ThinknHealthy

The pre-surgery liquid diet is to shrink the liver to give surgeon more room to move around. You'll also lose some weight, or should. I start my pre-surgery diet in a few days.

Tracyde730, I'm having the same question but my situation is different. Like you I was banded in 2008 and am needing a revision because of numerous complications. I did loose a lot of weight but gained more than half back. About 3 years ago I started getting heartburn and GERD. I bought a bed that I could elevate. I adjusted my diet. I took PPI medication. It wasn't until I had an EGD that I was diagnosed with Barrett's Esophagus. The Doctor said that the Lapband needed to be adjusted as he could see food stuck in the pouch (that after fasting for the test). The next week I went to my Lapband doctor and had all the restriction removed and had immediate results. A year later now I still have no heartburn or reflux unless I eat something stupid too close to bed time. I really want to get the SLEEVE but I do have concerns about the potential GERD. My new surgeon says it should not be a problem as I'm not currently experiencing symptoms. He says it was the Lapband that caused the problem. I can understand that. But then again I'm reading so many saying that the SLEEVE makes it worse. I just have a problem with accepting the idea of a BYPASS for some reason so I'm still leaning toward the SLEEVE. It is a puzzlement.

Wow. I haven't been on this forum since it was "Lapbandtalk.com" I've had my lapband since June 2008. Went from 265 to 175 and then gradually gained and settled in at 240 for the last couple of years. In 2010 I had reconstructive surgery to remove my panis (-16 lbs in that surgery alone). My lapband complications include Barrett's esophagus, infections, and finally it has slipped. All Fluid was removed last December. I'm having revision surgery to sleeve next month. A little nervous about it but am resigned to the the fact it has to happen. My skeletal structure cannot bear any weight gain. So this is going to happen. I'm trying to get excited about it and get in the pre-change-in-life mood. So far it's not happening.

Hi there. It's been months since I've been on this site. I'm 52 years old and had a panniculectomy with vertical abdominoplasty on October 5th. There is absolutely nothing to be scared about young lady. You will be feeling some burning pain when you wake up after surgery and just let them know that so that they can adjust your pain meds. Expect to have some sleep issues for a few days. Make sure you have a recliner as I slept in one for 2-3 weeks after surgery. Above all, DO NOT BE IN A HURRY TO HEAL, as that can slow down the process in the long run. Take it easy and follow ALL of your doctor's instructions. Expect you tummy to feel very TIGHT, kind of like a drum would feel if it had nerves. You'll feel like you can't straighten up or you'll bust your stitches. That will loosen up with time. Where the sutures are, you will have no feeling at all. I'm over two months out and I still can't feel the skin there and probably never will. I hear it is similar to those ladies who have had c-sections. You will have drainage tubes and that is the most inconvenient thing but before you know it, they will be gone. WARNING!!! It is very possible that very few of the people you know will even notice that you've done anything. It was amazing to me that this doctor cut off 16 lbs in 4 hours and people didn't even notice. Also, I can still wear most of the clothes I was wearing before the surgery. So, keep your post-surgery expectations realistic and don't expect a dramatic change. Your new body will be there, under the clothes, because you will know the difference. You are starting a new phase of your journey. Although I agree it would be best to wait until after you are finished losing weight, who is to say that you haven't finished. I believe that we'll all find the weight that is best on us. I decided that I had stopped losing weight at a BMI of 32. I'm okay with that and that is why I went ahead and had the surgery. Best thing I ever did. Be strong and get some movies. I have a friend who loaned me 7 seasons of NCIS and I've gone through all of those plus some. It's is nice now to be completely back to my old self. Hope this helps.

Stick with Weight Watchers as long as possible. It will mean the difference between being successful in this period and just waiting for the band to provide assistance. I lost a lot a weight before I had restriction simply because I followed WW. In fact, when I'm using WW tools is the only time I can really lose weight. The band helps but no matter what, you will have to make considerable effort to lose weight, at any restriction. Get ready to work hard. It took me 5 fills before I felt real restriction. Be patient.

Tis the season! Christmas is prone for depression for normal people. Add to that this surgery you have coming up, and you have a perfect storm. My only suggestion is to think beyond all of the stuff. Don't look in the mirror to see who you are, close your eyes and imagine who you will be one year from now. Imagine the changes your life has in store for you. In one year you will potentially lose a signifcant amount of weight. Image wearing clothes next year that you would never have dreamed of wearing before. Imagine going into a store and seeing people that you know but they don't even recognize you. Imagine the physical things you will be able to do, the increased energy you will have. There are so many positive things in store for you. Don't dwell on what you don't have now. Don't worry about what gifts you can't buy people this year. The greatest gift you can give to them is your health. Let them give to you this year, let them give their time, their love, and their support as you heal and begin this journey. You've made a huge step in scheduling this surgery. Looking back, if I had to do it all again. I would do it in a flash. I know that not everyone can post a success story. I never imagined that mine would be anything but successful and that is how it turned out. You can "think" yourself into failure, or you can "determine" yourself into success. The choice is yours. Just take a deep breath and smile. I pray that God fills you with incredible joy and hope for the future. If only you could see the beautiful person you are that will be revealed during this journey.

