ParrotheadCathy

I don't think there's any significant difference. I believe the Realize port is attached by metal crimping into the muscle while the Lap Band port is stitched into place. Realize is a 10cc band while Lap Band is available in a 10cc or 14cc band. Most everybody gets a 10cc band; I've only run across three people with a 14cc band.

Karen, you obviously know that your band is not a magic potion and that you have to do your part. So start walking 30 minutes every day. Maybe on your lunch hour or before you go to work when it starts getting hot this summer. Be glad you've lost 50 and start working. You don't have to go to the gym for an hour a day. A good walking program truly is excellent exercise. After you've been doing 30 minutes a day, add to it. Take your dog/kid/significant other/neighbor! Having someone to walk with you makes it more fun.

KelinTx got it...I've only gotten stuck (and 1 PB) when I waited too long to eat and then ate too fast (and when I PB'd, I didn't chew my food too well, either). You have 2cc in a 10cc band...next fill is pretty unlikely to take you to too full. Drink the glass of water they ask you to drink before you leave the office and if you have no problems, you should be fine.

You were banded 9/30/08? I'd say it's a bug.

The most significant thing in your post says "2 cc in a 10cc band". You have virtually no restriction yet. I was told to eat according to the meal plan but when I got hungry to eat an egg white or 1 oz of low fat cheese -- both are protein, and protein takes longer to digest than anything else you can eat and therefore makes you feel more full for a longer time. Once you've had a couple of more fills and are at least close to your sweet spot, your between meal hunger will dissipate.

I had surgery on 2/10 and went back to work on 2/13. I'm a legal assistant and sit most of the time. Yes, I was ready to go home at the end of the day but it wasn't terribly hard on me by any means. My first fill was at 4 weeks out. Second was 3 weeks after that and my next one is next week, 4 weeks after #2. Fill visits are short! If you work near your doctor's office, you could probably schedule fills on your lunch hour.

I had gallbladder surgery more than 20 years ago....when they cut you from your sternum nearly all the way down to your appendix....and I had the same issues with the scar area. It itched like crazy for years. But it improved slowly and now doesn't bother me at all.

Why are you second-guessing yourself? Think about these things carefully: #1 Are you actually carrying more concern over having SURGERY and concern over possible problems? #2 Are you afraid that, having failed at other attempts to lose and keep off weight, you will be the one person this won't work for? #3 What changes concern you the most? Name them, think about them. I weighed 284 at the date of my first consultation. My surgery was February 10. I've lost 51 pounds to date. So far, my skin is not loose. I was advised by my surgeon to be realistic about this issue....that some loose skin is possible after all because I am 58 years old. And, he said he asks his patients, regardless of the WLS they choose, to wait 2 years after reaching goal weight to have loose skin removed because it will continue to shrink back down well after you reach goal weight. My pre-op diet was 2 whey Protein shakes a day and 2 lean meals (3 oz of lean protein and a steamed veggie). It wasn't horrible, I lost some weight, I actually started feeling better AND I knew it would be over soon. Post-op was 10 days of liquid, with the first 3 being Clear liquids. I was not the least bit hungry at first because my stomach (as yours will be) was swollen and I just didn't care about "eating" but drank all I was instructed to drink to keep myself healthy. By the 10th day, yes, I was hungry but I also knew that when I went to the doctor that day I would be advanced to mushy foods. Within 10 days after that, I was eating most "regular" food. There's not much I can't eat (soft bread is, however, completely out the window).

Have you met with your surgeon to discuss this? It is obviously not ordinary or common, so it needs to be addressed. Doc may want an upper GI, etc. How long after surgery did the pains start will be another question the doc will ask. I've never heard anybody specifically describe anything close to what you're describing. It could be coincidental to the band -- that is, just happened to start after you got banded and not be in any way related to the band. In short, call your doctor and get a thorough examination.

I agree with 2FG...No matter how much fill you have, it's not some magic thing. You still have to work at this and each person works at it at different levels. So, you get a fill and maybe it is easier for you to control your eating or resist bad food choices but it still required you to expend an effort.

And just as important as what a fill procedure is like is the aftermath. You may be on liquid or mushy food for a day or two (some doctors, even longer). But, with each fill you will find yourself feeling satisfied without eating a lot of food and each fill will take you closer to your sweet spot. And, with each fill, weight loss will improve to a steady rate. Right now, you've found your way to bandster hell but the first fill will be the beginning of what you hoped for when you signed up for the band in the first place. I'm due my third fill on 4/28 and I need it. I expect this fill to get me even closer to my sweet spot and to help me along. Sometimes I feel like the only reason I'm losing is I make myself walk away from food. Other days, I feel restriction and I just don't want the food. I'm expecting more of those "just don't want" days soon!!

A small pillow to hold over your belly area if you have to cough. AND, I could not have made it without my heating pad! Helps with pain AND helps with gas pains

While reading about the complications some people experience can be scary, please remember that the overall rate of complications for lap band is .01%. And most complications are simple ones. Just believe that you won't be a part of that very small statistic and keep working toward your goal!

I have a friend on another forum who tried her best to explain to her young daughter what she was going to do. She downplayed "surgery" but explained the "band" around her stomach. He daughter seemed pretty okay with it and after a few questions was ready for other stuff. A few days after she had her surgery, someone asked her about it in front of the child....who butted in and said "Oh, Mommy just had a rubber band put around her stomach." So, there's a child's view!

Dee, so sorry about the diagnosis.... I know it has to be a pretty big road block. But, the other side is at least you know what is causing your problems. I think you need to talk to your doctor some more. NSAIDs aren't really the first line of treatment for RA as far as I know. My dear friend who has it and gotten the most consistent relief and return to normalcy from an injectable. And even NSAIDs are likely available in injectible form. So you need to sit down for a serious discussion about treatment options.

Jessica, I haven't kept my surgery a secret either BUT not everybody is blessed with supportive friends and family. I've heard too many horror stories about family members who are hypercritical of "taking the easy way out" (yeah, like this is easy!) and second-guessing every bite a bandster puts in their mouth. It's a fine line, and I completely understand not telling anybody except those nearest, dearest ... most dependable to be supportive. And you and I can count our blessings!

And, band slippage is very uncommon! So relax. It's all new right now but don't give yourself unnecessary worries!

Just because you are on mushy food doesn't mean you can't have elegant, yummy stuff. I suggest things like lobster bisque, spinach artichoke dip made with low fat cheese and baked whole wheat crackers or whole wheat pita chips. fresh fruit. Walden Farms makes a chocolate sauce that has NO CALORIES,...yeah, you read that right. I buy it at Kroger where all the ice cream toppings are. It's a great dipping sauce for fruit and nobody who has tasted it knew that it was NO CALORIES.

MissBS has it down. Not all of us have pain. I never took ANY pain medication even though I had a prescription for it. I had surgery on Tuesday and was back to work on Friday. The single thing just about all of us would complain about if we could only pick one thing is GAS. For me, Gas-X strips, walking as much as I could as often as I could and a heating pad took care of the gas. But it's sneaky. It could hurt in your shoulder or your side or up along the side of youre neck. But it goes away and in the mean time, every day you feel better!

I think I told everybody I know because I was so excited about it. But I also knew my family and friends would be supportive of what I was chosing to do. Not everybody will be supportive. And even those who are may ask a lot of questions that you don't want to go into. Realistically, this is what I told someone else who knew her father and sister would be totally negative about her choice. Pre-op diet: Lots of people go on "quick start" diets of protein shakes or combinations of protein shakes and lean meals. You aren't doing anything different. After the band: You will have the liquid diet and then mushy foods and then regular food. You can say you are just continuing with trying to get rid of 20 or 30 or [fill in the blank here] before you settle into a regular diet plan. Once you're back to regular food, you will be making healthy food choices and as long as you chew your food well and don't rush you probably won't have any stuck events but try new stuff at home or by yourself, not when you're with others so that if it just doesn't work for you, nobody sees it happen. This is the way you can keep it to yourself. You AREN'T taking the easy way out! You'll have to make good eating decisions every day for the rest of your life. You will just have assistance with portion control.

Nobody here came to the decision for a lap band as their first choice of ways to address their obesity. You're in good company. We've all lost and gained, usually more than once or twice (or more). I don't anybody here will say this is easy. You still have to make good eating decisions -- protein instead of ice cream and cookies for example -- and you could give up on good decisions and eat whatever. But the band will limit how much and if you can work with that incredible aid, and choose good things to fill you up then you can and will be successful. I lost more than 100 pounds twice before and about 70 twice as well. And 20-3o plenty of times. I have consistently "fallen off the wagon" after about 25 pounds and then regained it every time. But here I am 2 months after surgery and I've lost 51 pounds. There've been days I ate a bit of something here or there that wasn't perfect, but the slips were small because I couldn't just eat as much as I could stuff in my mouth. You can do this! This is a healthy way to do it! And you have chosen to get a great "helper" to accomplish your dream.

In addition to whatever testing, etc. your surgeon may require, each insurance company is different in its requirements. They may require nutritionist visit(s), psych. evaluation, monitored diet for 3 or even 6 months, a letter from you about why you want the surgery, a letter of recommendation from your PCP regarding medical necessity. Look to your surgeon's front desk people to guide you but don't be the least bit hesitant to call your insurance company your self and ask what they require. You may be able to go ahead and start on some of it.

64 oz of water a day (or more, if I want it). While on the pre-op diet I was told WHAT I could consume but not HOW MUCH. You are recovering from significant surgery and you need to be eating well enough to support healing and not worrying about dieting at this stage.

I was told 3/4 cup of food would be a normal meal. That's 6 oz. And, since you haven't had a fill yet, if you're able to stick close to the guidelines, you're doing very well since a lot of people in the same time frame are starving to death and have a very hard time even staying close to the guidelines.

You've traded one obsession for another, but at least this one is healthy. And I don't think I'd worry overmuch about it unless it reaches a point where you are stressed out if you can't meet that 'scheduled' amount every day. Then it's an unhealthy obsession...when it takes control of your life.