the insurance company to pay for it.

It is possible that it is the MMPI . . . others have had to take it. It is like anything else with banding, all surgeons, pre-op requirements, post-op requirements, insurance requirements can vary greatly. The only true standard is lack thereof, lol.

Some of us just heal a little slower than others but that is not necessarily a problem. This is especially true for some of us with other health issues such as diabetes. However, you should always be looking for any potential signs of infection such as extra redness, swelling, discomfort, etc. I would suggest giving your doctor a call just to be on the safe side. Other than that, keeping the incision clean and following your wound care instructions for the first days out should help facilitate healing. Some of us are cleared to swim or take baths by this time, but I wouldnt suggest it if you still have an open incision. Good luck.

I had pain meds in the hospital. After I left, I took one pill to get home on, after that I just took tylenol and just lived through the rest of the pain. It really wasn't that bad as long as I took it easy. Loose clothing, sports bra and slow movements were enough to take the edge off . . . I didn't really need or want the mind-numbing that goes along with the medication. Come to think of it, I still have that original script in a drawer at home, lol. Anyways, it is entirely doable. I would fill the script in case you need it and only take it if you are really feeling bad.

PB'ing after every meal is not good for you or the band. Either it is too tight or you may need to slow down and chew a little more. That being said, you are only a few months out from banding. I felt the same was in the early months out from banding. I actually mourned for the loss of the ability to eat the way I did previously. However, it doesn't take long to adjust and your feelings change. This is just one step in a journey to a new you and a new relationship with food. It gets considerably easier over time. Good luck.

I would really like an update as well :0). We are all ready to move over to the "other side" of motherhood so we can hold our new babies and gaze into their eyes, lol. Any stories are exciting and a welcome addition.

Congratulations . . . you are doing great. I also agree, the band has saved my life as well. :0) Isn't it wondeful when you have reached the end of the journey and you can truly say goodbye to the obese lifestyle?

If there is any question at all, you can get a letter of medical necessity from the doctors office and you are covered without issue. However, I really don't think you will have a problem with it.

My family inhaled this recipe warm from the oven with vanilla ice cream. I have never seen a new dessert dissapear so quickly, lol. I split the recipe in half and cooked it in the small pan (I was deathly afraid of leftovers, lol). I highly recommend it as a crowd pleaser.

Hello All, It's Friday :0) :0) :0) Thank goodness . . . I have survived yet another week. TracyinKS, I was able to "just say no" to ice cream last night, you have inspired me. Laura, you are so lucky . . . I really wanted a dimpled baby with dimples on the elbows, knees, behind and definitely on the cheeks, lol. Dimples are the cutest. My son has one dimple on one cheek. Everyone assumes he got it from me but it was actually the result of freshly waxed floor, windbreaker suit and the corner of a coffee table at around 2 years old. It didn't break skin but he had a hematoma underneath and it eventually left a dimple under the skin - it looks authentic, lol. I hope those proofs are adorable, I am sure they will be. Michelle, have loads of fun at the Springsteen concert. If you are only 1.5 hours from Hershey, PA then you are really not too far from me. I didn't realize anyone else was up here in my general area :0) Pamela, I am still soo excited for you. Graduation at long last, this is the really fun part. Terry, We eat variations of that recipe for salad several times a week. My family is Turkish (which maybe some of you may have guessed from FB photos). Ask anyone Turkish and they will say this is Turkish salad and the Greeks will say it is Greek, lol. It is certainly the same with baklava, but that is even more of a battle. Sometimes we use mozarella instead of feta or even forgoe the cheese. The kalamata olives are there at every meal but always on the side. Instead of oregano or black pepper we put in a dash of red pepper flakes. We usually chop up a little bit of parsley and lettuce in there as well, but very little proportionately and very finely chopped. One variation on this salad that I absolutely love is to roast half a small eggplant in the oven with a little olive oil on the side that is cut . . . when it is nice and soft I peel it and mash it with a fork or chop it in small cubes and add it into the salad. It is really awesome this way. I also sometimes add mashed avocado with garlic into this salad and it is kind of like a very veggie intensive version of guacamole where you get just a taste of guacamole but not quite so much fat. We had this last night with chile/lime crusted tilapia and corn on the cob . . . absolutely delicious and relatively healthy if you are careful on the ingredients.

I have this symptom but it did not come out until later in pregnancy. You can see the veins in my hands prominently now. The underside of my arms shows blue criss-crossed webbing . . . it is very visable. You can also now see the veins in my breasts and even my stomach. It might be more apparent for me because I am extremely pale and freckled so it shows easily. I also noticed that I could feel my heart beat in my belly after 10 weeks. It is like as if I could feel the blood rushing through which was really odd. I mentioned it to a couple of people, but no one had ever had or even heard of this symptom out of the people I mentioned it to. Before I was pregnant, there were a few months where I got the "signs" of early pregnancy but it was a no go every time. When I really conceived in early September of last year . . . I had no symptoms at all except for a really tight band and my period was late. Even with a late period, I never got a BFP until the 28th or so but my period was due around the 14th. So for me, pregnancy symptoms=not pregnant, lack thereof=pregnant, lol.

Me too . . . I can no longer tolerate any fill at all. Even empty I get occasional back discomfort where everything feels "stuck." I am really hoping that I get back to normal post delivery.

Congratulations on maintaining and your upcoming delivery. I bet you lose 15-30 pounds almost immediately within the first couple of weeks post delivery. I think I will also be able to wear pre-pregnancy jeans out of the hospital (but will bring a maternity pair just in case). I can still wear some pre-pregnancy jeans now, they are just not as comfortable and I use a little elastic around the button. For some reason, I seem to be carrying this baby high and had almost no need for maternity clothes. I was able to get by with 1 pair of maternity jeans and a belly band and am currently in my 9th month. Now that I am in the last couple of weeks, I am starting to think that I will be back to pre-pregnancy weight fairly early in summer (although expect a slightly different shape as my belly recovers). All I can say is thank goodness for the band :0)

Congratulations to everyone who is newly expecting. I also have a big distance between mine in that my son is 17 and my daughter will happen along in a few weeks :0) Banding has been such a wonderful gift for me . . . I lost the weight and gained a daughter.