2muchfun

Only 4 lbs in two weeks? Anyone who has been banded for more than 3 months would kill to lose 2 lbs a week. Phentermine is speed. Bumps up your metabolism. I still have some from a doctor I used to see back in the 90's. I couldn't use them. Speed makes me jittery and we had two small children at the time and infanticide crossed my mind often, so I stopped using it.

It's 8:40 am and I'm already ready for a nap

Yeah, they never covered this one in the seminar, orientation or nutrition classes. Bandster Hell is real and it's probably not any different than dieting before surgery but it sure seems more intense don't it? I was there for 3.5 months till my 3rd fill gave me some level of satiety. That was a difficult time for me. But, it's like a divorce, or having a baby or losing your job. 2 years later and it was a just a blip on the screen, a pebble on the bike trail. tmf

I recall getting my fills after surgery. I couldn't wait to see if I had better restriction. The suspense was overwhelming and I only lasted about 30 hours till I had to have something solid to see if there was a difference. I usually started with soup for lunch the next day and if that went well I would go for salmon or chicken for dinner. Don't be like me, follow your doctors orders

What kind of carbs are you eating? Pasta, bread, cereals, potatoes? These are all OK in very small quantities but they're high glycemic values makes them digest so quickly and enters your blood stream quickly too. Beans and vegetable carbs are low glycemic and stay with you longer.

Maybe tomorrow? Too late to fire up the adrenalin. I need my sleep tonight.

I recommend you have a consult with a bariatric nutritionist?

More fills! Keep going back for fills till you start to feel a level of satiety. The number of fills nor the amount of saline in your band, do not relate to how effective the band/tool will be. Things change. Your esophagus muscles gain strength due to so much pushing, your fat pad around your stomach can disappear or shift, with the total unfill, your band may have repositioned itself? And, of course, what you eat will determine how much restriction/satiety your band is giving? Diet pop won't give you any satiety at all. And the band is designed to dim our appetites, not create a "full" feeling. If you're full, you've eaten too much. jmo I've seen hundreds of posts from people who went from feeling their band had no saline(and it had 7 CCs) to too tight with just one .25 CC fill. What I'm saying is, this journey is not linear. There are bumps and U-turns you have to deal with. And having a properly adjusted band is the most important factor for us to lose weight. tmf

Let me be the one who bursts your bubble? You will never lose 3 lbs of fat a day. You may lose 3 lbs of excess fluids you've retained, but, unless you're a marathon runner, the most fat you'll lose in one day is maybe .5 lbs. Your post is very similar to many before you. This is not a time for you to worry about losing weight. It's still a time of healing. You can only try to eat healthy foods till you get the one fill that makes the band work it's magic. Until then it's just another diet. Sorry. As far as how many calories to eat a day? Not a time for you to worry about this yet. But, don't eat foods like ice cream, mac and cheese, candy. They're what we call slider foods. tmf And since you're a Bandster, you should post on the lap-band forum. You should also fill in your profile so we know more about you and can help you?

^5

They measure you. You probably only need 1 inch to make the BMI limit so try to be a little shorter than you think you are. For example, If I was 1/2 inch shorter, my BMI goes up .5. Work it girl!

How accurate is your height with the doc? I know most people fudge their height be .5-2 inches. Be shorter!

Your post reminded me of this Crankshaft comic from yesterday. It fits me I know:

Nasal drip can cause the lining of the stomach at the stoma to swell.

No, it's actually not normal to get a fill that makes you too tight. Mainly because it takes 3-6 fills to get to the point you're in the green zone. Most fills you may not feel anything. I felt nothing till my 3rd fill and then it was neglible. Never felt real tight till my 6th fill. I've never been so tight that I couldn't drink fluids. My doc believes in sneaking up on the green zone. It's frustrating because it takes longer. It's going to depend on how aggressive the doc is too.

BTW-Some pills do not disintegrate. Some pills remain intact and the drug leaches out over time in your digestive system. They can soften over time but it's possible to have one stuck in a tight band for many hours.

"why'd you have surgery? Couldn't you have just gone on the diet"?

If you're making yourself dry heave, stop. Stomach convulsions from heaving are one of the main causes of band slips. Your lower stomach violently convulses and this can cause the sutures holding the band in place to tear away.

Can you drink Water? Or any fluids? If you can't drink any fluids you're too tight. If you can drink, then wait a few days to see if the swelling goes down and you can eat easier? If you can eat Soups like progresso types with soft veggies in them you're probably OK for now?

"Ironically, a so-called “fast” metabolism is considered to be an inefficient one, Kahn noted." Makes sense! Fast metabolizers didn't live long 25,000 years ago. Now me or even us, we ruled before 10,000 years ago. Lucky us, we developed the gene that makes us store energy so we lived longer. Yeah, lucky us

I'll be deader than dog poo by the time they figure this one out but I agree, it looks promising. I'd imagine drugs will be involved?

BTW-I lived on a 500-600 calories/day diet for 3 months about 15 years ago. So, make sure you're taking your Vitamins and all should be fine.

Still, you're fine. Another week and you'll complain you're eating too much The swelling hasn't gone down yet most likely and once that happens, you'll be able to eat too much.

It is normal. Do this 3 or more times a day plus add in broth or other soupy meals and you're nearly up to 800 or more calories?

Most band surgeries cost around $10K total. However, the hospital will bill your insurance at least twice that and accept the normal per diem for this type of surgery. Call your insurance company and ask them how to handle this? Or, change surgeons if they insist on you paying the $10K.