NurseKelly

Hello, I just got my orientation appointment for May 25th at St. Joe's. I'd love to join the facebook page as well. what is the address?

I have slimed a handful of times and been stuck maybe twice. Its all about learning to listen to your body. Like everyone else has said already, its all about eating slowly, chewing well and taking small bites. I have also learned that I need to take a long break after my first few bites or I will start to feel the pain that I am about to get stuck. If I take a few moments, and wait for that sensation to go away, I can then continue with my meal without any issues.

Hi there, first of all, congrats on your surgery! I also had a hernia repair done when they put in my band and my surgery was day surgery, so I didn't have to stay in the hospital at all. I have heard that the recovery can be a bit more painful when they include the hernia repair, but mine wasn't terrible. Good luck!

My weight loss halted when I started mushies.....and.....wait for it......I even gained 4 pounds when I started back on solid foods!! I'm not going to lie, I was freaking out a bit, but the nutritionist at my clinic assured me that this was all normal, and it was my bodies reaction to all that had gone on since I started my pre-op diet, so I pushed on, and within a week, I had lost those four pounds and a few more and have been slowly losing since. It is very hard to not be focused on the scale, but if you insist on weighing yourself everyday, try not to let it affect your mood! Congrats on your surgery!

If you go too low for too long, your body might go into starvation mode and hoard all of the calories you eat, which halts your weight loss! But not to worry, it will get going again once you have healed and get back to eating solid foods.

I am still amazed how different surgeons suggestions/rules can be! You would think for as long as the band has been around, they would have come up with some standards! My clinic just and I mean just ( this week), changed their recommendations to being able to drink right up until you start to eat, with a few sips during your meal if needed, and wait for about 15 min or so after. I still find it hard not to drink a big tall glass of water with my meal, but I look forward to it when I am done.

Hello everyone, I have a question for the lapband veterans. How did you get over head hunger?? I am struggling a lot with this right now. I am trying to stay on top of my nutrition, tracking what I eat and sticking to the 1 cup max, but I am having a hard time distinguishing between head hunger and real hunger. Sometimes I think I am starving, even right after I have eaten or shortly after, I rarely seem satisfied unless I have eaten past one cup and my stomach hurts. I haven't been able to eat anywhere near what I used to eat, and haven't let myself get stuffed since my surgery. When I think about it, I am pretty sure it is head hunger and food cravings that are taking over, and would love suggestions on how you were able to tackle this and move on!!?? Thanks.

Good luck, try and get some sleep tonight!

You can try Lax-a-day which is a flavorless powder you can mix in water, juice, coffee, or tea, I had to use that for my son when he was severely constipated. Drinking warm liquids should help as well. I hope you get this problem under control soon, as I know it is the worst feeling ever!!

I only have three, the one above my port is the longest, about an inch long, the other two are fairly small. I wonder why the surgeons do things so differently??

My Friend gave me this recipe and I made them today, they are YUMMY and very low in carbs. I baked them for about 8-10min longer than the recipe suggests (at my friends instruction), and it made the bottoms golden brown so it tastes like it has a crust on it! I also doubled the recipe and am going to freeze them in two's so I can pull them out for a easy Breakfast prior to work. And two of these "muffins" are equivalent to one cup of food! Next time I am going to finely chop up some fat free ham to add a bit more Protein. 1 (10 ounce) package frozen chopped spinach 3/4 cup liquid egg substitute 3/4 cup low-fat cheese, shredded 1/4 cup green pepper, diced 1/4 cup onion, dice 3 drops hot pepper sauce (optional) Directions: Preheat oven to 350°F. Microwave spinach for 2 1/2 minutes on high (or thaw in fridge overnight) Drain excess liquid (this is an important step, so be sure to really squeeze out the excess) Spray muffin pan with cooking spray. Combine the egg substitute, cheese, peppers, onions, and spinach in a bowl. Mix well. Divide evenly among muffin cups. Bake at 350 for 20 minutes, until a knife inserted in the center comes out clean. Nutrition information for two pieces: Calories 160 Fat 6g Protein 18g Carbs 6g

I took Biotin before when I had lost weight and my hair was falling out in fist fulls! I took 5000mcg capsule which I have almost a whole bottle of, I have been emptying out the capsule and mixing the powder with a bit of water, because I am afraid to swallow the capsule whole because it is pretty big. What size pills do you all take, and can you swallow them just fine?

