kiz

I was wondering if anyone else has experienced this: Prebanding, I remember being absolutely miserable some/most evenings. Rings so tight I had to wet my fingers or soap them to get them off, pants so tight I had to unsnap the top button for relief, etc. Recently, I started checking my weight at night before I went to bed, and then first thing in the morning, because I no longer feel bloated in the evening, and I started wondering if it would be reflected in am/pm weight fluxuations. It used to be that I could count on a four or five pound weight loss from evening to morning, but since I started checking, I find that I'm only losing a pound, if that. Not that I wouldn't love to easily sleep off five pounds (lol), but it just makes me realize how much healthier I am now, and I still need to lose another 20+ lbs. Salt has been naturally cut down in my diet because I'm not eating process foods on a routine basis. I'm not snacking on junk from seven to eleven, and of course, my meal sizes are very small now. It's really a great feeling to go to bed, and not feel bloated, and I'm sure I'm sleeping so much better now. :thumbdown:

Not that you should give yourself carte blanche to overindulge, (and I know you don't expect it), but for me, the first few months was 75% me and 25% band, but as I started closing in my sweet spot the ratio switched and now my band has taken over the majority of the work. I can't overstate how much my band has helped me control my food weaknesses because of the wonderful satiety I have now.

Creed, you've gotten a lot of good advice. May I just add that you should consider measuring your food. It's very common for those of us who are obese to under estimate the portions we are eating. I wasn't a big meal eater, but I snacked and grazed all day long...a tiny bite of this and a smidgen of that...and here I am with a band. Also, I know you don't eat ice cream every week, but the best way to stop eating it altogether, except under controlled conditions is to keep it out of your house. That way, when you really feel the urge, you have to make an effort to get it, and then it's a small cup or cone rather than a quart. For me, drastically cutting down on "bad" carbs (which I got in junk food mostly) and really upping my intake of Fiber and veggies has almost eliminated all mysugar cravings. I've had my band for over a year, so this didn't happen overnight.

You're right, at least for me. I didn't notice this was asked in the Canada forum until now. :thumbdown: I try to pay attention to which forum a question is asked in before I post a reply, and this one totally slipped by me. Sorry about that.

It's true, as others have said, Mickey, that those foods are sliders. They have a consistency that slips right through the band, especially when you have little restriction - although, sadly, those foods almost always go down easier. Chances are, the chicken skin stuck like one of those clingy stickers rather than being too dense to go through your stoma. Two things will help you, I think. The first is getting to a fill level that you get good satiety (without choking) on good solid meals. One stuck incident isn't an indication that you're too restricted. There's a bit of learning that goes with the band. Secondly, keep those slider junk foods out of your house, at least for now. I'm a little over a year out of surgery, and I've had my pitfalls. My worse was this summer when we took my son and a few of his friends on a trip, and TWO families sent brownies. Of all junk food, that's my cat nip. While the teenagers ate a brownie here and there, I kept cutting pieces off until we had two pans of brownie bites..lol (smaller pieces = fewer calories). When you find yourself hungry, have nutritious Snacks at your fingertips. Those terrible cravings do subside (probably not 100%) over time. chips, snickers, and your other triggers, shouldn't be in your house. If you want an occasional Frosty (for instance), and it won't trigger a binge, have a small one or split one with somebody. Of course, you may be different, but for me, it helps to know I can have an occasional "treat", but the more time I put between eating junk foods, the less I tend to even think of them. Make it an effort to get your hands on high white carb/high calorie/non nutritious foods. Also, keep some good alternative foods around for those times you want something "decadent". Fat free hot chocolate, FF chocolate pudding, SF chocolate Protein shakes, etc (obviously, my biggest trigger is chocolate lol). A great crunch food for me is Khashi or Fiber One Cereal. Good luck, and I hope you can get a fill today, and that your cold is better. I'm sure there's a few that have never fallen off the band wagon, but I bet it's in the minority.

I'm glad your dietitian listened to you and responded with a sensible plan that fits your needs. I was wondering how a high protein diet could possibly be *less* nutritious for someone who truly can't tolerate the shakes. Good luck with your upcoming surgery, and I'm sure you're going to do great!

