HeatherO

I agree with snowbird. Strained soup is definitely a liquid as long as it is not super thick. I had strained soups during the liquid phase as well, and if they seemed a little thick, I added a little chicken broth to thin them even further. My doctor was fine with doing this . . . although you should definitely get your doctor's opinion as well since they are all different. I dont think I could do the soy milk all the time either.

My thoughts exactly :tt2:

Everything looks great on my screen. I think people are interpreting the meaning of the "Start Weight" differently than intended. Start weight for the challenge means your start weight as of beginning the challenge (which means it should match your current weight when you first post). Jazzyywan, NurseNiki & SpecialK . . . I fixed your start weights to equal your current weight. I will repost the list with instructions at the bottom: Name__________Start Weight_____Current Weight____Goal________Lbs lost *****:eek:***********:thumbup:*************:tt2:************:tt2: ********:w00t:*** Ariel .............199............199............180............0 ahsem2bme..........244............244............225............0 aJoneen............223............223............213............0 Aphrodite1984......208............208............190............0 Ariel .............199............199............180............0 Caramia71..........208............208............195............0 georgiagirl........245............245............230............0 HeatherO...........155............155............140............0 Jazzyywan..........255............255............190............0 Jodi_620...........196............196............177............0 Leslie2Lose........220............220............205............0 LisaB..............205.5..........205.5..........180............0 livn4thm...........235............235............210............0 Long2bthin.........248............248............230............0 Luu2008............203............203............183............0 Mamanmidwife.......299............299............285............0 mominlv13..........299.8..........299.8..........275............0 NurseNiki..........258............258............239............0 SpecialK...........294............294............280............0 Tess...............304............304............280............0 Turler.............225............225............210............0 wowox7.............195............195............170............0 WyominGirl.........327............327............312............0 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Instructions: Start Weight = Weight at the beginning of the challenge, Current Weight = Weight at time of posting, Goal = Goal to attain by Halloween, Lbs Lost = Difference between start weight and current weight.

I have heard of the milk diet but I never heard of a doctor prescribing it. I can't help but wonder if you will lose all desire for milk after spending three weeks on nothing but milk. :0) I would talk to your doctor as well about having a night off. Perhaps you can start a couple of days early to offset it.

I don't know, sounds almost too good to be true. Pasta disagrees with me post banding so I wont try it (not worth being stuck and uncomfortable). It is always interesting to see the new things that come out. Do you remember that Olestra stuff? Replaced oil's and you could buy pringles with low calories and low fat. Sounded good to me and fit my diet plan perfectly . . . until after the first terrible cramp an unpleasant hour or more in the bathroom, lol. I lost any desire for pringles after that. However, Splenda seems to be everything it is cracked up to be . . . tastes great and no gastrointestinal distress. :0)

Doctors are so different, I guess I am not surprised that some feel that way. My pcp was absolutely against wls for me. It wasn't a matter of weight, it was that I should be able to do it on my own. There are plenty of people that fail with a lapband, and plenty of people that succeed. Even if the average loss is 50%, I am absolutely sure it is much, much higher for those who are compliant and really work the program, do the exercise and work on changing the mindset that got them there in the first place. You get out of it what you put into it.

I had the same issue a few weeks out from banding. I was able to take something over the counter to combat it. It was because of dietary changes but went away.

I eat lettuce everyday and I am tightly restricted. I chop it up finely and chew it well. I had heard before banding that lettuce can get stuck but I have never known it to happen.

What a stunningly beautiful picture . . . and I love the background. I am so happy you are feeling so well at 3 years out. Thank you so much for sharing your story . . . and it was so nice to see how you were feeling at 1 year and 2 years out as well. Congratulations.

wvgal33, It sounds like you have given it a lot of thought . . . and that is an important step. As far as choosing between banding or R&Y, what are your eating habits like in general? Do you eat three meals primarily and just have a tendency to overeat, do you graze throughout the day, do you eat minimally through the day and find that after dinner is the time for eating overload, etc. Do you tend to eat sweet things? What makes up your diet in general on the best days and worst days? As far as choosing options, I have the Realize band and am very happy with my choice. I think you will find both successes and failures with either band. I asked two different doctors for advice on choosing between the two, and they could never give me a definitive answer that one was truly better than the other. Has anyone found any good statistics comparing the two, side-by-side?

Congratulations!!!! Don't be too nervous with surgery, it is over faster than you think.

