HeatherO

I am really, truly, deeply sorry. I feel like I know you so well after all the pregnancy posts and discussions we have had. It all seems so unexpected. My thoughts and prayers are with you and your family and my heart goes out to you. <<<<HUGS>>>>

LJM, how was your first week at home??? For all of us new moms to be that haven't experienced it yet or have had such a long delay that they have forgotten, any words of wisdom? Are you getting any sleep?

My OB said I only needed 300 additional calories a day which wasn't really hard to incorporate into my daily plan (I think it will be a lot harder to give up the extra calories post pregnancy then to add them in the first place, lol). If your band is not feeling uncomfortably tight, then you probably will not need an unfill just yet. Just be aware that during pregnancy sometimes the band can get exceptionally tight in a short period of time and be ready to combat it if it does. Good luck and congratulations!!!

It's a girl which is just what I wanted. We are very excited about it and have been a'shoppin. I am sorry to hear about your MIL. I lost my mother almost one year ago . . . she never knew I was destined to have another child so soon which was always her dream. You have my condolences.

My fingers are crossed as well. Hopefully the progesterone will help stabilize things so that your HCG's will rise steadily. Wow, 20 & 14 and now number 3, you sound kind of like me with a 17 year difference between #1 and #2. :0)

Tina, you look fabulous :0)

It is absolutely normal to feel hungry after surgery. I think most of us go through this stage. From 2 weeks to 6 weeks can be really difficult . . . but it only gets better from there once you start getting fills.

I would go back right away . . . when you can't get liquids in, it only seems to get worse, never better. If you wait another day or two, you will most likely be extra sick and miserable and your band could slip. I am not surprised that 1 cc can make that much of a difference regardless of cost. When you are close to your sweet spot, .10 of a cc can make a big difference in how things flow through your pouch. With pregnancy aftercare . . . my band doctor said that if I felt fine at my current level, was getting adequate nutrition, then staying status quo is no big harm. However, I have been to the fill doctor 4 times since I conceived and will stay unfilled until after the baby is born due to tightness issues. If I had never gotten sporadically tight causing the need for bigger unfills, they would have been fine with leaving me as is.

I am not sure exactly what twisties are, but if they are a slider food like chips or cheetos, they probably won't cause too much damage because they tend to disintegrate into almost nothing in the stomach. The important thing is just to chalk it up to temporary insanity, from which I suffer as well :0), not to lose too much time feeling guilty and get back on the wagon with the soups. It is just a minor hiccup on the road to success . . . as long as you don't use this as a start to more off-diet eating. Perhaps you can pay penance by walking an extra half-hour, lol.

Congratulations!!! You are doing wonderful.

I am so sorry that you have struggled with your band . . . it has been rough from the get go. I am happy to hear you can have an unfill to fix the problem and managed to avoid slippage. My heart and thoughts go out to you. I had problems too and had to learn to live with a more open band this year. Right now I have no fill at all and I am doing better this way. I also learned that I could continue to lose without being super tight . . . I just had to get over the initial fear of being without the aid of my band. Because of this, I have decided I will never have an ultra tight band again. Moderately loose where I can eat most things in moderation is where I will stay. It is just not worth the reflux, pb's, sudden tightness where I can not eat, etc. If I never lose another pound but can just prevent gains without feeling sick due to the band . . . I will be satisfied.

Oh, one more thing. I can't feel her moving as much anymore and it has been that way for several days. Today I discovered why. She changed position. Her head is now where her feet used to be. She is now turned in such away that most of the movement would be directed towards the back which is where the placenta is. Before her limbs were extended towards the front and she was head down. I guess position makes a huge difference.

I just had another ultrasound today at 22 weeks and 6 days. Everything looked great and on target for the baby for which I am very happy and grateful. I was actually a little dissapointed about the ultrasound experience. For some reason, I thought I would get to see the face even clearer or see more activity. What I saw 4 weeks ago was actually much, much better. The tech said the bigger the baby gets the harder it is to see a full picture with good details. Before I could actually see the full body in a shot, legs extended and good profiles . . . now there are mostly barely identifiable blobs with a written description of what it is. The most identifiable parts in general were the spine and ribcage. I saw the () of an open mouth with lips. I guess I didn't realize that clarity would be less. I also realize that it is entirely possible to miss the sex of the infant. Her legs were so tightly closed that the tech said it is good we got such a clear shot last time because this time all she would have been able to say is maybe it might possibly be a girl. My mid-point ultrasound was definitely the best one so far.

