Jodi_620

I counted every pound I lost.

Most all surgeons have regular free seminars (weekly, bi-weekly or monthly). I suggest you try and find at least two in your area and attend their seminars (if you are using insurance, be sure the surgeons accept your insurance). That way you can compare notes and find the best guy or gal. Learn as much as you can about the Lap Band and if you decide that the surgery is for you (it is not for everybody), make an appointment for a consultation with the surgeon of your choice. From there, they will help with insurance approval and walk you through all the steps.

Of course you know that you should quit smoking for your own health but you are not asking for and probably don't want that lecture ;0) . I have seen on this site where a lot of surgeons use this surgery as an opportunity to get patients to quit. My surgeon did not require it and you would have to ask your surgeon if it is a requirement. Other than the possiblity of slowing down healing after surgery (an issue with any surgery a smoker might have)and the obvious health risks there is no direct effect on the band.

Sorry, I just can’t relate. My methods are just different. I understand that some people need the structure of counting, measuring and documenting everything but don’t let it make you too crazy. With the Lap Band I have never really counted calories or measured. I eat three meals a day making sure I get all my nutrients and eat until I am full. Some days my energy expenditure is higher than usual so I am hungrier and eat more. I don’t fret over it; I just keep eating right and stop eating when I am full. If it gets to the point where for and extended time I can’t stay satisfied on a reasonable amount of food or I am gaining then I look into what I am eating and if necessary get a fill. I would choose a solid Protein over a liquid shake; you are going to get much longer satiation from solid lean protein and frankly I think it is healthier. Plus my doctor said no more liquid nutrition once on solids (except of course for two days after a fill). Protein shakes were recommended during the liquid phase because #1 the liquid diet was necessary for healing and #2 protein makes us feel fullest and helps us get through that difficult phase. But once on solids it is no longer recommended with my doc. Under fluoro, you can see how quickly liquid passes right out of the pouch. Each meal should contain solid food from various food groups. Go for high protein and high Fiber (Lean meat or Beans with high fiber fruit, veggie and/or whole grains). Reverting back to dysfunctional eating is no way to go. The Lap Band is supposed to train us to eat normally, without the crazy diets that never work. It is not a race, I am not sure where you are in this process or what exactly the contest is all about but if causes you to stray too far from the Lap Bands purpose then I would rethink being part of it. Just my two cents worth.

hair is on a 3 month cycle. Hairloss will start around 3 months, end within another 3 months and start to regrow within another 3 months. That is, as long as you keep getting in your Protein and Vitamins. Mine was just as bad, my drain was actually clogged by my hair twice! My doctor assured me that none of his patients have gone bald or had peramanent hairloss and that I would recover and he was right, I did. If you are getting your 60G of protein and taking a good daily there is not a whole lot more you can do but try to stay calm and give it time. You can try adding Biotin (Hair Skin and Nails Vitamin). If your hairloss is due to a deficiency in B-Vitamins and Biotin it will help. Even if it is not, it is good for your hair and will help it grow back nice and healthy.

I would never have been satisfied on 1/2 cup either and can't imagine eating so little food and having enough calories to sustain me. Always listen to your doctor but mine never told me to measure out 1/2 cup, only to eat until I am satisfied which takes more like 1 cup. You shouldn't feel hungry with the band, that is the whole point of having it. So are you eating 1/2 cup 3 times a day? How many calories, Protein etc. are you getting on that amount of food and what kind of exercise are you doing?

In a situation like that I would imagine you would know your port flipped or that there was damage because there would be instant and prolonged pain. Your port is sewn into muscle and nerve and you would surely feel it if it were suddenly torn loose. If the port were to come loose and flip slowly for whatever reason, you probably wouldn't know until it was time for a fill. As far as the band goes, it would take a lot more than that to slip it. The band is deeper inside you padded behind your liver. Once healed , normal movement and activity should not affect the band. Slippage would more likely be caused if the band were not placed properly, improper eating (eating too soon, eating too much) or keeping the band overfilled. Symptoms of slippage depend on which way and how far it slipped, and can range from no symptoms at all to reflux, difficulty eating, pain when eating or not being able to eat or drink anything at all.

Yeah, time for your first fill. I didn't last that long till I needed a fill and I lost restriction that suddenly with my first three or four fills. I got my second fill, felt great restriction then all of a sudden a week later I needed another fill; similar story with the third fill. It literally felt like my band emptied overnight. I started to worry that I had a leak or something and my fill doctor explained it to me like this. When you are overweight you have fat around all your organs including your stomach. Your weightloss has melted some of that fat and like a belt gets looser when you lose weight, your band is now looser due to fat loss around the stomach. Expect to see this a couple times before it is all done, it is perfectly normal. Eventually you will lose the fat around your stomach and the fills will become fewer and further between.

A whole meal is too much for me too. I don't eat frozen dinners very often but keep a couple in the freezer at work in case I can't get home for lunch. I buy the smaller meat and veggie meals (I avoid the pasta dishes) and I can typically eat the main course and half of the veggie. The bigger dinners with larger main course, veggie and a fruit dessert are way too much and get wasted.

The diabetes should not affect your weightloss and your weightloss should improve your diabetes. As far as thryoid disease goes as long as you are keeping your thryoid levels under control then there is no reason that it should affect weightloss. My Synthroid actually had to be lowered after losing weight.

It may not take 30 days to get approved. I have UHC and was approved in less than a week. A third party did the approval and the approval letter came from them with an approval code.

I reached my goal and then decided I wanted to lose 17 more pounds. The last bit does not come off easily. You have to really track what goes in your mouth and get in the exercise. I lost 4 of the 17 and that was slow and difficult. For the summer I chose to just maintain but I fully intend to fight off the last 13 pounds, no doubt it will take some work though.

Not necessarily. Sometimes the customer service people are not clear on everything (sometimes they are not clear on anything!) You should have asked for details of coverage in writing. It is possible that with the co-morbidities they may allow 35-40 BMI, a lot of insurance policies do. Then again, it is possible that they do not allow for co-morbidities. Either way, you should get the information in writing so that you are armed with the facts.

Sorry to hear about this. I would be concerned about what after care is going to be like if this guy is already being so discouraging. The aftercare is an essential part of this. Is he going to be supportive and allow you to have the adjustments you need, when you need them? Do you have any other options for doctors?

Worldwide there are about 6 different companies that make Gastric Bands. There are only two brands approved in the US, Realize & Lap Band. The Realize band holds 9cc's the Lap Band comes in two sizes 10CC & 14CC

No, I would keep going with solids. You've got to get back to eating solids sooner or later. Gas is unfortunately part of the whole process but it will pass (excuse the pun). Are you taking fiber? Just asking because I was told to take it and it gave me extremely painful gas. I was told to stop taking it. Even without the fiber I still had the gas pains for a couple weeks. Be sure take GasX, I doubled up on the dosage twice a day and give it time. And try to move as much as possible both cardio and stretching and bending.

The makers of the Lap Band have this whole "Green Zone" guideline to help you decide if you need a fill and how much. You could probably Google "Lap Band Green Zone" to see the chart. But basically, if you are: 1.) Hungry between meals 2.) Eating larger portions 3.) Not losing weight Then you need a fill. If you are experienceing just one of these problems, a tiny fill may help if you have all three and larger fill is needed. I eat closer to 8 oz of food so if I were only eating 3 oz. and was satisfied on that and losing weight I definitely would not be looking to get a fill. Being too tight or not eating enough is definitely not going to benefit you.

So it is definitely not the quantity of food per meal. Have you estimated how many calories you are getting per day? Are you watching fat, sugar, starch...? Since you are not staying satisfied, are you snacking a lot between meals? Are you getting enough exercise? 1/2 cup of food would not keep me satisfied either but if you are full on that you shouldn't eat more. It is solid food, right? Depending on your calories, you may be able to add another meal or two since you are only eating 1/2 cup...some people do better with several smaller meals per day and if you are not getting enough calories, that may explain why you are not losing. I know the last bit is much harder to get off. Once I got to the "20 pound to go" mark, weight loss has been extremely slow. I actually gave up for the summer and decided to just maintain. I still only eat 3 meals a day I eat whatever sounds good not paying attention to calories and stuff but of course leaning toward the healthier choices. I can still only handle around 1 cup per meal. I also allow two Snacks per day. I have not lost or gained eating this way all summer. I would like to lose this last 13 pounds and after my vacation the first week of September I plan to get serious about losing it. I know that will require me to really watch what I am eating and increase my exercise working harder than I have had to yet.

I think it has more to do with restriction. I like good restriction so a pill like that would block my stoma. I have taken smaller pills than that and they went down fine at first...then the sliming began, it wasn't pretty. I can pretty much handle all round, tablet size/shape pills (around the size of a typical asperine or smaller). Caplets and capsuls are much harder.

Right now all that is holding your band in place are a few stitches. You need to give yourself 4-6 weeks to form scar tissue so that it is more firmly in place. Stick to the post-op diet and wait until you are healed to get a fill. Not following these two rules could cause slippage which will get you nowhere but back to sqare 1 of this whole process.

What is your calorie budget?

Don't let those kind of fears hold you back. Once healed in place, you can do pretty much any activity you enjoy

Thanks...and here's to your journey there!:sneaky:

I agree with the others. After all you've been through to get the band, you should be allowed to use it to its full potential. This doctor is simply not allowing it.

Sure you can. The carbonated stuff is usually off limits for most of us but there are other choices out there. Be mindful of the calorie content of your choice, I go for Vodka and sugar free cranberry juice myself. Alcohol has no different effect on me because of the band either. Some say that they get drunk faster but I really don't see why that would be except that as we lose body mass, alcohol might affect us differently. I guess because with the band I can't drink as fast as I used to so maybe that balanced it out because I don't get drunk any faster.