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Tbh: I've always been around 160-170, But after I had my son I blew up like a balloon lol. But Im 300 as we speak might be less than that I haven't been weighed In 3 weeks.

I got banded in sept 2007. Had my first fill in Oct (5 wks post op) I was fine for a few weeks then it hit me, couldnt even swallow my spit. this was during thanksgiving and my dr was gone so i suffered for 5 days ended up in hospital for dehydration -- i guess i didnt really understand what was happening to me -- i knew something was wrong obviously but i didnt think it would get as bad as it did... so needless to say i got an unfill. this was dec 1st. I have been fine but started to eat as if i didnt even have the band. just got my second fill friday -- not even as much as my original -- 3cc band now im at 1.2 fill -- and i cant even swallow Water without discomfort. Protein shake -- no way i will try in the morning -- but evenings i can do it but it takes me 20 - 30 minutes to get one shake down. I have lost a couple pounds of course since friday.. so my question is -- do i stick it out and just stay on liquids for a couple weeks and lose weight or do a get slight unfill? :help:

trust me...I'm not telling anyone! haha...I'm just concerned that I am not :jumpstarting" my metabolism. I am having my first fill next week...and can only imagine that tightness in the morning is going to be worse

I've been doing pretty good, but back when I had my first fill which made 1cc in a 4cc band. Did great had some restriction. Then I got another fill which made 1.25cc did great. Then I got another fill which made 1.5cc. Could only tolerate that for about 3 days. Was unfilled back down to 1.25cc. Did ok then the weight started going up and down. Went back for another fill up to 1.5cc again. I hung in there for 2 weeks but only had about 4 meals in that time and could barely drink Water. So had another unfill back down to 1.25cc. I did fine lost 13.9 lbs in those 2 weeks I was too tight. I knew I would gain some back from the unfill, but that was ok. I gained 5 lbs. After that I was losing. I lost the 5 I had gained back plus 2 more. But now, one morning I weighed 193.4 lbs. The NEXT morning I weighed 206.6 lbs. How do you gain 13 lbs litterally overnight? I have taken a couple of those lbs off, but....I don't understand. I watch what I eat and the amount and I exercise. I don't seem swollen. How much does everyone else have in a small band?

YES! I had the same issue right after surgery. The Gas-X didn't help, nothing seemed to help except for very cold sugar free JELLO, and only while I was eating it. I ate it very very slowly to make the coolness last, and eventually it subsided. Also, sleeping in the recliner that first week helped quite a bit so that I wasn't laying flat and allowing the acids to creep up. Try sticking to jello or anything cold and salt free or at least low in salt. If you have irritation, this will help. Good luck and let us know how you get along!

My first fruit was banana and then I moved onto cantaloupe with no issues. My first veggie was zucchini and I had no issues. Veggies were very touch and go up until a couple of weeks ago.

I was banded on Feb 13 and I had that feeling for about two weeks. I had my first fill on Apr 1 and I've had that same back pain again. It's not constant and it's not after every meal, so I'm not sure why it's happening. Maybe due to swelling after surgery and then again after a fill??? At least I know now I'm not the only one :thumbup:

Congrats on ONEderland! Tracy, looks like we are again on the same path. I actually hit 201 last week, but only record on Mondays as well. Back up to 203.5 this morning (since this is my MOnday). Let's try to get there soon! I have my first fill (finally) next week. YAYYYYY!

Good Afternoon, I'm new to this forum and I would like to to take this time to introduce myself. My name is Alcine and I'm married to the greatest man in the world. Currently we live in North Richland Hills, TX. My husband is an Army recruiter and I'm a marketing coordinator at M.E.P. Consulting Engineers. I lived most of my life in Germany (my father was also in the army). I love to travel and I love meeting new people. I decided to get the lap band because I'm ready to make some serious changes in my life. I want to be in better shape and I want to be healthy. I feel that if I accomplish that I will be a lot happier with my life overall. Basically that will be one less thing I have to stress and worry about. I haven't got my date yet for surgery, hopefully I will hear something next week. Wish me luck :tongue2:! I would like to congratulate everyone who has decided to make a change with their life. Its not an easy journey but I know we all will make it. Good luck and God bless everyone. Feel free to write me anytime. Happy New Year!!!

I am having same problem and it is not because my band was too tight. My stomach shifted up above the band. They took all the fluid out and I had to wait 8 weeks to let my stomach go back down. When I went back in to start the refill I did not see my regular doctor and this doctor decided I need to have an EGD before refilling my band. He is also telling me that I may have to have surgery to fix it. I had to get an approval from our insurance and wait for a date for the EGD. I am scheduled to have it next Wednesday. It's will be almost 3 months since they took fluid out and I have gained about 15 pounds. I don't want the sleeve or bypass. I have been a success story with the band. I just want my band back and working like it did before all this started. I am very discouraged

Tkelsey, Hello and congrats on this big step. I was banded on July 1, 2008. I'm in my third week and eating softer food and staying under 1200 calories a day. My first band fill will be August 14. How you feeling? the gas pain can be terrible... oh and sneezing. Sneeze with your mouth open. I thought I popped my belly button. Hope to hear from you. Lasthope, Atlanta GA.

You were just like me! But keep reading, there is light at the end of the tunnel!!!! Im sorry to here your frustration. We all have had our ups and downs for sure. I think my situation was pretty similar to yours. It took me forever to finally feel restriction and by the time I did, I had lost all the good habits I had practiced right when I got my surgery. The day of my 7th fill when I finally felt it, it was like a truck hit me! I was like "wait a second i don't like this!" But then I reminded myself that this was what I had prepared for but unfortunately because it took so long I forgot. As far as being too tight. I think you sound ok. If you can get down solid Protein like fish then you should be fine, chicken can be iffy, most of the time if its tender it goes down but sometimes it doesn't. Now as far as your weight loss, I will tell you what worked for me... As far as food goes, you sound like your on par with that. I try to keep mine around 1000 calories a day, and even if your not quite full, stop after 20 or so minutes and let it catch up. So great job with that! But as CRAZY as this sounds, even with a 1000 calories a day, you won't lose weight unless you get in 30 mins of light cardio a day because of that stupid thing we call metabolism. I chewed my doctor out 30 days after I was in green zone bc i hadn't lost a pound. I told him I'm only consuming 1000 calories a day! I should be losing, what is 30 mins on the treadmill really gonna do! Well out of desperation, I finally pulled my old bike out and started doing what he said. EURIKA! It finally all came together! The weight started coming off, and all i did was walk every night for 30 minutes!. I can tell bc the weeks i do it 5 to 6 times, I lose 2 to 5 lbs, but the weeks i get "busy" and only do it 2 or 3 times, i don't lose any . You don't want to really "work out" for hours at the gym though bc you might get burned out and not want to exercise the next day. Keep it light and consistent. The nurse told me that under a "normal diet" 30 mins of walking or whatever might not make that much of a difference because it doesn't burn that much calories but we aren't really doing it to burn more calories ... all the 30 mins of movement is designed to do is to keep your metabolism from going into shock. You need to get your heart rate up for a good 30 mins and it works wonders! To this day, I have never stepped foot in the gym. I get on my bike and turn on food network "haha". Anyways I don't make up reasons for not doing it anymore... my husband and children know that every night at 8:30pm leave me alone for 30 minutes. Moral of the story... 30 mins light cardio, as many nights as you can! If you do it 5 to 6 times a week no more, no less, you will be down 100lbs before you no it! Good luck girl!

Most Dr.'s want you to wait until atleast 6 weeks post-op. Here is a great site on getting fills once you have waited the 6 weeks or whatever your Dr.'s protocol is. SOme wait longer then 6 weeks if they are lsoing still and have some restirction still from the initial surgery. I had my first fill 9 weeks post op http://lapbandtransformation.com/Adjustments.htm

I got a fill after 4 1/2 weeks and it really has helped me a lot. I have lost 2 lbs this week and I was stuck. That made me really happy! Good luck!

Well, I have all the pre things done. But I got an email from Kim saying the only way I would get to have surgery is if someone cancelled or had to reschedule. I only have this week and next b/c Dr. B is not doing any surgeries the week before or the week after Christmas. At this point, I wouldn't even mind asking someone to switch with me. This is my last chance unless I go self pay- which is not going to happen. Please pray this will happen for me. All I want for Christmas- is my band!!!!!!!!

Great news Melanie!! CONGRATULATIONS! Wow, $ 20 per visit is cheap! Ask them to send that to you in writing! You must have really great insurance! Mine sucks, so I decided to self-pay and had my surgery last week 10/10. Slowly but surely I'm feeling better. Where in TX do you live? And who's your Dr? sorry if I missed this info before, I'm a bit behind on reading posts lately. All the best,

Ugh, so what I have been going through since my surgery... I was out from college/work for the week right after the surgery, back in school the next week, then my lower abdomen started killing me... I went to my surgeon and my PCP... my PCP found the bladder infection, we killed it with antibiotics, meanwhile I went back to class... about 2 days after my infection was gone, and I was feeling somewhat human again, I started getting these stabbing, shooting, killer pains in my back and side. Long story short, I told my surgeon and PCP over and over that something was wrong, but my surgeon sent me away and my PCP couldn't find anything and diagnosed me with "anxiety," telling me I needed to stop focusing on the pain (which, by the way, felt like someone had a knife and was twisting it into my back!). I finally started to give up on them finding anything, but I had noticed a swelling in my abdomen. I showed my surgeon, who told me that it had always been there and if I regularly felt my stomach, I would have noticed it. I had just gotten my first fill, and he removed it just in case it was the pressure from the fill. I have hardly been eating anything in this time, by the way... I am losing about 7 lbs a week now. I really felt something was wrong and called a few times to say that the area was hot and red and painful... blah blah... it turned out that I had a freakin' abcess that had to be cut open this past Friday and drained. I have a 2 inch deep crater in my stomach that has to be packed full of gauze every day twice a day. So, that's been my life. My schoolwork is really suffering and my paychecks have been really low, if not absent. Anyone else experienecd something like this????

I am a week post op today. I know if I drink crystal light it makes my mouth super dry. I do not know why. I just know it happens. I am good with plain ole water!

I was sleeved by Dr. Garcia 11/19/12. Wonder time and experience with the staff and Dr. Garcia himself. I took the week off of the surgery, rested the weekend and went back to work with little to no restrictions the following Monday.

I am on a full liquid diet this week...so mostly blenderized soup, thinned out yogurt, thinned out oatmeal.....sfpudding, sf jello. Next week I will be on pureed foods. How about you? Have you started any exercise yet?

Yesterday I was talking to someone who was commenting on my weight loss, and they said that they supposed it was good I had lapband surgery because it meant it gave me the willpower I didn't have. OMG was I angry with that!! I went onto a full on rant about how willpower is something I have a LOT of, thank you. I need willpower to make good food choices when faced with easier 'silder' foods that won't get stuck. I need willpower to get on my spin bike 3 times a week and cycle until I'm pouring with sweat. I need willpower when I go out to dinner and watch everyone gorging themselves while I move food around my plate. I needed willpower to have undergone this surgery, put up with the pain, the excrutiating 'stuck' episodes and the fills. I look at what I'm eating now and I know that very few human beings could eat as little as I'm eating on willpower alone for the rest of their lives. THAT is what the band does for me. It makes me eat less. It controls my hunger. That's all. And that's ALL I need it to do. Because to be thin, I need to eat a fraction of what normal people eat. Less than my 3yo eats. The band does that part. The rest, I take care of. I put in the willpower. I put in the effort. And I refuse to allow anyone to take that credit away from me!

I went on a group trip less than 3 weeks after surgery. No one knew I had the surgery. I was scared of getting stuck, etc in front of people but overall it was totally fine. Whenever possible, order soft foods. I stuck to yogurt for breakfast and soups for dinner. Lunch was hard because people were eating sandwiches. I did lie a couple times and said I wasn't feeling well so i was able to avoid some foods. You'll be new from surgery so you wont have much of an appetite. I recommend you eat SLOW. I messed up and got stuck. It was horrible and I had to excuse myself to the bathroom. There was dessert so I did try sorbet and just a few spoonfuls. That way, people saw me eating but didn't really notice that I was eating much less than usual. You'll be fine. Just go with how you feel a s eat slowly. Good luck.

I was banded almost a year ago. I have not been on this site in a long time and have missed it. Recently...over the last 2 months I have experienced terrible heartburn and acid reflux. It seems to be related to certain foods I eat and certain drinks. I think I have it "somewhat" under control now but I am still going to see my doctor about it this week. Is this normal and has anyone experienced this?

Reflux after banding is considered to be caused by band problems until proven otherwise. Any new onset reflux should always trigger a visit to your band surgeon. Sometimes it turns out to be something other than the band, but until that is ruled out, it's best to have it checked by your surgeon as soon as possible. Could be fixed by a slight (or big) unfill for a few weeks or a month, but as (other ) Gwen said , it can lead to bigger problems like band slippage. Get thee to your doctor! :smile2: