Katja

Neal, You look great. I am so happy for you! I will get my tt in September and cannot wait! My hang has been a real bother for over twenty years! Thanks for putting the pics up. I know there is a bit of pain at first, but when I see how well you look, I know it will be well worth it! Katja :thumbup:

Hi! Yesterday I had an amazing NSV! For a"normal" person - not a big deal, but but many of us? You be the judge! After 20 years of not even thinking of trying, I actually got in and took my first bath! It was heavenly! I know, this is not a life altering experience... or is it? I think so! :biggrin2::biggrin2::biggrin2: Katja

Hi Josh! First CONGRATS on your lap band surgery. You will love having the band! Your concerns are typical for your stage of the process. First, the rapid weight loss is terrific. And yes, it's fast but great! You being a guy, 19 years old and on liquids are all contributing to your fast loss. As to being hungry, I'm afraid that happens to all of us. Your tummy is healing fast and the swelling is going down from the trauma of the surgery. The band has no fill in it yet, so that's why you're starving. Make sure you keep sipping your Water throughout the day... As for the burps, they are a bit worrisome at first. That they hurt? I never had that. You might want to call your doc and have him reassure you that it's ok. I get a bit of a gurgling noise now that I have really good restriction. Sometimes, I think we trade one noise for another just to keep this all interesting! LOL Make sure to check the forums, they contain a lot of information about the experiences of us all. There are no dumb questions. We all have been uncertain from time to time if things are going normal. I wish you lots of luck on your journey to a healthier you! Keep in touch and let me know how you are doing. Katja

Running is a wonderful way to build muscle, tone the body, build stamina and lose weight. Very true, but not a realistic 'exercise' for very overweight people. With a BMI of 35, I'm sure it was not that difficult to get back to it. I am happy for you that this works so well for you. For the rest of us, myself, and many others we would be happy if we could walk to the end of the driveway without huffing and puffing. That's how is was for me, just a few years ago with my BMI 54. Happily, I can say today, that I can ride my stationary bike 10 miles, 4-5 days a week. I no longer avoid the stairs, or try to get the closest parking spots anymore. With the band and lots of exercise, my BMI is now 38.7. I actually enjoy the exercise. And that is something I never thought I would say in my lifetime! Maybe I will be able to start running soon. That would be amazing! I can't remember the last time I really ran.... It's been 40+ years! My plans are to do a 5k walk next spring. Who knows, maybe I will be able to switch to the 1/2 marathon by that time and not finish last!

Jorge, I am so happy for you that you had the courage to call and get that fill appointment! BRAVO! You went through nothing strange, we all have been there. Now you have to make wise foods choices and you will lose weight very quickly. It will probably take a couple fills for you not to have a lot of hunger often. But that day will come! Don't get discouraged when the loss starts to slow down. That's the signal that you need another fill. If an appointment isn't scheduled already, be sure to make one asap. Ask your doc how often you can get new fills. You want to keep the steam going... Keep in touch. I will rejoice your every pound lost with you! Katja

Laurinda, My hubby was falling into that trap too. He's already overweight and surely doesn't need anymore! Good that you guys caught it early. Throwing away a little food won't send us to hades. Our parents had it rough and didn't waste even a mouthful ..... and look where it got us all! Katja

My road to becoming more active has been filled with many bumps. 2 years pre-band, I started walking. It was great, slowly built up stamina and speed. Then I got carried away, trying to do more, faster, etc. That was a big mistake. I was 306 pounds. What I did was too much for this body too soon. I wound up tearing my achilles tendon. OUCH! I could not walk for over a year without pain. While recovering from that, I walked much slower and easier whenever I could, but a few days later, big pain again. I wanted to lose this weight so bad that I didn't listen to my body and suffered needlessly. In that time I also got a piece of glass in my heel and to top it off, I dropped a huge flower pot on my foot and broke a toe! Talk about feeling like I was doomed to not losing the weight and getting healthier. But I managed to work off 30 pounds! Was it worth it? Fast forward a year later. Went and saw the surgeon. 5 days later got banded! Now this is awesome! After the 6 weeks of healing, I started riding a stationary bike at home. 5 minutes was all my butt could handle on that seat! But, this time much wiser and more patient (I don't know how), I kept getting on that bike 5 out of 7 days. 5 minutes only. After 2 weeks, I rode 10 minutes. Slowly my butt got tougher... Now 10 months of bike riding, I am up to 5x per week, doing 10 miles under 40 minutes and a resistance level of 6 out of 10! This is utterly amazing to me! My butt still complains, but not nearly as loud. LOL My son teases me that I am going to become a Jill-Jock. I think he may be right! If I miss more than 3 days in a row, I feel uneasy, and not from guilt. My body has come to expect the exercise. It needs it now! Believe me, this is one story I never, ever thought I would tell in my lifetime. All these years of being on the sidelines.... Next year, I will do a 5k walk. I don't want to be first across the finish line, but I am sure that I won't be the last one either! Good luck in your journey to becoming healthier! It does take work and a lot of sweat. But, oh is it worth it! Katja

Congrats Long2bThin! :thumbup::thumbup: It is amazing how much of a boost these non-scale victories give us. Each and everyone I have makes me euphoric! I started out having to lose much more than you, but I am now getting close to 'normal store' sizes. It is so exciting and a bit scary. I'm afraid I'll become a shopaholic! To go into just about any store and find something that will fit AND look good on me - WOW! Keep up the good work! Katja

food For Thought: Isn't it better to 'waste' a little money now, than to pay for expensive prescriptions later for all those meds you would need if you didn't get banded? Tell them you have a stomach condition and can only eat a 1/2 portion. Most better restaurants will accommodate you. Then you'll still have too much, but you can better resist. I like to push my portion to one side of the plate. No taking any more. It's hard, but you'll learn how to do it. Especially when your band is adjusted properly. You won't want to risk feeling ill! Good luck on your journey to a healthier you! Hang in there! Katja

I think of all the things that we bandsters have to deal with, head hunger, followed by patience, is the hardest part of this journey to becoming healthier. We tie everything into food, - happy, sad, stress, boredom. We seldom get together with friends or family without food playing a major role in those activities. No wonder we always have head hunger! I have been banded 11 months now. It has taken me all this time to finally reach my sweet spot last week with fill # 5. I have lost slowly and it has been very frustrating at times, but I am losing. Head hunger, and real hunger have been a big problem for me as my band was not adjusted properly until now. This past week has been wonderful! I am no longer body hungry. The band is finally doing the job it was meant to do. I have had a few bouts of head hunger, but I am amazed at how few and how weak the bouts have been. So I guess you can really say that when properly adjusted, the band helps you there too. I know I have a lot more work to do in sorting out my old habits and discovering what exactly triggers those head hunger episodes. I heard once that someone said "we adults use food to soothe." I agree. "We have replaced the pacifiers we used as infants with food". We need to discover why we need this pacification, and how we can use non-destructive means to soothe us when necessary. I believe head hunger will disappear over a long time, but as any habit, it will need a lot of commitment, patience and work. Good luck to you on your journey to a healthier you! You can do it! Katja

I guess the best way for me to describe restriction is a pressure-like feeling. You get this after eating foods that don't slide through the band easily. Some foods will fill the pouch 'faster' than others. The reason you have to chew, chew and chew is so that these foods become small enough to pass thru the band. Because the pouch is so small, it takes little to fill it. The band slows down the speed in which the food empties into the large part of the stomach. It being just a few days after my last fill, I do feel a bit of pressure most of the day. That's because when you get a fill, it causes a slight trauma to the stomach, causing a little bit of swelling. That's why many feel looser after a few days (when the swelling goes down) and why the docs recommend having liquids again for those couple of days. You don't want to stress the tummy any more at this point. I'm sorry to hear that you had other medical problems that have made being a bandster more difficult. Now that you're better, you can get back onboard and get to your goal! From my experience, I would recommend small fills, often, until you get to that sweet spot - tight enough to not be hungry sooner than 4-5 hours, and able to eat very small portions and get satisfied quickly, but loose enough that you don't get sick. It's a tricky place to find, often after much experimentation. I hope I have answered your questions and you can understand my answers. We can help each other so much, exchanging info and tips, but some things you just have to do yourself find the right answer for you. It has been said many times in here and I'll say it again: "We all are doing the same thing, getting banded, but our experiences are so very individual". Good Luck on your journey to a healthier you! Katja

I had to come back and share with you my good news. I went for fill #5 on Tuesday. I now have great restriction! I am eating very little and have NO hunger, AND, I've lost 2.5 pounds since then! The point I want to make is don't give up! It takes time to get to that famous "Sweet Spot" - where you have great restriction and little hunger. Come join us in the chat room. You'll learn a lot of tips, meet some great people who will be your friends i no time. We support each other so much! Good Luck! :thumbup: Katja