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Molly, been off the computer for a couple of weeks and look what great things have happened! Congrats! I am really happy for you. I'd like to say that you have made my day with your knowledge and willingness to share and when you made those challenges with the excell sheet, what fun! Thank you for sharing your good news and again you continue to give us inspiration and hope.

Agree with NJgirl32. We are here for you. My prayers are with you to find strength, peace and the health that you so deserve!

I keep my carbs between 60-85g/day, protein 90-115g/day, fats between 20-55g/day. If I go above 85g of carbs/day or don't keep at least a 30g of protein more than carb intake ratio/day...my body will not lose the weight. I think it is an idividual thing. I no longer eat breads, potatoes, pasta. I have shirtake noodles when I get to craving pasta and that so far takes care of my pasta cravings. The noodles are chewy, but it does not bother me. Good luck!

hang in there spoiltmom! you will get there! As we have seen the closer we get to our goal weight the harder it is to get those last few pounds off. I've been playing aroung with my exercise routine and foods as my weight loss has slowed down. However, I am extremely happy with my loss so far. I have finally hit the onderland after yo yoing for the last two months. For me it was a mixture of adjusting my carb/protein intake and exercise time vs. intensity level. Bandiversary is Aug. 23.

learning to luv.....you have to make your own decisions in the status of your relationship. That in and of itself is a hard one. The band is a process and is by no means an easy way out. You will have to work it everyday and as you learn yourself what your "food / habits in eating" are you will have to identify them and modify your behavior and this will go on for the rest of your life as it is easy to fall back into our old routines of eating. REal women? what would he know? He does not feel your pain, or your angst, and perhaps your fear of not living long enough to be there for your children. The good news for you is that your children are old enough to take care of themselves and to assist you if need be. There are bandsters here that have been banded and their children are small. Selfish? OH, yeah, we are all a bunch of selfish band of people because we would like to live a healthier life and be able to be there for our families and yes, ourselves. You might want to consider counseling for yourself to assist you through this difficult time. Do not let your hubby sabotage you in this process. As you start to lose the weight you will start to feel better and better. If your weight loss is slow...so what you are still losing and punds on the scale is not the lone indicator that you are losing. Your body will reshape. You do need to get moving. Walking is good aim for 30 minutes a day. This will also aid in the healing process, apply a heating pad to your stomach when you sit or lay down. I cannot say where your marriage will go or what the end result will be, but you do have the power to get back on your feet and decide where it is you want to be. Learn to forgive yourself and never stop believing in yourself. I wish you much strength as you go through this phase and it is only a phase, happiness and health!

Everyone is different, usually by day 3 you are still swollen inside from the surgery, gas may be shifting causing discomfort or your stomach may be swollen and irritable. Try sipping on warm peppermint tea and keep to warm fluids for 24 hours or so....see if the swelling goes down so that you can start in with your protein drinks again. Walk, walk and then walk some more. You do not need to do long distances and even if you take 5-10 minute walks at a time aim for a minimum of 30 minutes a day or what ever you can tolerate. It does not have to be done all at once. Remember the pain/discomfort does go away! Goo luck and congrats on making it to day 3!

This process is different for all of us. Each one of us not only has a slightly different regime from our physician's viewpoint on how and what we do before and after surgery, but how we react and what methods work for us as individuals. I experiment with everything from food to exercise. Stop when something works and if I slow down, I take a look back for a few weeks and see where I might be able to change something else again, nothing drastic, just little steps to see if something works and keep coming back at it until my body finds itself in a good place of losing weight or re-shaping.

Ebby, Congrats to both your hubby and you! Sounds like you give each other support which is great! Remember someone will lose faster than the other and it is ok. Don't get stuck on the compare weight loss wagon. We all need encouragement as this process is not an easy one. WLS is not easy and it takes fortitude and a certain amount of discipline to keep going when times get hard for whatever reason. IT sounds like you have already faced some steep uphill climbs in life and have succeeded. I wish you both well, health and happiness on the weight loss journey!

Cindy, congrats! doesn't it feel great to be giving back to life?

I exercise 5-6 days a week concentrating on the resistance. Learned the hard way by over exercising and not enough food intake my loss stopped. So I had to reformulate to get back to losing some poundage. The other thing (I know it is different for everyone) in the past with diets where I lost 50lbs or more without exercise, I was less toned then. As I have lost the weight this time around with exercise, I am in smaller sized clothing than I was without exercise with the same amount of weight loss and my skin is slightly (not much) tighter than before.

Who knows why these folks think like they do. My PCP started in on me when I told him of my desire for the band. His main reason was GB is noted as the "Gold Standard" of WLS. Ok, so you lose your weight up front within the first 12-18 months and then if you have not started your behavior mod towards your eating habits, guess what? the weight will start to come back. Besides, I have a friend who had GB 4 years ago. Bandsters have thier stuck episodes well GBers have dumping syndrome. I have watched him and in 4 years he has managed to keep the weight off, however, he eats almost continuously just to keep from getting jittery. If he gets stressed or his hands on the wrong type of food (anything from rice to sweets or eats too much) he gts the dumps (becomes sweaty, nauseated, bloated, diarrhea, etc...). I also know a few GBers who lost 70 lbs and that was it within their first year. After the 12-18 month loss period other GBers have told me that it is work....well now what a surprise....for them to maintain or lose the remaining amount of their weight. Some of these folks also feel that their way (WLS) is the only way...I say...who cares? There is good bad and ugly with every WLS and it is an individual thing. too bad some of these folks are so small minded. Cheri, glad to hear that they did not take away from your experiences at OH.

rebecca, just got finished ready Kelly Doran's one year aniversary post. She speaks of a plateau, but watched her measurements go down. Myself, my weight loss has slowed down and I keep on tracking through without getting too frustrated. it goes down and thens stalls for a few weeks and then back down again... keep up the hard work it will pay off. Best of luck!

Kelly, congrats! what a great gift to yourself.....health and happiness. Never, give up!

Think about this....in less than two (2) months you have lost 20 lbs! thats a reasonable amount of weight to have lost. The more you get out and walk around / move around the better you will feel and it just might add to your weight loss. Nothing negative here, however, you may want to consider seeking out some counseling for yourself to assist with your perception of how others see you. I wish you the best!

Still alive and kicking! Doing well, weight loss still going down. Much slower than before. Trying to get to onderland. It was good to see so many of us still here and working towards our goals despite bumps in the road. Good luck to us all. Bandiversary Aug. 23.

LOL! you are right though, was just noticing how my towel can now wrap around me1.5 times as opposed to leaving a front gap.

I think it is up to you as an individual. Some have the relationship with their DHs that inspire them and they are a detailed part of the journey and then there are some who rather not have DH around when talking with the PS. Do what you are comfortable with. Personally, like jujuvee my DH and I are a team and we make a great one at that. He thinks of questions that I don't and I think of questions that he doesn't. I want him in on all aspects and I want him educated and to have all of his questions answered. He is my advocate, friend, care taker and he will stand behind as well as beside me during my time of surgery when it comes. Even though he will be there to meet and speak with the PS, it is my decision on what I am going to have done and I will choose the PS who will perform the surgery.

jacqui, congrats on a hard earned dx of being cancer free!

I too lost my hair to the point where you could see my scalp. however by month 8-9 post op my hair started to come back and is almost where it was before in thickness.

crash, the best thing that you can do for yourself is to forgive yourself! As the others here have posted. The holidays are hard on everyone and eventually you will be in a position to be able to eat and choose between the "good and bad" foods. Two days before my surgery, I had a BBQ to end all BBQs. I survived and so will you. Isn't it great to know that you are not alone? Have a great surgery and welcome to band land!

Everyone has different directions. So I think there is room for some adjustments. 1- 2. Some docs do liquids for 1 week post op and others longer. I would say you should have protein minimum 60 g per day. so yes to milk and Protein shakes 3. Depends upon what type of sutures the surgeon used. Most these days are absorbable and will dissolve, however with that said he may have used some non-dissolvable ones on the outer portions of the incision. I would give his office a call. Others use no sutures, but a substance like derma-bond in which will dissolve on it's own. 4. Vitamins and minerals are usually started by the 2nd week, though here again different surgeons have different opinions. as long as they are chewable/liquid you should be fine. 5. The first week I was on liquids, Jello, broth, milk, protein shakes, Water. The second week mushies (eggs, cottage cheese, Beans,e tc...), third week started to re-introduce foods, i.e. tuna, chicken (2-3 ozs), fourth week added veggies (.5 cup to 1 cup)...etc... My surgeon's team reccommended: 60 g of carbs, 20 g of fat, 60-80 g of protein. Once again this will vary depending upon the bariatric team's protocols and what your body will respond to... 6. yes gas ex can at times be your friend. Keep moving, walking as you can tolerate, try to get in at minimum 30 minutes/day to start with and remember you can break it up into sessions as you can tolerate. Find a site to journal you food and exercise and remember as you re-intorduce food your weight may slow or you may even gain a few pounds. Keep track of your measurements, sometimes when the scale is not moving your body's measurements are. For my myfitnesspal.com was the easiest to use, however, there are several other sites out there, so look and choose one that is right for you. There is no right or wrong way as long as it works for you.

I agree with elcee. When deciding to be banded ... commit to the whole process. It may turn out that you don't need to have fills as others have said here...it is an indivdual reaction as to what fill level your body will respond to. So far I am one of the few that have not required a fill, but one never knows, as my surgeon has told me, if I should start to experience hunger or I plateau for 1-2 months, then we will consider a fill, until then I will remain fill free. He stated that he does not add Fluid in at the time of surgery. For those concerned about receiving a fill I strongly encourage you to speak to others who have had fills, question your doctor's team or the doctor him/herself to find out what the experience is like or will be...ask about potential complecations. I am a big proponent of knowledge and I made sure that my surgeon and his team were/are aware of my expectations of being told everything that is going on with my band process. It is my body, my mind and I will make informed decisions with my healthcare team together. We all are different from our physiological make up, how we prepare ourselves for this process, to how we interact with our healthcare team and there is no one way that is better or more right than the other. What matters IMHO is that we do what is right for us and that we maintain our comfort level with our healthcare providers.

All of the feelings listed above are normal. I think there is the phase where we grieve for the loss of our relationship with food and then as we struggle with getting fluids and protein into us and we're hungry (head hunger or real hunger does not matter) and to add a boost we start thinking about the fact that we have put ourselves through surgery to possibly fail.... I'm here along with others on this forum to say, it does get better and better! We survivie these phases and that is what they are...some of us will struggle harder than others, however, we now have a tool with us that can if we use it properly for the most part will assist us in the process of getting healthier. Yes, there are those that unfortunately have experienced the down side of the band and that is a risk that most of us who have read and done our due diligence before we made the choice to get banded are aware of and chose to join this process with the hope that it will not happen to us and if it does, then we will deal with it and give it our all, with that said it is time to get up and move, walk (even if it is around the house, the yard, or around the block), drink protein, and start the beginnings of modifying our relationship with food and to an extent ourselves. I wish everyone luck!

Way to go! Congrats!