Added Georgia Girl back in, now the list is really current. _____Name______Start Weight____Current Weight____Goal________Lbs lost *****:cool2:************************:tt2:************:thumbup:**********:w00t:*** ahsem2bme..........244............244............225............0 aJoneen............223............223............213............0 Aphrodite1984......208............208............190............0 Caramia71..........208............208............195............0 georgiagirl........245............245............230............0 HeatherO...........155............155............140............0 Jazzyywan..........322............255............190............0 Jodi_620...........196............196............177............0 Leslie2Lose........224............224............209............0 livn4thm...........235............235............210............0 Long2bthin.........248............248............230............0 Luu2008............203............203............183............0 mominlv13..........299.8..........299.8..........275............0 Tess...............304............304............280............0

Leslie, I think we were doing the same thing at the same time, but our information is the same only I have current weight following start weight.

Great idea RedTulips!!! I made the change and everyone is included below. _____Name______Start Weight____Current Weight____Goal________Lbs lost *****:cool2:************************:tt2:************:thumbup:*********:w00t:**** ahsem2bme..........244............244............225............0 aJoneen............223............223............213............0 Aphrodite1984......208............208............190............0 Caramia71..........208............208............195............0 HeatherO...........155............155............140............0 Jazzyywan..........322............255............190............0 Jodi_620...........196............196............177............0 Leslie2Lose........224............224............209............0 livn4thm...........235............235............210............0 Long2bthin.........248............248............230............0 Luu2008............203............203............183............0 mominlv13..........299.8..........299.8..........275............0 Tess...............304............304............280............0

Is it 10% of your entire body weight or just your excess weight? What is your current weight and height? There are definitely ways to lose. You can start by just changing the types of foods you eat. Focus on lean Proteins, tons of veggies, stay away from too many starchy vegetables like potatoes, rice, sweets, etc. Also if you are not already drinking sugar free beverages, that might help. Drinking tons of Water makes a huge difference as well. Exercise, even if it is only a walk around the block, can also make a huge impact.

Don't worry . . . give it a little time and it won't bother you as much. It is different for all of us, some of us have to work our buts off all day long just to be normal, others can never workout, eat junkfood all day long and stay thin as a string bean.

I just learned the answer to this was because of risk of blood clots. My doctor not only did not ask me to go off the pill, but said I needed it even more because I don't want to get pregnant too quickly after banding. I stayed on it because I did not know any better about blood clots. Knowing more now and considering my age is not so far from 35, I would do things a little differently if I had to do it again. Be really careful for those of you who take a break from the pill. Many people became pregnant immediately or within a few months after banding. Losing weight seems to raise fertility. If you read the pregnancy threads, you will definitely find that some people had to put weight loss on hold until post pregnancy due to timing.

It sounds like you are making a good choice :0). I am surprised that smoking makes your stomach feel neutral. Most people seem to be ravenously hungry afterwards. I didn't realize it worked that way.

Any of these options can help you to make goals, but not one of them does the work on its own without your assistance. Even if you lose some weight initially, if you don't make any attempt to change your eating habits, you can regain the weight. You mention in the post above that you didn't really try to lose weight . . . and this is the last stage before you take the ultimate step and seek a surgical solution. Are you really ready to make the plunge? The first thing you might want to consider is analyzing why you did not make an attempt to lose the weight. Is it because you don't have faith in yourself? Is it because you are scared of the surgery and might be sabotaging yourself? Is it because you did not consider this stage of pre-op dieting important? Is it because you feel that you wont be able to eat again in the same way post-op so you want to take advantage of your final days beforehand? Answering these questions to yourself fully and truthfully can help you decide if you are really ready to make a go of this and be successful. I think it would be helpful at this stage to seek some counseling (with someone specializing in weight related issues) and begin working on personal reflection on what this change really will entail for you. If you want success, you have to be ready to put in the effort as well. It really isn't an easy road . . . of course everyone says that and it has become a cliche . . . but for those of us who have lived it, we know that it is very true. For almost every one of us, the changes to our anatomy are the smallest part of ourselves that have changed, most of the change happens in our head. Success can definitely be yours, you just have to be ready to grab it.

GGGGGOOOOOOOAAAAAALLLLLLLL!!!!!!!! :crying::Banane25::cursing::crying::crying::Banane25::huh2::huh2::crying: Name_________Start Weight ____Goal____ Lbs lost____Current Weight *****:cool2:********** **********:thumbup:******:tt2:**********:w00t:***** aJoneen............230.........220.......7.......... Bea1128............220.........199.......5.......... Babs0101...........185.........170.......0.......... blesdbyonmzur......159.........148.......4.......... BTTRFLI1432........221.........210.......6.......... Bunkey1965.........212.........195.......16.........194:thumbup: Chocolate_Snaps....254.........240.......6.......... Darr5380...........167.........155.......3.......... Epm316.............209.........199.......7..........202 erikadawn..........199.........175.......0.......... FloridaGirl........235.........215.......0.......... HeatherO...........172.........155.......17.........155:thumbup: Heft_Bandit........261.........245.......6..........255 JennyPoo...........169.........159.......5.......... KarenG.............160.........158.......6.......... KathyStrick........305.........290.......0.......... Lapbandfan.........258.........230.......2.......... Leslie2Lose........224.........209.......0..........224 LessNLess..........144.5.......140.......0.......... LilMissBand-Aid....234.4.......225.......6.2........ Lunabeane..........209.........200.......11......... Luu2008............219.........189.......14......... Luv2Laugh..........232.........212.......0.......... luvinke............206.........190.......0.......... mamato3............199.........184.......11..........188 mcgreen............189.........175.......0.......... mdgarcia31665......225.........200.......0.......... melboyd............266.........256.......14.9.......251.1:thumbup: Missrach...........269.........175.......25.........244 MollyMolly.........192.........182.......2.......... mominlv13..........316.........300.......15.2.......299.8:thumbup: MSnika3............228.........204.......4.......... MyTurn.............250.........240.......7..........243 NANAbanded.........225.........199.......10.........215 Ninja..............204.........189.......5.......... NukeChik...........221.........199.......6.......... Ollie..............242.........210.......0.......... Redtulips..........188.........180.......6.......... Renewedhope........174.........155.......5.......... ronni_NC...........243.........220.......0.......... slgandera..........185.........173.......7.......... StartingOver.......220.........205.......15......... Sunshine2..........187.........170.......10..........177 want_so_bad........170.........155.......0.......... Sades.......(7/16).192.5.......180.......8.6........ Sadie..............220.........199.......6.......... smwww..............189.........179.......0.......... tp78...............212.........195.......7..........

MMMMMM . . . . Kohl'sss. I love Kohl's. :cursing: They have gotten almost all of my post banding business, lol.

I had about 85 pounds to lose to put me at the top of the "normal" bmi range. I lost 20-25 pounds in the first month or so. However, I followed the doctors instructions for post-op to a T while still keeping Protein high, calories and fat low. My loss was not typical early on for a lower BMI loser. It varies so much from person to person. My doctor warned me that I shouldn't really expect to lose much if at all during post-op before any fills. She told me that some people even gain at this point . . . but I think she was just gearing me up to prevent dissapointment if this was the case. Everything that I have read indicates 1-2 pounds weekly is the overall average. But an average is only an average . . . meaning that there will be plenty of people that gain and plenty that lose to offset each other. I think you have some personal control regarding the level of success you have at this stage.

Good luck with going to the doctor. A very slight unfill may just do the trick for you. You are doing wonderful at minus 47 at 5 months out. I didn't exercise at first either, but now I couldn't live without it. It only takes about two weeks to start a habit, and it relieves so much stress not to mention how good I feel afterward. It has also kept my weight loss going strong and steady after the initial honeymoon period . . . and I am almost at goal at 7 months out. I highly recommend it :0). By the way, I saw your before and in progress banding pictures in the albums and you are looking absolutely beautiful :0).

I am a self pay patient and I paid an initial $300 transfer fee (banded in Mexico) and every fill is $50 a pop.

Leslie said it all . . . fat around the stomach diminishes and you get small fills to make up for it. It is also true that everyone is different. As you get closer to goal, you have less and less fat to lose around your stomach and it stabilizes. Once people have met goal, most people need little more than a checkup/tweak yearly. My body is pear shaped. I never carried so much weight in my abdomen as in my rear and thighs (they are also the very last places where the fat is dissappearing as well). I think I was lucky in that I must not have had very much fat around my stomach. I have only had two fills, the first one did almost nothing much to even talk about, the second was super restriction from day one until now. That was four months ago and this fill is still working strong for me. During these four months I lost 41% of my excess weight but it has not affected my fill level at all. I am beginning to think I may never need another fill, or if so, it will be only the tiniest of tweaks around final goal.