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Well, I went to the doctor this past Thursday and he gave me a little more of a fill.  1/2 cc.  As I was drinking water in the waiting area I could feel it sitting in my throat and I felt like I had indigestion.  I was too tight.  He took 1/4 cc out and I was fine.  So now he says that I am as full as he can get me.  He said sometimes if you lose a lot more weight then the band can be filled more if needed.  So now he has placed me on a 10 day diet.  It is basically high protein, low carbs.  It doesn't look too bad.  The biggest problem that I have faced with the band is taking my pills.  I have a very small pill that I have to take once a day.  I even cut it in half, but it still gets stuck.  I don't know what to do.  I hate this stuck feeling.  It hurts and it makes me drool really bad.  I have to figure something out for that. 

I haven't lost much weight.  A total of 39 pounds since September 2008.  But that is 39 pounds that I haven't put back on yet.  I guess I should look at it positively.  I have at least 60 more pounds to lose before I meet my first goal.  I need to start taking this very seriously and exercising more.  I have gone through too much and spent too much money for this to fail. 

I went yesterday for another fill.  I have only lost 2 pounds in the past 4 weeks.  Dr. Lynch gave me another cc so now I am up to 6ccs.  He said that based on what I have told him he thinks I am near my "sweet spot".  I hope so.  I hate having to get fills.  They aren't too bad, but I have started to dread them because it takes him a while to find my port now.  He says that mine is very loose and it moves around a lot so each time he has to find the right spot to poke.  I can tell a difference in what I can hold, but I am still not exactly where I need to be.  I have started to have trouble eating bread and potatoes.  They hurt when they go down so I have to make sure I chew it as much as I can before I swallow.  But other than that I haven't had any problems with any foods.  I am down a total of 30 pounds from my highest weight, only 17 pounds since surgery, but I have been bad and haven't been exercising.  Once I get started in that routine I am sure I will lose a lot more weight.  I have 2 girls from work that are going to start with me at the gym on campus after the new year.  I hope they stick to it with me because I won't go by myself.  Even though I haven't lost as much as others I see on OH, I am proud of myself.  I haven't gained anything in the last 3 months and am slowly losing.  I am so glad I had this surgery.  I know that there is no way I would have been able to do this on my own.  I have been blessed with great insurance and a wonderful doctor.  I just can't wait to see what I am going to look like this time next year. 

I went back to the doctor today for another fill.  When I was called back they weighed me first.  I had lost 3.5 lbs since my last appointment 2 weeks ago.  The nurse said that since I had lost weight she didn't think I needed a fill.  I explained that the 3 pound weight loss was from the 3 days following the fill that I was on liquids.  I haven't lost any more weight since then.  So when the doctor came in he said the same thing so I had to go over my whole story again.  I told them that I have been hungry all the time and that the point of this surgery was to help me curb my hunger.  The doctor agreed with me and gave me a fill.  He stabbed me three times before he found the port hole.  He said that my port had rolled which was normal.  It was so nerve racking.  I HATE needles!  But he finally found it and he gave me 3cc.  So now I have a total of 4 cc in my 10 cc band.  He told me to be really careful because this was an "agressive" fill.  So we will see how it goes.  I hope that I don't have to go back for another fill.  Maybe I got lucky and found my sweet spot.  We will see next week.  So far liquids have been no problem so I know it isn't too tight.

It has been over a week since my fill and I need another one.  I have made an appointment for next week for another one.  I know that sounds quick but the doctor said if I was eating more than 1/2 cup and still not full to call and make an appointment for another fill in 2 weeks.  I have noticed that I can't eat as much as I did before the surgery but I can hold more than 1 cup of food and I am hungry within a few hours.  So maybe after this next fill I will know what restriction feels like.  I am down another 4 pounds since last Thursday (8 days ago).  I am happy with that.  As long as I am losing I can't complain.  I am just worried that I will start gaining soon because I am eating more than I should be able to.  We'll see.  I go back to the doctor next Thursday, October 9th.

I went to the doctor on September 25th for my 2 week post-op checkup.  I expected him to just look at my incisions and weigh me.  Well he did weigh me.  I was down 9 pounds since surgery and 20.5 pounds total including the pre-op diet.  I was happy with that.  But the doctor surprised me by saying "Let's do a fill today".  I wasn't ready for that.  I laid down on the bed, he stuck the needle in and it didn't hurt at all.  He then told me to sit up and I drank water as he pushed saline in.  He was planning to give me 2ccs. but just did 1 cc.  It wasn't bad at all.  But then I looked at the needle and I began to faint.  I had to lay down with 2 nurses over me.  One holding alcohol pads under my nose and the other with a cold rag on my head.  I got over it pretty quick.  I didn't realize how big the needle was that they use for this.  I can't believe it didn't hurt. 

Just an update....

I went under the knife on Wednesday September 10th.  Everything was great.  Surgery went fine, I didn't even hurt.  I was released about 5 hours after my surgery and went home to relax.  At home I began throwing up.  I called the doctor and he told me to take some Phenegren (sp?) and call him back later.  An hour and a half later I was still throwing up.  The doctor told me to get to the ER.  That is where I stayed for the next 3 days.  I was getting severly dehydrated.  They pumped me full of 3 different nausea meds for the past 3 days until today I felt better.  The doctor said he didn't know what was happening.  He didn't seem to think it was the anathesisia because it lasted so long and he did xrays on my band and everything was okay there.  But anyways I was released from the hospital today and am ready to start getting well.  Right now I am just having what feels like bad indigestion mixing with gas bubbles.  I hope this goes away soon.  I took gas-x but it doesn't seem to be helping much. 

I have been on the 2 week pre-op diet for 12 days now.  So far it hasn't been too bad.  The first 7 days I had a protein shake for breakfast and lunch and then I was able to eat a healthy choice meal for dinner.  These last 5 days I have been on 4 protein shakes a day with no solid food at all.  Today was hard because we had a family reunion with lots of good food.  But I was strong and did not give in.  I have lost 10 pounds so far in these 12 days which is pretty good.  Tomorrow and Tuesday I will not be allowed to have any protein shakes either, I will be on clear liquids only for the next two days.  Then Wednesday is surgery.  I am really getting nervous about this.  I know everyone probably goes through this. The fear of the unknown is scary.  I just wish that it was all over with and I was already recovered. 

August 15, 2008
I finally have a surgery date.  My life will change forever on September 10th, 2008.  I am excited and nervous.  I have never had surgery before so I am nervous about that part.  I hope I make it through everything okay.  I am supposed to start my pre-op diet the end of next week.  That is going to be an awful time.  I am supposed to have a protein shake for breakfast, a protein shake for lunch, and then a small healthy choice meal for dinner.  That lasts for one week, then I get to have nothing but liquids for the next week.  I already know how I am going to feel.  I will be weak, shaky and grumpy.  I really feel bad for my family.

I received the greatest news this morning.  My insurance has approved my surgery.  I meet with the surgeon on August 13th to discuss everything and set a date.  It won't be long now.  I am so excited.   I can't wait to be thinner. 

I called my insurance company today to check on my second submission for approval.  I was able to get my medical records showing my weight and my 10% weight loss through weight watchers was within the last two years so I could use it. They still haven't officially approved it, but I don't think that there should be any problems now (I HOPE!)  But anyways, the insurance lady told me that if they do approve it, BCBS will pay 90%.  I was thinking it was 80%, so hearing that made me happy.  It will be cheaper on me than I thought.