Kegra

This was posted under the Exercise area, so I'm thinking you're looking for the do's and don'ts of exercise for people with Lap Bands, so here goes: DO move your body, however you can. DON'T sit around and watch TV. If you took all the diet and exercise books on the planet and reduced them to their common denominator, they'd be 3 pages. Page One: EAT LESS Page Two: EXERCISE MORE Page Three: REPEAT AS NECESSARY Bottom line, any kind of exercise that does not result in injury is good exercise. Having two or three exercise routines helps alleviate boredom. This can be a simple as having three different routes for walking, or doing walking, dancing, and resistance bands. The biggest benefit to me of the Lap Band has been portion control. I was already eating well, I was just eating too much. The 10# I took off immediately after my first fill had me feeling much lighter on my feet and I found that exercising wasn't nearly as herculean an effort as it had been 40# earlier.

I was calm and peaceful at the hospital. No more worries. A year of working to get there and once I was there, it felt good and right. Surgery went well, doc fixed a small hiatal hernia we didn't know I had. I first woke up to the feel of the breathing tube in there. I tried not to fight it but I did. They put me out again and when I woke up next I was in my recovery room with my loved ones waiting for me. The pain in my shoulder was very bad. About an 8. I finally asked for some some Dilotid and anti-nausea and with in a minute it was bearable. I napped for an hour, then sipped my fluids and did my walks about the unit. I was on my way home 4 hours after arriving in my recovery room. Vicodin gives me headaches so they sent me home with Oxycodone (Percoset w/o the Tylenol). I'm maintaing a level 3. Mostly discomfort than pain. I slept 6 hours through the night without interruption. I fell like today is the first day of the rest of my life. I'm so excited!

Hello all. I'm 6 days from surgery. I have my EKG and blood draw on Monday and my surgery on Friday. So here are my fears and I would love it if some of you would respond to them: 1-As a PCOS patient I'm really struggling with the pre-op weight loss. Fatty livers run in my family (I have a sister 145# with a fatty liver, go figure) and I'm quietly terrified that I'll be bumped out of the surgery for it. The past week I've been on a very lo-carb hi-Protein diet, trying all the different kinds of shakes and nectars to find ones that I will be able to keep down. Since the liver tends to convert fat in the absence of carbs, I'm hoping this has an impact for me. Are you aware of anyone who has been bumped out of surgery for too big a liver? 2-I've told most of my colleagues about the surgery and they've been very supportive, but it also happens that my surgery occurs just before one of the busiest weeks we have. I've family that's had the lap gall bladder surgery and bounced right back to work a few days later, so I've set the expectation that I'll be back at work on Tuesday. Yet I'm reading about people who are still in pain and not working after 2 weeks, and I'm a bit afraid I've been over-confident. 3-I have a very high pain tolerance. So high, in fact, that this Spring I ended up in the hospital for two weeks because I ignored pain until it was so bad it was all I could do to stay conscious and not vomit (and it took 4 doses of morphine to get me to lay still enough to get me in for a CT scan). After that, I'm a bit squeamish hearing about all the pain and bloating. Is it really that bad?

Hello all. I'm 6 days from surgery. I have my EKG and blood draw on Monday and my surgery on Friday. So here is my main fear and I would love to hear from some of you: As a PCOS patient I'm really struggling with the pre-op weight loss. Fatty livers run in my family (I even have a sister 145# with a fatty liver, go figure) and I'm quietly terrified that I'll be bumped out of the surgery for it. The past week I've been on a very lo-carb hi-Protein diet, trying all the different kinds of shakes and nectars to find ones that I will be able to keep down. Since the liver tends to convert fat in the absence of carbs, I'm hoping this has an impact for me. Are you aware of anyone who has been bumped out of surgery for too big a liver? Thanks in advance.

Potato soup and beans are lovely, but they are high in carbs. I was told that for the rest of my life I would have to focus on getting my protein in first. Are you still doing the protein drinks or did you add eggs?

I was told that 50 to 60 grams per day is the initial goal right after banding, then 75+. If you are concerned about 75grams being too much, then you can purchase a kit that tests for ketones, or ask your doc for a urinalysis to test ketone levels. If you are feeling great, then I would say you've nothing to worry about. If you start feeling 'off' to 'bad', then see your doc.

Weight loss surgery is like religion: Once you've got it, you think yours is the best Weight loss surgery is like religion: Its personal, not persecutional. Weight loss surgery is like religion: If it works for you, I'm happy, too. As for my sister... she never regretted having weight loss surgery, and given the choice, would have chosen the RnY again, rather than wait 10 years for the Lap Band. Hers is a very sad story, and hopefully not a common one. I'm just thrilled that I have another option. Lastly, it disturbs me that women attack each other for their WLS choices. Life is far too short to waste energy on negativity. We need to uphold each other and learn to soar together.

When the carbohydrate intake is insufficient to meet the body's glucose needs, it switches to a different metabolic pathway that breaks down fat and protein. The products of this alternate pathway are ketones, most of which can be used in place of glucose. However, there is one ketone, called acetone, which we cannot use, and instead, excrete it via the kidneys. The presence of ketones in the urine is called ketosis. This isn't necessarily a bad thing -- for us, it signals that fat is being broken down by the liver (yay!). People who are insulin-dependent diabetics, however, have to be careful, because they can develop ketoacidosis, which is the dangerous version Drinking enough fluids should keep the acetone levels in the urine at reasonable levels. The link below describes it in layman terms. What is Ketosis? Is Ketosis Dangerous? How to Detect Ketosis

Hi Mike I'm Kegra in Portland and I'm getting banded Aug 29th by Dr Patterson at Oregon Weight Loss Surgury. Two weeks to go! I'm so excited! I've already begun the work and I've lost 17# and I am so grateful that won't have to lose them *ever* again.

Lets resurrect an old fashion statement: suspenders! I think I still have my Mork and Mindy Rainbow suspenders somewhere. *wink*

I'm three weeks out from surgery and I keep trying the powders and shakes. I can barely get them down. They are either too chalky, too sweet, too thick, or have a peculiar vegamite-like smell that makes me gag. I did some research into liquid Proteins and found a few. One in particular sounds like a good possibility, but I was hoping to find out if anyone else had tried it: ProSource NoCarb Liquid Protein. 1oz = 15 grams of protein. Supposedly tasteless and colourless, and can be stirred into Jello, eggs, drinks, Soups, Cereal, etc. Anyone heard of / tried it? Kegra

Thanks to all of you for your sympathy. My sister was one of the most amazing, courageous women I have ever known. She had a huge appetite for life and she lived it fully. She was, and still is, inspiration to me, and I sure miss her. Some people have asked me why I am going forward with a weight loss surgery when my sister pretty much died from long-term complications from weight loss surgery. I've explained the differences between the two surgery types and how the Lap Band addresses the concerns I had about mal-absorbtion and changing nutritional needs as one ages, and most of them 'get' it. I am excited about the Lap-Band and the opportunity it will provide for me to live a longer, healthier, fitter life. I can think of no better way to honor both her memory and her own WLS choice than to proceed with my surgery. In some ways, I've got two lives to live

Next time someone gives you crap about not choosing RnY, you send them to me, and I'll tell them about my sister. I'll tell them she died in January 2008, 14 years post-op. I'll tell them she starved to death, died a horrible, excruciatingly drawn-out death, because she could not absorb nutrients anymore. I'll tell them that in the 2 years it took her to die of malnutrition I got to see the old woman she would have been, should have been, when she was 88, not 38. She looked like a walking corpse and people stopped and stared at her. It horrified her so much she stayed home. She developed Beri-Beri. Pancreatitis. She was on TPN and on J-tube. She lost her teeth, stopped growing her hair, ended up on hospice. I've nurse 3 relatives through cancer and I've never seen pain like she experienced when she had cellulitis from her feet t the tops of her thighs. And then her body started scavenging thiamine from her neural sheathe and her nerve pain was beyond belief. But saddest of all, she was so thiamine-deprived she developed a form of psychosis, and the last year of her life she was not herself. Yes, RnY gave her a quality of life she never would have had, and arguably, it might have extended her life. But SHE is the one who told me about the Lap Band, and she who told me she wished it had been available to her, instead of the RnY. There. End of Rant.

My Surgery date is August 29th My surgeon is Dr Emma Patterson My surgery will be at SW Washington Medical Center in Vancouver, WA

Hello, I'm Kegra. I've been working toward this place for years, though I finally made the commitment to being healthy and fit about 9 months ago, and that is when things started moving for me with my doc and my insurance company. I am amazed by what I accomplished once I committed myself fully to it and refused to be stopped (delayed, yes, but stopped, no). I'm on the pre-op diet, trying to find Protein powders and drinks that I can stand, because I know I'm going to be drinking a lot of them soon. I ordered a lot of samples from Vitalady.com and they actually taste pretty decent, its just I have a hard time with the thickness of the drinks. Using straws helps, but I'm going to look into the nectars. I'm also curious if anyone has any opinions about the liquid Proteins out there that are supposedly no carb and tasteless, like Prosource's product. I picked up one form of Liquid Protein but it is syrupy and sweet, and I'm not fond of sweet. I'm learning to eat meditatively, to really experience my food, even if its just cottage cheese and tuna fish. I eat slower that way, and find that I am satisfied sooner. I'm excited about the LapBand and its potential as a tool for helping to reinforce the behavioral, dietary and motivational changes I am making in my life.

Thank you for sharing your story. I was diagnosed with PCOS in 1990. I was 22 and madly in love with someone who wanted a large family. Obviously we didn't marry... I'd always been a very active person. I was on the soccer and softball teams, swam anchor on the swim team. I rode, biked, hiked, rappelled. In college I was on the crew and fencing teams. I was healthy and fit. I remember my senior year of high school through my senior year of college I was constantly in a panic that I was pregnant -- even though I was a 'safety girl' -- because my period was suddenly always late. And it got later and later. My skin got oiler and a bit coarser-- it didn't feel to me as soft as it once was. And I gained 20# in a year, even though I hadn't changed anything about my activity level or eating habits. Then, around age 25, the hair growth on my face started...chin and neck... and then 5 years later, the hair thinning on my head. I once had what my sisters called 'fairy-tale princess hair' long thick hair that grew in spiral ringlets that most people paid a fortune to get, and I lost most of it. I tried dieting, I tried exercising, I tried medications. I would lose about 35# and then I would get stuck. Each time I would stick it out a little longer, promised myself that I would break through that concrete floor, but it wouldn't happen. I'd get discouraged and give up, and the weight would bounce back up. It sucked. It still sucks. When I was 35, I resigned myself to being fat. I told myself if I could not lose the weight myself and keep it off, then I deserved to be fat. But that was negative self-talk, and it kept me in a defeated frame of mind for 4 years. Then one day I told a friend that it was ok to ask for help, that she didn't have to do it all herself. And I realized that I needed to take that to heart, too, and ask for help. And I did. Weight loss surgery has been prominent in my life for a dozen years... my younger sister who had PCOS also had the surgery and her life completely changed as a result. My doc said that bariatric surgery is the only real way to deal with weight for PCOS patients, but I didn't want it. I had serious concerns about the long-term nutritional consequences of the Gastric Bypass, and so I refused to have it. Years passed, and then my sister brought the LapBand to my attention and I read about it with a real sense of hope for the first time in a very long time. I am 4 weeks out from surgery. I feel like someone who has been trying to dig a hole finally being given a shovel. I will still have to do the work of digging, but I'll be far more efficient and less likely to be discouraged. Right now, I am flailing around in the throes of a syndrome no one really understands except that it 'involves insulin resistance and ovaries somehow', but with the Band I expect to be able to deal with the symptoms much more effectively while the medical establishment looks for the answer to the PCOS riddle. Have hope, and be determined. Be unstoppable. Things will happen that cause delays, but if you are really committed to being at a healthy weight and fitness level, then fight for it. It is a fight for your life-- because, let me tell you, I'm 40 and the long-term effects of obesity on PCOS patients is not pleasant. Good luck to you.

Hi, I want you to know that you are not alone in your frustration with PCOS. I am 4 weeks away from my surgery, and I lost 5 pounds in July, and I did it three ways. 1) I do a creative visualization three times a day. I take a 5 minute time out and I close my eyes and imagine it. I imagine making peace with my ovaries, I imagine my hormones being at 'normal levels', and I imagine myself walking, slowly, step by step, toward a thinner, fitter, healthier version of myself, and each step I feel lighter. Eventually when I arrive, I embrace that image and know it to be me. So, try turning all that passion that is currently directed toward negative thoughts toward more positive things. Love your body. Accept it. Cherish it as the house of your spirit. Make peace with your body, and perhaps then it will cease seeming to fight you. 2) I make sure I have enough calories in my diet. When I stopped eating enough, my body went into starvation mode and started conserving calories. 3) Fit in a few more steps every day. I've been parking my car farther and farther away from my office, the grocery store etc.