Angera

Congrats on your band! Now the fun begins!!! Good luck

I too just had this problem. So many people at work were asking when i was gonna buy new pants.........they were falling off! My tops were also sagging in my arms and chest. I sifted through craigslist ads and found another lady who had gastric bypass that LOVED to shop. I was able to inexpensively purchase items from her! Craigslist has been a big help for me. It takes time, but I don't have much money for clothing purchases, so these inexpensive finds are worth the wait for me! In an effort to offset clothing cost, i put up another CL add to sell my old clothing and try and get some money from it to put towards gently used smaller clothing. Going through this experience motivated me to contemplate opening up a shop for gently used PLUS SIZE clothing!

This is definately a difficult topic. Before weight loss, I would drop friends like nothing if they did something wrong to me. I still feel the same way. If they aren't supportive of my life decisions with surgery, then I dont need them. Always easier said than done, but in the end I find I am a more sane person without toxic people in my life! I am very fortunate that my core of supporters have been great. They are various folks from my work life, college friend, and my immediate family. The husband thing is tricky. My way of making sure my husband and I are in sync is I actively involved him in EVERY aspect of my process. He was there for all visits, doctor consults, etc. I told him about every single nutrition visit and even started him in a healthier nutritional regimen. It was a way for me to make him just as part of the ordeal as i was. I wanted there to be open lines of communication for him to vocalize his concerns. And he did, he was/IS nervous about me leaving him. I told him "well it took me nearly 6 years to train you, why in the world would i wanna start over with someone new"..............hahaha i kid i kid, but it is hard. Do I know what the future holds for my marriage? Unfortunately not. Am I going to do everything in my power to make it work? Absolutely Sometimes you come across a lot of negativity regarding marriages post lapband. I feel as i've come across a lot more folks who were quick to say it isn't going to last. But you'll have to remember, all those other married folks making it work probably aren't spending their time giving advice on message boards, they're probably out living life! so just remember, it can work out for you and your husband, and try not to let the negativity overwhelm and cloud your thoughts and decisions. But realize, it won't always be easy. I wish you the best, I hope everything works out for you

I have my first fill today, i feel nervous about it! I've been told it's nothing to sweat and I should be excited about getting restriction. I am excited about restriction, but i guess nervous since i've never had it done before! It wasn't until about a week and a half ago that the hunger realllllllly set it! hunger pains and all! so i'm eager to get rid of those!

yea, i wondered about this one too. I accidently sipped out of my husband cup instead of mine and had a sip of dr. pepper. I truly thought i was going to die because of an expanded stomach from that ONE sip. Needless to say, all the talk of a potential expansion scared me enough to think one sip would do me in. i've avoided soda it all together. Avoidance is a bit harder for me since i'm allergic to crystal light, sugar free kool aids, and those wylers things so it doesn't leave me many beverage options Water and tea get OLD! Before, water and tea were great because i could still have that occassional diet soda, yea not so much anymore! But it's o.k., it's allll for the good of my body, i'll put on my girl panties and deal with it!

I had a 6 month deal as well. Hated it at first, but determination is an amazing thing The 6 months flewwwww by very quickly. In the end I was able to see those 6 months as a blessing because it gave me time to really put myself under a magnifying glass and see what i was doing that was making me gain weight and work on fixing them. I had a lot of people shocked that i wasn't so stressed out come surgery time, i tell them it was because i've had 6 months to really think this one thru! My insurance DID NOT cover these appointments, I had to pay out of pocket for each one.

I have my first fill next week, but goodness have the cravings started! I am craving popcorn, pizza, and a sno-cone! My question is, what can i do to curb these cravings? I'm only a month out and don't care to indulge in these things quite yet. I would prefer to use popcorn and pizza as more of rewards later on down the road. What are some healthier substitutes for these two?! and would a sugar free sno-cone be ok? the local stand in the neighborhood offers sugar free flavorings......... do you think these cravings are simply the intermittent hunger i've been experiencing the past few days? I go in next week for my first fill. I've been eating about 3/4c of food on average but as needed have a few extra bites until i reach my physically satisfied state.

