Bandista

I find if I'm chewing for a really long time and sort of straining the food through my teeth rather than swallowing it (sorry for the too sensitive info), that is my body telling me I'm done. Don't swallow, don't have more. Done. We are all different and have our own signals -- trick is finding your own. Sliming is so personal. I only do it just prior to a major episode. If the slime comes I know I'm in for it. But I think for some a small amount of slime can be an indicator. A stop sign?

My surgeon is looking for satiety after a tennis-ball size portion of food and not hungry again for 4-5 hours. I am noticing an increased obsession with food -- thinking about it in a different way (old way) and I'm hungry too soon. So I'm calling for an appointment tomorrow.

Guess we shouldn't worry about the scale -- the pants are where it's at! Unless you're @@HealthyNewMe -- eight new dresses, wow! Happy anniversary. What is the Red Dress run? And @@pink dahlia enjoy those flirty jeans! @@chrissy10 way to go - - we are rocking this! @@blacktxbelle you make an excellent point. I have been walking an hour every day. It's working! But now to get out of the nineties into the eighties.....so close. Driving me crazy, just like entering Onederland. Hover hover. But who cares? We are doing it! And it will take the time it takes.

I am also ready for a teeny tiny fill.......calling tomorrow. It's been obvious, but I wanted to give it a few weeks to be sure it wasn't just me being restrictive or rewarding -- the two halves of my psyche. So happy for you -- and seven pounds, yee ha!

It's normal to feel anxious prior to any surgery. I think a positive attitude and good sense of humor go a long way. Like others, I was surprised how easy it was. I am 52 and had never been an overnight patient in a hospital before. To this day, I would rather get another Lapband then go for dentistry. And I only have one root canal and crown!

This is a great thread. Of course there is the given impossibility of just stopping food, vs. alcohol or heroin, etc. And how black and white all that is. We need to be able to eat healthily, so in that way it's a completely different animal to negotiate.....but our behaviors? I know that I have an addictive personality. I have to look at my decisions from that point of view.

Yippee! You are doing beautifully!

These twelves are falling off me. I started at eighteens and they were tight! Same old brand.

Agreed. It shows how different we all are -- I can't stand Quest bars and so many people are crazy about them! I went for bars in the beginning but now I mostly do "real" food. Occasionally I have a shake, when I pretend it is sorbet, etc.

Thanks so much for posting -- so inspiring!

Hi there, you're doing beautifully -- you've had the surgery and are going through the healing process. Next will come assessing with your surgeon for fills. I have had seven (my surgeon is of the small frequent fills school -- they are all different) and then you will be on your way. Know that these early months are not necessarily easy but it is all happening. I am still elated almost nine months later and sixty pounds down.

Hi Sandy, you so walk the walk already -- you are amazing! Thanks so much for all your wonderful posts. I'm so happy for you to have reached your goal. This is a new part of your process and we are here for you. I imagine you are looking for just the right balance now. And what a great stage to be at! Way to go...you have so much to celebrate....

You look fantastic! Congratulations -- how wonderful to have this vacation. I am so happy for you. You are a star!

Hi there and congratulations on your upcoming surgery! We are all different. It I believe the 1-2 pounds per week is a good guide. I was banded last November and am 60 down and that is five a month but some of that was on pre-op. Also I am not on a diet, not "perfect" etc.

Turmeric can be mixed with honey -- great for inflammation.

The twelves are starting to fall off -- these are Lee long jeans and in the same brand I've gone from 18 to 16 to 14 to 12 since November. Ten? Come on, is this possible?

Hi there, way to go! So happy for you. Isn't it great?

I wish I had known about the karate chops -- that is awesome! Congratulations on your surgery and way to go on the walking. You are going to do beautifully. I had no protein goals post-surgery and even today I'm not that worried about it. Protein first is obvious --I listen to my body and it tells me what I need. What does it need? Protein! Lol.....I don't try to get stuff in, though. I just eat when I'm hungry and don't eat when I'm not hungry,

We really have to be our own advocates, that's for sure.

Way to go finding a new doctor and getting the band checked out and now the fills to get you where you need to be. I love it that the band is adjustable. You are so ready to do this -- very happy for you! We have similar stats but you're much closer to goal. I am 5'6" and started at my all-time high of 250 and am now at 190. Feeling the pants loosen which is usually a sign I'm about to drop a little chunk. My goal is 148 -- I think. I actually have no idea what will feel right. But I'm sure happy to have this sixty pounds off! And now I'm an exerciser -- just back from my daily one-hour walk and can't believe how good I feel. Yippee!

Hi KAB, I'm just a month behind you (banded early November) and also find that my days really vary as far as what I can or feel like eating. One thing is steady -- I don't do breakfast as I'm just not hungry in the mornings and, like many, I feel more restriction then. I don't do very many protein shakes but when I do there is a lot of variation there -- it can be harder for me to swallow cold full liquids than to eat something. (I put a lot of frozen fruit in my shakes and chia seeds, etc.). I can always chug waterm tea, etc. If I'm stressed, like at a business lunch or feeling social pressure, I can't eat. I should just order soup for those occasions. At home I eat a small portion of whatever the family is having, minus the rice, etc. On days when I'm thinking about food in a certain way or feel hungry a couple of hours after eating I wonder if I'm ready for another fill. Still sort of assessing that all the time. I love my band and am getting used to the new lifestyle and the new energy I have -- I guess part of that will be about the listening on a day to day basis. If I'm hungry I eat, if I'm not I don't. My life is so much simpler now!

I'm trying not to have any "shoulds" but instead to recognize that I have a whole new lifestyle, a new life now. Please be gentle with yourself and enjoy who and where you are right now -- today. You will get there but don't miss smelling the roses along the way!

Hi there and congratulations on your band! These early days are a bit nerve-racking and of course you're still healing up, but there will be a time when you can hardly even see the scars anymore and everything won't feel so new and vulnerable. Good luck with everything -- you are doing beautifully!

I took yesterday off and planked today. I am a planker......feeling like this is so easy. Not the actual doing of it -- that is hard -- but no special clothes, certain shoes, big time commitment, etc. It's just down on the floor and DO IT. Love that.

I'm so sorry you're going through this! I gained an unbelievable amount of weight at one time when I was given Prednisone at the ER for a very bad case of poison ivy. It was, as you say, practically overnight. Put those medical professionals to work -- they need to figure this out!