BrandNewDawn

ckiki, If you have not done so already, go back to the site that you used to create you ticker and sign in and update your ticker. If that does not work, I would just create a new ticker and copy and paste the new ticker link to your signature and see if that worked. Good luck. Dawn

I am over a year into my lapband journey and I do not drink carbonated drinks. I was a die hard Diet Coke addict too and had tried to curb that bad habit before being banded so going back to drinking it now after successfully kicking it is just something that I do not want to do. Same with my husband who has the lapband too. I was never a beer drinker but I do still occasionally have a glass of wine or a mixed drink. Even that is rare though, but it was rare before being banded. I agree with Lisa, there is quite a bit of self-sabotaging and just down right self-destructive behavior that got us to the point of needing a lapband in the first place and those behaviors will not just automatically stop because we have a lapband now. We still have to take responsibility for our behavior. And... a lifetime of poor eating behavior does not change in a few months, or in my case, in more than a year. That is why I try to be so diligent in NOT picking back up a negative behavior. Ultimately, it is ALWAYS up to us how we manage our lapband tool. Dawn

Angie, Good luck with your 3rd fill. It is a learning curve and it is a challenge! But, I know you will succeed. The only thing that ever worked for me as far as binge eating was concerned was NOT having my binge trigger foods in the house to begin with. But, that will only work if you have trigger foods. If you are not particular about what you binge on, and if just any old food will do, then that would not work for you. For instance, we do not keep ice cream in the house. Sometimes I try to bring it back in for my kids, but it does not work and I have to ban it from the house again. I even try getting weird flavors that I do not like. It just does not work. I hate slime-ing worse than PB-ing. Yuck is the word. Take care. Dawn

Hey Robbynnoel, Welcome back. I was just thinking about you the other day, wondering how your move to Texas went? I hope all went well and that you are settled. Good luck with your fill. I hope you have good restriction. Dawn

JennV, Some people experience hair loss after surgery but certainly not everyone. I had my lapband for a year before I noticed a large amount of hair loss. I started taking biotin and started being more careful to get my protein in. Usually it is a lack of protein that contributes to hair loss. Does it grow back? Mine has stopped falling out now and I suppose it will grow back. I think the biotin helped more than the protein but it could just be a general increase in the amount of calories I am eating since I have weighed the same now for months. Any rapid weight loss can make your hair fall out, add in the surgery and the low level of calories many lapband patients consume and it really is no surprise that many of us have problems with hair loss. It will grow back. Take Biotin and watch your protein levels. Good luck with your surgery. Dawn

Vicki, This is my THEORY, when the food gets stuck and comes back up at the first meal, it causes swelling and irritation in the esophagus. Then, when we add more food, even if it has been several hours, that swelling and irritation has caused us to close up and the next food sticks and comes back up. But...by the next morning, the swelling has gone down and we are able to eat again. If the swelling has not gone down enough from the day before, the whole scenario may repeat, until the swelling has a chance to go down. When I was first banded, I would put myself back on liquids for the rest of the day once food came back up. Some people were going on liquds for 3 days after PB-ing just to be safe with the swelling. As for why food gets stuck in the first place, your guess is as good as mine. Eating behavior could be some of it, not chewing enough, taking too big of a bite, eating too fast, and then there is the very common "too tight" for breakfast syndrome, stress, cold weather, time of month, fluid levels, etc. etc. etc. Not much help I know. Hope you are feeling better. Dawn

Wow Nicole, I hope you are feeling better. I was surprised to hear that your doctors were able to get an additional 0.9cc out of your "unfilled" band within the last week. Just another tidbit of information to add to our increasing inventory of information, "unfilled" does not necessarily mean "unfilled." That seems like a lot of fluid to still have in your band when you thought you were unfilled and when you had been having problems with irritation and such. I knew about the fluids stretching your pouch if you were too tight. Someone else posted about it before but it is good to have it confirmed again by another doctor. My 21 Day diet is a year old (March/08) but is pretty much the same as Diana's. My list says fruit juice should be diluted with water by half and the list includes Gatorade, and Protein water. It also gives a range of days to add yogurt (day 4-8) and a range for liquid protein shakes (day 6-10). And the range for creamy soup (no chunks) is day 7-11. With the "if you can't drink it, don't eat it" warning! I blended when I was on liquids but I have heard the newer information says that we are not supposed to. Take care. I hope they have your band really empty this time so that you can heal and get that irritation under control. Dawn

That is so cool that you weigh seven pounds less than you thought you did. Congratulations! It does sound like you need a new scale. I have a digital Taylor scale I bought at Costco last year that works good. Before I bought that one I had a regular (not digital) scale that worked good too. I DO NOT keep my scale in the bathroom though, all that moisture and humidity is not good for the electronics and the working metal parts. But, you know there are always going to be weight variances between scales for many reasons, clothing/shoes, different time of day, fluid/food retention, etc. Ideally you should only weigh yourself on the same scale, placed on the same hard (no carpet),even floor surface, at the same time of day and in the same type of clothing or without clothing. I like my digital scale because I no longer have to step on and off over and over again to make sure that the pointer is set on zero. Dawn

Shy and Diana, I have noticed this too. But, I have also noticed that if I let myself get really hungry by going too long without food, that I start off eating too fast and taking larger bites than I should and/or not chewing enough. I have to make an effort to slow down or right away my food will back up and the problems will begin and I will end up with little or no real food for the entire day. So, for me, it is a eating behavior problem. I am not saying that is what it is for you and it is interesting that others have this same issue. Dawn

I was 5'7"/225 and a 1X.

Stormy, I have a book that says the loose-ness could be caused by the loss of the fatty tissue that occurs naturally around the upper part of the stomach and is actually inside the band and decreases as we lose weight. As that fat goes away, the stomach channel has room to expand even though the band has the same amount of fluid in it. That situation requires a fill adjustment. Now, I do not think that is the cause of the come and go tightness that Sabrina is talking about but it certainly could be the cause of sudden looseness that does not tighten back up again. I would still wait awhile just to be certain you really have "no restriction" over a series of days. You do not want to go in for a fill and then be too tight and have to go for an unfill. Good luck.

Sabrina, Just be careful that you do not stay so tight as to cause a slip or so much irritation and swelling of your esophagus that you will have to be completely unfilled and have to start over from stratch. Also, it seems from reading on other sites that once this swelling thing starts, it has a tendency to reoccur and sometimes result in removal of the lapband at some point down the line. When I had my surgery, there was a lady there getting her second lapband, first one had to be removed because she said she kept her band too tight for too long. Too tight lapband can cause a slip. Take care of your band too!

Nicole, I hope everything turns out okay with your band. Please let us know how it goes next week. Take care. Dawn

Smiley, I love milk too. And cheese...don't even get me started on cheese! Pretty much all things dairy!! LisaLaw, I want to know what you are using too! Come on, tell!! I want to look 37 again!!

I thought the lack of sunshine was the reason they government started putting it in the milk supply many years ago. I do not know exactly when, I will have to look that up. It is still there, my milk is fortified with vitamin A and D. Maybe it is still not enough or maybe we are not drinking enough milk!

I believe you should shop for a liquid antiacid to use in place of ice cream for your heart burn. Medicines created specifically for the reduction of heartburn will work better anyway. Ice cream is not a liquid. It is considered a "slider food" because it is so easy to eat and is not well restricted by the lapband (if at all). Although I personally do not have NO NO foods, it is best to avoid or at least severely restrict these types of foods from our diets because this is what got us to the point where we needed a lapband in the first place. Any food that I have a hard time managing on my own (ice cream, chips, chocolate, etc.) are the items I put on my "list" of foods to avoid. Since food is so individual, you will have to develop your own list of foods that you need to stay away from in order to be successful with your lapband. If, as you say, you can stop with a "simple spoonful" of ice cream to ease your heartburn then you have way better self control than I do. Best of luck to you. Dawn

Path, Heartburn/acid reflux, regurgitation, and not being able to tolerate liquids are all symptoms of a too tight band. The liquid thing is an emergency, human beings do not do well without fluids. I do not understand how water retention or body water levels could cause any of these symptoms. Someone on this forum said that a fill doctor told them pouch enlargement can also be caused by a too tight band. You did not say whether or not your symptoms improved after your fill was removed. I hope that they have and that you are feeling better. Many of us have "been there" when it comes to a too tight fill. Dawn

Magpel, I do not think that the tickerfactory site saves password info so if you forget/forgot your password, you will just have to make a new ticker. Dawn

Sabrina, I have read some studies that say our lean skeletal mass and lean body mass MAY increase as we gain weight and MAY NOT revert back to normal upon losing weight. Perhaps that is why people who start at heavier weights (higher BMI)are given higher goal weights than people who start at lower weights (lower BMI). I do not know. The studies are out their if you care to search for them and do not mind reading through research data and medical jargon but the findings are not concrete. Personally, I do not think any of us should be allowing someone else to pick a goal weight for us off of a chart put together by "professionals" to measure general population trends. BMI is only one way to measure a healthy weight. Sabrina: I think you are on to a winning formula for yourself when you say you feel normal, have curves in all the right places, and wear a size 14 and you feel fantastic. That is such a positive and self-affirming attitude and one of the best things that I have ever read on this forum! Good for you. Keep that healthy and positive attutude. Dawn

Michelle, I am sorry that the lapband did not work out for you. Best wishes as you pursue the traditional diet and exercise method of losing weight. Come back and check in from time to time. Dawn

Stormy, You look great. Thanks for posting. Dawn

Red, Best wishes. Dawn

LL, I saw a Vitamin D3 liquid at my Costco just yesterday. (San Diego area) I did not buy it because I did not know whether or not it would taste good and it was 2 bottles and apple berry flavored. I think you could mix it with water or juice. I will wait and see if they sample it one of these days or maybe someone else has tried it!! I do not remember all of the particulars about the liquid. Looked at too much vitamin stuff yesterday I guess!! I do not know if all of the Costco stores carry the same items. If you decide to try it, let me know how it tastes. D.

Vitamin A is a fat soluble vitamin. Fat soluble vitamins (A, E, D, K) are stored in our fat. They can build up to toxic levels (you can get too much of them) so it is a good idea to have your doctor test you after you have taken them for a while. LisaLaw, if you are taking other prescription drugs, perhaps one of those drugs is inhibiting the abosrption of the Vitamin D. So...yes...like you said, we can be doing things right and still get a less desirable result. We cannot control all the variables. Sorry to hear that you are having pain. If that is what the surgery is for, I hope you have a successful surgery and that you heal quickly. Take care all! Dawn

Yikes!! Just the thought of dressing rooms and mirrors and bad lighting makes me break out into a sweat. I do not like trying on stuff at the store either. Separates are definitely the way to go for all of us well endowed girls. I hope you find something that you like. Dawn