ABC 2006~March Chat

[Constance 0]

seren., what size band do you have. I'm sorry you were overtight. I'm at 2.5 in a 4cc band and I really want another fill --- but i fear being super tight. how bad was it? (my typing sucks, i'm feeling lazy)

[Serendipity4124 1]

Pelo.....OMG it was horrible, but everyone is different, you might be fine at 3cc, I am also a 4cc band but they say they can actually fit like 4.2ish in it. The first sign that I was too tight was that my protien shakes felt like they were bubbling back up and solid food forget it! If you start to feel like you are too tight GO IN and let them fix you, I waited too long and Ill never do that again!

[Constance 0]

ok, good advice. I'm just frustrated b/c I'm total Snackmaster 9000 -- an eating machine. And I want to say "please, just make it so I don't eat so damn much!" Also, I pay 175$ per fill (or unfill) and it's a fine balance between too much and too little.

I'm sorry Seren., that really sucks. You're doing better now, tho?

[StephM 0]

I will try to find some before and after pictures. Loading them onto the website though is another thing! I am not that technically savvy so it might take a while.

If anyone needs help with this, you can email (sdmorton@nccsfl.com) me the pictures and I will post them for you.

Steph

[StephM 0]

What a ride guys, I had the fill last Monday and I lost 12 lbs in 9 days because I couldnt eat anything, everything got stuck after just one bite! It was sooo painfull.... I actually couldn't even drink a Protein shake today so I went in and had a partial unfill. I am now at 2.5cc instead of 3cc and I'm feeling much better! Hopefully it wasnt too much taken out, I'll update soon!

I too went for an unfill today. To all of you who have been miserable and think an slight unfill would help...DON'T BE AFRAID TO GET ONE...you will feel 1000000000000% better!!!

[StephM 0]

Has anyone seen pebbles or clarityseeker lately? I was just reviewing the December thread and ran across their names and thought we haven't heard from them in a while? Pebbles? Clarityseeker?

[StephM 0]

In December, there were some posts regarding "What I've Learned from my Band". Some of them were very humorous, but each and everyone of them was so true! So, I went back to the December chat and compiled a list of those "I've Learned"s and added the few posted on March chat, and here's what I have come up with (sorry for any typos)...

I’ve Learned (from my Band)…

Compiled from the members of the Lap-band Talk - 2006 ABC

It's not the first bite that's a killer - It's the second or third

If you can drink it for Breakfast, that's a good option

In the morning I better drink something warm before I eat - Otherwise solid food, no matter how much I've chewed it, will go down like the Titanic

Soup with lunch or dinner helps relax the esophagus and reduces PBs - A glass of wine does even better

I will never be bored with my band

Just when I think I know my band - I don't

Sometimes I can eat Breakfast - sometimes I can't - Ditto for the rest of my meals

If I get really hungry - Forget it I'm getting stuck

What "Oh crap, I'm about to burp up this food" feels like

Random stuff like candy corn is impossible one day, and smooth and easy the next

Losing weight feels SO GOOD

NSVs (Non-scale victories) can feel even better than losing weight

I never know from one day to the next what I can eat or how much

Just when I think I need a fill, the darn thing feels tight again

It really is a learning process - Learning the band - Learning how to eat to live - Learning how to lose weight

I love my band but I'm also quite afraid of it

I don't have to panic if I have a setback (ie: overfill, weight gain, etc.) - I can still succeed

My defeatist attitude doesn't help

I need to work with my band and pay attention to what it likes and doesn't like (ex. it doesn't like bread... so stop trying to eat it!)

It's my friend and it's doing its job.

Even though you now eat small amounts you still need to pay attention to what that small amount is

I will ALWAYS subscribe to the "I wonder what band I'll wake up with today" syndrome

I absolutely LOVE my band - I never want to go anywhere without it ever again - It was the best thing I have ever done for myself

I still have to watch what I eat - If it's hard Protein my band tells me when enough is enough - Ice cream?...not so much

Sometimes I still want to binge and stuff myself - The urge remains unfortunately, but the capacity just ain't there

I never have golfball/PB issues with people who know I'm banded – It’s always with people who don't know - LapBandLaw?

I've learned you can quickly say "I need to go grab a tissue/glass of water/tampon" and bolt, and nobody really cares - Unless you're gone a really long time in which case, go for the "female problems" defense

My band has an attitude - If it doesn't want chicken it won't let me eat it, but if it wants chicken tomorrow it lets it through just fine

My band isn't a miracle – It is still going to take time and a lot of work

I have to get fills for it to work - It isn't giving in to admit I need one

A size 16 at one store is NOT the same as a 16 at the next

That blueberry NutriGrain bars are really good – They make a great breakfast and defend against fast food if they live in my purse.

Never go shopping with my mother – I wind up spending too much money

When my left shoulder joint starts hurting, I should stop eating

The scale will continue moving in the right direction, as long as I don’t give up

[mstrish 0]

1. We're all in this together

2. It's a tool, not like gastric bypass, which is a quick and risky fix.

3. It works if you work it

4. I am becoming happy with the new me

5. I still eat ice cream at night, I eat light instead of the good stuff.

6. I don't eat much meat anymore, which I used to eat every day.

7. I have more energy and sleep better

8. It may take just as long for one person to lose 75lbs as it is for another to lose 175lbs. (first hand info from my surgeon yesterday) hummm, interesting, huh???

9. This is the best group

10. This is a long and winding road but we know we'll make it to the end.

Good luck and happy trails to all

[clarityseeker 1]

Steph, thanks for noticing that I haven't been coming around -- I've been MIA. Life intrudes. Work and kids and a Bat Mitzvah for my daughter this month are all keeping me busy.

My band is great -- I'm still losing and it's nice that people are really noticing. Lots of questions about how. I just say that I don't eat much -- which is true.

Here are my lessons with the band:

1. When I PB or get something stuck, it's always my own damn fault.

2. I feel extremely lucky that I rarely feel hungry and when I do, a little food gets me satisfied.

3. I'm always surprised at how I can eat only a little bit some days and a lot more on other days. Haven't quite figured that one out.

4. I have to be much more careful with alcohol -- I am becoming a "light-weight".

5. I LOVE being able to buy clothes in regular stores.

6. I would do it all again, even with the PB's, scars, my port almost sticking out, and all.

[libra 13]

First of all...Steph...you rock for compiling our list of lessons learned. You should start a new thread of that for everyone to read. It's pretty good advice, and a little funny too.

Clarityseeker, so glad things are going well. Glad you checked in. Life certainly does get in the way, I know the feeling.

Now how many of us have had to have an unfill now? I did a few months ago, Steph, Serendipity....

[clarityseeker 1]

I have had a total of 4 fills -- I am at 2.4 in a 4 cc band and it seems to be a pretty good spot for now. I am about 25 lbs from my goal weight, so I'll be interested to see how many more fills I will need.

My biggest challenge has been exercise. I have finally started to walk some and as things at home with the kids calm down a bit, I am hoping to have a little more time.

Anyone else having port protrusion issues? My port isn't really visible, but when I lie down, it's right there and easily felt. I am starting to date after 18 years -- my husband passed away in 2005. I would prefer to share my banding experience on my timetable, but intimacy is impossible without the guy feeling my port. I have so much "baggage" -- literally and figuratively, that I feel like I am saying -- yes, I have 4 kids, my husband died, oh, and I have this port that goes to a band on my stomache...

I've had some dates, but it's going to take a special man to be able to handle me and my family and all of our "stuff."

thanks for letting me vent a little...

J-

[RLittman 4]

Hey Jessica,

Mazel tov on your daughter's bat mitzvah. We had one last year for our twins - lots of work but so emotionally satisfying. What shul?

Did you hear that we will no longer be getting our fills at the surgical center? I read at the Spivak thread under Doctors that if you are self pay you must go to his office for a fill. He does not yet have a fluoroscope but is supposed to be getting one in the next few weeks. My last fill of 2.5cc was about 3 1/2 weeks ago and it seems to be going well. I am losing more slowly each month but the inches keep coming off. I too love shopping in regular stores!!! I expect to lose about 4-5 pounds a month which is fine but I wish it would go a bit faster.

You are doing so great - only 22 pounds to go. I hear you about the loose skin. I am thrilled that my stomach keeps shrinking and is not hanging as I expected, but my thighs and breasts are another matter. I already have a bunch of excess skin on my thighs that is not going anywhere. And my breasts would not be out of place in National Geographic! I spoke with Betrice at the surgicenter about plastic surgery. She went to a plastic surgeon recommended by her lapband doctor for a Tummy Tuck. He gave her a nice discount because she was a lapband patient.

My fill is not protruding but it is much lower on my body. Before it was just below my bra line, not it is on my upper stomach!

I have had a total of 4 fills -- I am at 2.4 in a 4 cc band and it seems to be a pretty good spot for now. I am about 25 lbs from my goal weight, so I'll be interested to see how many more fills I will need.

My biggest challenge has been exercise. I have finally started to walk some and as things at home with the kids calm down a bit, I am hoping to have a little more time.

Anyone else having port protrusion issues? My port isn't really visible, but when I lie down, it's right there and easily felt. I am starting to date after 18 years -- my husband passed away in 2005. I would prefer to share my banding experience on my timetable, but intimacy is impossible without the guy feeling my port. I have so much "baggage" -- literally and figuratively, that I feel like I am saying -- yes, I have 4 kids, my husband died, oh, and I have this port that goes to a band on my stomache...

I've had some dates, but it's going to take a special man to be able to handle me and my family and all of our "stuff."

thanks for letting me vent a little...

J-

[libra 13]

My doc said when I'm ready he can replace mine with a low-profile port. It's starting to stick out a bit.

[clarityseeker 1]

Libra,

thanks for the info -- I'm going to check into a low-profile port.

Robin,

I thought Spivak used "low profile ports" as a general rule? Do you know?

Rachel's Bat Mitzvah is at Emanu El in two weeks! Where do y'all go to temple? This is number 2 of 4 -- yikes. I was going to do a bunch of shopping for the open house we are having and for Rachel's kid party this weekend, but I came down with some kind of flu -- and I did have the flu shot!:sick

So far, hanging skin is not as bad as I thought it would be -- after 4 kids, I thought I would have more tummy skin, but it seems to be not too bad. I could definitely use a breast lift!! I have a friend who had the band in 12/2005 and lost 90+ lbs. She was about my size to begin with. She had a Tummy Tuck and breast implants/lift in 12/2006. She is happy with the results.

Jessica

[ladydi 0]

Robin, What About Ins Paid Fills, Are We To Stay Where We Are? I Wonder If They Are Doing This Because It Might Be Cheaper For Non Ins To Do In The Dr Office. I Hope So For Your Sake! I Really Like The Thought Of Maybe Running Into You, Like Last Time. We Still Need To Get Together Soon.

I Can't Wait Until My Port Moves Down A Bit. Can You Believe You Only Have 35 Lbs To Go? I Can't Wait Until I Can Say That!!

Diane