Carriejess

Hi I am having revision from band to sleeve in three weeks (successful with the band, regained after slip and two pregnancies to Bmi 31) I am for the UK and having my surgery in Europe with the same surgeon. His aftercare advice is more of a lifestyle guide rather than a facts guide. I would just like to know what the common post op portion control is that you are given. I.e how long on clear/ liquids/ mushy etc and the macro split for protein/carbs etc. I am interested in nutrition and would like to focus on trying to get everything from natural food but I do understand that supplements especially in the beginning are necessary. Thanks in advance, just want to get off to the right start and I know that in the US much more advice is given!

It is just a generic way of explaining that you try to keep your diet free of foods that contain lots of chemicals or processing not a way to describe others as 'dirty'

Had a band 7 years ago and lost 100lb but regained 45lb due to a slip and two pregnancies my Bmi is now 31. Having a revision on feb 13th and I cannot wait!

I was successful with the band which I have had for 7 years but I am looking forward to a better qaulity of life with the sleeve. I have regained about 45lbs (100lb loss)after band slippage and two pregnancies. I am revising in two weeks, my surgeon completes in a one step process but won't guarantee it depending on if your band has caused significant damage but this is rare.

I love this thread. I will be a band to sleeve conversion in three weeks (totally successful with the band but gained due to a slippage) I am a great advocate of natural healthy food, portion control is my issue. After my conversion I hope to carry on with real food, but I do understand the need for added protein powders n the beginning if necessary.

I had my band with dr Chris 7 years ago I lost eight stone and maintained a 21 Bmi easily for years then a regained four after having a slip and then two children very close together. My lapband no longer works and my symptoms are very common in lapbands. Dr Chris is a great surgeon and in four weeks I will be going back to him to have a revision to sleeve. In my experience of being involved in lots of forums I would say that lap bands now have a high risk of complications and if I was you I would consider gastric sleeve first off which is a better lifestyle choice as you can eat all foods but in tiny portions but doenst have malabsorption like the bypass. With lapbands many people have difficulty eating proteins I.e meat and fibrous veggies which is not great if you are trying to maintain a healthy balanced diet. However I am not a doctor and having a lapband helped me lose half my body weight nearly, meet an amazing handsome husband and have two children after being told I would probably not conceive. I don't regret it but I am looking forward to having a better standard of living with the sleeve. Feel free to ask me any questions x

Hi I have had my band for 6 years, during the first three I lost over 100 pounds and was at goal. I started to suffer with quite bad acid reflux but before I could do anything about it I fell pregnant and removed most of the Fluid (still had 4cc in 10cc band with barely any restriction) I then had another baby quite quickly afterwards. Now my youngest is 10 months old so I tried to have a small fill and the reflux is so bad! I had it taken back out again....so it's probably a suspected slip so now I have had a total unfil. My question is has resting your band for 4 to 6 weeks fixed your slip? And do you think after such a long period of time it will work for me? I have around 50 pounds to lose

Also does anyone know if a liquid diet will help fix a slip?

It is suspected as I am in the UK and self pay and it would be very very expensive to find out for sure. I am hoping that if I rest it first I won't have to have any tests done although I will if this doesn't work!

4 years on I still get these hiccups as described by the others

Hi, I have had my band for 4 years, lost over 100 pounds and stayed at goal which helped me to have 2 babies so had total unfits then put some back on which is why I have rejoined the forum. My best piece of advice is to give yourself a year to be completely in tune with your band, I'm not really talking about weight loss as you will be losing loads of weight during this time. I mean learning what you can eat and how much, going through periods when your band is too tight/ not tight enough. Times when your weight plateaus, or losing really well and then suddenly nothing for no reason. Listening to other people's struggles or frustrations or comparing yourself to their journey. But please STICK WITH it. Alot of people say they don't like their band because they can't eat anything/certain things/ can still drink milkshakes/ have some reflux/ sometimes throw up ( and if of course there are some extreme cases of this) and say that people should not have to live like that. But if you play it right, be relaxed with it and listen to your body ( because it's your body and your band that make the rules, not what other people or even your doctor says you should or shouldn't be able to do) eventually you won't remember or know how to live any other way. You won't use food to make yourself happy an you will probably rather go for a Run than attemp to eat a whole family bag of chips. You will be able o go out with your friends for dinner and have a small amount of something you love, a glass of wine and maybe share a desser because you will have learnt to eat like a thin person. Good luck xx

Hi, I have had my band for 4 years. I am just rejoining the forum as I had a total unfill while I went through 2 pregnancies, now I am just having fills to help lose the weight I put on during this time(i Had lost 8 stone and was at goal) You will learn when your band is too tight, some days it will be a bit tighter for no apparent reason, I believe that this is to do with how much fluid is in your body ( and why your band is tighter in the mornings) if you have a day like that eventually you will know how to eat on those days so as not to draw attention to yourself. You will also learn what foods cause you to get food stuck, it's different for everyone. You will also learn how to manAge the fact that you need to throw up and discreetly excuse yourself in social situations. It's all a learning curve and it will take around a year for your band to become a part of you and for you to know everything about it when this happens you won't even notice having to do things a certain way, it will be like second nature. Incidents of having you popping to the bathroom will become few and far between but they will probably still happen occasionally. X

Hello, I left about 1 ml in but its a personal choice i think, you can still have fills when you are pregnant as long as you are able to get the right amount of nutrition. I was really surprised that i didnt put on more weight, especially with my sweet things cravings and the fact that i pretty much had no restriction. It gives me hope that if i suddenly couldnt have my band that i would be able to maintain a normal weight. I think i could probably lose the weight naturally now but i am impatient and seeing as it cost me alot of money i think i should still use it! I had no problems with my band at all while i was pregnant. It was only the poor midwives the kept thinking that my port was the babies foot!

Hi Slinky, Congratulations on your weight loss! I had a baby girl, 6 lb 2oz on 11/11/10 her name is Rose. I am not worried about losing the weight....thats why i love my band, although its very weird to be on liquids again. I do my own fills, although i dont recommend for anyone else too!

Hello Most of you probably dont know me! I used to be on here alot, got to goal then had a baby who is now eight weeks old. So after just having my band filled pretty tight im back to lose the three and a half stone of baby weight i need to shift! So back for bandster support and of course to answer any questions as i have had my band for years now! Cannot believe how much the format has changed!!! GOAL WEIGHT - 9 stone

Hello I know that i havent posted on here for ages, i don't think i can face going back and reading all the posts i have missed! To anyone that knows me, baby is due in 6 weeks now! To anyone that doesnt...hello! Carrie

Scooby, you get the thick saliva as a natural reaction to the urge to be sick, to help the lubrication i guess. You may PB but only saliva as the food is stuck in the hole or has just gone through so its only the horrible saliva thats left. However it should not take long before you realise what you are doing to cause you to PB inthe first place!

Dont forget peeps that most peoples optimum restriction is anything from 5.5 to 8.5 mls thats a big difference...if you are at 5.5 mls and feel no restriction it could be that you need a couple of mls in and you will have to patient or it could be that you only need 0.5. Unfortunately everyone is different but when you get restriction trust me you will know! Most people go through the bandster hell phase and there is not really anything that any of us can say that will truly make you feel confident in your band until the magic restriction day. It will happen you just need to stick it out for a bit x

Hey I'm really good thanks, almost five months and still managing to stay in my size ten trousers although with the aid of an elastic band! I have had most of the fluid taken out of my band so i can eat more than i used to be able to and i eat way to many crisps but i'm not that worried! Are you excited about your op?

You could but i think that you would be better off trying to have soups you make yourself, i know that you get all your minerals etc from cambridge but you have to be able to drink them in a certain amount of time before they go funny and i dont think that you would be able to do that straight after your band. If you are having to tip them away then you will not get anywhere near the amount of calories you need. Also if you are having this surgery then i would use it as a reason to never have to think about having to drink any diet related shake for the rest of your life!

Hello everyone Sorry i havent been around for ages, my car issues are finally sorted which means i can be at home rather than splitting my time between my boyfriends, mine and my parents house or whowever could drive me around. In fact im a little disappointed that i now have a car and have to drive myself around! Me and baby are fine and i hope that everyones doing well. Heloo to all the new names xx

why the hell can i only eat carbs and not be fruit and spinach? this baby is going to make me fat!

I have taken 1ml out of my band to try and help with morning sickness...i had a bowl of risotto and 3 chocolate digestives for tea. Oh my god i had forgotton what good old fashioned feeling full was like. I thought that i would be able to eat more but clearly still have restriction. I def need to go back to the wait 20 mins before eating anything else rule. I am so full i feel sick!!!

Your first fill is normally quite aggressive so about 3mls or so, you should feel restriction for a while because of the amount they put in but do not be surprised if it only lasts a few weeks or so x

Good luck, Jasmine you will be fine x