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I know that you said you have had 5 fills already but obviously, it is not restricting you if you can eat 6 cups of anything. Maybe you can ask your doctor to completely unfill you and then fill you again to see just how much you have in your port. You should be eating at the most one cup of any food so it sounds like you really do not have any restriction. In the meantime, how about going back to basics? What kind of diet were you on before the surgery to lose weight? How about jumpstarting yourself with a week of a liquid diet or a low car diet? Once you start losing weight again, you will probably start feeling better about yourself and not eat all the starch and sugar you are doing right now. Remember, we are food addicts so we always need to get back on the wagon. Helen

Hi Carol, I know how frustrating it can get. Just remember that this is a change for the rest of your life so you can take it in stride. I had my surgery postponed by my doctor three times and when I finally got it done, I realized it was all worth it. Just keep plugging along and one day before you know it, your surgery date will be here. In regards to this site, I would concentrate on questions and answers for before the surgery. Reading all the after surgery issues may give you a headache and also give you the idea that this process is more complicated than it is. Helen

Congrats! I wish the best for you. Good luck with your surgery and as you know, we are all here to hear or help. Helen

Hi Vangirl. The other posters are correct. Your doctor wants you to lose weight so your liver will have shrunk but they are not going to hold you back for 1.8lbs. My doctor asked me to lose 20lbs and I lost 17lbs. He was happy to proceed. Make sure you are really hydraded. Drink a lot of Water. The more water you drink, the less your body will retain water. In regards to your constipation, you may want to check with your doctor or your local pharmacy in ways to get rid of it. You will be much more comfortable after surgery. H

Hi Darla, I am from So. Cal also in San Diego. It sounds like you are moving right along. The pre-surgery part is pretty easy. You will probably be scheduled with your surgeon next so you can go over your test results. They will also want you do a psych consult and a diet consult. Then if everything goes well with those as well, you will get a surgery date and your surgeon will go over with you how much weight you need to lose before the surgery. I wish you much success in your process!

Please remember that this is about your health. I agree with Diane from the previous post. You need to start with the basics. By reaching out it sounds like you are ready to get back on track so get started!!! H

Hi Steph, I know how hard it can be to make someone understand what you are going through and I commend you for thinking of doing this without your husband's support. I think you have to at least try one more time to have an open conversation with your husband. Maybe he does not realize that women's bodies are different than men's. I am not saying tht men do not go through the same struggles but he cannot assume that you are going to be able to lose weight the same way he has. He also has to realize that this is about your health and the quality of your life. If even after your next talk, he is still not behind it, I would advise you to go forward. It sounds like you have the support of many people around you and you need to get healthy. I hope this helps.

Hi KathrynAG, Good to hear from you. 10lbs. is great for being banded less than a month! I would not worry too much about getting a fill just yet. If you are banded less than a month, your body really needs time to heal. I like eating the Kozy Tapioca pudding with splenda, 90 calories. Also the Healthy Choice single serving Soups are pretty good. I just visited my dietician because I was worried about not losing enough weight even though I am only eating about 1000 calories a day. She and I went over my list of foods and we realized that I was taking in too much salt from the food I was eating and I was retaining Water. She told me to limit my intake of salt to 1000 mgs per day. Keep in touch.

I encountered the same problem. The product is not listed on their website but the stores have plenty of them. I hope you find it at the local store. H

I personally really like the "Max Protein" there. If you get one bottle, the 2nd one is half price. One scoop will give you 28 grams of protein. I like the "cookies and cream" flavor the best. I put that in a shake with 1/2 a banana and some ice and blend it all together. It is really delicious and very good for you. Just remember that you need a shake in high protein and low carb.

I finally started feeling full this week and it does not feel the same as feeling stuck. The sensation of feeling full to me is the same as before my surgery when I ate a full meel and I was pleasantly satiated. Feeling stuck to me is that uncomfortable feeling that you hope will go away soon or you may have to throw up. H

Good to have you aboard. I had to pay for it myself as well and took out a loan. I do not regret it one bit. I wish you much success!!!! Helen

I thought about doing the same thing. I tried a few bottles but it just did not have enough seasoning for me. H

My surgeon told me a story about a patient who swore up and down that he had been on protein shakes but just could not lose the weight. When he started the surgery, because the liver was pressing down on the on the stomach, he could not secure the lapband on the stomach even though he was able to place it. He had to schedule another surgery just to stitch the band in place after he lost some more weight. The patient had to pay for the extra surgery. H

You probably have heard it all but it does get better. I think having gone through all that you have, you may be subconsciously thinking that you need to eat what you can now before you get your first fill. All I can say is that I did a similar thing. Four weeks after my banding, I started eating food that I should not have and gained about 8 lbs in one week. Then I had to almost starve myself the last two weeks before my fill so I could show some progress to my doctor and not be embarrassed. These two weeks were a wakeup call for me. It took me 5 days to gain 8 lbs. but it took me two weeks to take it back off. I could not stop thinking about the fact that even with the surgery and all that I had gone through, I still had not learned to modify my behavior and care enough about myself to stay on course. Things will get better for you after the first fill but you still need to decide if you really want to commit to this process because you know as well as I do that if we really decide to eat what we want instead of what is good for us, we will find a way despite all the trouble we went through to get the lapband. H

I know how you feel about the embarrassment but we really need to give ourselves a break. Even though we want to be poster patients, we really are human with good and bad days and I am sure you doctor has seen everything. Maybe he can help you pinpoint what you need to do to succeed more. Just remember, you have already lost 36 lbs and have not gained. Think positive! H

I agree with you. I hope you can go back to the doctor and get some answers. H

Can you describe the procedure a little bit more? Did they numb the area of the port and then once they put the needle in your port, have you start sipping Water to see how tight they needed to make it? If all this did not happen, you probably did not get a proper fill. The other way I heard about is the flouroscopy but I have not had that done so I can't say anything about it. H

Hi Sherry, I really feel for you. Maybe instead of going in for a fill, you should make an appointment just to talk with your doctor. I would explain the situation to him to see what he can do for you. I know that you are worried about having fills left for later but if you are not losing weight steadily now, it will not get better later. I found with my doctor that I can talk with him and he can work around the rules. You just need to make sure that the band is working optimally for you. Your doctor should also want you to succeed as well. Best of luck. Helen

Congrats!!!! Welcome. I have found this site really helpful. H

I love the way you write. I have been chuckling over your descriptions of your rolls. I had a similar problem. About one week after surgery, I noticed that the area where my port was had swelled to the size of a baseball and the port itself felt huge! I paged my doctor right away and he told me that it was normal and if it did not get better, to call him monday morning and he would squeeze me in. When he saw my port location on monday, he said everything was fine and I was coming right along. I have since discovered that my port went down in size but it took several weeks and the stitches were sensitive to almost any rubbing contact. I stopped babying my port site and started wearing spanks with all my clothes. I also started to do lots of crunches and now the area looks much better. Hope my sharing helps. Helen

Our bands have been stitched in place all around it's perimeter so the likelyhood of your band slipping is pretty low. When I first got banded,I had an allergic reaction to my pain med and I dry heaved for two days straight. My band was still fine. Because we are eating smaller amounts of food, our bodies are making our smelling senses sharper so we will eat more food. This is probably why you are more sensitive to smell right now. I had the same problem. It gets better as time goes by, I promise.

I have to admit, after I went online and I read everyone talking about their ports flipping, I was convinced that my port had flipped. Of course when I went in to see my doctor everything was okay. I think as you lose weight and as the swelling goes down, you are going to experience some shifting, bruising and tight twinges. All of these are normal. Hope this helps. Helen

Okay. I am going to tell it to you straight. Your doctor wants you to lose weight so your liver will be nice and small so he can get to your stomach easier and your waist will be a little thinner so your incision will be smaller and easier to heal. I had me surgery rescheduled three times for various reasons and I had to go on a liquid diet three times. By the third time, I kept on asking myself why I am doing this. Well today, I fit into a size 16 jeans that I have not been able to fit into in two years. and I am steadily losing at a rate of 10 lbs a month. Keep yourself motivated by thinking of how healthy you are going to get and how great you will feel. I know how hard it is but just think of all the success stories you see on this site. You will be a success story to. Helen

I think you have had tremendous success for far. I know that it is slow going but just remember that the slower you lose you weight, the better your body adjusts and you will be able to keep it off for the rest of your life. I think you should go back to your doctor for another fill though. I am able to eat about 4-5 ounces of food before I feel full. If you are not feeling full, you are not restricted enough. Helen