Rastis100

OMG that is awesome - you look great, it is stories like yours that keep me inspired and make me realise that I have made the right choice - CONGRATULATIONS!!!

Hey Karen - I started eating small bits earlier on as well, but I must admit I did blend everything. I think one of the main concerns the doctors have with eating earlier on, is that the stomach has too work harder to digest the food, and it is still in the healing stage. But in saying that, I didn't have any problems, but I did blend everything!! Cheers - Rastis x

Thanks Kim - it girgles all the time, but I have no difficulty in eating and drinking, but it definately gets louder and more frequent after something enters my stomach - Cheers Rastis

I had my first fill on Wednesday. I have a 10cc band that had 2cc put in at the time of my surgery, and I had another 2cc put in on Wednesday and now my tummy is making the craziest noises. One of my daughters put her head on my stomach and had to take it off cause she said "it's making really loud weird noises Mum". Is it normal for it to make such loud noises after a fill?? Thanks for any replies - Rastis

Hey Karen - how are you feeling now? Can you believe it's over a week ago that you went in for surgery? How fast does the time fly - it seems to take forever to get to surgery and then surgery is over and time seems to go so fast. Hope you are doing well - and your wounds are healing nicely - take care - Rastis xx

Had my first fill this morning. The local anaesthetic stung a little, and within about 2 minutes it was all over (fill and everything) - painless really. I have a 10cc band, that already had 2cc in it - my surgeon fills this much to all his 10cc bands at the time of the operation. This morning he put another 2cc in. I am now back on soups etc for the next 2-3 days, just to let everything settle down. I hardly ate anything for lunch today - just didn't feel hungry. Everyone else around me was wolfing down their Melbourne Cup lunches, while I snacked on my soup - but guess who won the sweepstakes - ME!!!!!!!! My Dr said he will put another 1cc in for my next fill and then 1/2cc for my third fill. He said that this amount of restriction should be enough (5.5cc total) - here's hoping. Take care everyone - Rastis xx

Good luck Ann, you'll do great, looking forward to hearing from you and how it all went!!! I go in for my first fill this morning 8.30am and am feeling very nervous about it - but I am sure it will be fine.

Ginaki, I have been banded now for 4 weeks and I felt exactly the same as you did. I was absolutely terrified of going under the genereal anaesthetic. I also have 3 children and I was petrified that I would never see them or my husband again. And like I said I am now 4 weeks post op, and everything went really well during the op, and I had no problem with the general anaesthetic. I wish you all the very best with your operation. Cheers Rastis

Hey Karen - GOOD LUCK FOR TOMORROW!! I hope everything goes really really well for you - which I am sure it will, and I look forward to hearing all about it once you get home!! Love Rastis

Hey Fanny, I had many last suppers leading up to my banding date, and I don't know if this is bad or not, but I didn't feel guilty about doing it either. But in saying this, I was getting to the gym every second day to try and counteract what I was putting in my mouth. Hope you had a good weekend, I was starting to wonder where you were!! Cheers - Rastis

This is a meal plan that I received from my dietician a few days after banding - I hope it helps someone!! Love Ratis AN EXAMPLE OF A DAILY MEAL PLAN for the first 4-6 weeks of banding Pre-Breakfast - 100mls of Fruit (unsweetened) or vegetable juice Breakfast - 2-3 tbls pureed scrambled eggs OR 1-2 tbls pureed porridge + skim milk OR 1/2 weetbix + 2 tbls skim milk (milk to soften) Mid morning 100mls skim milk OR An egg flip using skim milk lunch 100 mls vegetable + 30 gm chicken/egg Soup pureed OR 2-3 tbls pureed meat eg - 1 tbls pureed meat + 1-2 tbls pureed vegetables Mid afternoon 100 mls skim milk OR 100 mls fruit juice if not consumed earlier dinner As lunch OR 2 tbls skimmed natural yogurt + 1 tbls pureed fruit One hour after dinner 100mls skim milk Note: Supplemented low fat milks or low fat soy milk may be used instead of skim milk Other fluids are to be consumed through the day and not at meal times to ensure adequate hydration (liquids intake). Eg - 50-100 mls Water, tea, coffee, low joule (diet) drinks Remember water is important especially in hot weather and for exercise.

This is a meal plan that I received from my dietician a few days after banding - I hope it helps someone!! Love Ratis AN EXAMPLE OF A DAILY MEAL PLAN for the first 4-6 weeks of banding Pre-Breakfast - 100mls of Fruit (unsweetened) or vegetable juice Breakfast - 2-3 tbls pureed scrambled eggs OR 1-2 tbls pureed porridge + skim milk OR 1/2 weetbix + 2 tbls skim milk (milk to soften) Mid morning 100mls skim milk OR An egg flip using skim milk Lunch 100 mls vegetable + 30 gm chicken/egg soup pureed OR 2-3 tbls pureed meat eg - 1 tbls pureed meat + 1-2 tbls pureed vegetables Mid afternoon 100 mls skim milk OR 100 mls fruit juice if not consumed earlier Dinner As lunch OR 2 tbls skimmed natural yogurt + 1 tbls pureed fruit One hour after dinner 100mls skim milk Note: Supplemented low fat milks or low fat soy milk may be used instead of skim milk Other fluids are to be consumed through the day and not at meal times to ensure adequate hydration (liquids intake). Eg - 50-100 mls water, tea, coffee, low joule (diet) drinks Remember water is important especially in hot weather and for exercise.

