JoJo1

Well I had the benefit of my daughter getting banded first so I knew a lot of what to expect. It still pays to read read read everything you can get your hands on.. She is not one to follow directions. She pushes the limits often. I figured that since I am a rule follower and a direction folower, I would do better than she did. That turns out to be the case. She is starting to regain and has scheduled another fill to remedy the situation. Time will tell with me, but I don't have as much nerve as she does so I am abolutely sure I will be fine.

I did tons of research but did not know some stuff. I am happy I did it and would have done it anyway, however in terms of advice, I would say read read everything you can but try to stay positive because that is the whole key!!!

I believe the patient's attitude is 90% of it. There are a number of people and some who post here that can not see the bright side if it struck them in the face. Most Doctors will say the same thing. From this and other forums I have read, I can tell that one of two things happened to those who had to have them removed. ( My literature has different statistics by the way) Either they were not informed or did not seek out the information they needed from the beginning, or they did not use the tool they paid to have inserted. Of course some have serious health issues and I am not blasting anyone. My point is that if you decide it is going to work and adopt that mind set, it will work. It is a learning experience and a very beneficial one if you decide to see it that way. Best of luck to you and I promise it will be fine!!!!

I didn't tell anyone, even my doctor that I was having surgery. He still does not know. I have lost 28lbs now and I am so so glad I did it. My mexican Doc didn't not require permission from my doc so I just went and did it. I am a type 1 diabetic so it was even more imperative that I do something about the weight. I can not remember the last time I was this excited. You will be fine!!! I promise!!!!

My daughter gained 15 lbs the two weeks before her surgery. She had a low BMI so she just had herself a good time. Probably felt a lot like you. I did too to a certain extent. I have to stay low carb so I did that but just had wine more often and ate bigger portions. I was actually surprised when I weighed in for my surgery and hadn't gained anything. If you need to do the liver cleansing or need to lose to have yours, you might want to start going to a support group or something. Don't know but it is a mind set that you can break. You just have to find the proper incentive. Best of luck with it.....

I do this same thing. I noticed it in my daughter after her band and thought it was silly and now I do it too. My husband and I used to go to the A&W near us often for hambugers. He always got a Papa burger and Onion Rings and I always got a Bacon Double Cheesburger and fries. I don't eat fries but he does and that way I got one or two onion rings. I don't eat bread either so I would eat the two huge burger patties and the vegs and bacon, Now though, I can not eat the whole two patties. I can maybe eat one of them but I still seem to want to order it. Now I can't even eat one onion ring. He always says why don't you order the single burger? And I always say I will next time. Then next time comes and I think one burger patty won't be enough, so I order the same thing. I think since I noticed it in my daughter too, that this must be fairly common. Anyone have any other thoughts on it?

I do low carb also. I am a type 1 diabetic so I have done low (basically No) carb for the last 10 years. I too have a problem with Portion control so I decided to get banded. I am so so happy I did. The low carb recommendations from my surgeon fit right into what I was doing anyway. My Blood sugar control is #1 for me, and weight loss is #2. Both are important but I plan to live until I am 95 so poor blood surgar control will not get me there. I do try to listen to my cravings but since I haven't eaten bread, Pasta, potatoes, or starchy vegetables for 10 years, I don't crave them at all. I occasionally eat one onion ring. I eat meat eggs, cheese,and green vegs. period. I have incorporated a hot Cereal I make with flax meal into my diet and it seems to work very well. I crave things like Avacado. Salsa, and cherry tomatoes!! Separately not together however now that I mention it, I might try them together. LOL..... My point is that occasionally indulging in cravings is only ok if it is something you can control. If not, we need to change our mind set. We can do it. Just stop thinking about the bad craving over and over again. It might take awhile but it will go away. I promise. It did for me.... I can not do Protein Shakes. Even the low carb ones raise my blood sugar. I stay away from them unless I need them for a fill, or recovery from a stuck episode. Great discussion here. Thanks and Happy Holidays.......

Every one loses at a different rate. Do not become discouraged because someone else does better. Just look back and see how far you have come. I have found that Attitude is everything and it helps to stay away from negative posts here and elsewhere. Just expect to do well and you will do well. Good job losing 50lbs!! Merry Christmas

I know I was worriesd about it when he told me how much he put in, and my daughter said Oh Mom that is going to be way too much!! I decided to just try it. Two weeks after, I had to fly across the country because my son came back from Afghanistan. The night before we left, I had a major stuck episode, and did not understand that I needed to be very careful the next day. I drank my coffee and a bottle of water in the morning but the bad thing is that I took a vitamin. I was nauseated for about 6 hours on an airplane. Not fun. It went through my mind that I was going to have to go to the emergency room because water wasn't even staying down. But then I started keeping liquids down, and stayed on soft food for the rest of the day. After that, I learned a valuable lesson, the stoma is swollen after throwing up so you have to treat it like a new fill. I have been fine since then. I did buy some papaya enzymes and have used them a time or two. All is well and I am losing about a pound a week. I am hungry some, but usually water takes care of it. Hope this helps someone out there. Have a Wonderful Christmas season.

