DesertRose

In an effort to encourage my fellow low-carb bandsters, I wanted to start a thread (assuming one has not already been started) listing all the health benefits of low-carbing. While I realize this is a controversial subject, if you wish to post the disadvantages, please start another thread titled as such. :redface: I mean this in the most lighthearted way possible. (((hugs))) I can name many but one of the main health benefits for me is: Helps to prevent and cure my impaired glucose intolerance

So my family and I were at Subway today and I asked if I could have tuna salad with no bread. The young !$#@ was insisting on charging me for the full price of a 6" sub, for one dallop of tuna salad. I informed him that I had surgery and could not hold much and prefer not to pay full price for a sandwich when I would be throwing away the bread. He snaps back at me "we are not lapband friendly". My DH insisted on walking out. As we were leaving, the server said to his friend "that's disgusting". We called their corporate office and were informed that it wasn't their problem! What is with that? Has anyone else had this problem? I was mortified. However, I chose not to allow others' ingnorance get me down. I will keep on keeping on. :bolt:

You're so right. Drinking while eating washes everything down so you eat more and you're hungry sooner. It's simple physics. When you don't wash the food down, the nerves tell the brain the pouch is distended and that cuts off hunger with a feeling of fullness. I found this list for gastric by-pass patients, but I am going to give it a try, with the exception of rule # 3, because I cannot chew/eat fast without the PB effect. IDEAL MEAL PROCESS (rules of the pouch): 1. The patient must time meals five hours apart or the patient will get too hungry in between. 2. The patient needs to eat finely cut meat and raw or slightly cooked veggies with each meal. 3. The patient must eat the entire meal in 5-15 minutes. A 30-45 minute meal will cause failure. 4. No liquids for 1 ½ hours to 2 hours after each meal. 5. After 1 ½ to 2 hours, begin sipping water and over the next three hours slowly increase water intake. 6. 3 hours after last meal, begin drinking LOTS of water/fluids. 7. 15 minutes before the next meal, drink as much as possible as fast as possible. This is called "water loading," IF YOU HAVEN'T BEEN DRINKING OVER THE LAST FEW HOURS, THIS 'WATER LOADING' WILL NOT WORK. 8. You can water load at any time 2-3 hours before your next meal if you get hungry, which will cause a strong feeling of fullness.

Talk to your surgeon and tell him/her everything you've written in your post. Be honest with your Lap Band team, reach out for support. That's what they are here for and what they're paid to do. If you don't feel like posting, at least read the forum. Don't give up. As we age our metabolism slows way down and it's much harder to lose with each passing year. I used to be able to drop 10 lbs like THAT *snapping fingers*. Those were the good ol' days. Now, even with the band, it's very hard. I've even been diagnosed as metabolically resistant. However, I will not give up and will continue to eat right and exercise. Even if I takes me two years, I will do it and so will YOU! :thumbup:

You really don't have to tell your supervisor, manager, etc. anything if you have an HR department. All I did was go through the HR department and they did the rest. They approved my time off, so then I emailed my supervisor, who was new, and told her I'm taking a week of for a minor female surgery. When I got back she asked me what kind of surgery. Totally inappropriate question, but I stuck to my guns and said it was a female thing. I did not go into detail, I did not have to lie and I did not have to put up with any crass remarks. Always remember, your HR department is there to protect you from idiot management who would otherwise make your life miserable. If you work for a small company and don't have an HR department or compliance hotline or anything like that, you still have the law on your side. :thumbup:

Congratulations on your weight loss! Wow. This thread was a real eye opener for me. The one thing that I've had to be proud of, when it comes to my physical appearance, is that people have always told me how young I look. They even ask, "what's your secret?". I tell them, drink lots of Water, live a clean life, don't do drugs, don't smoke, etc. It never occured to me to tell them to GET FAT. I'm not even close to that 100 lb. mark but the first place I started losing was in my face. Before I knew it, I was seeing crow's feet that I never knew I had. But, I will take looking 'well seasoned' over MO anyday! :eek:

