OnTheWay to Thin

getting gall stones after major weight loss is pretty common and unfortunatley there is no alternative to correct it without surgery...

There are a number of good marinades out now that add great flavor to fish. I just use them to baste the fish while cooking, I like chipolte lime, raspberry pepper, there are jamaican jerk.. experiment and see what you like.

Salad kicked my butt tonight too, first time I have tried it since my fill and oh man not good, not sure if I ate to fast, did not chew enough or what but it was the worst episode I have had. Normally if i get the golf ball, worst case I may throw up a bit but once the offending bite is gone then life is good, not with the salad it went on for a while...

I struggle with protien powders but I took unjury unflavored, 1/2 scoop, add 1 pk of sugar free hot chocolate mix, and about 6 oz of skim or fat free milk, add a couple ice cubes and blend like crazy, that I was able to get down.

I wonder if flying had an impact on your bands? We were banded at about the same time, I have had 1 fill and I have restriction but have noticed when I am congested i am tighter (darn alergies), I also tried steak tonight for the first time since my fill, did not go well. It came back up, I dont seem to get too stuck as if it feels stuck it ejects pretty quickly. But like you guys I am still trying to figure things out. I had a business lunch this week too and I was scared spitless to eat.. luckily they had sandwich trays where one big tray of bread, 1 big tray of all kinds of meats, cheeses and lettuce & tomatoe so I made a tomatoe, meat, cheese sandwich and chew chew chew and it went ok.

My doctor allowed anything that would fit through a straw although you are not supposed to use a straw... so I went to the grocery store deli section and bought the most wonderful chicken tortilla soup, brought it home, ran it through my blender with chicken broth to thin it and it was awesome.

Yes weight loss messes with your cycle, the fat pumps a lot of estrogen through your system and can cause both stoppage and more periods so dont stress, it will level out.

Me too I had about a 5 lb gain and it slowly went away in about the first 5-6 days after surgery...

My preop appt was May 9th, had surgery May 28th. I am down a total of 34 lbs, 19 since surgery, I just had my first fill 10 days ago and the weight loss is picking up again. But if I can stick to 2 lbs a week I am one happy girl.

I go camping very often and we tend to stick to lean meats, veggies and fruits. I put everything in foil packets with seasoning, marinade or other flavors and then cook over grill or camp fire. Works well. Last week we made fish with zucchini and mushrooms one day and grilled chicken with corn on cobb and grilled pineapple another day. Hope this helps.

Wow you look terrific!

Wow these are all great. So I will add a few. I had to go to costco and get my glasses adjusted over the weekend as they were falling off. I had to move the seat up about an inch in my car, guess my bumm has gotten smaller and made me farther away! LOL I was in 24/26 pants and 3X tops before I started, I have now taken all 24/26 items out of my closet, and my 22's in pants are fitting nicely and even bought a top in a 1X and it fit! I had to go down 1 cup and 1 band size on bras, same reason they were doing nothing cause they were too loose. I have a favorite ring I used to wear on my middle finger, and it fits there again!

The band is no magic bullet, you do have to diet and exercise, however, once you get the band and have fills it makes it much easier to do those things as the band when properly adjusted gives you the feeling of being full much sooner and therefore you eat much less. That being said, it does take work and commitment. Good luck with your decision, I am 7 weeks out and dont regret my decision but it is more work than I anticipated.

my first and only fill so far was 2.5cc and I have lots of restriction. They said that may lessen over time and I would likely need another fill but so far 1 week from fill 1 I am doing fine. Next fills would be between .5cc and 1 cc until I find the sweet spot.

I went to my pcp and just said I was considering weight loss sg and wanted his opinion. He asked what research I had done and made sure I understood the options, then he told me he thought I was an excellent candidate and that he would support my decision 100%. I asked him if he had surgery which of the surgeons he would choose and he told me the doctor he trusted and had the most faith in. So that is the route I took and I could not be happier. It is not easy but it is working. It is also not quick so be prepared to be in it for the long haul.

Lindsey how are you doing now, have you had a fill, are you feeling better or still struggling? Hang in there...

I too am doing well, have not noticed hair loss yet, my hair is thin to begin with, so yikes, that will be ugly till it grows back. I had my first fil last week and have good restriction from it (at least for now), doctor said to come back as soon as I started feeling like I was eating more than 1 cup at a meal but I am no where near that now. First fill was easy and they found the port fine. My BP is way down and hoping my regular doctor will take me off of my bp meds soon too.

I had the old way of gallbladder surgery years ago. It did make my lapband sg take a bit longer as one of the incisions had to go through the gallbladder incision. But normally not a problem just might add 5-10 minutes to the surgery itself.

Holy cow you lost 250# you look fantastic, your success is amazing.

I bought the book called Weight Loss Surgery with the Adjustable Gastric Band, by Robert Sewell, it was very good and informative, it is available on Amazon and does a good job of telling you what to expect at each stage along the way.

Lizzie it is different with everyone, some need 1 or 2 fills some need 5-6, so hang in there. However, you are doing fine. Losing any weight while you are healing from surgery is good! Try not to compare your weight loss to others, just be proud of each pound you loose. And remember most doctors say they aim for a weight loss of 1-2 lbs a week... Anything more may be too fast for your body so just be happy and watch the scale go down.

Wow my doctor made me wait 6 weeks for the first fill, so I just had one this week, I feel restriction from this one and it seems to be about right, but they said that it would probably change and loosen up in a week or two and that I would need another fill. Be paitient, this is a long term process and you need to take it slow and easy.

I had my first fill last week as well, no pain, just them pressing around finding the port, but not uncomforable. I guess I am one of the lucky ones cause i have good restriction with the first fill, this may calm down and I may require another one but I am very hopefully that i wont have more than 2 or 3, since the fill I am eating around 1/2- 3/4 cup max at a meal and I am not hungery for at least 4 hours. I have also lost 3 lbs since wednesday.

Right below ribcage but above waist band, kind of half way between breast and belly button. My doctor said that each doctor put them in a different place, that it was kind of like their own personal signature so they can be anywhere.

I was banded the same day as you and I had my first fill this week, and bam I have restriction at least for now. And yes I have had a PB, not fun, basically once you have restriction, you will have to eat slower, eat smaller bites or it will come back up. So take this time to learn to pace yourself, I thought I had done a good job of it until restriction hit and I realized I was still faster than what my band liked. It is definately a learning process.