ParrotheadCathy

I drink around 16 GLASSES of water a day but I'm still tight in the mornings. Hot tea (or hot coffee, if you're a coffee drinker) may help -- I find the hot beverage is the only thing I can do to start my day that makes any difference. But I still am just having mushy cereal or Greek Yogurt for breakfast.

Erin, the #2 problem......If you don't get relief very soon, buy a Fleet enema. It will instantly fix the problem. It happened to me a couple of weeks after surgery. After that, I mix a spoon of Benefiber in a glass of Crystal Light to make sure I'm getting some extra fiber and I haven't had a problem since. I do eat some cheese every day and it doesn't seem to be causing a problem.

Go to www.tickerfactory.com, create your ticker, MAKE A NOTE OF THE PIN NUMBER YOU CHOOSE, copy the URL as instructed and paste it into the signature you create on LBT. Then, as you lose, you can double click your ticker in any post, enter your PIN and update your weight/BMI, whatever you're tracking. That's why keeping track of your PIN is important.

Reconciler, it soulds like you have the old 4cc band. You could be just a little too tight. I recently had a slight unfill of .2cc from a 10cc band. Ask your doc to take out a very slight amount. It amazed me that such a small amount could make a difference. I went from getting stuck at least once every meal to only twice in the past month. With a 4cc band, a very small amount represents a higher percentage change than it does for us 10cc and 14cc banders, so I would emphasize the SLIGHT aspect of such a request. My doctor told me that in a month or two, he could take me back to where I was too tight and it would likely be fine. No, I don't understand, but he's always right on the money when I have questions. I just know that the very small unfill made all the difference in the world.

My doc took me of ALL my medications starting the day of surgery and said he would re-evaluate me at 90 days. At 90 days, I'd lost a good amount of weight and didn't know what to expect. Well, surprise, surprise! My hba1c was near normal, so close that he didn't re-prescribe any diabetes medications AND my blood pressure was normal. Ditto on cholesterol so I never restarted any of my meds. So, here I am having financed $10,000 of my surgery and my monthly payment for that is actually less than my drug co-pays were running pre-surgery.

There is a vaccine against shingles now. It's called "Zoztravax" as I recall. I believe it is recommended for patients 60 and older ... shingles can, apparently be a serious problem for older adults.

I'm in Atlanta, GA. I was self-pay -- $15,00 covered everything, including fills for one year. I was out-patient and I gather that barring a problem, all his patients are out-patient surgeries

Fluroscopy is basically a "real time" xray with contrast. You drink something and the doctor can see it go down your esophagus and into your stomach ... and pass through the band area. He can also see your port, which might make it easier for him to get it on the first try. I've never had a fill under fluroscope but plenty of doctors do it all the time. I know my doc has the equipment because I've seen it.

Julie, try tracking all your food every day. www.livestrong.com has a free service. I think it's called the Daily Plate. There are quite a few others online. For me, when I got stuck, I started just writing down what I ate at what time of day .... no complicated calorie/protein/carb counting....and I discovered a pattern of coming home hungry in the evenings, grazing while I cooked and then eating at least part of my dinner. So, once I knew the problem time of day, I could make some adjustments. I'm just starting to see some positive scale action again. Good luck and keep us posted!

I was told not to plan any PS until I had been at goal weight for a year .... this gives your skin time to recover as much as it will ever recover. Panniculectomies may be covered if you have issues with skin breaking down, getting infected, etc. where skin touches skin. But I'm thinking you will have to document that (regularly) with your PCP to even have a chance of getting insurance to cover the surgery. That means, not just once saying "I have this problem" but repeatedly.....that's my plan, LOL.

Nobody can MAKE you do something you don't want to do but if you don't pursue your fills, your band cannot do its job -- helping you. Maybe the first fill was just a tough one? Can you ask to do #2 with fluoroscope? I don't really know what to say since my fills have all been quite uneventful.

1. I had vertually no pain at all. 2. See #1 ... I took absolutelyl no pain medication at all, not even liquid Tylenol. 3. My surgery was done outpatient. I was home by 2:30 in the afternoon. 4. I had surgery on Tuesday and went back to work on Friday. But give yourself a week if you have that option. better to err on the side of caution. I simply know me and knew from experience that I would be up, raring to go AND REALLY WANTING TO NOT BE IN THE HOUSE. I hate daytime TV and would rather be at work, LOL. 5. I was self-pay so have no comment.

You can, indeed, get stuck on liquid and it is painful. But if you can swallow at a reasonably normal rate (do watch out for taking a big gulp because that can get stuck), then go ahead. I certainly don't take an hour to drink anything, LOL

2Fly, if you keep losing, you might consider simply adding a few calories in a snack. Something healthy like fresh fruit or an ounce of low fat cheese and few low fat crackers. Have you tried the new Special K crackers? I love them. 90 calories for 17 crackers, and whole grain .... so they would make a light, healthy snack with a little cheese. Good things for your body! I wish I was worried about losing too much. But it's too soon for that for me!

I tend to belch when I go too long between meals .... but, gawd, I could compete with any CRD guy on the planet (CRD = crude, rude and disrespectful, LOL). Back much closer to my surgery, I did even more belching. I think it's kind of common and certainly not an indication of a problem. You said: "Anyways, I am on regular food diet but since yesterday, when I attempt to eat anything, it seems to hurt going down. Even soft foods." Even Water can get stuck if you take too big a swallow, so I'll ask if you're sure you are taking smaller bites (about the size of a nickel) and chewing well the stuff that should be chewed? This was really hard for me to get used to. I realized that I used to take really big bites and chew them about half-way at best. Big bites of everything including pudding, yogurt, poached eggs...EVERYTHING. And I had to really focus on that as my problem. Hope this helps.

I was told caffeine is fine if, like Restless Monkey, I don't find it to be an appetite stimulant. I drink a package of of Crystal Light Focus Natural Citrus Splash in the morning, which has caffeine but the package doesn't say how much. I also drink tea. I drink well over 64 oz of water a day, plus whatever else, too.

I can't eat bread unless it's toasted. Too soft, I guess, so it makes a sticky lump. I use tostada "shells", which are thin flat corn tortillas, unsalted sometimes. Like I can crush part of one to top a salad, garnish some tortilla Soup, or as the base for a tostada for dinner. My newest fave is the new Special K Crackers. They just hit the market in the last month or so. I've seen two flavors. 17 crackers = 90 calories; 24 = 120. These are whole grain, crispy crackers and I really like them.

The nutritionist at my surgeon's office specifically mentioned the small chili from Wendy's as a good choice! I've had it once, just because I could, LOL. But I was never a fast food person in the first place....Any mother will commiserate with the memory of a child DEMANDING to get a Happy Meal....that did it for me as far as fast food. I just don't like it much and so I didn't miss it in the first place. The closest I come is Moe's. I get a salad with grilled chicken, salsa, black beans and I have my own light chipotle ranch dressing.

A question....do you see your PCP regularly? I waas Type 2 Diabetic and saw my doctor a minimum of every 3 months. Every time I started a diet, I discussed it with him and he would follow up with me on it...until, of course, I fell off the wagon (time after time). If I'd had insurance coverage at all, I would have had some consistent medical records of "supervision".....could that work for you?

I'm thinking 3 days post-op is too soon BUT that is a question for your doctor to answer!

Suz, GO TO THE SURGEON'S OFFICE! They can do the supervision, recommend the diet to follow, etc. You can also be completing your pre-op testing during the supervised diet so that everything will be completed and ready to submit at the end of the supervised diet.

A couple of things .... those of us who are tighter in the morning, many of us start our day with a hot cup of tea or coffee, which seems to help relieve the tightness. And as a general note, chicken.....boneless, skinless chicken breasts are notoriously dry, not to mention pretty tasteless. Try using chicken breasts with skin and bones and discard the skin after cooking. Skin helps keep the moisture in the chicken when it cooks and skin and bones add to the flavor.

I've never heard of a five YEAR supervised diet. What a joke! I've heard many insurance companies require a five year WEIGHT HISTORY from your doctor and some require a 6 month supervised diet... It almost sounds like the person you spoke with was confused. It might be worth calling the insurance company again and act like you haven't talked to anybody (make sure you get a different person, LOL) and ask what the criteria are for approval for WLS. If the 5 year supervised diet thing comes up again, ask where that is in your policy because you did not see that when you read the policy to see if you even had coverage!

A LOT of the surgeons do the first fill at 4 weeks....and most of us were glad to get it then, LOL!