the~new~nikki

I went through the same thing...it was like the minute I woke from surgery I felt hungry! I know they say it was "head hunger" but I gotta tell ya...hunger feels like hunger and if I was good at fighting that feeling, I wouldn't be here in the first place! LOL I felt hungry ALL THE TIME for the first 10 days or so.....then I felt a bit better with the creamy soups but not completely satisfied ever. I just suffered through...I don't know how....until I could EAT! That shaved ice machine sounds like yummy fun! Just know you can vent, cry and whine to us all you want and we actually know how you feel!

I am glad it helped! I was feeling really, really nervous about this whole thing before I got my second fill. I was starting to wonder if I did the right thing by getting banded....but now I see how this tool can help....just a slower process than I expected. I feel like I did a lot of research about the surgery, what foods we can eat and so on...but I just didn't think it would take multiple fills right out of the gate to get this thing going! Now that it has been 9 days since the 2nd fill, I can tell you that sometimes I can eat easy things like eggs with no problem and I am sitting down to eat some now and they are not going down well. It is just a really weird thing...no predictability whatsoever....all I know is that I am eating LESS and feeling hungry LESS! That is all I want! LOL

Hey, Paula! I had no restriction whatsoever with our first fill. I went to the closest Fill Centers USA location which was just outside of Charlotte, NC (4 hours away thank you very much...) and the doctor there was SUPER nice and seemed REALLY knowledgable. I believe I was his 20th fill just that week! Anyway, he told me that it is a misconception that everyone will have restriction with their first fill. He said that it is better if you don't. It is safer and getting a huge fill right out of the gate will only lead to bad things. He wished that we all knew that it was a slow and tedious process to get to the proverbial "sweet spot". Anyway, I got 1.2cc on my first fill in TJ. This doc gave me another 1.2cc and made me chug tons of water to make sure I was getting the right feeling with the water. He wanted me to be able to drink pretty rapidly and then feel it kind of stop....I felt waterlogged but he wanted to get it right! So I did the 2 days of liquids and let me tell you the 2nd fill is NOTHING like the 1st. I eat 3 or 4 bites of food and I am STUFFED like I ate a whole rack of ribs with all the fixin's! And it lasts for 4-5 hours before I feel a twinge of hunger. This is SO new to me. I am used to living in hunger. I was like a bottomless pit! So don't be stressed....we were just under the assumption that 1 fill would be some sort of miracle....the doctor stressed to me that if I got a huge fill right away I would have had many problems and really could have hurt myself. Keep in mind that your health and using this new tool in the correct fashion is WAY more important that losing weight quickly. We want to lose the weight in a good manner and KEEP IT OFF! You will get there...just know that it may be 1 or 2 more fills to get to the sweet spot. Nikki

Be careful about sharing ride costs! Paula and I did this and notified Lori at the center, had her confirm it and they wanted to charge us the full price of the ride!

Yes, I love the clinic, happy with how the surgery and hotel went, but this fill trip was unorganized. Even if they didn't have you listed for a room, you paid for it! We both paid the same amount! I am going to email Lori...I think you should too so she knows that they are backing out on their offer!

You look UNBELIEVABLE! What an inspiration!

Little off topic but, Paula, have you received a call from Claudia? She left me a voicemail message about our "issue" with sharing the transportation cost. Message sounded like they still think we should have paid more. I am NOT happy....and haven't called her back yet. I wanted to see if you had been contacted. By the way, I had my first "meal" today. I had a salad with some chicken on top. I was scared TO DEATH that I was going to PB or something at work but so far so good. Ate 1/2 the salad and I am STUFFED. Are you feeling it yet? Nikki

I am sure you are right. Sounds like the fills are done so quickly that they just take you when they can. See you both tomorrow!

I am the one meeting Paula at the airport! Yippee! Now there are 3 of us....let's see what kind of trouble we can stir up! LOL I am kind of wondering how we are all going to get back there in time, I mean you are arriving at 10 and Paula and I are closer to 11 so I would think he would wait for all of us before heading back down to TJ.... Nikki

Speaking of scars, does anyone know if getting some sun on them make them fade faster or make them show up worse in the long run or no long term effects? I was banded on 3/26/08 so I am only 6 weeks post op. I am trying to not look so pasty but I don't want to do inhibit the healing. I know, I know, we are supposed to be staying out of the sun ANYWAY...but...hey, a tan always makes you look thinner!