Elfiepoo. You are right about the simple math concept. In theory, it is completely correct. However, it is not really as simple as that. Exercise provides more benefit than merely "calories out." The act of exercise increases a person's motivation and general sense of positiveness. Those indorphens (sp?) really do exist. When I add exercise to my weekly routine, it makes a huge difference in how I feel about myself, even if the scales don't move. For those who are relatively new at being banded, I would encourage you to add exercise to your routine when you reach that point when you are on a plateau (you will have some of those). Simply taking a walk every day can make a difference.

Thanks for the update. I go for a colonoscopy on Wednesday. I think it may be stress related for me. My sister-in-law (genetically skinny so not banded) said she has had some of the same problems and gave me that idea. She asked me if I also had back pain and I started relating the two. I know my back pain is muscular and stress related. So, we'll see.

I've been experiencing some of the same symptons. Not severe at all but still they concern me. I've had some of these off and on for months after my lapband surgery. In September, I had my gall bladder (gall stones are VERY painful) removed and I thought that solved this intermittent problem too. But recently, the pain in the upper abdomen has returned. My regular doctor has ordered a colonoscopy (I'm 51 so its about time anyway) to rule out any possible polips or diverticulitis. If all that looks normal, and I still have a problem, I'm going to my surgeon to have the lap-band evaluated. I've learned that some pain medication along with the GAS-X helps. It's never been real severe with me, just enough to know that something is not right. Gall stones, that's another story. Ouch!!! Writegirl --- I sure would like an update on how you are doing and what happened.

It is unlikely that you have stretched your pouch. 3 cc's is not that much. My doctor put 3 cc's in my pouch the first fill and then did .5 cc's each fill after. My sweet spot seems to be 6.5 cc's total. Just be patient as your doctors takes this cautious approach to find that sweet spot where you have restriction, but not so much you can't eat comfortably.

GNC has potasium in capsules that you can open up and pour in your drink or shake.

Agnes: Yes, I do Weight Watchers. I find that I am more consistently successful when I am counting my points. Those weeks that I am lazy about doing that are the weeks when I plateau. Go Figure! Anyway, I do WW Online rather than go to meetings. There are a lot of tools there and I am comfortable with the application they have for entering the food eaten. It does not keep track of protein though which is a draw back. It is also not free. They do have an application also for my Blackberry so I can enter food on my phone as I eat it. If you like the group support that WW can provide then going to meetings is a great idea and can be extremely useful (no need to tell them you've been banded, although they are usually okay with that). WW is not for everyone but I strongly believe that keeping track of what you eat makes us accountable for that consumption. It can open our eyes to what is really going on. Also, remember that everyone's journey is different. Your doctor might think you are behind what he feels is average weight loss, however you are not average. Nobody is. We all have our own path to tread here. For me, during the first few months of being banded, I lost weight only because I was strictly following WW. Even though I had no recognizable restriction the weight came off because I followed a plan. When I went off the plan, the weight loss stalled (Holidays 2008). When I got back on the plan after New Years, had a fill, started exercising, etc. the weight started coming off again. That is the path that I took. I am happy and comfortable with my path and where I am now. However, I'm ready for a new kick in the *ss too after coming off gallbladder surgery I haven't got back on the plan yet. I'm ready to get into gear to make sure the new winter wardrobe ($1000+) I just bought will be too big by Spring. Let me know if you need any help.

This is what I suggest -- 1. Keep a journal of ALL that you eat and calculate the number of calories. 2. Keep a journal of ALL your exercise. 3. After a week, review the journal and calculate the number of calories you have eaten and burned. Not knowing what you're eating it is impossible to advise you. You are either either eating too many calories or not enough. Check these links out: Calories Needed: http://www.ehow.com/how_5138_calculate-total-daily.html Food Journal and Calorie Goal: Calorie Counter, Diet Tracking, Food Journal, Nutrition Facts at The Daily Plate Also, consider joining a program like Weight Watchers or something similar. Good luck.

Pre-chewed. I usually go by ounces -- 1 cup = 8 liquid oz.

