amwash23

I have good days and bad but I don't regret getting banded at all. It has been a helpful tool in getting healthy. Sure there are certain foods that may be difficult to eat, but the feeling of being down almost a whole person is awesome!

I was banded at True Results!

Hi, I was banded by Dr Hollis back in September. He was very informative indeed. I had no problems at all, and was in and out of the hospital in about 3 hours. I actually haven't seen him since surgery, everytime I go to get a fill a nurse practitioner does it. I haven't requested any with him specifically, so I'm not sure how hard or easy it is to get one with him.

I started off at about the same size as you, and am in about the same size you are now. I never let my size stop me before, so I had tons of clothes to get rid of. I took 6 huge black trashbags full of clothes to Goodwill, and gave another 4 bags of clothes to family. It felt so good to get rid of all of those clothes, but like you I am trying not to purchase too many new things becasue I am still transitioning. Actually, it is time to get rid of at least another bag of clothes for me! I love getting smaller, but I HATE not having clothes to wear!

I was banded Sept 14th, I'm down 77 lbs. I was banded at True Results by Dr Ken Hollis.

Well since my last fill I have been very tight in the mornings and am only able to get down liquids and maybe some yogurt. I can finally eat around noon if I have been up and about but if I sleep in or lounge around then I can't eat until much later, maybe 2 or 3.

I live in the Katy area, but work downtown.

I was banded in September and had my first stuck episode about a week ago after my 3rd fill. It was BEYOND awful!:thumbup: I have had a few other small ones as well and have learned that now I can't eat solids for breakfast anymore. I should probably go back to the doctor and have some of the fill removed as I have now lost 11 lbs in under 2 weeks since the fill. Excited that I have lost the weight, but I know that is WAY too fast!:thumbup:

I am able to eat them all, but I try to be good and not eat any of them except sometimes mashed potatoes. When I do eat them it is in very small portions.

I can drink the chocolate or the vanilla if they are super cold. I like that they are thicker than some of the other drinks so it is more like a milk shake. The cookies & cream tasted like dirt to me and I didn't care for the banana either.

I have heard about people's bands getting tighter, usually in the mornings when they wake up or even at night near bedtime. Also flying makes it tighter as well. I just got my third fill last week and am definitely noticing tightness in the mornings now.

I agree, I think you should try to pay for your first fill out of pocket. Maybe the Dr can give you enough that would give you good restriction until May? You may be surprised that you don't need them as often as you think. I had surgery in September and then a fill in both October and November.....I didn't have my third fill until last week. Good luck with whatever you decide. Insurance sucks sometimes!!

With every fill that I have gotten I have felt restriction. I got my first two fills in October and November, which put me up to 2ccs. I felt good restriction so I didn't go back until last week for my third fill after I noticed I was able to eat way more than I should. The nurse said I was VERY open and put me up to 5ccs. Now my restriction is crazy tight! I am just now getting used to it today. I wasn't sure if it was too tight or I just needed to adjust to it, but I definitely don't think I will be going back for another fill until I lose another 20 lbs at least. But it is different for everyone, so you definitely shouldn't feel like a freak if you don't feel restriction. Good luck to you...you'll hit your sweet spot and when you do you'll love it! :thumbup:

Jimmy Dean has fully cooked turkey sausage patties that are delish!! And you get two of them for 7 grams of fat 120 calories and 13 grams of protein. I love that with eggs and a small amount of potato and salsa. Grits are delish too, or a small amount of cereal w/skim milk. Zone Perfect's protein bars are really good too. Do you like yogurt? Honey flavored Greek yogurt with a spoonful or two of granola and fresh strawberry is to die for!! Whatever you choose just enjoy it while you can, I have been having problems since my last fill about a week ago. I can't really get anything down in the mornings except liquid so I have been drinking Smoothie King smoothies. I miss my grits and eggs already!! :smile2:

Congratulations and welcome aboard for a sometimes bumpy but wonderful ride!!

I say don't beat yourself up, you definitely could have made much worse choices than you did. And at least you were able to snap out of it before you made any really awful choices. Just dust yourself off and try again. I think we all have days where we fall off a little, but we're human. It's being able to get back on the wagon and continue forward that counts!

It definitely depends on how much weight you have to lose, but I think you can do it! Especially if you make the right food choices and stay active. I lost about 30 pounds in the first 3 months.

I weigh myself a couple of times a week, but not consistently. I weigh first thing in the morning, sometimes before and after I use the restroom but usually after. It really does make a difference even if it is just a few ounces.

I always thought it was 10 lbs a size too, but for me that hasn't really been the case. I am down 64 lbs and I went from a 26 and now I am in mostly 18s and some 20s. I just got a fill last week and have dropped 4 pounds since then, so I will see how long it takes me to drop another size. Congrats to everyone with the weight loss, keep up the good work!!

My tech puts the needle in while I am laying down, but the actually fill is done while I am standing up.

I take the flintstone complete vitamins, the majority of the values have 100% for adults so they work just fine for me. My BFF takes them too and she hasn't even had WLS.

It is so crazy how our bodies manifest stress. I have only been banded a little over a week, so I haven't had the stress restriction yet....but around the time I decided to have the surgery, I was also trying to get into school, not to mention work and just everyday stresses. Well according to my dermatologist that is what caused both my hands and feet to be completely covered in painful blisters!! It was awful!! But he said it was stress, crazy! It took about 3 weeks to completely heal with medicine & peeling. I used to get really awful stomach aches when I got totally stressed, and am now wondering how that will affect my band if that happens....I'm guessing I will feel tight like you described. Stress is such an ugly thing, but it's so hard to shake!! :tongue2:

Wow! Everyone is doing a great job!! I was banded on Sept 14; I lost 14 pounds on my post op and have lost another 9 pounds since then!! All of my pants fill a lot looser on me now!! I LOVE IT!! I hope it doesn't change too much when I move to food, I am on the thicker liquids phase this week.

I saw a pill crusher at Walmart for about $4, that may work. My doctor told me that we have to crush all pills that won't fit through a straw. He said that if you can't crush them, then a lot of medications have liquid forms available. He did warn not to crush extended release medications, instead to have your doctor to change your prescription. Hopefully as you progress with your weight loss you won't have to take as many pills. :biggrin: