GuyMontag

I'm not sure there are any restrictions. May want to wait 4 weeks just to be on the safe side? Just remember that alcohol can cause some dehydration making your band feel tighter afterwards.

Sure you can. However, exercise can make you feel tighter so keep that in mind and tread lightly when combining it with a fill.

Good luck. I thought I had sleep apnea but the sleep study wasn't covered under my insurance. I bought a sleep apnea machine but ended up having the band surgery just a few short weeks later. After I lost the weight I no longer had problems staying asleep. I do still have trouble falling asleep and for that I take a Restoril pill at night. I sold the CPAP machine a couple of weeks ago after it just sat in my office unused for over 4 years. Good luck with the study.

I got used to it. Lol.

It can also depend on your personality. To some people certain foods are like drugs or alcohol. To an alcoholic there is no 'moderation' and abstinence is the only policy. It's kind of like soda. If soda or bread are your addiction or your weakness and all it takes is one little drink or bite to get you hooked again you are better off just staying away. If you can keep it at just one slice, then go for it. I doubt many of us in here got this way by moderation though. Lol.

I think many places started out just doing plication but found better results with plication and the band. Not sure what Doc Watson prefers right now because I haven't checked in in quite awhile. Lol.

When I get stuck my saliva starts backing up (sliming) and it's very uncomfortable in my band area. It's not as high up as my throat or all the way down in my stomach. If I am truly stuck the only way to get relief is to bend over and let the food come back up. Honestly, I eat very slowly now and haven't been stuck in over a year.

I read this book and liked it a lot: http://www.thelapbandbook.com/

The owner of this site wrote a book: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/page/lapband_book.html

I was banded by Doc Watkins and he is a great guy. The support groups are awesome as well. I had heard that they were doing some plications now but not sure if he recommends the plication with band or just band anymore but I've been pleased with my band. I'd definitely trust his judgement. Good luck!

The makers of the Lap Band say no to carbonated beverages while most doctors agree with that some do say that carbonated beverages are okay. I waited a year before I had my first carbonated beverage and don't seem to have any trouble drinking them. However, the band is something that we have in our bodies for years and years, hopefully, and it's hard to tell what might negatively affect us long term. I think you are better off not having soda if you can help it and play it safe. Not to mention that it usually leads to the sugary stuff which is bad for our weight. That being said, I do enjoy my bubbly

You can try liquid motrin to help with the immediate swelling issue. I also agree with everyone's advice of going on liquids for a few days. If you get to the point where you cannot get down liquids you'll need to have some fluid taken out of your band.

That would totally suck if you lost too much weight early on and they were like, SUCKS TO BE YOU! and didn't let you get the surgery. Lol. Glad it's not set up like that. Good luck!

I'm just glad this week is OVER!

I don't think I could go it vegan but I guess it's possible. You'd better REALLY like beans. A lot of bandsters eat rice fine. It's certainly easier to eat than bread or pasta in my opinion.

Way to do the research. I wish you the best my friend.

Someone asked me once if I wished every day was Friday. Hell no! That would mean I had to work every day. If I had one day to be every day it would Saturday but I still love me some Friday.

Quick responses back: I thought you were cuter! I thought you were smarter! I thought you weren't rude! I can tell you don't have Lap Band!

It's pretty easy if you just look up 'low-carb', atkins, and south beach recipes.

I remember reading just the other day that someone had some fluid around their port area that didn't drain after surgery. Once they went in for a fill the doctor drained, I think it was 7cc of fluid, and they were fine. Just tossing out an alternative idea.

Sometimes I think we have to dig deeper into the reasons why we overeat. It may be as simple as your schedule, or maybe you eat in front of the tv, or it might be something that you need help with like eating to cope with stress. I would recommend journaling and/or maybe seeking therapy just to get some professional thoughts on the subject. I know a lot of people freak out sometimes at the thought of therapy but sometimes it just helps to toss thoughts and ideas at someone that has insight into why we sabotage ourselves and our weight loss. Just my two cents! Good luck!

I constantly have to rein myself back in and get out of my 'this is the best way' mentality because I have learned that what works for me doesn't always work for someone else and vice versa. Where my thinking used to be very rigid I've learned that sometimes you just have to let people make their own decisions and while sometimes they don't work out, sometimes they do and even when they don't sometimes that's a valuable lesson. Now one thing I will say is that many of us fall into the temptation of taking advice from multiple people that ends up being more damaging than if we followed one path instead of trying to run down 10 at once. If you are going by calorie restriction then go by calorie restriction. Don't worry about whether it's good calories or bad calories or if a cracker is healthy or if cheese is healthy. At the same time, if you are doing a low carb diet then you need to stick with proteins and cut out carbs. Don't justify a carb like granola or whole wheat bread because it's 'healthy' if your diet doesn't call for it. When you start mashing stuff up together and don't follow a coherent plan I think that sets many people up for failure. I've also found that some plans work better for some people more than others. When I follow a low carb, high protein diet I tend to stay satiated longer because I allow myself meats, eggs, and cheese which I enjoy. I've also found that if I eat say, 1600 calories of protein vs. 1600 calories of carbs, I will stay full longer and lose more weight with proteins than carbs which means for MY body this works. HOWEVER, that doesn't mean it will work for everyone. We all have different body chemistries, different likes and dislikes, and different reasons we do or don't lose weight. I even have a MIL that goes from fad diet to fad diet and keeps her weight off that way because she gets bored with one particular eating lifestyle. For her it works and so far, every diet has worked, but her success has been tied to her round robin approach which is a little hard to swallow for some. Anyway, that's my looooong list of thoughts on the matter.

For me I define restriction as being just tight enough that I cannot comfortably sit and eat a cheeseburger with the bun. When I eat I feel each bite pass through my band. If I eat too fast it backs up and I get stuck. Fortunately, I eat slow and haven't been stuck in over a year. As for liquids, I can take big mouthfuls of liquid and drink that way but I can't tilt my head back and chug like in a Coke commercial. If I did that the liquid would come right back out quickly. I made this mistake once with water and it was embarrassing. Lol.

I'm very against taking out fluid and putting it back just for vacations just for this reason. I'm not knocking you but this should be a tail of caution to others. If you're in a good place with your band, DO NOT MESS WITH IT! Lol. When you take fluid out and add it back in it can shift and sit differently than it did before. You actually sound either too tight or like you may even have a dilated pouch. I would definitely talk to your doc's office about it.

Most people know I'm banded. It's easier than worrying about what they think. If a waiter asks if everything was alright and then press, are you sure? I just say, I wasn't that hungry. I then ask for a box to take the rest with me and that reassures them. Also, I just order appetizers a lot so that I can eat the portion.