lianna

I had 1cc on first fill and went to 1.5ccs at 2nd fill. I was wide open when at 1cc and was having problems with even mushies at 1.5. It is truly individual to your body I guess. I unfilled to 1.3. Must be a tricky thing getting it just right for me, so I prefer the smaller increments. If they had put a full cc in on my second fill I would've been choking on my own spit no doubt.

I am mostly okay, but a little sad, to find myself a slow loser. I am almost 3 months out (the 27th) and have lost 16 lbs. Seven of that in the first month (week actually) on liquids. I need another fill (currently at 1.3ccs), but still.......I am insulin resistant and do take Actos, but I avoid bread (although it goes down easy) and never eat sweets. It is discouraging to see others losing 30-40 lbs in 3 months. I am realistic in the fact that I lose slowly compared to others, I always have. But I feel like I am spinning the wheels and getting nowhere. It is a little disheartning and discouraging. I had a banana for breakfast with a protein drink, a beef and broccoli Lean Cuisine for lunch, a handful of almonds for a snack. I had 3 glasses of wine instead of dinner, dont crucify me ..........out with friends, I still have a great fun life and that was my choice. What can I tweak? I hate the Actos, gained 10 lbs the first month on it. Is that a change I can make? I just started exercising, weights and walking or bike for 30 min. Do I just need another fill? I am losing hope here.

I'm an Unjury fan also. I order it off their site.

Refried beans with lowfat cheese and salsa.....yum!!!!!

okay..........NSV's which are not as great as seeing the scales move. waist is 3 inches smaller, pants too big, bra too loose, shoess arent tight.... I want lbs lost dammit,, lol!!!!!!! had to edit to add... i drink nothing but Water or tea, have a zero sweet tooth, i DEFINITLY need a fill... is my metabolism whacked or am I messing up on something I am not seeing? Is it really about the fill level? Even on a regular diet prebanding I did this good, I would think it was my impatience but........HELLO!!!!!!!......16 lbs is slow.

Doesnt most of it depend on the amount of weight lost? Hereditary factors, pre-weightloss weight highs, and individual characteristics all play a role. However, how much the skin is stretched pre-weightloss and age/genetics will determine the sag factor.

1. Port site soreness lasts for several weeks or months on average, it is normal. 2. I had liquids for several days and then fuller liquids....ie: pureed Soups, Protein Drinks. I had mushies for a full week and progressed to solids only by 4 weeks.... most doctors fill at 4-6 weeks and you must be back on solids before a fill. 3. I still drink Water with no problems. Water SHOULD flow through, even in bigger sips, with no issues.

I have one of the Magic Bullets and absolutely love it. You mix right in the cup you drink out of so there is nothing to wash but the cup. It is fast and works great, definitley worth the initial cost. It was also handy for pureeing soups. I got mine off eBay, but you can pick one up at Walmart for about $40. I spent $20 on one of the hand blenders and it wont fit into any of my glasses or coffee cups because the mixing end is larger than a standard glass. Someone mentioned the Unjury protien drinks, IMO they are the best ones out there. They only have 80 calories, 0 carbs, and a nice whopping 20 g protien. They make an unflavored one that can be mixed with Crystal Light or even stirred into soups. The DaVinci syrups are also excellent, I like to add some sugar-free Hazelnut or Amaretto to the canned drinks and it really makes them taste good.

Excellent!

Wow, you dont have a goal weight? I thought you had it all figured out......let us know,,,,

!!!!!!cheers!!!!!!

Some of the unfortate ones are very vocal, but every post or response may NOT pertain to them........somehow they make it seem so,,,,"my erosion, my crisis, horror horror",but that is not the representaive of the actual banded world..most bandsters have great experiences in Mexico with their surgeon. Do some research..

1/3/06 214 lbs 1/9/06 214 lbs havent lost one single pound.. NSV....Took my measurements and I have lost 3 inches in my waist since banding!!!! Also either walked, rode recumbent, or worked out EVERY day!

