MyBandJourney2009

O wow,,, starting over, was it scary not having your band filled for that time? I get excited for the day I'm at my goal and can let out some of my fill,,, but at the same time, scared to not have enough fill. I'm glad you got everything fixed,,, was the recovery the same as with getting your band done the first time?

Wow, what Disamanna had to say sounds SO much like what I'm dealing with. Disamanna,,, I'm feeling your pain and I hate that you are dealing with it! I've been sitting up the past 3 nights just to try and get some sleep. I actually have had difficulty the past couple of months, but if I didn't eat for at least 4 hours before laying down, it was ok,,, but now it's happening during the day even if I go to bend down and pick something up,,, I get reflux and also a tight feeling in my throat. Do you have that as well?

I had a hiatal hernia that my doc found and repaired while doing my surgery. I've not had any real problems with my band, got it in Oct. 09 and love having it. It's my little band buddy:-) But, the past couple of months, I've been having a lot of reflux,,, if I eat anything within 4 to 5 hours of going to bed at night,,, I wake up with reflux. I hate it! But I just have adjusted to eating by 5:30ish every day and things were fine. But the past couple of days,,, I've had issues even with water during the day. So I'm wondering now if since I had the hernia,,, that I got it again? Can you even get those again once they've been repaired? I'm so sorry to hear that your band slipped Mimilou2004! Do they have to go back in for a surgery to repair that?

I'm interested in what Banded Bob said,,, "when you over eat,,, it causes your stomach to swell. This is the first time I've heard this, but since I had a bad first of the week with birthday parties, kid's being home for Spring Break, eating out,,, I've been really suffering with my band the past couple of days. Seems even Water is gurgling up a storm to get down. I have an appointment with my doc on Monday, but it makes sense what Banded Bob said. Besides this issue,,, I agree with all that was said. I've had my band since Oct. 2009 and although there have been a few bumps in the road, I'm still thankful that I had the surgery. My doctor always tells me after a fill to do liquids for a day or two and take it very slow. Thanks for the info Banded Bob:-)

Hey everyone,,, wow, this journey is SO different than I imagined it would be. I'm still very happy with my decision to have the lapband, but am surprised at how long it takes to get the band where it's working for you instead of how my friend put it,,, us working for it, lol. I go to the support meetings that Cy-Fair Hospital has once a month but most of the women there have had their bands for a long time and some are already at their goal weight. It's great to hear their stories and they have good ideas and advise, but I would love to chat with someone that is somewhere around where I am in this lapband journey. SO,,,, anyone out there?

Hi yall:-) I'm glad to get responses to my original post in January, lol. I'm 10 months out from my surgery and 8 months from my first fill. I've lost 60 pounds now and although I'm SO happy with my 60,,, I really thought it would be more. One important thing I've learned is you still have to work very hard to eat the right things,,, like I thought it was a magic cure, lol. Just eating smaller amounts of my normal foods wasn't cutting it. BUT,,, I can say that after 8 months of trial and error,,, I think I've got down a system. I also found that working out is going to be a must for me. I do attend the support meetings at Cy-Fair Hospital and I like them,,, the people are all very nice,,, most have already lost the weight they wanted to loose, but that's a good thing because you can hear idea's from them. I've not been in the last couple of months due to our busy schedule this summer, but I'm looking forward to getting back into the meetings. My doctor was Dr. Waggoner and I really like him. I understand about the band just one day working with restriction,,, I can feel like I have no restriction for a few days and then all of a sudden it's hard to get coffee down unless I take small sips. I've been through a lot of highs and lows with my band,,, my little band buddy, lol. My friends and family are still confused about how it works and to tell you the truth, sometimes I am as well. I would love to get together and chat over coffee or a healthy snack, :-) I live in Cypress,,, near 290 and Telge. I've not been looking and reading post on here lately, but am going to get back into the swing of doing so,,, it always was very helpful to read what everyone had to say. Well,,, I'm happy to chat here,,, let me know any thoughts of your band experience, would love to hear from you again!

I was banded on October 21, 2009 by Dr. Waggoner in Cypress, Tx. My weight loss has been slow,,, 40 pounds so far and getting another fill today. Although slow,,, I'm proud of my 40 pounds,,, looking forward to the next 40!

I know this is a crazy question,,, but listening to everyone chat about their band and how the maintenance of it is what makes it work,,, getting a new fill ever so often. Well,,, what happens when your band is to the limit,,, example: a 10cc band,,, you have 80 more pounds to loose and you are at 7cc's now. If I do the math,,, I'm SO afraid that I'll get all the fills that I can get and not be at my weight,,, I'd be sorta doing it all on my own again with no band help. Does this make any sense to anyone or am I just being crazy?:thumbup:

Juliansmom is right,,, throwing up with the band is NOTHING like being sick and throwing up. It's happened to me twice and both times it was because I was talking, not paying attention and ate too fast, not chewing properly. When you are sick and throw up, it comes from deep down in your stomach,,, well, since the food that is causing you discomfort is up higher in your "new" stomach, it's not as bad. I feel pressure and some discomfort,,, I started to cough and I coughed up what needed to come out. Don't get me wrong,,, I NEVER want to do it again,,, very yukky,,, but it's not the fear of the deep down throwing up.

I've tried the unjury fruit punch mix,,, I mixed it with crystal light lemonade and it was really good. Does anyone know if you can purchase it from a store,,, or does it have to be ordered?

Wow,,, it's amazing that I see this post today. I've been wondering the past few days if I was crazy in thinking my band might be leaking? So I guess it's possible that the band/port can leak. I've felt for the past 3 days full in the bottom of my stomach and not the normal band full up top. Does your port area seem slightly sore? After having a good restriction and taking very little food to give me the lapband full feeling,,, I know it has to be something causing me to feel full in the bottom of my stomach??? Any advise from your situation would be appreciated:-) Thanks:-)

Pre-Op Liquid Diet -- Oct. 7th --- 296 Surgery Date ------ Oct. 21st --- 281 1st Fill ------------ Nov. 30th --- 275 2nd Fill ------------ Dec. 28th --- 267 3rd Fill ------------- Jan. 25th --- 256 4th Appointment --- March 8th --- _____ HOPING FOR A GREAT #

Well,,, all I can say is it's S L O W!!! On one hand, I'm sad that it's not going faster, but on the other hand, I'm eating ice cream and chocolate way too much sometimes. It's hard to break 19 years of bad eating habits and the band doesn't curb those cravings. If I had given MORE thought to getting a more detail surgery, I might have considered the sleeve. But it is what it is and at least I'm going in the right direction,,, be it slow or quick,,, I'll get there,,, by October of this year, if I want to be at my goal, I need to buckle down and try to get 13 pounds per month off. I can do it IF I work out! Wish me luck!!!!

Pre-Op Liquid Diet -- Oct. 7th --- 296 Surgery Date ------ Oct. 21st --- 281 1st Fill ------------ Nov. 30th --- 275 2nd Fill ------------ Dec. 28th --- 267 3rd Fill ------------- Jan. 25th --- 256 4th Appointment --- March 8th --- _____ HOPING FOR A GREAT #

Hey TracyNYC,,, I was glad to see your post. I think we are about the same with our surgery time frame and weight loss to date AND our goal weight, :-) My liquid diet started Oct. 7th and I weighed 296. My surgery was on Oct. 21st and I was down to 282. I've had 3 fills and as of today, April 9th, I'm down to 252. I have about 90 more pounds to go to get to my goal weight of about 160 or so. How have you been with all the eating/cravings/protein intake, etc.?? I have good days and bad,,, problem is with me, when I crave something sweet, I know that Ice Cream will go down very well,,, so I still battle and struggle with the sweets,,, but like you said,,, I'm going down instead of up, so it's all good. If I wanted to be at my goal by my birthday and surgery anniversary,,, then I would have to do like 13 pounds a month,,, not sure about that goal?!? But I'm sure if I start working out more, it would help:-) Ok, so I'd love to hear from you, share stories of your experiences. I can't believe it's been 5 months since I had it done! Wow:-)

Well,,, all I can say is it's S L O W!!! On one hand, I'm sad that it's not going faster, but on the other hand, I'm eating ice cream and chocolate way too much sometimes. It's hard to break 19 years of bad eating habits and the band doesn't curb those cravings. If I had given MORE thought to getting a more detail surgery, I might have considered the sleeve. But it is what it is and at least I'm going in the right direction,,, be it slow or quick,,, I'll get there,,, by October of this year, if I want to be at my goal, I need to buckle down and try to get 13 pounds per month off. I can do it IF I work out! Wish me luck!!!!

Yes, Jewe1 is SO right,,, the full feelings are so much different now,,, our new full feelings will be felt up under or behind our boobs. It was SO weird for me and I had a couple of really bad weeks when my band was full enough to be working for me. There are still times that I "think" I'm hungry,,, my mind plays games with me. Like last week, I was completely made because I wanted a cheeseburger and couldn't have one. Bread for me is horrible,,, I think a few bites will be ok and then I really pay for it with the pain. Meats and chicken are tricky also. They seem to fill you up faster, or give you that tight feeling,,, and yes,,, most definitely,,, when you feel that, DON'T put another bit in your mouth,,, it's not worth it. There are days that I struggle so much wanting something I shouldn't have,,, and as strange as this sounds,,, to deal with the head hunger,,, I will put something in my mouth,,, enjoy the taste and spit it out in a napkin. Sorta makes me feel like I'm cheating the system without really doing it. Good luck to all of you just getting started,,, there are going to be good and bad days,,, but hey,,, it's a journey that's worth taking!

