Anna E.
Little unfill
Nov 10, 2009
So I went through my week of liquids and mushies after my fill. Then I moved on to regular food and was doing alright, albeit a much smaller amount of food that's for sure. I also noticed that I was getting heartburn after taking my evening meds and that wasn't cool. On Wed. I was having a hard time getting liquids down and tried to eat some corned beef hash and got about 4 bites in and PB'd. I was too tight. I called my Dr's office and they said they could see me the next day at 8am. They told me to drink as much as possible and stay hydrated before then.
I was amazed that I wasn't hungry the rest of that day, and I drank slowly but kept hydrated. I got a protein shake down, which took about 20-30 min, and got my pills down. The next morning I went in to the Dr. on no food or drink for four hours before (so I just went all night). Brian came in and did the unfill of about .4 which took me back to my pre-fill stage (I don't remember the number, sorry).
I left there able to drink, happily, and started my liquid phase again. I was STARVING! I made it through the two days and started on mushies on Sat. I went out for a visit with my mom, whose been banded a lot longer than I, and when I told her I was on mushies she was like "why?". She told me you had to do that with a fill but not an unfill. So I ate food over the weekend and have had no problems.
I have pretty good restriction but it's still early to tell. I'll keep an eye on it and let you know. By the way, since not eating my fiber cereal and just taking fiber powder in my shake I haven't had a real crap until today. Hopefully my weight will reflect that tomorrow morning as I was up to 222.4 today, yikes! That's the wrong direction! Anyway, more later...
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I was amazed that I wasn't hungry the rest of that day, and I drank slowly but kept hydrated. I got a protein shake down, which took about 20-30 min, and got my pills down. The next morning I went in to the Dr. on no food or drink for four hours before (so I just went all night). Brian came in and did the unfill of about .4 which took me back to my pre-fill stage (I don't remember the number, sorry).
I left there able to drink, happily, and started my liquid phase again. I was STARVING! I made it through the two days and started on mushies on Sat. I went out for a visit with my mom, whose been banded a lot longer than I, and when I told her I was on mushies she was like "why?". She told me you had to do that with a fill but not an unfill. So I ate food over the weekend and have had no problems.
I have pretty good restriction but it's still early to tell. I'll keep an eye on it and let you know. By the way, since not eating my fiber cereal and just taking fiber powder in my shake I haven't had a real crap until today. Hopefully my weight will reflect that tomorrow morning as I was up to 222.4 today, yikes! That's the wrong direction! Anyway, more later...
A little fill, maybe the sweet spot soon?
Oct 30, 2009
Well I went in to see the surgeon yesterday and weighed in at 219.5! That's down 14lbs from 233.5 about 5 weeks ago! Woo hoo! I have been working hard at dieting and losing and knew I was down a lot but not that much!
I talked at length with Paul, the nutritionist, and we went over my food journal. He wanted me to watch the soy milk in iced coffees and the no sugar added ice cream at night but otherwise said I was doing a great job. We decided to give me a little fill because I can eat larger quantities occasionally and was trying too hard to "diet".
Brian, the surgeon, came in and gave me a small fill, about .8. We started talking about some new medications I am taking and while he looked up their side effects pertaining to weight loss I asked for another glass of water. Good thing I did because it got stuck! They pulled out another needle and he pulled out about .4 of that fill. That did the trick. I drank another glass of water and it went down fine.
I left there and had a chocolate shake, bad I know but it was sooo good! Today I am still on liquids and looking forward to eating, albeit mushies, tomorrow. So that's the news on this front, more later...
0 comments
I talked at length with Paul, the nutritionist, and we went over my food journal. He wanted me to watch the soy milk in iced coffees and the no sugar added ice cream at night but otherwise said I was doing a great job. We decided to give me a little fill because I can eat larger quantities occasionally and was trying too hard to "diet".
Brian, the surgeon, came in and gave me a small fill, about .8. We started talking about some new medications I am taking and while he looked up their side effects pertaining to weight loss I asked for another glass of water. Good thing I did because it got stuck! They pulled out another needle and he pulled out about .4 of that fill. That did the trick. I drank another glass of water and it went down fine.
