fat2nrml

Bread of any type is a no-no for me.... I've tried a couple different things since my last fill in Feb. and it gets stuck. I have eaten a few bites of pizza here and there but have never gotten past 2 or 3 bites. I really thought I'd miss bread more than I do. I just kind of avoid it without even realizing it.... I had a hamburger on the grill today [it's a beautiful day in Pennsylvania!!] and put mine on the plate with some ketchup and vidalia onion [no bun] and it was AWESOME!!

I started taking Biotin about 3 months prior to banding and have taken it ever since. I've been banded for over a year now and lost over 40lbs with no hair loss. I read that alot of people do lose alot of hair after banding. Talk to your Doc to see what would be the best thing for you to do. I highly recommend the Biotin. Best wishes, Darlene

About the port.... my port is located above and to the left of my belly button. It doesn't stick out, I can feel it if I push around for it. Some people have had their port repositioned after they lost their weight to hide it a little better. I don't expect to be wearing string bikinis so I'm not worried about my port showing. I have my scars from the banding, also for appendix and a laproscopic hystorectomy. I think of them as my battle scars...hehehehe! Best wishes! I remember your excitement... I felt the same way.... a new life!!!

Hello! I'm 5' 5.5" tall and weighed 214 when I decided to get banded. I weighed 208 on surgery day and now weigh 171. I still need to lose about 30lbs., it's been slow going but I need to get my rear in gear and work WITH my band. [i haven't been a good bandster and have been 'eating around it'.] I went to Dr. Ortiz to have my surgery in TJ and would do it all over again if I had to. No one here in the states would touch me either cause of my low BMI. Besides that, I'd rather have Dr. Ortiz do my surgery, he's an expert and I don't think any doc in the world has done as many lap band surgeries as he has. No worries, you'll be very safe with the OCC, they transport you everywhere you need to go. You won't regret choosing the OCC, they're the best!!! Best wishes, Darlene

Dr. O did my surgery March '08 and I'd do it again in a heart beat!! I was scared too, but there's no reason to be. I decided not to tell anyone [only Hubby, 2 kids and one friend know and I'm regreting telling the friend...] I went by myself, flew from Pa. and everything was fine. I didn't go anywhere alone, I went with 2 other bandsters when I went shopping. The Lucerna Hotel is very nice and you can get pretty much everything you'll need from them. I would recommend Dr. O and staff to anyone thinking of having lap band surgery. I had all three of my fills done there too, took Hubby and daughter once, went by myself once and took my daughter the third time. Relax and enjoy, it's a breeze and a nice stay in TJ. P.S. The men on Dr.O's staff are all easy on the eyes too!! Best wishes, Darlene

Best wishes on your up coming fill!! Good luck and hang in there!! Darlene

My tests came back OK so doc thinks it was severe constipation. I will not let that happen again! I bought some Plumsmart juice and drink 8oz a day. Hopefully that'll keep me on track! Sure hope you're feeling a little better... keep us updated! Darlene

How are you feeling?????

You go Boy!!!!!!! CONGRATS!!

Hey Ramona, Merideth told me about it on Facebook. She didn't explain, just said it eroded and it had to come out.... I feel bad for her! I'd be sick if I had to get mine out, after all this, [hers was probably covered by insurance, huh?] all that money down the tubes UUUUUGGGGHHHHHH!!! I hope the removal goes smoothly! Thinking of you and Merideth, Darlene

I'm going through something similar right now. Mine started as low, low back pain that hurt clean through to my front. Mine's also on my low, left side. It got to the point where it hurt to lift my left leg to get into the car. I tried heating pads and then I'd switch to ice packs on my back, it helped a little, but not enough. I took ibuprophen which took the edge off. I finally went to the doc [family doc, who know's I'm banded.] He ordered blood work and a pelvic scan, but said he thinks it's constipation. He gave me some samples of Senekot [fiber pills] and I took them everyday for a week. I feel about 80% better, but there's still a dull ache in my lower left side. [i do recommend the Senekot, they work really well without cramping like a laxative and you can buy them at Walmart.] My labs and scan results aren't back yet, I will let you know when they are. I never had trouble with constipation until my third fill which was Feb. 19th. I've been under ALOT of stress [who isn't, huh?] so I'm hoping it's just a combo of stress and constipation. Good luck and please don't wait to get checked out. It could be very serious if your intestines twist [which is why I went to the doc.] Take care and please keep us updated. Darlene

I found that extremely cold drinks [icy] made my shoulder area hurt really bad in the first few months after being banded. I would sip on room temp water or hot tea and the pain would ease. I don't know that the pain in the shoulder area is all gas pain, I think it's more pain from the band itself. It does ease after a while. I think I'd take PAMMIES advice, go back for a recheck since you're so close. I sure hope you feel better soon. Try the warm to hot only drinks for awhile and see if that helps any. My port was tender for months, but now it doesn't bother me at all. I was also bruised for MONTHS... my doc thought it was from the ginko I was taking so I stopped and the bruises healed. Best wishes, Darlene

Hey Mona!!! Sorry to hear you're feeling bad! I can't do raw carrots either, they always get stuck. I can eat them steamed though, I do really like them. I would just take it easy for a day or 2, just do liquids and let your stomach rest. I hope you feel better! ((((((HUGS))))))) Darlene

I get the gurgle in my throat more so than my gut, but I can hear it too. I don't think anyone else has heard my gurgling though. In the mornings, when I'm really tight is when I notice it. I think it's pretty normal???? Darlene

Awesome post!! I've kinda reach the point you're talking about, but my restriciton has been coming and going. I'm afraid to get another fill yet, I have days that I'm VERY tight. When my band is tight, I find I don't obsess about food. I can tell the days it's looser, food is on my mind ALOT! As soon as my last fill 'evens out', I'll see about getting my band tweeked. I like the feeling when I'm not worried about food every second of the day..... I just get in what I can and like you said, I don't count anything. I'm almost there and I can do this! I get frustrated but I know it's coming. Everyone's different and I have to remind myself of that all the time. Congrats Katy and thanks for sharing!! Darlene

:lb24: :lb10: :lb13: :cheerleader: :girl_dance: YOU SHOULD BE SO PROUD!!!!! Job well done! Darlene P.S. I can't wait till I'm there!!!!

Best advice is WALK, WALK, WALK AND SIP, SIP, SIP!!! :yes: I went shopping the next day with another bandster and her friend on Revolution Ave. and I think that really helped. I found that warm [room temp.] to hot drinks worked better than cold or icy drinks. Cold stuff seemed to give me that shoulder pain, or at least made it worse. As for the burping.... I found out [by accident] that when I bent over, like to straighten a carpet, I burped. I don't know why, maybe it squashed it out because of my bloated gut, but I would bend over on purpose to make myself burp. My port was tender for a couple of months after my surgery. I'm sure everyone's different though. I was told to watch for redness, swelling and\or hot feeling in your incisions Best wishes, Darlene

I'd call your Doc about the port pain, it's probably OK but better safe than sorry. My port was tender for a long time too and I remember asking about it. I was told to watch for redness, swelling and\or hot feeling in that area and to call Doc right away if any of that happened. [it didn't.] I know it took a couple months before my port pain went completely away. As for the bread... it sounds like you had your first slimimg episode. It's totally normal. I'm pretty much off bread now, had it once since my third fill and I PB'd it. Best wishes, Darlene

I know it's already been mentioned, but I've taken Biotin for over a year now and haven't had any hair loss. I get my hair highlighted and permed with no trouble. Best wishes, Darlene

Thanks for sharing, it just shows what the band and a little determination can do!!! AWESOME!!!!!

Thank goodness you're alright!!! It's so easy to blame aches and pains on the band because it's a new thing in our bodies.... I'm so glad you realized that it had to be something more!! You take care of yourself and keep us updated on your progress. > Darlene

I guess that's what I thought too, that I'd be like some of the others on the forum and lose the weight in a few months. Well, I wasn't like them at all and I'm losing the way ' I ' should. I don't weigh that often, but I can tell with my clothes that I'm losing. I think that's probably one of the biggest mistakes of made during this journey, comparing my success and struggles with others. I read on here DOZENS of times that we shouldn't compare ourselves to each other... IT'S SO TRUE!! I wish I'd lose faster, God knows, but I've lost 43lbs. in almost a year. What would I weigh now if I hadn't gotten the band??!! I was always overweight but just before banding, I was at my highest weight ever [without being pregnant.] I gained 50lbs in 2 years.... I'd probably weigh 250 or more by now!! Carrie's right, we have to live OUR lives, try our best and dust ourselves off and try again when we mess up. We'll do this, with each others support, because I know that you all have helped me through some really rough patches!! OK, I've rambled on enough.... I love you guys!!! Darlene >

Thanks Ladies!! I'm still struggling with my restriction,,,, you know how that goes, but I'm finally getting the whole 'food' thing. It's been awhile since I've tried bread. I was one of those people who said I'd NEVER give up bread, I love it too much... I don't really miss it!! I made homemade vegetable beef soup today [OMG is it good!] and Hubby got a fresh loaf of italian bread and I never touched it! Normally I would have ate 1\2 the loaf myself!! My soup was so good and filling that I didn't even crave the bread. My weight hasn't changed for about 1 week, but I'm not gonna fret... it'll come off like it has been, slowly. Thanks again everyone, I truly appreciate your kind words! Darlene

When I started this journey, almost 2 years ago since I started looking into lapbanding, I knew I had a big time problem with food. When I thought about losing weight I'd always get frustrated because of my love affair with food. I've lost and gained weight a thousand times over the years and ended up gaining it all back plus some extra pounds. I read all the posts on this forum, [i just happened upon it] asked questions and got advice from alot of really sweet people. I knew it would take something drastic for me to finally lose this weight and keep it off. I wasn't going to be one of those people who have all the will power and make up their minds that they're going to change the way they live their lives... it wasn't in me anymore, I'd kind of lost hope. I read about the 'restriciton' that people felt with the band, that they could not over eat or they'd sick it back up. That's when I realized 'Oh my God, that's what I need!!' I don't remember who made the post, but it was some months ago, they said that food didn't have the same appeal anymore and that eating in general had become a pain in the ass.... that's where I'm at now! I get it, I understand!! It's not that I don't enjoy the food I'm eating because I really do, it's just that it's so much trouble to eat most foods and it's not worth trying, puking or hurting. This is what I needed to happen to me to finally end my love affair with food, this worked for me. Nothing was going to keep me from losing and gaining over and over again except the band. The bands there, I'm certainly not getting rid of it and I will keep up with my fills so I stay 'tweeked'. I'm not sure if anyone else feels this way, but this was my ah-ha moment. I have the band, I'm working with the band and it may take awhile, but I lose this weight and I WON'T gain it back!!! Instead of a love affair with food I'm having a love affair with my band!!! :give_heart: I LOVE MY BAND!!!!!

You must be singing from the roof tops!!!!! :yes: