anglov

I went in Thursday for my 2nd fill. My 10cc band now has 4.5cc in it. I go back in 3 weeks again for another fill. I will be probably need two more tweaks she said. I am down 41.5 lbs! I feel great! I met with the nutritionist and she said I am a poster child for what to do right. That made me feel good. My lunch cooler is a great idea and is what keeps me on track all day long. I work four 10 hour days each week so I am there for dinner every day. I eat breakfast at home but take enough food to eat every four hours. It has been working great for me. I don't even think about eating out unless I want to. No vending machines. except when they have these cheese cubes/grapes cup. I do tend to buy those for a snack. My suggestion is to be prepared. I eat what I want when I want it. I just eat everything in moderation and yes my weight loss is not fast but it is steady and I am not suffering for it. I am not struggling at all because I am not putting too much pressure on myself and I don't set high expectations either. Be realistic in your goals otherwise you are setting yourself up for real disappointment and failure when you really didn't need to. Think about it. Did you gain all this weight overnight or even within a few months? No you didn't. This was over years and years. Why would you expect to lose it in a few months? You may WANT to lose it in a few months but that is not healthy or realistic. My doctor said I should aim to lose 40lbs a year to be within a goal range in 3 years which is right where the Lap Band should have me. I am already at the 40lb mark for this year and I am not reaching for the stars when setting my goals. Good Luck to everyone.

And I don't mean depressed. I was banded 5-12-10 and am DOWN 18.2 since surgery for a grand total of 36.5 since March. It has been a road full of bumps and ruts. Some of the potholes were HUGE. I am making it though. I am not discouraged and I am not looking at this through "rose-colored" glasses. I have seen some banders go into this thinking this is the miracle cure. We know better. I have seen some upset because they aren't dropping 10lbs a week. We know better. The point of WLS, well at least it should be, is to lose weight to be healthy. Now think about it, if we are told that with the lap band we should be losing about 2 lbs per week, why would we even imagine that 10lbs a week is normal? If you sent unrealistic goals or have unrealistic expectations then you are setting yourself up for a major disappointment. I have realistic goals and you know what? I AM HAPPY with my band and how I am doing and I am happy doing it. I am to the point that I don't think band first before I eat. It is now a habit and everything just falls in place. I don't project I AM BANDED anymore. I am just me. They see me, not the girl who had band surgery. We are all successful no matter what!!

Thanks everyone for the kind words!! Sandradee, I told everyone in my unit at work, 13 people, plus a few others and I am sure they told people and so on. My family knows. At first I got a lot of comments about the band and what I should or should not be doing. Right after surgery when others would eat they would say things like "oh I'm not inviting you since you have your special food or I won't offer you anything since you have special food to eat." I sat a few down and said "okay, what and where is this special food you speak of?" I had to explain that I can eat absolutely whatever I want I just don't eat as much of it. The key has been for me to stop mentioning the band. I don't talk about it hardly and now everything is back to normal. It will take time and honestly not one has said one word about noticing my weightloss which is a little disheartening but I am not looking for validation so that's okay. Turns out a few are eating 1200 cal a day. I am sure they think I took the easy way out and they are jealous and make comments behind my back that they struggle and I don't. They have no idea how much of a struggle this is at times and also I don't blame them because I would probably say the same thing if I were them. Sad isn't it?

I had a lean protein meal on days when I just couldn't handle it. My surgeon said my liver looked great. No issues at all.

Well, I have hit my 1st week barely losing anything. Am I bummed? You know, I'm not really. I thought I would be. I look at it this way, a loss is a loss. I lost 1/2 lb this week. I know why I only lost a 1/2 lb. I have been swelling up this week which I haven't done in a long while. Why did I do this? I would say I have had too much sodium this week. I KNOW I had too much sodium this week. My plan is to change that up next week and increase my water intake. NOW THE GOOD NEWS!!!!! I am officially UNDER 300 lbs!!! YEAH ME! I in the elite group of TWOFERVILLE. LOSER LOSER LOSER...YES I AM A LOSER and proud of it:tt2::tt1:

My first month after the band was hell! OMG! My mood swings would have given you whiplash and then I would have knocked you head clean off. I pure mean and nothing less. I am hoping this month won't be that bad. I was in so much pain that I even tried the pain meds I got from surgery and they didn't make a dent in the pain.

Girl, STOP weighing yourself 5 times a day!! I know that is easier said then done but it is just bringing you down. In the past, I could gain 10lbs in a day because of my swelling. Remember that even when you get the band it won't be a piece of cake. There is work to do and frustrations to work through. You will have good days and bad days. It is not the miracle cure. I have seen some on here with high expectations for the band only to be disappointed to find out that the band really isn't the fast weight loss tool they hoped it would be. There are those that lose the weight quickly but they are the exception not the rule. As far as the liver, I had thought too that was stupid. The doc came out and said my liver looked good. I said Great I have a skinny liver. Now I say my liver is bikini ready. Seriously, it sucks that you lose weight first in your liver. CRAZY TALK!!

You are doing great. My doctor did the math and said I should lose about 120 lbs over 3 years so if I am expected to lose 40 lbs per year. Don't get into your head that you should be losing tons of weight quickly. If that was the case then you should have had gastric bypass. At least that is what my doctor told me. A loss is a loss no matter what or how much.

Well, my 1st fill was Thursday and since then I have had minor sliming a few times with a little frothing thrown in for good measure. What a feeling that is. I can say I wondered about it and now I that I know I am only thankful that it did not involve throwing up. I am lucky the food slid on dawn without further trouble. I am hungry about every 5 hours or so. That is pretty good. We'll see how long this lasts.

My doctor and nutritionist said 1200 cal a day. I was eating a lot less and had an appointment yesterday. They told me I should be eating up to a salad plate size portion(s) at each meal. If I eat too low calories then my body will either stop losing or start gaining. People think the lower calories the more weight loss. The truth is you send your body into starvation mode when you don't eat enough calories for normal body function. I found this website that has some interesting facts. Even with the band, which is just a tool, you need to keep up a healthy caloric intake. Of course, everyone is different. This is the advice of my doctor and nutritionist. Calorie Intake to Lose Weight

It was my 1 month post op and 1st fill. Didn't hurt a bit. They put 2 1/2 cc's in so now I have 3 cc's. I am down 14.7 lbs since surgery and 33 lbs total since March. Mine also felt like the water was getting stuck. I had to eat mushy foods yesterday like cottage cheese and mashed potatoes. Today thing still feel stuck. I am trying to get to used to my limits with this fill. I overdid it and had some minor sliming and frothing. I didn't throw up but it eventually slid on down. Weird feeling. I need to take it slower. I had an egg at 10am and didn't feel hungry again until 3pm so I am on target right now. I go back in 3 weeks to evaluate how this fill is doing. We shall see.

Well, I must say I learned a lot today at my post op. I wish it had been sooner so I could be privy to this info but I am glad just the same. I learned several things. 1st--my doc does not have us on a long liquid phase after surgery because he has found more success in his patients if they are re-introduced slowly to foods as soon as possible. Less cheating and damage to the band. Plus since he does not put any fluid in the band the healing time is less. 2nd--I should be eating a "salad plate" size portion at each meal. And here I thought I was eating too much. 3rd--I must eat 1200 cal a day. Eating low low calories can cause weight gain or I would stop losing weight. As it was explained to me, I should not be struggling with my diet. The only thing I should have to be concerned with is healthy choices. The amount I eat should be dictated by my band. Hence the reason for follow ups and fills, of course we all know that. Got to get to the "green zone otherwise known as the "sweet spot". Well I weight in and have lost a total of.....33 POUNDS!! 14.7 lbs since surgery. Not a lot but REALLY excited. My doctor is thrilled with it. He said slow is the way to go. As he put it, if you expected to lose a lot weight fast then you should have chosen one of the other surgeries. So true!! My BP is down. It is normal so that thrills me. I am off the reflux meds now. I haven't had any since surgery. Ok, so I had my 1st fill. I didn't have anything in the band and now I have 3 cc's. It was interesting. It didn't hurt one bit. We chatted as the nurse practitioner did my fill. It was tight and all day I sipped water and ate mushy foods. The swelling is down now because I am no longer burping when I swallow water. Then...I get home today and a local hospital (not the one I went to) sends me an invitation to their weightloss surgery seminar. I had never even inquired there. Strange.

Thanks! So true! I no longer feel guilty if I eat more than right after surgery. My body needed it and was telling me that but I wasn't listening because I thought I was supposed to only eat a tiny bit. It was actually a relief to find out I should be eating 1200 cal. My doc also said your body goes into starvation mode if you go without the proper amount of calories it needs to just function. I am losing about 2 lbs a week, maybe a little more so I am happy with that. A loss is a loss.

It was easy wasn't it? I was nervous but we were chatting and the next thing I knew she said she was done. I chose to not peek at all. I am not squeemish with needles but that is freaky. I'm down 33 lbs. It feels great doesn't it? Congratulations on your weight loss. We can say we are LOSERS and it's a good thing!!

