megsy101

Just wondering how everyone was doing? I haven't been around for a while so I may have missed you and any recent topics. I had some more fill last week and am definately feeling good restriction now. Finally I am only eating small portions and not needing anything else. My wardrobe has suffered a major mass exodus and I am in constant rotation of 2 pair jeans, pair trackies and about 4 tops. I dont want to buy clothes, but am sick totally sick of the clothes I am wearing. hope everyone is well and crusing along with their band. ciao tutti Megs

Hey Tully, I put on weight between my initial consultation and making a booking for the surgery, so dont think you are alone there!!! They will do the surgery, so dont stress. As Shaggs (god bless her!!) said, there are much bigger people having this done. Tell your Dr to 'jam it'!! Obviously if you could control your eating/weight you would be in need of his services. You prob only have to see him/it 3 more times anyway. Stick to the Optifast, but don't hate yourself too much if you cheat a little bit. Let's face it, the stuff is PUTRID!!! Good luck with it all and keep us posted!!! Megsyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

Hey Lou, Thanks for your comment! Speaking of going out for dinner, my partner and I went out for my bday to the Sorrento Hotel. Looking at the menu my thought process was............ I wont have the beef I wont have the chicken I wont have the lamb I wont have the pasta.... hmmm I'll go the prawns. Well, it was 8.30pm before we got out meals. I ate 3 prawns, was in pain for 20 minutes and then threw up twice!! I thought I was making the correct choice. I think what happened was that I was sooo hungry when the meal came, that I didnt pay attention and ate too fast and didnt chew. Lesson learned!!! As for the post, I am feeling alot better. you'll be fine!! I jus think it is something that we will all endure and get over on our way to skinniness!!!

Hi All, I am now 15 weeks into my band 'journey' and it is all going pretty well. My weight-loss is great - I have lost 20.5kg (45lb) in that time. But, I have to say that I am starting to stuggle with the mental side of things. This is a 2 sided dilemma. a) what to eat :tounge_smile: what to do when i dont eat I have 6ml of fluid in my band and eating is ok, but not always easy. I have only thrown up once, but find I am having difficulty deciding what to eat. Avoiding bread is really hard for me. I love my toast and find sandwiches an easy lunch option for me and the kids. But as most banders know, bread hurts. So what to have instead in the time frame that I have?? I find that I am not having breakfast most mornings because I am at a loss of what to have (cereal isnt doing it for me either). Then I find that I am starving and grab the nearest anything - which isnt always a great food choice, and eat it so fast that I am in pain for half hour or so. This process is generally repeated at lunch. Dinner isnt too bad, but I do find I am cooking one thing for the family and then an alternative for me. The biggest issue I am facing would be what to replace eating with. I have used food to reward myself, punish myself and occupy myself for far too many years. I have been a social eater, a reclusive eater and a definite closet eater. Now that I am not eating in that pattern I am at a loss of how to deal with things. I have gotten quite anxious at times and my PMS has hit an all time high!!! It feels like I have acid running thru my veins and I can't interact with people in fear that I will lose it big time. I am avoiding social occassions with friends because I can't/don't want to eat. I don't think they have noticed a pattern, but they will eventually. It is really not like me to be like this, I am normally really outgoing and social. WTF??? My Partner wants to take me out for dinner for my birthday and all I can think is 'what's the point?'. What do I do when I'm not eating??? Pre-band, eating, in alot of instances, was mindless gorging. I never really obsessed about food, I just thought 'f**k it' and ate! I think I am more obsessed with food than I have ever been!! What can I eat? How much should I have? I want that, but I shouldnt have that.......aaarrrggghhhh!!!! After eating, my next fixation would be shopping, but losing weight so quickly - I dont want to spend alot of money on clothes that (hopefully) I wont be able to wear after 6 months. So I'm not eating, i'm not socialising (as much), I'm not shopping... I am obsessing and it has to stop!! The Doctor has said that this is a normal response after being banded. He didn't give me more fluid this week, as he said it was not my priority for this fortnight. This fortnight I have to get organised and find food that I can eat and to have it available. He also said that 'theoretically' PMS can increase with weight decrease due to the lower (?) amounts of Oestrogen. GREAT!!! My family will have to start locking me in a cage for 3 days a month...LOL! He also told me that if my 'mood' continued for too long we would need to see the psych. I dont want to have to do that, so I am blogging my inner thoughts as a form of exorcism. Hopefully it helps. Apologies if it all just sounds like a big whingeing session! Would love to hear from anyone who has/is having a similar experience.

Hi All, I am now 15 weeks into my band 'journey' and it is all going pretty well. My weight-loss is great - I have lost 20.5kg (45lb) in that time. But, I have to say that I am starting to stuggle with the mental side of things. This is a 2 sided dilemma. a) what to eat :thumbup: what to do when i dont eat I have 6ml of fluid in my band and eating is ok, but not always easy. I have only thrown up once, but find I am having difficulty deciding what to eat. Avoiding bread is really hard for me. I love my toast and find sandwiches an easy lunch option for me and the kids. But as most banders know, bread hurts. So what to have instead in the time frame that I have?? I find that I am not having breakfast most mornings because I am at a loss of what to have (cereal isnt doing it for me either). Then I find that I am starving and grab the nearest anything - which isnt always a great food choice, and eat it so fast that I am in pain for half hour or so. This process is generally repeated at lunch. Dinner isnt too bad, but I do find I am cooking one thing for the family and then an alternative for me. The biggest issue I am facing would be what to replace eating with. I have used food to reward myself, punish myself and occupy myself for far too many years. I have been a social eater, a reclusive eater and a definite closet eater. Now that I am not eating in that pattern I am at a loss of how to deal with things. I have gotten quite anxious at times and my PMS has hit an all time high!!! It feels like I have acid running thru my veins and I can't interact with people in fear that I will lose it big time. I am avoiding social occassions with friends because I can't/don't want to eat. I don't think they have noticed a pattern, but they will eventually. It is really not like me to be like this, I am normally really outgoing and social. WTF??? My Partner wants to take me out for dinner for my birthday and all I can think is 'what's the point?'. What do I do when I'm not eating??? Pre-band, eating, in alot of instances, was mindless gorging. I never really obsessed about food, I just thought 'f**k it' and ate! I think I am more obsessed with food than I have ever been!! What can I eat? How much should I have? I want that, but I shouldnt have that.......aaarrrggghhhh!!!! After eating, my next fixation would be shopping, but losing weight so quickly - I dont want to spend alot of money on clothes that (hopefully) I wont be able to wear after 6 months. So I'm not eating, i'm not socialising (as much), I'm not shopping... I am obsessing and it has to stop!! The Doctor has said that this is a normal response after being banded. He didn't give me more fluid this week, as he said it was not my priority for this fortnight. This fortnight I have to get organised and find food that I can eat and to have it available. He also said that 'theoretically' PMS can increase with weight decrease due to the lower (?) amounts of Oestrogen. GREAT!!! My family will have to start locking me in a cage for 3 days a month...LOL! He also told me that if my 'mood' continued for too long we would need to see the psych. I dont want to have to do that, so I am blogging my inner thoughts as a form of exorcism. Hopefully it helps. Apologies if it all just sounds like a big whingeing session! Would love to hear from anyone who has/is having a similar experience.

Hi, They wont say no. And here is the not-sugarcoated answer to your question....... ABSO-FREAKING-LUTELY!!! The single best thing I have done for myself EVER!!!!

Hi, Congratulations on your decision. I found Optifast to be extremely 'binding'!!! Maybe discuss this with your Dr. M

hmmmm.. dont know. Easter and school holidays have killed me!!! Out of routine (no exercise) and Chocolate EVERYWHERE.....aaaahhhhhh

Ok.... it's MAJOR progress to me, but perhaps minor to other people....anyway........... I went shopping for clothes and found that I can buy tops (not pants :thumbdown: ) from some 'normal' shops. I even tried on a dress at a Boutique shop in Black Rock (VIC) and it fit!! It didn't come home with me as it was too expensive to be a part of my temporary wardrobe, but I was excitee nontheless. 18kg down.... 40kg to go

Well Done!! You wont regret your decision. best of luck

Hi, you need to have fairly decent hospital cover... the extras have nothing to do with hospital stays/surgery. extras cover chiropractors, dentists etc

