TerriDoodle

Definitely sounds like acid reflux or GERD.... if you look up the symptoms at webmd or somewhere like that, I think you'll recognize them! There are medications you can take and alter the way you eat and, as you suspect, need to finish eating earlier in the evening. Good luck!

By the way....iif ya'll are sick of seeing me post just ignore me. I have nothing else to do so I sit here with my laptop all day. I'll get moving elsewhere soon! I promise!

Protein basically comes in whey or soy. IMHO whey is worlds better than soy. I canNOT STAND Atkins shakes because they are made with soy. I have all kinds of whey protein (powder) that I'm experimenting with and it's quite good. I got the idea from bariatriceating.com to mix crystal light or DaVinci syrups in with your homemade smoothies. I tried that this morning and it was delicious!! I mixed plain yogurt, raspberry ice crystal light a scoop of unflavored whey protein and ice. How simple is that!? A lot cheaper than the premade stuff, too! I might just have to get a magic bullet for the office.

Wow, Tracy that's one helluva NSV you got there!! Way to go, baby!!! :cheer2: re: isopure water - you can do like I do and just dilute it...it's not so bad. Besides, GNC is really good about taking things back so even if you ordered it online you might be able to return it to your local store. I had kind of a neat realization a little while ago. Before surgery my biggest concern is "what will I eat???"....now I'm like "Well, I need to eat something". I'm just not hungry! Last real food was Tues night. You'd think I'd be absolutely ravenous. I'm sure it's coming though! So it sounds like those of you who have yet to be banded are really getting excited in spite of our reports of discomfort, etc. That's good!! I have to admit that I have been going thru a little bit of the "what have I done?" thing, so be prepared for that. I'm sure that will pass, too. Wonder how Pat is doing?

It occurred to me that you might get some useful insight by reading this thread Why Are You Fat?

I think everyone's story is different but here's mine. I'm obese because I suffer with the disease of obesity. It's hereditary and is a malfunction of some sort in my body. I do not overeat in normal terms. I generally eat between 1600-1800 calories/day. I eat healthy foods and I do not binge on anything. Generally, I don't eat sugar, bread, rice, potatoes or Pasta. My only weakness is chocolate, and I might have a handful of peanut M&M's once a day or a SF chocolate ice cream bar at night. So I don't consider myself to be obese because I have an eating disorder. I consider my eating to be quite healthy. But nevertheless I have gained weight and I can't seem to lose it anymore. There are others, however, that eat for emotional reasons on top of having the disease of obesity. For them it is quite necessary to address their emotional issues with therapy, etc. along with the band. So, what I was saying to you is that if you haven't been overweight all your life, or for at least several years, you probably don't have the "disease" of obesity, but instead have only the emotional issues to deal with. Banding is a life-long decision and people with eating/emotional disorders WILL find a way to eat around the band and not lose weight....so their money goes down the toilet. Make sense? I was just reading a post yesterday by someone who wanted to have her band removed simply because she misses food. She knows she relied on it for comfort and now that comfort is gone she feels that she is having a mental breakdown of sorts. That is so not me. I really don't think I'll be missing food that much...I'll still eat the way I've always eaten, just less of it. You see the difference?

No, I'm not hungry...39 hours post op and all I've had other than Jello, popsicles and Water is one 8 oz Protein drink. I have to do better today!! No, I haven't noticed a feeling of fullness yet. The 8 oz Protein Drink was taken in 3 different 'sessions'. Water just tasted better. Last night my husband brought home BBQ and loaded baked potatoes for himself and my daughter. Didn't bother me one bit. DH is looking forward to losing a little weight along with me. My daughter eats like a bird anyway. Hopefully your whole family will adapt and eat more nutritiously because of your changes.

I don't know if this helps you, but I have excellent credit and when I was looking a finance options I applied to Capital One. They wanted to charge me 12.9% interest!! I have much better rates than that on my regular credit cards, so I just used those.

Hi Ya'll - Yes, it's middle of the night again for me. Have a ferocious headache that seems worse when I lay down. Plus, I'm just not sleepy. I took three naps yesterday! Pain seems better today, especially the shoulder pain. Not much gas to complain about. Still haven't eaten anything worthwhile -- had an 8 oz protein shake yesterday and that is all. I'll try to do better today. I'm just not hungry. I am, however, drinking fluids constantly and urinating about every 20 minutes! All the IV fluids I trust. At the hospital I weighed 212. At home after surgery I weighed 219 and now I weigh 215 (39 hrs postop). Mazie,I'm amazed at your activity level! You really seem to be sailing through! Good girl! Sara - Yes I'm allowed to take showers. There is surgical tape covering my incisions then a bandage over that. I was told to just replace the bandages after a shower. I can't remember what they said about the tape though - just allowing it to fall of when it's ready or something like that.

My husband found some Isopure protein flavored water for me at Vitamin Shoppe (if you have those near you), but I think they're kinda gross. All I can take is just to put a splash of some in the plain water I drink all day so that's' not much protein!

JULLEE - you should refer your friend to the before & after thread on this forum!! Don't listen to people who don't know what the hell they are talking about.

Oh you MUST post your story and your before and after pics!!! We love good stories around here! PLEEEEEEEASE!!

I've been 30-40 # overweight most of my life. Now that I've hit menopause I'm 65# overweight. No diet has helped me to lose it. I had started to have issues with back, foot and hip pain. My cholesterol levels were creeping up. My insulin resistance was getting harder to control. Basically I was heading down a road I didn't like the looks of. I did the research and felt like the band was a good option for me. I feel confident I can be good at following the rules (I don't binge), I'm used to eating a low carb diet, and I'm willing to accept the restrictions. I am sick and tired of being fat and having no energy to do anything. I came to this board and read a million posts and got greatly encouraged by the stories. I knew I could be one of them, too. So here I am. I was banded yesterday!! Good luck with your decision. I know it's not an easy one.

I was referred to BE.com and like the way that business operates! I need to place an order but would like your recommendations, too. What products do you like....especially the drinks (cause I'm going into full liquids now). thanks!

Go to the offending post and in the upper right corner you will see a little red & white triangle....this is used to report the post to a moderator and you can make your comments that way.

Thanks, ya'll....that's great to get me started! That Whey Gourmet PB chocolate sounds delish!! WASabubblebutt - you can make your own cheese crackers that probably taste better and a lot cheaper! Put a piece of parchment paper over a cookie sheet. Use whatever semi-hard cheese you like and cut into 1/2" cubes. Place them on the cookie sheet about 2" apart then put them in the oven until melted and bubbly. Drain off grease (there will be a lot) and let cool (and harden). Voila! Crackers!

PAMELA - what kind of meds did your doctor give you for pain at home? I've got hydrocodone and it's doing the trick! -- oh, AND I've got 2 refills!!

TRACY - You work in the HR department of a convent??? That seems a bit odd. Payroll, benefits, etc?....for a convent?? I thought the Lord took care of all that! LOL

Nah, I'm not in much paiin at all. All is well!

No the hiccups are not terribly painful because they are not real deep, hard ones...just gentle...but enough to wake me up! You do NOT want to wear jeans. I promise you that. Stretchy yoga pants or something with a comfy elastic waist and roomy seat would be ideal.

Yes, I had surgery at noon and was home by 9:00p. They had given me phenergan for nausea and that drug really knocks you out. I had trouble staying awake for more than 5 minutes! Otherwise I probably would have gone home earlier. Fills: When they place the band it does not have any restriction in it. You have to go in periodically to have them "fill" the band with saline a little at a time, and this is what provides the restriction. You'll see lots of posts about fills. Sometimes the fill is too much, you may have difficulty eating and then you have to go for a slight "unfill". Eventually you get your "sweet spot" and shouldn't have to go in nearly as often as in the 1st couple of years. Am I in a lot of pain? No. Right now I'd rate it a 3...going up as high as 5 or 6 if I have to cough. The closest thing I can describe it as is like when you've done 200 sit ups! But I am walking around fine, getting in and out of bed fine, in and out of a chair fine. My husband even went to work awhile ago because there's nothing he needs to do for me! I loaded the dishwasher and made some Jello, too!

Hi Pam, I was just banded yesterday, 24 hours ago to be exact. (And here I am at my laptop!) They gave me morphine directly after surgery and sent me home with hydrocodone with acetomenophin (I think that's same as vicodin). It is definitely enough to take care of the discomfort. As for the questions....I spent so much time on this board beforehand that I didn't need to ask questions! I was very well informed by the bandsters here. The things that seem to vary widely between doctors are: 1) pre-op and post-op diets 2) Pre-op testing 3) and whether fills are done under fluroscopy or not 4) how much is charged for fills 5) oh, and ask whether he stitches the band in place Best of luck to you as you make this decision. I know it's not an easy one to make. Everyone here is incredibly supportive and there's tons of info, so make yourself comfortable and stay awhile!

This morning I was thinking that I wish I COULD have stayed in the hospital last night. As it was I was fighting that phenergan (makes you WAY sleepy) so that I could stay awake long enough to get in a wheelchair and get home! It would have been so great just to turn off the lights and go to sleep!! They also made me stay until I got down 32 oz of Water and urinated. It took me FOREVER to urinate....3 tries at 20 minutes each...mostly because I kept falling asleep on the toilet!!! It's been 40 hours since I had any solid food -- but I am not TOO hungry. Oh, and these hiccups!! I get 2-3 hiccups after I eat Jello and when I get up from a sitting position. Yeeeoooowww! Hiccups hurt!

Speaking of weight...I weighed myself this morning to a new high 219! 7# overnight!! LOL I'll be glad when it drops off. I don't even know why I stepped on the dang thing...just like looking at a car wreck...just can't help it. Man, Tracy -- you are on a roll, girl! Jenn - I am glad you hear you are not bringing your SCALE with you! Your family would really think you'd gone crazy! LOL I can just see you with a suitcase in one hand and a scale in the other. :pound:

I was just banded yesterday and although my doc didn't have a strict pre-op diet, they did strongly encourage eating low-carb, low-fat. Well, i did fairly well but I did go through the "last meal syndrome" from time to time as well. I had about 30 days pre-op and about 4 of those were spent eating just about everything in sight. 10 of them were eating very strict low-carb and the rest were healthy foods with carbs <100 or so. Just stick around here and you'll be in good hands.