Justme9786

I have a weakness for Cereal, but due to my lactose intolerance its always been "difficult" for me to eat it....or else! Well, I found Organic Valley Fat Free & Lactose Free milk is probably the best I've ever had. It's the closest thing to "real" milk that I've come across. I've tried all the others....skim, soy, almond, etc....I just never felt like any of them tasted like MILK. This one....does! (to me at least) I've actually used it to cook as well and you would have thought I used real milk. Anyways. I love it and thought I'd share. It's a little pricey (4.99 at publix) but worth it to me. Healthier too. :-) http://www.wegmans.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?langId=-1&storeId=10052&catalogId=10002&productId=708692

I knew you could do it to milk, but didn't realize you could do it to cream cheese, etc. Thanks for the info! And that's what I like about this milk....is that it IS dairy....its from cows, just has the enzymes added which is why it tastes so real. I'm a vegeterian and eat a lot of organic stuff anyways so i happened to see this in the organic section and have loved it ever since. I may look into doing it on my own though as it may be cheaper....

Ya I think that's why I vomited so many times, because my band would only let a very little bit each time. By far worse than pre-band hangover. Lesson learned.

Okay, so last night I went out drinking with some friends and I guess I didn't eat enough prior so I woke up with a severe hang over. I even kept really hydrated like I usually do, drank lots of Water while I was having cocktails. But, didn't work I guess. I haven't had one of these since pre-lap band, probably at least 5 years! The nausea and vomiting lasted ALL DAY....in about 15-30 min intervals. I wanna say I threw up like 15x at least, and on top of that had a splitting headache but couldn't keep anything (even water) down. It was so nasty, yellow bile like since I didn't have anything in my stomach. It finally went away, FINALLY after a good 7 hrs or so. I'm sipping on ramen noodle Soup, Gatorade and ice pops. Now my throat is KILLING me and my neck is so sore. While I was sipping the ramen noodle soup I ate a little bit of the noodles and didn't have any problems with getting it down so hopefully my band is fine. Just concerned cause I vomited so much. Hopefully if I take it easy on my band for the next few days all will be good.

Don't worry! We all have those days or multiple days! I used to be on birth control years ago, but then I think I started to reject them because I would have the worst mood swings and the worst cravings for EVERYTHING. I have been off BC for about 2 years, but had to get back on again because of ovarian cysts. Doc put me on lowest dose and still was craving everything you could think of. Greasy and sweets. I felt like crap, so I got off the BC and cravings went away for the most part. But even still I have a craving and I usually fulfil it! it happens.

My mom wanted it all too post lap band because she had a lot of excess skin. She went with the tummy tuck and breast lift. She was pretty happy...MAJOR difference too.

I apologize, maybe I didn't explain that well...when I said I couldn't keep Water or anything down, I didn't mean it got stuck by the band, I meant I would throw it up because it would make me nauseous within a few minutes of ingesting it. My biggest concern is that I didn't do any damage to the band since I vomited so much. Like slippage or something.

This is no easy battle...the weight wasn't put on over night and will not come off that quickly either. You're only 2 weeks post op and from what it sounds, haven't even had your first fill yet. Once you start playing around with fills is when more weight loss starts to happen. Give it time and work with your band. Eat healthy and exercise if you can.

There are pros and cons to every procedure. You'll have people tell you that you definietly SHOULDNT get this surgery, then you'll have people like me and my four family members that say it's the best thing that's ever happened to them! Here's my thought....the band is a TOOL. The operator, which is you, is the only thing that will make it successful. Yes, in the beginning you may lose lots of weight, but anyone would if they decreased their calorie intake by half or more. The real challenge is after you've lost a good amount of weight and your body requires less and less intake and more and more output. That's where most people struggle. To get through that isn't easy, because of course, we are all bandsters and have the mindset of the larger person we used to be...however, it can be done. Some people decide to get tighter and tighter to the point where they may not hardly be eating anything or may be drinking most of their meals. I, for one, do not agree with this method, because a lot of time it back fires and because you're not getting the caloric intake, you actually don't lose weight and sometimes even gain weight. And, if you do try to eat with such a tight band and end up PBing more it can cause long term problems with your esophagus. I chose the traditional (and I feel most healthy) way to work with my band. I have pretty good restriction, but also can eat "normal". I say normal like that because, normal to me is about half of someone elses meal. But I can still eat. For instance, I have a cup of coffee for Breakfast, then two peices of toast. For lunch I have a salad, for dinner I have veggies and some sort of boca product or fish and have 100 cal Snacks usually around 10 and 2/3. Small meals through out the day. Weren't we all told this during our struggle of trying to lose weight pre-lapband, but could never do it because we always felt hungry? Well, now I can do it because I don't feel hungry. I feel satisified through out the day. So anyways, my point to that long story was this.....yes, there will be negative nancy's and firm believers....but I believe the negative nancy's will be the ones that are not using the band properly as a tool in their weight loss and/or may have other medical issues that is preventing it from working.

