By: Sandi Henderson

I was banded In May of 2004.  At 6 months post-op I had lost 100 pounds.  Every morning I woke up I was afraid that all of that and more would be back on my body, but I tried to keep the right attitude, follow my eating plan, walk a little more each day, and hope for the best.  The key words here are follow my eating plan and walk a little more each day.  Lap band is, of course, the most important word of all.  I made it through my first holiday season and started the New Year, 2005 113 pounds lighter than I was in mid 2004.  I still had more than 100 pounds to lose, and it was becoming a reality to me.  I might actually be able to do this, to get to a healthy weight.  I had more energy, and my worst complaint was the pain from arthritis in my right knee and leg and the fact that this pain woke me up at night.

The food seemed to be under control.  I just couldn't eat too much, or eat too fast.  My lap band let me know long before I got to "too much".  I got the hiccups just before I felt "too full".  My body gives me a distinct signal to stop.  I've actually asked my husband to remind me when he hears me hiccup that it is time to stop eating.  I have not drinking with meals down to a science.  This was not difficult for me, although many people are really troubled by it.  I just asked my husband if it was ok to not bring anything to drink to the table.  He could have a glass of whatever he wanted, but that was it.  No pitcher of ice tea.  The only time I make an exception is when I have company, and then sometimes I forget and everyone thinks I'm just being a bad hostess.  Oh well, the price of achieving one's goals is sometimes steep. 

At 10 months post op I hit 299 on the scale.  Another milestone!  I still haven't had a fill and still do not need one.  Eleven months out and I've lost a total of 134 pounds and still no fill.  I finally started to swim after thinking about it for 3 months.  I try to swim laps for ½ hour three times a week.  I feel like a whale in the water, but I feel great when I'm done.  A sense of accomplishment as well as a sense of well being.  My port seems to be "getting in the way" a bit when I go out and work in the garden.  This could be because I bend weird because of my legs and the loose skin around my stomach, but who knows.  If I bend at the waist it kind of hurts a little but there is nothing wrong with it. 

One year post-op I weighed 281 pounds, or 143 pounds less than I started.  This is amazing.  My surgeon and I began talking about plastic surgery since I already have rolls of loose tummy skin.  I no longer require seat belt extenders on planes.  Yay!  One less embarrassing moment for me.  I'll take it.  I had my swimming up to a half mile 3 times per week and I'm loving it.  I think I may actually feel some muscles taking form under all that loose skin.  I still didn'tt require a fill as my weight loss has been consistent and I have some restriction.  All I have to do is try to talk and eat at the same time and I learn all about restriction when I swallow without thoroughly chewing my food.  Oops, I'll try not to do that again.  My worst complaint is that no matter what I do, how much I eat of fibrous foods, even though I get in 72-84 ounces of water per day, I still need a fiber supplement daily or I am in trouble.  From what I understand this is not unusual for those of us with lap bands.

So what did I learn in my first year of life with a lap band, or Banded Living?

• Have an eating plan and follow it
• Exercise as much and as often as your physical condition allows you to
• Not drinking with meals is easier than I thought it would be - just keep the drink container off the table
• Change your exercise as your health and ability allow for it
• Exercise feels good
• Non scale victories are as important as scale victories
• Add a fiber supplement before you need it
• See your surgeon as often as possible.  He/she is often your best source of support

What held true for me as important in the first year is still important in year 7, including staying in touch with my surgeon.  As long as my health is my primary goal I can keep all the lessons I have learned in the forefront of my thoughts, so the most critical lesson I learned in my first year of banded living was:

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