Jachut

I've been eating whatever I like whenever I'm hungry but taking a very small portion and doing the chew chew chew thing for about 3 months now. It has made such a HUGE difference. No more heartburn and I'm eating probably 2/3 as much as I was when I used to inhale my food. I'm satisfied after a very small portion but of course without the band am hungry again much more quickly so am eating six or seven times a day, lol. But I think not inhaling your food at the speed of light is probably the biggest behaviour to break and even without the band will make a big big difference to how much you eat. Simply stopping to take the time and enjoy food is amazingly hard to do. So many things I find are just not satifiying if I cant cram them in my mouth in huge quanities. So much so that if I think "I'm going to chew chew chew" I just cant be bothered eating it. Other things that you think taste good are really horrible when chewed and really tasted. Rich foods for example, like cheesecake. You simply cannot eat as much of it if you eat it very slowly because the flavour becomes overwhelming. When you shove it in you hardly taste it but get a huge sugar hit which of course is what's so good about it.

If there's no official "treatment" or record of it that your health fund could get hold of I wouldnt mention it at all! And I'd lie my head off if asked.

We have a little girl who's 2 and a half, five and a half years younger than our middle son and seven years younger than our oldest son. Oh my goodness have we spoiled her. It was so much fun having a girl! She's a holy terror but thankfully only at home, she behaves perfectly at daycare with other kids. My middle son was almost expelled from daycare for eyegouging at 15 months old! Parents were complaining left right and centre about the horrific wounds (ones likely to scar) that he'd caused and the centre told me they could not continue to have him if it went on. I was dumbfounded because he never did it at home. He'd learned the behaviour at daycare and only did it at daycare yet they insisted it was my problem to deal with. I had absolutely no idea what to do, he was too young to talk to, he couldnt even talk yet! So I did nothing and thankfully it passed. I think the suggestions above are good though, sometimes a little tough love is needed. Its so hard because you love him and know what a beautiful child he is, its not nice to think others are thinking he's a little brat.

I think you have to be a bit understanding of the mind process too. All that overeating and bad choices really isnt going to stop the minute the band goes on and from what I've gleaned it does take people a couple of fills often before they really start ticking along. If you can still fit it in and get it down, you p[robably will - afterall is that the problem we all had in the first place? The thing is, nothing is ever completely "undone". You still have that band, and you will get more fills and eventually you will get there. Its just time for a deep breath and stop and think about what you are doing. And I really think it pays to get rid of the good food/band food mentality and I personally want to look at the band as something that means I never have to "diet" again because when I eat something that's maybe a poor food choice - as EVERYBODY does at times - I wont be able to overeat it. So I dont see what's wrong with some birthday cake or some pizza and 3 slices aint the whole pizza either! You can do it and you will but it wont be a smooth road and there's no nead to beat yourself up for the bumps. sounds like you've got a lot going on too and you're only human. The crazy mad pace of life is what's made me fat - not taking the time to look after myself, making poor but easy food choices etc etc and I've realised that that's NOT going to go away in the next two decades whilst I've got three children to turn into decent adults, a degree to finish, a career to start etc etc. So I have no choice but to find a way to live within those restrictions that makes me happy and healthy and really, that's the same for everybody. Bad choices arent really easier you know, its just as easy to grab fruit or a yogurt or whatever. And you dont have the added stress of worrying about it later. Hope things calm down for you a bit, in the meantime take it a bit easy.

I find I can only walk up to about 6km an hour and I cant maintain 6 for long, I tire quickly - about 5.5 is comfortable (but plenty aerobic) for me. A km is 5/8 of a mile so that'd be around the 3.5 miles per hour mark. However if I crank it up to 4.5 miles an hour I can keep up at this really slow, inelegant shuffling jog for half an hour or so, I just cant make my legs "walk" any faster than 3.5 although my heart and lungs can cope with more. When I walk outside, my usual route is about 5 miles which takes me a shade over an hour.

