FrogStar24

I ask myself that sometimes. I think there's something to be said for making a commitment like this. Now that I've spent the money, went through a surgery, had to recover from it... how am I not going to follow through. It's easier to make some sort of tangible commitment - like paying for something - than it is for me to make a promise to myself. Also, I felt this was kind of a last resort. Not to be too dramatic. Same as you, other stuff didn't work, didn't make me exercise, didn't make me do anything else I didn't want to do. However... My biggest problem with weight gain was portion control. That's why I opted for a band instead of a bypass even. In this case, the band is helping me. I know that I can't take that last bite when I'm full, because I could get sick. I hate hate hate feeling that sick, so I know I won't push it. Again, the rest of the stuff falls into place because you're doing this for you - no one's going to lose weight for you, make you exercise, make you eat right. If you're committed to getting the band, then you have to commit to all the "rules" it comes with. It's not always easy, but neither were any of the other diets I tried!

I'm fairly new to my band, about 5 weeks in, just had my first fill a couple of days ago. The only bad thing I'd say is that sometimes it's freaking hard. I had a few bad days last week where I thought to myself it'd just be so much easier to be fat. I just WANT to eat a burger or I just want ice cream. Someone wrote before me that the band is just a tool. It's true! The hard part is changing your attitudes towards food or whatever. There are some days when I want to eat for the sake of eating. That part is hard, but I've come this far and I'm the only one who will be hurt if I cave in. I've tried tons of diets and exercises and whatnot. I feel within myself that I'm really ready to commit this time, that's why I went for the band. If you're trying to be talked out of it, or you're afraid of being in pain or missing food, then maybe you're not ready. I was in tons of pain after my surgery, but the first day that I could get out of bed by myself (about day 3 or 4) that was my first small victory! There's no time to feel sorry for yourself, though I totally did, don't get me wrong. But the vision of myself at my goal weight was stronger than the urge I had to eat everything in sight. Good luck with your decision.

I got my first fill yesterday. Good news was I have lost 30 lbs so far (11/24/08 surgery). Bad news is I guess I wasn't prepared for what would happen in the fill. I watched this video that my doctors had sent me, but they seemed to have left something out. There are different ways to do fills. My doctor basically does an upper GI kind of thing, where I drink barium and he watches how it goes down on a monitor. When they told me I could watch too, I shouldn't have. The barium was sitting in my stomach, it was totally tight. I felt it sitting there and understood what the doctor had meant before my surgery about eating or drinking too much and wanting to throw up. It was an immediate feeling, I'd never been so nauseated in my life. I let the dr know, and he loosened the band. A little too late, I think. I started blacking out. I don't know if it was from the feeling of nausea or if it was from seeing my insides on the monitor, or if it was just from being nervous about my first fill, but I told the doctor I was about to pass out. He loosened the band even more, and the moved the table I was on into a reclining position. The nurse got a cold compress and put it on my head, telling me to breathe slowly and deeply. My dr, sweetly, had his hand on my arm as he told me I felt cold and clammy. Haha. I told him that's how I felt on the inside too. But it all passed. 10 more minutes lying there and trying not to puke, and I started feeling better. Anyone else have this problem? The doctor said I wasn't the first, and they were happy I at least told them I was going to pass out because some people didn't give them warning. Do you think the next one will be easier? Or might I just be prone to hospital gross outs. (Fun fact, the only times I have ever started blacking out or passing out have been in the hospital! Guess I'm just not a hospital person.) Also, my stomach seems sore after it. Is that normal? Happy Wednesday.

I actually have no idea how many cc's he put in. I know he said that where it was (after the initial restriction) was fine, but he loosened it a bit more anyway, seeing as how I wasn't feeling so hot. He told me to stay on liquids only for yesterday and today, which I expected. I still have tons of protein powder, so it wasn't a huge problem. Before my restriction I didn't feel anything either. My doctor told me a few times how people joked that it didn't seem like they'd had anything put in. I didn't overdo it, but I was actually worried I'd gained weight before my first fill. Basically for the same reason that I felt like I had the same appetite as I had pre-op. The difference is I've been making all my own meals, so even if I wasn't eating as little as I was supposed to be, at least it was healthier I guess. The fill isn't really something to worry about. I just hate hospitals and procedures of any kind it would seem. The fill itself didn't hurt. They put numbing stuff on my stomach and then did what they had to. But today, my stomach is sore. Not on the inside, I actually had anticipated feeling some sort of restriction inside, but on the outside. It feels bruised or something. Then again, he said it's still a bit swollen, which is normal, and it'll go down I guess.

hey, congrats and welcome. This site is great. I've been reading everyone's posts, and I can hear myself in some of them. It's nice that people out there can relate to what I'm going through, and vice versa. Good luck in week 2!:wub:

