Donna34

Thanks Ashley! You have done awesome as well!! I thought I would be happy at 165, and that is what I weighed before my first pregnancy. Now that I'm really close, I keep thinking back to when I weighed 145. Doesn't seem that impossible after losing 81 pounds! What's 20 more right?? LOL You look great also!! Best of luck to you! Donna

Thanks Carrie!! You have made awesome progress as well!!! Doesn't it feel great??? The lap band saved my life, and I LOVE it!! Best money I ever spent! I was scared to death to do my fills too. If my cousin who is a registered nurse hadn't shown me exactly how to do it, I would have never attempted it! I would never advise anyone to do it. If you have a good fill doctor, stick with them! :-) Best of luck on the rest of your weightloss! Donna

Yes Angie, I know exactly what you mean. I've been there. That's why it took me so long to lose this weight. If I had a more aggressive fill doctor, I think I would have lost a lot faster. However....losing slow has been a blessing!! My skin actually shrank gradually while I was losing, so now I don't have a lot of saggy skin like some people get with fast weightloss. I honestly believe that was due to losing more slowly. It got very frustrating at times, but looking back now, it doesn't SEEM that it took that long at all. You will get there. When you get more weight off, it will be easier to feel your port. That is why I'm comfortable with doing my fills now! Best of luck to you! Donna

Thanks Angie!! I love the quote in your signature!! ;-) Donna

Just wanted to say "hi" and let everyone know that I'm almost 3 years out, and STILL LOVE MY BAND!!! I've lost 81 pounds. I have lost it slowly, up until now...seems like I'm losing faster now at the END!!! My original goal was 165. I'm 4 pounds from there!! So, I decided I want to get down to 155 now!! Maybe 145? Who knows?? What I do know, is that if I COULD DO IT, ANYONE CAN!!! Happy Banding!! Love ya Dr. Ortiz!!! Donna

Don't freak out!! Believe it or not, a lot of people don't get restriction until they are at 4cc or a little more with the 4cc band. That was the case with me. I had NO restriction until I was well over 3ccs. Now I'm at at least 4ccs. The good thing is, when you get to that point, it only takes a tiny drop to make ALL the difference! Hang in there! :-) Donna

Hi Margaret! Congrats on the surgery date!!! You won't regret it!! It has changed my life! Yes, I do my own fills, but please let me stress....I DO NOT RECOMMEND DOING IT ON YOUR OWN. The reason I started doing mine was because I had a relative (RN) that trained me. I had lost a LOT of weight before I began doing my fills, so my port is fairly easy to find. You can REALLY mess things up, if you are not careful. Always best to seek an experienced lap band surgeon for fills. Not to mention, it's pretty scary getting the nerve up to stick that needle in your tummy! :-) Good Luck! Donna

I moved to Iowa from Tennessee 3 years ago! I'm dying to go to the zoo in Omaha!! Maybe we can meet up sometime! :-) Donna

Hi Sabrina! It has been a LONG journey for me. I lost about 30 pounds the first 6 months maybe. Then I STOPPED. I mean REALLY stopped!! I was SO frustrated. My fill doctor was putting like one tiny drop at a time in my band. I had NO RESTRICTION. Finally, my cousin who is an RN (and also has a band) gave me a fill. She showed me how to do it, since we live 600 miles away from each other. I FINALLY knew what restriction was all about! I started losing again, just last summer. Now, when I feel like my restriction is gone, I give myself another fill, and I'm off to the races again! LOL But, to answer your question Sabrina....if you STILL have restriction, your body could be just adjusting to a new set point. I hit LOT'S of plateaus. If that is not the case, consider getting another fill to get going, or increase the exercise to see if that helps! I feel like I'm losing faster now, than at the beginning. But, again, that's because my fill Dr, wasn't aggressive enough! :-) Donna

You can never pull out ALL the liquid, so there is generally about 1cc that NEVER comes out of the band. You probably had 4.1cc's. Your PA may have been right. :-) I gave up on trying to keep track of the total a long time ago! LOL Donna

Hey! I haven't been on here in ages! Looks like a completely different group! Just wanted to check in and say, I'm almost 3 years out, and all is well with the band! I feel GREAT!! Still have a little bit of weight to lose, but I'm getting there! STILL LOVE MY BAND! Hope you all are well! Donna

I'm amazed at how you all held up! LOL Now I really feel like a baby! I bawled my eyes out when my oldest daughter started kindergarten. I cried yesterday when my youngest went off to kindergarten, but not like I did with the first one. I don't know why, but I thought I was gonna DIE when the first one started. I guess, it's not so scary this time, cause I know that big sister will be there with her. But, yeah, I feel your pain. Monday was not a happy time for me either! And now.....It's WAYYYYYYY too quiet here!! Donna

Danielle, You are a beautiful girl already!!! AND, you're young! Try not to be upset over this. I know how dissappointed you must feel. It took me over a YEAR to talk my hubby into letting me do this! But, like everyone else has said, there are more ways to lose weight, and I think the high protein diet is one of the best ideas! Also, as others have already said, don't sabotage yourself, by saying "I think I will fail!" Get excited about this!!! Start a daily journal, and write down EVERYTHING you eat, and start adding exercise. I do this myself. You can do this, and you will feel SO PROUD OF YOURSELF for doing it on your own!!! Donna

I definitley understand where you are coming from! My fills WERE extremely expensive as well. I also got to the point where I wasn't losing, and just couldn't afford to keep getting fills that were basically doing nothing for me. It is SOOOOO frustrating! I had some Cambridge diet product on hand, and thought I would do that in the meantime. That didn't last one day! LOL If I were you, I'd just try to count calories, and maybe add a few more minutes of exercise until I could afford a fill. I'm assuming your cost for fills is coming out of pocket. Have you exhausted all your options for doctors that will do fills? It never hurts to call all the bariatric centers in your area, just to see if they will do a fill, and find out what they charge. Sometimes you might find a doctor that will do it cheaper. Also, if you have been having fills with fluoro, (which is way MORE expensive) think about having an experienced doctor that does blind fills to do it. This is usually a cheaper route. I got lucky because my cousin who is an RN has started doing fills, and she does mine now. For the FIRST time since I got banded, I finally have restriction. REAL restriction. I cannot tell you what a difference it makes! Hang in there, and try not to get discouraged. This band is ALL you need to lose weight, and with proper adjustments...you WILL. Good luck! Donna