I went to an info session last week run by Prof. Paul O'Brien who I think invented the system. In Australia there's a move towards approving banding more often for people in what they call the grey area - BMI 30 to 35. That's obese but not severely or morbidly obese. He pointed out that many people just pass through 30 to 35 on their way to much higher BMI's and that certain people had comorbidities of obesity at that level. People of that weight get banded here now, its just not as common as people of higher weights. However we're lucky here not to have a gazillion different private health funds arguing over what is medically necessary, if the surgeon says it is, then it is. I think that's very sensible, I know for myself I was always going to get to this point and if I dont do something now I will get fatter. I may be "only" a BMI of 35 but its just as serious. However he did point out that at a level of 26-30 (overweight but not obese) there just arent the health benefits of banding and that at that level, you really can lose 10kg or so and keep it off by following regular diet programs. IF (and that's a big if) you stick to it permanently. And think about it, that's either going to work (in which case you dont need to be banded) or it wont and you'll end up way heavier and qualifying anyway, which is not really encouraging but seriously, you'd have people being banded so they could stay as thin as supermodels.

600 calories a day will never be adequate for you - there is no way on earth you can get all the nutrients you need on that level of intake. If it were me and that was what was required to get thin, personally I'd choose to stay fat and relatively healthy. I think people often find they inexplicably start to lose when they eat more. Have you checked out whether there's any reason you are not losing? What about your thyroid or insulin resistance/PCOS, that type of thing? Has that all been investigated? Inevitably as you lose, you will lose some muscle, your job is to minimise that. And my surgeon told me part of the reason bandsters lose only 2/3 or so of excess weight as because they usually have an abnormally high amount of lean body mass (bone, muscle) for a person of their height because of the extra weight they were carrying. So 125 might be a good weight of someone of a certain height but 135 might be just as lean for someone of that height who had previously been overweight. And that's all good - protects you against osteoporosis and fat gain as you age.

I'm going freaking INSANE! My visit to the appointment is 13th October which feels like its getting further and further and further away. I saw him the first time 5 weeks ago, feels like 5 years. I wish the blasted receptionist had just told me to go to the information session first before seeing the surgeon, as it was a complete waste of a visit and it is this coming one where he will give me a date for surgery. I'm just hoping, praying and praying some more that that date will be before Christmas! I really cant stand the thought of waiting into the new year for it. I am ready to lose weight right NOW!

Yep, the less rest time you give your body, the harder it will be to gain muscle mass. You gain the mass when you're resting, as your body repairs the "damage" you did by lifting weights, all the microscopic tears are fixed up and then some, which is why your muscles get bigger. You need a day of rest in between! But overexercising isnt a case of more and more of a good thing. You'll exhaust yourself. I'm nowhere near that exercise load but I find that if I do too much its counterproductive becuase then I just sit on the couch for the rest of the day. At my current weight, I am exhausted after an 8km walk and I have to make an effort to not then slow down the rest of the day - if you do no other activity in the day where normally you would, the calories burned by the walk are not really that beneficial are they? Its really the incidental stuff that adds up. You'll also depress your immune system and make yourself sick, put your bone density at risk, its just not natural for a human body to be doing that much "on purpose" exercise - we're designed to walk long distances, hunt our food and protect our families, not lift huge weights thousands of times a week and run on hard surfaces for miles and miles. Look at footballers and other elite athletes. Their careers are relatively short and their legacy is bad knees, dicky ankles, bad shoulders etc. It ruins their bodies! And think about it - why replace obsessive unhealth behaviour (ie. overeating) with another obessive unhealthy behaviour? Isnt the goal balance in our lives? Enjoy your exercise, just try to stay very active in your everyday life but dont do too much of anything.

Well she could convert it to pounds - sounds even better that way! You say I'm x kilos overweight but I've lost y pounds, lol. Well done Parvathi

Wherever your problem area is will be the last place you lose it I think. I'm more of a pear shape and its only been in the last 20kg that the weight has gone onto my stomach and boobs - before that I was about 20kg overweight but tall and people absolutely couldnt believe I weighed as much as I did. I can guarantee that the weight will go off opposite to what it came on - boobs, belly and plenty from face and arms, and then slowly slowly slowly off the bum and thighs. I know that at my goal weight which is around 72kg, I still have a bit of a problem in the area. Because my tummy's not huge I dont think I'll ever need a tummy tuck from overstretched skin but I reckon I'll be having a bit of lipo just to finish off all my hard work.

Never had one but had a really funny dream only a few weeks ago.... We had a big formal work function on for Doug's work and I dreamed I booked in for a facial beforehand. But when I showed up it was a colonic irrigation instead, they'd stuffed the appointments up. I thought "Oh well, at least I'll have a flat stomach for tonight" so I went ahead and did it anyway. Anyway, after they'd connected me up, I dreamed vividly of the um "stuff" that was flowing away down the clear plastic tube. I was horribly embarrassed by it. But I decided to go shopping anyway, lol because the tube was really long and I could just tie my jacket around my waist to hide it. It gets even better though, after that I decided to drop into Doug's mum and dad's place for dinner and my tube was all coiled up behind me over the front lawn. In the tube were kilos and kilos of quartered potatoes and peas. I was really embarrassed because all the people in the street could see it and I thought "gee, I"ve really got to chew my food better". Do you think I should be committed?

I was in the same position. My BMI is 35. But I know within myself that if I do nothing now it will be 40 in a couple of years and 45 a couple of years after that. I know my weight is out of control, I just havent gotten there yet. But I did the exact same thing, made every effort to hang onto every gram of weight until I saw the surgeon and chose the surgeon based on who had the first appointment I could get into. I ate pretty badly for a few weeks there. The comorbidities may surprise you - I didnt think my sore ankle would be reason enough for surgery but it is. And the psychological side of being obese is considered seriously, not just written off because you dont have high blood pressure. On all my information, depression and social isolation are listed as comorbidities. Then again this is Australia, not the states and they are now starting to accept people with BMI's of 30-35 for banding as common practice. I was so nervous and was accepted within 5 minutes with no argument at all from the surgeon.

I'm exactly the same - and not just with weight. I just looked at a photo of myself that was taken yesterday. Not too bad a photo actually, but not "me" as I see myself.

I've been going a little crazy buying clothes that dont fit me but WILL in six months to a year. I dont want my tight-arse accountant husband to refuse me a whole new wardrobe so I'm starting in little bits that I can hide with a bit of creative accounting. Everything I see that I love and could never wear, I buy. I have fantastic clothes in every size, I cant wait to start moving down through them all. I have started dieting NOW though. I was ready to stop overeating and I have. Its taking willpower now but soon it will be easier - I'm finding it much easier with an end in sight.

Who can figure out sizes - Parvathi I'm 5ft 10 and when I was 90kg odd I was wearing an Australian size 20 and still am at 110kg! Last time I was a size 16 I was 75kg. I've heard others say they're a 12 at that height and weight. Its nuts! But - if I described myself for ID purposes I too would say I'm large. But I dont "see" it when I look in the mirror. I cant see any difference from 40kg ago. Well I can see it but I dont acknowledge it kind of thing. I feel like I look fine most days and then I'll catch an unguarded sight of myself or worse, see a photograph and be absolutely gutted. its only in the last 10kg that I can " feel" my weight too that I've been able to acknowledge I am obese.

Yes I've heard Savlon is excellent for them. Not sure if you have it there, but its just a cream you put on scrapes and grazes. Plus what about those little silicon things that flatten out scars? I'm worried about the scars. I know they're little but I find it frustrating to have gotten through three pregnancies with big babies with my stomach absolutely unmarked only for it to have scars on it from surgery. Oh, I have a caesar scar from one caesar but that's hidden in the foliage. One thing for sure, my stomach would have to look really bad for me to have a tummy tuck. The thought of that scar terrifies me.

I really dont know, I have some good habits that I dont need to change, its more the amount of food than the types that has gotten me into trouble. But if I have a weakness its bread, cakes, muffins and biscuits. Thank goodness that those seem to be difficult foods to eat after banding. I'm just banking on the fact that they might make me sick. And really I've been giving lots of thought to it and I do think I've managed to convince myself that I dont need bread in my daily diet. I was terrified at the thought of living without it at first, now I dont care. I've never been a takeaway eater, I dont like ice cream at all, I've not drunk calories since I was a child (not that it's made any difference) and I dont have a problem with chocolate - still I"m really hoping I dont take up ice cream and chocolate because I can no longer eat muffins, lol. I worried lots about this too. I want to eat a healthier diet all round after banding but really if I dont, and the only thing I achieve is a reduction in volume, and 20kg off, I'm still way better off than I am now, arent I? I want to do better than that, but even relative "failure" is better than my current situation.

I swear I'm not going to let myself do this, it would be so easy. Doug and I are starting Lite n Easy this week - which is home delivered calorie counted meals basically and we are staying on it until surgery which will be anywhere from 6-12 weeks away for me. That takes away most of the temptation since you just plain arent making your own decision what to eat. Not good long term but I always lose weight steadily and reliably, a kilo a week, on this program. My surgeon said to me if I can be 10 to 12kg down from now at my first fill then the fill process is more efficient because I will already have lost significant mass round my stomach and he can put more in - saving a fill in the whole process of getting to that sweet spot. Plus I feel like crap - I've had it up to the back teeth with dragging my fat arse around and I need to fit into my summer clothes as the weather is warming up down under.

I didnt settle till I had been to a face to face info session and actually seen the surgeon. There's too much bad stuff on the internet.

Vegemite (Pronounced vegie-might) is an Australian delicacy - misunderstood by the rest of the world. It's yeast extract vegetable spread thing - a spread for bread, toast and crackers. It's completely black, similar to but not the same as marmite and promite (which may only be English, dont know if you have those there). It has a taste that is impossible to describe but is something all Aussie kids grow up with, most other people recoil in disgust at the look and the smell of it. I love it. So really have no business recoiling in horror at Peanut Butter and cheese, or peanut butter and oatmeal or that latest one banana and mayo, eeeeew, LOL! The jingle goes: We're happy little vegemites as bright as bright can be we all enjoy our vegemite for Breakfast lunch and tea our mummy says we're growing stronger every single week because we love our vegemite we all enjoy our vegemite it puts a rose in every cheek!

Golly six weeks of full liquids before a fill must be MIGHTY hard to do! You would need some willpower that's for sure.

I found that where these type of forums almost scared me right off banding - because naturally people talk about their bad experiences and you have extremes of what people eat and a million conflicting things said about what you should eat at what stage etc etc - and also because the typical American diet is very different from the typical Australian one, so seemed foreign to me - the two information sessions I have been two have been really comforting and far more laid back than what I glean online. They make it sound like it really is just an ordinary lifestyle and an ordinary diet in smaller quanities - and the people who have gotten up and spoken have backed this up.

Wow you were lucky Dee - at the info session I went to last night the surgeon said that at The Alfred in Melbourne there's a 7 year waiting list so they're not adding anyone anymore at all - he also said that generally its impossible to get it done in a big public hospital in Melbourne because of their heavy trauma loads, the intake of patients for elective surgery is very minimal. Cosmetic surgery is never covered by private health insurance unless there's a medical reason for doing it - breast reduction or restoration after mastectomy can usually be covered but tummy tucks are not, unless you're suffering (like with rashes and yeast infections etc.)

Oatmeal with Peanut Butter in it? I've never heard of that! That sounds like something you'd eat when you have pregnancy cravings, lol. Ditto peanut butter and cheese. Oh well, I guess I eat Vegemite. None of the rest of the world can understand THAT!