stateofzen

If you're losing, then you aren't eating too much IMO If you're stalled, then maybe the volume in lunch was more than you needed but if you're losing on that amount then it is just right! I eat more in volume than a lot of people on here do and I've been losing steadily so I'm not worried about being "wrong". And the nice thing is, when I stall, cutting back on my food amount will be easy to do

First, I think you should take your time deciding. This is something that you don't have to do today, or tomorrow, so make sure you're 90% confident in your decision before you do it (there is always some doubt, even in the highly motivated- that's normal). I don't know if, at 23, I would have been motivated to succeed in the same way that I am now. My life was just very different then-- going out with friends was a much bigger portion of my lifestyle than it is now. That said, I know reverie is a young and successful bandster so you may be more like her than me To address some of your points: Fills-- unless you are truly phobic of needles, I seriously wouldn't worry about it. My doc uses a numbing something or other and the needle feels like pressure- no pain for me at all. I just don't look at it and it doesn't bother me Some people have issues with finding the port, so I know that the experience CAN be worse for some people, however, the no-pain/no-problem fill experience seems to be more common. Band Slippage-- yep, that's scary. But it happens in 5% of cases and it does seem to be associated with band abuse; either being too tight and thus vomiting a lot, or perhaps with continued over-eating after band placement (I'm a little less sure about that one). It could happen. But it's against the odds. Carbonated beverages-- this is the thing I was most upset about pre-surgery. Post-surgery-- it is seriously no big deal. Look, I used to have a major Diet DP addiction and I LOVE beer. But, weighed against obesity, it was no contest. Giving it up ended up being a total piece of cake. I'm really surprised now about how much I cared before. However, that said, I'm 35 and my drinking is almost entirely about taste and enjoyment and is not as much about socializing and social lubricant as it was when I was in my twenties. Not that there is anything wrong with that! But it would have been mentally harder for me then, I do think. Now I drink wine and some liquor (mostly wine). Since wine is my favorite alcoholic beverage anyway, this worked out for me. Not Being Able to Eat Certain Foods-- This one seems to vary greatly. The tighter the band (in general), the more this is an issue. My band is not tight-- it is just enough to allow me to have less hunger and hunger satiation with smaller portions of food but it doesn't STOP me from eating. I can still overeat if I don't put my fork down. So I do have to exercise some self-control, but in trade, I can eat pretty much everything. I've never been stuck. I've never PB'ed, slimed, or vomited. And here's hoping I never do! Excess Skin-- You're young. I bet this would mostly take care of itself. In any case, to me, it's no less attractive than fat and you can hide skin with clothes. I don't love the excess skin. But, it's 1000 times better than where I was before. Failing-- This is where dedication comes in. This is where education about what you TRULY can expect and not expect from the band comes in. This is where educating yourself on what you will have to bring to the table comes in. There are some people who the band doesn't work for. There are more people who don't work the band, and there are the most people who significantly reduce their excess weight and become healthier. I will tell you, though, that 40-60% of excess weight lost is the average. My surgeon was very clear during the education process that if you were going into this expecting to be skinny at the end, you were setting yourself up for disappointment. The odds are, you will not lose all of the weight you want to. The odds are, you might even still be overweight when all is said and done. You should be aware of that, and be ready to accept it as a possibility should you go through with WLS of ANY kind. That said, just as there are some people who don't lose anything, there are some people who lose everything. It's probably a combination of luck and motivation. I've beaten the odds so far-- I've lost 73% of my excess weight and I'm still losing, but I don't know if I'll make it to my goal of "normal BMI". We'll see! But I do believe that I've been pretty lucky because 2 small fills have gotten me to my sweet spot, my body is cooperating me despite my copious wine consumption and relative lack of exercise to this point, and I haven't had complications to struggle with.

If you're at a standstill, you might consider looking at your fats to make sure you aren't going too low fat. If you cut both fat and carbs, the body seems to be unhappier than if you just cut the carbs. In another thread in this forum people are sharing protein ideas. If you feel stuck, you might check that out for some help. I do agree though, low carb can get pretty repetitive! I do commend you for trying to do low-carb at least while you're going through bandster hell It's actually pretty much how the docs want us bandsters to eat anyway, so it's good practice.

If you're not worried about fats: I love shrimp and scallops sauteed with garlic, butter, and a touch of cream. I pour it over Pasta for my husband and eat it plain for myself. chicken wings, because they are dark meat, usually stay very moist and are very low-carb friendly when you bake them. Get the non-breaded kind and if you want to decrease your fats, don't eat the skin. Obviously baked tilapia is a goody. We also do a pulled pork butt. My husband smokes it just long enough to infuse the flavor, then finishes it for several hours in the slow cooker. He keeps it moist with Water. He adds barbecue to his once it is on the bun and I eat it without sauce but with a little sprinkling of season salt like Lowry's. If you can handle ground beef, you can do a "Maid-Rite" type sauteed beef with onions (depends I guess- onions are higher carb, so you have to count them). Family can put on a bun with ketchup and you can eat out of a bowl. In my opinion the onion gives it enough flavor to be yummy without anything extra.

Yannabee- I can't remember the carb number for ketosis. You might consider buying or borrowing the original Atkins book if you haven't already. It is very helpful. I got mine from the library and read and made copies and it was very helpful. I would grab it to give you answers, but it's at home and I'm at work. I think in the beginning, it makes sense to focus on Proteins (chicken, fish, beef, eggs), fats (up to 4oz cheese a day, avocado, butter, salad dressing), and complex carbs in the form of green veggies (except peas of course). If you follow this, you probably don't need to count calories unless you're curious. I really think it makes a difference to start out hard core so you really get practiced in what it's like to go extremely low carb. I think it's good not only for weight loss, but to actually really see how addictive simple carbs are mentally and physically. Once I was well practiced in low carb, I started playing around with occasionally adding in "treats". Treats would include any of the no-nos. I indulge once every two weeks in these kind of treats. My diet now is lowish-carb. What that means is that I've added in fruit a couple of times a week, and I also do low-carb crackers a couple of times a week with hummus or something like that. Also, I do a Protein bar that has carbs. I'm not in ketosis any longer as far as I know, but eating generally low carb means EASY low calorie without having to count, and I like that a lot. Edited: As far as eating out, I usually get a protein and sub the steamed veggies for the potato that usually comes with. Or, I do a salad without croutons. Try to stay away from breaded proteins of course. And if you can't leave the bread basket alone, ask them not to bring it. I actually think eating out low carb is generally pretty easy. It's easier to get low carb than low fat or low calorie!

I like it. I think you'd have to drink a whole whole lot of it to have detrimental effects. I make it by the pitcher and drink it every so often, but it's not an everyday thing. I Water it down a lot too-- the suggested power-to-water ratio is too strong for me!

I just wanted to add-- the truth of this depends on how filled you are. I have been at this for 7 months and I have never gotten stuck, nor have I vomited. I don't think this is true for everyone. I will say that I keep my band fairly loose (2.5 cc in a 10 cc band) because I want to avoid these things at all costs

"I'm really thankful that you care so much to ask, but I feel a lot of pressure when people ask me about all of this and I know you don't mean it that way, but it would really help me if we could talk about something else. Don't worry! I'll let you know what's going on when there is something to report!" Have good manners, use I language, don't blame, but also don't beat around the bush. These are not strangers or acquaintances-- they are family members. It is ok to express your feelings in a clear way with family members.

My new "full" is "not hungry". Sometimes I push it past that and it just feels uncomfortable, bloated (think Thanksgiving but on much much much less food) and sometimes I get left shoulder pain if I've eaten too much. I hate all of those things, so I try really hard to listen when I realize I've eaten enough that I don't "need" to eat another bite even if I want to.

When I told my doc I wanted to lose about 50 more lbs (this was when I was at 198), which would just put me in the "normal" BMI range, he gave me a once over and told me I could stop before that because I'd be too skinny. I think they get just as used to seeing obese people as we get used to seeing us as obese-- so normal now looks skinny I don't know where I'll end up but I do know this-- my surgeon won't be the one to decide when I'm going into maintenance. That's my decision, as long as I'm at a healthy BMI.

I've had two fills. That amount has given me great hunger satiation on smaller amounts of food. It does not "restrict" anything-- I hate that term, btw, because it doesn't really reflect what the band does for me (and I don't want it to, either). Satiation is a better term for how the band has helped me be so successful so far.

You may be feeling the port-- the edges of it anyway. I have no idea if my food sits in the top pouch or moves on through, but I would imagine it moves through. Honestly, surgeons are all over the place on WHY the band works. Some say it is the small pouch, others say it is the band putting pressure on a nerve that controls hunger, etc. I suspect well-chewed food moves through. I can't see why it wouldn't (my band isn't all that tight, but it gives me satiation). Stalling in weight loss after you start regular foods again is normal. However, your part of the equation has to kick in at that point. If you continue to eat large volumes, you are going to increase your chances of a band slip or a esophageal prolapse. Shoot for "not hungry" when you eat, not "full". Get small plates and never eat off a regular sized one again if that's what it takes. The hardest part of all of this is figuring out the behavioral stuff that we have to contribute to the process-- and I agree, it is hard! Don't beat yourself up if it takes you a bit to figure out-- just don't give up!

A note: I have in fact had my gallbladder out, so I didn't have to worry about actually needing the surgery in the future Keep that in mind, any late readers!

I'm sorry that you're dealing with this. I don't know what to tell you, as I have no direct experience. But, if it were me I'd try to white knuckle my way through some months of bandster hell until I was sure getting fills wouldn't worsen my problem. It seems if you are still having occasional pain, then you aren't ready to start tightening again ( since the tight level has been acknowledged as the cause of the prolapse). This is scary and demoralizing-- but try to think long term consequences of a too tight band instead of the short term gains of a fill right now. Give yourself some more time to heal before going back for more.

I use my first weigh in on my 6 month supervised diet. That was my high weight.

You're doing pretty well with 90g. But, if you wanted to cut them drastically, you might eat eggs for Breakfast, a salad with a Protein and full-fat dressing for lunch, and a piece of chicken or fish or steak for dinner with steamed broccoli (or some other non-starchy veg) for dinner.

I go back to this, time and time again, during these debates: When I tell people I do low carb, they preach to me about how unhealthy that is. When I tell people I limit sugar, white flour, and starches, they clap me on the back and tell me how healthy that is. Same thing, different way of saying it. That said, I agree with MouseK-- I try to follow this 75-80% of the time, which means I can still indulge. This is what moderation is, and for me, that's what works best because I can afford to have carbs on occasion.

I eat out, maybe 1x-2x a week on average. The only thing my band doesn't like is french fries. I do try to order low carb (most of the time) and I don't eat out of the bread basket. I pay attention to my hunger and I mostly stop eating when I'm "not hungry" though occasionally I push it to "full" and then regret it all night-- I hate that too full feeling with my band. On Sundays, my husband and I go to a barbecue place. I might order a pulled pork sandwich, and just eat the meat (no bun/no side). Or I'll get a half-salad with smoked turkey and eat 1/2- 2/3rds of it. If I go to a Greek place, I might order a gyro and just eat the insides. If we do Mexican, I might get a burrito and eat 1/3 of it. If you stay away from bread and starches while eating out, you can usually do it fairly low-calorie. And the best part is, you can ALWAYS take leftovers home for the next day or two.

Yay!

I wouldn't worry. I've read that it takes a long time of consistent abuse to stretch it. (Or long-term acid reflux). I'll just let you know-- for me, I've had to learn to stop eating when I'm "not hungry". That's what you might start training yourself to do-- don't look for full, look for not hungry. I know what you mean about that uncomfortably full feeling. I've done it several times over the last 6 months and I hate that feeling! It has motivated me to pay careful attention to how I'm feeling and stop well before it gets to that point.

Definitely find a therapist. An eating disorder specialist would be good, but if you can't find one, a general adult specialist will have LOTS of experience treating depressed folk. Also, look for someone who is Cognitive Behavioral in style-- that's your best bet for effective treatment for both depression and eating disorders (see the APA website for psychotherapies that have been found to be effective in well-controlled research studies). Certainly one issue with the binge eating could be carbs, but depression is a real disorder that isn't caused by food. Work on both simultaneously, and I'm sure you'll be pleased with how much better you feel.

I'm only approved to take Tylenol. I think the stomach bleeding risk with NSAIDS ( a risk for anyone) is thought to be even higher when you've got the band if the med stays in the small pouch. I know some people take them. But I get by with Tylenol and even when it doesn't work as well as ibuprofen for certain kinds of pain, I'd rather not take the chance.

Obviously it's your life. But I cannot imagine how one would go through this process and NOT tell their spouse if they have one. Your eating behavior will be bizarre in the beginning (clear liquids) and noticeably different than it is now, even in the end. Plus, just by living together his eating will change too-- if only because you might not go out to eat as much, or might not want to stock your trigger foods in the house. Not to mention-- what if the truth comes out someday? God forbid you have complications that require additional surgeries down the road. What will that do to your marriage for him to find out you kept this from him? In my marriage, that would count as a serious violation of trust, right up there with cheating or sneaking credit card charges and building major unknown debt. I have to be completely honest-- this question makes me think you need to look into some counseling (marital or individual) before you go through with the surgery. It could help you work through your shame over the weight and your wish to keep it a secret even from your husband. Of course if you're planning on ending the marriage, then my above advice doesn't hold water-- in that case, the circumstances are different.

I could be wrong, but I think to post directly in a post, you have to host the picture somewhere online like photobucket or flicker, and then hit that little picture icon above-- post the url of the pic online in that box.

I love NSV posts! 1. I fit comfortably in an airplane seat. Belt buckles AND I can tighten it! I can keep my arms comfortably at my sides without intruding into other people's space. I can put the tray table down and it comes nowhere close to my belly. This has been such an amazing change for me-- flying is no longer filled with shame. 2. I can sit in seats in public venues without 1) worrying that I will break that rickety chair, or 2) have bruises on my thighs from squeezing in, or 3) rubbing body parts with the person squeezed next to me. 3. I can close a normal-sized towel around me without showing any of my goodies. 4. I can wear cute shoes! I had plantar fasciitis before and could only wear Crocs for about 6 months before surgery-- even then, just walking around in my house gave me pretty bad foot pain. That went away very early in the weight loss process and now I can wear heels again. 5. I no longer avoid my reflection. I'm not vain or anything, but when I pass a mirror, I'll actually look. 6. I am able to exercise, though I should do it more. Yoga and Zumba are currently my faves. 7. I am down from a tight 3x in tops to a size L, and from a 22 in pants to a 12 (and I have two pairs of 10's that fit now too). 8. I can wear my wedding ring again. In fact, it's getting too loose. 9. My driver's license has me 70lbs HIGHER than my actual weight. I have to renew it this summer anyway, so I've just been putting it off. In fact, I'm a little worried about my passport-- I just got it last year and I don't want to pay for another one just because I look SO different. Anyone have any experience with this? I know I'll need it 2x in the next year to travel to the Dominican Republic, and then Asia. I could go on, but I have to get ready for work!