2muchfun

Most everyone has the 204 week plateau and most of us don't lose weight till we get that one fill that gives us the restriction/satiety to eat less. Here's a great explanation about the plateau: http://www.dsfacts.com/weight-loss-stall-or-plateau.html#.UqP7uBLn-Uk

"I drank a little to much milk coffee (suggested in eating plan) and I had 6 hours of heaving my guts up, let me tell you, that won't be happening again, I thought I was dying!!" Mrs. Nlb You might want to let your surgeon know this happened. Full on heaving/hurling can cause the stitches holding the band in place to tear away causing the band to change it's position? tmf

You know, before you invest in a rice cooker(even though they're cheap), you should try sushi from a restaurant to make sure your band is going to let you eat the stuff?

I agree with your surgeon, especially with her exercise comment.

Wow, 100 lbs gone? I see why you're so excited?

Going back one day I see you want to make sushi? I tried making my own once and found that it was much harder than I thought it would be? But give it a try? Maybe you'll find an easier way than I did? I think we went with sushi rolls with seaweed, some veggies like asparagus, cucumber with some shrimp and/or salmon on each one. It looked so easy but I think I'm too impatient. Let us know how it works for you?

I still eat brown rice with Beans once or twice a week. Not a lot of it but enough to have one or two vegan type dinners. It's just too easy to throw two cups of Water in with a cup of brown rice and cook for 45 mins vs. adding another kitchen toy to my collection. What kind of dinners are you having rice with that you need a rice cooker?

npuente has more restriction than most and it could be from swelling from the surgery, her surgeon primed the band during surgery or she's one of the lucky ones who get restriction from the start. When you have restriction, and most new patients don't have restriction, eating too fast or too big can cause food to gather in front of the stoma/band. Eating too fast will then make more food back up into your esophagus. This can cause slime/sliming or a stuck episode. Not everyone will experience this till they've had a few fills. If your stoma is wide open you may not feel anything at all. You may be able to eat till the cows come home. But for most banders, you won't feel any restriction, satiety or any feeling that you've eaten enough until you get a fill or three. jmo tmf

Full is not what we look for. If you're full you've probably eaten too much. You look for satiety. Not being hungry for 4-5 hours is where the green zone is. But, if you're only 10 days post op it's unlikely you'll have much restriction/satiety at this point so you'll continue to be hungry till you get the fill or fills that give you enough satiety to not be hungry. Took me 4 months and 3 fills. Good luck. tmf

I loved egg drop Soup. eggs are high in Protein and you can also use egg beaters. But real eggs are still the best. http://www.thekitchn.com/how-to-make-egg-drop-soup-cooking-lessons-from-the-kitchn-159379

Broccoli, cauliflower, green Beans, brown rice w/beans, red peppers, apples, cantaloupe, jicama, greens, carrots, brussle sprouts. Remember that the size of the amount of veggies we eat does not have to compare to the size of the meat we eat? You can consume cups and cups of veggies and still only consume under 100 cals. But eat your veggies last or the large amount of veggies will cause you to no longer want to eat your Protein. But that's just me? tmf

Happy Dance??

I have sushi a few times a year and I can get down a couple of rolls as long as I pace myself. The problem with sushi is they make some of these rolls so damn big that it's hard to nibble or take small bites without having the entire roll fall apart. It's easier to eat the singles with fish on a ball of rice but the rolls are the fun part of sushi.imo The sliced rolls tend to disintegrate when they're dipped in soy/wasabi sauce but I still love em. I also break the drinking while eating rules when I have sushi. I keep my whistle and esophagus wet enough to allow the rice to slide through as easily as possible. I consider eating sushi a luxury and it's one of the few times I do eat and drink simultaneously. Have fun!!

Great, you've got a doctor who is proactive! Let us know how this turns out?

We all need to visit our surgeon at least once a year to make sure our band is fitted and filled to it's optimal point. Sounds like you're not in the green zone or you wouldn't be hungry? Have you gone in for a fill lately or have you spoken to your nutritionist? One thing with the band, it won't work it's magic if we don't run yearly maintenance by seeing our docs? Bands can lose .1-.5 CCs of Fluid a year. And, our esophagus and stomachs can become more efficient in pushing food through the band which means we can eat more before we feel those satiety signals. Head up, you're in good company, many of us have been in your shoes. I gained 24 of my lbs back over the holidays last year but I've finally worked it all off again. So, it can be done. tmf

Fickle is the word isn't it. I started a new strength training program two weeks ago. It's HIIT or High Intensity Interval Training. The first week I sort of went through the motions to familiarize myself with the routine. This week(Tues) I really pushed myself. It felt great. But, my body immediately started to regenerate torn muscle Fiber by retaining 4 lbs of fluids. I think some of the fluids went right to my stoma area. Wednesday I slimed all day every meal. Ended up just drinking most of the day. It's all good now but I hear ya, nearly 3 years out and "Surprise", I'm(band) still here and you aren't going to forget about me!! tmf

This entire forum is dedicated to mentoring and supporting WLS patients so lean on us if you need help?

Sounds like the pain problem needs to be addressed by an MD. My port is also visible. Has to be in most male cases. They stitch it into the abdominal wall so when they inject saline the port itself has something behind it to give leverage so they can push the needle in. I was made aware of this from the beginning and it's far better than the alternative of carrying around 75 lbs of fat. Hope you figure out the port pain. I'm sure it dims any success you've experienced so far?

You might be OK but it's not worth the gamble. Take another day or two of PTO to make sure you're ready? You don't list your weight? I think if you're BMI is around/under 40 it's a little easier going up and down those stairs. tmf

Unfortunately there's no magic wand that will give you the will power or motivation to get back on the band wagon. It must come from you? No reason to feel ashamed when you go to your surgeon. They see this all the time from all forms of weight loss surgery. It's common for many of us to fail initially. Giving up our pacifier/comforter/blankie(Food) was my biggest fear before surgery. Make an appointment with you surgeon and your nutritionist? This won't work for you till your band is adjusted properly and you know what foods to eat and which ones to avoid. Keep in contact though. We want to help as much as we can!! "I have not failed, I've just found 10,000 ways that won't work" ....Thomas Edison tmf

I slice up the zucchini into mini-bite size chunks, add some mushrooms, red onions and red bell peppers and fry them in some Tuscan extra virgin olive oil for a few minutes to make them soft. Throw them on top of brown rice and red and black Beans. Add some seasoning and you've got a healthy meal with lots of Protein. Don't forget the protein? When you consume 800-1000 cals a day, your body will burn fat for energy and also muscle if you aren't consuming enough protein. We don't want to lose muscle. Just fat. tmf

Be patient. It'll happen.

Maybe it's because you're moving around a lot more now?

That's what they say. Lots of cellular activity around those incisions.

Hello neighbor, Snyder or his staff should know why you can't eat? You've been doing this long enough that you know how to eat with the band so it shouldn't be not chewing enough or eating too big and fast? An inflamed esophagus can be several things including GERD or you're having too many stuck episodes and food is backing up into your esophagus causing some minor dilation? You should come to one of our support group meetings? We have one informal one at the Broomfield Library: Date: Monday, Sept 8th Location: Broomfield Library, 3 Community Park Rd, Broomfield, CO 80023. Eisenhower Conference Room ~ 2nd floor Time: 6pm-7:00 / 7:30pm or come to the support group meeting at Good Samaritan Hospital in Lafayette: Good Samaritan off of 287 in Lafayette Conference Room D Starts at 4:30pm 9/24/14 Lots of good people and some great advice.