It's_Christine

Pete, Do not stop to collect your 200.00 but run past GO and get that band! It sounds like you are in such a good place right now to do that. Sometimes people who love us still want us to be able to "reward" ourselves with food but deep down we all know it is no reward to eat the way we do. I hope to welcome you to the land of the band soon!

Two characteristics of people who maintain weight loss are regular exercise and journaling their food. It's what we gotta do every day for the rest of our lives. The Band does not change that! The thing I find scarey is that it is always a higher weight that I seem satisfied with. It cannot be about the weight it has to be about the eating plan and exercise. Good luck to us all!

If you are not in a supervised diet setting for your 10% weight loss prequal I would recommend weight watcher also. You need some structure and the weekly weigh ins to keep you on track. 6 months felt like forever to me and I was glad I was held accountable on a every month basis.

I have a Realize band and have lost 60lbs in 3months so I may reach your "goal" of 79lbs lost in 4 months. Either band or GBP it's work and dedication as these are just tools. Take your time and if your surgeon's office has a counselor or psychologist talk to them. I had a good idea of what was right for me but after talking to the psychologist I was certain. Good luck.

Hollie, I love reading your posts because you remind me of how I was at age. I can assure you it all gets better and because you have the opportunity to have the lapband and permanent weight management I predict it's going to be great for you. You seem to know what you need (the band, counseling) and that alone will take you far in this world. Keep posting, I want to know how far you go!

My insurance clearly states that it is your initial weight that is used to determine if you qualify for coverage for WLS. They require a signifigant weight loss during the supervised diet phase (at least 5% of body weight). Make sure you have your correct height documented and frankly I would have the physician's office remove the inaccurate height totally since it is impossible to "lose" height. Then call your insurance company to see if they have the same guideline about your BMI and the supervised diet phase.

Our meetings are on alternate months. One month is the by pass group and the other is for us lap banders. It works much better that way. I would have no interest in attending a support group for by pass patients.

I do not have CIGNA but I had to participate in a supervised diet and it required monthly visits with my physician. It also required very specific information such as how many calories I was eating a day. If you want to be sure I would suggest you call CIGNA and find out exactly what they want and then ask for it in writing. I was initially turned down but when I was able to show the insurance company I followed exactly what they said on their web site I got approval. Goo luck

Don't freak....BCBS IL tried the same sort of thing with me. They initally denied me saying I had not had a "signifigant weight loss" during my supervised diet. Well I lost 9% of my body weight during that mandatory diet so when I called them and asked what was the definition of signifigant they quickly caved and I was approved in 24 hours. Difficult to know if they are incompetent or just trying to put us off isn't it? Good luck!

The best advice I got about how much to chew is this: pay attention to how pureed food feels in your mouth and then chew all of your food to that "feeling" before you swallow. If you work on that goal the amount you put in your mouth automatically changes. The other good thing about this is you can eat almost anything you want/like as long as you are willing to put the work into it :-) Good luck.

I am 10 weeks post-op and have yet to have a fill. I have had a steady weight loss. I know I am not suppose to be restricted without a fill but I feel like I am. I can eat about a cup at a time and eat only three times a day. If I eat too fast or do not chew enough I get an uncomfortable feeling in my chest and have to stop. This happens more commonly in the morning. My surgeon does not fill if you are having adequate weight loss (at least 1.5 lbs per week). I think that each surgeon may offer a different opinion than the one expressed in the video you included. This journey is one where you really have to chart your own course.

Laurinda, I share your enthusiasm for life under 200 lbs. If anyone asks my goal is to never weight more than 200lbs again and that's all I know for sure. Do I think I will weigh less than that, yes I do. Do I have a clue what that weight may be, absolutely NOT! Seriously, I think the 200lb thing has to to with the usual sour faces of the various health care professionals when they had to push the scale up past 200lbs to weight me. By time they had to push it up past 300bs I was already immune to their silent disapproval. I have no healthy, happy weight to return to since I weighed 125lbs in 2nd grade and entered highschool at 200 lbs on a 5'3" frame. My plan is to simply eat right, exercise and find the right balance for my life. I am not going to pursue a weight or a BMI. If my band continues to help me eat 1000-1200 cals a day and I exercise daily for heart health and muscle mass maintenance the weight will just happen as a product of that. I am tired of seeing a weight as a finish line. My current lifestyle is my goal and I will work to maintain it. Congrats on your weight loss so far and I wish you continued success.

I don't believe there is one "perfect" number that indicates health weight wise. I would factor in some things like how you feel, how are your blood test results for cholesterol and the like. I also think your waist measurement is important since fat carried in the midsection is associated with more health problems. So if you feel good, feel you look good and all of your other health indicators are OK I would not chase a BMI. Also if you feel you are "too thin" on the top half I would suggest some weight training if you are not already doing this. You can add some nice definition and change the over all look of your proportion this way. Lastly CONGRATS on your incredible success. I started a little abover your starting weight and I hope I am able to report the same weight loss as you when my time comes!

Charles, Each of us has out own reasons but none of them should be compelling enough for you. Obesity will kill you despite all of the medications we have to control the diseases it causes. And to me the final insult is having to order a plus size coffin when obesity claims my life. I have long list of why I chose to have surgery at age 54 but just like every way any of us have tried to lose weight we have to do it for ourselves.

Charles, I, like you, have lost a lot of weight in my life but always gained it back. I tried to "pretend" I had the band when I was on my insurance required supervised diet pre-op. Well I did fine but I knew I could lose weight I wanted something to help me keep it off. I was banded 5/28/2008 and I can tell you the "pretend band" does not hold a candle to the real thing. After fighting head hunger for a week I found that I really did well with very little food! It is such a different life for me now. I have never been able to eat as few calories as I do now and not be obsessed with wanting to eat more. For the first time in a long time I have hope for obtaining and maintaining a healthy weight. The band is my tool. I wish you luck with your journey

I was banded 5/28/2008 and still have not had a fill. I have only occassional hunger and because I know it will pass AND it will only take a limited amount of food to fill me I am able to deal with it. I also limit the quantity on my plate so I do not eat more than 1 cup or so at a time and I am very strict about only eating three times a day. According to my surgeon as long as I lose 6-8 lbs a month I do not need a fill. I will consider it a personal victory if I can lose the weight I need to lose without a fill...OK yea I know not the way the band was meant to work. The most important thing to me is after the weight is off I have something in place to keep me from gaining it back!

I have to admit I had so many roars and rumbles right after I had surgery I had no idea what was hunger and what was not. I just made sure I got my protein and water in on a schedule and it worked out fine. Even now 6 weeks out I find if I am busy I can "forget" to eat (like that is not totally amazing) so I have to make sure I eat every 5 hours or so just until I feel full. I have some "head hunger" too but I have been very strict with the three meals a day only and that has helped keep me on track. Banded life is a whole new experience!

That surgeon has an attitude issue. To cancel you the day of surgery without warning is just plain wrong. I would strongly suggest you find a new in network surgeon and proceed from there. It will be worth it!

Congrats on your weight loss! One thing is for certain, that excess weight will have health consequences. The slippage, etc are only a risk not a certainty. I try and stay away from threads that depress or scare me since I am recently banded also. Good luck!

Mary, Without a metabolic test that tell your MD that you need 800cals a day to maintain a healthy weight I would ask where this recommendation comes from. I was at a medical weight loss center and knew someone who needed to eat only 700cals a day to lose weight according to her metabolic testing so I know it can happen. Also weight loss simply due to calorie restriction is not as healthy for you as weight loss due to calorie restriction and exercise. Is that figured into your surgeon's equation? I would continue to ask questions and consider getting a second opinion. Good luck

My post-op diet was a weekly progression from full liquids, to puree (dont have to chew), soft (can chew these foods) to unrestricted. I cannot find any research evidence that shows that one post-op diet is superior to another and surgeons seem to have their own experiences and preference. IMO if you chose your surgeon you should follow their advice.

1 cup of food does not mean you may not lose weight. It really depends on the food. In the end it is still calories in versus calories out.

I have started to cook. I used to always have quick meals (read drive thru) and now I plan and cook wonderful meals. I have also doubled the the amount of time I walk the dogs. It was the least i could do for them since they do miss the crumbs from my "free eating" days. :-)

what does "very against" mean? I would be very cautious about making a decision based on that. You will find individual opinions among surgeons but you have to decide what the best procedure is for you. There are HUGE differences between the procedures and how they work and most research supports either procedure can produce sustained weight loss.

I was banded 5/28/2008 have lost 35lbs and am doing well eating 3 times a day in limited amounts (1 cup max). Based on that the surgeon said no fill which I am fine with. He said if I lose <8 lbs a month he will fill or if I start to have trouble with hunger he would fill. I know people say without a fill you have no restriction but for me "something" is very different. I have never been able to maintain an intake of 800-1000cals a day so easily. So for now I am riding the wave and enjoying it. For me this journey is about making it my last weight loss journey and I will end up with weight loss maintenance...up till now a very elusive goal for me. Congrats on the weight loss!