shonette

Always remember why you are going to put your body through this entire process,and then is the food you want to eat worth the set back you will experience later. The habits you form now will more than likely be the same way you behavior when get your band. This road is hard enough to travel than most people think, therefore learning how to abide by rules now and it will make things a lot easier later on. I do wish you the very best to come.

Great news and I know you must be very proud of yourself.

On July 21st it will make a whole year since I had my band put in. Lately, I have second guessed my choice to have this band. I have had some many episodes of feeling that stuck feeling and throwing up a slimly substance because things are not going down properly. I have spoke with my doctor about these issues and several different reasons have been given for my episodes. No- I don't eat large bites of food at any given time, and I always take my time while eating. No- this is not happening all of the time, but yes- it's happening more than I would like for it to be happening. I feel like "my" band has a mind of its own. There are certain days I feel super tight and other days things feel just right. My doctor has explained that my band should always feel the same unless it's swollen and irritated by something I have done wrong. Honestly, this band has so many rules and does & don'ts! I do thank God for my weight lost, but it has truly come with a price. I could have never understood this before actually going through a lot of different trials. Having this band is not an easy fix with losing weight. It really takes a lot of discipline and complying with a lot of different rules. On the flip side, my niece has the sleeve and she has none of these issues to deal with. She can only eat a smaller portion of food, but there are not all of the other restrictions Iike band patience do. I can deal with the smaller portions, but sometimes I feel just miserable and wishing my choices was different. I do understand that with any weight lost procedure anything can go wrong, but sometimes I just want to feel normal during meal times. I really don't eat out with my family any more due to the awful things I experience while attempting to eat. (having to leave the table to spite up food that will not go down or have this crazy look on my face because I fee this awful pain in my upper chest area) Then I have days that I have no problems at all. I want to emphasize once more that small portions are not a problem, but to always worry about my meals and if I am going to be able to swallow what I am eat is. It’s the most difficult with my 6 year old son when these things are going on, because he now tell me “Mommie you should have never got that band”! I feel like I've come too far to have every single thing taken out of my band, and honestly I only have 4cc in a 10cc band. My doctor wants to take everything out and for me to start all over again with my fills. I am almost at my 12 month mark and my fills will be no longer covered per my contract. My band is not even half full and in less than 17 days I will be a year banded. There are some things that I have found that really help me not to experience that stuck feeling in my throat/upper chest area. If I drink warm drinks throughout my day things have an easier time going down vs. me not drinking warm drink. I know breakfast is the most important meal of the day, but if I try to eat real food my day is shot from then on. Therefore, skipping breakfast or having a protein shake works a whole lot better for me. I just want people to be aware that there maybe complications with this band and there is definitely no easy fix for losing weight. Each person has to figure out what works best for them and their band and continue to apply the principles of having a band. (Don’t mix food and drink- eat very, very slowly to prevent things from getting stuck- don't over eat to the point of throw food back up- don't over do the protein because it's bad on the kidneys "I learned that one the hard way"- exercise is your best friend if you want quick weight lost- learn to research things you have questions about or seek information from reliable sources) Following these steps have really helped me to get to the point where I am now with my weight lost. I do realize this is a daily effort to keeping my weight off, but having these tools handy will really make things a lot easier to accomplish your goals.

