NowNotSoBigGuy

Liquid Tylenol (refrigerated) was my savior. It took the edge off the pain and let me get some sleep. I took 4 days off work after surgery and only worked 1/2 day on my first day back. As Jack and others have said, you do experience the 'oh what have I done' phase. It will pass, you will start to feel ok and you'll wake up in the mornings and be very thankful you got banded. The band is your friend, but right now, your body doesn't recognize it as such. Once you heal, you'll have that experience behind you and be able to help out some new bandster who is experiencing just what you're going through right now. Best to you and remember, walking helps..

I chose Polar because they had the F6 for sale at Lifetime Fitness and all Polar models provide constant heart rate readout on most all the equipment there. I did a lot of research on the web to confirm that Polar was the way to go, then decided to spend the extra money on the F11 because of the improved transmitter, chest strap and Keep-U-Fit option to create your own workout program. F6 was $99 at Lifetime; I bought F11 on eBay for $130 (retail $179). Now I'm looking at upgrading to the F55 model. It never seems to end. Good luck.

Consider a heart rate monitor, e.g. Polar Fitness models F6 or F11. I didn't know squat about how heart rate during exercise affects the % of calories burned from fat vs carbohydrates, but I checked websites such as www.polarusa.com and www.howtobefit.com and learned a lot. I invested in an F11 Polar HeartRate Monitor (available on Amazon or even cheaper on eBay) and am now recording all my exercise sessions and uploading that date to a website (www.polarpersonaltrainer.com). You will be amazed at what you'll learn. The old adage, "no pain no gain" is garbage; you need to get your heartrate into the correct range (or zone) to achieve the maximum weightloss or "burn". Most all the machines at my exercise facility (Lifetime Fitness, Houston) will display your current heartrate while you exercise; no more grabbing the bars and holding on for the display.

By all means, don't let age be a consideration. You'll be amazed at the improvement after you're banded.

Is anyone out there filled to 9cc's or more in the VG band? Since going to 8cc in late December, I've only experienced mild restriction. I've had some minor PB episodes, but those haven't prevented me from continuing to overeat. Any experiences among VG bandsters that anyone can share? And who knows what the ultimate maximum capacity of the VG band really is?

I didn't feel restriction until I got to 8cc in the VG band; even now, I'm looking forward to my next fill on 1/30 where I hope to get filled to 9cc. Unless you're paying for each fill yourself, there's no reason not to be aggressive.

See my 10/14/2006 post under Food for info on sushi after banding. Just have them make it with soybean or rice paper instead of seaweed and skip the rice. My DW actually prefers sushi rolls that way.

If I had had my surgery done at the facility, the fills would have been free for the first year. Oh well, a small price to pay for a healthy lifestyle, plus I have cafeteria plan for reimbursement from pre-tax dollars.

The lapband comes in different models and each model has a length in centimeters (cm) and fill capacity in milliliters (ml or more commonly cc). You have to be careful not to get the cm and the cc mixed up. One commonly used model is 9.75 cm in length with a 4cc capacity; another is the VG band, that measures 10cm (or 11cm) and holds 10cc (or maybe 11cc). So you see how people get confused. The surgeon picks the band to best suit the patient; my surgeon explained to me that "a big man gets a big band", so I have the VG band with 10cc capacity (I don't know or care what the length is). Just make sure you know the maximum fill capacity of your band. I wasted lots of time and money when the place where I got my first 3 fills believed I had a 4cc capacity band when in fact I had a 10cc capacity.

It often takes 3, 4, or 5 fills to get proper restriction. Don't rush it though; big fills can spell big problems. Your little pouch needs time to adjust to that nasty band! I was the same way, frustrated after 3 fills (it didn't help that for the first two fills, the fill center thought I had the 4cc band but in fact I had the 10cc band), but fill #4 made a big diffference. I'll be going back for #5 in late January, but for now, 8cc's seems to be doing the job. Ain't life after banding grand?

Sound like time for a fill, based on my experience and that of others. What capacity band do you have (4 or 10/11 cc's) and what, if any, fills have you had?

I have a Lap Band Patient Identification Card from Inamed; it was in the product literature I received just after being banded. It has lots of good information in the event you are in need of emergency assistance. I carry it in my wallet just behind my drivers license. Saturday, I received a 25% medical discount at Souper Salad; not much money but a great sense of satisfaction at being able to get such a discount. I recall a thread sometime back that mentioned several restaurant chains that offer discounts to Bandits.

Spiegel did my surgery and I am 100% satisfied with everything he and his office staff have done for me. Spiegel is a "rock star" these days, so if you're looking for a surgeon to hold your hand and offer the finest bedside manner, go find yourself some newbie doctor just learning how to perform LB surgery. Or, stick with Spiegel and know that he has perfected his technique and has performed over 5,000 surgeries. Best of luck to you as you enter bandland; no finer place I know of.

I couldn't stomach any more chicken or beef broth after surgery, so my DW stopped at the Chinese food restaurant and got me some egg drop soup. We strained out the floating stuff but left the tiny pieces of chicken in the broth. It was fantastic and high in protein. Also the Campbell's Select soups are yummy, once you're cleared for full liquids. Good luck to you, fellow bandster.

Without knowing the size (capacity) of your band or how many cc's you were given at each of your fills, it's impossible to "judge" your experience versus others (mine). I can offer some generalities based on my own experience (see my signature block for fill history): * Know the capacity of your band and discuss fill strategy with your surgeon or fill technician * Wait 30 days minimum between fills; patience is the key to finding your optimum fill level, aka sweet spot * When you do get restriction, you'll know it immediately * Be very careful in the first few days after a fill; stay on liquids and mushies while your body adjusts * PB's are part of the bandster experience; they are quite the reality check. * Enjoy the journey and congratulate yourself on what you've accomplished. * Wake up each morning and thank someone that you made the decision to be banded; it gets easier.

Glad it went well; now just be careful the first few days after a fill. There can be a delayed reaction, so chew, chew, chew.

GO FOR IT. It's never too late.

I wouldn't worry as long as the person doing your fills is experienced and it's done using fluoroscopy. The PA (or NP, I'm not sure) at the center where I get my fills is superb in both technique and knowledge. One of my four fills was done by someone in training, and while we both survived the experience, she removed the fill needle too quickly and at an angle, producing a surprisingly painful moment. Think about it.. surgeons perform surgery many times a day and become incredibly proficient at that technique. Wouldn't you expect a qualified PA/NP to be equally proficient at administering fills? My 2 cents: let the PA/NP/Nurse do your fill; if the experience isn't to your liking, then have the doctor do the next. And finally, keep your eyes closed; you don't need to see the needle going in or coming out!

Sean: I wish you all the best as you prepare to enter BandLand. While we males are clearly in the minority among the LBT faithful, we can all share our experiences, pre and post-op. I encourage you to read as many posts as you can in the time before your surgery and to setup a "ticker" in your signature. And have someone take pictures, so months or years from now, you can look back and say, "Getting banded was the smartest thing I ever did".

10 varieties now, from 24 - 33g protein and 260-310 calories. Great flavor, well seasoned, yummy, quick and easy. Also hummus is a great soure of protein as are eggs

All these items came in handy: Bathroom size mini Dixie cups Liquid Tylenol, refrigerated to make it go down easier Heating pad Comfy pillow to hold against your stomach. Magic Bullet blender; invaluable to pulverize anything baby plastic spoons; you'll use these even throughout. small, 3-4 oz Rubbermaid plastic containers (tupperware) and/or Glad disposable containers; let's you visualize what 3-4 oz is (normal pouch size) chewable Vitamins, Centrum Silver low fat cottage cheese egg-drop Soup (good Protein source, almost a clear liquid) hummus (good protein source once you can do mushies) Campbell's Select soups. Good luck to you, bandster-to-be

Hi Bret: My fill history is in my signature block. What I have learned from LBT posts and from experience is no two people are the same. Case in point: I had a colleague who was the same BMI as me and received the same VG 10cc band end up finding his "sweet spot" at 4.5cc total. I on the other hand didn't feel serious restriction until I got to 8cc just this week. I'd say to you "go slow" at first; the last thing you want is to get overfilled and experience blockage or require a partial unfill. If you have your fills done by an experienced doctor or PA with flouroscopy, they be able to see what amount of fill works best. Slow and steady is the way to go. Pre-banding, we gained our excess weight over time, so why do we feel compelled to shed it as rapidly as possible? You'll find your sweet spot after a few fills and you'll know when you're there, believe me. Congrats on your weight loss to date; being banded is surely something we all have to be thankful for.

Just had my 4th fill this past Tuesday 12/19; another 2.0cc to take me to 8.0cc total. And now, finally, three months + post-op, I know what restriction is. A bit scary at first, but very tolerable. I can actually feel the band doing what it's designed to do and that is what I paid a big chunk of money for. I had a minor PB/slime episode at lunch today when I lost track and downed too many bites of chicken in too short a time; I'd read enough threads about PBing to recognize what was happening, but nevertheless it was interesting to say the least.

You might check www.aigb.com. American Institute of Gastric Banding operates lap-band surgery centers in Houston and Dallas. I get my fills for $150 at the Houston Physicians SurgiCenter. Check either the Surgery Center of Richardson or Specialty Surgery Center of Fort Worth. __________________

You might check www.aigb.com. American Institute of Gastric Banding operates lap-band surgery centers in Houston and Dallas. I get my fills for $150 at the Houston Physicians SurgiCenter. Check either the Surgery Center of Richardson or Specialty Surgery Center of Fort Worth.