kbinaz

Isn't it interesting how it takes our minds to catch up with our bodies? You still ordered the larger size soup and I find myself doing that too. I'm afraid it 'won't be enough' to fill me up and I'll get hungry so I order way too much and can't eat half of it! I went to a wedding last night and they passed out the food and the plates looked pretty sparse and I thought "wow! small portions!" then proceeded to eat half of it while my teeny tiny daughter scarfed down every bit of it plus a roll! I loved it!

Mine lasted for quite a while. I don't think mine was gas, I just think it was swelling or something and it made it that I couldn't wear a lot of my clothes even though I was losing weight. I didn't feel pain like gassy just couldn't get my jeans zipped.It lasted for about a month.

This is kind of gross, sorry.... Yes, and as Jack said, you got off easy! Mine combine a PB and a slime and you'll find me hunched over the sink with slime coming out faster than I can spit it (and I can't swallow it because I'm blocked and it won't go down) There is intense pain, I can't talk or function - all I can do is concentrate on getting the pain to go away. Finally I feel a retching kind of feeling (not like vomiting, much less intense) and the food finally comes out in a projectile PB, all slimy and it sometimes takes me three tries to get it unstuck. Attractive, huh? SOOOOOOO not fun~ and not something you want to happen outside the privacy of your own home! It always happens when I eat something dry and especially if I eat cake...good reason not to eat cake! (but I seem to keep trying)

Just be patient with yourself and remember that this is the time to heal so you are all strong and ready to lose some weight!

I eat salad almost every day and it is actually one of the foods I never have trouble with. I eat a lot of romaine and raw spinach. I don't have trouble with any fruits or vegetables except citrus, for the same reason as stated above. (the membrane gets stuck) I also eat a lot of cut up cucumbers and peppers and have no problems.

I wasn't supposed to lift anything over 10 pounds for 2 months after surgery and if I forgot and lifted something I really felt it for a few days. The very sorest thing after the surgery is the port site. It stays sore for quite a while and lifting or straining really can aggravate it.

You don't say what your 'wrong' food choices are so I can't say for sure if that is the issue. You seem to be implying that you are choosing foods that are easier to get down and are less likely to cause you pain. That is the greatest problem with being too tight. The band is meant to work with real food, not liquids and not mushy food. If by wrong food choices you mean cupcakes and twinkies, then that is something the band isn't going to help you with. The goal should be to be able to eat enough for your three meals that you only eat three meals and feel no need to snack in between. You clearly aren't there so I would talk to your doctor.

You could feel your collarbones AND shop. Now that's an addiction! Shop only for clothes that show off your collarbones! My new addiction is wearing my too-loose jeans waiting for people to comment on them, then saying "Oh, I know, I need a smaller pair!"

You didn't specify if it was the saliva you are trying to swallow as just a normal swallow (as in "I'm so tight I can't even swallow") or if it is saliva that is building up as a result of eating too quickly or taking too big a bite. Those are two different things. If you are too tight to even swallow your own saliva, you are too tight. If you are having saliva build up when you eat that is sliming as described above and means you need to slow down and chew more. It usually happens with dry food - does this happen when you eat something soft or mushy? Does it hurt? With the band you should be able to eat normal bulky food without pain or sliming. So try going really slow and taking small bites and if it still doesn't help you might consider a small unfill.

I am a side sleeper also, and I spent the first two nights in a recliner which left me very sore and achy. Finally on the 3rd night I couldn't stand it anymore and with the help of my husband we propped pillows in strategic places and got me propped up so my port sight didn't hurt. As far as hurting something, I don't think sleeping on your port sight would do any damage to anything. They sew it in there pretty well internally so if you are able to sleep how you want to sleep go ahead.

