Me again. C'mon bandsters, post. I'm lonely!

So, I went to my surgeon's office yesterday. They agreed that I didn't need a fill and assured me that this damn, damn plateau is very normal and will break at some point - soon I hope! They were also very impressed with my level of physical activity, so all in all it was a good visit. They had me make an appointment for a month away because they're pretty sure I'll need another fill then. I was told that as you lose weight, your stomach also loses fat and shrinks, making the band looser around it. I did not know that.

I had a NSV yesterday that surprised me. I was on the treadmill and started to run. Yes, me, running. Whodathunk? What I learned is that I probably should get a sports bra, but other than that, it was pretty cool.

I might have a stress fracture in my foot. I'm hoping for x-ray results soon, but I'm not sure there's anything much to do about it if is fractured. Sigh...

Later gators,
Chickadee

Hi Chick,

Sorry about your foot. How did you injure it? --Pookie


>>Hey there's Chick on the treadmill running!>>

Hi Chick and Pookie............ soon time for me to get ready for work, but
in ( - tough job but SOMEBODY's got to do it ) .. the thought of running has me gasping for breath.......but I gotta admire you for being able to do it Chick, even if you ARE a <gasp> braves fan! Um, Chick, what's an NSV?
Gee, Pookie, aren't you scheduled soon?
I've been on the topamax now for 5 days and I'm not sure if I've got any of the dreaded side effects, or whether it is just my "normal" not-so-normal-ness ... hmmmm did that make ANY sense to you? weight seems to be stable, which is a miracle all by itself, since I can't seem to stop shovelling food into my face! And tonight, after work is the long anticipated dinner w/dd2, her bf and HIS parents for what we believe will be "THE ANNOUNCEMENT". Now THAT is enough to keep me eating non-stop for about a month! oh well, as dh says: if she is happy... well, time to get ready....... have a good day chickies......

SONO, SONO, SONO You have me gasping in horror here!
Important announcement follows:
I am not, nor have I ever been, nor will I ever be, a Braves fan!!!
I think you have me confused with DebKay, a (former) Braves fan (since the defection of cute-butted Javy Lopez).

The best, most wonderful, most under-respected team is
The COLORADO ROCKIES!

I can't even imagine hearing one of my kids give me the big announcement. Deep breaths, deep breaths!

NSV = Non-Scale Victory

POOKALA I like that icon
I have no idea how I injured my foot, but it seems to coincide with regular workouts and softball. See, working out is NOT good for you!

HI Chick,

YOu are very funny -- just when I think you can't come up with any more variations on Pookie you come up with yet another.

You are the Mozart of name variations. Let's see so far there has been:

Pooks
Pook
Pookster
Pookla (Fran & Olie!)
and now Pookala I think there have been several others as well! Your posts are always good for a laugh. Except for those pesky foot injuries!
Notice how I never enter into those baseball posts. I have learned never to discuss: Politics / Religion / Sex or Baseball ( OK maybe sex sometimes)

Sono, I am scheduled for 1 week from today Wed Aug 18. The day before I am going to post a reminder for folks to be sending good vibes and good thoughts my way next Wed. Thanks, Pookie

Hi All; Chickadee, don't worry about that plateau - it happens on every diet at some point; the main thing is that you are losing inches, which is just as important! Keep it up and you'll see that damned scale move soon!
I went for my first follow-up after surgery with Dr. Kurian today. I am 17 days post-op and lost 15 pounds. Mostly water, I assume, But, hey, I'll take it. I feel so positive about my band. This baby really works b/c even when I get the urge to pig out at midnight it is just not possible. I made the mistake twice of eating the wrong foods -- Chick is absolutely correct, it lets you know who's boss; I thought I was getting a heart attack and going to die. This is definitely behavior modification at its most basic. Now I feel for the poor monkey who gets shocked for pressing the wrong button!
Everyone stay positive as we move toward our goal of healthy bodies. Sorry for "Y" chromosome, Chick, I really had nothing to do with it!! Phil.

Oh dear, my bad........... Chickie... soooooo sorry.......... I never never ever meant to insult you like that...... I just KNEW you were better than that, and would never ever ever root for those awful braves! Please please please forgive me!

As for the deep breaths..... I am sooooo hyperventilating at this moment!!! Not only did we get THE ANNOUNCEMENT, BUT...........the wedding will be on OCTOBER 10!!!!!!!!!!! They have already picked out the band, flowers, dress, invitations, EVERYTHING!!!!!........... OY VEY!!!!!!! I simply cannot stand this! Can anyone help me to lose about 60 lbs in the next 8 weeks?????????? (please note: I am only half joking here, the other half is ready to jump off the roof, but it is only 2 stories high! )

Pookie, if you don't mind, I will start sending the vibes your way now... that way, if I miss a day or so, I will have built up extras!!! (remember, I am old and forget stuff easily, therefore I need to start early!! )

Pirateboy, seems like you're doing real well ... could I perhaps borrow your "y" chromosome for a while? puhleeze?

Thanks SONOGRANNY

I will gladly take all the GOOD VIBES I can get!

Thanks, Pookie

PirateBoy PHil: You are making great progress in Lapbandia!

