wiggygiggy

First and foremost - you are doing great! Stop beating yourself up already. You haven't had a fill yet - then you'll start to feel the restriction. Relax already

I'm 5'7" so according to the charts I should lose another 45-50 pds. Doc says another 30, but I would be happy with 20. I weighed 170 about 10 yrs ago and felt & looked good. Yes, you are probably hitting the nail on the head - I think my body is happy with where I am at, but I'm trying to convince it that it will be even happier -20-30 pds more! I've been eating like a bandster for nearly 3 yrs. I just keep reminding myself what my surgeon told me prior to surgery and that is that lapband is a slow weightloss - it can take up to 5 yrs until we reach a place where we won't lose anymore. I have lost more than my surgeon anticipated that I would (she said 50 pds was the norm) so I'm elated to have proved her wrong. Slow and steady and I'll keep the weight off for life. I don't want to be one of those that loses all the weight quickly, but puts 1/2 of it back on! :eek:

Plateau's suck! I've been the same for almost 5 months now. I thought I needed more of a fill, but nope, that wasn't it. I need to just be patient and it will come off. Its my body fighting to hold on to every last ounce of fat I have left I guess. :mad2:

I was banded in May of 06 and am still getting filled. Its a lifelong commitment because the fluid doesn't stay in there forever.

According to the Dr's, its different for everyone. So its very difficult to find that sweet spot for us. It takes time and alot of patience! I was banded in May of 06, had my first fill at 4.5 cc's. Nothing, then 6.5 cc's. Nothing. Then I went in again to get alittle more and apparently the Dr. didn't remove all the liquid and over filled me! NOT FUN! I couldn't swallow my saliva without pbing. I lost 9 pds in 2 days. I went back in and they removed everything. Back to square one and this was over the holidays. Talk about depressing? So after 6 weeks of nothing I only gained back 4 pds so I wasn't too upset. Started back at 5. cc's, then 6.8, etc. I am currently at 8.6 and I feel restriction most of the time. Mostly in the mornings until mid-afternoon. Last month I went in for alittle more Fluid and the Dr. said as long as I was losing he wasn't going to put any more in right now.

I would take it easy today and make sure you chew thoroughly and take your time. I know its not fun to pb and hate when that happens, but most of the time its because I didn't chew well enough and/or ate too fast. Another thing I can't do is lay down shortly after I have eaten anything! This weekend I had had a piece of licorice and then went to lay down to read. About 15 min. later I was pbing and ended up throwing up the licorice. That was awful. Ick!

Wow Ceredad that is exciting! Thanks for letting us know. Keep us posted.

You might want to mention this to your Dr. My mom (who isn't banded) has experienced this too and she has a hiatial hernia and will be getting treatment for that.

Thats good to know - thanks for the advice!

How much can you eat? I am surprised at how little I can eat now. I don't dare test it either or I'll be pbing. Mornings are tighter than evenings are for me though so I've just been doing a protein shake. I am just tickled to finally be having some restriction - things are finally working after 2+ years being banded!

How is everyone doing? I had higher hopes for myself, but I'm happy with losing 77 pds. They said it would be slow, but at least its steady and staying off.:wink2:

Yes, there is a way to find out if you've stretched it. Have them do a fill using Flora - that way they can see the pouch. Mine is slightly stretching, which the Dr. felt may mean I'm too tight. But I'm not filling any restriction either so go figure. The good news is you can reverse it. Check out this website. Surgical Weight Loss 5 Day Pouch Test

I went in for my last fill 3 weeks ago. I"m at 8.4 now in my VG band. I am losing, but its SUPER slow and I'm getting so discouraged by it. I knew it would be a slow process but this is ridiculous! :wink2: I need something to kick it into geer and start losing faster. Does anyone know of something that will do this for me? At my last fill the Doc was afraid that I would be too tight and didn't want to fill me, but he did because I hadn't had a fill in 6 months. He wants me back in a month to make sure my pouch isn't stretching. Well if it is I wouldn't feel it. I have no restriction. I have been very good, eating just a couple bites at each meal. On a different note, if you ever have the opportunity to have your fills with flora, go for it. It is so cool to see your pouch, port, etc. I have been walking 2 miles, 3 times a week sometimes more. I am happy with the weight I am at, but would LOVE to lose more and especially would love to get into ONEderland! Sooooo close!

Probably both! I am scheduled for another fill and a visit with the dietician on May 6th. I started exercising again last week - had to get out of those winter blahs!!

Congrats! I've been hovering at 207 for 5 months. I can't get it to move and its so frustrating!

There is a new support group starting in Mora, MN at the Allina Hospital. Meetings are every other Monday evening at 7:00 pm. Tonight it the first one. They will have a scale for us to weigh if we want. The scale will measure water, muscle, bone, each arm and leg too if we want. They are also going to have a healthy snack available if we want. Tonight's topic is Getting back on Track. Hope to meet you there!:clap2:

I am loving my band. Never before have I been able to lose weight and KEEP it off! Thats the greatest thing! I'm at -70 pds now, down to 210. I feel SO much better. I'm thinking that i need to cut back on my BP meds cause i'm having lite headedness - have a call in to the dr to see about that. Anyway - thats much an update. :bounce:

I am loving my band. Never before have I been able to lose weight and KEEP it off! Thats the greatest thing! I'm at -70 pds now, down to 210. I feel SO much better. I'm thinking that i need to cut back on my BP meds cause i'm having lite headedness - have a call in to the dr to see about that. Anyway - thats much an update. :bounce:

Wow am I ever a terrible journal keeper or what! Well, at least I'm here today right? I'm at 218 now. This has been a slow process for me, but I'm still losing so thats a plus for me. I switched to Crosby for my fills this month, due to Ryan leaving Abbott, and the 35W bridge collapsing. They are very conservative up there though so its going to take a while before I feel restriction. Yes, I said that I still have no restriction! 1 yr and 4 months later. So basically the weight I've lost I've done on my own - because the band isn't keeping me from eating! UGH. I am proud of my progress though - and on the downward ride now to reach my goal. 280-218=62 pds lost, 58 pds to go to get to 160. I would even be happy with 170 I think. We'll see when I get there I guess. Will write more later.

Wow am I ever a terrible journal keeper or what! Well, at least I'm here today right? I'm at 218 now. This has been a slow process for me, but I'm still losing so thats a plus for me. I switched to Crosby for my fills this month, due to Ryan leaving Abbott, and the 35W bridge collapsing. They are very conservative up there though so its going to take a while before I feel restriction. Yes, I said that I still have no restriction! 1 yr and 4 months later. So basically the weight I've lost I've done on my own - because the band isn't keeping me from eating! UGH. I am proud of my progress though - and on the downward ride now to reach my goal. 280-218=62 pds lost, 58 pds to go to get to 160. I would even be happy with 170 I think. We'll see when I get there I guess. Will write more later.

Excellent - thanks!!

Nope, no luck.

Thank you - do you happen to have the links for those? TIA

Now that the bridge is out I will need to find another route to get to the Abbott for fills. Anyone familiar with the area and can give me a good suggestion? OR - is there another place to go for fills north of the cities? I hate city driving. TIA

Yes, I had my surgery there in May of 06. They are very good there and I would highly recommend them.