Wimic

I had my surgery on Aug 25, 2010. I weighed 297lb at my heaviest (I'm 5'11") and after the preop diet and recovery I was down to 256. My weight stayed there for about 6 months and and I wasn't really following the rules... Drinking when I eat was probably the hardest for me, which enabled me to eat a lot more than I should... I got my act together last summer and started exercising regularly and following the band rules again got down to 233 lb. ever since then I've been slowly regaining weight and am now back up to 260 lb. I'm having a REALLY hard time not eating out of boredom, am eating normal sized portions (probably larger in some cases) and just feel like a complete failure. I really struggle with separating my actual hunger from head hunger and eat a lot when I'm bored. I know I make bad choices but I feel helpless and I feel like I'm spiraling out of control. I need to get a handle on this before it goes any further... I feel like I blinked my eyes and have gained 25 lb... I don't want to gain any more. I'm going to start tracking my calories with myfitnesspal again... Is anyone else on here using that? I currently have a few non-band buddies on there but could really use some friends who have the band to help me learn how to use it properly again.

I had 4 fills after my surgery in 2010/ early 2011. I'm pretty sure I'm in the green zone (and have been since that time). I rarely get hungry and 1 cup of food usually keeps me satisfied for 4-6 hours. I don't think the band is the issue... It's all me. That's why I'm having such a hard time and am being so hard on myself... I know this is all my own doing

I did 2 weeks of a protein drink pre-op diet. my surgeon said that after a few days my body would enter a state of ketosis and I wouldn't be hungry... Sure enough, this happened! I dropped 20 lb in 2 weeks and didn't experience much hunger at all.

Took me about two weeks! My stomach was very swollen after surgery and the thought of food made me sick to my stomach for quite a while until the swelling went down.

I have 5.6 ccs and rarely get stuck or have any issue swallowing food of any kind. My satiety lasts for about 4-6 hours on one cup of food (so long as its heavy in protein).

I'm 3 months post op, down 41 lbs and have been experiencing some discomfort about 3 inches above and to the right of my belly button for the past week or two. I can feel a hard lump on the opposite side (to the left of my belly button) that I assume is my port. Just wondering what the symptoms of band slippage and erosion are, and if this sounds like it might be one of those issues. I'm a bit of a worry wart and might be over reacting, but there have been a few instances since my surgery where I knew I had eaten too much and felt really full.... Now i'm worried that I may have caused a problem with my band.

Just saw this part of the forum and thought I'd give my surgeon some well deserved credit! Not only did the surgery go smoothly, but the pre and post op care was phenominal! If I have an issue, all I have to do is call or drop him an email and he gets back to me within a few hours. He called the day after surgery to check on me too! He's a great doctor and I would recommend him and his team at the Surgical Weight Loss Centre (SWLC) to anyone!

Hey Everyone, Just looking to see if there are any fellow Newfoundlanders on here. I was banded on Aug 25, 2010 and would love to get in touch with some fellow Newfoundlanders who have had, or are planning to have, lapband surgery! W

Okay... a few things to consider... 1) Lap Band is TOTALLY different than Gastric Bypass. Neither are considered reversable procedures. Gastric bypass is uses malabsorbtion as it's basis for helping you lose weight, whereas LapBand provides portion control. What this means is that gastric bypass actually makes it so the food isn't in your stomach long enough for your body to extract the fat, calories (or nutrients) out of it for you to gain weight. This is bad. Not only is Gastric Bypass very dangerous and very invasive, but it's sort of considered to be an "old" way of doing things. LapBand helps you control your portion size by forcing you to eat less food. 2) You should NOT consider this procedure if you're looking for short term success or if you're not willing to make a lifestyle change for THE REST OF YOUR LIFE. The band is not meant to be removed. 3) Regarding what foods you will/ will not be able to eat. This is different for each person. It isn't recommended that you eat chocolate and ice cream and pizza and hamburgers and potatoe chips every day. Like any lifestyle change, this requires a personal committment to change your eating habits and way you eat your food. For instance, once you recover from your surgery (which is essentially a 1.5 month process including pre and post op diets) you can expect to be able to eat approximately 1 cup of food per meal. It is recommended that you eat three meals per day. You're not supposed to drink for 15 minutes before and 45 minutes after each meal because this can make food (that would otherwise hang up on the band and diminish your hunger) pass through the band. The bottom line is that the lapband procedure is a permanent thing. It's not a fad and it's NOT an easy way out. If you're simply interested in losing weight quickly for your wedding and are not willing to maintain the necessary changes after your wedding, I would strongly suggest that you reconsider having this done. It is an emotional battle, a physical battle and will require a LOT of discipline on your behalf. I suggest you do some research online to get the full story on this procedure before you make a decision. It's a big deal and something that you shouldn't take lightly. The only way you can make the right decision for yourself is if you're fully informed. Hope it works out for you! Wimic

PS... for my first week post op I was on liquids. My doctor didn't recommend that I stay on the icky protein shake that I had to take for 2 weeks pre-op. I could hardly handle those for 2 weeks, let alone any more than that. If the yogurt went well, you should try some clear liquids and some thin soups (tomato, chicken/beef broth, etc.). I found that I had some weird bloating pains in my tummy for the first week or so, as well. They subsided as I started feeling better.

Hey there! I was banded on Aug 25 and have only been feeling better these past 3 or 4 days. It took me about 10 days to start feeling like myself again. Hang in there... it'll get easier each day. Before you know it you'll feel like your old self again! Promise!

HOW EXCITING!!! :smile: I'm so happy for you and a little jealous too lol

Thats so funny! I wonder how many ppl do that?? I have a full case of meditrim left over too! LOL they told me that I shouldn't use slimfast when I asked about it too... But it's kinda funny that that's precisely what they suggested I use when my meditrim was 2 days late arriving and I was supposed to start my pre op diet! Either way I'm glad it worked out for us both in the end. I was worried about the few carbs that were in the slimfast... Seeing as how cutting out all carbs was essentially the basis of the pre op diet. Yeah afterwards dr cobourn asked me if I had a lot of heartburn In the past and I said no... I was surprised that they repaired mine too seeing as how I had never had heartburn before in my life lol. Either way I guess it's probably precautionary. Better to solve any potential issues before they come to light. I had done a lot of research beforehand and most ppl said the pain wasn't too bad so I wasn't expecting much. It ended up being worse than I anticipated... I was expecting to only need a week off work to recover and I took two! I ended up getting really constipated from the codeine too so that in combination with the gas pain and my incisions aching and the headaches from the codeine... I was a bit of a pity case for the first week or so! Lol

Am I the only one who is/ was nervous about sneezing post-op? I've felt it coming on a few times and do my best to not let it come out. I'm nervous that the jolt to my diaphragm will hurt :smile: anyone have any input?? Thanks! W

I found coughing bad immediately after surgery but that subsided for me when my port stitches started to heal. I can flex those tummy muscles now with minimal pain so that's what I'm attributing it to. I'm sure I'll have to sneeze sooner or later... Fingers crossed that it doesn't hurt! Eek!!

We flew into TO on Tuesday the 24th and back home on the 27th. I didn't have Optifast shakes... They recommended meditrim. It was HORRIBLE! I couldn't do it at all... I tried over and over again but the just turned me. I ended up using slimfast shakes instead. Glad to hear you didn't have much pain. I was in rough shape for the first few days. Surgery was Wednesday and I took the liquid codeine they prescribed until Sunday. I started getting bad headaches so I switched over to liquid Tylenol instead and did okay with that. The worst part (by far) was the gas pain in my chest and shoulders. They repaired a hiatus hernia too so that may have caused more pain for me.... Unsure. I found it hard to breathe immediately post op because of the pulling feeling in my chest from the stitches to do the repair. That was pretty uncomfortable. What part of NS are you from?

Hey there! I'm an engineer and (i work at a desk) and I returned to work 14 days post op... I had considerable swelling and had a hiatus hernia repaired at the same time... Unsure if this has any affect on recovery time.

PS... Dr. Cobourn originally offered me an appointment on Aug 18 too but it was too late for me to start the pre-op diet! I was banded on the 25th! Where are you from? I flew up from St. John's, NL!

Hey toodypie! I'm doing pretty well... Excited about starting soft foods again Wednesday! My incisions are just about healed now and I can sleep on my side again which makes me happy :smile: how are you doing post op??

I had the exact same problem! Ive actually lost 28 lbs in 3 weeks since beginning my 2 week pre op diet (I'm now 1 week post op). I feel like I'd rather not eat than eat something that I find unappetizing. Even soups and purees have begun to turn my stomach. I do my best to force somethng down in me even though it may not be much.

Is it fair to say that once you reach your goal/ideal weight that you can start eating normal portions of food? Obviously this will require a defill, but in order to prevent too much weight loss, wouldn't you have to eat enough calories to sustain your weight? Just curious...

Hey there Pollywogg! There doesn't seem to be too many of us floating around here. I saw a post from a while back... one guy who was thinking about having it done but he didn't get much response either. Oh well... it's a lonely road but I find this website EXCELLENT... really helps with all my questions and helps me to stay motivated. Happy trails! W

Sorry to hear that it's so pricey for your fills.... I got my surgery done in Ontario and I live in Newfoundland so I don't be traveling back out west for fills... Thankfully for me there's a fill doctor within a 30 minute drive of where I live.

I know this is gross... but I have a sneaky feeling that I'm not the only one in this boat. I was banded on Aug 25 and haven't had a bowel movement since the 23rd. My surgeon recommended milk of magnesia which I took 2 tbsp of last night (with no effect) and took another 4 tbsp of today. i know there's stuff in my tummy because I can feel it and I feel totally bloated. If I don't have a bm by tomorrow I'm going to go to the pharamacy and see if they can recommend something different. The bloating is really (REALLY) getting to me and it's making me VERY uncomfortable. Anyone have any advice?

Hey everyone! Was banded a week or so ago and 4 out of 5 of my incisions are healing well and are giving me virtually no pain any more. There's one, however, which is located furthest to my right hand side which is still hurting. It feels like the skin is pulling tight when I sit down or wear fitted pants. Just wondering if this is normal or if anyone else has experienced this. It's not bleeding or anything, it's just causing a lot more discomfort than the rest of the incisions. There's a lot of bruising around it too. I was thinking that it might be the largest port where they actually insert the lapband device. I could be totally wrong... any ideas? W