I have paid $200 for 2 fills and $100 for an unfill.....so $300.

You really dont need much. I took 3 little sleeveless gowns. I was glad to have a fresh one after my shower because I had that funky antiseptic smell from all the antibiotics or something. I took sleeveless gowns which worked out well for access to the IV. Some slippers, you will be walking the halls postop. Take some comfy sweats or a jogging suit for when you are released and for the trip home. I was also glad I had a packed a pair of the slip on tenny shoes. The previous poster suggested leaving jewelry at home, that is a great idea since you cant wear it anyway. My husband walked around with thousands of dollars worth of rings in his jeans pocket for 2 days, lol.

I am the opposite. It has not made me stronger. I was thin until my 20's, hitting 140 at 23 and gaining steadly upward every year since. In comparison to how I felt about myself/life thinner, I am not quite as confident. My self-esteem is not as high. I dont feel as attractive. I dont feel as energetic as I could and should. That all hurts something inside of me. Dont get me wrong, I am a happy, confident, and still attractive person....I just dont feel it 100% and havent for some time. I still had all those qualities in droves at 150, 160 and even 170lbs. I always felt like "I am still ME, just a little bigger"........... Then somewhere in this weight gain I started feeling like I wasn't ME anymore. Pictures downright freak me out, I think "how did I let this happen to myself". It is a little scary how much our outer appearance affects not only how others see us, but how we see ourselves.

Unless they were putting them in my I.V I never took pain meds. I was very uncomfortable with the gas pains but that just motivated to get up and walk some. I was sore, but not in real pain.

Did your nutritionist give you a list of foods for this stage? My guideline for mushies was that they should be the consistency of babyfood. Your stomach shouldn't have to do much churning for digestion, and mushies are just the next step in working your way back to softer then more solid foods. Mushies should be things like mashed potatos, yogurt, oatmeal, refried beans. I think the toast was too much too soon, heck scrambled eggs and toast is a regular breakfast, lol. I'm sure you didn't do any damage, but anytime you PB you need to have liquids for the next meal or two.....so take it easy today!

The second tier, mushies, requires everything be the consistency of baby food, nothing you really need to chew up to get down. It sounds like the crepes with peanut butter and honey were too thick and solid to be eating at this stage. I am not clear whether they just got stuck and finally forced their way through, or did they come back up? Since you couldnt swallow them easily/at all, it probably irritated the stoma and you may just be dealing with some swelling now. One of the most important bandster rules is that when something like that happens you need to have nothing but liquid at the next meal to let any irritation or swelling go away. Hope you are feeling better now.

I get numbed. The whole fill is so fast I dont know if I would be bothered even if he didn't, but glad he does anyway.

Here is one explanation I have heard. When a fat cell is forced to empty its fat stores it will fill temporarily with water. It acts as kind of a reserve mechanism for the cell, holding its place and waiting for somemore fat to be shuttled in to store. If the fat cell is not needed for storage again it will finally empty. When these cells empty it causes them to shrink resulting in the loss of inches without the loss of much weight. This was an explanation for why a person can lose 3-4 lbs one week and nothing the next week or two, yet still continue to see differences in measurements. I have no clue if this is an accurate explanation or not, but it stuck with me because it made some sense.

4-6 weeks and it is painless. I get a teenytiny numbing shot first, and dont feel a thing.

Yep, the port site was the only place that DID hurt for the first few weeks. It felt like I had a very bad pulled muscle. It is normal.

That time of month causes me to tighten up also. The hot tea really does help. If you've been fine for 6 weeks this is probably tighter restriction from PBing or from the hormonal changes. Give your band a rest with a day of liquids. I also suggest calling your doctor. It is very reassuring to have your doctor tell you that you will be fine, or that you actually do need an unfill.

4 lbs in the past week is awesome!!!! Hop along! (Now I KNOW I need to start exercising, it seems to make such a difference.)