brown bear

Congrats on not being hungry. I am envious. I too was banded on the 25th and I bought some 1 cup size plastic storage bowls. I pack my lunches in them and eat them one at a time but I eat more like 5 times a day instead of just 3. I don't cook often so when I do, I fill the available containers and put the rest in a large container for the rest of the family and they know to leave my containers alone.

5' 10" 180 is BMI of 25.8 so sounds great. My nutritionist gave me a paper with various goal weights on it. Mine is where women my age and height said they feel comfortable. It is still a BMI of 29 but I haven't been under 200 hundred in forever so it sounds good to me. My doc said I could get 10 - 20 pounds lighter than that but I am not sure he is right or that he realized my age when he said that. I figure that if he is right then I will be below my goal and more than happy.

Indio - so glad you are here. I have enjoyed your posts all around the forum because you give practical and positive advice. I have noticed that some are getting a bit snippy with newbies and I hate to see that because I don't want people to get discouraged and miss out on the support here. :thumbup: I for one will be thrilled to never know what a PB feels like. Thanks for the reminder about planning - I was planning for the lunch with my brother Saturday. We are visiting family Friday and Saturday. I need to think about Friday especially if we end up going downtown for hours for concerts & fireworks. I am still on full liquids so preparation is important.

First fill July 25th! :w00t:That will be 4 weeks out for me. I want to find out what kind of band I have - probably not Realize or he would have mentioned their website for tracking food.

You are perfectly normal! Go get that fill and check out www.thedailyplate.com . As someone else said, there will be plateaus and times after restriction when you will be able to eat more - don't beat yourself up about it - just go get another fill. As you lose, your stomach will shrink leaving your band looser so you will need fills as you go. You will know you need a fill when you are eating too much. Don't view this as a failure - view it as a sign that it is time for another fill. It is OK. Good luck!:thumbup:

OK, please consider getting something in you with a lot of Protein. IMHO it really helps with energy and hunger levels. If you are not allowed Protein shakes yet then maybe you could have Isopure shakes or the whey protein bullets (at Vitamin World they are called whey liquid protein). I believe those would be considered to be Clear liquids and they are full of protein. I know I have read other posts where people have said they felt so much better when increasing their protein. I believe diarrhea is part of a liquid diet - don't know what can help that . . . maybe Immodium AD? Hang in there! :thumbup:

Great post CIBC. One of my best friends recently had bypass surgery and I have seen that it is not a free ride for her. She also has to work at losing weight by eating the right things and exercising. I just think many people have heard otherwise about bypass, I know I had heard the weight would just drop off with bypass. It is a common misconception - thanks for setting us straight!

Cathy - you are an inspiration. I am going to wait a couple more weeks (I am 8 days post op) but then I am going to air up my tires and get back on the bike. I used to enjoy riding and my SO is an avid cyclist - our whole family is into it and I have spent the last few years sitting back and watching while they had all the fun. I think it is time for me to join in.

French Vanilla - without protein shakes I would have died. I tried to do without this week as I can now have creamy soups. It is not going well so I am going to break down and buy the protein bullets. I think you should consider doing this also as you need the protein and it is so hard without a protein powerhouse in your diet when you are on liquids. My daughter works at Vitamin World and there they are called Whey Liquid Protein sold in boxes of 12. I am following the advice of someone on this board and getting grape flavor to get me through the rest of my liquid days.

I think when the doc says the band needs to seat itself he just means the healing process. I have heard those words used that way. Your pain sounds bad but hopefully it is not too serious - let us know what happens. I had sharp pains all last evening (1 week post op) that came and went and I could not take much of a breath when it hurt. Glad that has passed - have no idea what it was but assume it is normal.

Texas Local Lap-Band Support - Lap Band Surgery and Lap Band Discussion Forum This link is to the Texas lapband support page. I live in NW Houston and work in the energy corridor so Katy is not far for me. There apparently used to be a group but I don't know if they still meet. I have not found a group that is currently meeting or much interest in one yet.

Denise- I noticed that you said you had a problem with them even when you were not sexually active. That sounds like what I used to have. It was fixed when doc looked at UT on xray (like barium swallow). It showed that I had a pocket in the tubing where urine would collect and fester - it is a rare form of diverticulitis (sp) which is usually in the intestinal tract. Anyway, I know you said the doc had looked at your bladder but if he did not look at the UT this might be worth checking out as I have had one UTI in the 8 years since surgery (which is a simple day procedure).

I think you should relax. Lots of people have cheated on the pre-op diet and been fine in surgery. Try not to cheat post-op because it can interfere with healing and have long-term detrimental effects that cannot be known immediately. Do your best over the next couple of days and stop worrying - you didn't cheat that badly and 20 lbs is great.:smile2:

I used to keep a healthy snack around at all times. Usually, almonds in my purse. They don't go bad or get smushed and they take the edge off. I get the shakes too when I get too hungry and once that happens I am out of control and must eat immediately. Maybe a little snack before you are starving would help you buy/order less by giving you more control.

I was banded on June 25th. I just sip all day long. I don't really have meals - hope this isn't getting me into bad habits. I am on clear liquids plus protein shakes. I have a 20 oz shake, 12 oz coffee, and 24 oz protein water beside me right now and I will probably still be sipping these same things when I leave work this evening plus throw in 8 oz broth and some jello and a popsicle and about 20 oz water and that will be my day and night (I drink the water in the night when I wake up with my stomach growling). Good luck!

OK, I am only 5 days out and wondering if my stomach growling with hunger is bad for healing. Is it as bad as if my stomach were digesting food? I just keep drinking to get it to stop. As to the pain, I believe the patients with hernia repair have more pain than those who had no hernia. I was fortunate not to have the hernia and am having an easy time of it. WW used to promote personal mantras - anything short and meaningful to you can work. I think it is a great idea. Good luck to all! I can't wait for thicker liquids then mushies!

This is a long thread but it includes good information about the sleeve from a member who had revision surgery from the band to the sleeve. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f17/wasabubblebutt-recovery-65353/

Can we make this thread a sticky so it stays at the top of the 1st page and remains easy to find. I don't know how to do it but a moderator can or maybe Snuffy can.

:hurray: I am one day post-op and when the nurse was going over the post-op diet she said no ice cold anything. I had a cup of ice sitting next to me which another nurse gave me in recovery and sf popsicles are on my diet for week 1! She said the cold can cause stomach spasms. :blushing:

My surgery was yesterday (Wednesday). I was last (sixth) and went in around 12:30. I was the only one without a hernia. Maybe that has helped me to not be in too much pain. So far this is not nearly as bad as I thought it would be. I have a sore abdomen and the left shoulder discomfort but none of it is very bad. :blushing:

I would call my doctor as I have not heard anyone else say anything about this. :sad_smile:

Protein bullets can also be found at Vitamin Shoppe and Vitamin World. At the right of your screen, find 'edit profile'. In there, go to edit signature. That is where you put whatever you want. In LapBand Talk Forum Frequently Asked Questions is a section about how to do the ticker and the instructions are very good. Where do you get glycerin suppositories? I have never heard of that.

There are some great ideas on this thread. At a group meeting, my doctor recommended that if we felt too heavy to exercise, we should wait until some weight dropped off and exercise became easier. He said the last thing you want is an injury right after surgery. I used to love to work out but now will wait until I have less foot pain (plantar fasciitis). I think that is best for me. You have to do what seems best for you. The weight loss will be slower but I have seen people post on here that they do not exercise and have slowly lost most of the weight they wanted to. :crying: Again, do what is right for you. Good luck!

Appeal! Search for it on this forum. There is some great insurance information on the insurance thread. Good luck!

Many people here advise keeping a food journal. Online sites such as The Daily Plate or FitDay make it easy. It could help you to see how much protein, carbs, and calories you are consuming and you can report it to your doc/nutritionist for their input.