RestlessMonkey

I found this on the 'net, and it is in keeping with what I've learned at nursing school: She says that's because a diet in which protein makes up more than 30% of your caloric intake causes a buildup of toxic ketones. So-called ketogenic diets can thrust your kidneys into overdrive in order to flush these ketones from your body. As your kidneys rid your body of these toxic ketones, you can lose a significant amount of water, which puts you at risk of dehydration, particularly if you exercise heavily. That water loss often shows up on the scale as weight loss. But along with losing water, you lose muscle mass and bone calcium. The dehydration also strains your kidneys and puts stress on your heart. And dehydration from a ketogenic diet can make you feel weak and dizzy, give you bad breath, or lead to other problems. It says you should get your .36 gm of protein for each pound you weigh. I don't think one day will really hurt you, but 1. drink plenty of water to flush the ketone byproducts from your system and 2. try to keep it closer to the 60-80 gms a day we're told to get! (too much can give you gout, too...in fact, my doc had me take a med while I was doing the preop diet to make sure I didn't develop it)

Not me! I am sitting here eating turkey right now. I DO have it with something moist like a little gravy or BBQ sauce and that does the trick. And SMALL SMALL little bites and chew chew chew. If I were so restricted that I couldn't eat beef and chicken I'd get unfilled; I'd die on fish only. Just die.

I THINK those are the old style band and mostly used now in Mexico, but not sure! I hope you find your spot soon!

My doc had me drink EAS Carb Control Advant-EDGE shakes. The chocolate ones are ok! He specifically said NOT myoplex though, don't know why. The EAS Carb control do have 17 g protein and are low fat low sugar. Try them...

SpecialK is there anything specific about the surgery I can help calm you about? I've had 3, and I'm ALMOST an RN! (graduate in May I hope) So I can maybe soothe your fears a little. If so, feel free to PM me!

how big is your band, and how much saline is in it? Until that band is tightened it is not doing a darn thing but sitting there, for most of us. Just like a belt...you can hold it loosely around your waist and not feel it. But cinch it up and NOW you've got some restriction! Same way with the band. I don't believe the band opening the doc showed you was yours. With one fill I personally had 1.5 ccs in a band that will hold 14. I did not feel ANY restriction until I had 5.5 ccs in there. Odds are your fill did nothing.

I'm a 54 year old 5'5" female who weighed 405 when I went to my seminar. I WISH I would have had this option at 23 years old! Just listen close, see if you can follow the rules....like following a preop diet if you're given one, following your doc's post op rules about what you can eat when, avoiding sodas and beer because of the carbonation...and exercising some every day. If you want this badly enough to modify any behaviors like carbonated bevs etc, then go for it! The surgery for me was fast and relatively painless. It's been great and I'd do it again in a snap.

if it were the band it wouldn't be on the left side (the band is around the top of your stomach...it is centered and usually just a bit below the area between your breasts) Left side pain is probably your port. Breathing deeply and walking will help things heal smoothy, rather than you getting adhesions and so on. still call your doc, ok?

Call your doctor tomorrow and ask. It's probably gas but hard to diagnose over the internet...especially since most of us aren't docs either! :crying: Keep breathing deeply anyway...you need to for your lungs. You're probably just sore from surgery.

You are all very lucky! I came to in recovery relieved (that I had the band after my 1st try) and HUNGRY! And I stayed hungry (but stuck to doc's protocols) until I got mushies! Just enjoy it while it lasts! :crying:

Just because some don't have to take it doesn't mean the rest of us don't (as I'm sure the other posters know!) I had to drink glasses of mag citrate (too vile for words! LOL) so I know your pain. I'm sure you've been focused on the surgery and beyond! You'll do great! :crying: Good luck!

Not every fat person is an "addict" I find that insulting. You can call me fatty but don't say "addict". I overate for reasons I researched through therapy; ADDICT was never a label that fit. Some are addictive, just like some of us are brown haired. Some are lazy, some work like maniacs. Some are tall and some drive Fords. Some drink too much and some like to paint. We're DIFFERENT we're not a label. I'm like I was prebanding except now our grocery bill is smaller and I eat less.

Not me. I love it. I only wish I could have gotten in when I was 30.

Not me! My ONLY regret is that I didn't have this as an option younger in life! I LOVE my band and never had a doubt once I got rolling on it. In all fairness though; I'd wanted one since 2002 and had lots of time to change my mind between then and Aug 2008.

kathyv My husband is a nurse (not a doc) who worked in a GI lab for years. He said to take dose #2 at 515 and dose #3 at 815. It is important to take it all, if your doc told you to. That should work, ok? If you are in doubt you can call your doc's emergency number, but finishing up at 815 should still give you time to clear out your system and be done with the drug by 715 tomorrow morning.

My doctor can tell by the resistance he feels withdrawing and inserting the saline and he's always been spot on with him telling me how I'll feel and what I can do. The water is just to make sure you can swallow your own saliva and stay hydrated, not to see if you can "woof down a sub".

Doesn't juice help then....like apple juice or orange juice, something with sugar in it? If it's just low blood sugar, that should help it! Any way, sorry it's so rough on you.

Are you diabetic? If so, isn't there something you can substitute (with doc's approval of course) like Glucerna? I'd tell my doc about side effects if I were you! How did you get through the post op diet?

You might want to post this in the "doctors and hospitals" section. Regardless of whether the hospitals are safe etc you know right now Mexico is having some bad violence along it's borders and in certain cities. (I'm a student in San Antonio TX; we were told NOT to go to Mexico for spring break, for example. There's a federal travel alert right now) As to the other; I'd never go over there but some do and have good experiences. Just realize that if you get a band anywhere away from where you are (next county, next state, next country, whatever) you will either have to go back there every time you want a fill, or try to find someone local to do it (and many surgeons will not take on a patient that another surgeon has operated on) Just like using a surgeon in the USA you'd need to do careful research. Just remember you can't see bacteria and virus with your naked eye...so just because something "looks" clean, doesn't mean it is.

"They" don't all do that. My doc, at first, told me liquids 1 day, then mushie, then soft, then regular. It depends on the surgeon, the patient, and the amount of fill. The reasoning is that often getting a fill can agitate your stomach; just drinking liquids gives it a chance to calm down. My doc now just tells me to use my judgment as I advance...but he knows I do NOT want to PB and will be pretty careful. It's just a good idea to proceed slowly and cautiously. Some advise a similar diet after you've PB'd...to give your stomach a chance to chill out, rather than further agitate it and make it swell up even tighter.

Something to read...good movies to watch. your prescription pain meds. Lots of Water if you don't drink tap water. Be sure to follow your doc's diet; unlike jujuvee I wasn't allowed anything but clear liquids for the first week. He didn't even want us having Protein shakes. By the time week 2 came that Protein shake ALMOST tasted good! Just make sure you have something to distract you. You won't feel like cleaning the closets but shouldn't just sleep either. Comfy clothes are good, too...enough clean comfy clothes so you don't have to do laundry!

At 6 weeks you should be healed and on solids, right? So I can see why you'd think you could eat a lean cuisine thingie. I could've at 6 weeks...I had absolutely no restriction and didn't for MONTHS. you may want to try it again in a couple months if it's something you really like to eat. Perhaps your surgeon restricted you right away (there are pros and cons to that)...I'd call Monday and find out. If you don't have restriction, your reaction seems just a tiny bit extreme. Good luck!

I have pretty good restriction (must chew things like beef and chicken really well, small bites, white bread alone is not do-able although I can eat like 1/2 sandwich, I can eat a flour tortilla) anyway I just took my 20 pills tonight. (it's a bunch but it's things like a 6-pack multi, 2 osteo biflex, etc etc...) not a one was crushed or smushed or dissolved. Some are large enough to have given me trouble preband (and I am not a person who has trouble swallowing) I was told that most people with the band have no trouble swallowing pills. My doc even told me I could take NSAIDS, because I take them right before a meal, so that they go through my pouch, but don't sit in my stomach without some food to cushion them. I am NOT saying to ignore your doc, but maybe reconfirm? That was one of the very first things I asked my surgeon at the seminar...

I agree....too tight. That's a classic example and one I've been warned about every time I go to the doc's office (posters on his wall, his LPN, his NP, him...all warn me) If you can't eat healthy food, but CAN eat unhealthy things like candy cookie milkshakes, you are TOO TIGHT. Get a slight unfill. Often, from what I've read (your doc will help you) just .1 or .2 of a cc will do the trick. It's not healthy to be unable to eat.

I live near the border. What is happening in border towns like Juarez (across from El Paso, where I grew up) honestly sounds more like scenes from "The Untouchables"...that old TV series. It's more like warfare. The Mexican Mafia isn't a joke, and things are very bad over there. The point is, in Chicago (or any other big US city...not picking on chicaqgo!) you go to the "tourist" spots and are relatively safe. You MAY get your pocket picked, but you won't likely be sprayed with machine gun fire. Your car MAY be broken in to while you are eating, but there's no bomb in it. There is crime in ANY major city (and smaller ones?) esp here in the USA...we are kind of used to it. AND there have always been those similar areas in cities south of the border that you avoided because they weren't safe, just like here in the USA.. in other words, neighborhoods you avoid. NOW in many Mexican cities, no where is safe, and many times tourists are targeted. That's the difference. It isn't the "common" violence we have unfortunately gotten used to...it's been kicked up several notches. It's not safe in the daytime; it's not safe in a group; it's not safe for the police; it's just not safe in many areas. Sad, but true. It'll pass but until it does, it's best to avoid the areas.