ParrotheadCathy

Guys, IF you have advanced to mushy or solid foods, try to EAT your Protein. It requires chewing (which is satisfying) and solid protein will stay in your stomach a heck of a lot longer than a protein shake. IF you are still on liquids (I advanced to mushy foods on day 10 and starting adding full solids 3 days later, I don't have too much helpful to offer. Liquids simply do NOT stay in your stomach for more than, literally, minutes. They do not offer satiety. And that, my dears, is Bandster Hell.

I have first bite syndrome in the mornings. I usually drink a cup of hot tea (not lukewarm but HOT). That solves the problem. Also, if you aren't drinking enough water every day, you can feel that same stuck with the first bites feeling, so watch your hydration.

My adult granddaughter and her daughter live with me. My granddaughter is 5'7" and weighs about 125. Obviously, she doesn't need to give up her junk food. She eats the healthy meals I cook and all that crap. If it's where I can just put my hands on it, I'll eat it sometimes. My solution has been to have a place for her stuff, away from the food items I need to have access to in order to cook for all of us or prepare stuff just for me. She's fine with that, says she understands the whole out-of-sight-out-of-mind thing. If your partner doesn't understand the whole out-of-sight-out-of-mind thing, then it's time for a big, honest discussion because that would definitely be intentional sabotage.

40 pounds in 13 weeks IS an average of 3.07 pounds per week..... You state that you know you aren't eating enough Protein or drinking enough Water. Those are two vital contributions to your overall physical well-being and probably to your weight loss as well. Work on getting the water and protein in! Add another day of exercise or increase your time by 15 per workout.

There is the possibility that your insurance may pay for a panniculectomy -- removal of the apron of skin left on your abdomen if your weight loss was significant enough to leave that behind. If you suffer consistently from skin infections where the flap folds over and touches skin, keep complaining about it to your PCP and ask for meds to treat the infection (should be a topical medication). With a history of that, then ask for a referral to a plastic surgeon for an evaluation and submission to your insurance. If it's approved, that would be a large part of the cost of the tummy tuck. There is financing available specifically for medical care. That's how I got my lap band surgery. I went through care Credit. Capital One also has medical financing. Not sure who else, but I know they are out there.

You really shouldn't "feel restriction". Restriction simply means that your band is tight enough to slow the progress of food from the new pouch into the lower stomach. The more that passage is slowed, the longer you will feel full. That feeling is called "satiety". Satiety is what you are looking for. When you eat a meal as prescribed, how long before you feel hungry again? You should feel satisfied for at least 4 hours. That's your goal. You need enough restriction to give you the feeling of satiety for 4 hours or even more. If you are hungry consistently 3 hours after a meal, you aren't there yet, but you're getting closer.

Becky, I get up an hour earlier each day (at 5:00, instead of 6:00) and I WALK. I can walk about 4 miles in an hour but you can start out slower and build up speed with time. It's good exercise! There are books you can read about walking off pounds. I'm supporting a family of three and after a layoff a year and a half ago, I'm doing it on 12,000 less per year. Needless to day, there isn't a gym membership in my future either! I've discovered that on those days that I can't get out an walk, I miss it....a lot, actually. Who knew? LOL

Eletrawoman, Well, now I am confused! At the seminar I went to, the liquid to soft to small foods after surgery diet was explained. Then, they told us that we would be able to eat anything we wanted only in smaller portions while living with the band. They said that some people develop an aversion to certain foods or have some things stick at the band opening leading to restrictions on some items. (the lady that talked to us could no longer eat white bread, for example). There was talk of eating healthy (of course we all want to do that). But nobody said anything about restricting a lot of food types. Can someone jump in and explain? Thanks! Once you start getting fills, you may find some foods don't work for you. I don't eat soft bread. When you were a kid did you ever pull out the middle of a slice of bread and sort of mush it into a ball? Well when you chew soft bread the same thing can happen ... it turns into a doughy ball. And for me, that gets stuck 9 times out of 10 so I don't eat it. I can eat toasted bread, crackers, etc. You do have to eat healthy for a whole lot of reasons. Mainly, you can't take in as much, so you really need to make healthy choices in order to get the nutrition you need. If you don't eat enough Protein, you may find your hair falling out, for example. If you don't drink enough Water, your skin will show it. And, #1 on the list.... if you want the band to help you lose weight, you really need to ditch the chocolate, fried foods, large amount of potatoes, sugar..... Like I said to Jordan, you don't have to give it up, but you have to restrict it to occasional treats. The band isn't just going to make the fat go away. You have to use the band to make it go away yourself.

Jordan: Still on mostly liquids and Im having a hard time distinguishing if my stomach is full or just uncomfortable from the surgery.....I can eat a yogurt then I feel pretty full....I think?? At first, it doesn't take much to feel full because you have swelling post-operatively. As the swelling decreases, your capacity may increase. How will I know if I need a fill???? When you are starving hungry regularly, pretty much. A good gauge is that if you don't stay full after eating a recommended meal for 4 hours, you need a feel. What happens if I eat a solid ( not that Im going to) just curious what happens..and why I cant at this point?? solid food requires your stomach to churn as part of the digestive process. If you eat solids prematurely, you could cause your band to slip. Slips don't happen easily but in the beginning, you really don't want to do anything that might make that happen. Will I ever be able to eat something I really like every once in a while...just not the whole thing? Let's see. You didn't sign anything that said you were signing up to be punished, did you? LOL. The truth is that as long as you eat your Protein, it's not a deal-breaker if you eat, say, 6 fried shrimp instead of steamed ones. I personally have a small slice of birthday cake every month at the office birthday party. Not a big honking piece but enough to enjoy it....a slice about a half-inch thick. Life goes on whether you have the surgery or not. You just have to learn to pick when to allow yourself that special treat. Every day? Not going to lose weight if you do that. Once every couple of weeks, and not a crazy amount? Yeah, you can do that.

I think it may concern over aggravating a chronic condition but that's only a guess. If your doctor, who treats your pancreatitis, this lap band would help, then ask him for a letter recommending the surgery and ask him to recommend a surgeon too. That would help to address the potential issue.

Joann, you haven't had the band long enough to really know where you are. It's hard at first. Post-operatively, you hav swelling, gas from the abdominal inflation, an all-liquid diet...I could go on. But the bottom line is 7 days isn't an indication of what bdanded life is like AT ALL. Give it a month at least. By that point you will have advanced your diet (for me at 4 weeks, I was on regular food again but it varies by doctor), you will have healed, the gas and soreness will be gone. It's pretty common to have second thoughts right after surgery but remember what took you to the surgeon's office in the first place. Do you absolutely want to go back to that dark place where you'd pretty much given up on yourself? Or do you want to give this time to prove itself? Got questions? I'll be glad to answer any that you might have. Or offer encouragement.

Really, almost any fish should be fine. I eat a fair amount of salmon and have from the day I was told I could have fish. Also, we like flounder and tilapia at my house.

Let's give him the benefit of the doubt and consider that it might be sensitivity .... he doesn't want to say too much or praise the "improvements" because he doesn't want you to think he loves you any differently then versus now.

Neesh, my first fill was at 4 weeks. I was on liquids for 2 days, full liquids for 8, then mushies for 7 and then started adding real foods. By the time I went for my first fill, I was having a Protein shake for Breakfast, Soup or salad with leftover meat on it for lunch and 3 oz of protein and a vegetable at dinner. Salads aren't really nutritious if you just have iceberg lettuce but if your salad has dark greens (like kale and spinachO, tomatoes and stuff like that, then it's pretty healthy. I've never heard anybody who wasn't allowed to eat salad, but just the caustion about what went into a salad. Now, several fills down the line, I still eat salad but I don't eat greens that get "floppy" or flimsy because they sometimes get stuck. But crisp vegetables still work fine. AND, you can make a salad with no lettuce at all. It's just a perception that salad = lettuce. Dice fresh tomatoes, slice seeded cucumbers, zuchini or yellow squash, thin slices of carrots and onion and dress with a fat free Italian. It's a salad but no lettuce at all.

Oh, they put it in all right. But you're in Bandster Hell and you don't get free pass on it. Your first fill is just a step in the right direction and each fill will make it easier to control your eating. The bad part? Right now, it's pretty much all willpower.

Oh, yeah....it's gas from the gas pumped in for surgery. It has to be reabsorbed to get rid of it. The things that help the most: 1. Move around as much as you can. Walk small distances several times a day. Sometimes, put your arms up over your head and wave them. A friend was told by her doctor not to sit in a regular chair for the first week, but to sit in a rocker and rock every so often. 2. A heating pad! You can put it behind your shoulder when you sit, or drape it over your shoulder. Just don't sleep on it because that's not a safe thing for anybody to do.

My internist took me off all my meds starting the day of surgery and happily I've never needed to go back to them. He discussed with me the post-op regular diet. Told me that I would need to include some carbs and to test my blood sugar until I got comfortable with a "happy medium" of how much works for me. My hba1c was 6.8 last time (a month ago). I'm still losing so it will continue to drop for a while. I eat no specific carbs in the morning. I have 15 grams of carbs (1 carb exhcange on the old diabetic exchange) with my lunch (usually some whole grain crackers) and maybe as much as 30 grams with my dinner. No low blood sugar events so far.

You know, Dear Abby once told a reader that "you can't be a doormat if you don't lie down". That applies....You can't be "abused" this way if you tell them outright. Tell your Mom you don't appreciate how she's acting. Tell her you can eat ANYTHING in the appropriate portions and you are sick and tired of her holding a magnifying glass over your plate and over-reacting to every bite. Tell her it's not necessary. As for your husband, point out that this is not a short journey, that you didn't gain the weight in 6 months and it's not going away in six months. Point out that as long as you are losing, you are one happy camper and that you expect him to be happy for you rather than constantly asking how much have I lost? As long as you grumble to us, we're gonna feel your pain but we can't fix it (if only!!!! Then we could all fix each other's problems) but you have the power to not lay down and take it. You don't have to hurt any feeling but they honestly may not realize how what they are saying affects you. And, remember, your husband may be so excited that you're taking charge of this that he can't help but ask!

Well, most employer provided health insurance doesn't have pre-existing condition clauses and a lap band would be a pre-existing condition, I guess.... And in policies that have pre-existing conditions clauses, it just means that the pre-existing condition isn't covered, not everything.

A friend told her 8 year old daughter that Mommy was having a band around her tummy so she wouldn't be fat anymore and so she could have a big lap for her daughter to sit in. Her daughter was like "well, okay!", so my friend thought she'd said just the right things. THEN, she heard her daughter LOUDLY tell the next door neighbor "My Mommy's got a rubber band around her tummy so she won't be fat!"

1. So happy that I'd do it again if I had to! I've lost 80 pounds since Febraury 09. It's slower now, but still going down and that's all I care about! 3. Insurance coverage varies dramatically. I believe the statistics say that approximately 68% of all lap band surgeries are covered by insurance. Understand that every policy is different...even if they are from the same insurer. Why? Because the employer neogiatiates what they can get for what they are willing to pay. CALL YOUR INSURANCE COMPANY. There is a phone number on your insurance card. Ask if they cover lap band surgery. Ask what their requirements to approve are. Ask what they need to support your application for coverage (maybe a 5 year weight history? Maybe doctors progress notes that cover discussions about weight loss, documents of attempts, etc?? Ask anything you can think of. AND, get the name of the person you talk to so that if you need to talk to that person again, you know who to ask for. 2. I would not choose Mexico for myself. If you do go that route, MAKE SURE YOU HAVE YOUR AFTER CARE LINED UP LOCALLY. Many doctors don't want to take care of you if you had your surgery in Mexico. I had my surgery in Atlanta and paid $15,000 cash. Yeah, Mexico was cheaper, but my doc is less than an hour commute. Priceless.

Melinco, you should be able to eat what you run through a food mill....you might have to thin it out a bit with, say, chicken or vegetable broth, but it will be about as mushy as mashed potatoes.

I don't know if you have GNC stores in your area but I do and my store had samples I could taste to help me decide what I liked (and didn't). No surprises when you get home that way! I personally like the SlimFast LOW CARB DIET chocolate. Very creamy, good taste, 190 calories and 20 grams of Protein and only 2 net carb grams. I don't drink my protein much at all but keep some on hand for convenience purposes. And there's nothing more convenient than ready to drink. I will say that with the RTDs I prefer that they be referigerated as opposed to poured over ice.

IF you've already been to a seminar, and are sure this is your choice plan of action, they will weigh you, check your blood pressure, perhaps take some measurements, discuss the pre-op testing, when they may be able to do your surgery, and that sort of thing. I suggest that you call your insurance company now (there's a phone number for customer service on your insurance card). Give them your policy number and ask if lap band is covered. If affirmative, then ask 1. Is there a pre-op surpervised diet requirement? 2. What pre-op testing do you require (they may require a nutritionist consultant and a psych. evaluation)? 3. What do they require your surgeon to submit to them to get you approved? They may require a letter of medical necessity from your primary care physician and you could go ahead and get this ASAP and check it off your list. 4. Ask if they require that you have reached a certain BMI, does that number vary with co-morbidities, and do they require that you have been at that BMI for a specific period of time? 5. Do they need a weight history? I say this because some policies require a 5 year weight history as part of the submission. You can get this from your primary care physician and/or OBGYN but just find out if you need it. 6. GET THE NAME OF THE PERSON YOU TALKED TO. If you do this part, when you go to the surgeon's office, there won't be any surprises. You will know ABSOLUTELY that your procedure is covered and what is needed. I've read way too many posts on this site where peopl get down to the submission only to find out something wasn't done and it postpones their surgery. I've read where people have been told by their surgeon's staff their procedure isn't covered, etc. If this happens, you will have the name of the person you talked to and the number you called to get in touch with that person ... and you can fix the problem immediately. Good Luck

I had to jump through most of them and I was self-pay! I didn't have to visit with the nutritionist or do the psych. evaluation. But I had to have an upper GI, a sleep study, blood work, chest xray, and cardiologist clearance. My cardiology clearance ended up including a stress test rather than just an EKG. Sleep apnea is a comorbidity which strengthens your application for coverage. If you do have it, it means you'll get a CPAP and should actually sleep better when you do get to sleep. Not a bad thing, right?? All the testing is to determine that you are healthy enough to undergo surgery (remember, it is general anesthesia) AND that you have reasonable, achievable expectations as to the result of the surgery.