I have 2cc in a 4cc band. It is perfect so far. One fill and I was there. I set up an appt for the 1st of feb for another but will see how it is then. My daughter also has a 4cc band. She gets too much restriction with 1cc. of fluid. She has had to get a few unfills but so far my first one has been good. The trick really is getting to a point where you have enough. Different Docs seem to be different on their approach, so best of luck to you

And not making up for it in extra calories. Many of the people in the study were people who wanted to lose only a few pounds and many were people who had a lot to lose. If anything in the study is true, then the mental part has to play a big role. Don't you get a very good feeling from exercising? I do, and I think it is the key to why I keep doing it. I also understand the stuff about compensating with more calories. The people in the study were averaged so I am sure some of them got it too. Personally,I don't take much stock in studies because they don't take everything into account, such as family background etc. I just thought it was an interesting article to be printed in Time magazine.

The interesting thing is that in a recent Time magazine, there was a study done on the effects of exercise on weight loss. The results of the study were surprising. Even though they decided that there were many benefits of exercise, weight loss was not one of them. However it is my opinion, that Exercise does a lot for my mental health which believe it or not is the main component of obesity. It maintains bone health and muscle health also. I was shockingly surprised by the study which involved 2500 people. What they decided is that people who exercised, made up for it with more calories. Gets back to the same old balancing act. Still it was an interesting article.

I thinned out yogurt with water and made it very thin for the clear liquid stage. Also I did this with cream soups. You can put chicken noodle soup in the blender also. Just make sure it is nice and thin.

I will have to get back to you on this one. I did not tell anyone until they started to notice the weight loss. Some have become very quiet, others very supportive. It will be interesting. My husband is thin, but he is a little insecure about me losing weight. Interesting, but I told him I am doing it for me, but I hope he ends up liking me even better.

The averages are based on a high percentage who don't do the work. They lose a certain amount because the restriction causes it. Then when they figure out that they can snack too much, or choose Ice Cream too often, or many other things, they can't lose any more. If you set your mind to do the work every single day not matter what, you will see your goal. Best of luck!! I still have a long way to go also but I am getting there.

I am frustrated by the fact that people are so against Mexican docs. I guess because they have lower overhead they can do the surgery so much cheaper that it creates problems for them. I'm sorry you are having trouble finding a fill doc. Best of luck with it.....

Ditto!!!!!!!!

I am almost three months post band. I had restriction in the beginning and then became able to eat a lot more, so I got a fill about a month ago. I have good restriction now. I still have to stop myself from grazing though, so it would be totally possible to gain it back again if I lost my desire to do this. I have lost 27lbs and feel so much better. People are slowly starting to notice so that is cool. The best part is the smaller jeans are also getting loose... I have 2ccs in a 4cc band. Best of luck to you!!

I may have had the same problem as some of the posters here about the Mexican Medical system if I had not known my daughter and one other person who went down there for their surgery. I don't know why American Docs have such a hard time with it other than jealousy but I also know that there are some not so reliable Docs in Mexico. From reading these posts however I am finding that the same is also true of American Docs.

Keep in mind that even if you were able to keep that much restriction, you would't keep losing like that. Your body goes into "Famine Control", slows down your metabolism and keeps you from starving to death. This is why it is important to keep from being overfilled. It isn't fun anyway, but it helps to know it is okay to eat at least a reasonable amount.

I'm sorry everyone, I think that biggest loser thing is a total joke. Who can ever keep up that life style. I am betting most of them don't. I always find myself thinking "Why don't they just go get a band?"!! LOL....

They picked us up at the Airport and then took us back after the surgery. The driver spoke enough english to get by, and gave us quite a bit of valuable information, like the best places to eat dinner etc. We went out for my last big meal, and had Mexican food. It was awesome food. They have American too. They had a Fridays resturant and a really nice Sea Food Resturant also. There was no point that I felt unsafe in any way. I even went outside and did my walking and felt safe.

She hasn't made it to goal yet but has lost almost 100lbs. She hasn't worked the band the whole time, but she is now working hard to be at goal before her sister gets married in Oct. Nice to have goals to get the motivation going again.

The important thing is that you got it done. I have found, and my daughter has too, that American Docs can not stand Mexican Docs. I have a step Daughter that is an American Doc. I have not told her I got the band and it is my plan to not tell any of my husbands family ever. I guess we will see how that one goes huh!! My experience is that there are some bad Mexican Docs that make it hard on the ones who are trying to do a very good job. I would like to go again for cometic surgery, and when I do, I will be sure to get a good recommendation.

At a store near here, they have them for dogs too. (Snuggles) LOL.