I pureed chili, I made "buffalo chicken wing dip" using moist shredded chicken, fat free sour cream and 98% fat free cream cheese, added ranch powder and some franks hot sauce with a little bit of grated cheddar cheese, after baking it in the oven, I put my portion in the blender and it was yummy!! I also made the insides of lasagna using low fat ricotta, cottage cheese and mozzarella with parsley and added a few turkey meatballs, and sauce, heated that up and put that through the blender and it tasted just like lasagna!! Let me tell you even eating a small amount of these foods were heaven after being on liquids for so long!!

Where can I find it?

So it is March (spring) break here in Canada and the kids are off school for the week. My friends called this morning and asked if I wanted to take the kids to see a movie and of course I said sure. Well then the battle started!! I don't think I have ever been to see a movie without getting popcorn! I love that stuff, hence my being way over 300 pounds! So I said to myself.....self, you are on the pureed stage of your diet, and popcorn is a definite NO NO! Then the devil on my shoulder started......he said come on.....its popcorn, mostly air, and if you chew it enough, it will turn to mush and be pureed! So the battle with the shoulder devil continued all the way to the theater and while standing in line to get my son his snack. BUT I am HAPPY to say I DIDN'T GET ANY POPCORN!!! And let me tell you, that feels better to me now then chowing down on a big bag would have during the show!

I cried as well when they put the mask on my face, I almost started to panic but luckily the anesthetic kicked in first!! I think most of us have second thoughts the day of! Relax, breath and think of the new you!!

I hope that was how it was meant! lol

Excuse me??? That is VERY rude if you are implying just because of my weight that I have no willpower!

I waited over two and a half weeks and felt the same way as you. We took it slow and I was waiting for it to hurt, but it never did so all systems are a go!! Lol

I can yell at you anytime you need it!! lol

I had my surgery close to yours (Feb 21st) and feel for you!! I am not sure if you had any fluid put in your band at the time of surgery or not? Even if you did, it is a very minimal amount, so you cant' expect the band to be working right now. I am in the same boat as you and can eat a lot more if I let myself as sticking to the one cup of food has left me starving for more, but right now, we are in what the veterans call "bandster hell" which is that period of time between when we have our lap band put in, and when we start to get out fills bringing us to our "sweet spot" so unfortunately is going to have to be all about willpower for us until then. Try hard to stick to the one cup rule so you don't stretch out your pouch or slip your band. Maybe give your clinic a call and speak to the dietitian or nurse to see if they have any suggestions to get you through this difficult time.

Hey there, I was banded a few days after you (Feb 21st) and almost fell over when I stepped on the scale this morning and saw that I have gained 5 pounds as well!! I had read many times that when you switch from fluids to food, this can happen. Plus I think that we might have put out bodies into starvation mode with the pre-op and Fluid post-op stage, so although we are eating a small amount of calories, out bodies are hanging onto every last bite in case we won't be giving them anymore!! This can be very discouraging, I know, but we are on the right track, and I am sure if we don't falter, this time next week, those five pounds (and hopefully more) will have disappeared!!

Hi there, I could have written your post at five days post-op!! I wasn't hungry at all, I chalked it up to the aesthetic and my stomach being swollen from the surgery, and I too was having diarrhea, which I think was related to being on the juices and clear fluids. I was thinking, hey, this is no problem, if I have no hunger, this is going to be a piece of cake!! Boy was I wrong!! My hunger came back with a vengeance about day 14 and I have been battling it ever since!! I am on puree foods now and want to eat everything in sight. It is all about willpower for me right now, and probably will be till I have some fills. So my word of advice, enjoy it while it lasts and concentrate on healing. Congrats on your decision to become a bandster!!

Whoo hoo!! I am so happy for you, that has always been a dream of mine, and can't wait! Enjoy your victory, and I am sure your husband is happy for you in his own way

Thanks, this is exactly what I needed today!! I have had next to no appetite since I started my pre-op diet back on February 1st, and am now on purees and my appetite has come back with a vengeance !! It is definitely all about willpower and frustrating because the scale keeps going up and down a few pounds. I am starting to want to eat everything in sight but know that is not the answer! I will use your advice and continue to preserver!