Jodi_620

I wasn't given any instructions to eat more when I was finished losing weight. I just kind of drifted into a place where I was happy with my weight and I no longer needed to get fills or track calories, fat grams or carbs. I stopped losing weight at that point. I eat what I want, three meals a day and an occasional snack here and there, of course I still aim for the healthier choices as much as possible and exercise. I track my weight regularly and if weight sneaks back on I adjust calories and increase exercise as needed. My weight drifts up and down 5 pounds, if it goes beyond the five pounds and I find that I am eating more then I go for a fill. I've needed one fill since I reached maintenance. If you are continuing to lose weight and are losing too much then you probably need a bit of an unfill.

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Me too! My Mom and co-workers kept telling me that while discouraging the surgery. The silly opinions don't end after the surgery either. A big pet peeve for me now started about the time I got down to 150. Some people smaller than me would act all alarmed and tell me I am losing too much weight. It is always presented as though they are concerned for my health. One woman in particular is about 135 pounds and 5'9". She started showing concern about the time I got down to 150 pounds on my 5'4" frame. Maybe she meant well but it offended me. Why is it unhealthy for me 5" shorter to be 150 but her weight is healthy? Now that I weigh even less than her she seems very bothered rather than concerned. It is silly how that scale number means so much to her. I pointed out to her that I am shorter and though I weigh less I still don't and never will look as thin as her. She is a runner, tall with a stick-thin, straight up and down figure-no curves, no breasts, ho hips. Whereas I am short, curvy and have breasts...I'll never look as thin as her, I just don't have the same frame. I am perfectly happy with that so why can't she be?

During the first 6-8 months I didn't spend much time in the green zone before needing another fill. It tooke three fills for the band to really start working then I would lose around 10-20 pounds and need another fill. After 9 months and into maintenace I was finally able to go long periods of time without needing adjustments.

According to my fill doctor that is perfectly normal.

Yeah, my fill doctor did the barium swallow thing at six months then printed a picture of my stomach with the Water passing through for me to keep. I still have it hangning on my fridge...pretty cool! You won't have to go through all that for every fill, will you?

Since the purpose of the Lap Band is to keep you from feeling hungry and knowing that my weight problem was not that I was always hungry but that I just always ate whether I was hungry or not. I was not sure how or even if the lap band would work for me. I would definitely touch on grazing, head hunger, emotional eating etc. what the band does to help with that and what is required from you to deal with it. I sort of resented the fact that at my seminar they made the surgery sound too much like a breeze. The surgeon and some of the patients spoke and they talked about how people come home and feel great and go right back to work. I am by no means a big baby when it comes to pain and I agree that compared to other surgeries, this one was one of the easiest but there was discomfort for a while, nothing I couldn't handle but because they made it sound so easy I was not prepared for it. I did have hernia repair too so I don't know how much discomfort was added by that. Like I said I am not a big baby and the discomfort definitely was worth the results but I just would have preferred that they be more realistic on what to expect so that I could have been better prepared.

LOL, that is for sure!... I have a space heater under my desk as I type this and everyone else thinks I am crazy! But then again it is nice to no longer be embarassed and dripping wet with sweat for the entire summer.

I would never go through a surgery without telling my husband. There are risks with any surgery and financial implications a spouse should be in on such a big decision. What if there are complications? As others have said there is a stringent pre-op and post-op diet. To be successful, your enitire lifestyle needs to change I can't imagine how you could hide that from him. And you will need someone to be there for you during recovery, not just overnight but for a few days. Getting up and down, bending, lifting will all be pretty uncomfortable for a while. The added stress of trying to hide this (and at least in my case, guilt) would have had a negative effect on making it through this process as well. If your husband can't be supportive or honor your wishes to keep this private then that is another issue. But my advise would be to work that issue out before taking the Lap Band on. I was embarrassed too and so afraid that I would put the two of us through this cost and risk and fail at the weightloss. My husband was surprisingly supportive from the time I made the decision through the costs and is quite happy with the results. I credit to my success to having that wonderful support system.

