lellow

Did you do any pre-op diet? Coz you're starving on that diet. I felt like I was going to die on the pre-op diet, I was so hungry. So anyone who's done that diet would know what it's like to be starving but follow the liquid diet anyway. First time I was banded, I was hungry after just 48 hours. I stayed on my post-op diet anyway. Nothing wrong with my band, I just healed quickly I guess. 2nd time I was banded, I was hungry after the first week but had to stay on liquids anyway. Coz after the complications I've had, the last thing I want to do is screw my band up. I hope all is well for you despite what you've eaten, but please don't for a minute think you're the only one who had to follow their diet despite being hungry. The thing is, despite that, you need to follow the diet anyway.

Definite and noticeable difference! You look wonderful!

When I was losing, I was working full time, studied at university at night and had a 2 year old and 2 teenagers at home. So I bought a spin bike cheap off an online shop for $250 and at 11pm every Monday, Wed and Friday I'd get on the spin bike and peddle hell for leather for 30 mins. Just doing that and eating band sized portions, I lost 100% of my excess weight in 7 months (about 70lbs). Now I do more informal, unstructured exercise like walking and roller-skating, but am going to get a home gym in the next couple of weeks to start doing some lifting. Still work long hours but 30 mins 3 times a week is only 90mins in a week of 10080 minutes, I reckon anyone can find that!

Here's the image my dr uses:

I wasn't told to avoid alcohol. I am Australian, we drink . I have learnt not to drink to the point of needing to hurl (did once and that was enough) but I definitely drink.

with my first band not only could I feel the port but when I lost the weight my port stuck out like a golfball under my skin. With my new band my doctor has placed it much deeper in and yes, I can still feel it, and I can see the 'lump' on my stomache where it's under. So yes, perfectly normal.

did you get any signs of it coming at all? It might be something as simple as feeling a little heavy in the chest. If you really didn't feel anything at all, you're going to have to make sure you stick rigidly to the post-op diet and portions, because it would be too easy to get to that point again if you don't have any 'soft stop' that you are aware of.

I work a pretty high stress job. I'm a project manager. Long days, high responsibility. I find working out helps de-stress me, so I made time for it. Also planning your meals ahead of time helps, but when I can't I will make an effort to find healthy food. Invest as much in yourself as your job, you're no less important.

It can take some time to get to the right level of restriction. Some sooner than others. But to your point I will say this: I lost the majority of my weight before achieving any real restriction. The reason for this is my belief that once the band kicked in, it would help me maintain my weight loss, something I had never been able to do before. So I worked on losing and waiting for my band to start working. It took me getting to 8.5cc to get restriction, which meant a LOT of fills, in comparison to most. Once I was there, it was a cake walk maintaining the weight I'd lost up til then, and in fact I continued to lose for the following year without trying. They will go slow because they don't know what fill level will get YOU to your green zone. So, as trite as this might sound, be patient. And keep trying to lose, because it's not for nothing.

I think a corset with bones is a HUGE no no, because it will press on your port site and cause issues (don't ask me how I know that ) but a girdle or shapewear shouldn't be an issue. Just nothing that is too rigid.

I think almost all of us only ever understand 'fullness' and this is what got us here. My boyfriend and I had a long conversation about it when my band was leaking. I experienced hunger for the first time in 3 years, and so I ate, and ate to 'fullness' and started to gain. He asked me on a couple of occasions "are you still hungry?" when he saw me continue to eat more than I probably should have. That's when we started talking about it. Because I realised he wasn't asking me if I was 'full' but if I was still hungry. He has never been big, and the reason is, he stops eating once he's no longer hungry. He does not seek out that feeling of 'fullness' like I do. That was a huge a-ha moment for me, because I realised then the fundamental difference between overweight people and normal BMI people - they don't seek out 'fullness', they stop when they're satisfied. If we can learn to stop when we're satisfied, never again will we need to worry about avoiding certain foods because we will over-indulge. We can eat a variety of foods and stop after just a small taste. We don't have to hate food, or make it our enemy. We don't have to mourn its loss. All we need to learn to do is stop eating once we're no longer hungry.

I can't speak for all the different types of 'soft stops' but my old soft stop was a dripping nose, and my doctor explained that it was food getting too high up in the esophagus that caused that. I now get hiccups sometimes since being rebanded, other people get shoulder tip pain, etc but I have no idea why those soft stops occur.

I set big goals for myself. I don't think it's a bad thing, as long as you KNOW it's a big goal. I was going to work like hell to get there, but there were times no matter what I did I couldn't lose that week! I was a low BMI bandster, and I wanted to lose 100% of my excess weight within 6 months (about 70lbs). I didn't quite make it, it took me just over 7 months but hell, I'm still proud of that!

It hurts for the millisecond it takes for the needle to go in. Much like taking blood. Except taking blood hurts more I reckon. Congrats on getting through your first fill! In the beginning, doctors can go a little more aggressively with fills because the expectation is you've got a ways to go to get to the green zone yet. Especially if you say anything like "I can't really feel the band right now", or "I'm getting hungry pretty quickly". It's the patients who come in and say "oh I still struggle to finish a cup of food" that they'll be more cautious with. Just take it easy for a day, you'll be fine!

Nope. I can't burp. I didn't burp for over 3 years . For some bandsters, burping is something we just can't do. One of the reasons I suspected I was leaking in fact was because I not only lost restriction but suddenly could burp again. I have not burped since being rebanded 2 months ago. Honestly, your body adapts and initially it all comes out the other end (sorry TMI) but that settles eventually too. My boyfriend thought I was the most delicate of princesses because I didn't ever burp when we started dating, now he knows I just couldn't!! I really don't miss it.

I just wore a shapewear singlet because I had an incision just between my breasts high up on my sternum and wearing a bra hurt it. So I happened on the benefits of shapewear for my incisions quite by accident trying to solve a different problem. rbmk14 I am wearing the kind of shapewear you're describing now after lipo and I can honestly say it's irritating the incision I was talking about above even now, 2 months post band replacement, so if your incision is anywhere close to where mine is, I'd go for a different sort of shapewear.

Never, not once, ever, even after changing states and therefore doctors, has anyone ever told me to restrict carbs, or that carbs were to blame for obesity. I understand that for some low carb is their preferred way of losing weight, and they're very successful at it, but I can honestly say that I've never restricted carbs and have successfully lost over 100% of my excess weight. There is no right or wrong answer and I am constantly amazed at how personally people take things around here. Own your choices, because if you do, who gives a flying whatsit what others say as long as it's working for you?

tym4me, two words: sports bra. I have DDs now and I have the rockingest sports bras I can buy and they strap them down nice and tight!

I had an E cup and deflated to a B cup full of nothing but skin when I lost the weight. I had implants to get them back up to a DD cup! We should have swapped boobs!!

After my band replacement, I went out and bought firm control shapewear, which I wore for 3 weeks after surgery. It made such a difference, because yes it was easier to cough, or even sit up, and more importantly, when I was suffering from bad nausea and was retching, it didn't feel like my stitches were going to bust open. Great tip!