Hey 50 & over gang We have a new spot

[IndioGirl55 32]

Hi everyone! Welcome to the newbies! There is a wealth of knowledge here and so, ask away....

I WAS exercising 4-5 times a week, but when the play I directed was in its last month of rehearsal and then, I was attacked by allergies (blowing my nose and sneezing nonstop---veeeeeery pretty....) and the exercise was put on hold. I have not gained any, didn't lose any either. Staying around 151-153...want to get to 142.

I haven't had a fill since September. I was at my sweet spot--but now--3 months later--it has gotten tighter! Two bites of solid Protein (meat, chicken) and ugh! tight!

Daily PB. And--I am going on a cruise in 2 weeks!

Has anyone done well with a fill only to have it get tighter 3 months later?

(I also could make my bites smaller and eat slower....hmmmm...57 years of habits are hard to break)

Judy--enjoying the 70's degree weather

JB try the smaller bites and eating slower and chewing really well. If I don't do these things - I too will be full on 2 bites.

Remember your vacation isn't about eating. It's about going to some where to enjoy yourself... Life isn't all about the food - Life is about enjoying being with family and friends seeing new places.

And you are so right even 1 1/2 yrs out I still tend to eat too fast - not chew - etc - It's going to take a long time to change our habits.

Hi everyone. I haven't posted in a while- just been too discouraged. My fault, not the band's (although I would love to be able to blame something other than myself)...I don't know what it is, but it is like a fiend has been unleashed in the last month. I am eating everything in great quantities - even stuff I don't like! I eat until I'm uncomfortable, PB, and then do it again. What is wrong with my head - because that is obviously where the problem is!

I finally made it to a 'normal' BMI, and then I start this. And even though I KNOW it is wrong, it is like another part of my brain is just egging me on....

Sorry for the ramble, just feeling tired of fighting myself (and losing) and all out of sorts.

Tapshoes - You got to normal - then your brain said - Ok I can go back to eating normal - That's why I have always said this isn't a diet - don't look at your eating as a diet but as a lifestyle change - Eating Healthy most of the time with a treat now and then.

not at a normal BMI and I am already into sabatogue!!! Eating things I know are wrong. I did restart using a food lournal and find myself doing better. Making oneself accountable on paper has been helpful. All I need is to get in time for exercise..

Seems I am fighting myself too. Like most times I lose weight and then feel like I can do anything and BAM, the weight goes back on. Of course not all that fast, but creeping. HELP, kick me in the A$$ to wake me up..

Lynn - Again there are no wrong foods - don't look at it as being wrong - look at it as not being healthy - you got banded to be healthy to extend your life - If you can't control eating Cookies - ice cream or whatever your food of choice is - don't have it around - don't buy it - Just say no..

That's what I do - Also - I feed my sweet tooth with SF stuff - Don't get me wrong I am not perfert - but during the holidays last yr - I said no to all the treats in the office - cuz I was going to allow myself a few cookies when my GD's and I made them for Xmas - I ate them - but I also added a couple of days more exercise that week.. It's a trade off - if you want that treat and it's 300 calories - then make your self do the exercise to burn off those extra calories - that's about an hr on the treadmill for me - so that 2 minutes of pleasure isn't worth the extra exercise most of the time.. :0)

I have to tell you, the view from Onederland is great! I hope everybody here joins me soon!

I have to say, I did nothing special to get there - even with the band, it comes down to eating less and exercising more. My strategy is to log everything I eat - I use thedailyplate.com, but there are other free sites out there too. I follow the daily calorie limit advised to loose 2 pounds per week as much as possible. I am NOT perfect by any means, but when I see I'm close to the limit, or over (as I have been more often lately), I fight the urge to eat more, and try to get some exercise. It keeps me from fooling myself about how much I can eat. I needed help with portion control!