From my first appt to my surgery was nearly 4 months. My first consult was in August, but there were no next appts for the nutritionist and therapist until mid Sept. My surgery was on 11/24/08. I think the time frame was good for me, because I was still making my mind up. I exercise regularly, but since I'm only 5 weeks out, I'm not back to where I was. I was playing tennis about 3-5 times a week until my surgery. For now I'm just walking (about 2 miles each walk). I'm actually looking forward to being able to go back to the gym and start lifting weights and doing other stuff again because I'm definitely sick of walking. Before my surgery, I cut out sugar and caffeine, but aside from that I wasn't doing any major dieting. I might have even been bingeing more, for fear I wouldn't get to eat any of my favorite foods again. But it's definitely smart to start eating right, and especially cut out sugar and caffeine, ahead of time, so it's not such a shock to you afterwards. As for negative stuff, the past few days were bad days for me. But today's a new day and I feel better. I have my first fill this afternoon, and I'm a bit anxious, but I've been trying my hardest to stick with the program so far, so no matter how it goes from here on out, I'll try to remember I am doing my best.

It's different for everyone. I had a lot of time to think from the time of my first appt (early august) til my surgery was scheduled (11/24/08). I changed my mind a few times. I thought maybe this was too extreme, but I knew in my heart that I kept promising myself to do something about my weight and hadn't before. Every year I'd think "If I'd started my diet a year ago, I'd be smaller already." Doesn't matter when, New Year, Memorial Day, whenever. In terms of how the surgery is, I had a friend who had the surgery, but it didn't really help with what to expect. For me, the surgery itself was almost enough to do me in. I was immobile, needed help getting up, down, in and out of bed, going to the bathroom. But a few days later, when I got out of bed myself, I'll tell ya... that was probably the hardest part. It had seemed impossible just days before. I think it's true that it's just plain different for everyone. I heard from a bunch of people how they were all up and about and ready to go back to work in days. It took me two weeks to get back to work. I just couldn't stay awake for a full day, and certainly couldn't sit for long periods of time... Wearing a bra was extremely uncomfortable, though I wore one, and also I wore sweats/pajamas for my first two weeks back at work. I also had to get up and walk around constantly during the day. I guess if you think this is the right choice for you, you should just go for it, but it really is a change in your whole life. My decision was should I try by myself again or should I have the surgery. Do I want to put it off or do it now. There's no real sugar coating. It's like they say - it's a tool to help you, not the solution itself. However, as I saw someone posted, even when you're having a plateau and have only lost 10lbs in 6 months... that's still 10lbs that are gone. For cooking, I hated having to cook after a long day at work because I want to eat when I want to eat. Now I'm getting used to a 15 minute prep time, then another hour or so to eat. I also think it's better to prepare my own food, because it's harder for me to stop if it's something I love from a restaurant. I just make up recipes. Mostly my meals consist of stir fry - either chicken or fish, and some veggie like broccoli and onion. I just throw it into a pot with a little olive oil and a little water, and wait for it all to cook. I add lemon or lime juice and it seems to work! hope any of that rambling was helpful. Good luck!

I'm 5 weeks out, my first fill is tomorrow. I would say the pain might be gas, but what I noticed (in my case) was that to compensate for my stomach hurting so badly right after my surgery, I was leaning forward a lot. THAT made my back hurt. My first (short!) walk around the neighborhood ended in really bad back pain. Wearing a bra was the worst, especially since I couldn't compensate by standing up straighter! Maybe that's what's going on with you? I also couldn't tell the difference between gas pain and just general "it hurts" kind of pain, but that was mostly in my stomach. For the water - I had a big problem, still trying to figure it out, with drinking. I called the nurses at my hospital to find out what I could do because I was just so damn thirsty! They suggested ice pops and sucking on ice cubes. It doesn't help with the thirst at all, but it at least wets your tongue. I spoke to the dr about how the nurses said absolutely DO NOT drink more than you're supposed to, but what I learned from experience is you don't have to sip just a little. You can't down a bottle of water, but you can have a few sips. You'd be able to feel it if it weren't going down, but since they haven't given you a fill, you can probably tolerate more than you'll eventually be able to. I trusted my body, and drank a little more (again, not downing an entire glass) but maybe taking a couple of gulps instead of a ladylike sip, when I knew I needed it. Hope that helps. Good luck!

I've noticed my collarbones more. I feel like I'm losing weight on the top part of my body. I wish my belly were smaller, but I'm still chalking some of that up to being fairly recent post-op. Also, I've noticed my hips are smaller, which was nice especially when I had to fly cross country for the holidays! Congrats on the smaller bust, I'm looking forward to that!