Jack

re: " Also, I am not a believer in the concept that one does not loose weight because they are eating too little....I have always found the opposite to be true...." that is my opinion and observation also.... at least when I admit what it is ~I'm~ doing..... Having the antique 4cc Band, every .1/cc makes a huge difference. Sometimes I think I'd like it out. Then I look at the reality and the advantages, along with the various minor annoyances. Even given I have not made it to my goal, and may never get there, the simple fact that the Band, my Symbiant, my 'Little Angel of the Silicon Fist', is somehow on station, and does in fact keep me from that horrid empty sensation and thoughts of food/eating every waking moment. To have Symbiant removed, for myself, is not a serious option.

The recurrence of weight gain postOp is as welcome as the ex- coming to the new wedding. Giving up on the game at intermission after playing a winning first half is an alluring strategy that doesn't lead to victory. It is way too easy to slip back into Old Bad Eating Habits -- overeating and grazing during non-meal times---without really grasping how our path has turned in the wrong direction. The Band is a tool but it is our Mind, our Brain, our individual Determination that must be played every day, every meal, every snack, and every time we seek to soothe the Belly Beast. We must engage ourselves in the Daily Choice: do I eat to live, or do I live to eat? The habits of decades remain all to ready to leap into control of my own Daily Choice. re: "I gave up but recently considering going for another fill. Any similar stories?" In a word, yes. Don't give up. Don't give in. Get back in to your A-Game. Use your best moves, and engage your determination to succeed. The Enemy is Morbid Obesity. It has many tricks. Rededicate yourself to reach your goal. You can do it.

I can understand the concern..... back before there was mud circa 1965ish I was going to a 'diet doc' who was handing out the miracle cure for obesity of the era.....little purple/yellow capsules.... The last time I saw him was just a few hours before the cops swept down & closed his office. While he didn't invent it, the era of Amphetamines was just barely beginning.....and his patients were unwitting victims of his application of the Rx..............

On another side of this quandary, you may well find your list of 'old favorite foods' undergoes a severe reorganization. One of my favorites, Pasta w/various sauces, is relegated to the bottom of the list. In fact almost any food with added sauces simply are undesirable these days. It was a tremendous discovery, to suddenly realize that so much of what I thought I liked, was the result of clever sauces and unhealthy gooey stuff added to make what I otherwise didn't care to eat, appear to be palatable. There's lots of calories in sauces, and 'ketchup/catsup' is largely high fructose corn syrup....which simply fires my system into high-food-lust mode regardless of hunger/satiety/nutritional need or rational explanations. The first time you get really 'stuck' the obvious remedy of changing that 'eating fast' habit will undergo its own transformation. In my own transition-to-solids phase, I discovered the pleasures of nib-nib-nibbling a soda cracker in such a way it to literally 5 minutes to consume it. Other changes will become obvious: gulping fluids to wash down globs of non-chewed stuff to make way for more was a startling change: I took easily to no-fluids-with-meals. Another Big Change...was to learn to enjoy DINING rather than focus of EATING. The re-adaptation and recognition that 'social events' are accompanied by dining, rather than 'over eating justified by a bunch of people' milling around under some pretext. Maybe it's just me.

My doc insisted I eat salads for weeks preOp. I came to appreciate the non calorie dressing 'balsamic vinegar'. Turned out the stuff was fermented like fine wine, and actually was wonderful for a variety of reasons. Plus it made me liver non-fatty enough enough he was willing to poke around without so much concern.

I've been musing about this post for a while. Recently my 'third Stomach' has been observing while I eat various meals. I've embraced the notion of the value of 'hard protein' although at times still wander from compliance. After a long hard day in the garden-frenzy/yard work phase, I was tired & chose one of those 250 cal frozen mac&cheese concoctions. While it tasted fine, and it went down fine, I encountered 2 conflicting emotions: 1) the satisfaction of 'the food itself' was virtually non-existent; 2) the satisfaction of 'the act of eating' was immense. My 'satiety' from having eaten was absent. My 'satisfaction' from having tasted/chewed/swallowed something pleasurable was considerable. It was in effect, an example of "sport eating" as while it followed some of the rules of nutrition, it was sadly lacking in that my Primary Purpose in eating---to satisfy hunger and to achieve satiety. As far as nutritional value it may as well have been a chocolate chip cookie.

First congratulations on losing so much weight under difficult circumstances. Second, I've never heard of such a situation as you describe. Third, if it were me, I'd be seeking further expert medical advise. Do you have a list of benefits and complaints related to your situation? I think we could all learn from your experience. Please keep us advised.

".....to be self evident.....that all Bandsters are created equal, and that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Non-Morbid Obesity.... .... That to secure these rights, surgery is instituted among Men, deriving their just Eating Activities from the consent of the Band.....That whenever any Form of Overeating becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the Bandster to alter or abolish their Old Bad Health Habits, and to institute a new Paradigm. laying its foundation on such Eating behavior and organizing its Exercise in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Health and Normal BMI." May the Lessons of Lexington Bridge and General Washington strengthen Our Resolve on this Day of Independence... etc....

great, you don't have to fret about when/if you are going to let your Belly Beast take command of your body pod. The real battle comes later, after some degree of success in moving toward your goal. Now is the time to realize the difference between "HAVING an action plan" vs "DOING something" about your Morbid Obesity. re: "And now wonder if this band is actually going to work. When it's filled it's obviously going to help me" It isn't The Band that works, it is YOU that has to work; it's not so much a 'filled band is going to help me' but what you do yourSELF with the Band that makes it work. We all must find ways to keep from bending our elbows and stuffing our Old Bad Habits. That calls for Action, not remorse. You can do this; there's thousands of us who have struggled to find our own path. Cheers on your journey. It's just beginning....and the trip is WONDERFUL!!!!

I suppose it was to be expected sooner or later. While I'm certainly not opposed to hypnosis per se, my own personal exposure to a 10 week session of it circa 1973 for weight issues, was ineffective.

I had a pretty tender port area for quite a while, especially when working hard or (dumb move) using it as a fulcrum to bend into a utility trailer just the right height. Such concerns can be readily evaluated by a call to your surgeon.

Are you sure that isn't the anterior end of the short rib below the (usually) long T10? As we begin to lose our 'continental glacier' layers of fat, the melting ice starts revealing stuff long hidden below. One night I about gave myself a seizure of some kind when I discovered part of my own hip bone last seen circa 1958! But if it gives you ongoing pain, have your provided palpate for further consideration. Great progress BTW!!!!

The whole process seems overwhelming unless you start training that part of yourself that is capable of analytic and critical thinking. We are all so emotional as eaters some of us begin to act as if emotions are capable of keeping us overwhelmed. To me such feeling are a bit like the winds that moved sailing ships....without that wind the ship wouldn't move. Sometimes that wind blows the ship in the wrong direction. A clever captain could learn how to read the wind and devise a strategy on how to sail where he wanted to go despite the 'prevailing winds'. As Bandsters or any WLS patient, we all have to learn how to control our jibs & adjust our mainsails! Personally I was so wound up that I almost got up to flee from the hospital. Scheduled as #2 surgery for 7am, I had driven over 3 hours to be there on time, got held up at a rail crossing by an amazingly slow & looooongggg freight train, then waiting with EXTREME anxiety in the pre0p chamber, I was notified of delay in start of my own procedure. I was within moments of leaping up and dashing out with or without my clothing. My sweet bride reminded I could make ANY choice even a bad one if that was what I wanted. Calming down some, they came & whisked me away. It was a good decision to have the Band for ME. Every day is opportunity to take more steps in the direction of YOUR goal. Cheers on your journey.

Most Excellent!!! Thank you so much for such a wonderful uplifting and sage essay. At merely 10 years postOp, I am a rank novice. Cheers on OUR journeys!!!!

I was left to decide for myself on coffee as well. I had lost my interest in it for about 6 months postOp but eventually returned to 'the Good Cup'. I'm one of those who hold that the only thing that improves coffee is whiskey. Since I had to abandon whiskey 25 years ago in the general struggle against diabetes, a Good Cup of Coffee became very important. Given the absolutely astonishing wide variety of varieties of Beans and roasting tricks, it is unlikely I'll ever run out of new pleasurable discoveries in matters of 'The Cup'. A mystery unlikely to be solved, is how some insist the Nobel Bean needs to be converted into a confectionery item. My own taste places 'Black Coffee' in a category of necessity similar to 'Hard Protein'. Friends of different persuasion inform that I'll never know what I'm missing by foregoing their pasty-replacement concoction. An old Arab saying is that coffee should be 'hot as hell, black as night, sweet as love'. Except for the sweet part, that's my cup. And let it cool just a bit. To each their own.

Usually not at one time! The amazingly satisfying effect of 'hard protein' in 3-4 oz servings is a delight.

I was having to take home a good part of the appetizer. And I found early on a CUP of soup was just as tasty as a bowl, which usually was too much....in the early days. 9+ years postOp I still don't order a full dinner unless intending to pack some home. cheers on your journey!

This 'trend' is growing in the international awareness arena. I learned long ago in grad school the physiological reasons "water" itself is far far better than any other Fluid, for our bodily processes. I also observed during my postOp Bandster experience, that plain Water was also very beneficial for a multitude of reasons. This brief article http://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/health-and-families/health-news/drink-water-to-cut-obesity-health-experts-say-9562887.html gives a few point worth knowing about. They talk about the risk of weight gain using sugary drinks. I for one, suffered a host of adverse metabolic effects from the high-fructose corn syrup concoctions marketed during the 60s/70s/ before I started rational observation of the consequences of such intake.

"Can anyone else relate?" yes, you have identified one of the major realities in most of our daily social encounters!!! I too was amazed at the overwhelming food displays and promiscuous presentation of ever greater orgiastic opportunities masquerading as endless 'enhanced food opportunities'. My own sensitivities retreated from such embarrassing displays and unwanted assaults on my sense of Bandsters Reality. My notion of "Sport Eating" evolved from such fantasy spreads. Social gatherings often more resembled little other than disguised oink-fests. Conferences that relied on sugar-laced gooey disease inducing frenzies momentarily interrupted by some group meeting followed by more sport eating opportunities! I do believe my 40 years of Morbid Obesity led to the last 25 years of my Type 2 diabetes. I had to unlearn decades of maladaptive and personally destructive Eating Behavior such as you clearly have identified. Escape from the Food Prison requires daily discipline. Develop your own Food Survival Kit to use in place of those Belly bombs and pancreas deranging plate-side devices. You can do it.

"bulimic" is a type of emotional/psychiatric issue; "throwing up black stuff" is a physical problem that merits immediate attention.... Lots of possibilities and none of them can be diagnosed over the internet with the limited information you've posted. You've managed to raise the concerns of the Bandster community here; now go get the issue diagnosed properly. "Stat" as they say on TV. Could be nothing much, could be VERY important. Do not wait. Please get back to us on what you have learned.

I was perhaps the biggest chug=the=grub bozo out here, as it did solve the problem of stopping to chew as well as being able to get it all down as rapidly as possible. Surprisingly it wasn't all that hard to change my own habit. So don't set the drink anywhere near you, maximize the inconvenience of going to get a drink, and take the time to appreciate your brain has a choice in what you do.....that last bit was a hard one for me to become convinced about, but certainly fits with the notions of training ourselves out of Bad Habits and into Good Habits. Start your New Good Habit today.

I had a soup/baby food emergency kit, but as a Bandster don't know your needs very well. What about such as 'poached egg'???

re: fitness pal, etc I once went 18 months listing everything I put in my mouth and every exercise calorie I could account for. I was well under 1800 calories per day 9 days out of 10. I didn't lose a pound. However, my pants dropped 3 sizes and I went from 3XL to XL shirts. Yes I still have am "30#" from goal. OK, make that "40#". The reality is our goal serves to help focus our activities. Like the wagon train crossing the plains, we got to head for the Rocky Mountains otherwise we wander aimlessly in the mall parking lot somewhere in Nebraska! It sounds like you have finally gotten TO the hard part of the journey. So have I. No, I ain't staying here, and I ain't going back to the Land of the Morbidly Obese. Whatever effort and tribulation is required, it is less misery than where I was. So cheers in your journey. Through out that cast Iron stove & keep the wagon tires rolling however slowly! Lost Trail Pass is just ahead!

I found hot herbal tea sipped slowly helped me considerably in the early days, intermingled with sucking on small ice cubes. If this issue continues for sure contact your Doc.

re: sparkling, bubbles, carbonation, etc For about the first 3 or 4 years postOp I avoided them all. Heard lots different speculation, gas/etc. Never did track down the real deal. In any case my Band Doc didn't seem to be concerned after a certain point. Eventually I came to learn I could drink a little; first by using a common hand-make clay pottery with normal glaze. Don't know if this is the real deal, but a chemist buddy told me the magnesium (or SOMETHING) in the glaze acted to reduce the CO2 in solution. It seemed to work. In any case now nearly 10 years postOp I can drink sparkling mineral Water without problems.