2muchfun

You assumed the band would do all the work and keep you from eating too much. That's not how it works. The band helps us to feel satisfied with less food if it's adjusted properly. But it requires a lot of self awareness to work it's magic. That means you have to look for the soft stop signals and obey them. Most all of us can eat plates of food. The lower stomach is still there and if we ignore the satiety signals, we can continue to eat. This will require much more discipline and attention on your behalf if you want your WLS to work? Soft stop or satiety signals are: Runny nose burping hiccups sighs And of course the biggy, you're just not interested in the food your eating! Rationalizing you can work off huge meals isn't going to work with the band. Once your band is filled properly you can cause pouch or esophageal dilation and band slippage. Hope this helps? tmf

The test for fills is, how long are you satiated after a meal? If the answer is 4+ hours you're in the green zone/sweet spot and a fill is not necessary. 35 lbs is a lot of weight to lose in just months. But it does sound like you can eat too much and I think most nutritionists would question your lunch menu and taking 2 hours to eat is not what most docs want? 30 minutes per meal is the standard. Looks like your lunch calorie count is going to be up around 500+? If you're losing most of your weight because you're dieting, you may need a fill. We don't need to diet if our band is adjusted properly.

Call your insurance only they will know. I didn't have to start over.

I switched. I was approved with my insurance and when I called the docs office several times and emailed them too, they took 6 weeks to respond. But, I'd already found another doctor. No need to put up with crap like that. Aftercare is as important as the surgery itself.

I didn't read every word above but did anyone say: "The band goes around your stomach, not your head"?? I'm beginning to see the doctors reasoning? If you're not hungry, why eat? This is what the band is supposed to do. Keep you from being hungry and sounds like it is? I'm sorry if you assumed the band would eliminate all hungers, all cravings and all bingeing? It won't. You will have to exercise some restraint and discipline. tmf

You can rely on this entire forum as your mentor. That's why it was created. Or, BariatricPal has created local BP chapters where we can all meet face to face to discuss our issues. Click on this link and look for your group? http://www.bariatricpal.com/forum/25-california-local-lap-band-support/

It's not just a chewing matter, it's also how fast we eat. If your band is adjusted properly, the hole(stoma) is very small. If you eat too fast or too big(or both), food starts to back up into your esophagus because the food can't pass through quick enough. This is where the sliming comes in. Food in your pouch isn't exposed to the slime. It's exposed to stomach acids. Your esophagus thinks food is stuck and is trying to lubricate so that the bolus of food you've eaten will pass through the lower esophageal sphincter. Prolonged stuck/sliming episodes can cause esophageal dilation. Slow down and take smaller bites. BTW-I'm speaking from experience and I'm one who still struggles with this identical issue a few times a week.

Having your saline removed can be a difficult ride. If there's no restriction or satiety, you're basically on a diet. Find a diet that works for you for the next 2 months? And stop buying rubbish? If it's not in your house, you won't crave it. The 4 months after my surgery my band wasn't tight enough but I maintained my post surgery 12 lbs loss by concentrating on eating healthy food. I didn't allow myself to get so hungry I binged. It's funny how filling healthy nutritious food is, and how few calories good food, cooked the right way has. Eat right. Easy for me to say I know. But, is there any other way if you want to stay healthy?

Don't eat breakfast

Try to get out of your mind this is a trip to skinnyville as the crow flies. It's not. Ever see the comic strip Family Circus(see below)? Ever take a dog on a walk? It will be up and down and sideways but mostly down.

I lost 12 lbs the first 2 weeks and then nothing for the next 3.5 months. My 3rd fill gave me enough restriction/satiety to eat less food and start losing weight. It took another 3 fills to reach the green zone. Her journey is quite normal. imo And I believe your comment regarding losing weight if you're 200 lbs overweight or 20 lbs overweight is incorrect. Extremely overweight(morbidly obese) people typically lose much more initially than someone who is obese. Morbidly obese people can carry an extra 40-80 lbs of excess fluids that comes off much quicker than fat. That's why I asked for the numbers. It could also have been because you experienced more swelling from the surgery that allowed you to feel satiety much sooner than she did. It's a different experience for each of us.

You're making the mistake so many make. You're comparing your journey to hers. Your journey is extraordinary imo. Very few see early results like you did. If you're projecting your feelings about this to girlfriend she could be very frustrated and disappointed? Since your weight loss is extraordinary, let's look at the real numbers for girlfriend? Can you share those numbers with us? Maybe she's just ordinary? tmf BTW-Your beginning weight and hers would be helpful?

First, you should start your own thread/topic. Posting in this thread exposes your questions to only about 10 people. Starting a new thread gives you exposure to 100's of posters. When did you last see your surgeon? When did you last speak to your nutritionist? What foods get stuck and what foods don't? How many fills and when was the last?

The other 3 WLS options do have slightly better complication rates and also offer a little more in average weight loss. But, your point is that if there is no band, there is no surgery. That was the same for me when I made my decision. And I think there are thousands who feel the same.

And there's also big/little Jim, down 300 lbs. http://www.bariatricpal.com/user/116888-jim1967/

I love sriracha, jalapenos, green chili stew with TNT chilis, hot indian curry and I have no problems other than I sleep poorly after spicy foods. But that's always been the case.

Here are 4 women who had high BMIs. They're all very successful. http://www.bariatricpal.com/user/123616-mis73/ http://www.bariatricpal.com/user/124980-☠carolinagirl☠/ http://www.bariatricpal.com/user/142630-gowalking/ http://www.bariatricpal.com/user/147342-enjoythetime/

You're in Bandster Hell and very few of us escape it. Once your band is adjusted properly you won't feel so hungry and won't be able to eat like you have been. But, once you start feeling restriction/satiety, you should stop eating the junk food like chick filet, mashed potatoes, fish sticks and fast food. Most of what you're eating is highly processed foods.

There are docs who insist on 30 days of liquids and one who required 6 weeks.

I was stalled for at least 6 months. I found this video and it intrigued me. I've adapted the concept to my own situation and I've lost 8 lbs in the last 2 weeks. I'm sure 4 or so lbs is just Water loss but it overall it seems to be working. I've posted the video below. It's a video from Dr. Mercola who I think is one of those organic, holistic Zealots and some of that is fine but most is just over the moon. But this one seemed to make sense to me. What I did, was I changed the fasting days to 3, Monday, Wednesday and Friday. I upped it for me to 600 on fasting days. This is not a true fast. For me, it's one shake in the morning and one in the afternoon. I've also skipped the afternoon shake twice now and subbed the shake with deli turkey. Then I eat a 300+ meal for dinner. The other days I eat like a Bandster. FYI-Fathers day fell on one weekend so I splurged at least one day. I also had to take a week off last week, from exercising due to a minor accident that is all better now. I believe my results could be even better if not for Father's Day and the week off of exercising. http://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2014/06/08/alternate-day-fasting.aspx http://youtu.be/gAcY8p-yBxA Full interview

You can do whatever you like. But once your band is adjusted properly even mashed spuds can accumulate and back up into your esophagus causing a short stuck episode if you wolf your food down? I usually don't eat mashed potatoes as they're a slider food that is mostly carbs but If I do eat something soft I just pay attention to the soft stop signals and it's rarely a problem. Refried Beans is a good example. High Fiber, low glycemic index food.

Do you mean you PB it or what?

There could be a risk but you might want to go back to liquids for a few days or at least mushies to give your stoma and pouch a chance to calm down from possible swelling. It never hurts to call your doc though.

Change docs if you can. And then go to healthgrades.com and give him a lousy rating.

So, apparently you weren't aware of your doctors protocol? I don't blame you. I disagree with your doctors aftercare program. I've seen others post similar stories before. Hard to understand how they became bariatric surgeons and haven't the slightest clue what we're going through? I've posted this before, but, sometimes you have to be assertive with these docs. Demand a fill. Don't be afraid. It's your life and there's no reason to be miserable in Bandster Hell. tmf