HeatherO

Everyone I have ever talked to, including myself, hit a little plateau 6-12 weeks out. I think your body just needs a little time to catch up. A plateau can never last indefinitely if you are burning more calories than you are ingesting (and getting enough Protein to boot). Also the protein may have a lot to do with it. When I hit my first plateau, I added a daily Isopure drink with 40 grams of protein and I started losing again. I also cut out a lot of the carbs and replaced them with Proteins and I really started moving again. The caloric intake did not change, it was more a matter of yogurt & oatmeal being exchanged for eggs, fish, chicken and Protein drinks. It also helped to keep me even more full because yogurt and oatmeal went through my system much quicker than the protein. To break a plateau, different things work for different people but the common theme is to do something a little different . . . whether it be caloric intake, protein intake, modification of exercise regime, etc.

Another option other than blenderizing is to strain it. I did this quite a bit with soup on the liquid plan.

Your stomach is still healing from surgery. If you don't feel any pain you are probably ok this time around. However, you need to be really careful and baby your stomach. If you are still in the liquid stage and are already taking in baked goods, you might be in trouble down the road. Another thing to keep in mind is that once you have fills and decent restriction, you may find that your stomach rejects things like breadsticks. Bread tends to block your passage up in a most uncomfortable way and cause pb's to happen. Bread doesn't seem to be bandster friendly to most bandster's with restriction. My doctor explained to me that the long term health of the band has everything to do with how well a person follows the diet in the early stages. The stomach has to move around to digest food. You don't want much movement until the area around the band has healed sufficiently. Putting too much pressure on the area before the band area has time to heal can eventually lead to band complications such as slippage that could result in band removal. Your first two weeks is almost up. You should just hang in there with the doctor's plan for a couple more days, progress with the diet prescribed and everything should be fine. The worst thing to do would be to test the band by thinking if this time didn't cause any physical symptoms, maybe you can eat a little more than is on your plan. Eating solid foods one and a half weeks out from major surgery is not healthy for your fragile stomach. Good luck with your plan. Just think, in another couple of weeks you will be eating normal, healthy food with smaller portions and you can put this liquid phase behind you :0)

Swollen and bruised is definitely normal . . . you are not very far out from surgery. Doctors have different instructions but I can share what I remember of mine with you. The "tape" I had were little white steri-strips that kind of helped hold the skin a little closer together. I was told to leave them be until they came off on their own. One came off early and I found later that the incision area in that spot was a little wider than the rest because I think that without the strip the edges moved a little further apart. I would just leave them alone. You should not take a bath, go swimming or in any way submerge your incisions in Water. However, showers are fine and the incision areas can get wet as long as they do not get very wet for very long. Basically I hopped in the shower, rinsed, soaped, rinsed in less than a minute for the incision site. Then I lowered the shower head and scrubbed everything else in a way that would not introduce much more water to the incisions. Use a clean towel or paper towels to dry the incision area every time. Never use a washcloth more than once, and really I dont think you want to use one at all on the incision sites. This is to avoid any bacteria that may collect on these items from being introduced into the incisions. After a shower, I always made sure that I let the incisions dry completely, usually by just keeping the area uncovered and allowing them to air dry. After they were dry I used a little hydrogen peroxide, a little neosporin and then bandaged the area where necessary. I would never touch the area, bandages, anything along that line without thoroughly rewashing my hands first just in case. Even if I just got out of the shower and threw on some clothes, I would still rewash before touching. I never had any incision problems, everything healed well without infection. This is what worked for me.

4 weeks is still early. However, I am not sure if not scheduling a fill now means that it puts it way out into the future or only a few weeks. It seems like 6-12 weeks is the norm for the majority of people. I successfully lost quite a bit of weight after banding. I averaged 3 pounds lost per week and still got the fill. The reason I ended up with the fill is because I stalled for two weeks with no gain/loss. I also was battling with a lot of hunger that I could not satisfy for very long. It was definitely not head hunger but the belly aching, i am starving and could eat a horse kind. Perhaps you could schedule another reevaluation of the need for a fill appointment in 2-3 weeks. By that time, you may need a fill. However, I think it is probably good that you don't have a fill just yet since you are definitely still healing and learning the new lifestyle requirements.

