juliansmom2003

I think the pouch test is a great way to start. It did wonders for me!

Congratulations, Manda and welcome to the other side!!!! Just keep walking that gas off. You will sound (and smell) like a truck driver, but it's all worth it in the end. Lots of luck to you on your journey!!!

Wow--2 weeks? My doc made me wait 6 weeks!! It sounds like a little too soon to be exercising. Your body just went through a ton of trauma with the surgery, so it needs to heal. Not only that, you aren't taking in enough calories to be able to do any kind of major exercise (except walking). That is probably the reason you are so exhausted. Heck, I needed a nap 2 weeks post op just because I woke up that morning LOL! I would try to give yourself more time. You could always go for a short walk to get some exercise. You need to listen to your body and allow yourself to heal properly so there are no complications. Rest and relax--believe me, the time will come soon enough when you need to kick in to high gear :-)!!

Well keep in mind that everyone is different and this band is a tricky thing. I too get my fills under fluroscopy. I have had 2 fills. Sometimes the swelling or time of day when you're getting the fill makes a difference. You may feel really restricted and it will appear on the screen, but swelling may go down and you might find that you may need to go in for another fill. That happened to me. I had 3.8 ccs put in the first time, then I was feeling hungry between meals and went in for another. The doc looked at my level and he said I had pretty good restriction, but I got him to "top me off" and I ended up getting another .8 ccs That was 2/25 and it seems to be doing the trick. I did make another appointment (two weeks from now) just to check my levels, since I am not feeling like I used to (after the second fill, I didn't even want to eat--now I find myself looking for food). Just wanted to be sure you had realistic expectations going into this. While fluoro will get you to restriction a little faster, you may not just be "one and done" :-) When's your fill? Good luck!

Hi Texas, I'm sorry that you're not losing. I am sure it's very frustrating. Your ticker says 52 lbs, so you should be proud of that loss!!! When you were unfilled, is it because you had stuck episodes or another reason? Since I don't want to barrage you with questions, here are some things that my nutritionist/doc told me would be key to losing weight: 1. Take in at least 60-70 grams of Protein per day 2. Drink 64 -96 ounces of Water every day 3. Exercise (not mandatory, but if you can get in a 15 or 20 minute walk per day, it counts) 4. Calorie intake (you may get a few different responses on this)-- 800 to 1000 calories per day. Try to be INconsistent so your body doesn't go into starvation mode. Keep it guessing and trick the metabolism 5. If you are hungry in between meals, choose a healthy snack with protein (i.e. light cheese stick or apple with reduced fat peanut butter) 6. No grazing. If you feel legitimately hungry, again #5. 7. Listen to your body and try to figure out head hunger v. real hunger I hope some of this helps you. I am sure other posters will have great advice too, but everything above has really worked for me. CONGRATS on your 52 lbs lost! It's an accomplishment and something to be proud of!

OMG yes, it's better if your insurance covers it and that's how your doc does it! The doc will have you swallow barium so you are able to see it going down and will be able to decide if you're restricted, not enough or too much and is able to take care of it then. Instead of filling without seeing the restriction level, you are actually able to see it, which reduces the chances of overfill (most of the time). Good luck.

Honestly, I'd actually try the 5-day pouch test (I know I have suggested this a million times, but it really helped me). It almost detoxes you again, gets you back on track and sometimes shrinks that pouch as well. Here is the site with all the info: Surgical Weight Loss 5 Day Pouch Test Hopefully that will work for you. I am a huge sugar freak and caught myself snacking and it really helped curb it for me. And I agree with Karen's post (and not because we have the same name :thumbup:)-- no one is perfect ALL the time. We are human. And while that doesn't mean binging constantly on bad things, you could allow yourself a cheat day once a week so you feel you aren't missing anything. To be honest, I started with two cheat days, then one and now I will indulge in moderation every now and then, but not on a specific day. I have noticed that as time has passed, my goal weight is getting closer and almost within reach and when I think about that, it makes me put that nasty cookie down LOL. Have you ever gone to Hungry Girl.com? She has the BEST recipes that are band friendly and a lot lower in calories. Seriously, you should check the site out. I made Peanut Butter fudge over the weekend (65 CALORIES A SERVING!!) with just brownie mix, pumpkin and reduced fat peanut butter and it was a great treat, satisfied the sweet tooth and was a reasonable number of empty calories. You'll find what works best for you, trust me. This site is the best--I've learned so much here! Good luck to you!!

