cattoy71

This has to be one of the hardest things to go through and I hope you can find some refuge here while going through this difficult time. My best to everyone.

I am so curious as to what will happen to my lady lumps. I began with a 38dddd(g) bra size and all I can say is that after losing close to 25 pounds, my bras fit soooooo much better. Who the heck knows what size they really were before I lost the weight since they seem to fit well into my older bras now, lol. I hated anesthesia, and would really like to avoid another surgery at all cost, but am also a bit scared to see what happens to them after time and gravity.

Sorry I don't want to hijack the thread, but I simply have to say Jacqui has perhaps the best responses around here! She is a true inspiration! Fatman, I loooove your name and couldn't help smiling at the thought of Chris Farley in Tommy Boy!

My doctor put me on 2 week driving restriction. It kinda drove me batty and I got a bit of cabin fever so I got the ok to drive after a full week at home.

Hi fellow Smashing Pumpkins!!!! I've been reading these threads and I'm getting back my motivation to work out again, so a sincere thank you to all I'm almost 9 weeks out and down a total of 23 pounds...I'm actually bouncing between 187 and 189 and I've realized I have to work a little harder at making better food choices. It seemed a couple weeks ago that I could eat about anything I wanted and continued to lose weight, and now I see the weight stand still that comes with my bad food choices. Congratulations to everyone! I am truly happy to be going through this process with the rest of you all!

Anne Marie, Congrats on your surgery and welcome to bandland!!! I hope you recover quickly :wink:

Hi omgogal, I was banded a few weeks after you on 10/13 and I have right about 3.2cc in my 10cc band. My surgeon is very strict with giving fills and will only schedule new fills no sooner then every 4 weeks (of course you can get an unfill at any time). My next fill is scheduled for 12/29 when are you scheduled for? A small part might be the fills (as it seems very few of us have difficulty losing weight without proper restriction), but you also didn't put in much information about how you are currently eating. Have you totally gone back to your old eating habits or are you working the Protein the way we are taught? Even though I was pretty prepared for the surgery, I am still kind of surprised of just how much work the band is. It is not easy to make good food choices every day, and the more you let it slide, the harder it seems to get back on track :wink: I would suggest going back to basics be making better food choices and eating primarily lean protein along with fresh fruits and vegetables...boring, I know. You might also want to look into your support groups or if they don't offer groups, check with other bariatric surgeon's offices. Good luck and let us know how you are doing!

Hi guys, My doctor told me that he places the band during surgery without any fill, but what I found out at the time of my first fill is this; when he "tests" the band in the operating room prior to placement, he injects fluid in to see there are no leaks. He then lets the band fill dribble out and keeps in whatever wants to stay. In my case, I was banded with about 2.2cc. I was actually not all that surprised that I had fluid in the band since I wasn't really hungry when I got my first 1cc fill 6 weeks out.

Katieanne, I was banded on 10/13 (8 weeks ago) and I'm down 22 pounds. Wish it were more, and I think I'm finally breaking through a little weight stand still, but I'm still very happy! Congrats, and keep up the good work!

I know how you feel! I got my first fill right before thanksgiving, and not scheduled again until the 29th. My doctor is pretty strict with fills....no sooner then every 4 weeks! I am a bit disappointed, but he's the expert since he has been banding people since 2001! Slower fills give your body more time to adjust and I am totally convinced that slow fills decrease the chance of band erosion (at least that's what I'm telling myself, lol). Hang in there and work the protein to feel more full!

My surgeon was talking about the realize band at our last support group. He mentioned that he prefers the allergan band because it is third generation and they seem to have worked whatever kinks out, and that the realize manufacturers are already working on the second generation band due to some obvious potential complications...This is the same band that just got approved and they are already re-doing it! In fact, they are re-working it to make it look much like the lapband. Go figure.

I love this thread and glad I remembered seeing it earlier! I'm about 2 months out, and am definately noticing a funky smell.....it is pretty strong and I totally agree that I don't want my hubby to get anywhere near it, lol. I honestly can't tell if I am better off with or without panty liners. If it is ketosis, I hope it passes. I drink quite a bit of Water as it is, and I have been at a little weight loss stall for the past week too. I'm pretty sure it's not an infection or bv since I recently saw my obgyn and all my tests were normal :tt1:

Denise, what did you decide? Did you buy the rabbit after all? Enquiring minds want to know!

Wow, I wish you lucky in this difficult time. I absolutely think that leaving you alone on your anniversary is very telling and wrong. I must admit (and my husband would agree) that the majority of my girlfriends are actually very proud and open gay males. We spend A LOT of time together, and have even gone on several short road trips together through out the years! They are my second family, and keep me sane. However, my husband of 13 years knows them all and he is often included in our outings (I acually prefer that my husband sees them with me only occasionally, they are after all my friends, and many of them have the hotts for my very handsome husband!) I couldn't tell from your postings how well you know your wife's friend, but it does definately appear that she is creating a lot of marital issues for you. Please keep us all posted on what happens!

Thanks so much for sharing! I love the picture and your weight loss is an inspiration!!! p.s. welcome to onderland

I got a great 3.99%APR through Capital One Credit. I only financed the hospital and anesthesia fees ($9500) and my monthy fees are around $400.

I had my first fill on Monday and everything went great. I had not been in bandster hell, so I wasn't sure if I would even need a fill. It turns out that when he tested my band at the time of surgey, he lets the Fluid leak back out and he keeps whatever amount stays in.....I was pre-filled with 2.2 cc's. I guess that explains why I wasn't starving all this time. My surgeon found the port on the first try, and added a mere 1 cc to my already 2.2cc's for a total of 3.2cc's. I'm down 21 pounds in less then 2 months, feel great, and looooove my band! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!!!

Lol, it's true to store your cyber skin toys in corn starch! The cyber skin is poreous and that's one of the reasons it gets so funky so quickly.

Hah, we are all going to be addicted to our toys before long!!!

When I've ordered, my surprise gift was a dual bullet vibrator (both you and your partner can have fun at the same time!) and another smallish battery vibrator. I usually always go for the toy gift ever since I found out they sometimes tend to give you 2 gifts instead of 1!

Omg people looooove the purple vibrator...it's funny looking but excellent if you ever want to go to town by yourself!!!! Another toy women looove is the cyber skin "tongue" vibrator from goodvibes.com......they can never seem to get them returned from the toy testers, lol! I wonder if the clit sucker is an attachment you place on a toy, or if it it's own stand alone toy.

Engliah Girl, who are you referring to? Just need some clarification :smile2:

I had the mirena implanted just 3 weeks before my LapBand and all is well :drool:

All I can say is WOW after reading pages of this amazing thread! I hope the people who originated this thread back in '05 still come back to read our stories. Ok, I have kinda hesitated about putting my story out there, but here goes. I'm the youngest of 3 daughters, and in high school, both of my sister's had various but undocumented eating disorders. I thought of myself as lucky because I never had a chubby phase like my older sisters, and I was always lazy, but surprisingly athletic. I don't think I would go so far to call me a high school "mean girl", but I was definately headed in that direction. I was HOT, lol, and I loved it. I continued to live in a perfect size 8 world at around 125 pounds until I was about 25ish, I'm 37 years old now. Up until I was 25 I had my fair share of family issues, un-documented depression, sexual harassment, anxiety, etc, and I remember where is standing at the time I said these words to my husband "I honestly feel like my body wants me to be at this (125) pound weight....I think I would have put on a bunch of weight by now due to all those struggles, but I guess not." OMG how wrong was I! Next thing I know, I am working at a crappy job where I was being sexually harassed, living in a state that I detested, and falling deeper into depression. I honestly think I put on like 30 or 40 pounds in a matter of a couple months! I'm still upset that my then doctor never took that severe weight gain as a sign of depression, but at least I'm medicated now As you can probably tell, I have never had much of an issues with self esteem, lol. I knew I was gaining weight rapidly, but didn't really think I had been eating all that much more then in stressful times before, but I was putting on weight.....How dare that happen to me, lol! I finally began treatment for depression once I finally moved to California, and was incredibly happy, but could just not lose the weight. Over time, I eventually gained 20 pounds here, and 20 pounds there, but my body hides it surprisingly well (If you click on my picture and check out my photo album, you will be able to see for yourself). It was also during this time (around 2000) that I flatly refused to be weighed at any doctor's appointment. I figured that there was never a way I would ever weight over 200, so I was fine with not knowing. I just could not deal with hearing the number, and was "blissfully unaware" of how much I weighed for many years. My friends and family were concerned because they never really saw me eat huge amounts of food. I do love my chocolate, and I don't think that will ever change, but there never seemed like I had one clear issue as to why the weight kept adding up. Also, each time I visited my family I would be overcome with anxiety at seeing my older sisters. Although they both had their issues as teens, their weight finally stabilized. My middle sister is about 5 feet tall and weighs less then 90 pounds after having 3 kids, and my oldest sister is about 5'2 and weighs around 120. I remember them thinking I was huge when I was younger since I'm the tallest at 5'4, but if they thought I was huge at 125, what the hell must they have thought of me once I gained all that weight!!! This past may, I began working out in earnest and really watching my food intake. You guys, I serioulsy almost fainted when I stepped on the gym scale and it read 223!!!! I always thought that I could be relatively healthy and happy if I stayed under 200 pounds. Afterall, that is a full 75 pounds heavier then I have ever been. I went to a fat doctor, who tried every weight pill out there on me, and none of them worked. There was also nothing wrong with my bloodwork to indicate I had a thyroid or other metabolic issue....I was just a fat fatty! So I worked out almost every day, eventually biking up to 60 miles a week, but my weight predictibly stayed between 208 and 216. I finally broke down on my birthday, and decided that I had to surrender myself to the fact that this issue is bigger then something I can do on my own. Gaining the weight hasn't been the absolute worst thing in the world for me. It has managed to take a "mean girl" and turn me into a sympathetic and less judgmental adult. Whew, that's alot to write so I'll end it here.

Amazing work Aubrie!!! Thank you for sharing your wonderful success!