I second l2l's advice. To help lessen any swelling and in the likely chance you're a bit overfilled, you should stick to liquids until you talk to your doctor.

A woman that works at Trader Joe's told me that too, but I looked for them there, and they didn't have them. It's so hit or miss with those stores, but it's always a surprise at what you might find. On the up side, I bought several pairs of shoes, jeans, slacks, and several tops and sweaters..lol Pre-band, I was in a size 18, and just barely, at that. Now, I wear a 12 and a too tight 10 (but I'm on my way :thumbup:), and shopping is sooooo much fun. It used to be I would just pray I found something in my size, and now, I have so many choices.

I'm gald to hear your fill went so well!! :thumbup:

I was self pay (not at one of the clinics you mentioned), and we had the option to buy an extended warranty, and it was pretty expensive. It's been over a year, but I think the initial warranty that the surgeon provided for us was very short. I'm pretty sure it was six months, but it might have been a year. That's definitely something you should check with your doctor's office.

World Market carries them where I live.

"Each week I only had a 1.5 lb loss. I have 5.5 cc's in by band now and thought I was "Full" because I finally started feeling restrictions and had an incident over a month ago where I threw up. I really don't feel full after eating my meals and find myself hungry 2-3 hours later." First, congratulations on your weight loss. A 1.5lb to 2lb weight loss/week is great, so you should be very proud of yourself. It sounds to me like you're probably ready for another small fill. You might have lost some fat from around your stomach or you might have had initial restriction from some swelling after your last fill. But, since you're getting hungry within 2-3 hours and you're finding yourself snacking between meals, I bet a small top off will get your right back on track.

There's two additives in the artificially sweetened drinks that concern me a little, but not enough to stop drinking them altogether. Of course, the artificially sweetener and the other is benzoate. Those additives are probably not the greatest things to be putting our bodies, but sometimes nothing else is going to hit the spot.

That's great news about your lunch, Cerrin. It's good you're staying on top of this, and that your doctor knows that you're having some food issues right now. Good luck, and I hope your allergies clear up soon.

I like diet green tea and white tea made by Turkey Hill. Lipton also makes it, and I like it too, but just not as much. I like the flavored waters too. I try to limit these types of drinks as much as possible and stick to plain water, but sometimes, I just want something with some flavor. As it's getting colder, I drink hot green tea and low fat hot chocolate. Another nice pick me up is simply adding a few lemon slices to ice water.

I feel your pain. I know I'd be concerned about losing my restriction too, but the way you're eating now isn't right either. I even reread your first post, and it still didn't stick in my head that this has all been a result of your illness. I'm sorry about missing that. From someone who used to be terribly allergic to poison ivy, my sincere condolences for your poison oak reaction. That must have been some kind of miserable. I spent more than one day in the emergency room for horrible poison ivy reactions, but I haven't had it for over 25 years, so maybe my body finally built up an immunity to it.

At this point, my advice be to go get a small unfill. At minimum, talk to your doctor about the problems you're having. I know you don't want an unfill because you're concerned about losing good restriction, but whether it's your drainage or too big a fill, you're too restricted. Several people have said that .25cc to .5cc was all they needed. My last fill that took me to my sweet spot was only .5cc.

If you eat Greek yogurt, be sure and bulk it up with foods that are on your soft foods' list for added satiety. If you're allowed All Bran cereal (or something similar), put some in. Also, you could add oats or soft fruits or even a bit of peanut butter (or the powder that was recommended) with your fruit (or sugar free preserves) or chocolate flavored protein. A partial scoop of protein powder helps. When I was at your stage, my hunger started coming back too, and my NP gave me a few of these suggestions, and I really found it to be helpful (I eat Greek yogurt a few times a week, so I've become pretty creative). You could use regular yogurt too, but the high protein Greek yogurt is much more filling.

I don't have a medical answer for your question, but I really don't think your cough will hurt your band. Now, if it was just a week or two after surgery while your stitches were still healing, I'd be more concerned. I also had either the flu or a very bad cold a couple of weeks ago that left me with a ridiculously bad and chronic cough. I woke up several times during the night coughing like crazy. Thank goodness it finally passed after almost a week. I didn't notice any difference in my band restriction and still don't. I hope you're feeling better soon.

Welcome to LBT! Sounds like you're getting off to a great start. It's not at all unusual to have some stomach pain for a few weeks. Mine was at my port site. It would come and go, but adult strength liquid Tylenol would zap it. Even several weeks after surgery, I'd have a bit of pain now and then, but nothing that needed medication. Mostly I felt it if I had been sitting for an extended time. My fill have never hurt. I barely feel a pinch. Congratulations on your surgery, and keep up the good work.

How did you deal with the emotional/head/obsessive eating? I was a grazer, and two things made a huge difference for me. 1. I don't have a ravenous appetite since I got to my sweet spot. Once my hunger issues were under control, I found that I no longer had those urges to pig out on crap food. 2. I also don't keep my trigger foods around the house. After a year, I'm starting to feel pretty comfortable that I wouldn't imbibe, but my family doesn't need that junk either, so I buy healthier Snacks and they're just as happy with that. I feel pretty guilty that I used to have the truly bad snacks around, since they really could care less about them. Thankfully, my kids are slim, athletic, and healthy eaters and never developed my bad eating habits. What did you say to yourself when visions of cupcakes floated into your consciousness? I say, maybe this weekend, maybe over the holiday, maybe tomorrow, etc. For me, this is my new life, which may include a cupcake or cookie on occasion, but *never* on a routine basis ever again. I am so glad to have those things out of my system. Who is having a hard time with the band/lifestyle changes and what are you doing to change your thinking or behaviors in order to make it work? I absolutely LOVE my band with all my heart! Other then eating smaller portions, feeling healthy, losing weight, etc, etc, etc the impact on my life has been very minimal (at least in any negative way). Is there anyone here who regrets having it done? I guess my last answer covers this one. If you are a survivor of abuse (like me) and put on weight as a protective shell, how did you feel when your body was vulnerable and exposed after weight loss? How did you deal with it? I am truly sorry about your your past abuse. How does losing the weight (or having the band) affect your relationships with others? I don't really notice any affect other than when I've seen friends I haven't seen in a while, and they're like what the heck (in a good way). I've had all positive responses. My husband and I have been together since we were teens and I was taut (lol). He pretty much kept his physique, while I grew. He has been great throughout, but becoming fit again has been a wonderful journey together. One of the things I regretted most about getting out of shape were all the activities that I felt like I had become a spectator. I just didn't have the energy. I have always loved the outdoors...hiking, boating, sking,.., and now, I can participate again. I LOVE it. In so many ways, I feel like were teens together again..in all the right ways. Would you do it again if you could? Without a doubt!! I was self-pay, and it has been worth every penny. I would never suggest surgery to strangers, but when I see someone in the shape I was in or worse, it's hard not to tell them there's hope. Who here has gained weight back and why? I reached a plateau and gained back five pounds over the summer before I got good restriction, but I didn't throw in the towel. I knew I could get back on the bandwagon with another fill, and more exercise effort. Do you tell people you had surgery? I ask because so many people consider it "cheating" even though we know it is hard work. (I have considered not telling anyone BUT I have a big mouth and probably can't keep it shut even if I try). It was a need to know basis with me at first. I had read enough and I also knew my body, to know that I was not going to be one of those people who loses all their weight in nine months. I thought it would make it feel slower if people were asking me how it was going, etc. As the weight started to drop, and people started to notice (took about three months), then I told them about my surgery. The only person who said anything the least bit negative was my mother-in-law who said if she would have known ahead of time, she would have told me not to it (that's her being worried about any of us having surgery, being ill, etc, not out of spite). Good luck!!

Since your BMI is borderline, and the second office is so close, I'd stop by their office to make sure you're being heard about the 3 month diet dilemma. There's no use considering them if you might lose your insurance coverage with their diet requirement. Since you'd rather not do the 3-6 month diet (can't blame you), 1) maybe they would make an exception for you or 2) you may find out they actually submit your starting weight for insurance. Good luck!

So, what were the results? lol But no, I didn't have to have a pregnancy test because I had a hysterectomy.

I was also told to take a multi vit/mineral and calcium. I take chewable centrum for adults (or pharmacy brand) and chewable calcium. I also take a liquid B12 and I add vit D drops in the winter. All my blood work came back normal after a year, so it's working.