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I am on day 8 since surgery. I have been doing well with water and vitamins, get about 50g protein. Prior to the surgery I could walk/jog a 10 min mile. Now I find myself out of breath if I walk my daughter to school which is around the block. I get really feverish and tired. My energy level is really low and all I want to do is sleep. Is this normal? I am thinking so, but when does energy pick up and is there anything I can do to boost it?

My husband, before we got married, last October did confide that he was a recovering alcoholic. I guess I did not understand exactly what that meant until recently. We got married on 10/31/2011. In January, I thought he was having a stroke, but right as I was about to call 911 he confessed he had just guzzled a bottle of vodka, thus the slurring and stumbling. There have been many more incidents since then like this one. He has even been to some AA meetings to try to appease me. Last Saturday he was drunk before 1030 in the morning. He had went out to buy donuts, and guzzled a bottle of tequilla on the way home. He tried to lie and tell me some melatonin made him do all that. Then he went to drive himself to get something to eat. Later during the week, sober this time, he got mad at MY 5 year old and slap him on the leg pretty hard. This weekend was the straw that broke the camel's back. Me and my mother went out of town together, and he promised me he would not drink, since the previous week had been pretty bad. When I got home he was trying to change a spare tire, and when he spoke his speech was slurred. He said he had taken his Xanax and that it made him do it. When I went into our room to unpack, I noticed glitter all over our floor, then I saw all the knick knacks on my bookshelf were broke, and everything was askew. I also noticed our dresser was all crazy and pushed into the wall, and the aquarium was on the edge of the dresser. I asked him about this and he denied knowing anything about it. Well I told him that he needed to come look, because if he did it, then one of his teenage daughters had been in our room. Well finally he fessed up he had been drinking and he woke up and there was a mess, and he doesnt remember anything. He stated his nose was broke, he had bumps on the back of his head, and his face was all scratched up and he didn't remember anything. I went and spoke with his 16 year old, who has Aspbergers, and she states that he was out of his mind, he fell face first on hearth of fireplace, he fell off of the couch several times, he tried to put on a tank top in the dryer like it was pants, he kept walking into walls and he left the house in his car twice. Folks, this was enough for me. I know its supposed to be through thick and thin but I cannot raise my 5 year old like this. He has made several promises to me about getting help, and only does it for a day or so. Don't get me wrong, he is not verbally abusive, or physically abusive, and he's been a good husband except for this. My sanity is shot. My son and I moved to my parents last night, and I am looking for a place for us. I just had to vent.

Personally at the end of the liquid diet I was ready for something that would last longer. I'm now 10 weeks out. The last couple days I've done a lot of reflecting as to when I get hungry. It seems to be when I'm not getting my liquids in is when I get hungry outside of meal times. Also, I sat timers for drinking at the beginning. So that way I could get my liquids and Proteins in and that is the only way I was able to do it. It's a great technique. Good luck w your surgeries :-) Gen :-) 12/15/12

I'm having a strange chest pressure sensation that's hard to describe. Nothing that I can associate with pain, just a constant and dull pressure. It started yesterday and I haven't been able to figure out what is going on. I can eat and drink with no problems, so I know it is not a stuck episode, but I am hiccupping more than usual. Has anyone had something like this happen to them? I do have my monthly visit with my surgeon tomorrow for a fill, so I am going to bring it up at my appointment, but any remedies or solutions ... heck, even an explanation would be helpful. A little more info about me. Banded Oct 30th. Have had 2 fills since my original fill at surgery. 4.6 cc in a 10 cc band. Can't really blame anything in particular that I ate yesterday because sticking to my band approved choices. Have chewed some papaya enzymes thinking it would help, but no relief at this point. Really at a loss. Thanks in advance for any replies! Love my band family!!!

Congratulations! I was finally banded on Friday as well! YAY! I really haven't been drinking anything but Vitamin water. Today I think I will start back on my protein shakes and try broth and maybe popsicles.I too am in pain. I am more comfortable laying somewhat flat. The gas pains haven't been to bad. My insicions hurt. I had a very nice experience with my surgeon and his staff. Everyone was very kind! My surgery was scheduled for 10:00 am and we were on the road by 2. The ride home was not very pleasant. I cringed when we hit any small bump in the road but we made it home. For now all I plan on doing is a whole lot of nothing! I can't believe that I did it! I can't wait to continue my new journey. I feel as though I have struggled with my wait for my entire life! I believe the medical talk when they say there is a fat gene! My mom and both my sisters have weight issues. I just didn't want to live this life anymore and I knew that I had to make some drastic changes in my life. A very good friend of mine had lap band surgery. She has lost almost 100 lbs, She has been my motivation! She has been so supportive! It's been so nice having her around to share her knowledge. I am truly lucky and grateful to have her and my wonderful husband and family to support me! Even though I have them I appreciate the information that everyone shares in their blogs! Thank you! I am honored to be a part of this prestigous group! Happy New Year's fellow bandsters!!

