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I am six weeks out. I just got back from being on vacation over a week with family and friends. I did not get my protein or water in like I should. I ate sweets, lots of carbs and drank alcohol. I thought my body would reject them all but it was like old times. Which I hated. I need to detox and get back on track. I need suggestions in what I can do to detox and get a jump start because I am not losing.

Hi. I'm in Mesa and I'm going to my PCP next week to start the process. How are you doing?

Hi Dionalyne! I was banded on 12/20 as well. Got my first fill on 1/11 and my next one is next week. I'm curious about how much food you can eat. I keep hearing about how your only supposed to eat half a cup but I can eat much more than that maybe that will come after the 4th or 5th fill but right now my weight is at a stand still in fact I've gained the last 2 weeks. I do seem to stay full longer so that's good but still. How much have you lost? Since my pre-op diet until now I have lost 37.

I lost my job that carried the insurance for my band. I went almost 8 months with no fill because I couldn't afford cash pay for the fill. I finally got the fill 2 weeks ago and there was a question on sign in about AHCCCS. I checked yes that I had AHCCCS. They never asked me for payment that day. The next day I received a call saying they could no longer see me because I had AHCCCS and they didnt accept it, and it was illegal for them to charge me for fill. So now I have no doctor. The insurance says they dont cover lap band and have no doctors on contract for lap band. I can apply for a referral if I can find a doctor that will take AHCCCS. So after calling several doctors, I found one who will take Ahcccs for fill but they require $650 upfront cash to join their program. Help I am stuck with no doctor and just when I started losing again. I read some posts that talked about fill doctors but they are all the same docs I already called. There was a mention of someone named Wendy who did fills in Mesa but I couldnt find any further info on her. Can anyone help me please!

I went to a seminar about December 12th, had my consultation a week later and then had my surgery on January 4th. I was a self pay so it is a much faster process. I need to loose 80lbs and I have lost 20 so far. I had my surgery on Friday and went back to work on Monday even though I was still tired. You start feeling really good around the 4th-5th day. They want you to talk to a physchiatrist to make sure you are really ready for this surgery, since it is a life changing surgery. You have to put alot of work into this surgery to make it a sucess. It is not easy believe me! Well good luck with your journey!

Is it normal to just not be hungry? I ate a small salad with about 2 oz grilled chicken today and that is all. I've debated whether my band is too tight, but I can eat just fine when I do eat. How often should I be hungry if I am in the 'green' zone? Its not everyday I am like this- only once or twice a week.

5"5 starting wt 225 wt today 197 I have lost about 28 pounds in 2 1/2 weeks

For those of you who are losing 2+ lbs a week and doing cardio 3-4 times a week, do you know what your daily calorie intake is? What is your typical meals like? I do spin class 3-4 times a week and my weight loss is 1+ (if that some weeks) and I dont think that im getting enough food?

As I've been reading the forums, I've noticed that a period without losing weight (I've always know this as a plateau) is called a stall. Why the terminology change? A plateau is a long, level piece of land - seems like a good enough analogy for when your weight levels off for a period of time. Thanks for the help.

Plateau, you level off, having no opportunity to go higher, only down when you reach the other side of the mesa.... A stall, you're climbing on and upward, untill you need to pause, stall, then eventually continue onward and upward... I believe I have plateaued, reaching that place where I have no where else to go, having lost all the weight I possibly can without injuring myself (low body fat %)....so yes, I am at the Mesa, leveled off, and I am enjoying the view!! And I am never going down the other side.

Oh very interesting question Meggs. I agree that it probably depends on the person posting and whether or not they are OK with this weight loss 'interruption' or aggravated by it. The only thing I ever post is for those who are worried, I tell them it's normal and the weight will start to come off again as long as they are doing what they are supposed to. Other than that, I don't comment as I've been very fortunate to not have gone through a prolonged stall or plateau. If my weight didn't change over a couple or three weeks, I didn't consider it a stall. I never went months as others have with no weight loss. As I said, I've been very lucky with the weight loss part of it. I hope to be just as lucky with the maintenance part.

Wow! You sound just like me! In fact, I was so worried that I called the nutritionist and made an appointment to make sure I was doing everything right. Your body is going to freak out after surgery and think it needs to retain everything. Eventually it will let go. I know it's easy to say not to weigh yourself, but don't weigh yourself. Put the scale in your car. Give it to a friend. Better yet, smash it with a hammer. LOL! Our surgeons focus on the weight and the BMI but those are NOT the only measurements of health. They're just the best ones they can use. We have so much more at our disposal! For example, how do your clothes feel? Are they looser? Can you cross your legs yet? Do you not gasp for breath when you climb up the stairs? These are what we call "NSVs" - non-scale victories. Have a friend or family member measure you - your thigh circumference, your arms, your waist, your neck, etc. Then in a week measure again. GUARANTEED you'll see those go down. When you work out your body builds muscle which uses the fat for energy. Muscle weighs more than fat. So, you may be losing 5 pounds of fat but gaining 6 pounds of muscle. That's ok as long as the fat is going away. If you don't believe that, ask your butcher to give you 2 cuts of beef that look the same (same size) - one with a lot of fat, one without. Hold one in each hand. Guaranteed the cut of beef with less fat is heavier than the one with more fat. Like Proudgrammy said, everyone is different. Keep in mind on this forum that people are not always honest (insert shocked face here). My starting weight, for example, is the weight I started out at when I started this journey with my lap band 5 years ago. So my weight lost isn't what I've lost since surgery. Although I input the information correctly on the system, that's not the way it's showing on my profile. I've hit plateaus - I'm in one right now. But, I'm keeping up with what I need to do. Eating right, exercising, etc. I feel fantastic. Am I still overweight? Sure. But I feel incredible. I'll never be 300 pounds again. Heck, I'll never be 265 pounds again. Will I stay at 258? Maybe - although I doubt it. I'm happy with what I've done. Don't know if my surgeon will be but whatever. I know that I'm more than a number on a scale. Hang in there. You're doing great. Throw that rotten scale away.

I'm about three weeks and I'm planning on starting a new batch of Sauerkraut this weekend so it's ready when I go to soft foods. I also saved old jars of kimchi so I could dip the brine in the meantime. There's a lot to suggest probiotics give a huge advantage postop. I was disappointed my surgeons office didn't pursue that. (Of course their handbook recommends margarine so....)

Hi everyone!! I dont know if anyone remembers me or not. I was here 2 years ago, had a lot of doubts and was scared. Backed out of surgery the night before. Here I am now banded one week and so far loving it. Thinking where would I be today if I had just went thru with it the first time. I just Pray that I have no complications because just one week out, still on full liquids and I love my band!!!

Aloha Carey I don't mean to sound mean but here goes, My dear sweet wife is having her surgery on the 29th. and I taking the week off. Does your husband know about the family leave act? I don't think he would get paid but it's only two days. I can't think of a job that is so important that I couldn't take sometime off to take care of my wife..I'm a man and I hear it all the time my husband can't take off work to care for me, well that's just bull@*$ he needs to be there for you, tell him from the "Big Wave" Dude you need to get'er done and be there for the Love of his life and the mother of his children Sorry to vent, it's just makes me mad Take care and God Bless you Aloha BWD

Well I finally got banded on 10/30/07. Was not a easy surgery the doc said. He said that the lining of my stomach was very thick which is the case in most men he said. Then also I had alot of fat around the stomach. Well after surgery for the next almost 2 days I could not keep down my spit. I would have the acid reflux and it would come back up. Finally after 2 days he did a upper GI with barium and saw the liquid going thru the stomach. He said I have the biggest band they make and it is wide open. He said he could go back in and see what he can do or I can go home and limp along for 3 days to 2 weeks till the swelling goes down. Well good news is the 1st week I lost 16 pounds when I went back to see him. I am fine and can eat now, but at night when I go to bed I still have the acid reflux. I do not lay in bed, I sit with my back to the wall in a sitting position and it still happens. I take 2 Nexium a day plus he just told me to start taking some Mallox. He said there is still swelling and to give it another week and come back and see him. He said it should clear up by then. I am just wondering has anyone else here had anything like this and how long did it take you to get over it? Thanks, Rob

I will be having surgery April 16, 2012. I have to do a liquid diet for 10 days....the first 7 days regular liquids (low fat/low sugar) and the last 3 days clear liquids. Being on a diet like this helps to "shrink" the liver in order for the doctor to have more room to work with in doing the lapband. I had to attend a nutrition class a few weeks ago and it explained my pre-op and post-op diet plans. Surely, you will attend a nutrition class or your doctor will talk to you about your diet.

lol lol i'm 29...if you met me you'd think i was 22, i'm toooooo fun to be in the 30's thread, maybe i'll join them when i turn 40 lol all my friends are in their 20's i'm in college (dental school) so i got all the college drama of any other 20-something yr old... so i moved to dallas for school...i've been here 7 weeks...um yeah i'm the biggest person in the entire dental school...AWKWARD!!! like not just the program, but the entire school of nursing, dental hygiene, ect. but funny enough, all the teachers remembered my name first, probably cause i stood out like CRAZY ok so i'm 5"8, i was 5"7 until my consultation, lol lol, i'm like heck i'll take the inch sure why not, currently 288 lbs. i'm scheduled for surgery july 24th, so i'm on my pre op low carb diet now...which isn't toooooo bad cause i'm sure we've all done low carb before... i'm not telling anyone i go to school with about the surgery...um i kinda hinted to a few girls i was considering it, cause i have like pictures from my early tweenties when i was like 145-155lbs , um their comment, oh i like you like this (my current darn near 300 lbs self) um ok the biggest girl is maybe a size 8, they are all size 4-6, sharing clothes etc, so just restating i stand out in my program, BAD!!!!! ...one girl was like "don't do it" um yeah....so now that i'm on my pre op low carb diet, i'll just say i'm changing my eating habits :mad: i've been reading the threads on people losing friends and people becoming jealous after people lose weight, so i'm kinda suspicious of my new friends, but i'm like well maybe its just one of those "friends will like you no matter what you look like " so maybe it was the nice thing to say, i guess i woulda freaked if they said "oh dang girl GET THE SURGERY!!!" LOL only my sister and a close friend know...ahhh and the close friend who was also thin with me in high school and early 20's and is currently obese with me in our late twenties, is totally against the surgery...so i told her i wasn't doing it :biggrin: i used to be totally against surgery, i'm like thats cheating, diet and exercise thats the right way...um yeah ok, i'd do good for 3-6 months, lose 40 lbs, gain 50, lose 30 gain 40...just recently lost 17, gained 36, those are just the most recent attempts, i realize i need help or i'll be over the 300 lb mark...like it was better for me not to try cause if i just eat normal i maintain, when i diet then get off diet...WATCH out! so after a hundred or so failed attempts i realize i cant do it on my own, i think the band will make it a little easier to make good food choices, i'm good with exercising, its just so discouraging when you go to the gym 5 days a week for a month, lose 15 lbs, then one bad weekend of snickers and cheetos 8 lbs is already back.... LOL to the people who say you didn't gain the weight over night, i beg to differ! nic

Don't stress about the psych evaluation, it won't be bad at all. I started this lap band process a long time ago, and only have about eight weeks left of supervised diet to go to fulfill all the insurance requirements. I started seeing a psychologist back in June and have gone a couple times a month since then. I could have gone just once, but I thought I'd try to learn something from it. It's definitely helped me resolve some issues and I still want to go forward with the surgery more than ever! Just find out from your insurance what specific questions your psychologist needs to cover with you in their report. I just had my surgeon consult on Jan. 2nd and the lady who submits everything to insurance knew exactly what questions needed to be covered in your physician visits and your psych evaluation. But don't be afraid of the process...it's a lot of work and time consuming, but it gives you lots of time to make sure this is what you want to do. I've been going through the motions since May and I am almost there! Good luck and don't worry!

My biggest incision, about an inch or two, to the left side of my belly button, is a big indent but bulging above the incision. It's always been that way since surgery and I've asked Dr about it twice and he said is the stitch and it will dissolve in a few weeks and it'll pop back out. Is everyone's like this?

Thank you Panda. I will check with the doc. I see him tomorrow for my 2 week post op apt.

I'm eating soft solid food in my 3rd week. I didn't have to stay on a liquid diet. Your surgeon has given you the ok to move on to solid foods. He wouldn't tell you to eat them if it wasn't safe. Don't worry. Just make sure you chew and eat slowly. You should already feel full with less food.

Ok, surgery was 1 week ago today. I went ahead and had a little cream of chicken soup last night, blended with a little milk and chicken broth to make creamier/thinner. Later on in the evening I had a little bit of mashed potatoes which I swear I could feel traveling back up my esophagus. Ok, will make those creamier or something next time. This morning I had 1/2 cup of cream of wheat, probably the same consistancy as the mashed potatoes and almost lost it all. Could it be the texture or am I trying to eat heavier stuff too soon? The doc's office said I could start these types of foods after a week. Just started a day early.

I'm preop but my standing script order is for one prilosec two times a day. For three months. That should really help you. life is a journey, not a destination; so, stop running -H.D. THEROUX