I left there and had a chocolate shake, bad I know but it was sooo good! Today I am still on liquids and looking forward to eating, albeit mushies, tomorrow. So that's the news on this front, more later...
no fill this time
Sep 20, 2009
So I went in to see my surgeon on Thursday Sept. 17th and I was down 21.5 lbs since my last appt. Now I am at 233.5, down from 361 not too shabby! I'll take it anyway I can get it you know? I was glad to see the weight loss since at my last appt I was only down 5lbs, so this news is encouraging. I weigh myself regularly but hadn't really looked at my weight loss until the appt this week.
I met with Paul, the nutritionist, and we went over my food log and how the past two months had gone. We discussed how I had been struggling with Pb's and had been bad on my food over the past couple of weeks. He felt that I should forgo the fill and check in with them again in a month so that's what we decided to do.
I am seeing differences in how I look and how clothes are fitting on me. I went to buy some clothes and found that I am in an XL shirt and 22 pants (jeans). Down from a 5X and 30/32 so that's pretty cool! I am feeling better about myself and how I look, except for the flabby skin that I see in the mirror when I shower, oh those poor ladies at water aerobics have to look at that in the locker room!
Anyway, things are looking up, I am focusing more on good food choices and listening to my soft-stop when it tells me I have had enough so I don't PB too often. I'll keep working on it, more later...
1 comment
I met with Paul, the nutritionist, and we went over my food log and how the past two months had gone. We discussed how I had been struggling with Pb's and had been bad on my food over the past couple of weeks. He felt that I should forgo the fill and check in with them again in a month so that's what we decided to do.
I am seeing differences in how I look and how clothes are fitting on me. I went to buy some clothes and found that I am in an XL shirt and 22 pants (jeans). Down from a 5X and 30/32 so that's pretty cool! I am feeling better about myself and how I look, except for the flabby skin that I see in the mirror when I shower, oh those poor ladies at water aerobics have to look at that in the locker room!
Anyway, things are looking up, I am focusing more on good food choices and listening to my soft-stop when it tells me I have had enough so I don't PB too often. I'll keep working on it, more later...
vacation
Aug 01, 2009
So I am leaving in the morning for a four day excursion with my family to Tucson, Arizona to see my grandmother. Five of us in a land rover in excruciating heat sounds like loads of fun doesn't it?!?
Anyway, it is August 1st and I didn't reach my goal of 240lbs but I came close at 243.1 so I guess I can't be too disappointed in that. I am a bit nervous about this trip food wise as I am coming off of two PB episodes in two days. I ate fine today but will need to be really careful of my food during the trip or I might PB some more.
So I guess not much to report on today so I will sign off for now. More later...
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Anyway, it is August 1st and I didn't reach my goal of 240lbs but I came close at 243.1 so I guess I can't be too disappointed in that. I am a bit nervous about this trip food wise as I am coming off of two PB episodes in two days. I ate fine today but will need to be really careful of my food during the trip or I might PB some more.
So I guess not much to report on today so I will sign off for now. More later...
small fill, down only 5 lbs
Jul 09, 2009
So I went in to see the surgeon today for my regularly scheduled fill. I was weighed in at 255lbs which is down only about 5.5 lbs since I was there last in May but down about 72lbs from my highest with them so that is good. I am a little frustrated with the 5lbs since I am killing myself with working out 5-6 times a week and now have gone onto the Atkins diet since I wasn't losing with how I was eating before.
I talked at length with Paul, the dietitian, and he said I am doing everything right with regards to my exercise and the high protein low carb diet. He said that, however, the Atkins diet is not so good with regards to the saturated fats in the diet and that could be where I am having problems with my weight. He said I would get a fill today and that would help me some to reduce my intake but he wanted me to watch the saturated fats in my diet and see how that goes.
I got my fill, about .6cc, and then was on my way home. I talked with my sister who's also doing the Atkins and she said that I have to remember that I've only been doing it for about a week and a half and I have seen weight loss in that time. She said that maybe I've gained before that and this is helping me to bring it back under control. She also said that she was going to reconsider her Atkins program and see if we could reign in our fat intake together. I told her it's a deal. She also told me to talk to my mom, who's also had the band and who's doctor put her on the Atkins plan to bring down her last 20lbs and see if she's watching her fats.
So now I'm on my 2days liquids, 2 days mushy and I will try to rethink my diet options from there. More later...
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I talked at length with Paul, the dietitian, and he said I am doing everything right with regards to my exercise and the high protein low carb diet. He said that, however, the Atkins diet is not so good with regards to the saturated fats in the diet and that could be where I am having problems with my weight. He said I would get a fill today and that would help me some to reduce my intake but he wanted me to watch the saturated fats in my diet and see how that goes.
I got my fill, about .6cc, and then was on my way home. I talked with my sister who's also doing the Atkins and she said that I have to remember that I've only been doing it for about a week and a half and I have seen weight loss in that time. She said that maybe I've gained before that and this is helping me to bring it back under control. She also said that she was going to reconsider her Atkins program and see if we could reign in our fat intake together. I told her it's a deal. She also told me to talk to my mom, who's also had the band and who's doctor put her on the Atkins plan to bring down her last 20lbs and see if she's watching her fats.
So now I'm on my 2days liquids, 2 days mushy and I will try to rethink my diet options from there. More later...
Small unfill :(
May 15, 2009
So I still was having problems with water and I pb'd my smoothie with my pills last night so I called my surgeon's office. I spoke with Kim the nurse and she said you should have called us yesterday (that is their normal clinic day) but she would try to reach one of the doctors and call me back.
I got up and showered and forcefully with lots of agony got a shake and my pills down, which stayed down but hurt. She called me back at 10:20am and said that Brian could do an unfill if I could get there within the hour (I live an hour from their office) so I said I would try.
I threw on my flip flops and turned off the dryer and ran out the door. I made it there by 11:20am, one hour on the nose! They checked me in and I am now at 260.5lbs, down 5 from Tuesday. They put me in a room and Brian came in ready to do the unfill. He asked me about my symptoms and asked the nurse how much fill I had. He told me I was going to lose .6 of the fill and said that wasn't a lot but it would help things move better.
He gave me the numbing shot and took out the fill and had me chug water which went down fine. Then I was done. I asked him if I was a failure for not being able to get it to work and he said no, that I did the right thing and it happens frequently so I shouldn't feel bad. I went home and got a shake on the way which went down fine and my water is going down fine as well, we'll see what happens when I try to take my meds tonight.
Anyway, he also put me on pepcid ac chewables twice a day for two weeks to help with the inflammation so I picked those up on the way home. Now I'm back on the liquids 2 days then mushies then regular food. We'll see how that transition goes as I am going out of town for the weekend. More later...
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I got up and showered and forcefully with lots of agony got a shake and my pills down, which stayed down but hurt. She called me back at 10:20am and said that Brian could do an unfill if I could get there within the hour (I live an hour from their office) so I said I would try.
I threw on my flip flops and turned off the dryer and ran out the door. I made it there by 11:20am, one hour on the nose! They checked me in and I am now at 260.5lbs, down 5 from Tuesday. They put me in a room and Brian came in ready to do the unfill. He asked me about my symptoms and asked the nurse how much fill I had. He told me I was going to lose .6 of the fill and said that wasn't a lot but it would help things move better.
He gave me the numbing shot and took out the fill and had me chug water which went down fine. Then I was done. I asked him if I was a failure for not being able to get it to work and he said no, that I did the right thing and it happens frequently so I shouldn't feel bad. I went home and got a shake on the way which went down fine and my water is going down fine as well, we'll see what happens when I try to take my meds tonight.
Anyway, he also put me on pepcid ac chewables twice a day for two weeks to help with the inflammation so I picked those up on the way home. Now I'm back on the liquids 2 days then mushies then regular food. We'll see how that transition goes as I am going out of town for the weekend. More later...
Mushies & PB!
May 14, 2009
Well today I was supposed to start on mushies and I was nervous because I had been having problems with water not going down well yesterday. I got up late and purposely didn't go to a meeting I was supposed to attend so that I would be home if I had any problems when I ate.
I had my shake and that went down fine with my pills. I waited a little bit and then decided to have some tuna with mayo that I made up yesterday. First, it seemed a little dry even with the mayo but I continued. Then I felt a tightness in my chest and waited for it to pass, which it did, then I had another couple of bites. I did this a second time then on the third time I encountered the hiccups which are my signal to stop so I did.
I was on the phone with my sister and it seemed to be going down fine and 30 minutes went by. Then all of a sudden I started to slime and rushed to the bathroom where I slimed a few times then out it came, a ball of tuna. Great.
So now I am back on liquids for the rest of today and I stopped by the store and picked up some applesauce and jello for tomorrow. My sister thought maybe those would be better choices.
We discussed the PB and agreed that 1. the tuna was maybe not the right choice to start with and 2. I should have stopped after the first sign of tightness in my chest and not pushed it to the hiccups. I am still learning about this band and as my therapist said I need to let it teach me and not me trying to force or trick it to do what I want. Guess I still have some learnin' to do. Anyway I'll post again as I try to venture into eating again tomorrow. More later...
