AngieB

I forgot to weigh this morning....

Shelby - thanks for bringing up the possibility of streching the pouch without have water back up. I've thought if I don't feel any warnings then there is not a issue. Next habit to work on. I've been fortunate that since June, I've had 4 looks at my band, esophagus and pouch. Each time they have looked great. So that gives me peace of mind up until now. Taking care of my body and band is really important to me. Getting comfortable with the band is interesting. It is a fickle tool and seem to have personality all it's own. I have been so focused on protein protein protein that for some meals that is most of what I eat. So now I am going to add some veggies and fruits into those meals. I think I got so stuck on protein because of my hair loss. Now I know my protein levels are A-OK and understand what is happening with my hair, I am relaxing more. Funny how we have to find our way with the band. I hope your brother is doing well. Has he been moved to a rehab place?

Andrea - I've will take your words of caution against drinking to fast to heart and will be work on that habit. Since being banded my "gulps or chugging" has changed into swallows, now I need my swallows to slow down to a swallow at a time. Up until yesterday, I haven't had any back up feelings. I do not want to dialate my pouch or stretch or stress my esophogaus that is for sure. Especially my esophogaus as it is not made to stretch. It's funny how we get into habits. The band has really helped me to change some habits that were not so good into good habits to have. I love how it has worked on the inside of me as well as the outside. Congradulations on feeling the sweet spot! With my band I do feel hungry. The hunger has changed and become a different hunger than pre-band. Heck, pre-band my stomach never spoke to me, it didn't have a need. I was shoveling food in my mouth so it didn't have to say - Hey feed me please! When my stomach first started telling me I was hungry, it caused a mild panic feeling inside of me....like oh my goodness, I need to eat right now! I think that is funny now. The band has been a good tool and it has helped me uncover issues with eating I was in denial about. Thanks for your reply.

Okay so I had something unexpected happen this morning. I took a big-o-drink of water. More like three consecutive drinks. Swallow, swallow, swallow….you get what I am saying. I actually felt the water being held up. Like not super drastic, but I felt it in my stoma and throat. I felt a mild alert over the situation. Um, never had that happen before! Wow! Until this happened this morning I have been able to chug-a-lug my water at a good rate, any time of day. I know, some don’t understand why people like me drink so fast, but we are all different. I am a fish! Ha! Just kidding but I have a habit of drinking a couple of swallows each drink. Not all the time now as I am working on slowing down….but I am a drinker. I have been reading on this board for a while now, so there have been many subjects covered. Which I love, by the way, because it feels good to have working knowledge of the band, even if it is not my own working knowledge. : ) So, thank you all for sharing your band experiences! You are appreciated! That being said, I’ve thought it is strange when people talk about having a hard time getting there liquids in. Sipping through out the day….sucking on ice cubes, ect. I’ve read many posts about not being able to tolerate food in the mornings. Even some posts about not being able to eat anything solid until evening. That being said, I know our bands are fickle. Each person can have there band affected differently. Some talk about weather, flying, stress, their monthly visitor, a bad PB episode, drinking cold liquids, and much more, and how it can affect the bands tightness. What I would really like to know is how tight you prefer to keep your bands’? Do you keep your band snug enough to feel water back up if you drink a big ol’ drink? Are you a sipper? Can you eat in the mornings, or afternoons? Do you have to wait on your band to loosen up before a meal? Can you put into words what band restriction means to you? I am curious on what the “norm” is and if is varies a great deal from person to person. I am working on getting to my sweet spot or being in the green zone. For me, I can enjoy breakfast everyday. Depending on the food, I can eat a cup to ¾ cup of food at a meal. I focus mainly on protein and often feel like I leave out veggies and fruits almost completely. I seem to have better success when I eat steamed veggies vs. fresh veggies using broccoli and carrots as a good example of this. My band tolerates muffins and cake well, wish came as a surprise to me. We had treats at work and I tried these yummies and had no issues. I have no idea if I can eat bread, because I have cut it completely out of my diet. I no longer eat a sandwich or anything like that. I stick to the guts, the insides of a sandwich. Protein, protein, protein… I am planning on posting this in the forum as well as a blog entry. Please reply and share how you like your band, and what works best for you. Last monthish there were some great posts about a few gals feeling there bands were too tight. I know from your posts that being to tight does not equal weight loss or a safe way to keep your band. So all experience is valuable! I am scheduled for an up coming fill in December and I have been on and off the fence about it. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and if you don’t feel comfortable posting, please PM me. You guys are the best!

