Sooo...This Is What It Is Like To Have The Lap-Band

I think I may have found my sweet spot.  My last fill was on June 6th.  The first 2 weeks, I didn't feel much, but now...I can only eat between 1/2- 1 cup at a time.  Oh, and by the way, I know this because I am continuing to measure all my meals.  I make sure my entire meal fits into two 1/2 cup containers.  I have also lost a total of 8.5 pounds since June 6th.

Lost: 8.5 pounds and frustration
Found: MOTIVATION

Have a great weekend everyone...oh and please pardon the look of the blog...I am "redecorating"!

I'm Back...

So I took a bit of a breather there.  Mostly because I was getting a bit frustrated and worried.  I was stuck in this fluctuation of 3-4 pounds for about a month.  I would gain a couple pounds then lose 3, gain 1 lose 1...then I got worried that my band wasn't working.  Was my esophogus dialated?  Did I stretch my pouch?  I had days where I swear I could eat a horse and then 2 days later could only eat what a bandster "should" be able to eat.  Then I had a fill 2 weeks ago...that got me worried again.  I went to a Mexican restaurant for my birthday lunch with friends from work and I was able to eat 2 whole brisket tacos with absolutely no problem.  Oy.  So fast forward to this past weekend and some enlightenment provided by Lap Band Gal.  She blogged that at any given time she could eat more than the regulated 1 cup of food, but she chooses to only eat 1 cup or less (paraphrasing of course).  Cue light bulb.  So with that info I have decided to start portioning out my food in 1 cup portions like this (tonights dinner: 2.5 oz chicken and 1/2 c of risotto.  Chicken = 115 cals, risotto = 85 cals.  Total protein = 17 grams):

And guess what?  This totally satisfied me.  I WILL GET IT THROUGH MY HEAD THAT THE POINT IS TO EAT TO WHERE YOU ARE SATISFIED, NOT EAT UNTIL THE BAND "STOPS" YOU.

I would love to hear from my fellow bloggers or followers if they have experienced any of this and what they have done about it.  Do you portion out all your meals?  What are your tips?

Oh and I have also learned something about fills.  The number of ccs you have in your band means ABSOLUTELY NOTHING.  I currently have 5.7 ccs in my band after 5 fills.  I don't feel completely in that I am in that green zone or sweet spot yet, but I hope I am close to getting there.  I know some bandsters that only have 2 ccs in their bands and are in the green zone.  I also know some bandsters that didn't reach the green zone until they had 9 ccs in their 10 cc band.  If you are new and reading this, please do not get hung up on this number.  Just focus on what is working for you.  I personally like to know how many ccs are in my band because I am curious...not because it really means anything other than a number.  I didn't always think this way...it is hard not to think that this whole process would be easier if they threw 7 ccs in the band at the beginning, but we need to trust the process and recognize that the band is a tool, not a complete solution.

Ok, so that is it for now.  I vow to be more vigilant about blogging...it sure keeps me honest.

So...Here's Where I Am

MY FILL THAT I HAD A WEEK AGO? DEFINITELY WORKING...EVEN TOO MUCH ON SOME DAYS.  LAST THURSDAY I EXPERIENCED A TWO AND A HALF HOUR STUCK EPISODE, PART OF WHICH WENT ON THROUGH A MEETING A WORK.  LUCKILY THE LADY I HAD THE MEETING WITH WAS WELL AWARE OF MY SITUATION AND I COULD BE HONEST WITH HER.  THE CONVO KINDA WENT LIKE THIS - "I'M SORRY, I NEED TO EXCUSE MYSELF AND RUN TO THE BATHROOM.  AGAIN."  NEEDLESS TO SAY I WON'T BE EATING LEFTOVER FAJITAS FOR BREAKFAST ANY LONGER.  THAT WAS JUST PAINFUL.  THEN THERE WAS THE EPISODE AT IHOP ON SATURDAY.  NICE.  ALTHOUGH MY CLASSINESS PROBABLY FIT IN PRETTY WELL WITH THE REST OF THE CLIENTELE.  OTHER THAN THAT, MY RESTRICTION HAS BEEN ADEQUATE.

STILL TRYING TO GET IN MY EXERCISE EVERY DAY...DOING BETTER LATELY, JUST NEED TO KEEP IT UP.

BEEN TRYING TO KEEP UP WITH EVERYONE'S BLOGS -  I STILL READ ALL OF THEM!  I NEED TO MAKE TIME TO COMMENT TOO!