I get that a lot. I am being excluded from lunches and food days because they assume I have to eat "special" foods. I can have absolutely anything I want just in moderation. Having said that, I bring all my own foods to work nearly every day. I eat every 3-4 hours so I have an insulated lunch bag on my desk all day. I cook foods and divide into meals. I know that I will get tired of eating the same thing over and over so I give my son the leftovers for his lunches. He's a happy guy. I find that rarely do I have the inclination to eat out.

ummm HELLO??? 3.8 lbs in a week is fantastic! Why are you putting so much pressure on yourself? Even on WW you must eat more than 570 cal a day. That is putting your body in starvation mode and then whatever you do eat, your body will hold on for dear life to it. My doc has all his patients eating 1200 cal a day. Your body needs a certain amount of calories and fat per day just to function. Be careful that all your hard work is for nothing if you aren't giving your body the basics it needs just to function daily. Christie is right, 1-2 lbs a week is the realistic goal for lap banders. The lap band is the slower weight loss. It is not common to drop lots of weight all at once with the lap band. Be careful. You are doing great just don't give yourself the unrealistic goals. That is a quick trip to failure and whether you believe it or not you are doing great with the slow weight loss.

I am new to the band but seriously, you are only hurting yourself both physically and mentally. I eat things wrong and it gets stuck but right now I have no restriction so if I wait it will slide on through. Why would you want to continue to throw up? I would rather be tortured then throw up. I am losing slowly. I had surgery on May 12th and I know I don't know a lot but I have only lose 10.2 lbs. Losing slowly will give you a better chance of not gaining it all back. Give yourself and your doctor a break and let them know. You don't want to cause erosion or slippage and end up doing a lot of damage to your band or your esophagus from throwing up. Take care of yourself soon!

Congratulations! That is great to lose that much weight right off the bat. And I am glad you are feeling better. I have lost 29 lbs since March and 10.2 since surgery. I'm okay with losing slowly. I am really thankful my doc had be back on foods pretty quickly. I don't have willpower and the liquid diet was pushing my limits. I bet the vertigo was very scary for you. I'm glad it has cleared up. The only issue I have right now is I have no restriction so I can eat just about everything and as much as I want. SO, that means more diligence for me in watching what I eat and how much. My 1st follow up is next week on the 10th. I am so hoping I get a fill that day. But I am losing at least 2 lbs a week so that makes me very happy that I can lose that without any restriction. I wish I knew some people here that had the surgery. There is one I know who had lap band but she lied to everyone about how she lost the weight so I am not inclined to get together with her. I mean I don't blame her for not wanting people to know she had surgery but she made a big deal and production about her weight loss and pretty much said it was due strictly to eating healthy and tons of exercise. If you don't want people to know keep it on the down low but when you are shouting it from the rooftops then I have no respect for you when you lie big time. I have a hard time walking with people because I walk slowly. It's just me and my treadmill for now until I can walk faster.

I saw that someone else had mentioned this and I thought: Hey that's a great idea!! I am looking for a band buddy who is getting banded on May 12th to email and/or text for help, support, encouragement and just to be a friend to go through this with. We could Celebrate our "B"- day. Let me know

Are you on foods yet? That may be the reason. I noticed that everything slowed down when the food was re-introduced. I don't go back until June 10th so I have a little while longer. I am hoping that I get a fill because I have no restriction right now. I think it is just a temporary thing.

GNC has a good one. Called Wheybolic. The chocolate is better. I also have vanilla and unflavored. It mixes easily but I recommend milk not the water unless you are using some ice and making it a smoothie. Good Luck!

This is just a rough patch. I know what you are going through. I am right there with you but I keep telling myself this is normal. It's hard not to read how well others are doing post op and not feel discouraged but we shouldn't be. Easier said then done I know. I don't eat as much as before but right now I can sit and eat a hamburger with bun off the grill and only feel a slight tightness with the bread ocassionally. Actually I just did. That is all I ate but still it was an entire hamburger and I feel guilty. But really, why should I? It's not forbidden. Nothing I have says I can't have an entire hamburger. I didn't have the hamburger AND all the sides. So why am I beating myself up over this? I have no restriction so of course I can eat more. If I don't eat enough then I will start to overeat because I am too hungry. It's a catch 22 anyway you look at it I guess. I go for my 1st post op visit on June 10th. I have no idea if I am getting a fill that day or not. I sure hope I am. Hang in there!!:thumbup:

I wouldn't worry too much. I was banded May 12th and have lost 9 lbs. I was only on liquids for just 2 days then moved to soft, mushy and now I am on pretty much all foods. I think those that are on liquid diets for longer periods lose more weight at first. I personally have a theory that the body goes into starvation mode. I figured up my calories and I was only having about 500 a day. I am supposed to be up to around 1200 at some point. Not sure how but okay whatever doc says. I have noticed since I have added more food each day but kept them simple foods (not casseroles and such) I have felt better. I have no restriction so I must be extra vigilant about how much I eat. I truly believe it will all come in time.

Congratulations on your weight loss. That is fantastic!