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I had my shake and that went down fine with my pills. I waited a little bit and then decided to have some tuna with mayo that I made up yesterday. First, it seemed a little dry even with the mayo but I continued. Then I felt a tightness in my chest and waited for it to pass, which it did, then I had another couple of bites. I did this a second time then on the third time I encountered the hiccups which are my signal to stop so I did.
I was on the phone with my sister and it seemed to be going down fine and 30 minutes went by. Then all of a sudden I started to slime and rushed to the bathroom where I slimed a few times then out it came, a ball of tuna. Great.
So now I am back on liquids for the rest of today and I stopped by the store and picked up some applesauce and jello for tomorrow. My sister thought maybe those would be better choices.
We discussed the PB and agreed that 1. the tuna was maybe not the right choice to start with and 2. I should have stopped after the first sign of tightness in my chest and not pushed it to the hiccups. I am still learning about this band and as my therapist said I need to let it teach me and not me trying to force or trick it to do what I want. Guess I still have some learnin' to do. Anyway I'll post again as I try to venture into eating again tomorrow. More later...
3 month check-up & fill
May 13, 2009
Well I went in to see the surgeon yesterday for my 3 month check-up and to get a much needed fill. The Dr was on vacation so I saw Brian (who I saw last time as well and really like). It was fine for me since he didn't have a waiting room full of patients to see him I didn't have to wait too long - yay!
I got weighed in and came in at 265.5 which is down 5.5 since my last visit and down 61 from my pre-op weight of 327. I wish it was lower but they all said that it was good, that this was Lap Band and it would be a slower loss. Then I met with the nutritionist and we talked about what I had been eating and why. I told him I felt I could eat too much and he asked for an example. I told him about going to dinner on mother's day with my family and splitting a 3/4 lb prime rib with my mom along with mashed potatoes and 1/2 a salad. He agreed that was too much and it sounded like I needed a fill. He warned me about eating out too much (I told him I had been as of late) due to high sugar, fat and salt content in the foods that make it taste so good. We also discussed the facts about pasta and rice and he said that about 50% of the people couldn't tolerate them so to take it carefully after the fill to see how it goes. He said to just take it slow and chew really well and see.
Then Brian and the nurse came in to do the fill. I asked what the procedures were for after the fill and they said the rest of the day and the next on liquids, the next two days on soft/mushy food and then begin to add in regular food as tolerated. I also confirmed the 60 min rule about not drinking after meals and they confirmed that's what they want to see due to not wanting to wash the food out of the pouch too quickly. I verified if I needed to continue my Co enzyme Q10 tablets and they said that was mainly for surgical trauma so I could discontinue them.
He gave me my fill, it took a couple of pokes, but then had me stand up while drinking water to see how it went down. It seemed to go down fine with a little gurgling so he had me drink again and then measured how much of a fill he had given me. He said I went from 6 to 7.6 and said that it was a pretty big fill so I needed to take it easy on my recovery time. Then off I went, straight to Baker's for a chocolate shake (bad I know) to make sure the fill wasn't too big but the shake went down just fine.
Today I am doing alright, a little sore over the port and drinking is a little slow with my water. This morning I had the hiccups every time I drank and when I asked my mom about them (she's had the band ya know) she said I just needed to take smaller sips. She asked if my shake went down alright and I said it had she said not to worry just take it slower. So I have and I've been fine the rest of the day. We'll see how it goes as I add in my mushies tomorrow! More later...
0 comments
I got weighed in and came in at 265.5 which is down 5.5 since my last visit and down 61 from my pre-op weight of 327. I wish it was lower but they all said that it was good, that this was Lap Band and it would be a slower loss. Then I met with the nutritionist and we talked about what I had been eating and why. I told him I felt I could eat too much and he asked for an example. I told him about going to dinner on mother's day with my family and splitting a 3/4 lb prime rib with my mom along with mashed potatoes and 1/2 a salad. He agreed that was too much and it sounded like I needed a fill. He warned me about eating out too much (I told him I had been as of late) due to high sugar, fat and salt content in the foods that make it taste so good. We also discussed the facts about pasta and rice and he said that about 50% of the people couldn't tolerate them so to take it carefully after the fill to see how it goes. He said to just take it slow and chew really well and see.