I HAVE TO DO SEVERAL INTERVIEWS THIS WEEK - THIS IS PART OF MY NEW POSITION AT WORK.  I'VE NEVER INTERVIEWED ANYONE BEFORE SO THIS SHOULD BE INTERESTING...CAN I ASK IF THEY ARE DEMOCRAT OR REPUBLICAN??  NO, I GUESS THAT WOULD BE SLIGHTLY INAPPROPRIATE (EVEN THOUGH I COULD PICK THE "WINNER" BASED ON THAT QUESTION ALONE).  WISH ME LUCK!

This Week He's Moppin' Floors, Next Week It's The Fries

Sorry for the obscure title, but that is how my brain functions.  It's a line from "Gold Digger" by Kanye West and I thought it was apropos for this:

I finally received the job offer for a Team Leader position here at work - and I accepted.  Very excited to start down this new path!  The raise doesn't hurt either!  Gotta get bank for all those new clothes I intend to buy!

And tomorrow is FILL DAY!  Yay!  This will be my 3rd fill.  I can hardly believe it!  And it will be a test of how assertive I can be.  I will definitely be asking for a more aggressive fill this time.

My mom's neighborhood is having a community garage sale this Saturday, so I spent all day Sunday going through everything I own to pick out stuff to sell.  Came up with TONS of stuff, mostly clothes though.  So then I went to Office Max to get price tag stickers.  You can get a package of 350 stickers for $2.50, *and* they are pre-priced in denominations from $.10 to $20.  This is supposed to make it easy, right?  Then, OMG, what in the hell is wrong with me?  I had several items that the stickers wouldn't stick to.  So I got out my ribbon holder with its Martha Stewart ribbon and some paper and made my own price tags for these items.  Here I was sitting in the middle of the floor cutting paper, punching holes, tying ribbon on GARAGE SALE ITEMS.  When I was attempting to tie a tag on an item I was asking TEN CENTS for, I thought it might be time for a 12 step program for Organizing OCD.  Aunt Sue, do you have answer, because this is straight up Aunt Sue behavior! Oy...somebody help me. 

Hope everyone has a fabulous Monday...I will report back after my "kick butt and take names later" fill approach.

Lots Goin' On...

WARNING!  This will be a post of complete randomness.  Don't say you weren't warned.

So my restricition?  Yep, that lasted 2 whole days. Then went right back into feeling NADA.  Oh well.  I go for my next fill in less than a week.  I will be having a nice little chat with my conservative surgeon - no tea and crumpets provided.

If you know anything about me, you know that A) I am not a patient person, B) I am impulsive, and C) I love my dog entirely too much.  Now C has nothing to do with this post, but when you are trying to make a point you have to have an A, B, and C.  All that to say, I AM DYING, well not literally dying, for some info here at work.  Can't say what yet, but in the name of Britney Jean Spears, someone better make a decision SOON.

Speaking of Britney Jean Spears...I heart her.  Excited for her new album to come out next week.  Should have some good work out tunes.

Oh, and I am down 35 pounds.  Yay.

Ask And You Shall Receive

That fill that was doing absolutely nothing for me?  You know, the one I was just complaining about in the prior post?  Yeah, well, I must have really pissed it off because yesterday and today I have be T-I-G-H-T, tight!  Wowza!  Have been eating tortillas since I was banded with no problems - not anymore.  In fact I almost had a PB incident here at work during lunch.  I actually had to run into the bathroom.  And of course, me being me, I checked all the stalls and saw someone was in the last one so I went back in the hall and paced.  Didn't want to gross out the lone person in the bathroom, heaven forbid!  Noooo, I'd rather feel like a golf ball is stuck in my esophagus for an eternity.  Thankfully, I became unstuck and no longer had to worry about bathroom occupancy.  Bet that was more than you needed to know!  Oh the joys of being banded!

It remains to be seen if this restriction will last, but I must say it is nice to finally, truly, feel the band working!

To Fill Or Not To Fill???

So I bit the bullet and moved up my next fill from 4 weeks to 3 weeks.  Now I just have to remember to be a bit more assertive with whomever is giving me that fill!  Right now I can only eat about a cup of food at a time, but I get hungry about 2 hours later.  Today I had oatmeal with almonds and skim milk for breakfast and I couldn't even eat the full serving.  I had that at 7am and by 9am at work it felt like I hadn't eaten a thing!  So I had a banana.  Guess what?  I don't think I like bananas much.  Could only eat about half of that before it started tasting "funny"...For lunch I brought left over asparagus risotto and sliced peaches.  The risotto really seemed to fill me up yesterday so hopefully it will do the same today!

Hope everyone has a good Monday!  Looking forward to watching The Bachelor finale tonight...even though I already know the outcome (thanks Reality Steve).

Are You There Restriction? It's Me, Amanda.

I keep calling and calling.  Still, no answer.  I read these blogs where people speak of "tightness" and I am jealous.  What does that feel like?  'Cause these 1.4 ccs are not cutting it.  I really feel that I am having to "diet" meaning my band isn't helping me as much as I think it should.  My PA said I can go back in 3 weeks for another fill and I think I am going to take her up on that offer, because this, quite frankly, SUCKS.  I am still losing, albeit s-l-o-w-l-y.  So that's good.  And I know I have to get better with the exercising...but still!  I feel if I ask the PA to be more "aggressive" she'll...I don't know...spank me??  Yell at me??  Yank my band out and say NO MORE???  Maybe I just need to be more agressive myself at my next appointment.

Anyway - onto the weekend.  Thank GOD!

Monday Ponderings

So I get my second fill tomorrow.  I am beyond excited.  I still am in search of that elusive restriction.  I am hoping this fill will be a bit more helpful than the last.

As we tend to do in blog land, I have been reading more and more blogs and I've run across an interesting phenomenon:  Band Vacations (having their bands completely deflated for a period of time).  This has me completely flummoxed.  Why would you want to take a vacation and thus set up possible failure??  To me, the best part of the band is if you want to "cheat" and have something lacking nutritional value, you can, but your band keeps you from over induldging.  I guess there are a few bandsters out there that miss eating in abundance?  I am not judging - I am merely reacting, as I can't imagine myself ever doing this.  I guess I looked at this journey as continuum.  I don't ever want to "go back" - if I never get to eat 4 pieces of pizza again, oh well.  I will gladly settle for one.

I'll report back after my fill tomorrow...until then...

You Have What??

Ok.  So this post is dedicated to everyone who keeps saying "you have what??" when I say I have the lap band.

Here is the best description I have found as to how the band works:

This may help you in understanding the restrictive mechanism of a Lap-Band.

The protocol for Lap-Band fills calls for a four to six-week delay after surgery, prior to any fills. The purpose for the four to six-week delay is for the patient’s stomach to heal from the surgery, as well as allowing time for the Lap-Band to “seat” or “nestle” into the fat pad between the stomach wall and the interior wall of the Lap-Band.

Prior to receiving an EFFECTIVE fill, it is VERY uncommon to have any restriction from a Lap-Band. 

Normal weight loss with a properly restricted Lap-Band is between 1 and 2 pounds per week.

The normal cycle of fills, restriction and weight loss is as follows:

1. The patient's Lap-Band constricts when the patient receives a fill. Swelling for a few days after receiving a fill is very common. Many doctors require a patient to go on a liquid diet for a day or two after receiving a fill. A fill may have a “Delayed Action” of up to 4 weeks. A “Delayed-Action” means that the fill may not become effective for up to 4 weeks after the fill. That is why the ALLERGAN protocol states that fills should not be performed on patients who will not have access to medical care for at least two weeks after a fill.

2. The patient's stomach capacity is lessened as a result of the restriction caused by the Lap-Band.

3. The patient loses weight because they cannot eat as much food.

4. The residual fat-pad between the inside of the Lap-Band and the outside of the patient's stomach reduces in size because of the overall weight loss in the patient.

5. The reduction of the residual fat-pad causes the Lap-Band to become loose again.

6. At that point, the patient needs another fill, because the Lap-Band is loose, and the patient has a loss of restriction, which allows the patient to eat larger amounts of food.

7. The patient receives another fill and the process starts all over again.

Most Lap-Band patients receive several fills to adjust the Lap-Band as their weight loss progresses, and there is less and less residual fat-pad between the inside of the Lap-Band and the exterior of the stomach wall. Once a patient has lost all of their residual fat-pad, fills become less common. As the Lap-Band patient progresses in their weight loss, the effect of very tiny fills (Less than .2ccs) becomes greater and greater.

It is not uncommon for a late-stage Lap-Band patient to experience a significant difference in restriction with as little as .05cc of fill.  (courtesy of Wendell from Lap Band Talk).

So now you know.  Don't you feel smarter?