I already posted on here earlier, but something is bugging me so here I am again! I am trying to figure out where the 1/2 cup 'rule' even comes from. I was never told to weigh or measure my food - ever. Why do some doctors tell their patients to do something that is only going to make them miserable and add more guilt to a person that has already been made to feel like a failure and had to resort to major surgery to lose weight? Overweight people have trouble restricting their food intake - there are lots of reasons, physical and emotional, for why they can't do it, but that's beside the point. The point is, to tell an overweight person who just had major surgery to limit their food intake to 1/2 cup and expecting them to be able to do it is like telling an alcoholic to limit their drinking to 1 shot and expecting them to do it! The whole point of the band is to give us the ability to limit our portion sizes. After surgery,and once the swelling goes down, we are often just as hungry as before banding because the band is not functioning yet. It needs to be adjusted. Once the band is properly adjusted our portion sizes get smaller and we need less food to stay satisfied. I just don't understand the 1/2 cup thing. I was taught to eat slowly, take small bites, chew each bite thoroughly and to stop after 20 minutes whether I had food left or not. When you aren't extra tight (like without a fill or even after 1 or 2 fills) you can get a larger amount of food in within that 20 minutes because the food is going down easier and so, while the 20 minute time limit did limit my portion sizes somewhat, I was able to eat way more than 1/2 cup in that time. The idea of the band is to give us the willpower that we overweight people don't have because we feel hungry if we don't eat large quantities of food. How can a doctor expect us to have willpower just because he put a band in us when it isn't functioning yet? Okay, done with my rant!!!

And to add to what Jack said, also don't do a hard protein in public. Not the prettiest picture, and not something you want your friends to witness. Once you reach the optimum restriction you will do whatever necessary to keep PB'ing from happening because it is not at all fun. You may need another fill or two or three to get to your sweet spot and then you will learn to be really cautious.

Yes, PB'ing at every meal is too much. I would seriously lose my will to live if it happened to me at every meal. Well, at least I would lose my will to eat. One of the dangers of being overfilled is PB'ing which then causes you to choose soft foods or liquids only - defeating the whole purpose of the band. You probably need an unfill. Eating with the band should not be torture. You should still be able to enjoy normal food.

I also had no pre-op diet. In my case it was because I didn't have a very high BMI. I only had to do liquids 3 days post op and went to soft proteins on day 4 - very doable. My doctor is not a proponent of protein shakes and wants us to get our protein (and all nutrition) from regular, real food. I was encouraged to quit all carbonated drinks and I was worried. But I gave up my diet Pepsi and now if I try a sip it tastes like chemicals. It is very hard to try to 'pretend' to have a band because you don't have the band helping you remember! But it's a good idea, and may give you some idea of how you will do. Just remember - the point of the band is that it forces you to make some changes in your eating habits that you may have been unable to make without the band.

I agree with the above. Your doctor wants you to take in enough nutrition for your body to heal properly. I agree with you that mashed potatoes my not be the healthiest food, and I was supposed to stick to soft proteins so you might try those. But the point is to heal and not be concerned just yet about losing weight. The soft proteins made sense to me because protein is what helps us heal. Also, when you are eating protein you feel fuller longer. Mashed potatoes aren't going to stay with you. I lived on refried beans, cottage cheese and high protein Greek yogurt. (20g of protein per cup) I was allowed to eat chicken, turkey and fish on day 4, also. But I am not your doctor and don't know if he specifically told you to eat mashed potatoes or if they were just one of many foods he suggested. Do what he said! If he left it open and said just eat soft foods, the ones I suggested might keep you satisfied longer.

Yeah for you! Getting off meds is huge! Oh, and get used to that 'purring' sound - the lap band makes us very noisy people!

You really can do anything that is comfortable for you. Sleeping on your tummy is not going to hurt the port or make it flip or anything like that. It is just kind of uncomfortable at first to lie in that position. I am a side sleeper and couldn't sleep on either side right after surgery. That was the worst part of the surgery for me! If it feels okay for you to sleep on your stomach go for it! And if it hurts now, it won't forever!

The thing you have to remember is that you just had major surgery and you need to give yourself a break from stressing about losing weight because that is not your main goal right now. Your job right now is to heal. Try to put this all in perspective...in a year you are going to be down 50-60 pounds and you are not going to look back and remember if you lost 10 pounds or 5 in the first month, or 11 in one week and only 1 the next. All that is going to matter is the 50, 60 or even more lost this year. Our bodies are intricate machines and nobody really knows why they do what they do. Our weight can fluctuate according to what we have for lunch, how much water we drink, the time of month, the barometric pressure! (I made that up, but anyway...) We go on these weird diets, have surgery where they pump us full of gas and play with our insides and cause swelling, then we go on clear liquids, then we go on soft foods... who knows how much you weigh? Who knows how much you have really lost? It doesn't matter at the moment. I completely understand where you are coming from - you want to lose weight and now that you went through the surgery you want evidence that you made the right choice and the band is going to work for you. (I weighed myself 10 times a day the week after surgery, so don't think I'm preaching at you, I'm just commiserating!) Relax and do what you need to do today and each day to heal from this surgery. Eat the protein necessary for your body to do that. Then it will be time to lose weight and your body will sort everything out and show you what you really weigh. And you will lose weight - just keep following your doctors instructions and it will happen!

