ParrotheadCathy

Galaaxy, as REALIZEinCT noted, the EasyBand is not approved for use in the United States. I doubt you'll find many -- if any -- banders on here who have it just because of that. Sounds interesting .... no fill needles ... but it will be a good while before it would be an option here. If you get it, let us know how it goes once you start getting adjustments.

Probably not. A PB does not involve stomach muscles or that heaving we all know and hate that is vomiting. Sliming is just a heck of a lot of saliva and that shouldn't have any effect on the band. It would be better to avoid PBs, just because it's usually indicative that you are eating too fast, taking bites that are too big, or not chewing particularly well, but I don't think it harms anything other than, perhaps, your pride if it happens in public.

What, exactly, is "easy band"? I've never heard of it. What would make it more desirable than the Lap Band AP or Realize band?

Ahhhh. Okay. You're one of the many in bandster hell. You don't yet have enough restriction to make it possible to truly be full after eating only a 1/2 cup of food. It takes time to get to your sweet spot, several fills. I was told to eat at least 20 grams of protein per meal (eat this first, about 3 ounces, which is about the size of a deck of cards), then eat raw or steamed vegetables (and at your restriction, you could eat more than you'll be able to eat later), and then you can have a small portion of whole grain carbs. If you get hungry between meals, eat protein...a 1/2 cup of low fat cottage cheese, an ounce of low-fat cheese -- sometimes if i've steamed shrimp, I'll eat 3 or 4 shrimp if I find myself starving. As you work up closer to your sweet spot, you will find that you need to rely less and less on the protein snacks.

Unless labeled otherwise, the Morningstar stuff is all soy protein so remember that soy doesn't usually mix so well with thyroid issues. I have a friend who did NutriSystem a few years ago and a lot of the protein (at least then) was soy stuff. Her thyroid levels , for which she was taking medication, go seriously out of whack and the doctor was trying to figure it out. It finally came up that she was losing weight with NutriSystem and he told her she cuoldn't eat it anymore unless there was no soy protein in it. My daughter has IBS and she was told no soy protein either. So, if you don't fall into those categories, try to cook it with some moisture added because any vegetable protein (soy or otherwise) is usually pretty darned dry and we've pretty much all struggled with dry stuff!

I am so glad my doctor didn't "pre-fill" my band at surgery! I've heard so many people who have a few ccs in their band as of the day of surgery who have similar problems. I will say that you really should not have tried to eat the turkey unless your doctor had already advanced you all the way to solid food. Poultry is tough to get down even for me (3 months out). Combine that with the fact that you most likely still have post-op swelling and it's no surprise that the turkey was a problem. Glad you're feeling better, though.

I think to be successful, it has to be lifetime. Once at goal, a bit of those things we shouldn't have will likely be okay AS LONG AS the individual is vigilant, weighing regularly and going back to the basic diet if, say, 2 or 3 pounds creep up. If you don't attack it then, it will be 4 or 6, 15 or 20......

Welll, chicken breast wasn't on my list of mushy foods but if your doc says okay, go for it.

The difference between a grilled chicken breast and the seasoned meat in a taco salad is that the grilled chicken is MUCH more dry than the meat (be it beef or chicken) which was simmered in seasoning and some liquid is much more moist. LOTS of us have trouble with any meat that is dry. Try cooking your chicken a different way. The most moist way I can cook it, and I've repeated this multiple times on here, is to take a square of foil and place the chicken breast in the middle. Add a couple of tablespoons of chicken broth (I keep a box of chicken broth in the fridge for cooking purposes), put some broccoli, carrots, a little onion, some squash, season it and seal the foil package up. Put it on a baking sheet and baking at 350 for about 30 minutes. Move everything to your plate and throw away the foil and all the mess from cooking. Wipe the baking sheet and put it away. Obviously, you can prepare as many individual packages as it takes to feed the family (and maybe an extra one for your lunch the next day). If you want that Mexican flavor, you can use packaged taco seasoning and the required amount of liquid and simmer the boneless, skinless breast in that. But grilled is a hard, and often impossible, way to go. Crock pot cooking produces very moist, tender meat, too. And, you should be coming up for another fill. If not already scheduled, MAKE THE APPOINTMENT.

An EGD (as the edoscopic camera exam is called) is done under sedation -- my gatreoenterologist used versed when I had one to examine a bleeding ulcer. I only had to do the Upper GI (where you swallow barium) for the surgery but the purpose was to see if there was a hiatal hernia so that the doctor would be prepared to repair it in surgery as the existence of a hiatal hernia would interfere with the operation of the band itself. Both times I had it (for diagnosis of the ulcer and then for follow-up after some treatment), they put the Versed in my IV, sprayed the back of my throat with some numbing stuff, and put a mouthpiece between my teeth which was a guide, and then I was G-O-N-E.

2ccs really isn't much restriction in the scheme of things but it can seem quite a bit at first. If you do feel too tight to eat, it can be one of several things. (1) Many of us have bands quite tight in the mornings and drinking something hot, like a cup of hot tea, helps trememdously. (2) You may have already had some saline in your band and you have a total of MORE than 2ccs and you could be closer to your sweet spot than you realize. (3) Some people lose fine with a minimal amount of fill for a good period of time. Keep the doctor's appointment on the books...that's nearly 2 months away and a lot can change in that length of time. You say you sometimes feel full after just a few bites. Is this often or just occasionally? Are you positive you are taking small bites and chewing them well? And we are talking eating Protein, not stuff like mashed potatoes or rice or Pasta? I you are having consistent problems eating more than a few bites, then call your doctor's office and ask them some questions .... like, was there saline already in your band when they did the 2cc fill? You aren't supposed to be miserable. You SHOULD be able to eat a 1/2 cup or food or even a bit more than that depending on your total amount of fill.

Surgery on Tuesday, back to work on Friday ... but I could have gone back on Thursday if I'd wanted to. I'm a legal assistant and sit all day, no lifting either.

I use Benefiber, which is a powder. I use a Vitamin that effervesces in Water, and I need to drink some tonic water every day for quinine, so I just add the Benefiber to the mix. No taste, no texture. I cook with extra virgin olive oil except in those situations where taste would be an issue, but as far as my needs go olive oil is always okay. When I make french fries for my granddaughter who lives with me, I use canola oil.

The reason for liquids or chewables is not that you might have a problem keeping a tablet down but that it might not pass easily. If you're not having a problem, that's great. Just bear in mind that at or close to your sweet spot, you could have a problem.

You take too big a bite or don't chew a bite well or even eat more than your pouch can hold. It will feel like a terrible "stuck" episode. Then you will start salivating like crazy and sometimes the saliva is foamy. Then that bit of food comes right back up. It's NOT vomiting. This is food that never made it to your stomach. It doesn't involve stomach acid or the entire contents of your stomach...JUST what was stuck.

And, as you have more fills, the feeling of restriction will be more often until you reach your sweet spot.

Don't worry about liquids stretching your pouch. Liquids go straight through. That's why you aren't supposed to drink with meals ..... the well-chewed food would mix with the liquids and go right out of your pouch and take away any feeling of fullness. I drink probably an average of 10-12 glasses of water a day and the trick is to just keep a glass at hand at all times. For others, it's a large bottle or mug that represents a half (or even an entire) day's worth

I've read where several people went on the liquid diet and their bands went back into place. Perhaps that is the first action and if it doesn't work, then on to the next.

Geez, I typed my whole response and then deleted it. Here goes again. First of all, I asked if the gain was suddenly (as in overnight). That would be a big indicator that it is water, simply because it takes 3,500 extra calories above what it takes to maintain your body weight to gain one pound. If she gained 2 pounds overnight, you can bet she didn't eat 7,000 extra calories or she wouldn't even be here asking this question. Females of childbearing age are always subject to hormonal changes from day to day and that can cause fluid retention of as much as 5 pounds in some women. Other things like medications come into play as well. And the other obvious thing is that she doesn't prepare personally every bite of food that goes in her mouth and that means she does not have control of potential levels of sodium. For example, did you ever look at the sodium in cheese and have any concern over the impact it had in the scheme of things? And some foods naturally have sodium in them that people don't event think about.

Monkey, she isn't going to personally prepare every bite of food that goes in her mouth; therefore, she cannot have 100% over sodium content, etc. If she's of child-bearing age, she will be subject to hormone fluctuations which also cause water retention. Some medications cause fluid retention (and some cause ALOT) but I didn't even take that into consideration. The simple reality is that it takes 3,500 calories above what it takes to maintain your body weight to gain one pound. If she gained it overnight (which was what I asked first off), then it HAS to be water because nobody here is eating 7,000 extra calories above what it takes to maintain their body weight (and they shouldn't even be eating what it takes to maintain their body weight). But she didn't mention any of those factors (time of month, eating, over what period of time she gained the 2 pounds, etc). I was trying to point out a possibility

What is a FILL? a fill is an adjustment made with saline to the band itself....if you look at a band or a picture of one, it has a "balloon" on the inside that is filled with saline over a period of time to give you the ability to adhere to your diet. How soon did you hear from the Richmond location after the dr referal? N/A, I'm in Atlanta How long b4 your surgery was actually scheduled? My first visit with the surgeon was 1/2 and surgery was on 2/10 what are the regrets if any, you had after the surgery? None so far, except that I didn't do it sooner any suggestions on things you should have considered before the surgery? Not really. My doctor's office went over a lot of information in person and gave me a lot more to take home and read. And I'd done a lot of research on my own before that visit. How was Kaiser, were they sensitive to this issue? N/A Did you go to many appointments, I live in Sacramento so I'm concerned about that 2 visits before surgery; 1 10 days out, then fills every 30 days (you'll need 3 or 4 or even 5 to get to your sweet spot) Did anyone have marriage problems after? I'm afraid because I have always been chunky and my husband met me this way and my son loves me this way too (just not being so unhealthy) he says, I feel like a comfy pillow. I asked my husband how he will feel about this frastic change but he said whatever I need to do to get healthy because he is also concerned. and I know my son would rather I be healthy than always have aches and pains becuase he worrys about losing his mommy. Another N/A

Just out of curiosity, was that gain overnight? Because if it was, you will always be subject to fluctuations of 2 or 3 or even 5 pounds sometimes. Eat on plan, drink your fluids and do whatever exercise you normally do and it should just go away in a day or so.

Hot tubs, because of the heat, are breeding grounds for all kinds of germs. It never came up with my lap band surgery, but when I ruptured my achilles tendon and had it repaired, I was told I could not go into any hot tubs until the doctor cleared me specifically.

Too tight isn't so much a pain as it is the inability to swallow much of anything, including your own spit. Sounds more like "stuck" to me. Are you eating too fast and don't realize it? That's what gets me in trouble. And I can do it with liquids if I take big swallows/gulps. But I'm definitely not too tight. I was too tight with my first fill and it felt like a rock in my chest and I couldn't even swallow my own spit. They removed some saline and while they were doing it, it felt like the rock melted. Such a weird feeling. Too tight but not as tight as that may cause a night cough and gastroesophagel reflux.

I'm thinking you don't have a fill yet. And that's part of it, for sure. You have no restriction. This is white-knuckle time, unfortunately. Any limitations on eating are strictly willpower until you start getting those fills. Good luck