lilmispcl

I had surgery on April 5th. The week prior to surgery I did have my doubts. I dreaded being one of the band failures. BUT I realized that the decision to succeed is all mine. I will not fail at this ... its a tool to be successful and I plan to use it. If you use it and follow dr.'s orders you will succeed. You are not alone in this journey and if you use the band and all the support you have you will be successful but if you don't put in the work it won't work. Like any diet you have to stick to it...the band helps by taking away the hunger. If you are hungry after healing you need to be willing to work with your dr to get your band at the right setting so you can be successful. Don't be afraid to work with your doctor as often as you need to until you are feeling satisfied between meals and losing. I am only 4 weeks out of surgery but I honestly feel that this was the best decision I ever made. Because although I still fight with my head my band will not allow my head to win....I know I will cause myself pain if I try to gorge at a buffet so those days are over for me and I couldn't be happier about that! Day to day I work the band by sticking to my dietary instructions but the band keeps me in check Its a great partnership!!

I am super excited that when I wrap my bath towel around me it actually closes!!! It's been a LONG time since that was the case! So happy!

My best friend and I meet in Vegas for a girls weekend at least once a year and we spend lots of time at the spa so I know exactly what you are talking about with the robes! I am definitely looking forward to our next trip!!!

I am on solid foods now but my stage 2 consisted of refried beans with 2% cheese and sour cream, (I still eat these every day!), 2 protein shakes with at least 15g protein each, chicken salad, egg salad, tuna salad, tomato soup. I tried to stay away from the canned soups because they are super high in sodium. If you shoot for high protein foods you will not get hungry....its amazing how long the protein keeps you satisfied.

Lots of people take gasx for the gas but the CO2 is placed in the abdominal cavity not into the intestines so I dont see how the gasx remedies would work. What worked for me was walking....movement gets the gas moving and I had very little discomfort from the CO2.

I have to go to Ruby Tuesday for dinner tonight with my inlaws. Today is my first day on solid food and I don't know what I should order. I have 3.5cc in my band. I want to stay high Protein low carb so I was thinking Petite Sirloin with grilled zucchini but I'm scared to eat steak. My plan would be to ask for a box with my meal and just eat my 1/2 cup portion then take the rest home....but how much steak and zucchini can you fit in half a cup? LOL I would much rather stay home where I know I'm safe but I gotta figure this out sooner or later. Any input??

Well I am in my first week of solid food and tonight I had baked chicken breast and broccoli. I measured a 1/4 cup of chicken and a 1/4 cup of broccoli. My pouch was definitely full by the time my chicken and a couple bites of broccoli were down. I felt the feeling where you know if you try to eat another bite it's just not going down. I was chewing really good but I realized I should have been eating slower. I didn't end up in any "pain" but was uncomfortable for about 10 minutes. It felt like the food was just waiting at the bottom of my esophagus until there was room in the pouch. LOL

I didnt have any trouble getting the chicken down and I really enjoyed it. I am just so used to eating fast because I take care of 6 children all day so I dont really get time to myself when I want to eat. LOL I probably could have stopped one bite earlier and wouldnt have had the discomfort.

I ended up ordering a classic cheeseburger plain with no bun and grilled zucchini. I only at a small amount of the burger and some of the zucchinis. I stopped when I felt satisfied. Brought the rest home and probably will get 2 more meals out of it. Nice!

My dr office is closed til Monday and I am so confused! I am in the "mushy" phase and I am confused as to how many calories and carbs I am supposed to eat each day. I just reread my post op diet info and it just says to get 30-40 grams of Protein and not to eat more than 1/2 cup of food at a time. But I feel like if I don't get in at least 1000 calories I won't lose weight because that is counterproductive. Anyone have any info?

I love the Viactive chocolate chews.

Are the protein shakes supposed to be in addition to the three 1/2 cup meals per day?

I was banded on April 5th....my surgeon put 3.5cc in at placement.

I was banded on the 5th too! I am having a hard time with the soft food stage. I feel like everything is so full of carbs or sodium and I feel like if I eat Im going to gain. I definitely feel like the weight came off easier during the pre-op diet when I could eat chicken and lean meats.

How is everyone who was banded in April doing? I was banded April 5th and it does get better every day! I am excited that I am finally able to lay on my side for a little while in the morning. I can't wait until I can sleep on my side all night. I am not a happy back sleeper! I am having a hard time with low carb mushy foods. Canned foods like chili and soup are so high in sodium that I find I do not lose weight on days that I eat those. I went back to liquid diet for a day and yesterday I incorporated 1/2 cup of fat-free refried beans with 2% cheese and a little sour cream and I was down this morning. Hooray for beans! Sorry family! LOL I have lost 23.4 pounds since March 25th when I started my pre-op diet. Since surgery I have lost 8 pounds. I am so excited about this journey. I think that being a self-pay patient really helps keep me focused on why I did this. I still have the food demons in my head but my bill for surgery keeps me accountable! LOL

Any ideas for the mushies stage that are low carb, high Protein would be greatly appreciated. I don't do seafood aside from occassional tuna salad so I'm looking for other options. Thanks for your help!!

Anyone take Gummy vitamins right after surgery? I can't stand the chewable powdery ones ... bluchhh! Scared the gummies will get stuck.

I just had 1/2 cup of chili with no beans and added a table spoon of cream cheese. It was fabulous after being on pure liquids for a week

Ohhh love the chili idea. I used to make a dip with chili and cream cheese. So I know I would enjoy this! I also enjoy egg salad and chicken salad....the chicken salad I am not sure I have had it "mushy" enough but I guess its worth a try! Thanks for the ideas!!!