I was walking 2 to 2 1/2 miles a day till the Wisconsin winter set in. Now, I'm not doing much except packing to move in a few days. (However, I can sure go up and down those stairs with boxes now with minimal effort! :-) I hope to continue the daily exercise in our new routine once moved - hauling hay, Water, and cleaning stalls at our new hobby farm - a whole new experience for me!

But all of this would not have happened without the band. The band has kept me going. It has prevented that ability to overeat in huge quantities like I used to -- because I get too full. And then I walk away for awhile and forget about continuing to eat. Lilke a normal person!

With all previous diets I was on, I would dream about food and feel empty all the time. Within a couple months, I would ditch the diet and just eat whatever, whenever, and as much as I could stuff in. Which was never those huge amounts you hear people eating (I never ate a dozen eggs or a half-gallon of ice cream), but I'm sure it was about 4,000 calories a day. It took me 30 years to get up to 339 pounds! But I was always hungry it seemed. This has not happened with the band - I don't dream about food. I don't feel deprived.

Now, I can be full with 1400 cals a day. I still have my weaknesses - chocolate, and fresh baked cookies - when available! I still have bad days and make poor food choices. Just not as often anymore. The key is to not make the highly calorie concentrated, low nutrition foods very available! I still struggle with wanting to eat more - to clean my plate like I was taught as a kid. And to keep eating after full. I'm at my sweet spot - finally - right now and I will get full and uncomfortable, even "slime" until something goes down if I don't chew well enough or eat too fast. Being bull-headed about eating, I need that negative reinforcement to shout at me - "stop eating, for heavensake!" :-)

I don't posses any stronger willpower than any one of you guys/gals out there. And that's the beauty of this band! Its working for me, and I hope it will for you too!

Lizalee - Well said - I agree 110% !!!!

Actually, I just did the math...I've lost ~96 pounds since my April bandingl? Can that be right? I don't really track how much/fast I'm loosing. I just try to go down each day. To me it seems agonizingly slow. I guess I am doing OK-- It never seems like it on a daily basis, but the numbers in my sig are acurate, so it must be true!

That surprised even me.

Doing OK - No girl you are doing Excellent Congrats on your 96 lbs

.

Hello to all,

I had my original meeting with my surgeon on September 3, 2008. I weighed 265 at that point. When I had surgery on October 22, 2008 I weighed in at 258. Seven days after surgery I was down to 250#, on November 19th it was 248 and my most recent visit, December 4th, I was 242#. Here is my question. I thought that on Nov. 19th I would get a fill but they thought I should wait. When I went on the 4th, fully expecting to get a fill, he said, "You are doing well. Let's wait until next month to see how you are doing." Has anyone else had this happen? I thought fills were a big part of this surgery. I know I should be happy that I can still eat anything without getting "stuck" but I'm just hoping I don't hit a bit stall in weight loss. I have to have knee surgery on the 29th so I will not be taking any long walks for a while. Has anyone else have a doctor who put off on the fills and how was your weight loss? Thanks!

Lorilee - Yes my doc wouldn't give me a fill when I went in last December as I had lost 17 lbs from the last fill in October - When we 1st get banded and all we do is read about fills - that we think that we have to get them all the time - Heck next month will be 1 yr since I have had one and I don't need one - My band provides perfect restriction - I can still eat and I don't pb or slime (unless I have eaten too fast not chewed or have taken one bite too many)

[Great2BThin 5]

LoriLei,

From what I gathered there seems to be 2 different trains of thought on the part of dr's and fills. Some say, "you are losing great, you don't need a fill if you are losing good at where you are at". Then there is the other opinion of, " you've lost a lot of weight since your last fill, you need a fill as you have lost some of the fat pad between your band and stomach, so you can keep losing". Which is correct? Who knows. I think the most accurate determinant is how are you feeling? Are you satisfied with your portion sizes now? are you hungry? do you stay full for several hours after eating? and things like that. I just got my 6th fill and was at my 'sweet spot' for a few months after my 5th. However, the past few weeks I have been hungrier, eating more, etc. so I got a tweak and my dr. for this fill was of the 2nd opinion in that Ilost a lot and it probably loosened up some. Good luck in finding what works for you. Some folks need a lot more fills than others. There's one gal at my dr office that they told me about that has lost 100 lbs on no fills. I have a large band so think that is why I am needing more fills. They couldn't get the smaller band fastened at surgery.

[Sooverit! 1]

I logged on to theDailyPlate.com great site ...thank you!

[Oregondaisy 2,021]

In my opinion, people should not get fills if they are able to control their hunger. Being even slightly too tight is dangerous to the stomach and esophagus.

The way I look at it is, put a rubber band around your finger and leave it there for a week. It would cause problems. The stomach is an important part of our body and having something too tight around it can cause major problems.

I know I keep repeating myself, but I was too tight and had no idea I was. I never pbed or slimed and could eat anything I wanted to eat, in the daytime. I could eat bread, pizza, fruit with skins, and any and all the foods people say give them trouble. Yet, I saw for myself the barium sitting in my esophagus for 15 min and not going through the band until they took out some saline. I have no clue how long my food was sitting in there, or how long I was too tight before I started this throwing up in my sleep.< /p>

[Sooverit! 1]

Who knew sugar free hot chocolate could taste so decadent!

This is one kick ass Christmas gift I gave myself! I love my band....I'm only 5 days out but it's great so far! :thumbup:

[Socialdot 0]

Hello to all,

I had my original meeting with my surgeon on September 3, 2008. I weighed 265 at that point. When I had surgery on October 22, 2008 I weighed in at 258. Seven days after surgery I was down to 250#, on November 19th it was 248 and my most recent visit, December 4th, I was 242#. Here is my question. I thought that on Nov. 19th I would get a fill but they thought I should wait. When I went on the 4th, fully expecting to get a fill, he said, "You are doing well. Let's wait until next month to see how you are doing." Has anyone else had this happen? I thought fills were a big part of this surgery. I know I should be happy that I can still eat anything without getting "stuck" but I'm just hoping I don't hit a bit stall in weight loss. I have to have knee surgery on the 29th so I will not be taking any long walks for a while. Has anyone else have a doctor who put off on the fills and how was your weight loss? Thanks!

My doctor is very conservative. I had surgery 9/29 and I have only had 2 fills. I have lost over 40 lbs. He says as long as I am losing, that is what matters. Hope this helps. Dot:smile:

[phyllser 3]

I also remember reading a few posts about the 5-day pouch test. I believe Phyl did something like that last summer to get a jump start when she had hit a slow period. You might pm her to see if she has any information about it.

Phyl---I am very interested in learning more about this 5 day pouch test. I can't seem to set myself straight and am eating what I should not. Please fill us in on the test . Thanks--mimi

Hi,

So sorry I did not see these posts until tonight. Terrible internet connection for the past two weeks, so I was reading posts on my Blackberry and I did not always get the emails. I hope you were able to find the website Denise recommended and found it helpful. I found it by googling "five day pouch test". I did it last summer and found it to be a very positive experience. It gave me a new little jump start and it was actually kind of exhilarating!

Oh and one more thing. Found out at my fill yesterday one of my lab tests came back, I am low in Vitamin B1, anyone else have this happen? I am just to get some over the counter vitamin and take one a day and get retested in 3 mos.

Apparently, Vit. B deficiency can happen because we get a lot of our Vit. B from bread/bread products and typically, bandsters can't or don't eat much bread. I was told to take Vit. B supplements for that reason... esp. Thiamin. My doc found a Vit. D deficiency, which I was really surprised at because I spend a lot of time in the sun. But I guess that is quite common. So when folks tease me about lounging in the hot tub for 30 minutes each day I just grin and tell them I'm working on my Vit. D deficiency!

[2GoodDogs 6]

I could take a hot tub once a day, for my health! Fun!

Haven't been tested, but I take B-12 drops, a Calcium chew, and a Flinstones multi most days. The B-12 has replaced the afternoon coffee.< /p>

Anyone come off a C-Pap? I want to ditch that thing, not sure if I've lost enough weight yet.

[pj_txlady 0]

I could take a hot tub once a day, for my health! Fun!

Haven't been tested, but I take B-12 drops, a Calcium chew, and a Flinstones multi most days. The B-12 has replaced the afternoon coffee.< /p>

Anyone come off a C-Pap? I want to ditch that thing, not sure if I've lost enough weight yet.

What is a C-Pap?

[Lizalee 1]

That's a really good question. I've been noticing that mine is bugging me lately, and I'm sure that I don't need the same pressure rate that it's set at now. I've tried sleeping without it...but I've grown accustomed to it...and am afraid to just stop doing it.

I suppose the answer is to call the doctor...but I don't want to deal with it right now. And like you said, not sure I lost enough weight yet. And, there are normal weight people who still have sleep apnea...

Anybody out there have experience at what point you were able to go off? Did you have to have another sleep study done? What worked for you?

[phyllser 3]

That's a really good question. I've been noticing that mine is bugging me lately, and I'm sure that I don't need the same pressure rate that it's set at now. I've tried sleeping without it...but I've grown accustomed to it...and am afraid to just stop doing it.

I suppose the answer is to call the doctor...but I don't want to deal with it right now. And like you said, not sure I lost enough weight yet. And, there are normal weight people who still have sleep apnea...

Anybody out there have experience at what point you were able to go off? Did you have to have another sleep study done? What worked for you?

Yeah, I think mine needs to be recalibrated, at least. Doc told me to see a pulmonologist last summer... gave me a referral form, but I never got around to it. Will do that for sure when I get home in the spring, but I'm sure it will involve another sleep study. I was just thrilled to be able to drop a cholesterol Rx and both BP pills strength cut in half. CPAP is next, but probably won't be able to go completely without it.

[orea15 0]

I invested in a CPAP machine that senses how I am breathing and adjusts itself to the lowest necessary pressure to keep me breathing properly. I figured either I'd have to suffer through regular sleep studies as I reduced or shell out for the machine and have the exact right pressure every darn night. It also has a flex feature that senses when I am about to exhale and reduces the pressure so I don't have to push against it. I went to Ebay and purchased the cliinician's instructions so I can go in and monitor what's going on. My original prescription (done a year ago) was for a setting of 16, now it is down to 13-13.5 with only two apnea hypopnea episodes per hour. Without the machine, I had 127 episodes in an hour! I'm pretty darn pleased. I love my machine, and never want to sleep without it. I even have it on battery backup in case of a power outage.

[cheryl1952 0]

Flowers,

I went to the surgeons office last Thursday. I had gained 3 lbs not as bad as I had thought but still gained. He added another 1.5 cc which makes me a total of 3 in a 14 cc band. I am trying very hard. I have not attempted bread anymore but I am eating crackers. I have had a virus all weekend so I drink gatorade and eating chicken noodle Soup and crackers. If you have any helpful hints or meals I would really appreciate it.

Thanks,

Cheryl

[cheryl1952 0]

NaniRose,

I see you had surgery on the same day I did. How are you doing?

Cheryl

[twirl 0]

I am being banded on tues

a doctor here had a band in Nov and now she is dead

she died of a massive infection

she was 38 and has twins that just turned 2

she was on vacation in colorado and thought she had altitude sickness and she died in her sleep

on Nov 24

her husband, an attorney, said she second guessed herself, being a doctor, and did not go to a doctor

so-

this doctor was banded in my town maybe by the same doctor I am being banded by

this worries me

I thought no one has ever died from anything to do with the band

please tell me what you think

I am also a dialysis patient and see a doctor every Monday at dialysis

and I have blood work done

and temps and things

should I feel safer

would this worry you

I am afraid

but need to lose weight to get on a kidney transplant list the problem is not so much as losing the weight

as I can not trust myself to lose it and keep it off

please help thanks