Crishell

I was 38 when I was banded almost a year ago. Had been thinking about gastric bypass for over 5 years but was afraid of it. Glad I got the band. Wish I could have gotten it 5 years ago.

I know what you mean. I am experiencing the same thing. At first I was losing at 1000-1100 calories per day, slow but losing. Then I got a fill on 10/8 and after a week, something kicked in and I was only eating 800-900 calories per day. I have not lost a pound since and it has been like 7 weeks. I am so frustrated. I go to Curves 4-5 times per week for at least 35 minutes each visit, plus ride eliptical bike about 3 times per week and do cardio 3-4 times per week. No one has been able to give me any insight. I wonder if I am not eating enough for the exercise i do or what i should do (that starvation mode you mentioned). Should I eat more, exercise less what? All I know is that I am not losing either and I am beyond frustrated. My doc office is swamped and next available appointment is 1/7/08.

Do you have problems with your blood sugar? My BS dropped during my first two fills. I would feel dizzy, very hot and lighheaded.

Lane Bryant has them as well. I'm not sure about Macy's. They are $25. Target sells a cheaper similar brand called Assurance (or something like that). They are $10-15 depending on the type (regular, footless, etc.). I have a pair of those and i like them.

I have gone from a 48D to a 44C. Despite this fact, my boobs look bigger to me and other people have told me so too. I guess they have not gone down as much as the rest of me.

It is a learning and adjustment process for us all. Since my surgey and fills, I have noticed changes with my eating habits and the amount that I am able to eat (of course that is the whole idea). I still have my days where I eat something that I shouldn't but I do not make that a habit. I also counteract it with doing more exercise that day. Right now, I feel I have good restriction and I do not even want the food. Since I am single, I try to not cook as much so I don't have to worry about leftovers or the possibility of snacking on it later. Also, I just throw it out & don't worry about wasting "good food" or money. I figure if I eat it , it will contribute to me not losing any weight so out it goes. It is hard trying to adjust to old habits and portion sizes even with cup sizes. My boyfriend fussed at me (jokingly) the other day for throwing out most of a Snicker's bar. I had a small craving, bought one in checkout line @ Walmart, took two small bites and out it went. I figured if I had kept it, I would have eventually eaten the whole thing. I had to explain why I did it and he now better understands. It feels good to leave food on my plate or have a take out box when leave a restaurant and not be hungry. My friends, boyfriend and family seem to have a harder time adjusting than I do. They think I am not eating enough.

Happy Birthday and congrats! I am due for driver's license renewal in August and I am definitely getting a new picture.

Long story but I figured the background info would help. I was told that my port is tilted and it makes getting fills a very long and trying experience because they have problems getting the needle into the port hole even with fluoro. My first two fills had to be under fluoro. She tried to do the second in the office (5/23) but no luck. So they take me downstairs, take x-rays get second opinions from other surgeon's because they thought that my port had totally flipped over. I was told conflicting stories. Sometimes that just happens and as you lose weight, there is more room in your abdomen for it to move around because of the less fat in there. Then I was told that as you lose weight, it should get better. So now I am confused. If I lose weight, in theory, there will be even more room in my abdomen for it to move around so how can it get better? So I'm thinking will have this problem forever??? I was told that my port is tilted at an odd angle and that it floats (not far but moves enogh to make things difficult). The nurse practitioner told me that she and new doc reviewed my case and they might have to reposition my port higher. The doc that did my surgery in January has since moved out of state and the other doc in the office took over her patients. I was told that to reposition it is a simple out patient procedure where they go in through the previous port incision. I am for it if it will help. I get so frustrated and nervous during fills and I don't want this to continue. I have to have fills. At any rate, things seem to be changing. I went for follow up appt on Monday 8/13. I have lost 9 pounds in six weeks. She asked me if I wanted to try to see if she could give me a fill and I said to go ahead and try. That would save me from having to schedule downstairs to do under fluoro and therefore require me to use more leave from work. I am used to being poked. I figure if I could survive two breast biopsies, i could withstand the pokes. It's just so aggravating and disappointing when she can't do it in the office and I always feel like the problem child and failure. Plus, I want to be able to get them done in the offiice because it is cheaper. To make a long story short, she tried on Monday and after three sticks, she got it!!! So I finally was able to get a fill in the office without fluoro and not have 15 sticks to get it. She only put in .5cc which now gives me 2.5cc. Hopefully my good luck will continue and I can have future fills in the office too. I say all of this to ask, do any of you have port issues that make fills difficult?

I finally broke down and started cleaning out my closet over the weekend. I had been putting it off for so long. I have lost 60 pounds since my surgery on 1/19/07 and lost 15 pre-surgery so that is like 75 pounds since last year this time. Surgery day I was wearing 26 bottoms and 26/28 tops and today I am in 18 bottoms and 18/20 and XL tops.I have enjoyed trying on and buying new clothes, underwear and bras. But for some reason have been reluctant to part with any of my old stuff. This is my first time losing enough weight that I had to buy all new stuff and in the back of my mind, I have been kinda paranoid and think what if I gain it back and need my old clothes again? I was watching Lifetime on Saturday afternoon and something told me that it was time. I bagged up 5 huge bags of stuff for Goodwill and a huge bag for one of my cousins. It was very interesting pulling out those clothes & remembering wearing them. But then I got so sad and mad at myself. How could I have let myself get that big? AND I had way more size 30/32 than I recall buying. I have pretty much been the same size for 15+ years so you can imagine the amount of clothes I have and have not even touched upstairs yet. I got mad, called my best friends and blessed them out asking them, "how come you didn't tell me that I was that big?". They all were like "I thought you knew?". Evidently I was in some serious denial and even if they had said anything, I would probably have gotten mad at them for something that was not their fault. I tried on some clothes that I definitely remember wearing and they are bagging off of me. I held them up and they were huge pieces of material. I got depressed temporarily thinking about the past and how I feel as if I have wasted like 15 years of my life, but then I snapped out of it, became grateful for the long way I have come and was able to hang all my new smaller clothes in the old place. I think I have gotten over my anxiety of parting with my big old stuff and I am looking forward to throwing out the rest that is upstairs to make room for even smaller clothes. It really changed my perspective because i have been unhappy lately with this weight loss lateau thing that i am going through despite losing inches and having to buy new clothes. Seeing so many of my old clothes at one time really put things in focus for me. I am shedding the old weight, old clothes, old everything.

One of my cousins just asked me the other day "aren't you finished yet".

I had the maple brown sugar this morning around 10:00. That very full feeling kicked in around 11:00. I ended up skipping lunch because I was so full. It is 2:50 p.m. here and i am still full. I might try to eat it for breakfast on a regular basis and try new flavors. But i like it.

I am tighter in the mornings as well. l started stopping on my way to work and getting a 24 oz. decaf hazlenut coffee so that I am at least working on my fluids. Plus the heat seems to loosen things a little. Usually by 11 or so I can eat something but try to hold off for lunchtime since i am at work. Since my last small fill (.25cc) 10/8 I have noticed over the past week that I now tend to get tight in the evenings around dinner time.

I went from 48D to 44C since surgery in January. I finally bought new panties and bras and was surprised at my new size. I ended up buying four.

This may be a silly question but i thought I had the concept of PBing down until lastnight. Can one PB as a indicator of being too full? In the past, I have PB due to eating something too fast and not chewing well resulting in large piece of food being built up, or from eating something mushy that is hard to break down like stuffing or soft bread. Last night, I went out to dinner with some friends and had a stuffed chicken breast (had spinach and cheese inside). It wasn't too big. I felt full but it was so good that I wanted to get that last bite in because wasn't enough to take home. I should have left it on the plate because I had to head to the bathroom and up it came.

Hey everyone. I have just come into some realization. I was looking in the bathroom mirror last night and guess what?? I have shoulders and collar bones now!! Not just two humps of fat on either side of my neck. Sounds silly even to myself when I think about it but I have been overweight all my life (39 years). In fact, I am 10 pounds less than what I recall putting on my paperwork to get my driver's license at 16. It's amazing the things I am now realizing now that I have lost almost 60 pounds. I also noticed that my shadow is smaller. When I saw it, I thought it belonged to someone else and no one else was walking with me. When I realized it was my shadow, I just giggled like a young girl in love. AND I bought my first pair of size 18 jeans the other day. On 1/19/07 (surgery day) I was wearing 26's. Like some of you, I have been in a weight loss plateau scale- wise for like two months but it's things like this that mean so much more.

I'm not sure of this. But I have noticed that my skin also looks better. It is smoother and I had some dark areas on my face that have lightened. I also used to have alot of hair growth on my face which has also decreased.

Anyone out there having problems with fluid retention since being banded? I have always experienced water weight gain around that time of the month (usually results in about 5 pounds of water weight gain) but now it seems to be happening any time except for like the week after my period. This means that I usually have one good week out of the month were I have optimal weight loss and the other weeks I struggle to lose a pound. My feet sometimes hurt at night but they/ankles/legs are not swollen. I am trying to figure out what the problem is. I am in my range for calories and I have increased my exercise to four times a week at Curves, ride bike and do cardio at home at least four times a week also. I do not have high blood pressure and have never been on any meds for it or a diuretic but I was wondering if one would help. :help:

ok Thanks. I will try to research this more. I hadn read that St. John's wort helps with fluid retention but my endocrinologist is against my taking it.

Don't feel discouraged over what some fools said. They don't know you. Focus on what you have accomplished and dont' let it get you down. Forty pounds is a lot to be proud of.

I had surgery on 1/19/07. Got my first fill 4/11 (1cc), second on 5/23 (1cc) and third on 8/13 (.5cc). I go back on Monday for follow up appointment. Don't know if they will recommend another fill. I think I need a little bit. I am just at the one pound per week loss point.

I have had problems getting fills too. The first two had to be under fluoro. It was finally determined,after countless sticks, my being almost in tears and a second opinion from another surgeon, that my port was not flipped but tilted at an odd angle. Plus, I was told that my port is actually lower than what the x-ray led them to believe. I was finally able for my last visit 8/13 to have a fill in the office and with only three sticks as opposed to so many that I would lose count. I just hope this continues with future fills. I hope everything works out for you.

You look great. Thanks for posting your pics. I am almost nine months post surgery and have lost 55 pounds. But I have been rather frustrated because I feel as if it has been too slow. This gives me hope.

My expereinces with bread seems to change with any given day. Since my last fill on 8/13, I cannot eat pizza crust and breadsticks but I can still eat toast (or anykind of toasted bread on a sub) and most biscuits. I try not to eat too much of those types of food because of the carbs but occasionally I will indulge myself without overdoing it.

I drove after four days but probably could have for a short distance before then. I only took pain meds for first two days and that wasn't on a regular basis.

Congratulations. I have my follow up appt with my endocrinologist on 9/18. I have to do bloodwork. I am hoping my A1C is even better.The last time (3 months ago) it was 6.4 with average level being 138. The doc told me to stop taking the meds (4mg glimiperide), monitor and if it goes up to start taking a half pill as opposed to the whole pill in the morning. I have been taking my blood sugar and it has been good so I have not had to take any for quite some time.