Hey everyone:-) I feel like Lisa73 on the issue of what the band was going to do for me. I thought I wouldn't have to try as hard with the band,,, it would cause me to feel full faster so with small portions, I'd loose weight. As you agree Lisa,,, we were wrong on that one, lol. I will also agree that to journal your food is a great idea. Sometimes we don't think about small things we are eating/drinking and when you write them down along with the proteins/carbs/fats,,, you will be surprised at what you are taking in. My biggest trouble is the meat/chicken. They don't go down as good as other things do,,, and to chew and chew get's SO OLD. But I found a Protein shot drink thingy at Walmart,,, it's about 2 dollars for one, but it sure does help me out on those bad days of just NOT wanting meats,,, it's got 26 grams of protein in it and that's awesome for me. That along with a carbmaster yogurt from Kroger with 13 g of protein,,, I start off the day with a good amount of my protein for the day. Good luck to us all,,,, not gaining,,, loosing a little,,, both are very good things for us! My doc says bander's can loose 5 to 10 pounds a month and be doing great. But that there will be some months that nothing will happen and be happy with myself for just simply maintaining my weight:-) Sounds like a good plan to me!!!

I hear ya on the nutritional numbers. It's hard to keep the carbs and fat low and get the protein. With my band, meat isn't the easiest thing to eat,,, so much chewing and I fill up so fast when I eat meat. SO, I get some of my protein from the carbmaster yogurt you can get from Kroger and a fruit punch protein drink from Walmart. The yogurt is high in protein and very low in carbs,,, like 2 or 3 grams and the protein drink is like no carbs and 26 grams of protein. That works very well for me,,, its very sweet, so I mix more water with it and ice and sip on it during the day. To me, getting 26 proteins in that way is a life saver. Hope that helps some:-)

Talking about 1cc making a difference,,, after my first 2 fills, my doc will only do a half of a cc at a time. I feel totally different with my 1/2 cc now. I felt nothing with my first 2 fills,,, perhaps only a slight sticking here and there if I didn't chew good or ate too fast. Now,,, I'm having to be SO careful.

MelsPage,,, I'm glad that you found this site, it has really helped me a lot through this journey. I was banded on Oct. 21st and last week got my 3rd fill. My doc put's a little in at surgery and says that sometimes that's all someone needs. I wasn't one of those people, lol. I felt JUST like you are,,, I have the band, but can still eat like I always did, with the occasional sticking incident,,, usually caused because I ate bread that I knew I shouldn't, or ate too fast. But now with my 3rd fill,,, I'm feeling what others refer to as their sweet spot. Although I will say, for me, the sweet spot is bitter sweet. Like you, I'm not 100 percent sure if I'm feeling full or if I'm feeling a possible sticking incident coming on. I can only eat a small amount without feeling that feeling. I have asked my doctor in detail how I feel and I know everyone is different, but he did say that it won't feel like the same full feeling that we use to get. So when I have those feelings now that are almost like a stuck feeling,,, I try to imagine where my band is, where the new part of my tummy is and how much food I've eaten. SO, I'm left with thinking the feelings I'm now having are my new full feeling. Does that makes sense? I have a 10cc band. My weight before the post op diet was 298,,, I lost 17 pounds on the 2 week liquid diet and about 17 to 18 pounds since surgery on Oct. 21st. Not a lot of weight compared to some, but I feel like slow and steady will get me to my goal:-) With that said, I've lost about 4 more pounds since last Tuesday when I got my 3rd fill,,, I now have 7cc's of a 10cc band. I'm definately feeling the band and I now know why they say it's SO important to eat all the protein first,,, because you can't eat much and like yesterday,,, I think I only got in 20 or so grams of protein,,, I didn't notice till the end of the day that some of what I ate had no protein. Good Luck in the journey,,, for me, I can tell it's going to be a hard journey, but I have my little lapband friend along for the ride and as hard and frustrating as it's going to be,,, it's so worth it in the end:-)

Mom2girls,,, you have done great with the 44 pounds. I SO agree with you about the bad habits and all. But like you said,,, the band in our corner is the best tool I've ever had! It's there when the willpower isn't. Even though my band isn't working for me yet with the being full with less food,,, it is for sure keeping me away from breads and rice. I made the mistake of eating 1 bite of my daughter's pancakes the other day and man o man did I regret it! My troubles now are keeping the protein up without my fat and carbs going up too. But I'm still loving the fact that I got the band. It's there and I'm doing great and I know it will just take that one last fill to put me where I need to be:-)

Hey everyone:-) I agree with Janet md that the weight is slow in coming off and that's to be expected with the lapband. I have a cousin that had the sleeve done and she keeps asking me WHY I haven't lost more. I think that people just don't understand the band sometimes. I get my third fill tomorrow and I'm looking forward to it being my charm. I lost 17 pounds post-op and about 17 pounds since surgery. About a week after surgery I felt like my old self,,, so much so that I wasn't even feeling like I had a band at all. My doc said that's normal for a lot of people and after my first fill the end of Nov. I did so much better but I know that I'm not at that sweet spot that everyone talks about,,,, yet:-) I figure that it took me 19 years to get this weight on and keep it for all this time,,, so if it takes me a year to get it all off then I'm ok with that:-) Now, OF COURSE I'd love it to come off in the next few months,,, but gotta be realistic:-) So anyway, that's my story so far in this journey. I've not been on here as much as I need to or want to lately,,, but I do think it helps so much to be connected to others in this journey. October 7th 298 January 25th 265