MommyJD

Terrible time sticking to the diet when the band wasn't restrictive. . .that was the whole problem. Unless the band is tight enough, everything feels the same as pre-op so you are as hungry as if you had no band. Once you have restriction though, its like magic. . .

Try not to get frustrated. . .your band WILL eventually work, you might just need a fill or two (or three) to get to the right level, but once its right the weight will come off. I went almost three months post surgery without losing a single pound and cried thinking that I'd had surgery for no reason while everyone else on the forum seemed like they were losing like 5 pounds a week. I had no restriction at all until I'd had four fills and got 10ccs into a 10cc band. Once it worked, though, I lost 80 pounds before my first band anniversary and have kept it off for three years with no further fills. Hang in there!!

Welcome and good luck! I am four years out, lost 80 pounds my first year and have maintained for the last 3. Let me know if you have any questions I can answer. I can tell you now that my bottom line will be that it is totally worth it.

Im 3 years post band, and didn't drink soda for about the first year mostly because I thought something terrible would happen. I wound up drinking a fresca somewhere because it was the only option, and it was fine. Now I probably drink a can of diet soda every couple of days and have had no problems. I have more problems keeping my weight down if I dont get enough total water in a day, so for me if having a diet soda here and there encourages me to keep drinking then its a net positive. Lately I've gotten kind of hung up on these Mio things that let you squirt flavor into bottled water. I actually like it better than soda, so soda may wind up back out of the picture if I remember to keep a Mio in my purse.

Happy Bandaversary everyone!!!

Good luck Rachel! Im almost exactly a year ahead of you (banded 12/9/08), and can honestly say it was the best thing I've ever done for myself. Still have a little way to go, but my BMI has dropped from 41 to 29 in less than a year and I feel amazing. Dont panic about the stories of food getting "stuck" etc. Eating with a band takes some getting used to, but its not painful. There will be some things (like untoasted bread) that you are likely to have problems with, but you will actually get to a point where you just dont crave the things that dont work well for you. I know thats hard to believe. Honestly. I think its like having an allergy to those foods. . .after a few times of reacting (which basically consists of feeling like you want to throw up) your head starts to tell you that you dont like those things anymore. As far as I can tell it unfortunately never tells you that you dont like ice cream anymore. . .so its not like you start to just crave carrots. :cursing: Recovery from surgery is way easier than you imagine. . .just stay calm and ease into trying new foods. Best of luck!!

Zero change for the past six weeks, so that's not good. On the other hand, that is exactly the point where it got too cold to ride my bike to work anymore (18 miles round trip daily) so its not like I'm shocked that when the biking stopped the weight loss "coincidentally" stopped too. Feeling OK about at least holding steady, but will have to find something to replace the exercise until May. My BMI is down to 29.1, so I'm feeling pretty healthy in a size 12.

You might need a real jolt to your band, Sue, since it sounds like you are deep in the "yellow" zone. I am in my sweet spot now, but have more than 10ccs in a 10cc band. I didn't have any restriction at all (even initally) until I was over 9ccs, and have had to have a few .5 cc adds since then as the weight has come off. My doc does a drinking test after adding to the band and if fluid doesn't flow right down she backs off until it does. Ask you doctor if he'd be willing to let you try to swallow with a bigger add to the band and then work backwards until you feel like there is proper restriction. Good luck!

I'm overweight! Yeah! I officially hit BMI of 29, so have moved from morbidly obese to severely obese to regular obese to my new category of "overwieight". Only five more BMI points to go until I hit the holy grail of "HEALTHY". Seems almost possible now. . . Hope all is well for everyone

Hang in there, Vickie! I can imagine how frightened I would be at this point if my doc made me remove all of the water from my band. Its not just a weight gain/loss thing at this point. . .its more about finally having a sense of control over your own life. Every one of us with a band had to first hit that low point where we were convinced that we couldn't control our own eating no matter how hard we tried. For most of us, having the band is the first real ray of confidence that we've had for years. Don't lose hope. You know that the band does work for you, and that you just need a short period to heal from your complication. You are still in control. Just try to do what you can to hold the line until your band can be filled. A few gained pounds is much less of a big deal than giving in to the old fears. Try some sugar free popsicles - they take a long time to eat. I was going to complain that I've gained 2 pounds and need another fill, but your story helped put things in perspective. Thanks.

