CordovaChick

I believe something is going on with my port. I have had the dull aching pain on the lower left side too.....under the rib cage. I have had such difficulty w/constipation that I went to my gastro dr. & he thought it might be diverticulosis, however, the CT scan was normal. Now I am headed to the bariatric surgeon & will likely have the endoscope or fluoroscope. It isn't a sharp pain, but gnawing pain & hurts especially when I move or take a deep breath. I still have some restriction though. My surgery will be one year next week and I still need to lose 30-35 pounds. We'll see. Thanks to all who posted here. It did help me to realize that my band is most likely the culprit.

Thanks Laurel for responding.....you were the only ONE! My band hasn't slipped & I am thankful. It was quite sore and I went to my doc. All is well now; didn't have to have an unfill. It was a scare tho. I won't be writing here anymore. Seems some people on this board are just concerned with themselves and their travels, not how people are doing on the lap band. Thanks again!! Cordova Chick

Hello everyone - help, I need some advice. Last wknd I moved and although I had movers for the furniture & appliances I have lifted some boxes. Nothing very heavy though or my back couldn't stand it. I was careful not to p/u anything really heavy. Yesterday and today I have soreness in the port area. I have heard of a slipped band but I still have my restriction and do not have any other eating problems like people mention. I plan on calling the doc office on Monday, but meanwhile has anyone experienced this? Not pain, just soreness. I am wondering too if the port is lower than it was. I never felt the port until I had substantial weight loss; when I finally did feel it, it seemed to be about 2 inches below my bra line. Now it is lower than that...maybe 3-4 inches. I'm afraid it is in my stomach! But is that possible since I still feel restriction? Any thoughts/ideas? Thanks.....I hope you all are doing good. I've not lost any more weight.

Lisa, I'm like you. I haven't even tried steak because I have had difficulties with even chicken & fish. Chicken has to be very tender or I get stuck. Very little ground beef either; just in soups. I am at a plateau right now; not going either direction, but staying the same is better than gaining any day. Not having my old standard Dr. Pepper has not bothered me at all; no bread is not a problem; but sweets.....wow, do I crave sweets. Nights especially. Haven't been doing so great w/the exercise so I have got to get with the program again. Slacked off during the summer. But hey I did lose a pound the week of vacation from walking on the beach! Hope everyone's okay. Posts are few & far between here.

MRose, I'm sorry to hear the news about your mother. I can't imagine what you must be going through with the situation. It sounds like you do have a good support system which is so important. Remember to take care of yourself although it will be more difficult than ever. The caregivers get run down so easily. Your pix is great! It looks to me like you don't need to lose any more. I still have a good amount around my middle (stomach) to lose. Have skinny legs & no butt. It's all in the middle....and on my neck :sneaky: Take care.

Hi everyone. Summer has been fun, but I'm still at a plateau. Went to the beach at the end of July then camping another week in mid August. Have a good tan, but no more weight loss. None gained either. I did have some GREAT news recently. When I had surgery they did the liver biopsy & I was told I had fatty liver/enlarged liver/some damage throughout the liver. Was sent to a specialist last Feb. He said with losing weight it might reverse itself. He scheduled me to come back in 6 months (last week). The results were that my liver enzymes were all normal!!! They had been elevated for probably 5-6 years. The last test just before the lap band surgery they were almost twice what the normal range is. I was told to keep on doing what I am doing & come back in six months. Had they been elevated dr. would have put me on metformin, a diabetes drug that has proven to help w/fatty liver. I am so ecstatic over these results. I am definitely healthier even though I feel I have slowed down considerably. Will keep on with my eating habits and surely will lose a pound or two soon. Hope everyone is doing well

Hi everyone. Stopping in to say hello. I am doing okay, but still need more exercise. Work has been so busy that it is hard to get anything extra in. Went to the beach on vacation and had lots of seafood. I let myself indulge 2 nites with my favorite keylime pie. It was wonderful. Yesterday I had a working lunch, ate salad.The dessert was raspberry brownies or chess squares. Oh, how I wanted one. But I didn't eat any. I can't tell you how many times in the afternoon I was thinking about them. Sweets are a downfall for me. Still, I am losing but slow. Down to 186 and keep telling myself if I could just exercise more it would go faster. I was buying size 14 and just before vacation bought a pair of capris in a size 12. My stomach area is still my biggest problem; not much of a rear end & legs are skinny....but my stomach was so stretched I do have a good amount of sagging. Hope everyone is well & have a good week-end. The journey doesn't seem as long as it has been....last Sept. I started WW & lost 22 pounds. It will be a year on Sept. 22 that I began. I am much happier about myself & that I am off of bp meds & everything else (blood work) is normal. Just have to keep working at it every day & some days I just don't want to :thumbup: Take care!