I don't like the term "bandster hell". It just seems like kicking your own @$$ when you're already down! Why associate this good thing in life with such a negative state of being. But again, that's just me! I've tried very hard to remain positive throughout this journey and to anticipate that there will be small failures. The battle is when it's time to pick yourself up and move on from those failures. Just keep in mind the big picture, all the things you've already done for yourself that are going to improve your lifestyle! I will admit, during these 4 weeks since my surgery, I wondered about all the pizza, ice cream, cake and buffets i'm missing out on in life! It was my husband who finally put it into perspective when he said "buffet? people aren't supposed to eat like that!" The past two weeks have been especially tricky. Work has been busy and stressful, I accepted a promotion right before surgery and returned to a heavy training schedule and being thrown in with the sharks to figure out this new job! Needless to say, before surgery, i'd cope by ordering pizza for dinner, pigging out and having some oreos. It somehow made everything feel better. It's not an option anymore! I found myself window shopping(more like walking around) for 4 hours from store to store because i didn't know how to deal with the frustration i was feeling! All i could do was walk, walk, and walk some more until i felt level headed again. My poor husband got the nasty side of this episode, but it's a lifestyle change right? Just remember, it took us all our lives up until the time of surgery to get this way! It's not going to change in just 4 weeks! It's going to take some time. A positive attitude goes a long way, and so does medication! This is not an easy journey to embark on, but it's definately a worthwhile one! Don't beat yourself up too much about the little setbacks (stalled weight, gaining a few pounds), a year from now when you're doing so great, they only be a speck on this fantastic voyage! Good luck and cheer up, you're going to be just fine

I was also one who had a 6 month insurance required program. In the beginning, I was upset about having to do it, but looking back on it, it was the best thing for me. It allowed me time to really prepare myself as best as possible for what i was going to do. It helped me work through a lot of my issues regarding food, and nutritionally opened my eyes to what things would really be like! It's hard to have your mind set on something and have this 6 month hurdle, but believe me it goes by FAST. I felt the same way last december when I went to my seminar. Time flew by and I was banded last month. I don't regret the 6 month prep one bit. It's just a small price to pay for the overall goal.

i've only been eating one egg at breakfast time, however I've been adding 1/2 slice of cheese to it to change it up, but i noticed it's not agreeing with my stomach anymore. my nutrionist said three strikes and it's out................i've hit my fourth strike......sadness I hope it's the cheese and not the eggs, i love eggs!

Lost 13 pounds as of last's weeks 2 week post op visit. I haven't weighed in this week! In total, i'm at 59 pounds down since the start of my journey I am feeling great, i'm not regretting this one bit and am very fortunate not to have run into any issues. I go in next week to evaluate my potential first fill.

Glad to hear you all are doing well :biggrin: I've been doing well since surgery. Haven't had any problems either, but i'm only two and half weeks post op :thumbup:

I didn't see it at first, but others noticed it in my face and arms first. Secondly, I noticed my overall abdomen region. My pants were fitting HUGE, I was having to pull them up because they were falling off. I switched to a smaller size i had in the closet and those are now fitting loosely, but I can probably stick those out for another month or so. The last place i'm now starting to notice is my legs. My calves looked smaller today (i wore a dress to work). When I lay in bed, I noted last night that my thighs were shrinking and they felt soft and mushy, lol. I was also able to get on a pair of heels i couldn't get on before and my toes didn't feel like they were going to be amputated when i stood up! :biggrin:

I have BCBS in Texas. I had to pay 20% plus copay and hospital deductible. Mine required that i pay that 20% the day of my surgery..............so i had to prepay and anything not covered would get billed to me. day of surgery it was about $1500.