I always had problems with multi-Vitamins, but when I got the band it was even worse. Because I don't eat as much, I always got the children's gummy vitamins so it didnt upset my stomach so much, but I didn't feel like i was getting what I needed. But I recently found the One a Day VitaCraves Multi-Vitamin. I LOVE them. I take the one with immunity support as I work in healthcare setting so high immunity is always a plus! The bottle says to take 2 a day, so I take one in the morning and one before bed. I havent felt nauseous once from them, which is wonderful! Just thought I'd share on here for those who may not have seen them before http://oneaday.com/vitacraves_immunity.html

VitaCraves has gummy Vit C, which may be less tangy than a chewable tablet. Also, Emergen-C is a great powder with multiple flavors....mix with 1/2 cup - 1 cup of Water. http://www.swansonvitamins.com/VFS002/ItemDetail http://m.emergenc.com/index.php/browse/original

Hmm, I never heard that...I've compared side to side nutrition labels and they have been almost identical with some regular pill multi vitamins, but I'll be sure to check with my doc just in case!

My biggest struggle was multi vitamins because there's so much in them and it was too much on my stomach. I dreaded taking them. I take tons of vitamins and now can handle a multi as well! I also take acidophilus, which I always tell people, especially females because it helps with ph balance as well...it is a pill form but it's a powder type pill that isn't hard for me to take...I also take Vitamin D (i seem to have abnormally low vit D levels...found that out after two broken bones :-/ very teeny tiny pill) and chewable vit C. It seems as though when everyone is getting sick, I stay pretty healthy! Yay me!

I never gave up coffee.. I drink at least one or two cups a day. I couldn't give it up, but it really isn't the end of the world if you don't. I have a keurig as well, but put ground coffee in the reusable cup. I mean really if you count up the calories and fat, it's barely anything! The coffee itself is less than 10 cal (I think it's like 2 cal per 8oz?) and if you use the powdered fat free coffeemate light, it's 10 cal per tsp and i use Splenda or equal which is 0. So...maybe 30ish cal? I'm not too worried about that.

Glad to hear that you are going in the right direction. Everyone has their set backs....I'm currently in one right now! I broke my ankle and was out of work not able to walk for 2.5 months....imagine....sitting at home doing absolutely nothing but watching TV and eating whatever's in the house.......ya, I did it. I tried to stay healthy, but alas, it's hard. So I'm getting back on track now that i can actually work out again and I've been getting my meals back on track. Take one step at a time. Reward yourself for the little things. Even if you only lose 1lb in a week..........thats a pound lost! I try to be as self motivating as I can be. And yes, there is such thing as coservative lap band doctors. I think the trick with them is that you don't want to go in really hard saying things that make it appear that you are not willing to work with the band... Instead, try going in saying, I'd like to try a little tighter fill and see if that will help me eat smaller meals more times a day to get my metabolism up. It doesn't have to be a drastic fill, just something to kick in the restriction even just a little. Keep us posted on your progress, we're rooting for ya!

Funny - most of the naturally skinny people know eat alllll the time. More than me! They can eat whatever, whenever, and not gain weight. They don't have to worry about eating or not eating like us. Everyone uses the band differently, but from my experience, i've learned that the band is not intended to make you "stop" eating... yes, it should decrease your hunger and not make you eat as much, but really, it's supposed to just be a tool to get the eating under control to a normal level. Remember before you had your band...you probably could eat twice as much as the person next to you and still feel hungry or unsatisfied. The band shouldn't be used as something that makes you go all day without eating. It should help you get into healthy eating habits, like eating small meals more times a day. Again, everyone's different and how they use it, but i don't beileve it's used to prevent eating when you naturally should eat. At least 3 times a day. I choose 5 times because it works for me.

SO good! Especially the brown sugar cinnamon ones. I have these for my 10-11am snack and it hits the spot!