When Dr. Miranda told me that the sticky rice won't go down, I immediately thought about how to get my sushi fix (I eat it twice a week at least). I have been ordering edamame, house salad with ginger dressing and a variety of sashimi. I have been thinking about just getting hand rolls and having them put my favorite stuff in them and skip the rice but then I was wondering if that much nori (seaweed) would be hard to break down and get stuck like the rice! This is a dilemma we MUST figure out. Life without sushi is a life not worth living....(being a bit dramatic but you know what I mean!)

I changed into some sweats a t-shirt and socks when I woke up and could function. Just keep in mind that you are going to be getting up and walking a lot.

Yeah, this whole thing is super confusing. What Lori told me is that if you just get the fill w/floro it is $100. Just transportation is $100 (that you can split with people) and then the Lucerna is $79. You can do all three together or use whatever services you need.

It is 279 for the fill w/floro, 1 night in the Lucerna and transportation from the airport and back. Me and another bandster are getting filled on May 6. We are splitting the transportation cost (which makes it 229 for each of us) and flying back early the next morning. Might be a good idea for you to stay the night just in case something doesn't feel right. If you went with us you would pay about 200 as they actually charge 100 of that original 279 for the transportation and you can split it with whomever shares the ride. Nikki

Perfect! I get there at 10:20 and my appt is at 1:30 so we can easily share the ride! Yippee! Yeah, I booked the same deal. When does your flight leave on the 7th? My flight out is at 1pm. I just emailed Lori to get the ball rolling on the cost share. (I had replied to your other post, but I reposted this under (fill trips to TJ) hoping we could round up some more and lessen the cost even more!) Nikki

I have scheduled my first fill for May 6th and will be spending one night at the Lucerna to make sure everything is all right. I will be flying in to San Diego at 10:30am and leaving on the 7th at noon. Anyone want to share the price of the transportation down there? Nikki

I am trying! I tentatively booked my fill for 5/6 at 1:30 but now I have to find a flight....I just contacted OCC to get the straight scoop on the costs.... 279- fill, transportation, hotel 1 night 199- fill, transportation 100- fill only So if we are splitting transportation, it would be $50 each! Not too shabby. Are you going to spend the night there just to make sure everything is ok? Nikki

I have thought about it but it seems to be getting better. I am almost at my 3 week post op point and I am being smarter about what actions I take.

That sounds SOOO good. I am also lactose intolerant and have had a really hard time with the yogurt and protein shakes. I have had NO problem with cream of chicken and mushroom soup. Thank God because I am so picky, I really didn't like anything else!

I was banded on 3/26 and I have a real tenderness at the port site as well. You aren't alone....I do notice that if I gently hold that area, it feels a bit better. I know I pushed the limits a few times with trying to wash the dog in the tub and using my abs too much. So now I have a stinky dog! Stinky dog is MUCH better than that pain!!!

I was banded on 3/26 so I have a ways to go before solids. For some odd reason, I am doing FINE with all liquid. No cravings...yet. During my meeting with Dr. Miranda, she told me the "ouch" foods were bread, bagels, flour tortillas and sticky rice. Can an experienced bander tell me if we can have pasta, couscous, regular rice and other types of carbs without having negative outcomes? I have heard that corn tortillas/chips and toasted bread or melba toast works fine....just trying to figure out my limitations without finding out the hard way! Thanks all!!!

Thanks for the help! I will go get some IMMEDIATELY....

That is what I have heard....walk.....but when I walk it gets exponentially worse! I MADE myself walk and walk and I about passed out from the pain. It seems if I lay flat and slow down my breathing and heartrate it goes away after a while....I am day 7 after surgery....I hope this goes away soon!

I was banded on 3/26 and think I have done relatively well with all aspects of recovery/healing/nasty post-op diet.....HOWEVER about 4 days post-op I unfortunately got the dreaded shoulder gas pain. If I drink even one sip of ANYTHING I immediately get the sharp knife in the left shoulder. I walk and it gets worse, I breathe and it gets worse. The one and ONLY thing I can do to get rid of it is to lay flat down for 10 min or so....kind of hard when you are at work. Gas-X strips do nothing...any suggestions? UGH, Nikki

Don't worry at all about that. They don't discuss your weight, goal or any gory details. They just explain what they are going to do and mostly just ask YOU if you have any question....rest assured...it is a great experience! I just got banded yesterday and I am up and walking around town! Nikki