Drinking water – big ol’ drinks! Questions… Okay so I had something unexpected happen this morning. I took a big-o-drink of water. More like three consecutive drinks. Swallow, swallow, swallow….you get what I am saying. I actually felt the water being held up. Like not super drastic, but I felt it in my stoma and throat. I felt a mild alert over the situation. Um, never had that happen before! Wow! Until this happened this morning I have been able to chug-a-lug my water at a good rate, any time of day. I know, some don’t understand why people like me drink so fast, but we are all different. I am a fish! Ha! Just kidding but I have a habit of drinking a couple of swallows each drink. Not all the time now as I am working on slowing down….but I am a drinker. I have been reading on this board for a while now, so there have been many subjects covered. Which I love, by the way, because it feels good to have working knowledge of the band, even if it is not my own working knowledge. : ) So, thank you all for sharing your band experiences! You are appreciated! That being said, I’ve thought it is strange when people talk about having a hard time getting there liquids in. Sipping through out the day….sucking on ice cubes, ect. I’ve read many posts about not being able to tolerate food in the mornings. Even some posts about not being able to eat anything solid until evening. That being said, I know our bands are fickle. Each person can have there band affected differently. Some talk about weather, flying, stress, their monthly visitor, a bad PB episode, drinking cold liquids, and much more, and how it can affect the bands tightness. What I would really like to know is how tight you prefer to keep your bands’? Do you keep your band snug enough to feel water back up if you drink a big ol’ drink? Are you a sipper? Can you eat in the mornings, or afternoons? Do you have to wait on your band to loosen up before a meal? Can you put into words what band restriction means to you? I am curious on what the “norm” is and if is varies a great deal from person to person. I am working on getting to my sweet spot or being in the green zone. For me, I can enjoy breakfast everyday. Depending on the food, I can eat a cup to ¾ cup of food at a meal. I focus mainly on protein and often feel like I leave out veggies and fruits almost completely. I seem to have better success when I eat steamed veggies vs. fresh veggies using broccoli and carrots as a good example of this. My band tolerates muffins and cake well, wish came as a surprise to me. We had treats at work and I tried these yummies and had no issues. I have no idea if I can eat bread, because I have cut it completely out of my diet. I no longer eat a sandwich or anything like that. I stick to the guts, the insides of a sandwich. Protein, protein, protein… I am planning on posting this in the forum as well as a blog entry. Please reply and share how you like your band, and what works best for you. Last monthish there were some great posts about a few gals feeling there bands were too tight. I know from your posts that being to tight does not equal weight loss or a safe way to keep your band. So all experience is valuable! I am scheduled for an up coming fill in December and I have been on and off the fence about it. Thanks for sharing your thoughts, and if you don’t feel comfortable posting, please PM me. You guys are the best!

