marys

Went for a band consult - really to get the thing out and was surprised that my one fill without floro resulted in an inaccurate fill - i thought i was filled to 2.4 and found out only 2.1 was in there. The doc had nothing bad to say about the other doc but he did say when you don't have floro (sp?) it is really blind and sometimes when you take the needle out you lose fluid. Also, had a long consult over lack of weight loss and they agreed my loss was 'pretty bad' but at least i haven't really gained - And, they suggested even more of an unfill so i could eat regular meals and snacks. i've been thrilled in just two days cuz even tho i have to exercise some restraint in my eating i've enjoyed bandster meals - heck even if i don't lose still at least i feel like i'm eating. every meal before was a struggle to get it down and i was till pbing regularly. so many bandsters don't eat but one meal (solid) a day it seems like the norm but for me i can't hack it - i need food - solid food to be happy. So even after 13 months i'm still struggling to find the right fill - i will assess in one month and see what happens. Wish me luck, i need it.

I would vote for telling your doc the truth - i just met two women - a mom and dgtr - mom banded 3 years, dgtr banded 5 years - the dgtr just got her band removed due to long term tightness (caused slippage, esophogus damage, etc.) and the mom had just been told hers needed to be repositioned. She said both her and her dgtr always lied to the doc to get tighter every month. She was convinced the too tight band over the long term caused this.

So incredibly happy for you and thanks for keeping everyone posted. even tho i am disapointed in what the band has done for me in the area of weight loss i am seriously grateful for what it has shown me and i know i am not yet where you are - my head issues were and are so much stronger then i ever imagined. without the band at this point i would probably still revert to old ways - i'm trying and to know others have succeeded in beating those demons helps. thanks

oh my god! I have been trying to change to stevia which i pray is ok for us but i ve always intuitively known that these fake sugars cant be good = and it is quite embarrassing but i have horrible gas and can never figure out why - an experiement on myself is in order. Thanks for sharing this info - corn syrup is horrible for our bodies. I do love it so but will be weaning myself off.

sounds so good i will try it - p.s. what is a ramekin?

I'm in my 40's and not/never married although with my guy for about 14 years. I had sex in college (for the first time) and it was horrible - i just wanted to do it to see what the fuss was all about - it wasn't good and i wondered for years what the heck I was missing out on. I'm thankful I've never had to deal with an std or pregnancy and I'm in a monogomous and very nice sexual and loving relationship. I've known many virgins till marriage as I've always had a wide range of friends and i remember one friend who was berated by her doc for her virignity and insisted on wanting to know what was wrong with her. jeez! Great thread and i've enjoyed everyone's comments - we are quite the diverse group.

Wow - I haven't had cereal since i was banded cuz I usually go crazy on it and can eat a whole box - however, I tried Dr. Sears High protein low carb cereal mixed with a lowfat yogurt yesterday and it went down ok (i ate really slow and 'chewed it" and while I felt it going down - it felt kinda hard - i ate about 1/2 cup. I have to say i was 'sore' yesterday and ended up on liquids through dinner = not a pb but sore. I think it was too crunchy/hard but I've never experienced it before. needless to say i will be more careful in the future - maybe try softened in milk or not at all. Just curious if anyone else has had this with cereal or other foods.

oh my gosh girl - i just saw your pics - you look amazing - you must feel incredible - your weight loss (amount) just hit me when I saw the photos - congrats congrats congrats - wowowwowowo. Thanks for the invite on the other thread re: triathlons but I'm not fit enough yet to even run 3 miles - are you serious about doing an olympic level triathlon - I did do three of those in the past and absolutely loved it. The swimming was hardest (i hate all those people kicking me - lol) running second but I've always been a good biker so that wasn't too bad. You go girl - I'm quite sure you will be able to do it. ARe you training with a group? Anyway, you have really inspired me

I've flown over 12 times since banding and never beeped yet. I guess you could show them your banding card (most docs give us something) and that should do it. My mom has a pacemaker and she always tells them as she can't go through the xray machines.

Everyone has given good comments,suggestions, etc. and all I wanted to add is when I weight trained seriously I weighed more but wore 3 sizes smaller then before weight training. Granted, I trained a lot and heavy but I didn't look like a 'body builder' i was cut and looked terrific. I would continue and go by clothes (maybe try a pair of tight pants on and try them on every week) - you will probably notice it more like that then on the scale. Weight training can really transform your body.

Since I consider myself a 'failure' with the lapband i feel differently then most lapbanders. If you pb often you are to go on liquids for some length of time and this can cause a vicious cycle - and yes, you will get hungry and if good bandster food doesn't go you tend to go toward foods that will go through ok - not good bandster food. I actually feel sorry for this woman and am glad she found something that works. I've tried almost everything and do almost 95% of all things right - i'm not perfect but i eat around 1200-1500 calories a day, drink very minimal amounts of alcohol, exercise regularly and still struggle with not pbing and i don't lose weight. I've maintained which is something I couldn't do without the band but I don't want to or think I need to be tighter. My body just won't lose weight (and yes, I've been tested metabolically.) As my doc said - you can put lapbands in 4 patients and each patient will have a different result - you sometimes can't pinpoint it. I know 3 other bandsters like me and it is a lonely lonely road of mostly folks blaming us for our lack of success -nobody likes to hear from the failures. I would still say go for it - if you have researched and thought long and hard about your decision and realize that for some people it doesn'tt work - one of the folks I know that has had no significant weight loss had the surgery with her mom and sister - mom and sister are pretty much at goal and the woman I know has lost 16lbs - I don't know if the doc or procedure is a joke - I just know I feel for someone who doesn't get the result they want from the lapband and when they do find something that works - good for them.

Hey Maysa - hello and good to meet you! Congrats on your new baby - you must be so happy. I have a feeling you will get back on track now that you have a fill - losing weight is as much 'mental' as it is physical and you are taking the steps you need to get some weight off. Don't be too hard on yourself as I think most of us would struggle unfilled or de-banded - these food issues seem imbedded in our pysches! I'm probably getting mine out and realize I will just eat and eat although I'll try, I know without my band I will even bigger. So, hang in there - take it one day at a time and soon you will be losing again. Good luck.

If you've tried all those diets and stuck to them and still haven't lost weight don't get banded as something else is going on. If you need a little help and I stress a little the band may help you. it is by no means a miracle or easy even for most - you have to make major major major (did i say that enough) changes. Then, even for some poor folks like me you still won't lose weight. However, I am a yo yo dieter and was led to the band out of sheer desperation - my scarsdale dieting and even weight watchers weren't working anymore (the instructor kept telling me to eat more) - i should have never gotten the band as I'm eating about the same as weight watchers and still not losing. Continue thinking and researching and you will be able to make a decision. good luck

chicken and soft bread usually don't work and I don't try too often - most other foods go one day and then they don't another day. I just tried egg white omellete for breakfast and it stuck but most days it works. it's a bit frustrating but i don't automatically cross a food off my list if it doesnt work - i try it another day (if i crossed off all foods that got stuck i wouldn't be able to eat anything - for me its more a matter of chewing good and a tiny teeny bite) - well, except for chicken -i've pretty much given up on that. go figure

feeling guilty for getting the lapband is a waste of your valuable time and life - you will still have to do a lot of things to make the band work so try to move past that negative feeling and focus your feelings on the positive side of this major life change - you can do it.

Hi Sunny - Congratulations - you must also feel so proud. I've been to a skinny weight before and I know what you mean - esp now being banded things surrounding food, eating, etc really hit you in the face. I've also realized how entrenched being 'fat' - always dieting - always thinking about food - body image etc. just is - it really becomes a part of us - and maybe some of that never goes away. It might be helpful to shop for new clothes, consider a new hairdo - some changes to validate your new size/look. Now is the time to branch out and try something new to replace all the time, energy and effort you have spent on weight loss. Of course maintenance poses new issues as you'll see and maybe even counseling is in order. You will face many challenges and experiences in your new bod but it is still YOU. Good luck and I am truly happy for you.

You're welcome - I try to be truthful of my experiences and journey. I will not consider any other type of wls as this was my last resort. I'm done. Thanks for your message of support/concern. good luck to you and if you are not banded, please don't be discouraged because of me but as my doc said you can do 4 procedures and have four results - there is no accounting for the few of us who fail.

I'm going for a consult next week (thur-fri) regarding band removal - I am one of a few banded folks that can't lose weight and I'm leaning toward removing it before/if problems happen down the road. The band has worked to stabilize my weight and lord knows I eat so much less, better, etc. but it is still a struggle everyday to not pb, what food/diet to try this week etc that the emotional and mental struggle just seems exasperated with the band. I also know without it I will be bigger no doubt - when I can eat more I know I will - as I've said many times, the band has definitely opened my eyes as to why I am fat. But here I am. I don't feel I could be tighter - i think I'm restricted properly and even though I eat 1200-1500 calories (before banding it was closer to 2-3000!) my body will not shed pounds. I know if I work out 4 hours a day I will lose weight but I did that once and loved my body etc but I don't have that in me anymore. I've given up losing all my weight and would've been happy with even 20lbs - thrilled even but that seems impossible. I've been working to accept myself as is and that seems to be possible. I feel sad but not hopeless - I'm not sorry I did this as the band has taught me a lot - just sorry for me and for other bandsters I know that can't share our weight loss - it's a lonely place! Thanks for letting me vent.

Hey pudding - just wanted to say in my younger fitter days i did triatholons too - if you can, start with the sprint distance then move up. With training you can do it and you will have so much fun. I still watch the ironman shows on tv and just cry - the stories are so inspiring. Good luck, train smart and have fun!

i love chocolate once a month and if i don't have it i will eat anything else until i get it. i really don't eat too much - just enough and sometimes one/one bite more and i'm ok.

I will say it again - most people do not realize how serious it is when one can not sleep. I've had ups and downs in life but am not one to get seriously depressed BUT when I couldn't sleep I was rready to kill myself. My doc suggested warm milk and I almost killed him - I don't know how some people can stand it - lack of sleep can make one crazy. i am sooo glad you got some rest.

I second what everyone else is saying - definitely go slow and drink alcohol in moderation - you will most likely notice a very significant drop in tolerance - i tried not drinking for 60 days and didn't drop any weight so i just drink in extreme moderation - maybe 1-2 glasses of wine once or twice a week -

I snow ski at least 4 times a week - usually for only 3-4 hours - i've never been able to ski for the whole day cuz i get too cold but I love Love Love it. I alsojust signed up for a boot camp class m, wed, and fridays. I am not the most consistent person but when i exercise i love it.

sherilyn - sorry u are still having problems - lack of sleep is terrible and people don't usually understand how awful that is - really sorry for you! I don' t think therer is any probs sleeping on your side - i couldn't do it for almost a year and by then i started sleeping on my other side. i also started sleeping somewhere between laying on my stomach and side - just keep experimenting and if you can take naps - do anything to get your rest in as I know that can make you crazy. i promise it will get better

Yes it is the master cleanse that Beyonce suppossedly did - here's the link that tells you all about it. I read a woman's diet who did it for almost 30 days and she said to expect to gain back 1/4 of what you lost once you start eating - it is not really for weight loss but cleansing - however you will lose weight. http://therawfoodsite.com/beyonce.htm