No disrespect to surgeons intended here but this is common. I have a great surgeon who is very encouraging but I would never ask his advise on losing weight. He is great at poking holes in my belly and fixing what ails me, other than that I pretty much ignore him. When you go to the Doctor again don't take anything he says too seriously, he is obviously an idiot, but probably a great surgeon. I guess we have to take some of the bad with the good. He did his job, now it's your turn. Regarding weight loss at this stage. Don't sweat it. Even at this stage you are still healing and your body is getting used to this strange thing. You probably don't have enough restriction for the band to be working so YOU have to make up the difference. Get yourself on a recognized weight loss program and follow it. This way you can continue to lose weight even if the band is not helping too much yet. As you get more restriction, the band will kick in but by then you've got some momentum going. Good luck!

Well, it's been a while since I've visited this site. I've been very busy with work and life. Things are going as planned as far as weight-loss is concerned so I am very happy. This post is intended as a heads-up for all of us who have lost some significant weight. Nobody told me about this before so I feel it is important to tell you all about it now. Apparently, there is a potential side-effect to losing a lot of weight ... the development of Gall Stones in the Gall Bladder. A few weeks ago, I had a 4-hour period of extreme abdominable pain. It was strong and constant. I did not vomit or have diarhea but it did concern me. It went away as quickly as it came and I pretty much forgot about it, attributing it to some fish I ate the night before, maybe I swallowed a bone or something. A couple of weeks later the same thing happened in the middle of the night, again after eating fish. So, I figured no more fish and I'll be ok. After a routine blood test my doctor showed concern that my liver enzymes where elevated. When I explained that I didn't drink alchohol and described the couple of painful episodes, he ordered an ultrasound which showed numerous gall stones. Doing some research online, I read that the development of gall stones is indeed a side-effect of rapid weight loss. WebMD says that "Crash or "yo-yo" diets can cause the liver to release more cholesterol into the bile, disrupting the normal balance of cholesterol and bile salts. That extra cholesterol can form into crystals, leading to gallstones" Even though I have not been on a crash or yo-yo diet, it did explain the reason that my doctor was not surprised at this development. I've now have had a total of 4 very painful episodes and one mild one. Each one was the painful passing of a gall stone. What is a gall bladder? According to WebMD ... "The gallbladder is a small pouch that sits just under the liver. The gallbladder stores bile produced by the liver. After meals, the gallbladder is empty and flat, like a deflated balloon. Before a meal, the gallbladder may be full of bile and about the size of a small pear. In response to signals, the gallbladder squeezes stored bile into the small intestine through a series of tubes called ducts. Bile helps digest fats, but the gallbladder itself is not essential. Removing the gallbladder in an otherwise healthy individual typically causes no observable problems with health or digestion yet there may be a small risk of diarrhea and fat malabsorption." So, what did the pain feel like? First I felt an almost unbearable hunger pain. One that could not be satisfied because I didn't feel like eating. Panic sets in because you are not sure what is going on. Applying pressure to the area below the right rib cage causes extreme pain. That is where the gall bladder is near your liver. For me, the pain lasts a few hours and then simply goes away when the stone passes. If it happens in the middle of the night, I'm wasted the next day. If it happens during waking hours, I'm okay and return to normal. One night it was so bad I called the EMT. By the time they got there it was over. How to avoid the episode? The nurse told me to eat a very bland low-fat diet. Even then, I've had problems. The answer for me is to have the thing removed. I've contacted my lap-band surgeon who also performs gall bladder surgery and will visit with him tomorrow. I'm looking forward to having this surgery to solve this problem. So, please be aware of this potential problem and don't panic or assume it is related to the lap-band. Contact you doctor immediately if you experience any kind of extreme abdominable pain as that might be a problem than can be solved. It is my understanding that it is a simple laproscopic surgery that is usually done as an out-patient procedure. This is similar to what most of us have already done with our lap-band surgery. They basically go in there, grab a hold of it and pull it out, stones and all. Problem solved.

It could totally be gall stones. Whatever it is, I hope it gets better soon for you. Gallstones are very painful and can cause other problems so its best to get it diagnosed as soon as possible. Good luck. I'm feeling great now. Finally starting to lose weight again. The doc took 2 cc out during my surgery and put it back in plus some more at my 2 wk appt. Now I'm very tight. More important, all my abdominable pain is gone. I'm very happy.