I agree with what was stated above...and one more thing...sometimes men react to fear with different emotions because they don't want to seem 'weak'. Anger is actually a secondary emotion and my guess is that your dh is actually really scared. There is a lot going on in his head (the whole fear of losing you, fear of change, fear of the band etc.) This makes it tough for you because right now you need someone to just be there and help you through this post-surgery time. I really hurt for you because I don't know what I would have done without my dh who has been my rock through it. But, that said, your hubby is who you have right now and the best thing I can tell you is to keep talking. Keep asking him questions and keep explaining things. In the end, as someone said above, it is your body and your decision and the $ has been spent. There is nothing at this point that is going to take that band out of you or unspend the money! He is going to have to go through whatever process necessary to come to terms with what is going on and it may take him a little while. I'm sorry for you, please know that there are hundreds of us out here hurting for you and here if you need encouragement. Hopefully he will 'get it' soon!

Dense proteins are things like chicken, turkey (ground or regular), fish, legumes,any meat you can handle. Basically, the idea is for the food we eat to be dense enough that it stays in the pouch for a long time. Things like soup, yogurt, shakes,mashed potatoes- are going to slide right through the stoma. So dense proteins are good, but the majority of the food you eat should be dense. (vegetables, fruit, things that have to be chewed!)

The perfect fill allows you to eat three small meals a day (and I don't mean only 1/2 cup, small in comparison to what you used to eat...) and feel satisfied between those meals. You should not need a bedtime snack because you should still feel satiated from dinner. You should be able to eat enough real food (not liquid, not mushy - mostly dense proteins, vegetables and fruit) to get 60 grams of protein a day. If you can't eat that much, or are finding yourself going for soft mushy foods to avoid discomfort, you are probably too tight. Food should still be enjoyable with a lap band, not torture! And you shouldn't be walking around starving. It took me 5 fills to feel like that.

Your sweet spot means you should be able to eat three small meals a day without being hungry in between them. They should consist of real food (mainly dense proteins and vegetables to keep you full longer) If you are too tight you run the risk of going for soft, easier foods to avoid pain, and that is not giving you optimum benefit of the band. There are definite differences in foods that are tolerated and levels of satiety they give. If you stick to mostly dense proteins and vegetables with some fruit, you are going to stay full longer. If you eat cookies and candy you are not going to stay full. What foods you can tolerate can also change from day to day, and even from hour to hour. We tend to be tighter in the morning and women, especially, can have fluctuations with their monthly cycles. This all means you have to be really tuned into your body and listen to it. If you can only eat a tiny breakfast because of being tight in the AM, but you can eat a good sized lunch and dinner you are probably fine. If you are so limited in portion size that you aren't able to get your 60g of protein, you are probably too tight. Eating should still be pleasurable, not torture. And of course, you should be able to lose a pound or 2 a week. If those things are happening you probably don't need a fill. Hope this helps!

It is very frustrating for the first few months after surgery when you don't have restriction. I hate to say this because it is easy to say and hard to do, but you just have to be patient! I know you want restriction, that's why you had surgery after all! But it just doesn't work that way with the band. I was seriously going nuts because I didn't have any restriction whatsoever after fills 1,2,3,and 4! I felt like a huge failure. I felt like I had wasted so much money (I'm self pay) and just "knew" the band was not going to work for me. Finally I had my 5th fill and there it was, hallelujia! RESTRICTION!!! Yeah!!! And I can honestly say that I am thankful that it was slow getting there because it gave me time to adjust mentally and physically each new step of the way. Hang in there guys! It will happen and it is awesome.

I could never feel anything when they had me drink water after a fill either. I was starting to think it was an urban myth. I finally felt like I had to say I felt restriction so I wouldn't look dumb. (like the emporer's new clothes...the emporer's restriction..) I finally felt it with fill #5 (7.5ccs in a 10cc band). As soon as I felt it, I was like "Oh, okay,that's what it feels like!" Hang in there, keep getting fills as often as you are allowed until you get there - you will know it when you feel it!

The port area is the sorest area after surgery and the discomfort there lasts the longest of any discomfort. I finally realized I couldn't 'feel it' after about a month and a half. It definitely takes a while, so just be patient! (: