Watch Me Shrink

I have had so much going on in this first year with my band, mostly regular life. We moved to the coast, have a new puppy, got a new job, starting a new business on the side and with four kids in the house (9-18) even daily life has it’s challenges.

In the past my health and diet were always on the back burner to everything else going on in life. Plus, I used food as a reward (ice cream at the end of a hard day), an escape (dinner out at a nice restaurant with hubby– pasta, steak, yum!) and to just cope with feelings (busy my fingers and mouth eating chips while watching a good show). All very bad habits and coping mechanisms. With my band, even on busy and stressful days I HAD to stop and think what I was eating, how I was eating it and was limited in how much I could eat.

I had a couple of set backs. In my eagerness to lose weight fast, like many of my fellow August 07 bandsters, I rushed my fills and had to get unfills twice. The problem is that it can be hard to tell when I’m in the office if the fill is too much, especially with being so new to the band. The first one wasn’t too big of a deal. The tightness feeling that I sometimes have after a fill didn’t go away and I was only able to eat liquid and mush. The band was too tight and I just needed a small unfill.

The second one was much more serious. I thought the fill went well and was on liquids for two days, mush for a few after that and went to chewing chicken a veg really well. About a week or so after the fill I ate chicken, maybe didn’t chew well enough, and had a major PB. After the PB the symptoms didn’t go away and I wasn’t able to swallow my own saliva! So, the next morning we rushed to my Dr (2.5 hours away) for an unfill. In a case like that they would normally completely unfill but I begged that they only take half and they did, thank God!

After the swelling went down I started to FEEL my stomach again. I was H-U-N-G-R-Y! I hadn’t felt that feeling in a while. How annoying. Needless to say I gained a bit of my weight back before getting in for the refill.

I went in for another refill yesterday and finally have my restriction back. I actually relish the soft foods, tiny amounts and tight feeling. It was so hard after surgery but now I feel comfortable with it.

I was feeling disappointed that I gained some of my weight back after the unfill and haven’t lost nearly as much as many of my fellow bandsters. Then I realized having my band is for life. This is only my first year and I’m still learning. I didn’t gain all this weight in one year and it’s not good for it to all come off in one year. So, this is me: Bandster for life and learning!

This post was written by Jessica, our 18 year old daughter. It tells how she explained my lap band to her 8 year old sister.

The Lap Band is changing lives and families all around the world. The Bandsters that have the Lap Band realize the big step they are taking but their kids might have a harder time understanding what exactly a Lap Band does. This is how I helped to explain the Lap Band to my little sister and how our family coined the phrase “Mommy’s Zip Tie”.

The best way to explain to your kids is by comparing your Lap band to a Zip tie. Most kids know what a zip tie is, but if not then I would suggest getting a zip tie so you can explain– kids learn wonderfully through visuals they can relate to. Tell your child that you needed help getting healthy so you went to the Doctor and got this zip tie on your tummy. What the zip tie does is goes around your stomach and squeezes it to make it smaller.

If you have a zip tie you can give a little demonstration. You need a zip tie and a loosely inflated plastic bag. You want it to have enough air in it that it has some shape but not enough that it will pop when you put on the zip tie. (If that were to happen your child is likely to end up more afraid and confused than before. Oops!) Tell them that a smaller tummy helps you to eat less and get into better shape. Explain that when you are in a better shape you will be able to do more things with them and you will be happier.

Kids understand more than you think and will be happy for you. My kids have been so supportive and happy for me. They make me very proud.

I’m a slow loser and proud of it!

I’m down another 8 lbs for a total of 32 lbs lost. Bye! Bye! Never to be seen again! It has been about 24 weeks since my surgery. So that’s a 1.3 lb loss per week. That is a very healthy average. My Dr and the band manufacturers recommend losing 1-2 lbs a week.

Seeing many of my fellow August 07 bandsters lose 50-80 lbs sometimes makes me feel discouraged and it’s harder to post to my Aug. group. It seems silly even writing it now, but on those days that it gets me down it feels very real. So, I found a new area on my favorite message boards to post, because getting regular support is very important for this process. It’s called Slow Losers Unite It’s good to find others like me or that have been where I am. There is one member that has lost 150 lbs that had her surgery 1 year before mine. I am going to ask her for an interview and will post it here.

There are many good things about losing this weight slow, steady and healthy. It will be much less strain on my body and organs. I’m less likely to have hair loss or need plastic surgery. Best of all I’m more likely to keep the weight off long term. I’m happy to be a slow loser!

I saw Ravenna on Wife Swap last night. Did you? She was great! I just had to look her up online and ask her what kind of weight loss surgery she had. Sure enough, she has the band! Here’s an excerpt of the email she wrote back

“Yes Kathy, I have a band! I went to France before it was FDA approved and got a MID band - but they’re all basically the same.”

Ravenna, I want to be like you when I grow up. You look fabulous!

WifeSwap cracks me up! These poor women; the show producers always put them the worst situation they can. Ravenna swapped with a lumberjill/lumberjack family! Both of the moms were way out of their element, which makes for lots of laughs and a few tears.

My favorite part was when the lumberjack dad was drawing with his son– thanks to Sarina aka Ravenna. I was also glad Sarina’s hubby broke the rule and refused to sell all of her burlesque stuff. Way to go Dan!!! This was one of the better episodes because both families seemed to learn something that made their lives better and the moms didn’t claw each other’s eyes out at the end (some of those meetings get pretty heated).

When I went looking for Ravenna online, I came across a series of articles about her at 360 Digest. I was very surprised to find out she had been fired from her Real Estate firm. Are you kidding me? In this day and age?!?! Well, long story short, a better firm hired her and it turned out to be a blessing in disguise. I’m glad things worked out in the end.

Be sure to stop by RavennaBlack.com and vote for her! She’s competing for Miss Viva Las Vegas.(keep in mind this is her burlesque site and may not be suitable for children)

What was your favorite part of the show?

12/365: Out sickOriginally uploaded by Blueeyes24

I caught this cold and flu junk that’s going around and I’m feeling a bit under the weather this week. Every cold or flu seems to be a little different and this is the first one I’ve had that affected my band. My stomach is tighter than usual so I have to be careful of what I eat.

I had a Salmon patty for lunch today that wasn’t sitting well and was a bit annoying as I waited for it to pass. (It’s amazing how I feel my stomach so much now and can tell exactly what it’s doing.) So, I took it easy for dinner. The family had stew and I took the potatoes and carrots out and mashed them. I took half a bite of soft beef and it struggled to go down. Oops!

This also means I will have to reschedule my fill this Thursday. Not only because my lap band and stomach are feeling tighter but also because I hate driving that far when I feel this crummy with flu and cold. Yuck!

I hope I’m not grossing you out. I just want to share for those out there are are curious about what daily life is like with the lap band. Moments like this it is an additional insult to injury, so to speak, but I would do it all again in a heartbeat!

Prayers, well wishes and chicken soup gladly welcomed. Have a great week everybody!

Update: 1/30/08

Thank you for all the well wishes! I had to delay my fill but I am feeling great again. I can tell I’ve lost more. I love my band!

Prior to my lap band surgery it helped me a lot to watch video diaries of people who had already been through the procedure. This was one of my favorite videos because they followed her up to pre-op and right after surgery. Mine ended up being almost exactly like this and was really as simple as it looked in the video. It wasn’t as fun as a party or anything but not too bad
This gal is young and has some “colorful” language here and there but kudos to her for having the guts to video diary every detail and share it with us. “Thanks!”

There are a lot of videos in this series, capturing every last detail. I put up three main ones from surgery day that I thought you might enjoy.
You can see all of her videos here:
http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=thebandinme

(Sorry, I couldn’t get the videos to work right. So I just made these links to the videos.)

Cheking in

The lap band totally changes your life. Thank God! The way you think about food and deal with it every single day is completely different. Some days are better than others, but when you slip into bad habits the band is there to remind you.