Bobbie-- thoughts and prayers are with you for tomorrow! Good luck and let us know how it goes!!

Honestly, I have the same problem. Everyone asks how much more I need to lose and I say "20" (which would put me at 150) and they all say that is too much. Now, I'm 5 ft 1.5 in and I really should be aiming for less, but I have had my head set on 150. I may try to go to 140 if I am looking like I would still be healthy at that weight. At this point, I don't tell anyone either because I just don't want to hear it lol.

Phranp-- I so hear you about night time. I am like a freaking night feeder lol. I know most of the time it is head hunger, but sometimes it is real hunger. I figure I'll work out or something if I really do need to eat. Good luck to us is right lol

....that I'm glad I called for a fill appointment. I go back and forth on do I need one, maybe I'm not working the band right, no I'm ravenous.....and on and on. Today I had a nice size lunch, and as I'm taking my last bite, I'm still having BAD hunger pains. I honestly don't know what the heck is wrong with me. Even when I had 'restriction' (or so my doc says), I never have the "not one more bite or else" event people speak of (not like I'm looking for it--I just don't know if I'm looking for the right signals of what full is). I know it's going to feel like it did before, but I don't even feel the full feeling in my chest. Some days, just when I think I have it all figured out, there I go again with the same confusion on what the heck it should feel like when I'm full! Sorry guys, just needed to vent. Will I ever figure this out????

That sounds very strange. Are you expecting TOM to arrive? Did you keep track of calories you took in? Did you weigh in first thing this morning? I just don't know how a swing like that is possible, unless there is something making you retain liquid, like TOM. I am looking forward to reading what everyone else thinks. Very odd.

Congratulations on hitting your goal!!! Woohoo!!! I actually started at 231 and my goal is about 150. I wasn't really having a good couple of days until I read this post. 20 lbs left is definitely within reach--thank you for sharing your success with us! You look amazing!!!!

How cute is your lil puppy? OMG, you are so cute! Love the fact that you're the camera happy chick now LOL! Great pic by the way!!! You are glowing, woman!!!

Holy wow! Our ever growing group is getting larger and larger (and making it so much fun keeping up with everyone LOL). Anne — I don’t think you were whining. I think at one time or another we all have issues with our food addictions. You were good to choose a healthy item to binge on, but I agree with Betsy that it’s a good thing that you recognize the behavior, which unfortunately the band won’t help with. It’s something over time that we need to work on. I’ve only been banded since October, but I am noticing changes in my way of thinking and sometimes I notice my brain talking myself out of a bad choice. It’s a slow process for some of us that have been eating the wrong way most of our lives, but it will happen if you continue to work at it!! Leigh — Glad you got to get out for a ride!! Did you eat some chocolate yesterday? Denise — Scary about the quake! I hope you didn’t get any damage and glad you were okay enough to post after J! I’m sure you’re used to it by now, but again, us east coast folks are a little nervous whenever we hear the word “earthquake” LOL Laura—your Easter dinner sounds awesome! I want some of that fruit cocktail fluff!!! Are you feeling restriction? Were you able to eat any of yummy Easter feast or were you still on liquids? Please be sure you go nice and slow. That fill sounds like a BIG one! Thank goodness you got it done under fluoro! Christie—how cute! My son is the same way. He’s 6 and he is constantly telling me, “Now mommy, remember, eat really slow, okay?” He knows all too well. And while my husband and 4 year old daughter are supportive, my little buddy looks out for me all the time. He was so cute yesterday when I said I need some exercise and he took me into the back room and played “Just Dance” with me on the Wii then asked if we could Wii Fit. LOVE him! God really blessed us with some cuties J! Hope you enjoyed the rest of your sandwich without incident!! Dorothy –just sent you a request too. I’m Karen Ladzenski Tilton on fb. Forgot to put a message on there because my fingers were moving a mile a minute LOL Jennifer—I hear you about this board being so active! It’s so tough to keep up LOL! I bet TOM did have something to do with you just missing goal. Bet you’ll see a bigger difference after. I LOVE pineapple cottage cheese! It is the best!!!! Absolutely awesome and you’re right! A great way to have a nice treat for dessert with good protein while everyone is eating their ice cream! I should buy those cups. The crazy thing is, I honestly think my portions are still exceeding 6 ounces (on days I don’t have time to make lunch — very rarely, I’ll bring a Smart Ones to work and the average one is 10 ounces and I know for a fact that I finish those things and still be hungry on most days! Hummingbird—I am sure when I go in for my fill in 2 more weeks that I’ll end up with .1 or .2 Honestly, I hear about people getting full after 1 or 2 bites and I get jealous sometimes, but if I can manage to get full on 6 to 8 ounces, I’ll be happy! I know I eat more than that now and it used to hold me 3 or 4 hours, but I find I too am getting hungry between meals, so I’m going to let the doc take a look and if I need more, so be it. Last time he was telling me I was restricted and I told him that was because it was the morning, when I’m usually tighter, but I am a freaking night feeder and am legitimately hungrier in between meals and even though he could argue the point either way, he gave me .8 which I thought would be “it”, but now I think the swelling has gone down and I think I’m ready for a little bit more (although I do pb and stuff, that’s totally my issue for being a bonehead and eating too fast LOL) I was like you after your 2nd fill — 2 weeks of being very tight, then good restriction, now not so much. Here’s to hoping fill #3 (and a little top off) brings me back! Bree — glad to hear you got to ride!! Good for you deciding to take things at your own pace and not fill too tight. Sometimes restriction can be a blessing and a curse. I find myself struggling with this one on a regular basis (should I or shouldn’t I get more?!?) I am sure you burned off the calories (and then some) from that pizza by just riding, so it’s good that you treated yourself (pizza is my favorite food ever!!!) Stacie—sorry to hear about your public incident. It’s the worst. I wish the ordeal itself was quicker, but I too find it requires a few trips to the porcelain god and when you think you’re done, of course, you’re not L. (LOLing at Denise with the splashing toilet water trick!!!! HAHA) Bob-- where the hell are you???? Betsy—good for you shooting to bump your activity this week. And you deserved to sleep in yesterday! Honestly, church is so full of people who NEVER go except on Holidays, so I think that earns you a get out of church free card J! I slacked off last week between TOM coming and my brother being home (he’s in the Army). We’ve been spending a lot of time with him because he leaves for another tour in Afghanistan in May L and he leaves for Kentucky this Saturday, so we’ve been doing tons of things with him. I did manage to have a slice of my favorite pizza on the NJ boardwalk on Saturday and watched my entire family pigging out on multiple slices while the whole time they were jamming it in their mouths, I was still on my first and only slice. That still amazes me—I used to be a 3 to 4-slice girl and it took me 30 minutes to eat my slice (it was big, but still!) Gotta love this band. I walked up and down the boardwalk putting the kids on the rides, so I am sure I got at least 2 miles in, so I didn’t give that pizza a second thought. It was hysterical though. I didn’t even give it a second thought when they were all munching on funnel cake and curley fries. Keeping my eyes on the prize J! Easter was nice. I made two turkey breasts — one the regular, greasy way and the other skinned and filleted in a crockpot with herb stuffing, cranberries and apples. While I didn’t exceed my max calories for the day, I found I was munching on jelly beans and sampling the low fat desserts I made (got a couple of the Hungry Girl cookbooks and I was making a lot of the dessert recipes since everyone was coming over). I didn’t gain (and managed to get some exercise in yesterday despite the hectic weekend), but I really feel “off” for not exercising as much as I’ve been!

ITA with Leigha. When we're "there" with no hopes or promise of what a great future is in store, it's easy to be disappointed with the pics, but now remember there IS hope!!! Those pics will be great progress pics for you to compare your svelte self too! One of my regrets is that I don't have enough before pics because I was always hiding!!

First fill- 3.4 ccs Second- .8 ccs (Possible third on 4/22)--not sure if I will get any. I called and asked them to check restriction and if I need it they will give me one). I have been getting hungry between meals (like every two hours) and still have to stop myself from eating over 6 oz because I'm still hungry. Maybe I will get a "top off" lol

I hear you!!! I'm thinking if we get enough people on here, maybe we could get a group discount! LOL

GREAT idea!! Honestly, these challenges have been great motivation for me! Since it is only about 5 weeks away, I think 10 pounds might be reasonable, which will put me at 160 (holy crap!) I'm getting soooo close to my (first) goal weight!! Good luck to everyone!!!!! :thumbup:

Congrats!!!! You're really earning that screen name ! Seriously, that is an awesome milestone and you should be SO proud of this accomplishment. Onederland is within reach and I'm sure you'll be there before you know it! Congrats again! Raising a sugar free popsicle in your honor !