xavier

If the pains are not brought on by physical exertion and relieved by rest, they are very unlikely to be cardiac especially given a negative stress test. Likely stress but any other physical causes (gall bladder, hernia, chest injury etc) are much less important /risky in terms of your long term health than your obesity.Good luck with whatever you decide...none of this stuff is an emergency...weight loss surgery is a lifelong lifestyle change so you can wait a bit if you need to. Be good to yourself!

Did they put you on meds for the reflux or just unfill you?

Well good luck and I hope you make the right choice for you. A lot of your negatives about the band are not true for me. I eat every food I ate before and have really had no problems. I can eat a small meal in a restaurant but if we are comparing a golf ball to a banana (four times as big?) my golf ball has put me fairly easily into a size 6 and if I doubled let alone quadrupled my intake I might have never gotten to goal and below it...hard to know until you see how whatever choice you make works out for you...either way its a leap of some faith!

That 0.3cc made a huge difference for me. She said see how it goes and if there were problems she could take some of it out down to about 1 or 1.5 tenths! Right now this is easy for me and just a lifestyle and I'm pretty tight (liquid Breakfast only) but I like and need it this way! I still have to have some discipline with myself because I could snack after dinner when the band is looser!

Dear Kiwi, First be nice to yourself you havent failed until you have quit. I advise you to deal with your health issues and get those under control before worrying about your weight! Once that is all done and under control I would say two things: 1. Proably get a fill to reign in how much you are eating. 2. Beans are the cheapest best food for all humans and I think they are perfect for a bnder. Super high protein and kind of mushy and very filling. I LOVE the vegetarian refried beans in a can with some sour cream and salsa!

These are great stories for all of us and I'm not sure what the answer is. I am wondering when the original poster says 'got a fill and cant eat, got an unfill and everything goes down' how much fill are we talking about? My last fill (trying to get off the last 10 and then did lose 15) was 3/10ths of a cc! This is TINY but it made all the difference...

My current self would tell my preband self not to worry so much about every little thing. The weight will come off (for me it was slowly) and when I get to maintenance I wont even remember every little bite of food and every little scale fluctuation! I will fall into a lifestyle and just live my life!

Agree 100% with B-52 as I am also a 'restrictionist"...I just HAVE TO eat less and I need it to be that way!

Read everything on these boards! I am 48 and feel like I have a whole new life. This seems like a good step toward getting healthy. I wouldnt worry too much about loose skin (yeah, I have some and no it doesnt matter to your skin how fast or slow you lose!) it should be the least of your concern in getting healthy so you can enjoy the rest of your life!

I think these are all good posts and for me Lap band was right. But heres my thoughts on how to choose: I believe many of us have a touch of mental illness that lead us to obesity (otherwise why not just eat less, burn more etc?) so for me I call that part of me the 'fat/crazy'. The part I couldnt control and all the crazy thoughts that went with it like a running monolog in my head of what I should or shouldnt eat and what I should or shouldnt do since I ate something I shouldnt...sound familiar? Well I have been successful and reigned in the fat/crazy but a little of it is still there. I'd say my band does 75% of the work but on a different day I might say different! I think the choice between LB and VSG is how much of the fat/crazy you have. If you dont have any will power at all and the fat/crazy is 100% in control of you you should lean toward VSG because it does more of the work for you. (My doc told me he has met patients who have NEVER dieted or lost weight...they probably need the sleeve or even GB) But I had dieted successfully many times, lost a lot of weight, and even kept it off (for a while!) so he thought I could handle the LB which does require you to reign yourself in a bit! Just my thoughts...oh, if I lost my band, I would get the sleeve!

My doc told me to try to lose 10 pounds but didnt say how...as a lifelong dieter I KNEW how! It continues to amaze me how there really is no standard medical practice regarding anything about this band...every doc has their own way and even the other health professionals (dont get me started about those dieticians) seem to be totally winging it with no general consensus about what's best!

I know it might seem easy for me to say this from where I am sitting (maintenance) but here goes: This whole thing is a lifestyle FOREVER! Its not a diet or a crazy comittment to go to the gym every day - which I doubt many of us can keep up for a lifetime! It is a change for the whole entire rest of your life so as much as you can try not to focus on scratching the days on the wall of the cave! Start making tiny changes that you think you can live with forever.

I cant do yogurt either and I am basically a vegetarian so I have to give some effort to protein. I have a Premier Protein drink every morning, partly because solid food is difficult in the morning. Its from Cosco and comes in an 18 pak of little cartons. They have choc and vanilla and they are both good. Sometimes I order the strawb for variety. They are 160 calories and 30 grams of protein and I think that really starts the day right. I am also quite lazy and I make an egg in a coffee cup in the microwave and then put cheese on it. I do eat some cottage cheese with salsa and a fair amount of tuna salad or egg salad. I buy some premade tofu salads at Whole foods which I know would be outrageously expensive except for how little I eat! Once in a while I have made the effort to put protein powder (GNC) in grits, oatmeal, or soup. PS If you are going to try those protein shots (the ones I got were in test tubes) stand next to the sink...mine was instantly rejected!

Dear Skinny, Yes you are right, I think, about your 'cheating' reinforcing the idea that the band is what you need. If I could have kept weight off or followed a diet for very long I wouldnt have had to have my gut lassoed! I am a complete failed dieter over 20 years where I lost a signif amount of weight many times but always gained it back plus a few. I was scared to death my failures would mean I would fail the lap band! I never dieted or exercised since I have had the band and I still dont. My band makes me eat less. Period. I still take my jeans out of the dryer thinking they are a child's size and that they will never fit (I have two pairs that are a 4, most are a 6!) but they always do fit! They arent even tight when freshly washed and I have no gut whatsoever to suck in when I zip them up...

Pendulum, Just thank Dad and drop it. You are an adult and dont have to engage in these discussions where you justify your (adult!) choices. The only way you can get into a discussion with anyone about this is to engage in the discussion...dont do it! Just nod and smile and dont actually respond. These types of 'conversations' regardless of good intent are not good for any of us! Regarding the last supper phenomenon...most of us did it and most of us continue to cheat!I always say there are those of us who cheat and those of us who dont admit that they cheat! My sincerest apologies to anyone reading this who is perfect!

Whenever I hit a plateau I started doing a diet /exercise log. Just to see what the input/output was. I think each time it motivated me to get a fill even if it was a tiny one. I should have put exercise in quotes since I never did more than some dog walking...

I think Tracy means BMR rather than BMI but I agree with both above. Starvation is an overrated concept and I am always surprised how many people on here (presumably they are obese, right?) think they are starving! If someone had shown me what I am eating now when I started all this I would have thought I would have died from starvation but no, I feel great! If you are female 1000 calories is plenty and puts you no where near stravation-mode! If you want to go to the gym for your health and to lose weight faster great but you certainly dont have to eat more to make up for it. For those who are shaky, headachey, and dizzy when they are on the preop diet or whatever (I was!) you are not having these symptoms due to starvation (an excuse to cheat) you are detoxing from a massively overfed state. Been there done that.I am lazy in terms of exercise and I normally (with band of course) live at around 700-800 calories a day and I feel like I could climb Everest! Good luck to all: Be nice to yourself but be honest also!

Depends on the doc...some are really stingy and almost punitive about it. Mine fills you up while you drink water so you are filled to good restriction on the first fill...I LOVE her! Seems like most are about 4 week intervals and range from 1 or 2 ccs each time...that means 6 months of Bandster Hell (you had surgery but have no effect of the band!). My doc says if you are at half or less capacity (like 5cc in a 10cc band) you basically do not have a working band yet!

You are basically on a very restrictive diet and your band is no help at all...of course you are starving and want to advance your diet! I think you can do so in moderation and I think most of us, if honest, would say we did the same and have done the same type of 'cheating' all along! This first approximately 6 months is the absolute worst as you are getting no help from your band until you get it at least half filled! (Bandster Hell) That port feeling will go away as it heals and it wont hurt but you will notice it once in a while. Now that I am at normal BMI mine sticks out like a golf ball but doesnt bother me even on my belly on a surfboard...its just weird!

Is this a doctor-recommended diet? 500 calories is ridiculous. It should be more like 1000 which will still be a lot less than whatever you have been eating, right? I think that's way too restrictive and punishing and I dont think you will feel like going on walks! I think you'll be light headed, cranky, and headachey! Just go by how you feel on the walks...good luck!

Oh, the dreaded town crier...theres one in or attached to every family! {Proceed with caution...I think I would not tell! Sorry Mom!

I buy the Premier Protein drinks at Cosco. They are 130 calories and 30 grams of protein and they taste great. Cosco has choc and vanilla and you can order the strawberry. They are delicious and I think it is $30 for a case of 18. (way more expensive to order but its worth it sometimes for a new flavor) I have one every day and I have been banded for 2.5 years. (maintenance normal BMI these days and finding it easy)