annieM

Moosictchr, Welcome! Please check out all of the band vs. bypass threads in this forum before you go to see your doc. The lapband is the easiest to recover from (the actual surgery) and doesn't have all of the wierd long-term malabsorption complications of the bypass or RNY. Doctors like fast results, often at the cost of your overall health at times (except for band docs!) so don't be surprised if the consult you are seeking pushes for bypass or RNY. The weight loss with the band is slow. 1-2 lbs/ week. Waiting for the numbers to drop gets boring, but it happens! The slow weight loss is so much healthier for you and leaves less hanging skin and you have less muscle waisting. Not to mention bone loss... Good luck, and I hope you choose the band!

I love to eat out. Everyone gets to order what they want (i.e. I don't have to cook something and hear complaints from the one person who doesn't like it...). My DD has always eaten like a naturally thin person (she is now a teen and weighs about 115). What we do is split an appitizer with the family, split an entree' and share a desert. We also bring home extras so my teen son can eat it later! It must be working because I am in the 1 to 2 lb/week target. Hey Poodles, it sounds like your current fill is too much! You should at least be able to get liquids in in the am. Have you tried warm coffee or tea for the first drink to "relax" your band? I would check with your doc though, you might need a tiny "unfill"

Hi! I had an NSV of sorts this year. My kids are teens, they didn't want Easter candy SO I DIDN'T BUY ANY. This means I won't eat any either. What a thrill and calorie savings to boot! Any one else manage to escape the Easter Bunny?

Hi Donna, Where in Dayton do you live? I'm in Beavercreek. I havn't gone to the support groups for my surgeon because they are at an inconvient time for me. I havn't done formal exersise yet because I'm doing that ''sandwich generation " thing right now. My dad is slipping into dementia (i nipped his car keys last night, he shouldn't be driving) and I still have three kids at home (high school). sigh It would be nice for us Datonians to get together sometime, yes?

Remember RNY is different from the gastric bypass (with duodenal switch). My DH had the bypass with the full intestinal re-arraingement. They take the last 100 cm of the small intestine and attach it to your stomach. That is why there is the foul smelling gas and diarrhea- from all the undigested food. I do mean foul. He lost the weight so fast that he has tons of loose skin and has lost most of his muscle tone. He also fights a vitamin D deficiency which makes his bones breakable (he has lost alot of height) and since he can't absorb it through the fist full of vitamins he takes every day, he can't get those levels up. His health problems are starting to freak me out as you can tell. Someone at his place of work had the RNY, where they make your stomach into a tiny pouch. She has to have weekly IV infusions of iron for anemia. Turns out the stomach absorbs it, now it's mostly gone so she is anemic and can't take the iron pills because of the constipation. Yup. The band is the way to go!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love my band,

Hello from Ohio, I live about 10 minutes from Xenia, the town that was flattened by an F5 about 36 years ago. Yesterday was the anniversary and it is not that long ago that they have any trouble getting people to do the "I remember when's..." for the news. I prefer the basement, and it is finished so we can sit in comfort while we wait it out. I had the whole back of my fence knocked down by a twister 8 years ago. Snapped 4x4 posts, about 11 of them, like nothing. A tree also hit the powere line across from my fence so they turned the power off- and my sump pump stopped and the basement flooded. sigh I perfer to watch cool storms from a distance...

Welcome to band-land! Three weeks after surgery for a fill is really the fast lane. Most of us had to wait six weeks. (two weeks liquids, two weeks mushies and two weeks solids then a fill) How are you feeling? Are you experiencing any restriction from post surgery swelling? The days can be long but the weeks still fly by. You will start to lose soon.

I voted "other" and I think that in a pinch my husband would do it. We would need the right supplies but I wouldn't have a problem with that and it would be very handy in an emergency. (like an illness on vacation)

Hi, For breakfast i usually have a small bowl of "raison nut bran" or similar cereal with skim milk, a large cup of coffee with sugar free vanilla flavor and about 1/8 cup skim milk. For lunch i have a protein drink (myoplex vanilla) if i feel restricted or a south beach diet meal (sometimes i will have one of their breakfast burritos for lunch, minus some of the tortilla). For dinner i will have whatever i have made for the family for dinner in a much smaller amount, minus any bread. I do sip some water with dinner but keep it less than 1/4 of a cup. If the meal comes with noodles or rice i will limit it to about 1/4 cup because it tends to swell in my pouch. I have been having an orange as a snack before bed. Between meals i drink lemon Propel and water. If i go out to dinner, i have a small amount and take the rest home or split an entre' with my 110 lb daughter. (It's funny but at cheesecake factory we can split a meal and split a desert and still bring a lot of both home!) I hope this helps!

Welcome Wesboo! We have something in common because my husband had gastric bypass about 4 years ago. He had lots of complications and still struggles with malabsorption issues ( his Vitamin D is at about 2% of what is should be)and he lost so much muscle mass that he hasn't gotten back. I wish the lapband had been available then! Good luck on your lapband journey. Be sure to check out the threads that explain the abbreviations we use here> like, DH is dear husband, and PB is productive burp, lol is laugh out loud....etc. Good luck!

I agree, just enjoy it. When you hit the 1 to 2 lb per phase it can get kindof boring. Be sure to keep your liquids up too to keep yourself hydrated. Not everyone on this forum is lucky enough to experience a fast start. I did and it bummed me out when I slowed down. Now i'm a steady loser and people are starting to notice. Don't forget to start adding in replacement activities for your NEW LIFE! Keep up the good work!

I love this thread! Many expressions i have never heard before! My parents were children during the depression so they said things like "a stitch in time, saves nine" and "a penny saved is a penny earned". A swear word was "Judas priest!" Also, "stop plagueing the cat". Now i live in Dayton, OH and people here say "what are you waiting ON" instead of "waiting FOR" and it always amuses me because i picture a waiter bringing what ever they need to them, like the bus. My sister lived in England for a few years and "don't get you knickers in a twist" for don't freak out, is one of my favs. keep 'em coming guys!

Remember too that you are in the healing phase. You won't have restriction of your food intake until you start having "fills". That is when you will start to have steady losses.

I already take Arthrotek for arthritis so I didn't need any additional pain meds. The best remedy for chronic pain (of which I am very familiar...) is distraction. If you sit around and feel sorry for yourself it will really hurt. On the other hand, if you do something fun the hurt fades away. Try stocking up on funny movies, crafts, clean out drawers, or whatever you do that normally causes you to lose track of time. Good luck!

You poor thing! Don't blame your band for your complications though, probably any surgery would have put you at the same risk. Have yourself tested for clotting disorders so you will know if you will need to stay on blood thinners. (DO NOT take the pill, ever) My sister has a clotting disorder, as does her daughter and both live healthy active lives. They just need the blood thinners and tests to monitor them. You can get through this! You have your band now. As you get better and start to lose weight life will be soooo good.

Welcome and good luck! I got my band 11/15/07 and am 2/5ths to my goal. It gets a bit boring sometimes because the prospect of losing 1 to 2 lbs a week makes the week seem longer. What helped me is to write down "mini goals" for each week about two months ahead and then concentrate on LIVING!

I had the shoulder pain too. The worst of it was gone in a week, but I still felt it for weeks afterwards. My stomach had no pain at all. Go figure.

When i average out my weight loss it has been about 2 lbs per week. If i don't count that "quick start" from the liquid and mushy stage where i hardly ate anything, it's 1.3 lbs per week. It comes off unevenly though. In cycle, i tend to gain a bit before (which is disheartening) but then lose after. I love my band, and any weight loss is a good thing. As time goes by i have become more active around the house and more involved with real life and less focused on what the scale has said that day.

Hi! We hae had the gray drizzles today too. In Dayton we get tons of days like that in Nov. to March. I hope April is better. I read that book "a Walk in the Woods" it was great. I didn't get an urge to pack up and go, but it was very funny. I love the little british-ism he pops into what he writes. I havn't started working outformally yet. My dad had a fall and since then he has needed to go to lots of appointments an i am the taxi. Meanwhile i have three teens and our house has been hit with vandalism. The turkeys cut down a 5" diameter tree in our front yard. Freak me out. We have had other instances, but that was the usual TP and egging. When things settle down i will go back to the club to work out. By then the mess of redecoration will be over. annie

Hi, Baxter State Park is west and a bit south from you. It is a famous park because they keep it totaly natural. They will even shut down a trail if an animal has a nest with babies nearby. Mainers can rent the cabins and camp there but the spaces booked months in advance. The Appalation (sp?) trail ends there at mount Kitadhan (sp?) which is the highest point in Maine. It is SO beautiful. How did you end up in Maine? My DH is a Pathologist and that is why we ended up in Bangor. The group had some creepy members though, so we left when we heard of the job here (my sister lives here, so it was great to be by family). Here, by the way, is Beavercreek Ohio. It's a nice place to live. Suburbia. No grand senery, but the shopping is much better (i can't wait to buy small clothes!)

How are the workouts going? You inspire me to go back to the gym too. Have you had a break in the weather yet? Spring has sprung here and the amount of yard work i have to do is daunting. I was banded on Nov. 15th and that was prime time for fall clean-up (so it didn't get done) and during the winter, when the weather was not so bad, i wasn't feeling well. Now i'm feeling so much better with 40 lbs off that i have already pruned a ton off lowere branches. (No more getting wacked in the face while mowing, yea). I've never been as far north as Presque Isle. It must be beautiful. I took the kids up to Baxter State Park once. I know you will laugh at this- They were all pre-schoolers! It took hours to go about 1/8th of a mile on those "natural" trails. Very much worth the trip though... Hang in there with the Gym!

Hello bluejay, Are you thinking about getting the Band? In your post it is not clear what kind of reply you are looking for. I have been very happy with my band. I can not eat like a delicate lady instead of a hired hand and not only have I lost weight, but i feel so much better about who i am. Being out of control around food was a monkey on my back. Now it's gone. San Diego must be beautiful. I heard once that it has the best weather in the states. Lots of chances for outdoor fun! If you have more questions, please ask. We lapbandsters are here for you.

Hi! I lived in Bangor for a year, so I know what you mean about trying to keep your activity level up. When I live there I would hit the drive -through coffee and head out to Acadia and hike with the kids. Even with piles of snow in Bangor the coast trails were passable because of being warmer by the Water. Where do you live in Maine? If you are too far from the coast, how 'bout X-C skiing or snow shoeing? Take advantage of the outdoors before the black flies hit! Another thing that I read in the new Martha Beck book was the value of fidgeting. If you just move more within the context of your current life, you will burn more calories. This is what i am doing now. I have a bad back and I am waiting to lose more before I stress it out with formal excersize. So, I do busy work in the house, dance around a bit, and generally catch up with housework that I didn't do when 40 lbs heavier. Good luck! (gosh, I miss Maine so much!)

I told my DH and kids, my sisters but not my father, and one close friend. I have decided that when I am at my goal I would share the information as the situation warrents. I'm a private person and I know from past experience that if you share one little tid-bit of info, you get besieged by questions. I hate that! I do love my band and as of this morning I have lost 40 lbs. 2/5ths of the way, yea!

Fun thread! I agree with Jack. I don't miss that monkey on my back. I have such a different attitude towards food i could swear they did a little brain surgery too! lol