tavimew

Dr. Naim is my surgeon. Had lap band on 8/17/10. Surgery went smoothly, not much pain. I'm down 17lbs as of today, my 1st month anniversary!

If we could follow these "rules" we wouldn't have needed the band in the first place!

I mix it in cream of wheat, oatmeal, vanilla pudding, for the pudding mix 2 scoops in 1 cup of water then substitute that for 1 of the cups of milk the mix calls for. Pudding comes out great that way.

I've been banded just under 2 months and have lost 25lbs so far. I understand how you feel but losing more is really unrealistic, your body is not going to let the weight just fall off instantly. You will have plateaus, days maybe weeks where you will lose nothing. Stick it out and try not to worry it will come off eventually. Don't worry I don't listen to my own advice but have a friend who got banded 1 week before me to bring me back down to earth when I start stressing about not losing as much as I want to. Also when was the last time you lost 22lbs in 1 month? Without feeling like you were starving to death?

My doc is in the Long Beach area, it's the St. Mary Center for Surgical Treatment of Obesity, (562) 491-7935. Call them.

Did you know one of the main reasons people don't stay on diets is because they force themselves to eat what they don't like. Learning to eat right is not eating things you don't like, its about finding things that are healthy that you do like.

Go to your surgeon. Some gastrointerologists don't know enough about the band and that can be trouble. I know of someone who went to a gastro instead of her surgeon and the gastro messed her up big time! Your surgeon is probably giving you the Pepcid and waiting because your issue may just be irritation and inflammation of the lining of your stomach and that takes time to heal, you don't want to jump in and start doing invasive things if that's whats wrong. Try to be patient and take the Pepcid, don't eat any acidic foods or drinks.

I'v tried several protein shakes including the Isopure and they are disgusting. The Special K ones are the only ones I've found that I don't have to choke down. I don't think Special K shakes are "cheap imitations", they are only 190 calories and yes only 10gm protein but shouldn't be your daily staple food anyway. Bottom line you have to find the one that is right for you. No one can or should drink things they don't like.

I also have Blue Cross PPO. I went to Dr. Naim in Long Beach at St. Marys Center for Surgical Treatment of Obesity. They got me authorization within a couple of weeks. My out of pocket for the hospital was only $1400. And I've paid about $300 for the preop testing so far. haven't gotten a bill from the doc yet.

I was banded on 8/17/10. Have lost 24lbs so far. Congrats to my fellow August Bandsters who have done so well. Isn't "closet shopping" great!! I have noticed that those in "bandser hell" seem to not have fills often or not have much in their fills. My doc is very aggressive with restriction, he put in 1cc during surgery, 3.5cc 4 weeks after surgery, and another 1.5cc this past monday. I have great restriction, I'm back on mushies today then tomorrow regular food. Not hungry, eating about 800 calories a day. Maybe you should have a talk with your surgeons and tell them point blank to give you better restriction. Remind them that you went through surgery because you couldn't just do it alone and if you don't have good restriction that is what you are being forced to do! Be more aggressive for yourself, don't just take the doctor's words to be law, you are the patient and you have to be an active participant in your band management. Remember this is a process, you didn't get fat overnight, I know it seems like it :thumbup:, you won't get skinny overnight either (actually I need to take my own advice here, I'm so impatient, I want to see the scale move down every day)!

I have the same thing, my doctor says it's muscle pain. He says I have to stretch really good before any kind of exercise.

Got my 2nd fill yesterday and today I'm 215, YAY! :thumbup: I'm still doing liquids today, tomorrow mushies. First thing this morning I noticed I didn't wake up thinking of food :confused:, that's strange for me. I'm sitting here right now and my brain is saying you should have eaten by now but my stomach is saying no way. I still have the pain in my left side (not port side) and my surgeon says it's muscle, I need to stretch more before working out and take Advil. I am so happy I got banded, I really feel this is going to work well for me. I feel to good when I put on my clothes and they are getting bigger, I'm shrinking!!!

YAY for you!! Shrinking is a great feeling isn't it??

I am so with you on this! I too am a food addict and you are so right, the best combat for addicition is abstinence but you can't abstain from food like you can from drugs, alcohol, etc! It's a daily fight that isn't going to go away ever. But you can do it, you have a great tool to help (the band), just take it one day at a time, every victory over food will make you stronger. Also I've found for me sugarfree popsicles and jello help because they satisfy my sweet and chew needs.

Got my 2nd fill today, 1.5cc. Feels really tight now, Yay! Trying to drink protein drink right now and can only take small sips. Fill went much better than last time, doctor hit the port with 1 stick, and stick was less painful, Yay again! I've lost so far 22lbs since 8/17/10 and I think this band is really working for me

You're supposed to sip slowly at first, getting the band adjusted causes your stomach to swell a little but it goes down in a couple of days, that's why you have to go back to liquids for 2 days, then mushies for 2 days. If the water goes down after a couple of seconds you are just right, if it sticks in your throat and won't go down it's too tight. Sounds like you are just right, I'm only sipping also, took me 5 hours yesterday to finish 10oz protein shake. Today I'm working on my cup of coffee, have had about 6oz since 7am.

NO PeptoBismol! It contains Aspirin and shouldn't be taken by a lapband patient. My surgeon said never, never take Pepto, it can cause erosion. Call your doctor and tell them about your stomach problem, take only what they tell you to.

May be the straw. My doc said don't use straws, they cause gas buildup.

I'm 219.8 today!! YAY FOR ME :thumbup: I'm so happy the weight is coming off. I stopped counting calories and protein grams, stopped stressing so much about losing. I know I'm eating way healthier than I was before banding. I've decided not to watch what I eat as long as I feel good and my hair is not falling out. I'm eating when I'm hungry and only until I'm satisfied. I do reach for the protein first and take my vitamins. When I'm stressed and want to eat, I get a sugarfree popsicle or sugarfree Jello, usually can't eat all the Jello cup, but enough to make my brain happy. YAY again :smile::tongue:

YAY jeans shopping!! You're doing great, don't worry. I'm glad you mentioned your BodyBugg. My gym has been trying to sell me on one, is it really worth it? I'v never gotten a chance to talk to a real person (not trainer or gym rat who's 98lbs and thinks they're fat) about it.

If you've already been approved by your insurance company I don't understand why they want this either. You need to ask your surgeon directly why. If he doesn't give you a good reason, get another doctor.

Of course it will be worth it. And you will be able to keep liquid and food down. You will start with liquid and progress. Different people progress at different speeds, I was eating solids 2 weeks after my surgery because my swelling had gone down and I was hungry, so my Doc said eat but be careful. I eat chicken, turkey, eggs, etc. I'm not eating bread, pasta, or rice but not so much because I "can't" but because these are some of my "trigger foods" and I will binge and then throw up. That's the key if you overeat you will get sick. If you stick to just enough to be full you will do fine. About 1/2 to 3/4 of a cup, I know that sounds so small but you'll be amazed how satisfied you will be with that amount. Just remember drink and eat slowly and pay attention to what your stomach is telling you not what your brain is saying. Your brain will work against you for a while but I'm now 38 days out and my brain is starting to catch up.

First believe me it hurts much, much less than gallbladder surgery. That was the first thought I had when I woke up. Secondly it's probably morphene that makes you nauseous, with me they gave me Dilaudid post op instead of morphene and I had no nausea. Also my doc injected lidocaine into the port site directly so it was numb. Talk to your doc about your fears and the anesthesiologist about it. When I went in I told everyone who asked how I was doing that I was scared, they were all very nice and supportive. I also told them I have a very low pain tolerance. After the 2 shots they gave me post op, my pain level was 1-2 till after I got home and as long as I took the Lortab every 4 hours my pain never went over 3. It's ok to be scared, this is surgery but think of this, how much pain, both emotional and physical have you already endured by being overweight? I'm sure that this few days of discomfort are nothing compaired to that.

I am having pain on my left side (port on right) and went to the doctor and she said it's probably either adhesions from the surgery or internal irritation from the catheter going to the band. Has anyone had this type of problem and can you give any advice??

Well I'm down 18lbs to 221 today. Had a stall there for a while, realized I wasn't eating enough. Now I'm trying for 900-1000 calories a day and the weight is starting to come off again. Eating that much is hard, on solids already. Never thought I would ever have trouble eating enough food :thumbup:! But I really am starting to feel I'm getting in control of myself. Still having food cravings but eating much much healthier than before the band. Strangely not missing bread, would like pasta though but won't die without it.