No, it is not ok to move forward. You need the sutures that hold your band in place inside to heal before proceeding, not following the guidelines could cause slippage. First, are you sure the rumbles are not gas? That early on, I had a lot of rumbling and pain that was actually gas; both instestinal and abdominal (the kind pumped in during surgery). I know what you mean about the Protein shakes, going on 3 years since my surgery and I still gag at the thought of them. Talk to your doctor and let them know you are hugry, they may have some suggestions. One I can remember is rather than buying ordinary broth, buy the chicken noodle Soup and strain out the meat, noodles and veggies. It may sound strange but that broth is more filling, just enough protein and carb residue to make it so.

My port is about 2 inches above and to the right of my belly button. A good way to really feel it is to lie down on your back and lift both your feet up a few inches, doing so uses the right abdominal muscles to push the port forward making it easier to feel.

Congrats!

Is there anything you dislike about having the lap band? Not really. But I'd say the most challenging thing about having the lap band is the planning. Having the Lap Band requires a little organization and planning. I pretty much eat the same times every day which is a good idea. I can no longer just eat when the opportunity arises (which of course is the whole point of having the band) but when a social thing comes up I need to think about what I can eat, reschedule my other meals so that I will be able to eat at the set social schedule. Also being out and about and not able to eat much bread you realize how many restaraunts are solely focused on bread (pizza, sandwiches, fries...all things that while I can eat a little I don't do very well with them at times). There are just a few times that I feel bad because my family chose to adjust their plans around me. For instance my father-in-law loves to go out to IHOP for family gatherings. I don't do well with solid Breakfast sometimes. I try to tell them that I am perfectly happy with having yogurt before and sipping tea while they eat out but they insist on adjusting to me and then I feel bad. But I wouldn't say that is a big deal in my day-to-day life. I hear that sometimes when you lose weight fast you get the extra skin hanging that wont go away unless you have additional surgery to remove it, did any of you experience the extra skin? If so what was your age, I'm wondering if age has anything to do with it. Age and skin type do have a lot to do with it. Also if you are like me, prior to having the lap band, I dieted my whole life. The losing and gaining and losing again wreaked havok on the elasticity of my skin. I was fourty-ish when I got the band and yes I got the loose skin but not too bad on the body. I did have a lower face/neck lift because at around 100lbs lost, I completely lost the fat pad in my face almost overnight my cheeks just fell which gave me slight jowls and pressed down on my neck. Everyone insisted that it wasn't bad and comparing myself to other 40 somethings it wasn't but it bothered me and so I made that choice for myself. It was my reward for the weightloss. I plan to have a breast lift/maybe a slight reduction just because breasts look a little too big for my body and I feel I am a bit out of proportion because of it. I am short and have a small frame so large breast just make me look heavier than I am. You can read my milestones below to see how my loss progressed.

3 years later and I still remember that day and like you I was excited and apprehensive all at the same time. It really is the first day of the new you! At times it will be a rough 15 days but take it one day at a time and stay strong and it will be over before you know it and you will be so proud of yourself when you make it through. Turn to your closest support person and come here when you need a pep talk, feel free to message me; I am near a computer most of the time...I wish you the best!

