Scottinnh

I had a 14cc LAP-BAND® installed on May 28th of this year. I have had 2 fills so far for a total of 4 cc’s. I have a cup of Kashi high protein/fiber Cereal with 1 cup of Hood lo carb milk for Breakfast, usually with a few fresh strawberries and blueberries thrown in. I have a cup of coffee around 10:00 with no sugar and no fat half and half. I have no desire to eat anything else in the morning and while I might look lovingly at a donut I am still too full from breakfast to attempt it. I guess you could say the LAP-BAND® is working in the morning. For lunch around 1:00 I usually have either a cup of Soup and a salad with a vinegarette dressing , or I heat up a frozen LeanCuisine, and this fills me up. Some days I get too full to even finish my lunch. The problem is that it does not last me much past 3:00 and then I start to look for food to eat. Up until that time I average about 600 calories total for the day. From that point on though my appetite is pretty much what it was before the surgery, with the exception everything is cut up real tiny and chewed to death, and then some. I can schedule another fill in about a month for another 1cc. My concern is that I already can feel just about everything going through the stoma, and too many times things get real sluggish and occasionally stuck. I am concerned another fill might be too much, and will I be able to eat anything in the morning at all? I would love to feel all day the way I feel up until about 3:00, but the late afternoon and evening grazing is a killer. I have various Fiber bars and Protein shakes and protein Water to try and fill up but I weary of fight ing this hunger . I also walk 1-2 miles almost every day , sometimes more weather permitting, and I hit the gym on my off days. I have not lost any weight since about 2 weeks after the surgery, but I have not gained any either. I had to replace my baggy clothes but only dropped down one size. Arghhh. I am trying to be patient but I really was not aware at how long this is taking. Those gastric bypass people are already way ahead!

I had the surgery May 28th. I have been eating normal foods now for the last 3-4 weeks, and will get my first fill in 2 weeks. I can eat now like before surgery , except that I have to be very careful to chew and chew and not swallow anything to big as it is really uncomfortable when it gets stuck. This slows me down and I usually get tired of eating before my plate is empty. And my food gets cold! I started this process at 300 lbs a little over a year ago. I went into surgery at 285 lbs, partially from the 2 weeks of liquid diet prior to surgery required by my doctor. Another 2 weeks of mostly liquid diet and then mushies after surgery got me down to 277. I have been able to keep my weight to under 280, but was wondering if I should have lost more, or do most people gain weight before the first banding? One very positive about this process so far is that food has lost its attraction to me. All the work of being careful to eat only soft foods, and chewing it to death, and the anxiety of swallowing something not chewed enough and the ensuing pain almost makes you long for the liquid diet days, when everything was so simple.

2 weeks post ops and my team says I am doing great. Starting weight shortly before surgery was 293 and I am now at 277.... 16 lbs so far. My incisions have all healed, I have had no gas pains, nausea or any of the other uncomfortable complications I have read about here. Stayed on full liquids day 2-10 and still incorporate a lot of full liquids such as yogurt, cream of wheat and protein water into my daily diet. In fact you could say I am on full liquids all day, eating whatever else will go down comfortably for dinner, keeping an eye on my own personal nutritional goals. I was doing this for awhile before surgery anyways, and has now bwcome habit. I worry about progressing too fast with the diet. I asked my doctor if I ate something wrong, would it cause any problems with the band, such as slipping? He assured me that might have been true in the “old days” but that he now ties the lapband in securely by bringing up some of the lower stomach and stitching it around the band. The band will not slip by eating something wrong. He did say if I had a prolonged bout of throwing there was a slight chance of slippage, but unlikely. He also said that before the first banding the stomach pouch will not stretch as there is little restriction, any excess food just slips through to the lower stomach. His said I would be limited in what I eat by what felt comfortable “slipping through” and could gage how much swelling is remaining from the surgery by what size goes down OK. I would learn from trial and error what I could eat and what would be not be nice to me. So I have tried out various other foods to see how they feel, being sure to chew very well. This is very much feedback trial and error, as if I forget and do not chew well it does not feel good going down. I have the best luck on foods that are on the soft slippery type, like fish(scallops, red snapper), noodles, eggs and various oatmeals, even soggy morning cereal. All with no problems. No gas, bloating nausea or any other complications that I can feel. All went down just fine. Rice, flour tortillas and anything fibrous that can’t be chewed into pieces get “stuck” and I have to wait for it to clear before eating more. Not painful, just annoying. My nutritionist did say to avoid coffee as that has tannic acid which could cause ulcers on the band. I wonder if that applies to tomato products, such as spaghetti sauce, as tomatoes have tannic acid, as does wine, I think. I will need to verify that with her. I am thinking it may be the daily prolonged use of coffee that could cause an ulcer, but for now I just say no. The temptation is to keep pushing the limit, such as gobbling down a Burger King Steakburger ( I did not even though I probably could if chewed well), but I had better have enough self discipline to not do that or I have wasted my life, time and money on a procedure I do not respect. I log everything on FITDAY.com (have done this for years) and keep a careful eye on my calories, cards, proteins, etc. When I was on full liquids I was taking in about 800 calories and usually met the 60 protein goal. I am looking now at keeping my calories around 1200, so that I will continue to lose weight. My doctor has taken me off the high blood pressure med as I now test in the normal range. I have reduced my glyburide by 50%, and am slowly reducing my 24 hour insulin. I am experiencing fasting glucose of 120, which is about 100 points lower than pre lapband. So far I am very happy with my lapband.