I had to register for this board just to reply to your message. I was taking topamax for a while, and let me tell you it worked great at helping me lose weight. I just didn't need to eat, it seemed. I quit taking it eventually because I didn't like the cognitive side effects -- i.e., walking around in a fog and being unable to complete sentences. But still, for a long time I was okay with the idea of being "cute [thin] but dumb!" I would totally do it again for a short-term goal like a wedding.

I'm sure a lot of people would disagree with me -- that's just my $.02

P.momma - thanks so much for your reply and letting me know your experience w/the Topamax. I know what you meant about the fog and being unable to complete a sentence! Unfortunately, the side effects were a little stronger for me.... 5 days after I wrote the above post, I FORGOT how to back out of my garage! -- now the side of my (red) truck is WHITE... my husband had to literally stand in front of my truck and give me signals how to get out of the garage - put that together with forgetting how to complete scan protocols at work and I STOPPED taking it immediately. I was never so scared - the only good thing is that I knew right away what was wrong, and my fog lifted within a couple of days..... I guess I know what my next step needs to be.....

Hi Sonogranny -- just be careful of those sudden medication stops! Sometimes that's bad news!

Hey Guys: 5 weeks post op and the lap-band is just hummin' away. I lost 22 pounds so far, got my first fill (.6cc) yesterday. It's not all that easy, eating too much and paying the price, eating the wrong food and paying the price, the cravings in my head that will not leave me alone, BUT in all, I am very pleased. God Bless Dr. Kurian!

Congratulations Phil. You're doing great. A little advice from me on the fill - give it a few days before you decide if you feel any restriction or not. I have found that they take a couple of days to "kick in". I just had my third (I'm at 1.7 cc) and think it may be just right, but I also thought that at 1.4 and I was wrong. Sounds like your doc is pretty conservative with fill amounts (so is mine). I read people who get 2.0 cc the first time and wonder how on earth they deal with that. Everybody's different I guess.
I predict that once you are filled and at your sweet spot, the head hunger you're experiencing now won't be bad at all. I have a little of whatever it is that's haunting me and leave it at that - I just need a little bit.

Keep working with your wonderful new tool!
Chickadee

What's a lap band and what's a fill? Is this a new kind of weight loss surgery?

Hi Linda,

What? You haven't heard of the Lap band before. It's this really cool new rock group out of Finland - thus the name Lap Band! Is there a smartass smiley face I can insert here?

You might be sorry you asked, because you know I can get long-winded, but here goes!

LapBand surgery is weightloss surgery. The real name for it is Adjustable Gastric Band (AGB), but you usually hear it referred to as LapBand. It is a ring made of plastic that has tubing inside it. The tubing connects to a flat disc called the port. Picture a donut on a leash, and that's kind of what the band looks like. The band is put around the upper part of the stomach and the port is sewn into place just under the skin. My port is about three inches below my right bosom (good word, huh?). Basically, the band makes a smaller stomach. Once you're healed after surgery, you go in for fills. To do a fill, the doctor simply finds the port and injects it with saline. They do it with a special hollow needle and it's relatively painless. The saline makes the tubing in the band expand and makes the stomach opening smaller. It can take a number of fills to reach your "sweet spot" which is what they call it when you have perfect restriction.

When you're properly filled, you don't need to eat very much food, because you feel full much, much faster. We have to take very small bites, chew thoroughly and make sure we eat lots and lots of protein.

There are quite a few differences between RNY Gastric Bypass and LapBand.
* LapBand surgery doesn't involve the cutting and rerouting of any of your plumbing, just the insertion of the band.
* The bypass utilizes malabsorbtion of food and the band doesn't.
* The band is reversible should the need arise (which hopefully never happens to me). From what I've read, I understand that the bypass can be taken down, but is pretty difficult.
* Bypass patients lose weight more quickly than bandsters do, but at two to three years out, weightloss is the same. With the band, there is no "window" of weightloss opportunity. If the weightloss slows or stops with the band, you can get adjusted (filled). From what I understand (and Jif, please correct me if I'm wrong) bypassers have 18 months or so to get the weight off.
* There are fewer complications from surgery with the band. It's a much less invasive surgery.
* Insurance companies are much more willing to pay for the Bypass surgery than the Lapband surgery. Some still call the band experimental. It's only been approved by the FDA since 2001, but has been used in Europe and elsewhere for years. I'm not sure what the status is in Canada, but I do know there's a long waiting time there to get it.
* Lapband patients don't dump. Many bypass patients have to be careful with the amount of sugar and fat they consume or they get really sick. Depending on the person, this can be good or bad. I have read that the possibility of dumping keeps a lot of bypassers on the straight and narrow, so it's a good thing for them. I have also read about bandsters "eating around" the band. If you eat a lot of soft food like ice cream and mashed potatoes, you can totally sabotage the band. I read a number of discussion boards and there seems to be part of the WLS population that just has to push the limits on whichever surgery they had, just to see what they can get away with. Personally, I'm not sure why you'd go so far as to have surgery and mess around with it.

Hopefully, that kind of explained it for you.

Told you it would be long!
Chickadee