Newly Banded Nov 1, 2006 Mom and Son

[Teri]

Thanks Pam, how are yo doing?????????

I took the 3 hour drive up to Showlow yesterday with my dear hubby. I had .4cc let out. I feel better. Wendy, the fill Dr. comes again on Mar 19, so I will go back to adjust if necessary. I was up chucking every time I drank water or anything, not good. To scary.

Teri

[Pamela]

I am doing pretty good but I don't have much restriction. My first fill is scheduled for April 14th so I hope it goes well. I don't want to have too much restriction like you have been experiencing. I need enough so that I feel full longer. I am at a stand still with my weight loss but that is to be expected. I need to up my exercise to boost my metabolism. I have been slacking on that because I am running errands and getting ready for a family vacation to Florida over Spring Break (next week). I'll be hitting the gym up at least 4 days per week when I get back from my trip. I feel great and I am more focused on not gaining any weight back before my first fill.

Keep up the good work!!!

[Teri]

I am doing pretty good but I don't have much restriction. My first fill is scheduled for April 14th so I hope it goes well. I don't want to have too much restriction like you have been experiencing. I need enough so that I feel full longer. I am at a stand still with my weight loss but that is to be expected. I need to up my exercise to boost my metabolism. I have been slacking on that because I am running errands and getting ready for a family vacation to Florida over Spring Break (next week). I'll be hitting the gym up at least 4 days per week when I get back from my trip. I feel great and I am more focused on not gaining any weight back before my first fill.

Keep up the good work!!!

How are you doing Pamela? Hope your family vacation to Fla was wonderful! We were suppose to go, but didnt make the stand by thing. We'll book another time that's not so busy, and when the 2 airline companys are finished merging.

Kyle and I are trying so hard to figure out the proper level of restriction. The band is so so unpredictable about fills for us. .05cc is huge. You wouldnt think so, but when you've been at 2.6, and can eat 3 slices of pizza, and they inject 1cc to bring you up to 2.7cc and you cannot hold down even a sip of water without pbing, what is a person to do. We have it very narrowed to the correct level, but then things change with the band. It lossens it tightens, everyday, and you never know when that will happen. Working out is great to help boost the metabolism and build necessary muscle. I went in yesterday for a slight fill which brought me to 2.65cc. Not a whole lot, but maybe just enough. We'll see. Kyle is up to 2.9cc and is doing better. I wish there was a magic number right off the bat. Some people are very lucky to hit that sweet spot, and others are not. Everyone is different, and every band dictates the necessary fill amount, and that is why it is a great tool, for the adjustability factor. After paying so much money, and after several attempts to be on target with fills, your level of patience with fills is something you constantly think about getting correct, because you want the process to "start". If your not on target with fills, your back to your old way of eating, which is how we all lapbanders gain. Anyway, it's good your staying focused.

Teri

[Teri]

Close to 5 month update

Kyle has gone from 225 to 194..........31 pounds down

and I have gone from 185 to 162.......23 pounds down

54 pounds together! There's alot more energy around our house! LOL

Teri

[cyndiwilson]

Congratulations to both of you- I have been very bust since starting school and my new job------ but I love it ---I am down to 210 from 267 and I feel great - we are going to Vegas this weekend and then taking a little time off next week for family in town----can't wait till it gets a little warmer in the pool -----I fell in on saturday while doing yard work -- the kids died laughing after I told them it was okay to laugh ---it was a little chilly it is holding at about 72 degrees but that is still way to cold for me ---I am contemplating on getting a fill it would be my 2nd fill since my 6 week check in back at the end of Novemeber but everytime I say that the scale moves a little ----soooooo save the money I guess---especially with Wendy here once a month I may try her I printed the numbers off from a earlier post if I need to go for a fill----butttttt I swear I will get on the scale int he morning andit will have dropped jus that .8 of a lb and that is what keeps me motivated -----I LOVE MY BAND

CYNDI

[Pamela]

Teri,

My Florida vacation was fantastic. We had so much fun but my eating habits went down the tubes. I began to munch on fattening sweet items and fast food. I still ate much less than before the band but I was feeling pretty guilty. Also, we drank a margarita or two almost every night. I was relieved to find out that I only gained 2 pounds. I guess all that walking at Universal Studios and SeaWorld paid off.

