Ricci, Have you been to the lapband message board yet? It is a great group of men and women that have all had the band. I was banded on 11/24/03 and have lost 54 pounds. I had a fill in January of 1CC and don't have a lot of restriction but I do exercise a lot. I go to the YMCA 3 days a week and then do my stationary bike or Pilates at home the other days. I had not had problems with any food in particular. I PB'd on a boiled egg once but that was the only PB I had. Sometimes when I eat chicken or hamburger, it gets a little stuck and hurts but it eventually goes away. I still struggle with food and cheat at least every day with a piece of chocolate! I go the doctor on March 23rd and hopefully he'll give me another fill. Good luck and let me know what I can do to help you. You can email me privately at [email protected] if you want to. Good luck, Tisha

I lost 10 pounds this month for 75 total. I drink at least 80 oz of water a day and eat 60 grams of protein, with almost all of my side dishes being high fiber dishes like lettuce, celery, spinach, etc. No sugar at all. I exercise 5 times a week. Carolyn Moore lap DS 11/03/03 317 pre-op/242 current/150 goal

If you are down to a size twelve I can't really see what you have to complain about....I can only dream about maybe someday being that size ... I had the DS on 11/3/03 and have lost 75 lbs--in my case that has taken me from a size 32 to a size 22 and my goal is a size 14. Don't go by just what the scale says. Those of us who were morbidly obese have more dense bones and will weigh more than it would appear we do for our size--also remember muscle weighs more than fat. Pay more attention to inches lost and clothing sizes lost once you get close to your goal. Also remember that with the RNY the usual weight loss is 60-70% of your excess weight (with the DS it is 80-85%). Figure it this way: what weight would make you have a BMI of 25? That is your ideal weight (due to the dense bones). Subtract that from your pre-op weight. The answer is your (original) excess pounds. Divide the number of pounds you have lost by your excess pounds--you will get a decimal. Round off to two places and add a % mark. Assuming your ideal weight is 150 pounds, you have lost 42% of your excess weight. You can expect, if you keep working on it, to eventually lose another 20%, or another wait a minute I have to go back and look at you numbers again...another

Maybe I should have asked who hasn't starting to lose the hair!!! So far it hasn't happened to me, which is kinda good because my hair is so thin anyway. But I know it is going to. This may sound silly but I wi**** would just start so I can get it over with! Everytime I wash or brush my hair I find myself looking for excess hair. It's ridiculous! Hope everyone has a great weekend. Mary 345/243/???

Yes, and it's horrible. It started falling out at about 2 1/2 months and with in the last few weeks it has gotten really bad. I am taking that Hair Vitamin from GNC (can't think of the name)...I hope it helps. People say they can't tell, but I can. It's very fine...and if it keeps up, I will be looking bald....I just wi**** would stop!