momtofourredheads

I was just banded four days ago and am looking for some local support. I know there is a group in London (over and hour to the west) and in Mississauga (over and hour to the east) and just wondered if there were any bandsters meeting closer?

I love following people's blogs. It gives me great inspiration and motivation! I hope my blog will do that for someone else too!

My husband has never been a big dessert person or evening snacker....until I got my band that is!!! I don't know if it's because of Christmas bad eating habits or what...but every night he goes into the kitchen and brings back a pile of liquorice, chips, Cookies, chocolates etc. and sits there and eats it while we watch TV together. It bothers me mentally because I feel like he's not being that supportive...but physically I'm only one week out and couldn't eat it if I wanted to. It makes me go wander the kitchen and see what I can have...which is basically just Jello and I hate jello, so i come back empty handed. I'm worried about what's going to happen when the weeks go on and I can eat more and more stuff. I think I'm going to have to talk to him too...just like you! The ironic part is that he actually said the me getting banded was going to help him too (he's maybe 15lbs overweight) because I wouldn't be buying junk food anymore...except that for three weeks now (pre and post of dieting) he keeps bringing crap home lol!!! So much for blaming it all on me!!!

Good topic!!! I don't think I drink enough...my Dr. said at least 6 glasses a day and that's what I get in...6...so 48oz. I love coffee too much and always pick that instead!!!

Where do you live?

I like your question! I am about to start mushy food stage tomorrow and reviewed the food guide my clinic gave me and I had to laugh because they went into grave detail about the liquid phase and the mushy phase...but said hardly anything about the soft phase...and so it is really hard for me to tell by this guide what exactly the difference was lol!!! Good luck!!!

I was trying to explain this to my Dad the other night when I was telling him I was having surgery and how I have struggled with thinking I was fat all my life. When I was a teenager, I was 140-150lbs at 5'6"...I was SKINNY..but because I took a size 13 pants in the store...I thought I was fat. I remember shopping at Le Chateau and they had a new 'plus size' line that was size 1, 2 and 3...but they were equivalent to size 10, 12, 14!!! Plus size if you're a 10!!!!! Unbelievable! I became bulimic for years trying to get down to a size 5...never happened...I looked horrible but could never get that small. This lead to a learned habit of binge eating so when I eventually kicked myself in the butt and stopped being bulimic\, I still ate too much...and now I have a metabolism that has ground to a halt. I feel so ripped off that even when I WAS skinny, I didn't know it. My goal now is just to hit 170 lol. Glad to hear the sizes have changed though...maybe I'll be a 13 at 170 now.

That's fantastic! So at the end of the day, you were patient and you ended up with your band paid for AND the job you wanted back in CA!!! Life is good! How exciting for you...a fresh new start! Congrats!

I had surgery one day before you and I have been fine EXCEPT when I ate Jello. I didn't chew it enough and it really hurt going down and I was uncomfortable for awhile. I have been fine with Protein shakes and V8 and Water and Soup. hope you feel better soon!

Thanks so much! I actually just moved here from Langley, BC about 6 weeks ago..I know tons of bandsters in BC...but none here...actually I don't know anyone here lol!!!

A good friend of mine had lap band surgery two years ago, and I have to admit, besides being terribly envious that she was going to get skinny and I was still fat (we have both been the same size since university), I secretly thought that she was talking the easy way out. She was very open over the course of the next year and told me everything along her journey. I soon realized there was nothing 'easy' about what she was going through....but here we are two years later and she's kept 100lbs off for a full year now and I weigh another 20lbs more!!! So, needless to say, my time has come...but I have a much healthier respect for the work involved now that I've watched her journey. The one thing she said to me, that I will never forget and keep telling myself almost daily: "Getting lap band is like breaking up with the boyfriend you've had all your life!"

@SASSYOZZIE: I really think it's different for each person. I was able to partially sleep on my stomach on the third night and last night (night four) I was sleeping fully on my stomach again. My Dr. told me the 'average' recovery time is 3-5 days with almost 100% of people back to normal by 7. I am four days out and I certainly find it hard to bend down and pick stuff off the floor and won't be picking up my 25lbs baby anytime in the near future!! (That will make monday interesting!!) Sounds like you had a couple set backs, so your body might just need a few extra days. I'm sure by the end of the week you'll be back to normal. Good Luck!! @IRISHANGEL: Thanks for the kind words! I only just started blogging so it's nice to know someone has read it ...besides my mom lol!!!! My 'will power' during my two weeks pre-op was more fear driven...I have terrible anxiety about anything 'medical' and didn't want to jeopardize my surgery by screwing up the diet. I'm sure it's going to get harder very soon as I heal more....

My Dr. gave me that book 'The Lapband Solution' and it talks about the studies done on those with bands that drank one glass of wine a day and those who didn't. Data showed that those who drank wine were actually more successful...and so the book recommends it. That being said, I think you're right to hold off now...you would probably feel so sick and light headed. Wait until solids...then the wine will taste even better!!!

I am keeping it quite quiet as well. I told my parents and my two best friends and that's all...not even my brother or sister. It was really hard at first because we just recently moved across the country and we don't know anyone here except I have a few cousins. In order to have the surgery I needed someone to come and stay with my kids so my husband could take me into Toronto...so I told my cousin I was having gall bladder surgery...I figured it would explain a bunch of things without me having to be totally honest. I told them I had to do the two week liquid diet for the same reasons as I really had to. I asked my Dr. if it was normal to be so secretive and he said it was more common NOT to tell than for people TO tell. He said some of his patients don't even tell their husbands!!! Typically, he says people follow a pattern: They think this is just another diet attempt that they're going to fail at, so they don't tell anyone...then at 3 months out when it's working, they tell a couple more people...and by 6 months when they realize it really, really is working...they start to tell everyone. I will eventually tell my family that I lied to them...but I'm still afraid that I'm going to fail.

I was banded on Wed and didn't really have much to complain about until this afternoon. I think I tried to do too much, too soon....we went house hunting and I was trudgin around in acre back yards in my snow boots! I found taking some tylenol and sitting quietly with a heating pad made me feel much better, very quickly. Wearing a bra is still very uncomfortable...so thank goodness it's the weekend and I can just go without while at home :-)

I was also banded on Jan12 and I keep thinking the same thing over and over...oh ya, I have a band in me now!! Wow, I can't believe I did it! My Dr. had Water only the day of surgery, then clear fluids the first day after, days 2-7 are full fluids, then 8-14 is mushy, then 15-21 soft foods and proceed with full solids after that. I think it's so funny how there are such differences between the diets! I gained 1lb the day after surgery but am down that 1 plus another 4 today. I plan to take full advantage of the quicker weight loss that happens in the first few months because I know it will slow down soon enough. Mostly I have been still having Protein shakes only...they keep me full and count as full fluids.

I've never heard of one incision either? I had the five, with one big and four tiny. My Dr. warned me that with all the IV fluids you get that you will weight more for the first couple days until you start to loose the water again. I weighted 3lbs heavier the day after my surgery, down to 1lbs heavier today but am peeing like crazy so I suspect it will all be gone by tomorrow. I don't care if I go down right now, just don't want to go up!

I just had my surgery and started a blog today too. I have seen a lot of people on here who have had a lot of success are often avid bloggers as well...so maybe there's something to that! I just added all your blogs so I can follow along!

I was so annoyed at my husband yesterday when I was telling him that the post-surgery pain was nothing but the hunger pain was actually quite painful and he had the gall to tell me that it was because i was bored and that I probably wasn't actually hungry. As IF I can't tell the two apart!!! I could HEAR my stomach! Today is much better...I've been sipping the same Protein shake all day and now DanActive yogurt drink. My cousin recently started to take Metamucil once per day and has dropped 11lbs in a couple weeks just from it keeping her full longer. She doesn't have a big weight problem...probably 15-20lbs up. Good to hear that others are having success with it keeping them full too!

I had my surgery done on Jan 12, 2011 by Dr. Cobourn at SWLC in Toronto. The whole process was streamlined and smooth and very comfortable. I arrived 35 minutes late because of traffic caused by a snow storm (even though I allowed and extra two hours for snow traffic, it just wasn't enough). I was afraid they would cancel my surgery but they were so nice and told me everyone was late for the same reason so it all worked out. They took me up to get prepped, asked me to change into a hospital gown that was swimming on me (but at least it wasn't too small!!!). They weighed me, asked me some pre-op questions, then settled me in a nice recliner with an electric blanket and some magazines to wait for the Dr. After about twenty minutes, Dr. C came in, super friendly as usual, and asked me if I had any last minute questions. Then the anesthesiologist came in and went over in very grave detail exactly what he would do during the operation. I found this weirdly comforting. After that (about noon) they lead me to the OR where I climbed onto the table and put in the IV...and then away I went. I awoke in recovery and felt great, just a bit tired but no nausea or pain. The nurse was nice and friendly. She gave me some water sips over the course of an hour, then helped me get dressed and gave me some demerol for the ride home. My hubby was called and we drove home around 3pm. I slept most of the way home and was totally myself by the time we got there...which is good because my kids are still all so little and they worry easily. I was fine the rest of the day, didn't really need any meds but took the demerol as a precaution to help me sleep. I slept in a recliner because there was some pressure on my chest when I would lie down. Next day was the same...no meds, no real discomfort...slight ache in the shoulders that was easily alleviated by the magic bag (you know, the one you microwave :-) I was very hungry and had trouble sleeping last night because I was so hungry. i drank a couple sips of skim milk around 2am and that actually took my hunger away and I was able to sleep better the rest of the night. Hope this helps you feel more comfortable about your up coming surgery...I was so worried and nervous and it all turned out to be so easy.

Great news! Good luck! I was banded two days ago too!!!

Isn't funny how each surgeon has such different requirements...I've had a two week liquid diet of three Protein shakes per day. It was hard the first three days, but then ketosis sets in and you're not hungry. We don't have to do clear liquids before the surgery...I am going to go out for a light dinner the night before...which is tomorrow night...yikes, it's getting so close. My date is 1-12-11...your date is much cooler lol!!!