<P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">I really do appreciate everyone's support with the issues I am having with my band. Sometimes, it's easy to think you are losing it or the only person in the world who is going through these issues with their band. <SPAN style="mso-spacerun: yes"> </SPAN><BR><BR>Therefore, I really do appreciate other band patients like you being open about your own personal issues and struggles. No, the doctor I am currently seeing does not have a band. The doctor who originally did my surgery had a band, and he related a whole lot better with some of the issues I experienced. No, I really don't have that personal insight from my current doctor any more. He is very nice and he tries really hard to understand some of the things I am saying, but honestly he really doesn’t have a clue. <?xml:namespace prefix = o ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:office" /><o:p></o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">One good example about this band being an every day unknown struggle was lunch yesterday on my son's summer camp outing. We ate in the park and I made turkey sandwiches on wheat bread. "God knows that was one of the biggest mistakes I could have ever made for myself" I took very small bites and Lord knows I chewed forever but yes it got stuck" Therefore, you can only image how the trip was for me from then on. There was almost an hour of me sliming and trying to get that food up or down. It was also very embarrassing, because- remember I was in a park with absolutely no privacy! The closest rest area was like a couple of minutes away, and I could continue to run back and forth to the rest area to spit up. Therefore, I used almost a whole roll of paper towels. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></P> <P class=MsoNormal style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 10pt"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 9pt; LINE-HEIGHT: 115%; FONT-FAMILY: 'Arial','sans-serif'">It was just awful in every way. </SPAN></P>

I am so very sorry to hear that you are experiencing this awful stuck feeling. Unfortuately, I am experencing the stuck feeling more often than I would care to talk about. I eat slowly and chew my food until there is nothing left to chew on. I take very small bites of food at any given time. I feel like my band has a mind of it's own, because every day is never the same and thank God for that. I really don't know who encouraged you to drink on top of something being stuck, but that was never a good option for me because thing only got worse when I did! Remaining calm and taking deep breaths really help things to pass a lot quicker. I am normally able to bring up whatever may be stuck at the time, but it's still a very painful and a uncomfortable feeling at the same time. I hope things gets a lot better for you.

My insurance was with Cigna as well and the only weight and BMI they considered was the one at my initial visit with the surgeron. He actually encouraged me to lose as much weight as possible during my 6 month documented weight lose visits. He stated it would only help me in the long run with having my surgery. I just did my weight lose supervised visits with my family doctor. Every cigna plan is a little different but I looked up on the internet about Cigna's weight lost surgery requirements, and the 6 month supervised period most likely will not be waived. (I tried to summit my paper work early and -yes, I was denied) However, after that time frame was fulfilled my surgeron was given approval within that week. He only did his lapbands every 2nd & 4th Wednesday of the month, therefore, I had to wait for one of those times. Most people don't like to hear this, but that 6 months is a good time to read, read as much as possible about having a band and adjusting to the life style changes that you will have to make. I promise you there are a lot of them. Having a band is not an easy fix, but adjusting to a permant barrier to miminize your food intake. Good luck!

Sorry to say it but whole corn does not do well for me at all. I can tolerate eating cream corn but not whole corn. I hope you continue to do well. Good are looking very well.

It's so hard for me to believe that it's almost been a year since my lap band surgery. I can remember like yesterday anticipating what it would be like and how much weight I would actually loss with the band. I have never been happier with the way my life has changed since I had my band. I am wearing a strapless dress today that's focus on my waist area and the amazing thing it's a size 14. If anyone would have told me almost a year ago I could get myself into a size 14, I would have laughed endless and tell them they must be out of their mind. The entire way that I dress now is so much different than I ever could have imagined it to be. I am dress in much attractive clothes that shows off my figure. OMG- I never imagined me having a figure again. I had given up on the way my body uses to be, and I accepted that big girl look. Everything I wore in the past was oversized to cover up my huge butt and all the fat rolls in my stomach area. I have always tired to look very nice but buying clothes was a limited option. Now I look the way my body uses to look over 14 years ago in almost everything I put on. This summer I am able to wear the cuties’ summer dresses and sleeveless shorts. I would never have shown my bare arms off in the past for nothing in the world. People are always making little remarks to my husband about my weight lost and asking do he like the new me1 He just smiles and says I look really nice. Over all, this has been a very good decision that's definitely changed my life for the better. I feel like I am living the good life in many areas of my life. I do love my band!!!!

<P>I do agree with Ne-CeeCee, the best thing to help your gas pains to past is moving around and taking the gas-x stripes were really good. I pray things continues to go well with you on this new exciting Journey!</P>