purplemonkey

Hi. I was banded 2 years ago today! March 19th of 2007. So much has changed. I started at 389 pounds and today i weigh 189 pounds--200 pounds in 2 years! I have never had a fill and have been doing awesome as long as I keep up with the gym. A few days ago I took 2 pregnancy tests, lol--DID NOT believe the first one--and it was positive...which completely floored me. The only symptoms I had had up to this point (my period was due on March 4th) was feeling very very tired, very sore breasts and soreness by my port. my port area always got sore and "more puffy" when my period was near. My port does seem more slanted or something...i can't quite explain it. how do you know if a port has been flipped? Anyway, I can't get in to my first OBGYN appt until April 10th and I'm trying to stay calm and relaxed even though I'm really worried. I'm 39 years old, still 50 pounds overweight and have the band. I know for my age that miscarriage rates are high and that worries me. I guess I'm just looking for some replies from others who are in or have been in a similar situation. Thanks! I think I'm still in a state of shock and disbelief LOL. I feel compelled to take another test just to confirm that I'm still pregnant! LOL Virginia

Hi everyone! It's been a while since I've written, mostly because my life has become very chaotic. A family illness caused me to quit my job as a librarian in NJ (work that I really love) and take a minimum wage job in western NY because there are just no library jobs to be found. As of today I have lost 197 pounds, going from my starting weight of 389 to 192 pounds. Maybe some of you who have lost 100 pounds or more can understand this...but life seems so surreal to me and has ever since the weight started coming off. I know it's me living my life and doing things but on the other hand it doesn't seem quite real. I don't "see" myself as being any thinner than 389...I hate clothes shopping and automatically grab bigger sizes and have no belief whatsoever that I could ever possibly fit into smaller sizes. I am wearing clothes now that I wore 40 pounds ago and are so baggy on me but I just am not comfortable in my own skin and it's very strange!! I visit the gym at least a few times a week and it seems to give me the boost I need for my metabolism to get cracking. I have not had a fill yet and still have reasonable enough restriction that I usually don't overeat. I do binge at times, but certainly nothing like before and when i do feel like I've overeaten my friends look at me like i'm on mars, because i eat way less than they do... I just wish that my head would catch up to my body. I can't wrap my head around how I look now and still "feel" huge. Anyone dealing with similar issues? My ultimate goal is to weigh 139 pounds because when i was in first grade i weighed 140 pounds and it only went up from there. With any luck I can get close to that by the end of this year. At least that's how I'm hoping to bring in 2009~ :") virginia

Hi everyone. I've done my preliminary requirements and just have to pick out my surgery date. Before I do that I need to decide whether I want the lapband or the Rouen-Y bypass. My doctor is Dr. Abkin. He gave his opinion but he won't decide for me. His opinion was that because I am 388 lbs at 5'4" that the bypass would be the best choice in that the weight loss is fast and predictable. I have many concerns about the bypass though and would prefer to have the lapband. I like the idea of a slower weightloss as well as the fact that the band doesn't require the reworking of your innards. I'm wondering how the 300+ prebanders are doing after their band and/or would love to hear from anyone with an opinion. Thanks everyone. Virginia

Hello fellow 2007 Marchies!! I can't believe it will be one year from my surgery on March 19th. I have worked soooooooo hard this year! The key for me has been going to the gym...it was the only thing that seemed to kick my metabolism into gear because I gotta say that when I laid off going to the gym I never lost any weight. So here it is one year later...I still have not found it necessary to go in for a fill yet! I have good restriction most of the time. I eat what I want and make up for it, if need be, at the gym. I've slimed a couple times and thrown up twice since the surgery but I knew both times it was because I waited too long before eating and just ate way too fast. I took one or two bites and knew I was in trouble. Other than that I have not had any problems. About 4 or 5 months ago, I noticed that my port seemed more sensitive and more pronounced than it had prior. I think I really irritated it on the recumbant bike when it was already sensitive from me having my period. Ever since then it has been a bit sensitive here and there and to me it seems like it sticks out more, but maybe that's only because I have less fat now to hide it. I don't know. I've had to relocate back to my hometown a couple months ago because of an illness in my family, so now I am back to the unfortunate place of having no health insurance...so getting my port checked out and my upper GI will have to wait a while. I've lost 175 pounds since my surgery!! I totally cannot believe it. I still see myself as I was at 389 pounds even though I weigh 214 now. I have such a hard time buying clothes because I grab the 4x shirts and still truly cannot believe that there is a chance in hell that i can get into anything smaller. it's always a surprise to me that i can. always. i have no concept of what i look like now. it is the strangest thing. I have 75 more pounds i want to lose to get down to 140, which i think is a reasonable weight, but i wonder if i'll ever see myself as thin. I haven't weighed 214 pounds since I was a senior in high school and that was 20 years ago. It's all very very surreal. I haven't weighed 140 pounds since I was in FIRST grade! so if i got down to that weight it would be unbelievable. One thing that is different for me is that I typically dated men who were more on the couch potato side of the fence. But after losing about 100 pounds I really wanted to date an active person who could challenge me physically. I met someone in November, during the time I was coming back and forth to visit my sick father. Besides being a wonderful guy he loves hiking and camping and skiing and all those other great outdoorsy activities that I have wanted to do but couldn't for such a long time. March 19th is truly a very special day to me. I have heard many others call their bandiversary their birthday because it truly gives us a second chance at living our lives the way we wanted to but couldn't. At 389 pounds I was 20 pounds from a wheelchair or a heart attack. Now almost 1 year later and a lot of hours at the gym, I no longer feel trapped in my body. I no longer feel that I am passively existing, just waiting to die. I feel hopeful and optimistic about so many things in my life now. It is empowering to finally have some control and SUCCESS at setting goals and achieving them. Good luck to all of us Marchies for continued good health and as being a means of support to one another. It meant so much to me esp in those first 6 months. I sure don't miss those xrays right after surgery...that was the worst! but if anyone is reading this who is considering surgery, i can't make the decision for you, but it gave me my life back and for that I will be forever grateful. Cheers! Virginia

Liz, my doc told me that if i was a sugar-craver, which i am, that the bypass would be better because there would be immediate negative consequences to eating the junk food, like dumping, et. But i had to go with the band. :confused: I still eat chocolate when i want it, but i don't need as much to be satisfied. plus, when ur doing the treadmill and realize how much work it is to burn those 300 calories, you definitely make better choices. lol ...i have gotten to the point where i will eat whatever i want, how much i want and just make sure i put in a good workout at the gym and this has worked fine for me. when i do have chocolate, i'll pick a kind with nuts so as to get at least a little Protein out of it, or i'll go for sugar free Chocolate. i could never not go without sweets, but they definitely don't have the same draw they did before. Does that help?

btw, Liz...do u exercise? my metabolism is so bad that if i don't go to the gym everyday to jumpstart it, i don't lose anything at all, even if i really cut way down on what i eat.

i was always someone who never lost weight. my weight has only gone up over the course of my life. when i've tried diets i never lost anything. the band is the only thing that has done it for me. but because i've never lost weight before, it's a very surreal feeling now that i am. i have lost 123 pounds in just under 6 months since surgery and in my head i am still 389 pounds. when i buy clothes i go right for the 4x tops and literally have to stop myself and try and talk myself into taking the 1x or 2x instead, even though in my head i don't believe for a minute that it will fit me. and then i'll try it on and be like wow, it fits or is even a little loose. but i cannot get out of my own head and see the differences in myself physically. i had a NSV yesterday. my friend wanted to take me to the city to walk around and my immediate thought was OMG walking? sure, i do the treadmill an hour a day but the last time I walked on the streets was before any weight loss and it was horrible. i was huffing and puffing and was in such pain that i had to stop every few minutes. it was embarrassing. but we went to the city last night and walked around for a few hours and i had no problem whatsoever. i would have walked around all night. it was awesome. it was such a great feeling to be mobile and comfortable moving around. the band has been such an awesome life changing experience for me. i know u may be a bit discouraged liz but try not to be. Like insub said, you were not born to be fat, and it will come off. you are on the right path. :confused: stay strong. virginia