I have not been on this site for ages and thought I would visit some old friends. I am three years post lap band and am down 173#!!! I will add a new pic when my kids get home!!(incapable me). I feel and look like a different person. I am more confident,more physically active and strong! I do kickboxing, spinning, as well as the elliptical,etc. last summer I got up on water skiis, something I have not done in over 20 years.iI went zip lining twice, wave runners in the Bahamas, all the things I longed to do but was too embarrassed or too big to try. My best friend bought me a pass to the local amusement park in Cincinnati,knowing I am dying to fit on all those rides again. Hope the old lady's inner ear thing is not an issue. I really don't care. I am going! If nothing else, I hope I am a role model for my children, to NOT put the weight on and to take it off when they are 10 pounds over, not 180! UGH! Be persistent and keep trying to live a healthy lifestyle! Stay active, it feels great!Peggy

I am 10 days out, and when I do too much it is pain in my left rib... No where else. Has anyone else had this?

Sounds like you need new doctors. I was on depo for 10 years. I loved depo, but I believe that us where a lot of my weight gain came from. I asked my GYN several times for a better solution and he mentioned Mirena. I determined it was not for me and stayed in depo for 2 more years. I eventually got tired of him suggesting other forms or medications when I really wanted something permanent. He would not do surgery for sterilization. Although I was 30 and had no kids, I had also been married twice and could of had kids if I wanted kids. I understood that I wasn't motherly and would rather have Great Danes than children. I found another GYN. She was very understanding and listened to me and my reasons and what I wanted. She helped me find the method of birth control that worked for me and was willing to preform the Essure procedure. That and WLS have been the best decisions I have ever made. Having a doctor that will listen and help you makes all the difference.

I gained 60 lbs. from the Depo shot in 1 1/2 years; and then my weight stuck. I haven't been able to lose ANY weight since then and that was over 10 years ago. I know it doesn't effect everyone like that, but I wouldn't risk it if I were you. Hate for you to gain weight back because of it.

@@Mrs.Hansen88 how did you do it?!? My surgery was 10 days before yours and I lost 25 pounds..help!!! Please give me some pointers

I went to Six Flags a week ago to see my favorite band, Gym Class Heroes. I hadn't been there in 10 years and was really nervous about fitting on the rides but it worked out and I had a blast! The whole time I was there I couldn't believe I was riding rollercoasters again!

Hi !!! Im also a 40yr old married female, well soon to be 41 next Sunday. I have two younger kids 8 and 9. I got banded 8/19/11. My husband was banded 4/1/11.

I can tell you that I had a torn meniscus about 9 years ago, and while it was better after surgery, it still hurt. However, it has rarely bothered me since I lost about 40 lbs after the surgery. It had only really bugged me consistently when I let my weight creep back up about 20 lbs. Other than that, it is sometimes mildly painful if I've been on my feet all day and walked literally 10 miles or more. Even then it recovers quickly. I'm hoping that will become even less of a problem as I start seriously losing post surgery. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T989 using VST

Hello Everyone: I have good news and bad new. Good news My job sent me t North Caroline for training this week. Normally, I drive everywhere, becasue I hate flying. The main reason i hate flying is because 1. running around the airport only to find out that your gate has been moved to Saigon and 2. I never fit comfortably in the seats 3. I have been too big to fasten the seatbelts. This weekend I had to fly to NC. I have jsut been on the road so much due to my new assignment that I had no desire to drive anywhere. I get on teh placen this time and I am actually able to fasten teh seatbelts around me. Now mind, I had to let the seatbelt as far out as i could, but It fit. It was a snug fit, but it fit. I was shocked. For once i did not have ask for a seatbelt extender. This will defitniely go down as a NSV. Kinda bad news but with a good news ending: I had to have more Fluid taken out of the band. Matter of fact, I went directly from the airport to the OTC. I was in NC for 4 days. In that time, it was horrible. I try to stay away from fast food, but when I travel I that is what I end up eating. Even though I try to eat helthier fast food (you know what i mean lol). i was definitley too tight. I remember buying a 10 piece chicken McNugget for lunch and I was only able to eat about 2.5 of them. Those 2.5 were forced down. People were inviting me to eat for dinner, but I still had lunch left. Truth be told, i should have had some fluid removed last week now that I think about it. But I had convinced myself that i was still adjusting to my new fill. After every fill, I have to learn how to chew even more and drink even slower. I thought that I was jsut not chewing enough or chewing too fast or something. It felt like no "real food" would go down. I serously was wondering if this was what I was supposed to be able to eat and my head was having ahard time accepting that. i remember reading somehwere that all I would be able to eat would be 2-3 bites of Protein, 2-3 bites of veggies and carbs and be done. Then I also read that our new stomachs would only be able to hold 1/4 cup of food. I kept telling myself that it was in my head. Well, after some PBing (twice I had to pull over on the side of the road after drinking) and feeling that my food was always stuck..i had to get my 0.5 cc taken out. Leslie stated that she is now going to fill me in 0.1 or 0.2 increments. So the bad news is that i was extremely retarded for not listening to myself and i ended up having my last fill of 0.5 cc removed. But the good news is that I feel so much better and I will now listen to myself. How is everyone else doing?

I have an appointment on Friday with my NUT and the PA. it is my final appointment before my case is submitted to insurance. I have been on a supervised diet for five months and lost 12 pounds, which the NUT seemed happy with. At my last appointment they told I neede to lose 5 pounds before my next appointment to help me with approval. Well I have had a stressful month with a death in my family which lead to a long rode trip and beinging surounded by food for a few days. It started with a day of losing focus that led to a couple weeks and not only not losing the 5 pounds but gaining 5 back so now I am 10 pounds away from where I should be, so my question is should I call and postpone my appointment? I hate to do it because it will probably be another month before I can get in againl I am so mad at myself!! Any thoughts on this would be appreciated...

Today I am 4 1/2 month post op. The past month has been a struggle but I have finally reached two of my goals. I am at 75 lbs. lost and I broke the 200's and now I am in wonderland! I haven't been here since 10 th grade! My stats: Pre op : 270 Today: 195 Current pic was taken at 203 but I didn't want to get dressed today to take another! We are expecting 6+ inches of snow today...blah.

You have keys and are not divorced yet, so it's still your legal home unless there is a restraining order out against you. I like the idea of taking someone with you who can video what happens while you are there. Take someone who would not be intimidated by him in case he suddenly shows up or is actually there. If he denies you entrance to your own home, go get a sheriff's deputy. Good for you for getting out. No shame in your game - just do what you have to do. And yeah, it's just stuff if you have to walk away with nothing. I have started over twice. Both times (after 23 years and after 10 years) I walked away with my life, dignity, and peace of mind. You would be surprised at how little you need to get by.....kinda like camping with a roof and walls.

After about a year of contemplating WLS (and 10+ years of battling with my weight) I'm now starting my journey of getting my life back and lightening my load in many areas of my life (pun intended). I have my first appointment with the surgeon and nutritionist on Thursday, 10/17/13 and I'm an emotional MESS! I'm scared and excited both at the same time, it's crazy! My niece (who is a hair stylist) had to talk me from the edge about an hour ago because my latest "thing" is what about hair loss? She said, "Auntie, you getting healthy and having you around for a long time is more important than you losing some hair. I can fix that, I can give you some hair and it will be beautiful, it's what I do, but I can't get another YOU and I need you! If you lose your hair, I'll cut mine too! Just pray on it and don't worry about stuff that hasn't happened." Well, after that I cried and laughed at the same time. Cried because it meant a lot coming from her (she's like the daughter I never had), and laughed because I could picture both of us with heads shaved looking like twins! lol Anybody else going through this roller coaster ride, or am I alone in my feelings???

I have Blue Choice (BC's HMO) and they also required a "documented 6 month weight loss attempt" and I used the dietician on the bariatric team. Met with her once for initial weigh-in, and discussion of healthy food choices. She told me they didn't care if I lost weight, I was just not to gain any during the six months. After that meeting I weighed myself every two weeks (I work in a doctor's office so I did it at work) and email her the weight. I didn't work very hard at losing, and I was honest about my weights, and managed to lose 10 pounds. They would also accept Weight Watchers, Nutrisystem, anything like that which was documented. You could use two different 3 month attempts even. Of course their customer service rep told me I would probably be denied and have to do the 6 month diet all over, because the dietician was out of network. He was wrong. Out of network just means out of pocket, at least in my case. The psych nurse and dietician were both out of network. I paid them and was approved. I was put on a pre-op liquid diet and lost 25 on that. The rest has been post-op.

I had a similiar experience when I came home from the hospital. I was banded on 12.23.10 and on my first night I ended up being put back in the hospital for two extra days. My surgeon had no explaination for my dry heaves, nausea or pain. I have a very low tolorance so I was taking liquid vicodin as often as I could. Now I am much better but I am experiencing burping gas after I eat or drink. I am taking small sips like they suggested but nothing has changed. At my first doctor visit I was down 10 lbs. I don't have a scale at home or I am sure I would be on it everyday. Hope you feel better soon!

I am 21 months out from surgery and have gotten pretty comfortable. I have fallen back into old habits and have gained about 10 pounds back. I know it is not much but I am scared it will spiral out of control if I don't get it under control. BUT, I am struggling with getting back to basics and getting the weight loss rolling again. Any advice on how to get back to basics and restart is appreciated. The bad thing about being almost 2 years out from surgery is that you can eat more than right after surgery and you are not as diligent and focused. I know I just need to do it but don't even remember where to begin, what to eat, what to do, etc. It feels so foreign to me... Please help!!!

I'm in Knoxville. Was sleeved on 3/19.

Hey there!! Back with an update!Yay!! I just got back to my hotel and my surgery was done yesterday (2/10/17). I was a little surprised by how quickly everything went. I mean super duper quickly! But I did have a few complications as I have been cursed with hard to locate and even harder to hit veins. The anesthesiologist had to put my iv lines in. The shuttle take you in at 6:15am and you're in the waiting room with final paperwork stuff and final payment. They call you in to finalize your dietary plan and also do the EKG...then you wait until your room is ready. When you go to your suite, you quickly change in your gown and then the phlebotomist comes in to give you a little Xanax and does your IV. The surgeon comes in and chats with you for a moment and then it's show time. The procedure took less than 45 minutes and he not only staples but he also does a reenforced suture over the staple line to prevent additional complications. Past that, walking around after surgery went pretty smoothly and I still have "rolling" gas bubbles which are annoying beyond belief! Before they release you from the hospital, they have you do a tiny barium swallow to make sure your tract is completely clear and then you're released to go back to the hotel!! You have to keep walking...the more you walk, the faster the rolling bubbles will be relieved. I've got a final follow up on Monday and head back over the border by about noon that same day. Feeling pretty good (past those bubbles) and have no regrets whatsoever. The only major things I will also add: If you buy your meds that are prescribed there at [/url]OCC, it's about $190 with a credit card. If you ask the hotel shuttle driver, he can take you to a local pharmacy that will sell you all the drugs for about $70 bucks. Bring or buy a pill crusher. (There's a Walmart near the hotel or if you go to an offsite pharmacy...or pack one with you. I have the vitaleph shakes, but I also bought unjury Protein powder (online only) the chicken broth and the unflavored variety...to break up the chocolate/vanilla shakes...you will get tired of those flavors quick. The unflavored powder can be mixed with juices or just water! That's it!! Sorry for the novel!! But you're going to do great!!

I am getting my surgery on 4/10 with Dr. Garcia at Tijauana Bariatrics. I am both nervous and excited!

I agree completely.. I think I underestimated how stressful it is for some of us post surgery.. Since my surgery in Jan, my husband filed for divorce (which is a good thing). My boss started harrassing me more and more with each lb I loss..It got so bad I started vomitting at work uncontrollably.. I ended up taking leave.. and the vomitting stopped.. I started taking care of my self with my exercise, mediation and rest.. And feel soooooooooooooooooooo much better. I EVEN quit my job.. My last day is June 10 and I start a new one on June 13.... So what I am trying to say is the same as hautemama.. Being successful with this band isnt about counting the calories, and chewing chewing chewing.. it is about taking care of ALL OF YOU.. otherwise you will struggle.... I am now working with a life coach and she is amazing.. I am down 80 something lbs and 4 sizes.. Had my second fill yesterday.... LIFE is good.. But because I chose to make drastic needed changes.. Good luck to everyone.. Traci