I got back from Florida on Monday night and I went to the gym on Tuesday and Wed. I don't think I'll go tonight because of all the stormy weather here in Oklahoma.

I know it is time for a fill!! I can eat too much at a time and I am not feeling full fast enough or for very long. I am driving to Dallas Texas for my first fill on April 14th. I sure hope that it works for me because it is a 2 to 3 hour drive. The cost is $250 so I won't be getting a bunch of them. Hopefully, this will help me for a few months. I know the band is so fickle so I'll just have to wait and see.

Sounds like you and Kyle are doing a great job on your weight loss. I know it hasn't been easy but it is well worth it. Obesity leads to so many health problems so any weight loss is great for your health!

Keep up the good work!

[Teri]

Thanks so much Cyndi and Pamela!

Cyndi - You are doing terrific. Funny about the pool-falling in! oh my gosh, LOL. how is your energy level????? gotta love it!!

Pamela - Only gaining 2 pounds is nothing. Hey, food and drinks are close to the best part of a vacation!! And when you get your fill, your band will help you to stay on track. Aprils just around the corner!

Teri

[Teri]

Wow- Whipeee! Another 3 pounds gone!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Down 27 pounds this morning. I was shocked, and the scale read 158.0 from 161.2. I feel so much lighter and I feel I have so much energy. I do love this band!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! and I love being back into the 150's!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yahoo Magoo~~~~~~~~~~~ just being silly.

Hey, yesterday was 5 months since surgery!

Teri

[Pamela]

Wow Terri!!! You are doing great! I can't wait to get my first fill on April 14th. I don't have any restriction now and find myself eating big portions of food. This is not good but I am going to work out hard this week to burn some much needed calories. COME ON FILL!! I hope my first fill will help slow my roll. I want to drop so more weight before this summer. I am ready to buy some smaller clothes!!!

Keep up the good work!

[Teri]

Wow Terri!!! You are doing great! I can't wait to get my first fill on April 14th. I don't have any restriction now and find myself eating big portions of food. This is not good but I am going to work out hard this week to burn some much needed calories. COME ON FILL!! I hope my first fill will help slow my roll. I want to drop so more weight before this summer. I am ready to buy some smaller clothes!!!

Keep up the good work!

Oh Thanks bunches Pamela. Your fill is coming up.!!!! It's April already, and your less then a couple of weeks. It does make a big difference. Kyle and I gained all our weight back before the first fill. We tried not to, but it was around Christmas and New Years. Lots of food, family, parties, wine, etc. Plus, all our favorite restarants we long for and miss in MI since we are in AZ. Anyway, I cannot believe it, but it's another 2 pounds down tonight for a total of 29 pounds. It IS SUCH A GREAT FEELING!!!!!!!!!!!!! You'll be dropping pounds in no time. Good Luck between now and your fill!

Teri

[Teri]

OK. Oh my gosh! It seemed this prior fill of 2.65 was perfect for about 2 weeks, THEN yet AGAIN the band tightened. Could not keep water down nor eat for a couple of days. Went for an unfill. Had her take out ALL of the thicker saline, since I believe has been the cause of the band tightening up weeks after a fill all the time. I drank 4 big glasses of water, phew, tasted soooooooo good. Then, had her put back in 2.5cc of the reg. saline. I don't feel any restriction with this fill, which is a bummer! But, being so tight, I didn't want to experiece that again, so I am taking it slow for a while, until of course I get "antsy" from gaining, which is what usually happens.

I have only had 4 fills, but the band keeps getting tighter and tighter weeks later after a fill. I think it might be from that thicker saline. If you don't need it, don't get it. The only reason I tried it was because after the 3rd fill, I was given 3.4cc with reg. saline, and for one month was NOT restricted. So, being I was still at surgery weight, 3 or 4 months later I got a little scared, thinking this wasn't going to work for me and what happens when I do start to lose? - There is only a few more cc's I could go.