I eat about 5x a day....my normal routine is: Bfast: coffee then two pieces of whole grain toast w/light butter 1030ish: some sort of 100 cal snack 1230: usually a small salad or a lean cuisine 3ish: another sort of 100cal or less snack, sometimes pudding 5-6ish: dinner, I'm a vegetarian so I usually have a piece of fish with veggies or some sort of dish like boca or morning star products. I try real hard not to eat after 8. This set up seems to speed up my metabolism and keep me satisfied all day. If I go too far in between I too get nauseous. Plus I drink tonnnssss of Water.

Sorry to hear that you're having difficulties. Have you spoken with your surgeon? Do you go to support groups? Are you exercising at all? You say that when you chew lean meats that it comes back up, are you chewing chewing and chewing more? The band is just a tool and the tool only works if the operator knows how to use it. Constantly being down about the entire thing or thinking of yourself as a failure, will only make it worse. Instead of being negative on yourself, try to find out WHY it's not working, even if that means you may be at fault. I know I have eaten horribly even with the band and have gained weight, but I can only blame myself. The band can be very successful and I know tons of people (including 4 of my family members) who are walking proof that if you work WITH your band, you can get there. Hang in there and keep us posted.

Thanks for the link PattiGirl66... If you're doing a low carb diet, this definitely isn't on the list for foods to eat lol But if you're watching your calorie or fat intake, this is a good snack! That's what I watch for when eating, not carbs. I have never been able to do the no to low carb diets (successfully anyways).

Have you been to any local lapband support group meetings? Seems like you need a boost in confidence and a boost of some support. Yes, this site is great for support, but sometimes actually GOING to a support group meeting will do wonders. Check with your surgeon to see where they are hosted. You'll be surrounded by people who understand the struggles and will give you advice. Also, speak with your surgeon. You may need a tighter fill. Sometimes it takes going back multiple times before you find your sweet spot or "green zone" as this site calls it I guess. The band is just a tool, it really is more up to you to make the committment to stay focused and remember what the end result is. We all have slip ups where we eat what we shouldnt or more than we should, but it's not about focusing on those moments, it's about picking yourself back up and going forward. Best of luck to you!

You may be one of those bandsters that need a lot in their fill to feel anything. Everyone is different. I have a 10cc band and I am at 3.9 and it's *almost* a perfect fill for me. The highest i have gone is 4.4 and I could barely eat anything. It may take you quite a few fills to feel anything. Hang in there.

Banderama-no worries for asking. We are here to voice our opinions. It's all a matter of opinion and voice to be heard. So anyways.... My pre-op diet was shakes prescribed by my physician. 5x a day which equaled 800cal. Which was NOTHING compared to what I WAS eating. Some doctors will say it's okay to incorporate one piece of chicken a day that has absolutely no seasoning, only boiled in Water. My doctor didn't say I could do this, but I did on 3 of the days because I thought I was going to die. The only other thing I could have was the sugar free jell-o like, 1 or 2 a day. I think it is good you are asking because you should be prepared to be exhausted. Don't plan anything where you will have to be on top of your game, because you will feel pretty darn weak due to the decrease in calories. Keep hydrated with water to help you stay full cause you will be feeling SOOOOOOO hungry. BUT just think of what it's for. In the long run, you will be so happy that you went through a few weeks of hell for the outcome you wanted. I lost 14lbs on the 2 week pre-op diet. As far as post op, you're generally on a clear liquid diet for a while still. Once you get your first fill you'll most likely be on a clear liquid for a day or two and then full liquids which, everyone's interpretation of "full liquids" varies and what people can tolerate varies lol I know that I was able to tolerate mash potatoes that were very watery....not traditional thick potatoes...whereas, some people can't tolerate mash potatoes. Very much a trial and error period once you start introducing foods again. Best of luck to you!!

To me it sounds like you are not eating enough. 3-4 bites before feeling full does not seem normal to me, even as a bandster. My first suggestion is to call your doctor. Second is to get a slight unfill. Until you can do either of those things, I would recommend increasing your calorie intake. I'm not saying go eat ice cream and gorge out on liquids. However, some things that have helped me when I wasn't able to eat much and have had similar sypmtoms you describe were to first drink LOTS of gatorade. Second, I always have tomato Soup on hand. They have some good campbell soup ones like Zesty Tomato Soup or Basil Tomato Bisque...etc... and I sip on that. Also, the idahoan instant mash potatos have saved me numerous times....pour em in with more Water than you usually would and then heat for like 4 minutes and munch on those. You can make them pretty watery and still tasty so they can go down. These things are not part of my "normal" diet...I only resort to this diet if I have not been able to eat at all. For me, it has always worked.

Fills are a breeze! Good luck to you!