I received this book from my dietician, and I have found it quite interesting as a guide of what to eat. It is not a very thick book, but all the same I refer to it every day. The book cost me $15 and it is called "The Food and Nutricion guide for gastric banding - by Trudy Williams" any enquiries about the book write or phone: Publisher at Wesley Nutrition Centre, PO Box, TOOWONG, Australia 4066. Phone: +61 7 3870 8616, fax: +61 7 3870 8678 or online orders can be done on website Trudy Williams & FoodTallk: diet, gastric band, lap band, food portion serves I hope this helps!! My dietician also gave me another couple of sheets that I found really helpful, I will try and type them up at some stage for everyone. Cheers - Rastis

Hey Lorraine, My dietician is Jane West and she is in Mt Pleasant, I think you will need a referral for her, if you want to be able to claim it from you health fund (if you have it). The book cost me $15 and it is called "The Food and Nutricion guide for gastric banding - by Trudy Williams" any enquiries about the book write or phone: Publisher at Wesley Nutrition Centre, PO Box, TOOWONG, Australia 4066. Phone: +61 7 3870 8616, fax: +61 7 3870 8678 or online orders can be done on website Trudy Williams & FoodTallk: diet, gastric band, lap band, food portion serves I hope this helps!! My dietician also gave me another couple of sheets that I found really helpful, I will try and type them up at some stage for everyone. Cheers - Rastis

I got quite constipated from the meds they gave me in the hospital and ended up having to have suppositries to help me go (not very pleasant). So now I take a dessert spoon of benefibre everyday, (I don't know if you guys have that in the US) it's disolvable and has no taste at all, and it is now keeping me regular. Metamucil does the same thing - but I think it has a fair amount of sugar in it, but if it works give it a go!! Take care and good luck with your surgery - Rastis

Hi Ann, We don't have flintstones in Australia, but I take one Blackmores sustain multi vitamin a day. I is a big tablet, so my dietician said to crush it up, which is what I do. I then blend it with 200mls of 100% applejuice and some benefibre (to keep me regular) and it seems to do the trick. I can't taste the multi in the juice at all, so that is a good thing. I find that in the mornings I am not hungry until about 10 am, and sometimes I don't even feel like my juice, but I have it anyway, just to make sure that I get my multi in daily. Cheers - Rastis

Hey MSS, I saw the dietician that Dr Watson recommends, and I thought she was really helpful. I was feeling a little lost about what to do food wise and she helped me heaps. She has a great book for $15 that is specifically for lap patients and I thought it was worth the buy. It had some good tips in there. I am now 13 days post op and still loosing weight (about 6kgs -13.2pds) . I tend to be hungry one day and not the next, but I am still limiting my portions and eating 6 times a day, which is what the dietician suggested. The portions are incredibly small, but I never get hungry - which is a good thing. Lorraine - WOW what a fantastic weight loss so far, good luck with your last 2 kgs and your op next week- who is your surgeon? Take care - Rastis

Amy - I don't think praying to stay well is selfish at all. Like I said I work in a Kindy (3-4 yr olds) and the week before I went in for surgery the children and other 2 staff all started to get gastro, and I thought as long as I don't get it all will be fine. I think we have waited for so long, that we don't want anything to stop us from making it to surgery - so no I don't think you're being selfish at all. I hope you little man gets better soon!! - Rastis

Hi Ann - I did have it done laproscopically, but they still made 6 incisions. Five of them are between 1/2 - 2 cm in length and my sore one (which is where the port is - I can feel it) is about 6cm in length. It's still a bit tender, but I started back at work today (in a Kindy with 30 children), and I feel exhausted at the moment, but I guess I will get back into the swing of things soon. Hi Amy, welcome to our band family - like you, I found great support in this web site. I have family that are very supportive, but unless you are going through it - I don't think they fully understand how we feel (as much as they try too). Cheers all - Love Rastis

MSS - I am in Perth also and was banded on the 3rd Oct, my surgeon was Dr Stephen Watson - who was your surgeon? I am feeling really good - 12 days post op and I head back to work tomorrow. A bit scared about going back to work, as I work in a Kindy and I have 30 4-5 yr olds running around. Hopefully everything will be okay. I am 5.5kgs (12.1 pds) lost in 12 days, so I am pretty happy with that. Take care - Rastis

Hey Karen - I agree, this thread had gone very quiet, glad to see you're keeping it going. I am going much better than I was the other day when I last posted. I am down 5.5kgs (12.1 pds), so I gotta be happy with that!! This time in 2 weeks you will be officially in band land - YIPPEE - you're halo will be safe and secure and a new chapter will begin. Take care - love Rastis

Good luck!!!!

Danna - keep us posted on what the doc says. You may have already mentioned this in another thread, but I haven't read them all - where are you from? Your ticker is in kg's so I am assuming you are not from the US!

Danna, I had a heap of blood taken before surgery. Like Karen said they are all pretty routine, I was scared that they would say I couldn't have surgery based on the results of my tests, but was banded 9 days ago, so I am sure it is just so they have everything on record.

YAY - it works!!