This is where I'm at. What an experience!!! I must say, I would not give up the band for ANTHING! - within reason of course. For me to lose 31 pounds is thee best feeling. I feel so much better. It is truly amazing. I would go through all the fill/unfill frustration, again, (not that I would want to) but would, to keep losing. I believe I'll find that happy medium with fills that will last more then a couple of weeks before it tightens. We'll see. Now that I'm back to the reg. saline, it might be a process finding the right amount again.

Until then, when I look back at the progress, I am loving it.

Teri

[QueenOfChunk]

Congrats Teri! Mine is May 11th. I hope I will be experiencing the same thing you are... in time. I was shopping yesterday and looked at this awesome sweater on winter clearance. I wanted it so bad but then I thought to myself.... by next winter this will be too big! I was proud... even before I start! so I can imagine how proud and good you must feel after losing that much! Way to go.

[Teri]

Congrats Teri! Mine is May 11th. I hope I will be experiencing the same thing you are... in time. I was shopping yesterday and looked at this awesome sweater on winter clearance. I wanted it so bad but then I thought to myself.... by next winter this will be too big! I was proud... even before I start! so I can imagine how proud and good you must feel after losing that much! Way to go.

Oh, Thanks Queen of Chunk, How awesome you will get to experience losing weight also almost effortlessly. You will love it. It is such a great feeling, and even though I still have a long way to go, I haven't bought anything, because I can fit back into my smaller clothes I kept from a few years ago. But, I cannot wait to shop when I get down to the goal. Your smart for not buying it, cuz you will lose, and have so much fun trying on things that feel good and fit good. Congratulations on your surgery. Keep us posted!!

Teri

[Teri]

What a crazy journey. I'm still looking to find that sweet spot that is talked about. After dropping back to reg saline and trying the 2.5cc, after 2 weeks I gained 15 pounds. Crazy. My husband and I have been away the last 2 weekends and we made them longer, which didn't help on the food choices. When your traveling and eating with a group it's harder to choose resturants. We flew to Texas for a wedding. I am not restricted at all. I think it was a lot of water weight when I dropped to 154. Today I am 169. I walk the dogs, (only one mile 3 or 4 times a week.) I'll be getting a fill again, I just need to find the time. Lots of playing catch-up since being away. Baseball games, paperwork, etc. just things that you fall behind on.

Kyle is not losing and he may have gained a little too, but he tells me he wouldn't want to be any more restricted then he is. Not sure if it's because he want's to enjoy the food or cannot handle being any tighter.

Anyway, just an update.

Teri

[Pamela]

Terri,

Wow, how frustrated you must be. I just got my first fill and so far I'm doing pretty good. He gave me 2.25cc's and told me it would be tight because I drove 3 hours to see him and he didn't want me to have to make the drive again for another 5 or 6 months. He told me to stick to protein shakes and other full liquids for 7 days. I've had no problem keeping this stuff down but I'm not so sure about solid foods yet. I don't want to be too tight but only time will tell.

Good luck to you and get that fill soon.

Pam

[kym828]

Teri,

34 lbs for Kyle is great! you will figure the fill thing out and get it going in the right direction i am sure. i am at 6 cc's in my 10cc band and there are days i cant eat anything and water girgles thru, but a couple days later i can eat alot! there seems to be no rhyme or reason to it at all but i do think i am at the right restriction. my only advice would be to not be so aggressive on the fills and if you have a day or two where you can only have liquids, wait before getting an unfill to see if it passes.

i had to start exercising to get the scales to move again and i am tired of walking alone and not very committed at that. i joined a jazzercise class and i havent sweated that much in years! now i know the lbs are finally going to start melting away. i am down 31 lbs now.

Hang in there Teri - i agree with you - even with the fickleness of the band, i am soooo happy i had the surgery and would do it again and again.

