2beskinny

You just can't anticipate this question at the stage you are in When I first started the process, I was hoping I would be one of the lucky ones and not need a fill. I soon learned that we are ALL the lucky ones because we have the band! Don't be afraid of a fill...it's a super easy, painless process that takes about 5 seconds. If you need them - GET THEM...it's critical to acheiving weight loss with the band in most cases. Good luck this week! Stay POSITIVE and you will do great!

With me the sweet spot was identified when i finallly, actually felt restriction...that meant that when I ate too much...ummm....I got stuck, or overfilled, if you will. The biggest adjustment for me was to learn the NEW feeling of full. In the old days, full was a feeling of my lower stomach---stretched to capacity---and downright uncomfortable. You know that feeling...think of post-Thanksgiving meal...laying on the couch with the load of insulin your body just juiced you with and now you are tired The post-band feeling of full is higher up in your stomach and frankly, just not as satisfying. I went through a bit of withdrawal for that old feeling of full to be honest. Now it's like clockwork - I eat enough and my band sends signals that I have had enough..."soft stops" are what they are called. For me, it is small little burps. For others it can be a runny nose or a feeling that food is "not going down." Make no mistake: it is a long time to wait for the holy grail of restriction. Once you get it...it is a long time to "mourn" the sadness of not being able to EAT everything you feel like eating. In the beginning, you still feel like your old self...like you WANT to eat it all, however, now you have a band that is "turned on and functioning" (i.e., filled to the appropriate level) and you cannot eat anymore. There is an adjustment period to that phase...it's a "letting go" of your old self. Now I am content (and proud of myself) for being able to stop and be SATISFIED with an appropriate amount of food. Being "satisfied" is a head game at first...then it turns into a physical reality. Hope this helps

There is nothing like the high you get from exercise...you have to go through some pain to get there, but once you are there...it is great! I ran 5 miles today and I feel fantastic! The size 12 capri pants that I bought about 3 weeks ago are kinda fallling off of me. The first 30 pounds of weight loss hardlly made a dent on me...now each 7-10 pounds almost means a change in size. Who would have ever thunk that I would be writing this?

Counseling never hurts anybody! If you want to try the carb elimination route, as some are suggesting, there's no harm in that either, but I would not delay the counseling. Don't put off counseling while your waiting to see if eliminating carbs is the answer...you might just set yourself back even further from feeling better. I have eliminated carbs from my diet for decent periods of time and thought "wow" I'm cured. But I always relapse. Now I eat what I want when I want but in very small quantities. The band totally controls how much I am able to eat. Even if I try to binge (I have the urge to do that sometimes as well) it's always stopped short by the band. Don't give up!

Congrats to u also, counselor...way to go and u are an inspiration to those who may have felt like givng up!!!

Congrats! The weight will start falling off now! Just pay attention...the sweet spot may not hold and you might need slight tweaking to keep it there. Finally knowing what it feels like though is half the battle

A lot of small burps when im eating us my soft stop signal that im done!

I am glad to see this thread. I also feel that the success I have had has not been more difficult than I imagined it would be. I pretty much eat What I want, but in very small portions. I don't journal but do try and make protein a priority. The band does not let me eat bread, potato chips and french fries because I get stuck on them. The fact that I have probable eaten a total of one medium size fry (total) since I have been banded is probably the reason for half of my weight loss! This has been the best decision for me. I run about 20 miles a week so im doing my part as well, but I know this was the only way I was going to lose the weight. The last 35 will be harder....I know. I am gearing up for a stricter food plan to get the last bit off. I am skiing this week in colorado and am enjoying myself after skiing hard each day. By the way...I had to buy new ski pants...size large and I keep having to hike them up on the slopes I run the half marathon in one month ...I know I will achieve my goal weight...im just having fun getting there! Ifit takes me longer to get there with that attitude than im ok with it!

I know that sometimes the band can tighten due to stress, hormones, and who knows what other balls we "can't" juggle that our body is throwing at us It's not a new thing to hear of someone's band "tightening" for no apparent reason. You definitely sound like you are too tight...a small (very small!) unfill will make all the difference and you will feel normal again

I certainly have days where I eat the wrong things. What I like about the band for me is that it limits the quantitiy of how much I can "overeat" so I have not gained weight from this behavior. Even when I've had days where I felt like i was eating the world, it really was not nearly as much food as I used to eat. In the old days i could hit a drive through, eat everything I ordered and still be hungry. That is physically impossible for me to eat that much anymore. I love the band! What I have found, however, is that now that I am down to the last 35 pounds, I need to tighten up my control and calories. I don't journal or limit myself to certain foods. I believe in eating everything - just in smaller portions. The more time goes on, the more I feel like this is just the new "normal" me - not me on a diet. I think I am going to have to re-evaluate my plan though to move forward from here! Yikes - I may have to go back to journaling

Each day gets significantly better. The shoulder pain was by far the worst pain I had. I still have it occasionally. The pain in the middle of your chest is right where the band sits. You just have grin and bear it for the first few days while resting and staying on top of your pain meds. I took my pain meds for the first 3 days whether I felt like I needed them or not. My theory is never to "chase pain" but to stay ahead of it. After that, I did not need them anymore and really didn't have any more pain. The shoulder got better, but it was very bothersome for the 1st couple of weeks. Gas X helps, but walking helps more. Don't give in the urge to not move around. Walk around for a little bit each hour, gradually increasing the amount when you can. I would walk for 5 minutes out of each hour and go from there. Good luck and hang in there...you'll feel normal again, I promise!

I have lost enough weight where everyone really notices it and I still don't tell anyone. I am also intensely private and don't feel like it's my job to educate everyone about lapband...there are so many misconceptions about it. I have not had an issue with going out to eat...I just choose foods that I know I won't have a problem with. Usually stick to fish and mashed potatoes and eat about half of it. I can always give some to my hubby and say "try this, it's so good!" If you have "skinny" friends/family (which I do) then it's interesting to notice that they don't eat much more than I do Go figure. Soup is always a good option. I have also found that salads are practically a slider food for me so I can usually order a large, restaurant style salad and take home about half of it. If the protein in the salad looks a little too dry, I just cut it up in very small bites and when it's mixed in with the dressing, it's usually ok. Crab cakes always go down really easy for me and are sometimes on the appetizer side. Soup and a crabcake are a perfect size meal when you are out with friends. I spent a LOT of time worrying about how I was going to hide my surgery...it has not been nearly as hard as I thought it would be!

Sounds like you are definitely in the red zone. I was not sure from your post if you have actually had any fill removed yet...if you have, and you are still having problems, then you need more removed! I would worry about slippage with your symptoms...you need to see your band doc and i would not delay if I were you!

Burping is a soft stop "signal" that you've had enough to eat! When I start burping, I know I am 1 or 2 bites away from misery if I continue Sometimes I wait a little and then start eating again if I really haven't eaten that much. I think of burps as the band talking to me and telling me to put down the fork!

I always try to wait it out. I only get it over with and throw up if I'm in significant pain and it's pretty obvious that it's not going to resolve by waiting. My nut (who is banded) and pretty much everyone else at my surgeon's practice told me to avoid doing anything that causes the stomach to "wretch" because of the slip factor. The repeated wretching can lead to a slip. It does worry me, so after an episode, I try to slow down and remember the rules about slow eating and little bites chewed to mush.

Sometimes just plain water tastes good and then other times I enjoy Lipton Sugar Free Green Citrus tea or Crystal Lite...I count it all towards my daily hydration goals! I am 35 pounds from goal and I ran 8 miles today in training for a half-marathon...I guess I must be hydrated

I hope this is a better place to post this thread, I have not been feeling the love in Post Op forum which is where I am 99% of the time. I am 6 months out and you can see my progress below. I have occassionally had very strange INTENSE pain on the right side of my chest area. It seems to radiate all around in "the middle" between my ribs and shoulders, but definitely more to the right side. If I force myself to start burping a little, it seems to ease up a bit. I can feel it sort of high up in the center of my chest (like I said, sort of radiating) below my collar bone area. This pain has come on out of the blue about 3 times in the past 6 weeks. Never any trouble breathing. I am wondering if it could be gallbladder? It does seem to be located a bit highter than where I read gallbladder pain located on google. The net says that gb pain is right side below at bottom of rib cage...mine is closer to right were the underwire of my bra hits. I know I will probably make an appt. with my GP to get some bloodwork done, but was hoping for some input from anyone if they have experienced this before. I don't consider myself a "rapid" loser by any means and purposely was not trying to lose quickly to avoid hair loss and gallbladder! My mom had hers out in her 40s so that is probably what it is. I also wonder if it could just be gas since it seems to be alleviated a bit by the burping? Maybe gass gets trapped in the lower stomach and has a hard time getting out because of the restiction???

Congrats! Sounds like you are doing great...each day is a huge improvement! Stay positive!

I think it's quite premature to be jumping to "one of the one's the band doesn't work for." Please don't think that. You are just in bandster hell, that period of waiting for the proper fill level so the band can actually make a difference. I gurgled all the time, even before I was at my sweet spot. You will do great, just are in that crappy gray area where any weight you lose is really on you, not on the band yet. Yes, as Mel said - if you stop eating like the band IS working, you will lose weight. Well that a lot easier said than done, huh? That's part of what bandster hell is...thinking why the heck did I just have this surgery if I have to do all the work myself? Hang in there...your day will come! Just stay positive enough that you don't miss it Don't beat yourself up either! If you can get through this period without a gain, many consider that a success! I know there were times when I was so hungry that "not gaining" became my goal. This isn't a race - it's a lifestyle change. Take it one day at a time!

I also think this site is a bit "cliquey." I even tried to join one f the cliquey threads and pretty much got ignored on there too. I also fall into the guilty category of "can't reply to one more thread about why haven't I lost 50 pounds yet...it's been 3 weeks since my surgery!" The attitude here has definitely changed. I'm glad that when I first joined i found all the support I needed and I was plain addicted to reading this site. It is leaving my system now. I will still pop on every once in a while, but less and less as time goes on. I hope all the new people "band" together and support each other. That's what I found to be most valuable in the beginning - all the replies from other newbies who were experiencing the same thing I was. I also appreciated the thoughtful replies from the experienced ones, but found that they can be a little preachy for me. Best of luck to you...your pain will go away soon. It's been 6 months for me and I still get occassional port discomfort (from too many sit ups) and some left shoulder pain. A lot of my friends from early on started blogs. That seems to be fulfilling more of their needs for support. Afterall, a blog is "all about you." Seems a little self-indulgent to me, not much of a follower myself. Good luck to you!

Checking in and doing great! 50+ pounds gone never to return :-) Training for a half marathon in May...35 pounds to goal. Running 7 miles now. LIFE IS GOOD!

Im still in AZ enjoying the nice weather. Heading home tomorrow. I did get .3 removed before my long flight. I have an appt. On Thursday to put it back in :-) I made the right decision. I have been able toeat fairly normally out here and kept up wit my running. Well see what the scale says when I get home! Wow though ...my hunger is so much stronger without the. 3...makes me so glad I have the band!!! Elfie....so sorry for all your trouble. You have given it MORE than a fair chance. If the sleeve is your road to goal, than so be it. Don't feel like a failure. Keep talking with your docs about your alternatives. You don't have to have the sleeve revision in the same surgery. IF they determine that your band needs to come out and you are not ready for sleeve yet....don't rush into it. You may need to live without the band for a while in order to make that decision. I wish you the best!

I thought this last fill was going to be perfect! Yesterday, wow...it tightened up (I think) and I had one of those days where I just couldn't ever manage to get anything solid down. I was eventually able to drink a Protein Shake and some tea and Water, but what a miserable day ;( I need to tread carefully today to see if yesterday's fiasco was a result of the swelling caused by the 1st stuck episode or if I'm just too tight. I went in for a nut session on Monday and scheduled another one for next Monday...she said they could remove some of the fill whenever I needed it. I am flying to AZ next week for a visit with relatives who don't know about my surgery. I think I'm going to get some of this fill removed so I can eat a little more normally. This still might not be too tight, but I'm so "close" to being too tight that any swelling results in trouble. I know when I fly that I swell a bit as well. I just don't want to get out there and be in trouble after a long flight. My nut said no problem...they will remove some - give me a little more room...and then put it back in when I come home. I love my surgeon's practice! Everyone there is banded (including him) and they all know what it's like to live the banded life! Just wanted to post this so all the newbies out there can see that there is always a solution to whatever problem or hiccup you run into!

I'm going MOnday and getting a little taken out. I can drink liquids fine, but this morning I had to stop eating after 1/2 of my greek yogurt cause I felt like another bite would pile back up into my esophogus! I was able to eat a nice portion size of chili for lunch and stayed full for a VERY long time. However, if I would have eaten something else that would not have been so soft, I'm sure I would have not been able to eat that much. Last night for dinner I had a very small turkey burger..no bun of course... (homemade recipe...delicious!) and it took me FOREVER to eat it b/c I had to be so careful. I really wouldn't mind eating that way to lose weight faster, but I can't help but draw unwanted attention to myself. I have already stopped eating in the lunchroom at work so much because of all the damn noises I make when I eat!!! I'm goint to ask the doc to pull all the fluid out so I can know exactly how much is in there and remember how I felt at that level...Like I said, I may end up going back to this level, but feel I will be better maybe .1 or so down from where I am.

Good advice all - thanks HB - I know what you mean about messing with the sweet spot. I have considered that alternative, but feel so unsure about it. The first thing I'm trying to discern is whether I'm actually too tight or not. Today went "ok" but not great. I never actually was "stuck" but I can only eat like 4-5 bites of ANYTHING at one time, and then I just have to stop. I found myself "grazing" today just to get enough calories in. I even tried eating some of a cinnamon roll, still could eat very little of it (after chewing it to mush). I think a small unfill is in order. I would probably wait it out a while longer if I wasn't traveling, but I really don't want to get into trouble out there. I'm going to help take care of my sis' family while she recovers from an operation. I don't want any attention on me, that's for sure. I can sure see how the weight would fall off if I stayed like this, but it doesn't seem healthy. I haven't done too well on the veggies the last couple of days...I'm going to give those a shot tomorrow and see how I do. Thanks all!