Thanks for the explanation. You are doing great. Specially making all of this progress on your own before banding. I think banding is difficult for a lot of people at first because it involves dropping long-held habits and going from eating whatever you want (except for maybe a brief pre-diet term) to having to restrict everything. You already have this part covered and should have a much easier time with banding afterwards. When you finally get past the mushy stage, you will begin to eat again in a healthy way that will be such a relief after an incredibly long time of having the liquid diet. Kudos to you for sticking with it. The best part about this is that with the help of the tool, weight loss should be no big deal for you since you are already doing an excellent job pre-band. Banding may not be the "easy" out that some people say, but realistically . . . at least for me, it is a much, much easier way for me to get to my goals. I have slain the hunger demon, now I can concentrate on following bandster rules and getting my exercise in :0) Best of luck to you . . . just think, by this time next year initial banding experiences and months of liquid diets will be behind you. If you could speak to the future you one year from now, just imagine how interesting that conversation would be :0)

Thanks, Chrisann. "Intentional" exercise has been my word of the day for the last two months. I have been working my butt off, literally :tt2:

Getting in is no problem, getting out is a real hassle. You would be taking a big risk to go without a passport. If you definitely plan to go to Mexico in the future, you should get a passport asap. You can order them in the post office in most towns.

I have no regrets. It is the best money I ever spent. Now that I have made it through a few months, I realize I would have paid 10 times as much to start the journey to good health. Everyone gets a little nervous and has second thoughts towards the end. Even my husband asked me towards the end, are you really sure that you want to do this??? Yessss . . . now I know more than ever before it was the best decision for me. Best of luck to you and stay strong :0). What is the true cost of good health . . . well you have to consider what the cost of bad health is first. I drink lemonade, tons of Water, crystal light, tea, coffee. I no longer drink soda of any sort. I myself was a Dr. Pepper/Diet Coke a holic myself before banding (4-6 per day and a bad headache from caffeine withdrawal if I missed it). It was hard at first because it was a habit and I missed the bubbles. I know you can drink it flat and I did try to drink some flat diet coke. It tasted awful and I don't know why I ever drank it in the first place :0). Every place you go usually has non-carbonated beverages, even if it is only bottled water. I don't miss it now.

It is great that you can stick with it. It would be sooo hard doing liquids since September '07. By the way, why do you need to do liquids for so long?

I have a broken scale as well. I can change several pounds in a couple of minutes just by getting back onto it. It was the expensive, top-of-the-line, digital, lithium powered supposed to last eternally . . . it does last, the numbers are just wrong :0) Before I realized it was not working correctly (can you really gain 7 pounds, or lose 4 pounds in one day????), I was very upset about the erratic weight changes. It was thrilling to be down but devastating to be up. I bought a cheap standard scale with the little wheel for $7 bucks at Target. It works great. It never changes unless it is supposed to and seems reliable. I'm a happy camper now.

Congratulations!!! That is wonderful news. I am about 4 pounds away from joining you at the 50 pound mark. I can't wait. Closet shopping is the best, isn't it. I have also bought some new pants recently because I found that the weight loss is less noticeable when everything is big and baggy. New jeans have brought on a lot of remarks regarding weight loss. 50 pounds is awesome, specially considering birthday and clothing changes as well. Isn't it exciting that this is just one great day out of many yet to come . . . :0) Happy melting to you, la la lala la la :0)

I am only at slightly over 4 months and I am at 20.4%. That is 225 start less 179 current divided by 225 if I did it correctly. I did not answer the poll yet but will in a couple of weeks once I see where I am at. I feel really good about my weight loss so far :0).

I had redness and a rash started. I found I was allergic to the bandages that I was using at home. I started using latex free bandages which helped but still irritated my skin to a lesser degree. I eventually started using the much more expensive bandages which were like an absorbant pad in the middle with almost like a plastic tape covering the outside and this did not irritate my skin. Anyways, my issue was minor and easily corrected. However, please be sure that if you have pain that is not diminishing or growing stronger at those sites, or feel any heat or have other indications of possible infection, you need to see your doctor right away. Infection can be very dangerous and should be taken seriously.

I eat 3 meals a day. This includes an occasional snack every other day or so depending on when it is needed . . . usually afternoon or evening. I have really great restriction now and believe I am at my "sweet spot." I find that if I allow myself to get too hungry or go too long between meals, I start looking for something "fast" and then I eat too quickly which can cause me to pb very easily. If I am very hungry, I eat something like a low-sugar, low-fat yogurt, cottage cheese or maybe a boiled egg . . . which may seem counterintuitive because it is soft and will not fill me up for long. However, I found this to be an effective strategy because it takes the edge off until it is time for a real meal and even if I eat it quickly I can't pb. Also, these things are readily at my disposal so if I am hungry, I walk to the fridge and eat. No elaborate planning or cooking if I am very hungry. As I have been banded for quite some time now, I have found that my tastes have changed. I crave healthy food. Yesterday I was craving a salad with a little avocado and some sundried tomatoes (who is this strange person I have become, why am I not craving Cookies, ice cream, fries or chips????). Some of the old items I used to crave just don't do it for me anymore. I loved french fries in the past, and would have some every couple of days. I have had a couple of fries since banding and they taste bland . . . I don't understand what I thought was so special about them before. I think I have to be honest with myself in that I had a carb addiction, which eliminating processed carbs from my diet has essentially cured. Anyway, I don't even have to think about meals or Snacks now. I eat when I am hungry (and I make sure it has nothing to do with head hunger). My body tells me what to do, I get all of the triggers when to start and stop . . . and the weight just keeps coming off, albeit slow, but fairly steady. I have no doubt in my mind that the band is the best thing I ever did for myself. My only regret is that I didn't do it 10 years ago. Other than following basic bandster rules (which become ingrained and don't require "thought" after some time), I am not consumed by having to "think" about dieting all the time. It has become natural, which is the greatest blessing of all since it is what I have been missing for all too long. I was initially filled with some doubt that the band could "really" work for me. Even after banding and before restriction, it seemed too difficult in that I was too hungry and I was dieting again which has never worked for me over the long term. Restriction is here and all I can say is thank you, thank you, thank you to my wonderful band tool.

My doctor said 200 punctures. I don't think it is possible to ever get up to that amount of punctures to be honest with you. I have already lost half my excess weight and I am only up to 2 punctures. Even those that need a lot of fills to find the sweet spot, I have never heard of anyone going past 20 punctures. Once you get to maintenance mode and the weight is gone, you may only need to go in yearly . . . and you may or may not need a fill. So basically it seems as though the puncture life is significantly greater than what you could ever expect to use.

I have had the same issue. Even if it is not dumping, it feels kind of like it. I just figured my body was just telling me "i thought we made a deal to stop eating this crap . . . i have already made the adjustment so why can't you???" I have only had it happen once or twice. I avoid sugar and processed carbs like the plague now because they do a number on my stomach.

I would like to share my condolensces as well. I am very, very sorry for your loss. Thank you for sharing the information with us.

Hello, I was just curious . . . why have you decided it is not for you? What are you looking for in a weight loss solution?

My TOM has become much more intense, and I am on the pill. I see a definite difference post banding. It is almost like the intensity has doubled. It is not the same issue but similar in that there is a definite hormonal difference post banding.

I agree with Julie. These boards are great. Who understands banding better than those who have been through it and can relate from personal experience. There are so many people out in the world who will offer strong opinions on topics that they are not familiar with. It is always best to do your own soul searching, being truthful with yourself and following your heart to the best path for you.

I typically weight morning and night. At first any gain would drive me crazy, but not anymore. I have since learned that my weight can fluctuate anywhere between 1 to 4 pounds in any given day. I also learned that I always gain 2-5 pounds during TOM that immediately comes off when it is finished. Because of these fluctuations, I never change my current weight values unless I have stayed at a certain weight 3-5 days in a row. I found that it was really depressing to post I am at # weight and find for the next several days I am a few pounds over. For instance, I have been at 179 in the morning for 2 days now, but I am not ready to Celebrate hitting the 170's until I have a couple more days in :0).

I did this a couple of times also during the liquids stage. However, I quickly became bored with it. It was never really all that satisfying but it did help to get cravings to pass. Once I was on mushies I didnt do it anymore.

It is great that you have been checked out with the upper GI to help rule out some major problems and have come out clear. I would also have to wonder if you are just too tight. I find that when I am sick or uncomfortable with the band, I tend to keep getting sick and uncomfortable daily until I take a break and go back to liquids to give my stomach time to relax. Perhaps you should try doing a day or two of liquids, day or two of mushies and try to ease your way back into eating in case your stomach is just irritated. It can be a cycle in that irritation causes pb or vomiting that causes further irritation . . . and on and on it goes. When was your last fill and did it coincide with when you started to get sick?

Mine was similar to yours. I felt really good about it because it helped to ensure that I healed properly. It is important to me that my band last a lifetime so I wanted to give it every opportunity to heal in place. It was tough but I am happy I followed through.