Lindsay

I'd wait until your hair is fuller, and in a healthier state. My sister is a colourist, and I don't think she'd touch anyone's hair that's falling out.

I can barely stand it! I'm now just over 3 months post op, and it's getting worse. The pain in my left shoulder is horrible ... I've been taking OTC muscle relaxants, and it does work (i think), but it also puts me to sleep. I've read that this is fairly common .. i just want to know WHY, and will it ever go away? And how can I control this horrible pain. HEEEEEEEELP

it's a fact that people over eat. i love leaving food. it shows that i have power to control what i put in my mouth. i could care less what people think.

bc of time restrictions on my end too, i cycle 8miles a day and that's all for now. i wish i had the extra motivation to start weight traning again, but i'm lazy. lol. don't focus on 'time' - just do what you like to start out.

i do, and i'm a member of calorieking.com

it's funny how we're often told different things. i was told it's a-okay to drink if something is stuck. it always helps move things along.

..well, i've found very specific foods to do this to me. and now, i just stay away from them. try chewing your food a lot more, and taking much smaller bites. that will help with the chicken getting stuck. but i have also found that drinking helps clear the way ... as does walking around. both of those things usually work it down a lot quicker than sitting with my face stuffed in a pillow so my boyfriend can't see the tears streaming down my face!! purging should really be done only as a very very last resort. that's a lot of pressure for your lapband to be under, so remember that - it can cause slippage of your band. but in a nutshell, cut up your food smaller. chew a bazillion times. and try drinking liquid. this all prevents a 'blockage', as i call it! hope this helps

it does suck, but it's taken me 3 fills to actually feel something worth talking about. and i hadn't had any weight loss for almost 5 months, until my fills started to catch up ... give it some time. usually it takes a few fills to get a real feeling of fullness. it's a slow process, but worth doing in baby steps.

thank you so much for the info guys! great to know!!!

I would NOT recommend wearing contacts into surgery for more obvious health reasons. I'm really surprised you never wear glasses - your eyes do need a rest, even with long wear contacts. I'm really really shocked that your ophthalmologist hasn't explained the importance of this, for cornea care. They're not kidding (or 'suggesting') when they say no contacts in surgery. Why even chance it. Invest in a cheap pair of glasses. I did not wear my contacts to the clinic, and wore my glasses as they recommended.

good thread! ...my meals take about 30 minutes to complete. if not, like most of you said, i'd be full after 2 bites. there are days were i do only a few bites, and i feel 'done' ... then my boyfriend takes over, and eats it before i get a second chance!

I'm confuzzled! 2 weeks ago, I had my 3rd fill - I now have 2.5cc's in my 5cc band. For the first 2 weeks, it was great - my band was tighter than it's ever been, and I could actually FEEL restriction ... My weight was dropping, and I was extremely motivated! But now, only a couple weeks later, I've noticed that the 'tightness' has decreased quite a bit. Does this mean it's time for another small fill? I have nothing to compare this fill to, as my others really didn't do anything. HELP/FEEDBACK much appreciated! Thank you, lovelies!

Yes, i do tend to say it a bit too bluntly at times .... But diet is KEY. #1. You can exercise. But if you're diet isn't dialed in, you're losing 80-85% of your results. Any figure or bodybuilder will tell you this. Now let me step off that soap box .... On the original topic, which I obviously was too busy shooting my mouth off to catch, I personally did feel restriction after my first fill, which was 1cc, in my 4cc band ... but it wasn't anything like I'd heard people describe on here. I could still get away (easily) binge eating, which is my personal downfall. Even after my second fill, which was another full 1cc, I still felt very little restriction. Every so often if I ate far too quickly, I'd get the senstation of having to burp really badly, but that was it. It's only been since my last fill (I'm currently at 2.5cc's) that I"m noticing a HUGE difference. In fact, since I've received my last 1/2cc fill on Monday, my intake of food has decrease by more than half -and of course, the scale reflects that. My fill nurse refused to give me a full cc during my last fill, and I'm happy she did. I'm still getting used to this '2 bites, then you'll full' feeling, which is the most obscure feeling - and the feeling we've all paid big bucks to feel. I hope this answers your question better than my first response. I was told every 2 weeks, is the max we should be going in for a fill, so just hang in there, and keep your time line in check. You don't want to keep digressing all of the progress you're making. You barely have anything in your band, but that's okay! Just keep going in for your fills, as scheduled every few weeks. Did we determine how big your band was, and how much it holds? This is very important information to know, so you can understand your restriction time line. Lindsay// xo//

Forget the band ... what are you putting in your mouth? What are you eating? I think a lot of us forget, that the band is only a tool. it's not going to prevent us from eating crap we shouldn't be eating.

thank you to everyone who has posted in this thread. i just got back from my fill. my fill nurse said she wouldn't fill me last week, which is when I initially wanted to go back ... she said it was too soon. i now have 2.5cc's in my 4cc band. she didn't even want to do a full cc', bringing me up to 3cc's. she was even hesitant about giving me half a cc ... i do feel restriction, but don't feel it's nearly as 'tight' as it should be. I'm hoping this half a cc will make a difference.

all of us are self-payers. i have yet to see an insurance company pay for the surgery, and fills. it doesn't qualify.

It's probably time to change up those workouts. What are you doing in terms of cardio? And diet. what are you ratios looking like?

Wow! You're doing so well! I was feeling so crappy the day after ... i slept all day long! (and my boyfriend went golfing at the course behind the Marriott!) I felt so crappy, but I'm starting to think it's because I didn't move much afterwards ... I felt so knocked out, and achy all over. The only real walking I did after, was in the hallway at the hotel, and I didn't meet/talk to ANYONE who was having surgery on my day. I wish I had! I"m so happy you're going so freakin' good! You'll be home before you know it!! xo

I got my 2nd fill last week - I'm now up to 2cc's (i have a 4cc band) I called today, to book my next fill, and was told my fill nurse would be in tomorrow. Would I like to come in. Well yes .. But can/should I? Is it too soon? I do know I'm not feeling very much restriction after my last fill. And I'm tired of waiting waiting waiting .. plus, my fill nurse isn't in for another month. BOO. I don't want to miss the opportunity. I'm also curious, how much is in your band? (For those maintenance people) .. I'm curious what everyone's 'sweet spot' is?

so glad you made it through just fine! i had tears in my eyes when I was finished too - just very emotionally overwhelming! xo

RE: fills. has he physically SEEN the liquid go in and out of his port? i've heard/read some stories about shady fills - which have turned out to be NON-fills. They didn't actually inject in the port, therefore, there was no restriction. Every time I get my fills, I ask for the nurse to show me the liquid coming and going, just so i know for sure that everything is being done/filled as I want.

thank you, you two love-birds for responding - sometimes you just need someone to say it's okay. right after i typed that message, I ran to the toilet, and had about 30 seconds of dry heaving. it was all extra air - probably from drinking too much liquid, far too quickly earlier ... which completely makes sense to me. after the little incident over the toilet, and was feeling sooo much better, and fell asleep in bed minutes later. i'm feeling sooo much better today!!! and i was told liquids for 2 days. so today is the end of day 2

I had my second fill this afternoon - I'm now up to 2cc's ...my first fill was over a month only, and the 1cc barely did anything, which i was fine with. But ever since getting home from running around, I've felt so nauseous. I went to the fill on an empty stomach (my appointment was at 1:30pm) - and afterwords had water, and half a bottle of sugar free iced tea, just to get something in me. Dinner - I had half a can of tomato soup, thinking this comfort food might help, but it didn't. and then I had a small glass of a homemade banana smoothy (bit of skim milk, ice cubes & a banana) I was in bed, but got up. I feel so barfy. Sound typical? I'm sure I"ll be feeling better soon. I just hate feeling like I need to throw up ... I'm tempted to make myself, just to get rid of this 'i'm going to barf' feeling.

Anyone in here on LiveJournal? I just started an account, and am looking for 'friends'

awesome awesome awesome. you must feel so freakin' good. i can't wait until i'm at this stage! getting rid of that extra skin, is like getting rid of an old chapter of your life, isn't it?! xo.