MistyD65

You are most probably in ketosis due to the lack of carbs in your diet right now. The bad breath is normal and should end once you start adding good carbs back.

1) I think that's an important point right there. There are some who, while they desire WLS, aren't really ready to make the changes that are required to make it work. 2) Eeeek:yikes:

And now, both I AND the orginal poster are confused. But highly entertained. :wink:

Is there even anything in your stomach to come up? The nausea could be left over from the anesthesia, compounded by being hungry. You just had major surgery. No one would expect you to feel like yourself so soon. But you will get back there. Remind yourself of all the times you've tried to lose weight and failed. THEN remind yourself that this relatively brief period of discomfort is a very very short part of the rest of your wonderful, no-longer-obese life.

I had my 1 year post-op appointment today, and my surgeon had some copies of the Obesity Action Coalition's magazine in his waiting room. The first article Choosing the "Right" Weight-loss Surgery Procedure was, in my opinion, one of the most clear-headed, well-stated discussions about the different surgeries and what you should keep in mind when considering one over another. It doesn't promote any one surgery. You can read the article here Choosing the "Right" Weight-loss Surgery Procedure I think this should be required reading for anyone considering weight-loss surgery.

Way to go Ktork! It's been encouraging and uplifting to have followed you and the other August All-Stars during this first year of the rest of our lives. I had my 1 year post-op visit with my surgeon today - yesterday was my bandiversary. He was very pleased with my results, even called me a model patient. :tt2: I've been far from perfect, but I'm happy with my band and the way it is working for me. Sure, I would have loved to have hit the 100 pounds lost mark by now, but 80 is so much more than I have ever lost before. I could probably stand a bit more fill, but I generally feel in control of my eating now, and I like that I don't have to worry about "problem foods" or be afraid of eating in public. I was wearing a size 26 before surgery, but had had pants up to a size 30. Now I'm in 16s and 18s. I'm going to need a whole new wardrobe for fall/winter, but I won't buy much because I'll still be losing. As far as the anniversary challenge, I didn't quite make it...still 2 pounds away from 220, but maybe by Friday. I'm not pouting though!:tongue2:

For many of us, at 11 days post-op we were still on liquids. Everyone's doctor has different post-op plans, of course, but since you are having problems with mushies it probably wouldn't hurt to go back to liquids only for a few days. So soon after your surgery you could still have some swelling, coupled with possible irritation from your PB on Friday. Doing liquids will give things a chance to settle down.

Hooray for everyone! I know, it really is hard to believe it's almost been a year. I am proud of all of us! Last week: 223.8 This week: 223.4 Loss of 0.4 lbs Well, at least it isn't a gain. And it is TOM too, so I'll take any loss at all. It really sucks to know that 2 weeks out of the month kind of cancel each other out weight loss-wise. Up one week, down the other. But as long as the whole trend is downward I'm going to keep on celebrating!

Irish, are you eating enough? I was at a plateau for a while earlier this year and decided to start using The Daily Plate to track my food. It recommended that at my weight, to meet my goal of losing 2 pounds a week, I should have been eating about 400 more calories a day than I had been. The first week tracking I kept to my regular way of eating and discovered that I seldom reached 1200 calories a day. I was also working out 5 days a week, expending about 450 calories at each workout. That week I didn't lose any weight. THe next week I decided to add between 100-200 calories a day - I just couldn't bring myself to add 400! At the end of that week I lost almost 2 pounds. I've kept to the slightly higher calorie count and have continued to see good losses most weeks. If you haven't tried increasing your daily intake, and nothing else is working, it might be worth giving it a try. Worked for me! Good luck.:thumbup:

Well, I don't know about fluid "cementing" the food more, but it certainly doesn't help wash it down at all. Rather, it just piles on top of it, making matters worse. Even swallowing the "slime"/thick saliva that happens when you get stuck just sits on top, and can trigger a PB. (In my experience, anyway.)

Well, I'm not really excited about starting this today, but here goes. Last week: 222.8 This week: 223.8 Gained 1 pound. Not really sure why. I did eat out twice this week, but my net calorie count was about the same as the past few weeks. My muscles are a bit sore from making some changes to my workout this week, and I remember being told once that that can make you weigh more. lol Grasping at straws here! I also haven't been getting enough sleep this week due to crazy work hours....there's that link between poor sleep and weight, right??? Anyway, not going to let it worry me. My goal is to be at 80 pounds lost on my surgeon's scale on my appt August 5 - 1 day after my bandiversary. I'm already there on my scale, but that's naked. Not gonna get nakey at the dr's office! :scared2:

Last week: 224.4 This week: 222.8 Loss of: 1.6 lbs!!!

Yes!!! I knew I wasn't alone in that! That's what I grew up with in Mississippi.

Woo hoo! What day is your surgery? You are going to be fine!I'll make sure to say a prayer for you. Unless he has changed his nutritional care guidlines, sugar-free popsicles are definitely included in Stage 2: Modified Full Liquids. That stage was 3 weeks long when I had my surgery last year. I was more than ready to move on to soft foods at the end of that 3 weeks, but I wouldn't say the liquid diet was unbearable. I just looked at it as a temporary thing that HAD to be done. Staying on liquids gives your band time to "settle in" and lets the places where your stomach is stitched around the band have time to heal. There isn't really much you need to do to prepare for the surgery, but there are some things you can do to make your life easier right after. Have you decided what Protein drinks you are going to use? I did some taste-testing BEFORE my surgery, so I'd already know what I liked, then I stocked up on those drinks. I only used the ready-to-drink Protein Drinks - Protein Blitz by Designer whey, Muscle Milk, and Lean Body by Labrada were the ones I liked. Protein Blitz were especially good, because they were like Kool-aid - not milky at all. I also had beef and chicken broth, Crystal Light, and sugar-free popsicles on hand. For help with discomfort from gas, the Gas-X strips worked really well for me. You are about to something wonderful for yourself! It's going to be a challenge, some days will be harder than others, but it will be SO worth it! Keep coming here for encouragement, advice, and pep talks! And please, if you want to, feel free to email me! Good luck!

Happy Friday everyone! I'll get the ball rolling on our weekly weigh-in. Last week 226.6 This week 224.4 Loss of 2.2 lbs for a total of 79.6. Woo hoo!!!

Start:231.7 Memorial Day Goal:224 Memorial Day Reality: 229.2 Adjusted July 4th Goal: 220 July 4th Reality: 224.4 New Bandiversary (8/4) Goal: 220 Well, I set my initial goals pretty high and missed the mark, but I HAVE continued to lose, so I'm happy with that. I'm heading for 220 by my bandiversary, but I'd love to break into the 210s. Here's to hard work!

I'm SO glad you had a better experience with him this time. I'm sure he has his good and bad days like we all do. I was talking about him with a nurse that has worked with him at the Kingsland Surgical Center. She said that he is an EXCELLENT surgeon, which is the most important thing. Your 4 pound loss is great! Restriction from a fill is a funny thing. You may not feel much at all for a week or so, then all of a sudden it kicks in. I'd much rather take it conservatively than be too full and have all the misery that can come with that. Keep up the great work!

It sounds like you should definitely see about at least a slight unfill, maybe even just half a cc or less. Eating with the band should NOT be painful. You may be losing weight quickly right now, but if it hurts to eat the right kinds of solid foods and you start relying on soft things, the weight will start to creep back on. The idea of being banded is to be able to eat regular foods in smaller portions, not to have to be so tight that you have to resort to soft foods. No one can sustain that kind of eating. MJB, if you are having nighttime heartburn you should let your doctor know. Heartburn and reflux can cause some really bad problems for your esophagus. Again, it could only take a very slight unfill to bring you to a much more comfortable restriction.

There's a handy list of often-used abbreviations in the FAQ Lap Band Surgery and Lap Band Discussion Forum - FAQ: Lap-band Abbreviations And sliders (I assume you are NOT talking about the mini-hamburgers everyone is selling nowadays lol) are the foods that slip right through your stoma with no trouble at all. They are, unfortunately, usually high-calorie, high-fat, and low-protein. Milk shakes, ice cream, chips, crackers, candy, chocolate. A lot of times, when someone has their Band too tight, they start resorting to slider foods because they can't get the good, solid Proteins down. Even though they think they are eating less, they often end up gaining weight. That's why it is so important to get an unfill if you can't eat properly due to a too-tight band. Welcome to the club!

How long has it been since the fill? If only a couple of days, you could still be swollen from the fill. If it's been a week or so, and warm liquids don't loosen you up, go back for a slight unfill.

The Daily Plate is a part of LiveStrong.com. It is a free place where you can log what you eat each day. You can type in what you eat, and it finds the nutritional information for many many things. If what you are looking for isn't in there, you can enter the information yourself and it gets added to the database. You can also log your exercise. It has been so helpful to me since I started using it. Calorie Counter, Diet Tracking, Food Journal, Nutrition Facts at The Daily Plate

I have been seeing ads for negative heel sandals lately, and I do think they are the Earth Shoe brand. Haven't they been around for many years? I seem to remember them from the 70s. lol I just Googled Earth Shoes and yep, they were introduced in 1970, and were the first shoes to be marketed with the "negative heel".

The original shoes of this type were the MBTs, I think MBT Shoes – Home of the Anti shoe They are about twice as much as the Sketchers. I'm not sure if the Sketchers and Curves brands have all of the same technology as the MBTs. I'm don't think these are intended to be worn in the gym on exercise equipment (except on treadmills), but I could be wrong. They are geared for walking. The FitFlop sandals don't have the curved bottom. They have a "wobbleboard" midsole that is supposed to make your legs work a bit harder to balance you. They are very comfortable.

The bloomin' things are expensive! I'm still kinda thinking about a pair though. I bought some FitFlops last year. I like them, but probably don't do enough extended walking in them to reap the benefits.