Kim

[Teri]

Thanks Pam and Kim for your words of encouragment. It helps a lot. I seem to be able to eat everything and anything, no problem OR nothing at all including water. In between would be good. LOL. I'll get there, just later than most. Just gotta find the time to head back. You guys are doing great, keep posting.

Teri

[Teri]

O Kay, It was time again to start the process of yet another fill, since I have gained alot of my surgery weight back of getting 2.5cc of reg saline on April 4. I was filled to 3.5cc of reg. saline on April 25 exactly 3 weeks later. Believe it or not I can eat 3 slices of pizza (my normal eating amount prior to having the surgery) and a huge bowl of popcorn, say, the size of a shoe box. Bummmmmmer. What was interesting to me, that I hadn't heard before was when I was in the office getting filled she explained to me that some people have more fat on the inside of thier stomachs than others. Colesterol, etc. It makes sense that the amount of fat or colesterol on the inside of everyones stomach is different and plays a part on how the band reacts to the amount of saline injected. I don't know. It's just tough to figure out why reaching a sweet spot has been a problem for me.

She also explained after doing thousands of fills, she can feel the pressure, like a tire being blown up, when filling patients. She could feel the pressure at around 3.6cc for me. She said, on some patients she can feel it around 1cc.

Settled for 3.5, so we'll see. Time will tell.

Teri

[Pamela]

Hang in there Terri! I hope you will have enough but not too much restriction with this fill. My fill is still pretty tight. You know, I still find myself eating ice cream when I shouldn't and a three musketeer bar here and there. I don't think it would matter that much if I were really exercising every day. I just need to amp that part of my program up! My weight loss is normal right now but I am really anxious to loose 15 pounds before June.

I am heading to the gym tonight and hope that I can get into a serious habit of working out every evening. This is going to be the "key" with my success because I do like to eat some of the sweet stuff every now and again. I don't mess around with french fries, pizza or hamburgers anymore so that's great. However, ice cream goes down very easy.

I hope you start loosing some of the weight that you gained back. I hate to see you go through this fill struggle but I guess it's a part of being a bandster.

Good luck to you and your son! !

[Teri]

Hang in there Terri! I hope you will have enough but not too much restriction with this fill. My fill is still pretty tight. You know, I still find myself eating ice cream when I shouldn't and a three musketeer bar here and there. I don't think it would matter that much if I were really exercising every day. I just need to amp that part of my program up! My weight loss is normal right now but I am really anxious to loose 15 pounds before June.

I am heading to the gym tonight and hope that I can get into a serious habit of working out every evening. This is going to be the "key" with my success because I do like to eat some of the sweet stuff every now and again. I don't mess around with french fries, pizza or hamburgers anymore so that's great. However, ice cream goes down very easy.

I hope you start loosing some of the weight that you gained back. I hate to see you go through this fill struggle but I guess it's a part of being a bandster.

Good luck to you and your son! !

Thanks Pamela! You are so sweet. You know, I am fortunate in the sense that I'm not a dessert eater, not an icecream person, not a choc person. Could do without all of those things for life. My problem and always has been is overeating food. I would rather have 2nd helpings. So, I eat a lot of food. I can eat anything with the band with the rescriction of 3.5cc and my normal almount of food. But, I am going to wait about 3 weeks for a fill, (I think) because I've experienced the band tightening after a fill, say about 3 weeks out. Dont know if that will happen again, but we'll see. You know, all of this would be so different if the band did not flucuate (sp??) so much. One extreme to the other for me. I know other bandsters have experienced this too, so I'm not alone. But getting there is a pain in the arsssss. :-?

Teri

[Pamela]

My band seems pretty consistent right now. I can't eat a lot of anything except ice cream. I get frustrated sometimes when I can't eat because the food looks so good. We had a celebration lunch at my office and it was Mexican food. I made a plate with refried beans, one beef taco and 4 chips with salsa. After two bites of the chips, I feel it stuck and start to do the sliming bit. I was pissed because I wanted to eat some of the food on my plate. I guess I should have started off with the refried beans before getting stuck. Everyone is probably wondering why I haven't touched my plate. I guess I just need to learn HOW to eat with this band. I must be eating too fast or taking too big of bites.

My weight loss is pretty steady so I am happy with that. I am 1 pound shy of my 30 pound loss mark. =D>

[Teri]

My band seems pretty consistent right now. I can't eat a lot of anything except ice cream. I get frustrated sometimes when I can't eat because the food looks so good. We had a celebration lunch at my office and it was Mexican food. I made a plate with refried beans, one beef taco and 4 chips with salsa. After two bites of the chips, I feel it stuck and start to do the sliming bit. I was pissed because I wanted to eat some of the food on my plate. I guess I should have started off with the refried beans before getting stuck. Everyone is probably wondering why I haven't touched my plate. I guess I just need to learn HOW to eat with this band. I must be eating too fast or taking too big of bites.

My weight loss is pretty steady so I am happy with that. I am 1 pound shy of my 30 pound loss mark. =D>

Pamela! How wonderful for you, I think that is a PERFECT fill. If you can drink water and eat very little, count it as a blessing. I would LOVE to be where you are!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Even if things get stuck sometimes, If you can drink water, you more then likely have the right amount for losing weight. Keep up the great results!! I know what you mean about people wondering though, I found when I was way to tight it was tough to sit down at a meal and I would spread things out on my plate to look like I had more food then what I did. hehee geeze, the things we do.

Teri

[Teri]

Update

Had another fill yesterday. I'm at 3.85 in a 4cc band. I feel a little restriction this morning while drinking coffee. A little gurgleing while going down. This could be good. I hope this is it. I talked with a lady yesterday that mentioned someone on another forum didnt feel any restriction until she was filled to 4cc, the max amount, then she lost 70 pounds in 6 months. I just hope I'm there!

Kyle hasnt had a fill for a few months, he thinks he's to tight, so will wait on a fill for him. He's not losing, but not gaining either.

Teri

[Teri]

********update*********

Well, its been a week (yesterday) since my fill. I defintley have restriction at 3.85cc in the 4cc band. Not a whole lot, but enough for now. I think I could use a lttle more, but, I am eating a lot less with this fill, for sure.!!! I can still eat a lot, if I eat slow and chew well, but, I am learning to work with what I do have. I've lost 4 pounds since, and I will take it!! It's great to start loosing again. Just being able to eat less is a huge benefit for me. It's a slow road, but one that's worth the traveling. Stops along the road here and there that hold ya up, but, I don't mind being a turtle, as long as I finish. heheheh,

Teri

[Donna34]

********update*********

Well, its been a week (yesterday) since my fill. I defintley have restriction at 3.85cc in the 4cc band. Not a whole lot, but enough for now. I think I could use a lttle more, but, I am eating a lot less with this fill, for sure.!!! I can still eat a lot, if I eat slow and chew well, but, I am learning to work with what I do have. I've lost 4 pounds since, and I will take it!! It's great to start loosing again. Just being able to eat less is a huge benefit for me. It's a slow road, but one that's worth the traveling. Stops along the road here and there that hold ya up, but, I don't mind being a turtle, as long as I finish. heheheh,

Teri

Hi Teri,

It's good to see you are still chugging along! You really look small in your picture. You were not real heavy when you got banded were you? Of course, I don't know your height, and that makes a BIG difference, but I'll be SO happy to get back to 185, and that's where you started! LOL I'm 5'7" so at about 150, I look skinny. Can't wait to get back there! I just had my first fill, and I got 1.2cc's. I had restriction when I left, and now that it's that TOM, I'm REALLY restricted.

I'm just thinking that maybe since you were smaller than most to begin with maybe that is why it has taken more fill for you?? The stomach get's smaller, the more you lose, so it would make sense that your stomach wouldn't be as big as someone who weighs 250 to begin with. I think you've done great, even though it's been a frustrating road for you. I'm sure you will get to the weight you desire in time!

Good Luck!

Donna