Your body is not only in starvation mode, it is in shock. Give your body some time to adjust and the swelling to go down before you make an assessment. The goal in the first few weeks is to heal and follow the post-op rules. This may not result in a loss of weight because of the restricted diet. The restriction you feel now is because of swelling. When the swelling subsides, the hunger will return and you will be in the band hell zone. After your first adjustment, or your second, or your fifth, you'll start to feel the restriction from the band. As your diet changes and you increase the calories per day, your metabolism will increase and you will burn more fat. In order to maintain your muscle mass, it is important to consume adequate Protein and to exercise. Generally, you should aim for about 1200 calories and exercising 30 minutes a day 3-4 days a week. However, for me, I generally eat more than that and exercise more than that too so it is kind of an individual thing. That's my opinion anyway. Most important is to be patient right now and follow your rules. You should do fine.

UPDATE: I had my surgery last Thursday. FINALLY!!!. Everything went well except my blood pressure and pulse went down really low during surgery and again in the recovery room. After that I felt great. Only had one dose of pain meds to get me the 70 miles home then after that just Tylenol. Was back at work fulltime on Monday. Still a little sore but only when I think about it. Weird thing is that now I feel I have no restriction in my lap-band. Also, I had thought that taking the gallbladder out would bring me down in weight, but actually I gained like 5 lbs in one day. Very strange. I guess my body needs to adjust to it not being there. I wonder when I will feel restriction again.

Just be patient. Set some mini goals along the way. When you find the right restriction, the weight will begin to come off more quickly.

Suz, Relax. Every doctor is different. However, do not forget that you are the one paying the bill. If I were you, I would insist on a nutrition consult before the surgery. There are definite rules that you need to be aware of before you have your surgery, especially for the first few weeks after surgery. Regarding the pills, you may have problems with many pills after surgery until the swelling goes down. I did invest in chewable, or powdered versions, or capsules that I could bust open and pour in my Protein shakes. Once the initial swelling goes down, you might be able to swallow your pills. Rule of thumb is that if it won't fit in through a drinking straw, the pill is too big.

Congratulations on reaching your goal weight. You are an inspiration to all of us who are still on this journey. I love that you exercise like crazy. That alone should keep you where you want to be. Continue to set some mini goals and adjust you band accordingly to meet them. The goals could even be to maintain your weight through the holidays. You might also try setting some fitness goals, like running a 5k or reaching a weight lifting target. Good luck and keep up the good work. I continue to be inspired by the success of the people on this board.

I was looking at my chart today. It's been 16 weeks and 20 lbs since I stepped into Onederland. Now at 179 lbs I remember how it did feel. For me it was great. But, remember that there may be more going on that is affecting how you are feeling. Afterall, I'm assuming you are a woman? We do have our yucky moments now don't we??? Give youself a few days for it to sink in. BTW. Don't expect your body to look different to you. I was talking to someone yesterday about that. When I look in the mirror what I see is pretty much the same thing I saw 86 lbs ago. I still have the same rolls, the same "issues" I had but they are just smaller and fit in different clothes. Try to look for the little changes like being able to feel a bone you forgot was there. Does your chair seem more roomy now? Do you use as much of the seatbelt as you used to? What are others saying to you? Surely they are noticing. I think they see more clearly than we do sometimes. Listen to them. At church yesterday I got so many comments on how wonderful I looked. I had seen these same people last week. They didn't gush over me then. What was the difference? I had got a hair cut is all I can think of. It really is the little things. Things that we can't really even see.

I had to go to the emergency room one day (hit my head on the ice) and the triage (sp) nurse who got my information had been banded. She said she got it years ago before it was "adjustable". Anyway, her strategy was to basically graze all day. She didn't have "meals" but simply snacked during her shift. It worked for her and I can see how you can structure your Snacks so that you always have something healthy. As far as Protein is concerned, you might invest in some protein bars. I usually have one a day between lunch and dinner because there are so many hours between the two meals. Other than that, here are my suggestions to take to work with you. 1. sliced apples (in a little lemon juice so they won't brown), bananas, or other seasonal fruit. 2. 100-calorie snack bags (purchased or portioned yourself) of your choice 3. fruit and/or applesauce cups 4. fat-free yogurt 5. prepared Protein shakes 6. protein bars 7. sandwich already cut in small pieces so you can take a little and leave the rest in the fridge For exercise, don't worry about the gym. Get out and walk. It's free and you can do it whenever. You don't have to do it all at one time either. 10 minutes here are there is better than nothing. You'll have this band for a long time. You will come up with a strategy that works for you. When you do, please share it with others who will benefit from your wise advice.

I made my goal too. Originally, my goal was 180, then I got over-ambitious and changed it to 175. Then I got realistic and changed it back to 180. Well, I'm at 179!!! and I still have a week to go. Who knows, if it's a good week, maybe I will reach my ambitious goal!! Either way, I'm very happy. Hope everyone else is marching on down the path and reaching all their mini goals along the way. Paula