ValleyGirl

Yes, you will have to fast and yes, you are dropped off and walk through customs but they will pick you up on the other side and take you to the airport or car lot or wherever you are going. Good luck! Sabrina:)

I live in Vancouver but I go to Washington Stae for fills. I'm going to have to wait until after Spring Break to get one....white-knuckling it until then!

I've heard this can happen but I'm wondering why??? I have had two fills and have 2.4 in a 4cc band. I had restriction for a little over a month and now I feel almost like I don't have a band at all. I wake up hungry (this is a first since having surgery) and no matter what I eat, I don't get the full feeling anymore and just have to use willpower to stop. You can imagine how easy that is- NOT! How can you have restriction one day and none the next? This is the sixth day in a row....I haven't scheduled a fill cause I wanted to make sure the restriction didn't kick back in. How long would you wait? I've gained three pounds in three days, but it is my TOM. Sabrina:)

Is that all you eat every single day? I guess I need to get more serious. I have no real food plan in place because I don't want to feel like I'm on a "diet" but I guess the sad truth is that I am on a diet- for the rest of my life. I'm also curious if you think you would have had the same results eating that meal plan without the band? I read posts from you and others saying how you "love your band" and I"m so not there- but I want to be. I'm not sure where the band is making a difference. Just like before, when I eat crap, I gain weight and when I eat healthy, I lose weight. I suppose it keeps me full longer but, truthfully, half the time I eat it is not because I'm hungry it is just because it is there. I think instead of lap-band surgery, I should have had a lobotomy, lol! Sabrina:)

You can really see the weight loss in your face- wow! Way to go. You look wonderful! Sabrina:)

Way to go Sarah! I remember how much of a hard time you had eating in the beginning. Can you eat most foods now and how much? That seems to be a really quick weight-loss! I'm curious what you are eating and how much is in your band now since we had our surgery a day apart. I have 2.4 cc and I'm stalled at 40 pounds down so I'm going to schedule my third fill soon. Happy bday! Sabrina:)

Oh great, I'm in the columns for "get a fill" and "get an unfill"

how many lemons and how much water???

She is right. I had very little restriction after my first fill. This is par for the course. And, actually, I have heard (may not be factual) but the lower your BMI, the harder it will be to lose weight. You'll get there! Sabrina:)

To answer your question, "So what do you all eat? what is your menu plan?". To be honest, I don't have one. I have been "winging it", trying to figure out what works for ME and at the same time, live as "normally" as possible. I don't want to be miserable, but I also want to be healthy. I eat what I want (and what I CAN cause I have a lot of problem foods), I just don't eat very much. I think if I was following a strict plan like Lisa (bless you), I might be down 60 pounds by now; however, at this point in my journey I don't have that kind of willpower or motivation. If you're lurking here and looking at WLS it's likely that you don't either....no offense. I've lost 40 pounds in three and a half months with no exercise and food choices that aren't always perfect. I'm not the lap-band poster-child, but I'm happy with my progress so far and will continue to try to make better choices but I have many years of bad-habits and a lazy lifestyle that can't be changed overnight. I'm not saying you should do what I do, I'm just putting my truth out there because if I had read the posts of people that are doing it all right, I would never have been banded because it would not have seemed realistic to me- and that would be a shame. Sabrina:)

Some encouragement for everybody else that's been plateauing.....although I only lost one pound in two weeks, I just stepped on the scale and lost 4 pounds overnight!!! Everyone kept saying that would happen and they were right. Hang in there! Sabrina:)

Since communications is MY specialty (nothing to sell here) let me chime in, lol! It looks like what you are trying to say is that five years ago you got down to 145 through diet and exercise but this year gained 55 back so you are around 200 now and although you love exercise (I'm the exact opposite, hate it, even fear it) that you still struggle with food and that is why you're getting banded. I think that makes perfect sense and wish you the best of luck. Sabrina:)

Oh, what I would give to be able to get even a few french fries in, lol!

I'm afraid that I'm one of those people that has to cut things up to the size of a pea (not smaller than a pea) or I feel it sitting in my chest and can't eat any more....even if I've only had one bite. I don't think this is the norm, though. I'm too early in to feel comfortable saying whether you should or shouldn't make this huge life-decision and I almost didn't post because I didn't want to scare you, but, yes, if I want to eat things that aren't mushy (which you are supposed to) my plate looks the way my kids food looked when I was first introducing solids to them- I even use their old baby plates. Again, this doesn't seem to be the norm. I wish I was the norm. It's a bit embarassing. Sabrina:)

I just got back from two weeks vacation so I have NOT been doing everything the way I should (no gym, no measuring, not enough water, a couple cocktails) but I was barely able to eat anything. I wasn't ever physically hungry, but I was miserable watching my husband and kids eat bacon and egg breakfasts, snack bar at the pool for lunch, extravegant hotel dinners, snacks at Disney. I felt SO sorry for myself that I couldn't indulge like I normally do on vacation and thought for sure my reward when I got home would be a big loss. I could scream. I only lost one pound in two weeks . I know I don't need another fill cause I get stuff stuck at least once a day so now I'm back to the basics.....protein shake in the morning, tiny high-protein lunch and dinner cut up in to a million little pieces and water, water, water....which is very hard to get in because I have a bladder problem that I am awaiting surgery for. In fact, they say the surgery won't be successful until I drop another 50 pounds or so . I wouldn't say I regret the surgery, but even having researched for three years, this is WAY harder than I thought it would be. All newbies should know that. The band will take away the physical hunger, but your head will still want the food. On a positive note, you girls are all so gorgeous already!!! Just looking at these forum pics, I've noticed that we are all such pretty girls. It reminds me of a bumper sticker I used to have, "I may be fat, but you're ugly and I can diet!" Hahaha. We'll get there. But why does it have to take so long????

You are so bang on with this. People are eating WAY too much protein and it has terrible long-term effects on your organs. I wish Dr. Miranda would address the issue on here. Only gastric bypass patients need the extra protein cause they can't absorb all their nutrients. We can get enough through our diets. Sabrina:)

The OCC plan does not include a mushy stage....after seven days of clear liquids you go to "full liquids" which they will explain. Just make sure you've got lots of clear liquids and worry about the rest later! That sid, there are a million great vegetarian-friendly soups you can have during full liquids! I like Campbell's Gardenay soups the most. Sabrina:)

And to answer the question, "why not just do Sure Slim and not get the band?". The hardest part about SureSlim was that you are only aloud to eat every five hours. Without the band, this was almost impossible because I was so hungry but with the band I think it's way easier cause I don't usually get hungry till 4 hours after I eat- before I was hungry an hour later!

One more thing....I get the munchies at night too so instead of watching tv or movies (which I associate with snacking popcorn or chips etc) I'm trying to do other things like go to a meeting (OA, Lap Band etc), read a book or magazine (can't eat while reading), cleaning out closets, and I've even started doing crafts which isn't really my thing but is fun for the kids. We just made 20 home-made Valentines last night. Keep those hands busy!!! Sabrina:)

Cindy, Sorry to hear this. I know, like me, you'd probably like to be close to goal for our 20-year reunion!!! At this rate, I'm afraid I'm not going to get there either. I know for me that the weeks I see a good loss seem to be the weeks that I drink TONS of water. As for a food program, I'm one of those people that doesn't lose a thing doing Atkins. With Weight Watchers I lose so slow (like 3 pounds per month at best) that I get frustrated and give up. I've done them all...jenny craig, herbal magic, nutrisystem etc. There was only one program that has ever worked well for me (until I went to Vegas, got WAY off track and never got back on track) and when I get back from this vacation, I may go back to it until I get another fill. It was one called Sure Slim and not only did I lose at least 3 pounds per week, but I had loads of energy and my skin looked really good. I can send you a copy of what I was eating. They say they customize the plan for each person (even do your blood work) yet me and two other friends had the exact same plan!!! It follows the OCC guidelines- 3 meals per day (no snacks), mostly protein, veggies and VERY low fat. Keep in mind too that sometimes you won't lose for days on end then, suddenly, drop five pounds overnight. I hear you on the exercise too. I HATE it. To the point that I'd say I have an exercise phobia. I literally get panic attacks if my heart starts beating too fast- which makes doing cardio pretty tricky. I have no advice to help you there but agree that we both should be doing some. I have two friends here that got banded the same day. One exercises and has lost 80 pounds in 8 months...the other does not and has lost 50. Sabrina:)

Sharon, I'm glad to hear your band is okay, hooray!!! You must be a good chewer `cause I haven't been able to eat bread or anything doughy since my first fill- it HURTS! Yet I can eat popcorn and nuts no problem-which I find odd. I'm curious about the OCC's rules for eating after a fill. When I got both of mine in Marysville, I had to do 24 hrs of liquids and 24 hours of mushies. My restriction seemed good for about a week but my appetite came back Friday and I've been SO hungry since then. I wonder if maybe it's because my TOM is coming up. I'm tempted to get a little more fill but I'm going to wait because we are going to Florida on Saturday and I don't want to end up with problems being too tight on vacation and so far from home. It's crazy how different all of our experiences are. I used to think that if you couldn't eat certain things it was because you have good restriction, but I am now seeing that you can have very little restriction but still get foods stuck like I do. Still no PB or slime, just stuck. It's hard because I'm gravitating towards mushier foods (beans, avacodos, cottage cheese, the odd baked potato)and they don't seem to keep me full as long as, say, a piece of meat would. I'm definitely getting enough protein but I'm still hungry. Again, it could e PMS. Who knows? Until I get really good restriction, I'm back to wrting everything I eat down. I find that really helps. You can track it on-line with a site like sparkpeople.com or just keep a journal. I bought a nice leather-bound journal that I'm using to write everything- food, feelings, etc. I'd die if anybody ever found it, haha. Anyway, good luck. Keep us all posted. I hope to see you at the Lions Gate meeting in March. Say hello to everyone for me. Sabrina:)

Congratulations from a fellow-Canadian bandster. You dit it! And, wow, what a good job on the pre-op loss. Sabrina:)

I finally went to a meeting last night and really enjoyed it. Anybody else check it out?

Hey Jennifer! When I had my gallbladder out almost six years ago, one of my incisions was in that same spot (In fact OCC used the same one instead of making a new opening/scar) and I remember it had a scar tissue lump for a long time but it eventually went away. Now the only issue is you can see that scar when I wear a really low cut top or bathing suit....not that I wear a lot of low-cut tops, but you never know in the near-future, tee-hee !!! Sabrina:) ps- I can't wait to meet in two weeks!!!

If only I had shown THIS post to my hubby he would have been all for it from day one, hahaha!!!