Most of us are nearing or have passed our bandiversary dates. I have a few more days to go. I would like to post some pictures and make a few comments on that special day. Would any one like to post about triumphs and challenges over the first year? Happy Bandiversary to Everyone :thumbup:

It is natural to be scared at first, we all are. However, getting educated on the process is the first step. Seeing the doctor about it and having a thorough discussion along with following up by reading as much as you can will help to alleviate fear. I would definitely meet with your doctor regardless . . . there is nothing to fear in learning about it.

Loose skin issues can be lessened by loosing no more than 1-2 pounds a week. Too rapid of a loss doesn't give your skin enough time to snap back. Exercise helps as well in that toned muscles fill out the skin better. Staying well hydrated, a healthy diet and taking Vitamins contributes to general good health as well and puts your body in the best shape to heal itself or go back to a more normal size. Mostly it is heredity, age and skin elasticity that will have the biggest impact on how well you shrink back to normal size. Even though items listed above help, most is dependent on factors you can't change. Unfortunately stretch marks never go away, they only fade in color to match the rest of your skin. I got lucky in that I have almost no loose skin except for a little on my rear, upper thighs and a little stomach poochiness at the bottom . . . but nothing terrible.

It happens and usually goes away. A little gax-X or Rolaids usually does the trick for me. It doesn't usually take more than a day to feel normal again.

I feel your pain as I sit here eating a half cup of peanut butter panic ice cream . . . gah, indeed.

I dont know how old your kids are . . . but you could still do something fun. Virgin margaritas or daiquaries with some fruit salad and light whip cream on the side, maybe some cutesy little umbrellas or something. Perhaps some island themed music (Bob Marley is a personal favorite of mine that always makes me think of summer fun) and a tropical themed dinner. Maybe an island movie or two that might grab your kids attention. Perhaps (depending on age) you could do a little hula dancing, lol. It is easy to do something relatively cheap, but different that might last in their memories. Anyway, just a thought :0)

Someone must be in a fishy mood today, lol. :biggrin: I have been feeling that way lately too . . . but I was told not to eat too much during pregnancy, so alas I must think about eating my fill of fish (and sushi = ultra yummmy) vicariously through others. However, I must ask. What is it with tuna and soy nuts??? It must be a personal favorite. I remember early in banding I went through an egg phase where I must have ate them for 1-2 meals every day for months, I kid you not . . . now I almost never eat them since I kinda got burned out. If you are not careful, you might just decide one day that you can never stomach another tuna with soy nut meal again, lol :thumbup:

Kat, I know how you feel. Once during finals week (studying for my undergrad degree) when my son was 2 years old, he was in the bathtub and I was on the toilet studying (which is not unusual when you find that a 2 year old is happily contained and occupied in a bathtub with a tiny amount of water and plenty of toys while you sit near and study). Well, I left a razor the I use for my legs in reach and was too preoccupied to see it sitting there near all the other stuff. He started screaming, I glanced at him and there was blood all over . . . or at least it looked like it. It was a none too serious cut on the hand but it bled ALOT. I just bawled and I was so sad and so upset. It was like I cut him myself because it was all my fault that it had been there. Needless to say, it never happened again but I still remember every moment of it clearly 15 years later. It seems like things along that line only tend to happen when you are stressed and preoccupied . . . and you have been going through the wringer lately. I hope you, Manda and Kinsey are feeling a little better today and this rough patch passes quickly. <<<Hugs>>>

OMG . . . is Valentine's day next week??? My head must be in the clouds, lol. I wasn't even thinking about it this year.

I just considered soup, cereal or anything that has a wet or mushy texture as something that won't stay long in the pouch. You can definitely eat it but you may be hungry again soon after. It really is the same as eating and drinking. If you consistently drink while being banded you are going to flush out the food faster, get hungry sooner and probably injest more calories in the long run.

It is an outpatient procedure for most to get banded. Some people don't even stay in the hospital one night. They don't rearrange your insides, only insert a medical device. The risk is very low compared to most other surgeries and you sound like you are in relatively good health other than obesity. It doesn't sound like you are ready to be banded. If you had long term success after using atkins by doing exercise, you may be able to repeat the same results if you are committed. Just know that this is an option for you if you ever decide to take this route.

I think it really all depends on what your insurance considers as a comorbidity. I would call them or research online to find the exact requirements. At 5'3 and 205 pounds, I think your BMI would be closer to 40 than 35. You would actually be only 20 pounds shy of being at a 40 BMI where comorbidities may not be necessary.