Hi Retta, Everybody is different, so keep that in mind when I say the next thing. I was 129kg on the day of surgery (had lost 4kg on the pre-op diet) and I did not have one issue after the surgery. I had panadol the entire next day but i think that was more as a precaution than a need - if that makes sense. I was driving on day 2 and worked for a couple of hours on each of day 3/4. Day 5 I had the kids by myself and the only issue I had was picking up my 2 year old son.....but we managed. Maybe you need to imagine yourself at a cross-roads of your life. One road leads down to the same place we have ALL been before and the other leads to somewhere different, it winds up into a place you havn't been before (or for a while anyway...). I am on that road and I am loving it!! Choose Life - things can only get better as you lose the weight. There may be some trials and tribulations along the way, but ultimately it is all worth it. There are plenty of people on this site who you can talk to (dump on) if/when things arent so great... and they are the same people who you can Celebrate with when things are great. catch ya Megs

Hi, I havent had any experience with anxiety so I can t comment there, but I have had 2 kids whilst being extremely overweight and it was tough. What state are you in? I think the best thing you could do to help you and your husband understand about the lapband and all that is involved is to go to an information night. I know they have them regularly in Melb. One of the important things to realise is that people with as much weight to lose as most of us in this forum do, cant do it on there own. Without the band, we would never succeed at losing ALL our weight and keeping it off. This is a health issue, not a cosmetic issue. When I was deliberating about whether to be banded or not, my GP told me that if it was some other kind of surgery that i needed (knee, kidney, whatever) that I wouldnt think twice about having the surgery, so why hold back from getting this done. She was so right! I first started researching the band after the birth of my first child (2003 @ 110kg) and it took me 6 years and an extra 25kg to decide to do it. My only regret is that I didnt have it done sooner. This is the single best thing that I have ever done for myself. Everyone else benefits from me losing weight but I am the winner here. At the end of the day, you do need your husbands support in this, but this is something that you have to decide for you. Nobody can make you do it and they are not the ones that have to have fluids for weeks on end. If you truly feel that lapband is the way for you, then do it. I'm sure your hubby will back you up when you yourself have made the decision. hope this helps. Megs

Hi, just wondering what happens when you reach your goal weight?? Does the Fluid get taken out?? I know I am getting a little ahead of myself, but am curious. thanks Megs

Hi, I have been eating minced meats fine. I struggled with chicken before the band and now it is impossible to eat unless it is minced. I use the minced chicken in stirfries etc. Lamb Koftas are good too... minced lamb with spices compacted on a stick and grilled/bbq. Minced beef means I can have Tacos, spag bolognese or meatballs.... I havent even tried to tackle steak. Not eating bread is killing me!!

Hey All, Well yesterday I got my second fill and it wasnt as bad as I thought, although it wasn't great. I had put on weight, about 100grams (about 22oz I think???). The Doctor wasn't fazed by it at all, saying that this stage of the band was 50/50 when you dont feel restriction. As I already had 4ml she was unsure how agressive to be with this fill. 1ml is the usual increase, but as I had felt no restriction at all we tossed around the 1.5ml and then decided to go with a compromise of 1.3ml. This bring me to a total of 5.3ml in a 10ml band. I am feeling a bit more restriction and I have had to slow down when I'm eating which is good, but I think I will need a bit more in a couple of weeks. Today I comfortably ate 2 sushi rolls for lunch and have had a small piece of lasagne and steamed vegies for dinner. I'm full, but for how long? Anyway, I have started walking most mornings after school drop off. Am doing a 4.5km (2.8 mile) lap of the neighbourhood and have started using my 'Ab King Pro' that has been sitting dormant in our bedroom for 18 mths....lol. I did 50 situps on it on Monday and am still hurting when I move. Maybe I'll do more tomorrow. On the Ego boost side of things, alot of people are commenting on how I look and I have had to throw some clothes out!! But I am noticing that my face has alot more lines on my face as it deflates.... that can't be good!! Till next time..................... :cool2::tt2:

I think in the USA it is much harder to get banded. It is much harder to get a fill as well. From what I have been told in the chat room, it is quite common for American Doctors to only give 1/2ml once every 4 weeks. I think that is crazy!!! To get to my 5.8ml it would have taken near on 12 months!! And they wonder why they aren't losing enough weight. I think their Doctors are sucking them dry, but what do I know????? I only had one appointment with the surgeon before I was done.

Hi, Not blowing anything off. Just didnt know the two were related and the assault was that severe. Just trying to get a laugh, as 'laughter' is the best medicine..... or so they say. Apologies if my post was taken the wrong way! Megsy

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