Just testing to see if I can get my ticker thing to work. I'm really bad at this technology. . .

Glad to hear from you, Pete. I was getting worried. (I'm a mom of 6. . .its what I do) Sorry to hear about the job loss - best of luck to you in finding a quick and better replacement. Welcome back!

Congrats Bill!! I think you are the first one in our forum to get all the way to goal. Guess it really CAN be done.

Anybody heard from Florida Pete? Hope you are still doing great out there, Pete. You are such an inspiration. . .hope you are off having too much fun to post.

Hope everyone has a great weekend. I went in yesterday and the good news was that I'd lost 14 pounds in 7 weeks (yeah. . .all that daily exercise paid off!) I'm a little worried though because my doc "made me" take some fluid out of my band when I told her that I'm mainly only able to eat fluids and really soft foods at both breakfast and lunch. I've now started feeling really hungry again, and am scared that the loss of fluid in the band is going to slow down my progress. Only five pounds to go until I hit 163 - thats my BMI 29.9 point. Seems significant in my head to move from "obese" to "overweight" on the BMI scale for the first time in over 10 years. . . Gonna get there in August if it kills me.

How :unsure:many cc:s do most of you have in your bands to be at the "sweet spot?" I've had 7 fills, and am now pretty close to my sweet spot with 11 ccs in a 10 cc band. (My doc says it can actually go up to 13 and not to worry about it). I didnt have any restriction at all for the first 4 or 5 fills until it was over 10 in a 10 cc band. Still surprised to hear Pete say he gets restriction with 5 ccs. Isnt it weird how much variation there can be?

Hang in there Sue. You've lost over 80 pounds!! I know the bad weeks are frustrating, but sometimes you have to take a quick look behind you to remember how much of the hill you've already climbed. You can do this!!

(Banded 12/9 - 11.2ccs in a 10 cc band after 7 fills (not a typo) Great to see how well everyone is doing. I'm down 40, 50 more to go. I've actually been starting to run again, and am up to three miles every other day. On the off days I'm riding my bike to work (8 miles each way). Feels so great to be able to exercise again without back pain. Hoping to get down five more punds by the fourth of July so that I can officially be at the half way to goal mark:thumbup:. Just got another fill yesterday and finally feel a little restriction again. Something seems wrong when you need more than a band is supposed to hold before anything happens. Have a great June everyone!

Great to see how you are all doing! Haven't posted since December. Had six fills since then (I had to get more than 10ccs in a 10 cc band before it worked at all) but now Ive had three months of it working. I feel like Im about 2-3 months behind now, but down 35 from surgery on 12/9 (from 220-185). Goal is 175 by the 4th of July. Way to go Pete!!

I was banded 4 days ago (Tuesday) and still weigh about a pound more than the morning of surgery. I weighed almost 4 pounds more on day 2, so at least its getting better. Since I'm only consuming clear liquids, I assume that I'm just retaining water for some reason. I keep reading posts from people who lost 10-12 pounds in the week following surgery, so wondering if I should be concerned. . .

Good luck on Thursday, Stewy! I'm five days behind you (Tuesday the 9th) so I'll be interested to hear how it all went. Best of luck! Gina (Mommy JD) P.S. So are you on all clear liquids on Wed?

Hi Carol! I'm on the 9th too. Good luck!

By the way, Mjenkins, I'm so impressed that you've already lost 34+ pounds without the band. Way to go!

The hospital I'm going to does allow for same day release, but get this - my insurance company only covers the procedure if I am admitted over night. Isn't that crazy? First they fight not to cover you, then they insist on the most expensive option. . .In short, I'll be there overnight. I've told a couple of friends, my husband, and my kids.