Anisa - I blogged about my hair loss. This is what I have found.....not sure if it will help you or no, but I copied and pasted the blog in to this reply. I too have had blood work done, and hit my suggested protein intake. Hair Molting Posted by AngieB, Oct 22 2009, 08:18 AM For the past few months, I have REALLY noticed an increase in hair molting. It is has been bothersome to the point of me using google. From all I have read, it seems that it is not uncommon to molt after surgery, sever trauma, child birth, after reaching the age of 30, crash diets, lack of protein, and a few others that I can’t think of right now. The information I found to be the most fitting and helpful was under Telogen. So, if you have noticing you are loosing hair. Google Telogen and read about it. I for all intents and purposes I don’t look like I have lost a noticeable amount of hair. To the people around me, including my husband, it is unnoticeable. That is a positive. When I began to really pay attention to my hair loss was when I noticed more molting while I was washing my hair. The noticeable build up in my hair brush, and how many times I have to wrap a pony tail holder around my hair. I use to be able to wrap it twice around my hair and be go-to-go. Now if I wrap it twice, the pony slips out. I have been taking Neocell for a while; I’d say a good 2 months. The recommended dose for Neocell is 6 a day. I take 3. I’ve noticed a change in my skin, hair, and nails. My ankle has also benefited from taking Neocell. It aches a bit less, still pretty swollen, but the pain has decreased. Fill This is the first month since being banded that I did not go for a fill. It took a lot longer than I thought it would for me to feel restriction. Each fill I had I would feel restriction for the first week maybe going into week two and then, my body would adjust and the restriction would slip away. This fill has settled in as well. I am not at my “sweet spot or green zone” per say, but I do have some restriction, so I am content. Right now, my mind set is to see if I can go a few months with out a fill. Really I’d like to make it through the holidays as I am now. What will help me determine when I go in for a fill is a slow down on weight loss. Right now, I am in the lower 240’s and I’d like to see a gradual decrease. Cloths and Inches I am noticing my cloths are fitting better, baggier, or some are plain to big now. I have cleaned out some cloths from my closet and that feels great! I have a girl friend who is a very happy recipient so that make me feel even better! When I start to feel bad or down on myself about my weight loss the fastest way to get myself to snap out of it and back into gratitude is to remember how difficult weight loss was on my own. That always seems to bring me back to reality and lighten my mood. I appreciate your readership and thank you for your comments. You guys are awesome!

I called around to the local Dr.'s in the area before I left for surgery. One Dr. wouldn't take on a patient from Mexico, all the others were fine. I went with the best Dr. I found. It pays to get your ducks in a row.

If you are unsure of your decision this is a great place to read and get a living understanding of what being banded is like. There are members of this board in all stages. Spend a month reading, its a great way to learn.

Carrie - Wow! You look great. So does you hubby! Way to go guys!

Susan - glad to hear you are doing well and will be having a revision surgery to help fix the issue! Soon you will be enjoying the band again!

Awesome! You are going to love it! I'll be looking forward to hearing from ya! Enjoy the time as it goes by so fast!

Wow! Way to go dolittle! I love it! Living sure does change for us doesn't it! Thanks for posting a picture! Woo-hoo!

Lisa! Way to go! You made bull riding look good! I love it! Keeping on living life to the fullest! Ye-haw~

Personally I think saying you are too tight might be jumping the gun a bit here. Since you indicated that you have not felt restriction before, I would incourage you to really pay close attention to the size of your bites, how much you are chewing and listen to your body. Restriction is a new ball game for you, and because you have not felt it till now, it takes a bit of adjusting to. Are you eating bandster foods? I know when I eat hard protein, it takes less to fill me up than soft protein. Less meaning a bite of two less. With each fill we get, we all have some adjustment time. Getting full faster is what we strive for. Eating less, feeling full, and loosing weight. Since you are sliming, it is an indicator that you maybe either taking two large of a bit, or one to many. Take the day and tune into your new way of eating. Give you Dr. a call and run your feelings by the nurse, see what they have to say. I would hessitate to say you are to tight. But that is my own opinion. Oh, and a hiccup is a SOFT STOP SIGN. It is one of the ways are bodies tell us we are full.

You know you are a bandster when you catch yourself chewing your mash potatoes.....and don't need to. You continue to do it because you've come accustom to swallowing a bite in stages that you don't want to risk swallowing the entire bite.

I was banded the end of April of this year. I am pleased with my band and am even more pleased to see some scale results. Thanks for the compliment! I am 40 lbs down and feel so very much better. I am back at the weight I was when I got married in March of 2007! Fantastic! I only no one person who has not had success with the band.

I want to say I wasn't a big tooter, but after a 6 hr plane ride I had gas pains from holding my gas. I was ready to let'em rip so to speak. That was the only time I can remember gas issues. Guess I must have let them out as needed....

Hang in there! I had good changes between each adjustment, but it took me 4 fills to see a steady weight loss! (I know they give more aggressive fills in TJ)

Coffee with ff half and half 1 scrambled egg with salsa 1 protein bar 1 cupcake 3 small slices of apple with carmel dip Holy cow, I have been on an eatathon! Yikes! Vitamin water 20 oz

coffee ff cream greek yogurt spicey black bean burger Vitamin water 20 oz

Awesome! That is my kind of vacation! Go relax, play , and come back thinner!