I am not a believer in the starvation mode thing either. When we are overweight, we have fuel to burn and spare and when our body is working properly, the fewer calories we take in the more fat we should burn. In the studies I have read starvation mode doesn’t seem to be something that should happen to an overweight person who has more than enough fuel to burn. With all of my metabolic problems, at times I was eating 800 calories per day and exercising during my weight loss phase, others in my support group were too and other than the typical plateaus, the weight kept coming off with no sign of the starvation mode. Did you lose 10lbs overall (including pre-op diet) or 10lbs. since being banded? The first four weeks or so are for healing and no weight loss is expected. Then you have to work your way up to the right restriction. Once you start seeing restriction you should expect to see at least 2lb a week loss. There will be weeks where you lose more and weeks where you hit a plateau but on average 2lbs per week is good. “I eat very little” is not enough information to decide where the problem is. How many calories are you eating per meal? How many meals per day? Any Snacks? At this stage, Ideally you should be eating around a cup of food or less, three times per day. I am sure your doctor gave you a calorie goal and you should be meeting that. The food should be lean Protein and high Fiber fruits and veggies and whole grains in that order and for weight loss avoiding the butters, salts, sugars and fatty/fried foods. It should be solid food that will fill you up and keep you full. If you are eating all the right foods in the right amounts and getting some cardio in then you should speak to your doctor to make sure there is no underlying metabolic condition. If you are eating more than the amount mentioned and/or are getting hungry between meals then you are not at your sweet spot and could use another fill.

Yes, that is something my surgeon pointed out at the seminar. Save all the receipts from your pre-op release, through surgery; surgeon, anethesia, hospital bills etc. and deduct all of it including prescriptions and other related costs too. Even though my insurance covered most of it, I still deducted my portion...every little bit helps!

It really isn't a "feeling". It takes a few days to a couple weeks to know for sure. But the green zone (or sweet spot) is when you reach restriction that allows you to: Be full on a small amount of food (around a cup for me) Stay satisfied several hours until your next meal (5+ hours for me) Are consistently losing weight (when I was in weightloss phase, at least 2 lbs per week

I am not sure what you mean when you say you get no nutritional value, that doesn't sound right; what kind of liquids are you on? In the beginning right after a fill I would feel a pressure in my esophagus which made me want to swallow. As the swelling goes down, that pressure is relieved. It is when you can't swallow that you should worry.

Your goal is absolutely not unrealistic and I am proof of that. I am also 5'4" and i started out heavier than you at 234 pounds. A few weeks shy of a year I was at your goal weight. You can do it and make him eat crow! It could be that he is a little threatened by the idea or maybe he doesn't have enough faith in the band and doesn't want you to be disappointed. You should talk to him.

It is extremely rare to feel my stomach growl anymore. I just get that empty "out of fuel" feeling. Weak, irritable, lack of energy. The biggest contributor to head hunger for me is eating just a little junk that I know I shouldn't. Processed junk food, white starches and too much sugar get my blood sugar levels spiking and then I crave more. Fresh meats, colorful non-starchy veggies, unprocessed dairy, fresh fruits and fresh whole grains will keep you full and not add to head hunger. Stress is another contributor, when I am stressed and I feel like eating I take a walk. Just a short walk does wonders.

The death rate for this surgery is extremely low, .01% much much lower than the death rate for obesity. All of the tests will determine if you are at too high a risk to have the surgery. There certainly are no guarantees but the risks are very low. I did not have an encoscopy, just a barium swallow so I can not contribute anything to your concerns on that.

I agree with Jachut. Choosing a good quality frozen yogurt is not wasted calories and in my experience , at restriction is no less filling than regular yogurt; pretty much the same consistency; just frozen. I also don't choose fat free in any food product for the reason Jachut gives. When you choose lowfat, you often get additives like sugar or fructose corn syrup which add calories and take away from the natural flavor. Frozen yogurt is typically lower fat anyway, just watch the sugar content.

Like everyone else said as long as you understand the process and are sure that it will work for you, your age should not stop you. You have no idea how I wish the band was around when I was younger.

I agree. At 5'4 my normal BMI weight would be 108-145. At 125-130 I look fine, feel fine and can enjoy eating good food and living a normal life without having to spend my life obsessing and struggling over exercise and food to maintain. THAT should be every person's goal. While 120 would be sooo cool, I don't want to have to be at a constant struggle to get there and stay there.

I agree that BMI is a good guideline. Getting below 30 does mean you are no longer obese but a BMI of 25-30 is still considered overweight. I would say that getting the BMI below 30 is very good but getting it below 25 would put you in normal weight which to me is ideal.