My doctor told me that coffeee contains tannic acid which can lead to ulcers on the band. So this pot a day coffee addict is hurting. Anyone else told this, in particular as it relates to the band? :thumbup:

:thumbup:My team says I am doing great. Starting weight shortly before surgery was 293 and I am now at 277.... 16 lbs so far. My incisions have all healed, I have had no gas pains, nausea or any of the other uncomfortable complications I have read about here. Stayed on full liquids day 2-10 and still incorporate a lot of full liquids such as yogurt, cream of wheat and protein water into my daily diet. In fact you could say I am on full liquids all day, eating whatever else will go down comfortably for dinner, keeping an eye on my own personal nutritional goals. I was doing this for awhile before surgery anyways, and has now bwcome habit. I worry about progressing too fast with the diet. I asked my doctor if I ate something wrong, would it cause any problems with the band, such as slipping? He assured me that might have been true in the “old days” but that he now ties the lapband in securely by bringing up some of the lower stomach and stitching it around the band. The band will not slip by eating something wrong. He did say if I had a prolonged bout of throwing there was a slight chance of slippage, but unlikely. He also said that before the first banding the stomach pouch will not stretch as there is little restriction, any excess food just slips through to the lower stomach. His said I would be limited in what I eat by what felt comfortable “slipping through” and could gage how much swelling is remaining from the surgery by what size goes down OK. I would learn from trial and error what I could eat and what would be not be nice to me. So I have tried out various other foods to see how they feel, being sure to chew very well. This is very much feedback trial and error, as if I forget and do not chew well it does not feel good going down. I have the best luck on foods that are on the soft slippery type, like fish(scallops, red snapper), noodles, eggs and various oatmeals, even soggy morning cereal. All with no problems. No gas, bloating nausea or any other complications that I can feel. All went down just fine. Rice, flour tortillas and anything fibrous that can’t be chewed into pieces get “stuck” and I have to wait for it to clear before eating more. Not painful, just annoying. My nutritionist did say to avoid coffee as that has tannic acid which could cause ulcers on the band. I wonder if that applies to tomato products, such as spaghetti sauce, as tomatoes have tannic acid, as does wine, I think. I will need to verify that with her. I am thinking it may be the daily prolonged use of coffee that could cause an ulcer, but for now I just say no. The temptation is to keep pushing the limit, such as gobbling down a Burger King Steakburger ( I did not even though I probably could if chewed well), but I had better have enough self discipline to not do that or I have wasted my life, time and money on a procedure I do not respect. I log everything on FITDAY.com (have done this for years) and keep a careful eye on my calories, cards, proteins, etc. When I was on full liquids I was taking in about 800 calories and usually met the 60 protein goal. I am looking now at keeping my calories around 1200, so that I will continue to lose weight. My doctor has taken me off the high blood pressure med as I now test in the normal range. I have reduced my glyburide by 50%, and am slowly reducing my 24 hour insulin. I am experiencing fasting glucose of 120, which is about 100 points lower than pre lapband. So far I am very happy with my lapband.

:thumbup:My team says I am doing great. Starting weight shortly before surgery was 293 and I am now at 277.... 16 lbs so far. My incisions have all healed, I have had no gas pains, nausea or any of the other uncomfortable complications I have read about here. Stayed on full liquids day 2-10 and still incorporate a lot of full liquids such as yogurt, cream of wheat and protein water into my daily diet. In fact you could say I am on full liquids all day, eating whatever else will go down comfortably for dinner, keeping an eye on my own personal nutritional goals. I was doing this for awhile before surgery anyways, and has now bwcome habit. I worry about progressing too fast with the diet. I asked my doctor if I ate something wrong, would it cause any problems with the band, such as slipping? He assured me that might have been true in the “old days” but that he now ties the lapband in securely by bringing up some of the lower stomach and stitching it around the band. The band will not slip by eating something wrong. He did say if I had a prolonged bout of throwing there was a slight chance of slippage, but unlikely. He also said that before the first banding the stomach pouch will not stretch as there is little restriction, any excess food just slips through to the lower stomach. His said I would be limited in what I eat by what felt comfortable “slipping through” and could gage how much swelling is remaining from the surgery by what size goes down OK. I would learn from trial and error what I could eat and what would be not be nice to me. So I have tried out various other foods to see how they feel, being sure to chew very well. This is very much feedback trial and error, as if I forget and do not chew well it does not feel good going down. I have the best luck on foods that are on the soft slippery type, like fish(scallops, red snapper), noodles, eggs and various oatmeals, even soggy morning cereal. All with no problems. No gas, bloating nausea or any other complications that I can feel. All went down just fine. Rice, flour tortillas and anything fibrous that can’t be chewed into pieces get “stuck” and I have to wait for it to clear before eating more. Not painful, just annoying. My nutritionist did say to avoid coffee as that has tannic acid which could cause ulcers on the band. I wonder if that applies to tomato products, such as spaghetti sauce, as tomatoes have tannic acid, as does wine, I think. I will need to verify that with her. I am thinking it may be the daily prolonged use of coffee that could cause an ulcer, but for now I just say no. The temptation is to keep pushing the limit, such as gobbling down a Burger King Steakburger ( I did not even though I probably could if chewed well), but I had better have enough self discipline to not do that or I have wasted my life, time and money on a procedure I do not respect. I log everything on FITDAY.com (have done this for years) and keep a careful eye on my calories, cards, proteins, etc. When I was on full liquids I was taking in about 800 calories and usually met the 60 protein goal. I am looking now at keeping my calories around 1200, so that I will continue to lose weight. My doctor has taken me off the high blood pressure med as I now test in the normal range. I have reduced my glyburide by 50%, and am slowly reducing my 24 hour insulin. I am experiencing fasting glucose of 120, which is about 100 points lower than pre lapband. So far I am very happy with my lapband.

2 days before surgery and I am very nervous. I am a 56 year old man who has never had surgery, never had anesthesia. I keep questioning my decision to go under the knife. On one hand I feel fine right now, enjoying life, why would I elect a surgery that will commit me to a recovery process and months of fills trying to get that “sweet spot”. Its not like I am hurt or physically ill where surgery would make you feel better. This feels almost like cosmetic surgery, where you are not sick but get an operation to look better. On the other hand I am diabetic, high everything, sleep apnea and feel like man mountain when walking around. I wear my car. My knees are starting to hurt, and my diabetic control is getting more difficult. So I guess I am in pain and sick, and this surgery will give me the tools to get better. Back and forth, back and forth, getting dizzy just thinking about it. When I really think about it the most concern I have is that I will wake up from the surgery hungry and stay that way, without the ability to satisfy myself. I guess that fear is why I have always eaten a lot of food at any one time, afraid I not be able to find food to eat the next time I get hungry. I hate being hungry. So I am going ahead with the surgery anyways, all the thinking has been done, and I am operating on pure faith that all this will work.

We are bandster twins! Same day surgery, we should compare notes as we recover into our new life! Today is my last day at work, I took next week off as well, but if I feel like I can I will return earlier and save some of those vacation days! June 15th is our 35th wedding anniversary, and I don't think we will be going out to dinner to celebrate!!

Today is Tuesday 5/26 and surgery is 07:00 Thursday morning. Slightly freaking out. So much prep to get here and now it is so real. I can not wait to get this over with so I can start with the rest of the process. I know the anticipation of a stressful event is usually worse than the event itself so I am trying to stay on automatic and go with what I have already decided to do, have the surgery, and just shut up already. I will post as I progress.

Today is Tuesday 5/26 and surgery is 07:00 Thursday morning. Slightly freaking out. So much prep to get here and now it is so real. I can not wait to get this over with so I can start with the rest of the process. I know the anticipation of a stressful event is usually worse than the event itself so I am trying to stay on automatic and go with what I have already decided to do, have the surgery, and just shut up already. I will post as I progress.

Thank you all for your replies. i will let you know once I get to the "otherside".

Some people say they are hungry after surgery, and some say they are not. For those that say you are hungry, are you unable to eat or drink enough to satisfy that hunger? I am thinking that even before you first fill there must be some restriction anyways, right? Does the small amount of liquid diet you start with not enough to slay the hunger? Or do you feel you can’t eat anymore but am still hungry? I am 6 days away from surgery. I am just wondering how the hunger thing is dealt with before the first fill? It doesn’t really matter, I am doing this crazy thing anyways but I am puzzled about the hungry thing after surgery and before the first fill.

My surgery date is May 28 and besides questioning myself every day about doing this and slightly freaking out about the surgery as I have never gone under the knife before, the one nagging question I have is: Can you become uncomfortably hungry after the surgery and before the first banding, and if so, are you able to satisfy the hunger with just liquids?

I am going through the last steps before the actual operation. I have gone to a years worth of meetings and medical tests. I started the process at 309 lbs and last weigh in was 288. If only I could keep that up I would not need the surgery right? Been there done that. I am set up to see the Nutrionist tomorrow. Next week I see the nurse, the week after that the surgeon, and then all that is left is scheduling the operation. Anyone have some good questions I could be asking the Nutritionist, anything that I should seek clarification on? Any suggestions are welcome!