Julia_N

I think of it as food cravings when you know you aren't physically hungry. I was full the other night but really felt like I wanted to eat.

Better to be a little too loose than too tight. I'm really tight and have to be careful what I eat or I PB all over the place. Upside, I'm more satisfied with protein shakes.

Depends on your insurance company. I have Aetna and I did not have to have a sleep study. Maybe because I had enough co-morbidities to qualify without looking to see if I had sleep apnea. Good luck on your quest!

I love that yogurt. It's got 13 to 15 g of protein per package, so it's a good bang for the calories, in my opinion. Plus you don't have to mess with it.

Thanks for the recipes, everyone. I've been jonesing for some pizza but bread just gets stuck. And mushrooms get stuck, too, which bums me out because I LOVE mushrooms.

Welcome aboard! I'm in SoCal, too.

Good luck to you, Sheldon. I bookmarked your blog with some other WLS blogs I follow. You're my first male!

When I order a dinner at a restaurant, it means two additional lunches at work. I'm going to start bringing my own takeout containers so I don't have to wait for the server to bring boxes that usually end up leaking all over my car. I can't do buffets. Even when I'm careful, I usually get stuck.

When I'm too lazy to make my own, I get Trader Joe's rosemary apricot almond chicken salad. It's not too much of a nutritional hit. I run it through the food processor to cut down the big chunks and it's easier to eat. My band is really tight and i notoriously don't chew enough.

I haven't tried to order differently since I got the band. I do order a high-protein meal and usually I can get that dinner plus a couple of lunches on the leftovers. Strangely, I often have trouble eating at the restaurant. I guess I eat too fast and don't chew enough. But leftovers are rarely a problem.

Just say "yes" and keep eating. It's nobody's business but your own what you're eating.

I've told quite a few people about my surgery, but it depends on whether I want to talk about it all the time. Some people don't understand what it's like to be uncontrollably overweight, and I don't feel like giving them a big education when my weight isn't really an issue with this person. I want my life to be more than just my weight loss. I want my life to be about my work or my writing or my family. If someone asks how I lost the weight, I'll gladly tell them, but I don't need to lecture a bunch of skinny 17-year-olds at my daughter's birthday party why I'm not drinking soda. Good luck with your surgery!

Sometimes I miss eating a big meal, but I've gotten to the point where I know what will come right back up, so it isn't as appealing to me anymore. I miss biting into a big juicy cheeseburger, but knowing it wouldn't stay down makes it less appealing. It still feels a little weird to be satisfied with so little food. You'll eventually get used to it. Good luck on your surgery!

I have trouble with lettuce, and eggs and chicken if they're too dry. Part of it, I'm sure, is that I take too-big bites. I'm going to try using smaller eating utensils.

I got stuck so bad once that EVERYTHING was coming up, including Water. My doctor's office said to drink hot water with half a lemon squeezed into it. So hot water isn't bad and can be helpful.

I have trouble with lettuce. Gets stuck every time. All the goodies on top are OK, like cheese, eggs, meat. And since my fill a couple of weeks ago, if there's a hint of bread or breading, it'll get stuck. But as you can see by these responses, everyone's different.

Hi everyone. I haven't been here for a loooong time. I had surgery in July 2009 and have lost 71 pounds. My life went into turmoil about a year ago when my husband suffered a debilitating stroke and entered a nursing home. My family fractured and I lost my weight-loss mojo. But now I'm back and recently got a fill that made me so tight I can't eat any bread or chips. Yea! I'm vowing to hang out here more often and get and give support. Good to be back.

I had my daughter through a C-section. She came out beautiful, without a misshapen head like some babies can get from a vaginal birth. I had a high-risk pregnancy (older first-time mother with diabetes) and the doctor wanted to induce labor. I went to the hospital on a Monday and by Friday morning I still hadn't delivered, so the doctor asked me if I wanted a C-section and I said yes. I have a scar on my lower abdomen, but it healed rather quickly and and I had a minimum of pain. Thank God for epidurals! My daughter came out healthy and has had nothing more than a cold in her 17 years.

I've been using the chocolate calcium chews from Bariatric Advantage. Very tasty.

I'll weigh in. Of course, a lot of people have different band experiences. I'll let you know what my doctor suggests and what I've found through experience. I've had my band 5 months and got my second fill this week. My doctor's philosophy is the eat Protein first, then maybe a bite of potatoes and some vegetables. When you've got good restriction, you can't take in enough of the foods you need if you eat non-nutritious foods. Coke? Too much sugar and the bubbles will give you bad pains and possibly stretch your pouch. Diet Coke? The bubbles are not good for you for reasons stated above. ice Creme? You can eat it if you want to stop losing weight; I've been down that road Chocloate? Ditto above, but a bite of really dark chocolate isn't bad, and I use chocolate-flavored Protein shakes. pizza? For me, the crust is too much bulk, but I'll occasionally have the toppings. Vinegar? No problem. potato chips? Empty calories and hard to resist. Tortilla chips have gotten stuck. white bread? When I've had this, it's become stuck and has come up, painfully. pastries? Goes down easy but probably has too many calories and sugar. croissants? Very high in fat, so you might want to avoid it. You can probably have a bite of these foods to taste without causing a problem, but I've found in my personal experience that one taste leads to too many. Good luck!

I find that if I don't chew enough or eat something too dry, like bread or tortilla, I'll get stuck. It usually comes right back up and I'm fine, but a couple of times it got really lodged in there and I had to call the surgeon's office. The nurse advised me to have a cup of water as hot as I could drink it with the juice of half a lemon squeezed into it. The first time I got stuck I had to do that twice before it cleared out. I was so stuck that not even the Isopure Zero Carb clear drinks would come up. The second time I got badly stuck I cleared on just one drink. I can't think that all the spitting up is good for my band.

Tuna is great for Protein, as are Beans (pinto, nonfat refried, kidney, cannellini), string cheese, and Peanut Butter made from just peanuts and salt. I also get Progresso Soups that are high protein/low fat, such as green pea & ham or Campbell's bean with ham. I get Wasa crispbread, either the multigrain or light and smear them with half a triangle of light Laughing Cow cheese. The light Bonbel cheese single-serving sizes are nice boosts. Wendy's chili is tasty and protein filled. One of our family weekend meals is a can of 99% fat-free chili without beans mixed with half a can of beans. I put some 2% milk cheddar cheese on it. If You feel like that's too much animal protein, you can get a lot of protein from tofu. Good luck!