September 19th will be my 6 month anniversary and as of today I've lost 120 pounds. This is entirely made possible by my going to the gym 6 days a week doing cardio and weights--cuz when i slacked i lost nothing, even when not eating a lot. I still haven't had a fill and have been managing fine with food. virginia

Hi gang. The past couple months that i have had my period my port gets really sore and swollen. I attributed it to my period anyway since it starts 5 or 6 days before and lasts through the end of it. This time however it's swollen more than it has ever been. i can actually look down and see my flesh bulged out there. Now i might have irritated the last couple days using the exercise bike which might have made it more swollen, but i'm a little worried. I have no trouble eating or anything like that. It's just the swelling mainly. Should i rush to the doctor, or give it a week til my period is over and any irritation i caused with the bike has a chance to go down... Finally hit a weight loss of 120 pounds today! I can't believe it! Thanks! virginia

Barb, that's just sort of what mine feels like. it's bulged a bit and been sore the last 3 months with my period...of course that's when i started birth control pills to get regular. But what were your hernia symptoms? or didn't you have anything other than the bulge. Is it the bariatric surgeon that goes back in and takes care of that? and how is the recovery time. stillllllllllllllll waiting to hear something from my nurse practitioner.

Hi everyone. It's been a hectic summer for me as well, but it's nice to be back! The weight has been coming off steadily, and trust me, it's only because I'm at the gym 6 days a week. When I don't go, the scale won't budge. I'm having some swelling in port area bcuz of my period, but this month it is more swollen than i like, so i have a call into my doctor. I'm wondering if it could be a flipped port or something like that. Has anyone had that problem? virginia

Yeah i still feel pretty restricted so I haven't had any problems with food. I will say though that when i don't go to the gym I don't lose anything. My body seems to need the gym to jumpstart my metabolism on a daily basis. I still have a couple days of period left and no change on the swelling so i put a call into my doc today. The nurse practitioner will be calling me back this afternoon. I hope it's nothing serious. I'm having no problem with food, so I'm hoping it's only a port thing and not a band thing.

i haven't had a fill yet so my port hasn't been "inspected." what would it feel like if it had flipped?

Thank you! my port is situated on my left side about 3 inches up from my belly button.

Pandagirl i also went back and forth between trying to decide on the band and the bypass. i'm glad i didn't buckle and at least my doctor left the choice up to me without trying to strong arm me. stick to your guns if the band is what you want. it's been 5.5 months and i've already lost 111 pounds. the band is awesome and i believe that if you are willing to put in the effort, success is inevitable. it's a tool. for sure. and it totally changed my view of food. the desperation i had always felt and the bottomless pit that always seemed to be there. the band totally removed that need and food doesn't mean the same as it did before. it's awesome. virginia

I really eat whatever I want, which is nice. Usually for Breakfast i will have yogurt or fruit or a Protein shake. I like the EAS Advantage carb control. For a snack i'll have some cashews or almonds. For lunch usually a lean cuisine or smart sense frozen meal...or cheese crackers and tuna. another snack is the 100 calorie packs or popcorn. dinner is usually wendy's chili or chicken caesar salad. Snacks usually sugar free fudgsicles or sugar free candy. exercise: i go to the gym 6 days a week, sometimes 7... 3 days a week doing weights and cardio and then the other 3 doing cardio. It's a lot of work but I love it.

Hi everyone. Just checking in. Everything's going great with me and my band. working hard at the gym everyday and eating well. still no fills yet because i'm still losing. Am so busy at the library during summer reading, but i'll try to post more often. I miss you guys. I can't believe it's only been 4 months; it feels so much longer. lol virginia

omg! omg! i made it in today!! I'm sooooooo excited!!

hi marchies. have been so busy and haven't posted in a while either. wow most of you have gotten fills! how exciting. i haven't gotten any yet. i still feel very comfortable with what i can eat and the length of time i feel full. so why mess with it if it's working, right? i'm eating between 900 and 1200 calories a day and hit the gym for a couple hours a day, 6 days a week. the gym is really my salvation now. it has such a great atmosphere and if i knew my body could take it, i'd work out there for 5 hours a day, lol. the weight loss has been steady, thank god. i never thought i would be aggrevated by baggy clothes, but boy i am! for the most part i'm still wearing the same clothes i had before the surgery. it's pitiful looking too because i'm 87 pounds skinnier and they hang on me. i bought new pants a couple weeks ago and they are so baggy now that they are almost unwearable. it's so surreal. when i look in the mirror i see myself as the same before surgery. if the scale wasn't moving i would never have thought i lost a pound. it's so odd. has anyone had any luck with thinning down their arms? i lift weights but they dont' seem to be shrinking. maybe tae bo? good luck everyone. i look forward to reading ur posts...ur all very inspirational. virginia

i have more gas now too, although thankfully mainly at night lol. though i'm not sure if it's from the band or if it's because i eat a lot of chili. lol guess i'll have to beano it to find out for sure. virginia

hi everyone. god i'm so close i can taste it!! lol ...i have 4 more pound to go to get to 299, which will also be my mini goal of 90 pounds lost. it's sooooo exciting. hopefully i can get there by the end of next week. good luck all.

I've been really sick with strep throat and for the past 8 days i had zero energy to even think about working out. So for 8 days i didn't go to the gym, and even ate a little more than usual bcuz i had more time to sit around. I just started back to the gym yesterday and was really surprised at the conditioning i had lost with cardio. Normally i can push myself on the treadmill for 70-90 minutes but it was a huge struggle to get past 45 min. I had to close my eyes and make the music get me through it. But i guess it's true what they say that u burn more with weightlifting, and that my 2 months of it has paid off. Even though i didn't visit the gym or watch my calories strictly I still was able to get down another 5 pounds for that week. I read somewhere in the metabolism advantage book that if you consistantly eat 1200 calories ur body gets used to that and it takes more effort to lose. They say u should go two weeks eating 1200 and then two weeks eating 1500. My doc said that was a nutritionist question, but i haven't seen her to ask. Anyone know if that's true? Hoping to hit the gym at least 5 times this week and build myself back up. Great work everyone! Virginia

Thanks for your kind words and encouragement. You guys are the best. Just found out on Friday that I have strep throat and that may have played a part in me not feeling so well. :girl_hug: i REALLY do need to buy new clothes. I just wish my chest wasn't so large. I have to buy way oversized tops to accomodate the girls. lol virginia

i think if i had gone down in clothes sizes it might help. I always wore stretchy clothes and i am still wearing the same clothes 75 pounds later. granted some of the things just hang on me, but i'm so used to having clothes hang on me that it feels the same. do u know what i mean? the coworkers who know about my surgery say that they can tell a big difference, but the coworkers who don't know haven't said anything. It's all very strange, lol.

Hi everyone! I've been doing really well since banded on March 19th. As of yesterday 6/6, I have lost 75 pounds. I go to the gym 7 days a week, 4 days doing 60 min of cardio, and the other 3 days doing 60 min of cardio and 90 min of weightlifting. I eat between 900 and 1200 calories a day. I guess my issue is that I don't feel *remarkably different, having lost so much and when I look in the mirror I don't see any difference at all in myself. If it weren't for the scale going down, I wouldn't believe that I had lost anything. I've been doing a little dating, which is probably not a good idea right now with my self esteem issues...and that has gotten me down. And today I caught a glimpse of myself in a store window and am still so disappointingly gigantic. I know I've worked hard and come a long way, but I have felt very dejected the last few days. I am talking myself out of emotional eating, because I know that will only keep me in the body that I so dislike. Don't know exactly why I'm writing, just venting I guess. Thanks for listening. Virginia