Then Brian and the nurse came in to do the fill. I asked what the procedures were for after the fill and they said the rest of the day and the next on liquids, the next two days on soft/mushy food and then begin to add in regular food as tolerated. I also confirmed the 60 min rule about not drinking after meals and they confirmed that's what they want to see due to not wanting to wash the food out of the pouch too quickly. I verified if I needed to continue my Co enzyme Q10 tablets and they said that was mainly for surgical trauma so I could discontinue them.
He gave me my fill, it took a couple of pokes, but then had me stand up while drinking water to see how it went down. It seemed to go down fine with a little gurgling so he had me drink again and then measured how much of a fill he had given me. He said I went from 6 to 7.6 and said that it was a pretty big fill so I needed to take it easy on my recovery time. Then off I went, straight to Baker's for a chocolate shake (bad I know) to make sure the fill wasn't too big but the shake went down just fine.
Today I am doing alright, a little sore over the port and drinking is a little slow with my water. This morning I had the hiccups every time I drank and when I asked my mom about them (she's had the band ya know) she said I just needed to take smaller sips. She asked if my shake went down alright and I said it had she said not to worry just take it slower. So I have and I've been fine the rest of the day. We'll see how it goes as I add in my mushies tomorrow! More later...
Update
Apr 27, 2009
Well, it's been a little while since I last posted on March 16th and things are going pretty well I guess. I have my next appointment with the surgeon on May 12th and it can't get here any faster in my opinion. I am starving a lot, and eating huge meals (like sometimes even before surgery size meals) and not losing much weight. I was supposed to go in on May 19th but I moved it up as far as I could due to the above mentioned reasons.
I have finally had a pb, although a baby one, due to eating too much after reaching my soft-stop. I brought up just that little bit of extra food, the rest went down fine. I also slimed again about two weeks ago when I tried eating out the day after putting my cat down. I guess the stress just wasn't gonna let me eat, oh well. I saved my meal and had it for dinner, all's well that ends well right?
I have been going to water aerobics three days a week and it feels good. I also bought some new underwear, new bras and spanx, wow what a difference! I have lost about 90lbs since my heaviest and was needing a few pick-me-ups if you know what I mean...wink, wink! Right now I am dressed in "fat" clothes cause I did laundry and I am amazed at how big everything is on me. Kind of feels good, ya know?
Anyway, I am continuing to try to maintain my eating and will be forever happy when my fill comes on the 12th. I will update more then. More later...
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I have finally had a pb, although a baby one, due to eating too much after reaching my soft-stop. I brought up just that little bit of extra food, the rest went down fine. I also slimed again about two weeks ago when I tried eating out the day after putting my cat down. I guess the stress just wasn't gonna let me eat, oh well. I saved my meal and had it for dinner, all's well that ends well right?
I have been going to water aerobics three days a week and it feels good. I also bought some new underwear, new bras and spanx, wow what a difference! I have lost about 90lbs since my heaviest and was needing a few pick-me-ups if you know what I mean...wink, wink! Right now I am dressed in "fat" clothes cause I did laundry and I am amazed at how big everything is on me. Kind of feels good, ya know?
Anyway, I am continuing to try to maintain my eating and will be forever happy when my fill comes on the 12th. I will update more then. More later...
Slimed!
Mar 16, 2009
Well I had my first pb near-miss tonight. I was eating a chiken breast cooked on the foreman and I think I slightly overcooked it as it was a little dry. Anyway, I reached my soft stop (hiccups) but didn't "feel" full so I kept at it. Well I ate too much and started to swallow a lot. It felt like thefood was just in the back of my throat but no pain to speak of.
Luckily my mom has also had the band about two years ago and was home when I called and she talked me through it. I got a glass and started to spit out the saliva (slime) and then went into the bathroom to see if it was going to come out (pb). It did not. I walked around and put my hands above my head and so far an hour later it seems to be going down. I'm going to wait a little bit more before I try to drink anything.
But that was a fun experience - NOT! Guess I know what it feels like to eat too much now! I'll try not to do that again. More later...
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Luckily my mom has also had the band about two years ago and was home when I called and she talked me through it. I got a glass and started to spit out the saliva (slime) and then went into the bathroom to see if it was going to come out (pb). It did not. I walked around and put my hands above my head and so far an hour later it seems to be going down. I'm going to wait a little bit more before I try to drink anything.
But that was a fun experience - NOT! Guess I know what it feels like to eat too much now! I'll try not to do that again. More later...