Many of us have gone through the same thing and have become very frustrated. Everyone is different. Some people will have great restriction with 1 or 2 fills, others have no restriction until they have 4 or 5 fills. As for me, things in my life got turned upside down lately with my job and financial situation. I was due for my 4th fill and the dr. called to cancel...I have not been able to get my appointment re-scheduled to this date. This really discouraged me and for the last couple of weeks I've completely stopped following the Lap Band rules. I have not been making proper food choices, I've been drinking to wash food down so I could eat more, and I have not exercised! Well, I'm paying for it now because not only did my weight loss come to a screeching halt, but I even gained a few lbs! My own fault completely! No one to blame here but myself. With that being said, I am determined to get back on the "band wagon" and start eating right and exercising. With or without a 4th fill, I must make the right choices. Hopefully, you will too. :sad_smile:

I have placed a call to my dr. waiting for a call back. Hopefully I can get in by tomorrow at the latest. In the meantime for my own peace of mind can anyone answer me this? Yesterday I did a LOT of heavy yard work. Lifting rocks, moving furniture. Had to move a large rug outside to clean it and lifted it while it was still wet (very heavy). Now I am experiencing a weird pain in the port area and some pain in my shoulders. Each time I eat...I get a really weird pain in my left shoulder. Could I have done some damage? Has anyone else done this? I'm pretty scared here.

SaraJane is right. Losing too fast is not a good idea and even if you did have the surgery...there is a big possibility your weight loss will be very slow...depending on how agressive your dr. is with your fills, and many other factors. I do agree with you about trying it on your own. Some things to consider: How many years have you been over weight? How many other diets have you tried and failed? If the answers to these two questions are 5 or more. The surgery might be a good idea. If the answers are 10 or more, the surgery is DEFINITELY a good idea.

Great ideas!!! Thank you for posting. Good, healthy choices to keep you from making the wrong choices and you save money too.

Real butter is much better than any imitation. And you know what they say about margarine...one molecule away from plastic. There are some good recipes online for healthier homemade mayo and just about any other condiment you like. At least you know what is REALLY in what you're eating when you make everything (time permitting) from scratch.

Taking the stairs instead of the elevator! Yeah!!

1. Water, water, water - stay well hydrated. Can't stress this enough. 2. Walk, walk, walk - need to get the blood pumping and strengthen your heart and lungs. Very important for a speedier recovery. 3. Welax, welax, welax (Elmer Fudd here) :eek: It's a very hectic and nerve wrecking time. When you're about to pull your hair out, take a deep breath, count to ten and just try to enjoy the ride. Though it will seem like an eternity, your surgery date will be here before you know it. Good luck!!

What I would give to hear that my thyroid is overactive. No change in mine since the band. I've never heard of that. Keep us posted on what you find out.

Are you being paid, by anti lap band people, to write this? LOL - just kidding - really! Look, you haven't even been banded for 3 months yet. I've gone through the same things, but what keeps me going is reading this forum and learning that many, many people have gone through the same thing. Slow weight loss AT FIRST. Trying to find adequate restriction. Learning what to eat and what not to eat. Learning to make good food choices. We are all either there or HAVE BEEN THERE. Thousands of people can't be wrong. Give it time and do what you know to be right as far as the lap band rules. If you're the rebellious type, don't think of them as rules, think of them as guidelines. I donno...just don't give up yet. You will look back some day and be happy for every penny you have spent. Hang in there.

Maybe this would be a good time to do something radical like very low carb for week or so. The low carbing will help keep the cravings at bay until you get another fill. Just a suggestion. :tt1:

If you like eggs, I have lots of simple and affordable recipes. One of my favorite, to have something on the go: Quiche Cups Heat oven to 350 Spray muffin pan with Pam or other cooking spray In a bowl mix 6 eggs - or egg whites 1 cup chopped spinach (you can substitute canned spinach- drained) 1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese 1/4 cup chopped onion (or not) dash of sea salt a few sprinkles of black pepper Pour in muffin pan and bake until tops turn golden brown. That gives you two quiche cups a day for 3 days. I would not make much more than that ahead of time. Simple and cheap and yummy. You can change up the recipe any way you like. You can buy a large bag of all natural boneless chicken breasts at Kroger (here it is Fry's) for 8.99. Let the chicken thaw, then boil in a large pot with some oil and salt and pepper. Once the chicken is done, save and freeze the broth for Soups or whatever. Shred the chicken. Divide up into 5 equal parts. (please forgive my rambling- I type the way I think). Use one part for chicken salad. The other part for a chicken/broccoli/cheese casserole. Another part for chicken fajitas. The list goes on and on. I freeze what I don't use that day. My chicken is cooked ahead of time and I can get at least 5 meals out of one of these bags. I will stop here because I could go on forever...:tt1:

