riley4183

It is amazing! One of my friends with same surgeon ended up with 5.6 at surgery, and another 2 at first fill. Just depends on what everyone needs!

Oh Nicole that SO SUCKS!!! Jeez did they jack you around long enough or WHAT??? Going to try and stay on no carbs today and LOTS of water/liquids to see if I can get rid of this crap that I put back on camping! yes it was a TON of fun, but not sure it was worth the weight gain! If it comes back off easy then it was; but it took me so long to lose it that I don't want to go through akk that again! Then it will be NOT worth it.

Nobody's getting my Mirena out!! Hot42, criteria for referral from Kaiser are like Nicole said - BMI of 35 + 2 comorbidities (sleep apnea, high blood pressure, diabetes); OR BMI of 40 or more; OR 100 lbs. overweight. I qualified under all 3! I tried to qualify a few years back when I was only at 37 BMI and was told no, I gained weight (yes, from the Mirena!) over the next few years, plus high blood pressure, finally had sleep apnea diagnosed. I have no problem losing with the Mirena BTW, but then I have had it for almost 3 years so probably not the same effects that it had on me earlier.

About 2 cc in my 10cc Allergen AP band @ surgery. My doc keeps on top of my fills - I email him if I start getting hungry and gaining again before my next schedculed fill and I have felt "filled" enough the whole time except for the week before my first fill, which was 6 weeks post-op. :-)

Me too on the 9/80! No 4/10s for me tho, was forced to do that when I worked for a city once and I just CAN'T. I am stupid after 4 o'clock! I get reved up again for night meetings, but between about 3:30 and 6:30 I am OUT of it. no brain function. zippo. I just blank everything. Going to bad - yes this early! Away from my nice bed and CPAP for 3 nights, now I have them back and I can't wait! Het why did everyone stop posting what they ate? That was some good accountability right there!

Thanks Tina, I wish I was coming tomorrow too so I could see all you guys! I had enough issues camping tho that I am pretty sure I don't want a fill again yet, LOL. I just need to follow the rules better again! And I get a fill in early August. You girls are jogging way more than I am, I am not doing C25K I just walk 400, jog 400 (steps) walk 500, jog 500 so actually am spending more time walking than jogging! I do not plan to run a whole 5K though, I just jog some of my walk for 1) cardio and 2) to get it done faster! As long as your young joints hold up to it, I say GO FOR IT! woot, woot! But you will still see this old lady at the Lake Tahoe Marathon!! Yes we will definatly have another round of layoffs, probably 2 more this fiscal. Already have 8 days mandatory furlough now last week were told we were also getting a 10% pay cut on top of that (4 less hours a week) and the union is saying its OK to go to 80% as long as they get to preserve some damn thing that olaw enforcement or someone wants but I don't give a crap about. Hate my union right now! Cities of Petaluma and Ronert Park have already completely eliminated their planning departments, really bad news for me since I'm a planner. Have not been in to the office yet to hear the news but may be real depressed 2morrow!

I totally agree with Tina (above)! I only PB if I try to eat bread or something else that I KNOW does not work for me now (same for pancakes, tortillas) or if I try to eat too fast and am talking to people. Unlike Tina though, I told everyone who would listen, in a way it is harder because they watch me really close when I eat now, LOL! And I agree with the poster who says exercise will become a part of your life - absolutely. You might not want to hear that, but believe me, when it happens to you you will be feeling SO great and have SO much energy that you will love exercising, and you will love that you love it! In that regard, I guess life HAS kinda flipped upside down for me - I went from a sloth to an excercise fiend - but things had ton change, didn't they? For my health, and for my self-esteem. That said, I still do all of the things that I did before the band - and even more, because I CAN do more. I honestly do not feel like I have had any negative changes. No I don't even miss bread! It's AMAZING this little band in me :-)

I'm home . . . . . . exhausted, but home! 4 days of dust and swimming in the Russian River, which LOOKS clear but . . .who knows?? It was a BLAST. But I ate and drank WAY too much and did not exercise nearly enough - gained 2 lbs. back :-( but hopefully that will be gone again by the end of the weekend. OH I loved having my skinny little self out there doing EVERY and any activity I wanted!!! Loved it loved it loved it. Food was an amusing adventure, they would like fry up my veggie sausage patties for me - in the same pan/fat as the pork ones, LOL! Tasted good tho :-) Every single dinner, I ate SOMEthing that did not go down, and I was up walking around, jumping up and down, pounding myself in the chest, actually PBed only once but sheez . . . . bread is a big fat NO for me - I had already learned that one, but apparently I needed to learn it again . . . . pasta is a big no, veggie chicken patties also a no unless I put something (like chili!) on them. . . but I can eat chips & salsa like a champ! Potato salad too, that one I did NOT need to know about. I need to wean myself back off of carbs now!!! Going to go read some posts from the last 4 days & drive my son to get a signature for school . . . . . type to yal later

OK folks, I'm off to camping! Type to ya Tuesaday :-)

Good morning Tina! I hope Auntie doesn't stay too long this time!

Woo-hoo, Hendy Woods has spaces, September 11-13 . . .but filling fast. It's my favorite for families, great places for them to bike and BEAUTIFUL hiking trails! On the Navarro River . . although it will no doubt be very low this drought year, close to the coast and fab! Hendy Woods SP

Oh and let's pick someplace with great hiking trails! We will probably LOSE weight on our little mini-vacation, LOL!