Looks like no one has posted in awhile. I too have sweet cravings & usually it is late at night.....in fact last night. I usually keep chocolate fudgecicles that are 0 fat/80 calories & eat that, but still wanting more. Good news is even though I get stalled for a week or 2, I am still losing. Had several pants altered & got some capris for summer in size 14. Been a long, long time since I have seen a 14. Best news of all is that I am now off blood pressure meds, dr decreased my thyroid pill to half dosage, do not have to take Prilosec & all blood work in normal ranges. Lots more energy....I used to think I had fibromyagia or something because I had body aches all the time. Now it looks like that being obese. Oh, and this week I felt my port for the first time. It was sorta scary when I touched my stomach & felt it. Now I have to quit putting my hand there. Maybe it is because my stomach has gone down now & easier to feel. Hope everyone is doing well.

Checking in to say hi and things are going okay for me. Exercising some (Wii Fit and treadmill), but should be doing more than I am. Try to do at least 3 days but it is difficult to find the time to squeeze it in with LIFE. I'm still sitting at same weight, but happy w/that right now. I hit spots for a couple of weeks and don't lose anything. This week I felt my port for the first time. I can press my finger there & feel it. Anyone else experience that? My stomach has gone down considerably & hopefully that is it. But it is strange to me to be able to feel it. Now I have to stop myself from putting my hand there. Left 3 pairs of pants w/seamstress last wknd to alter & picking them up today. One pair had been altered twice before & she said "no more". Just hate to part with a couple of really nice pair, but looks like I'll be shopping soon. Hope everyone has a good wknd.

The nutritionist is a great idea. My doc actually requires everyone he does surgery to sign up for the support groups that they have every month. You have to pay $500 fee up front and can go as long as you need to. The nutritionist is there one month & the next month is the psychologist. There is also a meeting that is every couple of months and a lady goes over grocery shopping & meal planning. It is at Noon and not close enough for me to go during my lunch time. It's good to be with others that have had surgery & discuss lots of issues. Some there have had the lap band, gastric bypass & the RNY procedure so it's pretty interesting. Try it at least once & see what you think. It's a day at a time & no hidden secrets. For me what works best is to have yogurt at snack (10:00 am) and then a fruit at 3:00. Some people say not to snack in between meals, but for me it has worked. I'm not starving at meal time. Take care,

I thought I would check in & see how everyone is doing. I too have difficulty w/exercising. For about 6 weeks I was going strong on the treadmill & bicycle. Then got busy with work & getting home later made it more difficult. Talked to myself today that I would get started tomorrow!! Always tomorrow, I know, but I am going to do it. My weight has come down but it has been slow. I had hoped to hit my goal by September when I have a high school reunion, but now I can see that isn't going to happen. If I lose 20 lbs between now & then I'll be ecstatic. Stay strong everyone.

Sounds like several of you are doing great - close to hitting the mark! My loss is very slow now, but have managed to get into a size 14 (was a 22) and that made me feel good. Have still been eating small portions & sticking with fish/chicken, veggies, fruit, etc. but I know I need to ramp up the exercise. Have good restriction after 5th fill. Pre Surgery Weight: 263 Date of Surgery: 12/17/08 with weight of 241 Current: 196 Goal: 150

Way to go Mudbug!! I too was size 20/22 prior to surgery and am wearing size 16 now. Size 10 is WHERE I want to BE!! Next dr. appt is May 21; not certain about fill yet. Still having some problems w/food getting stuck & PBing. Not daily but maybe once a week or so. I think it is because I have gotten hungry & when I do eat I am eating too fast/not chewing good enough. We'll see what happens between now & May 21. Again.....size 10 is awesome!

Congrats Sweetheart181 - 99 pounds is wonderful!! I'm still struggling here hovering right around 200-203 with no loss for a couple of weeks and staying hungry. My mouth waters!! Early on I was so motivated and now am getting frustrated. Talking to myself all the time that it will be okay & I've just plateaued a bit.

Hello - I was banded Dec 17, 08 and have now had 5 fills with the most recent one being 2 weeks ago. I thought I had hit "restriction" because I did start to PB several times. Once even on yogurt, but I believe it was because I scarfed it down. I still get hungry after 2 hours - so I am not there yet, but don't know how I feel about getting another fill since I get stuck rather easily. Working on chewing slower, taking longer at meals, etc. I guess I'm also impatient; I've lost a good amount but now the scales are not moving. Got to give myself some credit for the good stuff.