The band is a TOOL. The better you follow the rules, the better the results. The great thing is that the band makes it so much easier to do than ever before. I’m only 6 months out and learning more and more every day.

Without further ado, here are the “Ten Important Rules for Living with the LAP-BAND®” from the manufacturer at LapBand.com:

Ten Important Rules for Living with the LAP-BAND®
Following the food choices covered in detail in the previous section and the general guidelines below is critical to your success. These ten important rules for eating, drinking, and exercise below will help you get the best results with the LAP-BAND® System:

1. Eat only three small meals a day.
2. Eat slowly and chew thoroughly.
3. Stop eating as soon as you feel full.
4. Do not drink while eating.
5. Do not eat between meals.
6. Eat only good quality food.
7. Avoid fibrous food.
8. Drink enough fluids during the day.
9. Drink only low-calorie liquids.
10. Exercise at least 30 minutes a day.

Rule 1: Eat only three small meals a day.
Your new small stomach pouch can hold only about one-fourth of a cup of food. If you try to eat more than this at one time, you may become nauseated or vomit. If you routinely eat too much, the small stomach pouch may stretch. Frequent vomiting will cancel the effect of the operation and can also cause certain complications, such as stomach slippage. To avoid this, you need to learn to listen to your body.

Rule 2: Eat slowly and chew thoroughly.
Food can pass through the new stomach only if it has been chewed into very small pieces. Always remember to take more time for your meals and chew your food very well.

Rule 3: Stop eating as soon as you feel full.
Once your stomach is full, your body receives a signal that you have eaten enough. It takes time, though, for you to become aware of this signal. If you rush through your meal, you may eat more than you need. This can lead to nausea and vomiting. Take time to eat your meal. Try to recognize the feeling of fullness—then stop eating at once.

Rule 4: Do not drink while you are eating.
The LAP-BAND® can work only if you eat solid food during your three meals. You should not drink anything for one to two hours after a meal. This allows you to keep the feeling of fullness as long as possible.

Rule 5: Do not eat between meals.
After a meal, do not eat anything else until the next meal. Eating snacks between meals is one of the major reasons for weight-loss failure. It is very important to break this habit. Patients with proper “fill” levels do not feel hungry in between meals. If you are feeling hungry, this may be a sign that your band is too loose and you should tell your clinician.

Rule 6: Eat only good quality food.
With the LAP-BAND® System in place, you should be able to eat only a small amount so the food you eat should be as nutritious as possible. Follow the nutrition guidelines in the previous section and specific instructions from your surgeon and/or dietitian. Also, ask your doctor or dietitian before you take any vitamin supplements.

Rule 7: Avoid fibrous food.
Food that contains many fibers, such as asparagus, can block the stoma. That’s because you can’t chew this food well enough to break it up into small pieces and your saliva can’t break it down. Fibrous food should be avoided. If you would like to eat asparagus or other fibrous foods once in a while, then be sure to cook them well, cut them into very small pieces first, and then chew thoroughly.

Rule 8: Drink enough fluids during the day.
Drinking enough fluids is essential for staying hydrated and for flushing waste products out of your body. Individual needs will vary, but you should drink at least six to eight glasses of water a day. Remember: You should only drink water, tea, or coffee (without milk, cream, or sugar). Also, keep your food and drinks completely separate during the day.

Rule 9: Drink only low-calorie liquids.
Drinks, including those containing calories, simply run through the narrow outlet created by the band. If you drink liquids high in calories, you will lose little weight, even if you follow all of the other dietary guidelines.

Rule 10: Exercise at least 30 minutes a day.
Since physical exercise consumes energy and burns calories, it is a very important component in any successful weight-loss program. Exercise can also help improve your general health. In addition to adopting a routine exercise program, you can increase your activity level in the course of daily living. For example, stand rather than sit, walk rather than stand, be outside rather than inside, walk rather than drive, climb the stairs rather than use the elevator. Remember that you should always check with your doctor about the amount and type of exercise that is best for you.