honk

That's BS. I talk with my Hemotologist and Neurologist by phone all the time. They know I live an hour plus away and to drive all the way there for a 10 minute conversation is stupid.

The nurse at my doctors office said that when you are stressed it causes your stomach to tense so I wonder if issues when flying are due to stress and the tissue under the band rather than the band itself.

Personally since I eat carrots every single day; I think you are too tight if they won't go down. I'm not saying this to be mean spirited. Anything that is "junky" that goes "right down" needs to leave your food rotation. A cup of carrots is like 35 calories a cup of crackers is closer to 350.

I would say my experience has been very much like yours. I got stuck before my first fill because I was super hungry and ate a baby carrot to fast. It hurts like the dickens! I was lucky however in that it passed in 2-3 minutes. After a couple fills I got stuck again on baby carrots again because I ate to fast. My only other stuck episode came with grilled turkey tips that were too dry. Again it did pass after a couple minutes.

One way to give the shakes a frappe/frosty texture is to make "milk cubes" in an ice cube tray. 1/3 milk cup is 2 full size ice cubes. Add 2/3 cup fat free milk. Mix in a blender. Run a search on here to look for low/no calorie add in's that will help make the shake taste better.

How far out are you from sugery? Until the port area is complete healed it could hurt to put pressure

I take smaller pills and capsules with no problem. I do choose chewable vitamins, fiber, and calcium. FYI I was told not to take vitamins though for the first 2 weeks.

According to my doctor you will never be full on 1/2 cup of food. I've never read on here that a doctor ever said 1/2 cup. What I do hear is "My friend says they only eat 1/2 cup". Well, people say all kinds of things does'nt make them true. My doctor says 3 oz of Protein. You may be able to shove that into half a cup but what about the veggies? Anyway. Before restriction this is a diet. Took me 6 months. My advice is to weigh your protein and then measure 1 cup of veggies and when that's done stop eating. Since I often have many hours (6 or more) between lunch and dinner, since I go to the gym; my Nut. said to have low fat cheese stick to hold me over. She also said the Premier ready to drink (160 cal, 30 protein) would be okay for a snack.

Many aspects of prebanding will depend on your insurance and doctor as previously mentioned. My doctor also required a 10% body weight loss presurgery (sounds harsh I know but think of it as the last time you will have to loose those 20 pounds). My doctor required that "normal/common" yearly test be completed presurgery mammogram, pap smear, general physical, EKG. If you have some sort of preexisting condition you will need clearance from your specialist that you are healthy enough for surgery. I'd had a ministroke and had to show that the blood clot was clear enough for me to have surgery (set me back another 3 months for surgery). I know it's hard but this time before surgery is a big part of setting yourself up for success! You will read on this board that people are upset that the band does'nt "Stop" them from eating unhealthy food like ice cream or candy. It will NOT do that. EVER. Anything that melts in your mouth will slide right on down through. After all Water goes right through a funnel right? If your doctor does not have a mindful eating sessions/meetings with a psychologist who specializes in obesity find one. You need to learn what prompts you to eat. What foods do you look to when you are bored or depressed? This is at least a 50% mental battle.

My mother's opinion on how American's make veggies is that they are boring. Take cooked spinach, bleah who would eat that. Add some garlic however and you got something! My sister has two boys both grew up in a house that was practically vegetarian for many years. One won't eat vegetables.

I got a terrible rash from the surgical tape that they used to mark off the "surgical field". Raised welts and everything. Really was the worst part of the surgery for me. So I guess I can't complain to loudly.

Did your doctor give you a post op eating plan? I ask because I was on clear liquids(broth), and protein shakes (just milk no fruit) for 7 days. I did not move to full liquids until day 8, and yoghurt and pudding until day 15. I had no stomach/pouch pain post op. Based on my experiences and doctors orders I would stick to clear liquids with protein shakes for now.

I would check the manufacturers site for a list of doctors. Some have additional training on a particular brand Allergen or Johnson & Johnson and that is noted on their websites. Take a look on Yahoo Groups and see if there one for people who live in Shanghai who have been banded.

I ask my doctor's office if they are seeing more people coming in due to this change. I was told not yet because it does'nt really matter what the FDA says since most people use insurance and the insurance company decides who they will approve.

I don't have anything that I cant eat. I would be seriously screwed if I could'nt eat chicken; it's my primary protein.

I think telling them that you need surgery to be healthier is a good answer. Also the eight year old is big enough to help you with things the first couple weeks when you can't lift things over 5 pounds. When I was a kid and my mother was sick she used to say "Nurse Nancy get me ......" (Anyone else have the "Nurse Nancy" book?) Your oldest can be a Nurse Nancy or John and bring you drinks or jello.

First the band has to be your decision. While I don't have the issues eating certain foods like others on this site; being banded is a commitment. Make sure that you want the band; having surgery because your mother thinks it's a good idea is setting yourself up for failure. That said I wish this surgery had been available when I was 17. Have your mother call her insurance to see if they 1) cover lap band, 2) whether they will approve it for someone who is 17. If you would'nt be using insurance that is one hurdle you won't have to worry about. Also call and ask the doctor's office if they will operate on someone who is 17. Good Luck!

Premier protein ready to drink from costco is also very good; avail. chocolate and vanilla. 30 g protein 160 cal.

Post fill my doctor says full liquids for 24 hours so I would not recommend having solids anyway the first day.

Most doctors say that it can take up to two week for a fill to "hit". Mine tend to feel tighter the first week and then go down. My office schedules my fills out 4-5 weeks but I can call to see if they have any cancellations at the 3 week mark. At the beginning I did that which is a good thing because it still took me 6 months to get restriction.

For comic relief; one day preband I was heading to the gym it's lunch I have'nt eaten and am starving. Gym's in the middle of nowhere but does have a Dunkin Donuts next door. I go in and ask for one of the morning wraps: egg whites, no wrap, and no cheese! The kid looked at me like I was a nut! "Let me get this straight so you only want the egg part?" Yes. "How do I charge you for that?" Me "That's okay it's only a dollar to start with." Two things that have gotten stuck: baby carrots, and left over grilled BBQ turkey tips (that were super dry from microwaving). Since baby carrots are 1/2 of my veggie intake I had to learn how to eat them carefully. Last time I got the Turkey tips I ask the server for extra BBQ sauce so that when I heated up my left overs I could moisten them up.

The veggies don't worry me at all they are mush with one chew. As for the chicken not that worried but yes please return to your doctors orders. I was on clear liquids for 7 days and then full liquids (tomato, squash )soups for another seven days with protein shakes. Then I could move to cottage cheese. Is your program similar? For liquid phase I highly recommend MRS Dash unsalted flavorings esp. Chicken. If you put it in preheating it reconstitues the the tiny minced garlic and onion and makes the soup soooooo much better. My fav. soups were Pacific brand sweet red pepper with tomato, and Progresso tomato basil. Once you can have egg whites, at the very end of cooking I would add 1/8 cup of low fat chive cottage cheese so good. At canned chicken stage I mixed mine with low fat laughing cow cheese (lots of flavors); since it's cheese you can heat it in the oven.

I don't think addinging it to milk or plain yoghurt would taste that good. When I do add it to protein shakes I add splendra. I don't think PB2 contains any sweetener so it's just peanut powder. Since PB2 is defatted peanut dust it's not going to taste all that great by itself. As they say fat is where the flavor is! My sister who is not banded spreads jam on a piece of bread and then sprinkles PB2 on the jelly. She thinks it's okay I've never tried it that way.

I was wondering what fill levels people have at this time? Also at what level did you start to see restriction and at what level did you hit your "sweet spot"?. I did not see much until 9.6 cc's and may be at my sweet spot at 10.6. Also do you feel full on the perscribed amounts of food? Would you say you feel full or more a level of satiation? Personally I initially feel satisfied/no longer hungry and after a few minutes feel full. Don't get me wrong I'm not unhappy with my decision. Just wondered if your experience is a little different then what you thought it might be heading in.

Congrats on your non scale victory!