Hello all - a week ago today was my 5th fill and it is true what they say about waiting to see how it goes. I can now tell a big difference since last week. Also, I really have to slow it down or I get food stuck. My doc doesn't tell you how many cc's, but by eating I can tell it must be close. Last night had to cut the chicken into tiny pieces & chew, chew, chew so as not to get stuck. Trying to get back into the right frame of mind. It's like someone else said on here, I have a sweet tooth that I did not used to have. Maybe just because I haven't had sweets I am now craving them. Would love to get down 10 more pounds before summer is in full swing. Plus I have a high school reunion in Sept. and hope to reach goal by then although I don't know if that is reasonable or not. Would need to lose 10 pounds EACH month. Hope you're all doing well - does your doc offer support groups? Mine does and I try to attend most of them. It definitely helps! Take care!

What a great day this was - my dr appt was at 8:15 this morning & I got my 5th fill. I had been getting hungry 2 hours after a meal and had upped the exercise. Was getting very discouraged. Didn't eat breakfast since I was anticipating getting the fill not to mention it was so early in the morning. Drank coffee after the fill, had a lean cuisine for lunch & never thought of food this afternoon. No hunger pangs, no growling, ate a salad at 6:30 p.m. and this is great. Now I am wondering "will it last?" I HOPE so!! Definitely the best fill so far and didn't have trouble getting lunch or dinner down. Crossing my fingers that this is the sweet spot. Scheduled to go back in May. Any thoughts? Is it just because I got the fill today or think it could last????

I was banded Dec. 17 and saw this group. I've done well with weight loss up until the past month and it has gotten hard. I'm hungry and crave sweets. Have had a few times when food got stuck so I'm not sure if a fill is necessary or not. Appt. w/doc is Mon., 4/13 and will see then. Getting frustrated and have to tell myself that I have a good weight loss but then have to wonder if I'm just stalled. Hope it will pick back up soon. Messing w/my head:) Pre Surgery 263 Surgery Date 241 Current 202 Goal 140

Patti W - have you considered going to your doc & getting an unfill? If you haven't been able to get anything down for 2 weeks I would check w/them at least. I haven't had that problem, but have read where lots of people have to go to have some taken out. You need to be eating something besides liquid to get your protein in. Take care!

I too still find myself eating too fast - have had something stuck 3 times now. The worst is eating out; I am talking to someone & forger the chewing. I had gone for 2 weeks without losing anything, had another fill and have lost 4 more lbs. Also, since the weather is nice I am walking outside for longer than I was walking on the treadmill. I am scheduled for another appt (hoping for a fill) in a month. Do not believe I have hit the "restriction" or sweet spot; I can eat more than a saucer. Pre Surgery: 263 Surgery Date (Dec. 17, 2008): 241 Current: 203 Goal: 140

Hey Lisa/Beth - To answer your question about getting full or just making myself stop, really for the most part I have made myself stop. Occasionally I do get the full feeling. That's why I know I need another fill & who knows how many to get the restriction. Right now I am more concerned about getting the stomach bug. It has been all around me. I've heard some people on here say you may need to go to the ER and def. call your doc to schedule an unfill. Haven't eaten at all today for fear that I may catch it and if I do, I won't have anything much to come up. I know, gross, huh?

I'm still trying to figure out these posts & threads; not too good at it yet. In September last year I had been working on getting lap band approval & started Weight Watchers. From Sept. 22 until Dec. 12 I lost 22 pounds. Great ideas came from WW. Their taco soup recipe is great; I eat it at least once or twice a week. After surgery you're on the liquid & then puree diet so that's where I lost the most. Since then I've been losing 2 lbs. per week. I eat yogurt between meals & at night if I have a craving I eat the Skinny Cow (Walmart & Schnucks carries) chocolate fudge bar which is 1 fat gram. 3 fills but this week I'm hungrier than in awhile & fighting the urge to overdo. My motivation is that I feel so much better; my cholesterol went below 200 for first time in years. Walk better, sleep better (no heartburn). My doc suggested picking out 12-15 foods and sticking w/them. I've pretty much done that - salad w/grilled chicken; the taco soup; fruit; yogurt; salmon & veggies. Haven't done anything like I hear some people eating BBQ, hamburgers, etc. Stayed with healthy & low fat foods. I've lost each visit and I'm thankful for that but this is a tough week and having to really talk to myself about drinking water or getting busy so I won't eat. Glad I found this group; now if I can figure out how to get back.:confused: Pre Surgery Weight: 263 Surgery Date: 241 Current: 207 Goal: 140

I was banded Dec. 17, 2008 and want to join this group. Is it set up as a group or just a link? Pre Surgery Weight: 263 Surgery Date: 241 Current: 207 Goal: 140

I do not have a surgery date yet, but am approved by Aetna & have doctor 3 hour visit next Tuesday, 12/9. Should get surgery date then and have been told still possible to have surgery this month. Looking for specifics on post surgery diet for 2-3 weeks. BMI: 42.1 Beg. Weight: 263 Weight Watchers: lost 20 lbs Current: 240 Goal: 140