Thanks Jes! And OMG, that is a GREAT idea, a group camping trip! Healthy eating, lo-carb mixers and you only have to go as far as the bushes to PB!! LOL, seriously! Let's do it. One weekend in early September? Anybody wanna go? WHERE do we wanna go? OMG THIS IS GONNA BE FUN! Anyone know a place we can still get reservations? I will check up in the redwoods & rivers, but I know the coast is booked into next summer. I can tent OR RV camp, don't care

Heh heh heh, I USED to be embarrased because I had to pack a big fat suitcase to go on a little trip like nthis - not because I had so many shoes to bring, but because my clothes were twice as big and I had to make sure that all my tops were long enough to cover up my belly! Now my stuff fits easily in a backpack :-) So I guess it's a trade-off, I have to bring weird vegetarian lap-band no PB food, but I also bring only a backpack of clothes! And hummus and sunflower seeds. Peace . . .

O girls, I need to go get some miles in before I leave for camping. I am having "issues" with what I need to bring for ME to eat. The "group" has menus all planned out, plus snacks and drinks of course. Hamburgers, hot dogs, lasagna, chicken, potato salad and pasta salad. Soda pop and beer. They are used to me bringing boca burgers and eggplant and such to throw on the grill at BBQs, but I really need to bring stuff that I KNOW I can eat and stay on plan with - egg beaters, lentils, tofu, soy milk, etc. I need to be sure that there are no PB episodes, but I am sorta embarased! These are hearty meat-and-potato women who just do not abide with tofu- and italian to boot! WHAT?? No pasta salad???? If it was just an afternoon party I could just go with the flow and eat very small portions, but it's 3 whole days! I need to take care of myself. I have pre-made lentils, boiled edamame, etc. and my friend & support person Mary Jo has made a nice zuchinni fritatta and a cucumber salad, which I can for sure eat. WHY do I feel so embarrassed? And what to do about it??

Oh my gosh Lauren, I LOVE your blog! You are a fab writer. Keep up the good work girl!

Welcome, Hope! Love that name :-) It IS a lot of info, there is much to learn and the more educated you are about the whole thing, the better you will do! I hope you will post whenever you have a question or concern, and just to stay motivated! Best of luck to you! Riley

Nicole are you really on here? I thought you were camping!

I totally agree with Donna about the accountability factor with the band. With RNY you see your surgeon @ surgery then - not. There is something very motivating about knowing you have to see your surgeon every month or two! It's almost impossible to just "give up" or drop out after lap-band surgery. And you gotta love those group fills, what a blast! What can I say, it works for me! I LOVE my band and I am 100% sure that I made the right choice for me.

SUPER cute new pic Heather! What a difference!

Tani, Dr. Baggs told me that BMI of 42 or less are the best candidates for lap-band. I guess you are right on the edge there . . . she is a very thoughtful doc and she must be thinking of your best interests. There are reasons to get RNY instead of the band, for instance diabetes - which isn't an issue for you - or if your eating issues include lots of sweets. Like Reggie says, we will support you whatever you chose! We just want you to make a fully educated choice, and not feel pressured either way. Volume eating has always been my issue, so the band is PERFECT for me! I also have lost weight faster than many RNY patients, but please do not let the rate of weight loss be you most important consideration - this is about the rest of your life! And in the end it all comes down to creating a new lifestyle for yourself, NOT which surgeon you had or even what kind of surgery. Soy Slender chocolate 140 singles Swiss 2% Milk - 16 ct 50 Saltine Cracker 13 lunch Dry Roasted Edamame Lightly Salted 104 Lentils 57

Heather ! You go girl! Woot, woot! 50 is HUGE! I hope you feel GREAT about Heather right now! Jeez I thought I lost a lot before surgery - WOW!! Jeepers I just lost another .5 overnight . . .making up for that plateau I guess! Gives me breathing room for my camping trip, LOL :-) got to go pick up the RV & pack! Have a great one girls!!

That's GREAT! Only 13 lbs! But PLEASE don't let ANYone talk you into RNY if it is not what YOU want! This is for YOU, and this is about the REST of YOUR life, not about the Kaiser Richmond weight loss statistics!!! Stick to your guns! She does a great job with lap-band too, you just have to tell her that's what you want!

I think it's normal to not feel any restriction atall until after your 2nd fill - at least that's what my surgeon told me. It's called "bandster hell" and it can last for a long time! The period between surgeryand your first fill - typically 6 weeks, is for healing only, and NOT for weight loss. So if you are hanging on to the loss you experienced during your first (liquid) food stages after surgery, be thankful! It WILL be different after a fill . . then you will lose more weight and it will be like you can eat anything and are hungry in 2 hours again . . .then you will get another fill and be full on 2 oz. and forget about food completely for 4-5 hours . . then you will lose more weight and gnaw through the side of a cow again . . and so on (ROFLMAO about that cow, by the way!). It's a great system when you think about it! I got through it - and maintained a steady weight loss - bycutting out ALL starches - my only carbs were from vegies & legumes for quite a while. I also walked 8 miles a day and drank a TON of water!! It kept me from being hungry and I lost about 10-12 lbs a month - until a week before my 1st, 2nd & 3rd fills, when I would stop losing completely. It's just my pattern. Good luck! Please report back how you feel after your fill!

I want to come on Thursday!!! But Kellie said there is noroom left . . . I am sad!