My husband was worried about the complications and risks but he was very supportive. He knew it was something that would help me and I had already made up my mind. Without his consent, it would have been hard for me. I want his blessing in anything I decide to do. He was reluctant but finally agreed and he's been supportive all the way. (except for bringing sweets around me a little too much) :wub:

Has anyone heard of the Fat Fast? Have you ever tried it? I hear it's a good way to kick fat burning into high gear.

Since being banded and diagnosed as Metabolically (Insulin) Resistant, I've come to learn a great deal about myself and my relationship with food. The band has been a wonderful tool in assisting me with recognizing my problem areas. I have done some REAL listening to my body lately and that has opened up doors I've kept locked up for so long, I've forgotten they existed. This, along with journaling, has helped me to unlock these doors and discover these hidden rooms inside myself. Today, I have decided to air out these rooms, by confessing. I've never been addicted to drugs or alcohol, nor have I ever been through a 12 step program. I neither claim to know anything about psychology, nor do I claim to be an expert in health and nutrition. However, I have learned for myself, that in order to begin a healing process, we must first recognize there is a problem, confess it and move on. This is why I am starting this thread. After some negative reactions from some of the posters on this forum, I am a little nervous about this, but this is something I MUST do for myself. Confession, after all, is good for the soul. Here goes: 1. I am a sugar addict. My body constantly cries out for sweets and no matter how many times I try to give up sugar for good, I always go right back to it. 2. I've kept this secret hidden from my husband, my family and my friends. People have made remarks that I eat like a bird. They don't know about the chocolate hidden in my closet. The secret trips to the snack machine at work. How I make "cover up" noises to keep them from hearing the noises of the wrapper as I open my 3rd Snickers bar for the day. 3. I don't like cake but I love frosting. I can't tell you how many times I've eaten a whole bowl of frosting or eaten all the frosting off the cake, then pretended to drop the cake in the floor to cover up my secret. 4. Sometimes, when I buy groceries, I buy a jar of Smuckers hot fudge and eat the whole thing on my way home. I drive by a dumpster before I get home so I can toss the empty container. I would be mortified if anyone knew this. But now YOU know. The Addiction Resource Guide difines addiction like this: The physical and psychological craving for a substance that develops into a dependency and continues even though it is causing the addicted person physical, psychological and social harm. The disease of addiction is chronic and progressive, and the craving may apply to behaviors as well as substances. Yes, my friends, I am a sugar addict. I thank God every day for making it possible for me to have the lap band, because now I know, there is hope and with the help of my band, I can start moving in the right direction. With the band I can feel full and satisfied longer, which will help to keep my blood sugar regulated and reduce the cravings. With the help of my band, and reading this forum, I'm finding the strength to say no and make it through another day.

Yes, I had a lot of nausea within the first week after surgery. Not sure if it was due to the drop in blood sugar levels from doing liquids, or if it was the pain meds or what. But, happily it passed within a week. Take care to stick to liquids ONLY for now. Don't watch too much t.v. as the commercials will make you crazy hungry. :crying:

Butter is a natural food and one of the best sources of fat-soluble vitamins such as A, D, E and K. You will pay more for butter, but nutritionally, it is worth it.

Wal-Mart sells Body Fortress whey protein powder in chocolate and vanilla (haven't seen any other flavor). It's only 12.36 for a large container and it mixes well and tastes great.

The caramel is good in chocolate Protein shakes. Here's a recipe that's good if you like fraps. Freeze some coffee In a blender crush at least 4 cubes of the coffee ice Then add 1/4 cup Water 1 scoop Protein powder - (or 2 if you need more protein) 2 tablespoons whipping cream 2 tablespoons DaVinci caramel SF syrup Blend well It's great! :crying: