Kittycat

I am so excited for you Cara, I can't wait until you return and start your life long journey of getting healthy and thinner. All the best to you for a wonderful and safe trip. Let us know how things go okay! (((Hugs))) Kat

Hi Everyone, I have been having some difficulty outputting enough. I have a BM every morning, but it's clearly not enough considering what's going in throughout the previous day. I am not sure fiber would help in this case, I would probably end up constipated. I thought of a cleansing routine to clean myself out, any suggestions? Thanks!

Hot is an understatement, WOW!!!!! You are a completely different person...like I always say to my friends, 1/2 the size and twice as nice!!! Fantastic!!!

Hi Vix, so happy you came through your knee surgery okay. I have heard that knee surgery is the worst to recover from than any other, your knees carry your weight. All the best for a speedy recovery...before you know it you'll be dancing and doing aerobics!!

WTG!! That's fabulous! Keep up the great work!!!

I heard a brutal warning this morning on the news about expected massive flooding in Houston, Texas and area.....get out or die! I hope all of our Texas bandsters get to safety. Please keep in touch to let us know you are okay! Take care!

Hi Doug, Welcome!! Like Lisa said, it's the best decision I have ever made and so far I have had to problems with my band, the fills or following the program to weight loss. I hope you decide to go for it, you won't regret it! Good Luck!

I am sorry that you had to endure such nonsense. Of course you got a band, what an idiodic thing to insinuate. Some people can be so negative. You will do great! Good Luck!

That's amazing good for you!!!

Glad the fill is kicking in for you Denise, PBing is not fun. Take small bites and chew well...I learned my lesson the hard way too!! Can't wait to see your numbers plummet!!!

That's so cool, that's for sharing this. I put in my data and my goal to get down to 140 by June 10, 2009 (one year from my surgery date) and it calculated that I would need to eat 1200 calories per day to do this...right on target!!!

Wow, time sure flies by....how are you doing on your pre-op diet? And your hubby? Good Luck and keep us posted.

Everyone is different! That's the bottom line. No one can predict how many fills you may need to get to your "sweetspot". Saying women should only need 1-2 fills is not realistic. It depends on how much the doctor puts in, at any given time. I had 3cc put in during surgery, 1cc in July and 1cc in August. I have 5cc in my 9cc and I am doing fine, but that's for now. Things change daily. Mona-Camille, you need to seriously talk to the doctor and figure out what's right for you! Good Luck Hon!!

I just wanted to extend my thoughts today to everyone who was touched by 911. Although the tragedy occurred in the U.S., it touched the hearts of everyone all over the world.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LADIES AND WISHES FOR A WONDERFUL NEW YEAR!!! P.S. Wishing my son a Happy 11th Birthday today too!!!!

Hi there, the band is only a tool to reduce the amount of food you consume. However, you can still make bad food choices and eat around the band. If you are truly ready to make this committment, it might be wise to actively work on the food addiction too. I am a chronic snacker, and still today have trouble not eating in the evening. I am not hungry, I just eat because it's a habit. I need to find something else to do to distract me from eating. If you follow the guidelines, protein, veggies, grains, fruit and have a treat once in awhile, you will be successful!! Good Luck!!

Congrats, you are doing great!!! Keep up the good work!!

Hi Everyone, For anyone who is questioning whether the band is the right choice over RNY or Gastric Bypass, read this. This is the story of my friend Pam: Pam, who had the RNY surgery performed one week before I was banded 3 months ago today, was hospitalized in the U.S for a week after surgery, spent another week in a U.S hotel for monitoring and then returned home to Canada. She was home for approxmately a week when started having difficulty keeping food down, she vomitted at every meal. She called the surgeon and he told her to change her choice of foods, softer, easier foods. By week two, it was getting worse and her abdomen was starting to swell and hurt. Her husband took her to the ER and they found that she had a severe stomach infection, she had emergency surgery that night and two more the next day to get the infection under control. She was in the hospital for 6 1/2 weeks, virtually in the bed the whole time, she had a vac unit in her open incision for the entire time. She was transferred to a rehab hospital to help her get back on her feet. She suffered from muscle atrophy and could not even walk. 8 weeks after the first visit to the ER was able to go home, still with the vac in her open incision to keep any risk of infection under control. At home she was basically in bed most of the day. Last week, she was back in the hospital with pneumonia. The pneumonia can result in further complications to her stomach, if the the infected lung fluid gets into her stomach (swallowing after coughing). Poor girl is still in the hospital today. Like most of you, I was banded, recovered after about a week or less and went on with my life. Although our struggles are ongoing and our primary goal is to lose the weight. Pam has had to fight for her life for over two months. Although Pam's experience is not the norm for RNY surgery, it can happen. She has lost over 100lbs now, but lost 2 1/2 months of time with her husband and children...and almost lost her life. I could have had RNY or Gastric bypass surgery at no cost to me, our Provincial Healthcare covers it. But I chose to pay for Lapband surgery myself and it's the best decision I have ever made! Thanks!

That's great Michelle, nothing like a good butt kicking!! I work with a lady who's daughter is a personal trainer and is now going to school to be a paramedic and she wants to earn some $$ on the side, so I am going to give her a call next week and meet with her soon to start kicking butt! Have fun!!

You would be surprised what you CAN get away with. I went on pre-op and work with an office full of women, only the people I told really noticed that I was only drinking shakes, no one else. And..the kicker is, the people who still don't know, haven't even commented on my weight loss at all. Is 46 lbs not even noticable? Hello?! Anyway, if you chose not to share your secret with certain people, you can figure a way to cover it up. I am back on Weight Watchers, I am doing Atkins, I am on a high protein veggie diet....you can do it, if you need to!! Good Luck!

Wow, are you sure? I have never heard of that! You have a thick layer of skin, fatty tissue and stomach muscles between your hand and the band around your stomach. If that is what you felt, that's freaky!!

"2 more sleeps!!!!"

This is exactly how my surgeon does it. He feels for the port, I lift my head up to assist him in doing so, he puts the needle in the port and extracts the existing fluid to ensure #1 that he's in the right spot and # 2 that there is no leakage and all of the fluid he put in, comes back out, then he injects it all back in plus the fill. My surgeon does not use fluoro at all unless there is a problem locating the port or it's flipped. So far I have had no problems (2 fills). You will not have restriction with liquids. Hopefully when you are on solids, you will feel the difference. Good Luck!!!

Talk to your doctor, after what happended to Utahmom you don't want to mess with being filled too tight. Take care!

Hi there, I was told burping and gas are a part of life after banding, so times it's worse than others...so yes it's normal!!! I call it "musical". LOL!!