January Surgery Bandsters Group

[kganous 0]

Hi I need to join this group. I didn't start looking for an online support group until yesterday so now I'm trying to play check up. I had my gastric banding on 1/26/2012 in Mannheim Germany. I was inpatient for 5 long hospital days. Standard for Germany. My surgeon is extremely conservative and I haven't had a fill yet. My appointment is April 16th and he told me it won't be much of a fill the first time. My weight has been slow to come off because I can basically eat anything because of little constriction. Looking forward to hearing from others in the same place I am. Kim

[MeredithMcFee 98]

Kim, welcome to our group. The January bandsters are a great group of people. We're all supportive and encouraging of one another. Even when we beat ourselves up for one reason or another, you can always count on someone saying a kind word or two to get us back on track on this life time journey of getting healthy.

I was banded a day later then you in NJ. My surgeon seems to be more conservative then the other's here. He believes doing fills 6 weeks apart and even then he makes the decision if you need it or not. So far, I've had one fill am scheduled for my follow up appt 2.5 weeks.

Losing 23lbs is great! Everyone loses differently for different reasons. If you're exercising, perhaps you're losing more in inches. I know that's the way it works for me. I don't allow the scale to control me. As long as I feel good in my clothes, that works for me. Good luck to you.

[JustDoIt130 369]

Shoot, I just lost a long post!!

Kim- I was banded on 1/26 also! Too bad your doc is so conservative, but slow and steady wins the race.

Kymie- I know my doctor only does 1 cc at a time as you get closer to restriction- better to approach it slowly than go over and be too tight and cause problems.

Nicole- I'm seeing things too- much more energy, able to sit in restaurant booths comfortably, LOL. I would do the 3 weeks too, I can't wait to get to some sort of restriction.

Mags- one cheeseburger does not derail a diet! I know that "having" to log my food into my fitness pal kept me from totally pigging out on maerc eci the other day. No way was I going to log 2000 calories of that!! I like the weekly goals idea, I'm going to post them on our group too, but here they are for accountability- I don't go to that page a lot since we all post here.

1. Exercise 5 x this week

2. Get all my Water in

3. Journal my feelings

Horsegirl- when myfitness pal asks if I want to reduce my calories I say no! Then I feel good about being so far under. I play mind games on myself, LOL.

Well, I'm on mushies today. I don't really feel any differently after yesterday's fill. I have one big Vitamin that I half to take that sometimes gets a smidge caught, but today wasn't any worse than any other. I guess if I get more restricted I'll have to cut it into 4ths instead of half. Not sure I'll see much of a loss this week, maybe .5 lb, but I had a 4 lb loss last week, so I'll take it!

[JustDoIt130 369]

Oh, and Chrissy Lu, how did it go?

[chrissylu 153]

Well...haven't tried the steamed chicken yet. lol. I have my check-up at Noon so i'll be posting a "fill update" when I return. I told a friend that I was going to tell the NP to "fill'er up"...I don't want to have to chew anymore..maybe I can survive on Protein Shakes and Tomato Soup. LOL! Of course I'm kidding...but I am praying for than the .4cc she gave me a month ago!

[otaknam 28]

I get my 2nd fill this thursday. I am not even getting on my scale. I have gone from a size 24 tight fitting jean to a size 20 lose fitting so I am losing inches but not pounds. I just know the doctor will once again ask WHY. I still have no answer. I am so upset with self. Not to mention all my money that has been paid out for this and it seems like I am letting myself and others down. These 8 weeks have got me totally confussed. But I know in time my brain and body will connect. I just might have to have an extra session with my dietian.

[nicole1 92]

Otakam that is amazing from a 24 to a baggy 20!! Stop beating up yourself your loosing inches & that is what counts! Tomorrow is my 3th banniversary and I felt the same way you do. At firsts I only notice a change in my clothes and not the scale. I could have sworn it was broken. Then suddenly something clicked. And the scale went down finally!! I paid cash for my band too and I refuse to let my conservative doctor get the best of me. Right now I am loosing weight on willpower alone not the band. I have very little restriction. I understand taking it slow if we loose to fast we get hanging skin, yuck!! So cheer up you are an amazing woman who took the most important step in this life long journey you got the surgery!!

Tell us what a day of excersise & meals look like for you maybe we can give you suggestions.

Have a good evening!!

[JustDoIt130 369]

I lost 1 lb this week- after losing 4 last week I'll take it! Slow and steady. I have to mix up my calories a bit and keep up with the exercise. It's a bit of a mind game to me- and I have lost 35 lbs!

Otaknam- inches lost is a success! the pounds will come off surely. It is a process. I know for me it's hard to work and not see results, but I have decided that this is the time, it is going to happen for me and I'm willing to put in the work. You are doing the work too and your results will happen!!!!

Nicole- how's the stress level going??

Have a great Wednesday!!!

[kymie9899 37]

That dang scale is FINALLY moving again. Mostly willpower as my last fill wasn't enough so I'm going to schedule another in 2 weeks. But keeping my calories low and ramping up exercise is really helping. next month I'm starting our y lose it program at the YMCA with my hubby and a group with a personal trainer! Plus my dr and hospital is putting on a class course I signed up for called spring into action. It will meet twice a month for 6 sessions, so 3 months. Topics including setting goals, journaling, exercise as a habit, meal plans and portions, labels and recipe modification, grocery store tour, stress and emotional eating, relapse prevention. Plus the y program will include a wellness coach, nutritionist, and trainer. This is gonna be hard and a busy few months but I can't wait to see the results, I'm gonna turn myself into a hot momma! Lol. I'll make sure to share any tips I get with everyone so we can all have as much advice as possible.

[MeredithMcFee 98]

Otaknam: I agree totally with Nicole, you are doing a fabulous job. I'm 9.5 weeks out and going back and forth 28-30 lbs with 1 fill of 2.5cc's. My next fill is in two weeks. I'm starting to see that I'm getting a little more hungry now but like Nicole, I'm using my willpower to control my food choices and thinking before I put something in my mouth that doesn't belong there. I too have a conservative dr. and I'm ok with that.

So many things come into play, age, I'm {a very young} 57, medications we might be taking, our metabolism, etc etc. Inches count big time! Are you working out? Doing any cardio? Be good to yourself, enjoy the loss/inches, and be patient. It will come.

[NJ2NC 62]

Otaknam, losing inches is great! maybe the scale isn't moving because you are gaining muscle. I've just started keeping track of my inches! so far so good!

[chrissylu 153]

JustDoIt130...I got a fill of .8cc. I wanted the NP to go ahead and make it a whole cc but no. So...I'm now at 4.9 (why not at least make it an even 5.0, right?)..of a 10cc band. Definitely felt restriction last night after a cup of Soup. I can only imagine what its going to feel like when I try to eat solid food in a couple of days. I did lose a couple more pounds. I'm down 38 now! Yay!

[chrissylu 153]

Otaknam...I agree with the others! Losing inches is still losing. I've been having similar results. Yes, I've lost pounds...but I can tell it more in the inches I've lost, how my clothes (and even my shoes!) feel, as well as how much I'm able to get done at the gym. 3 months ago, I was barely walking a mile on the treadmill...and that was a slow pace. Now I'm doing at least a mile and a half, at a higher pace and I've even started jogging about 1/3 of the time I'm on the treadmill...and I haven't passed out yet! LOL! Just keep up the good work and remember that you are doing something good for yourself!

[chrissylu 153]

Okay...I've set a new goal for myself. My birthday is on the 25th. I'll be 43. I've currently lost 38lbs. So.....my new short-term goal is to lose a total of 43 lbs by the time I turn 43. I can SO lose 5 lbs in the next 3 weeks. Who's with me?

[JustDoIt130 369]

I am!! I am at 249, so I will be 244 4/25!