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I would try Protein shots instead of whey isolate if dairy is'nt staying down. Protein shots are 3 oz of colored protein water. You can buy them at Walmart and Target; they have 30 g protein.

JerseyMom29, It sounds like your doctor is trying to get you in the habit of band eating. Your diet is basically what my doctor recommends for post op eating, once your allowed back on solids. Until you have restriction it will be all about will power so this is good practice.

I did not get any restricton until I was at 9.4 CC. I think I may be at restriction at 10CC. I am a slow loser. Are you exercising? If you are you may need to add more days or length.

Some people hvae problem with eggs. Besides that fact I don't think you need a fill if you are having trouble eating solids.

I don't understand at allll that you are'nt on blood thinners! Whether you can physically get to the doctor's or not CALL THEM!I had a blood clot and the person who tested my blood was a nurses assistant. Sorry but I would give her power over my health. I had a blood clot in the brain. I could'nt speak or use my right hand. PETRIFYING!!!! Get a DOCTORS advice immediatly. Am I trying to scare you yes. I think you should have already seen your surgeon.

Congratulations! Are you at restriction? My 6 month anniversery will be 2/13. I think I may now be at restriction after 8 fills! I am a at 34 pounds, which I am happy about but could be even happier at 60.

I use flavorless Benefiber. I buy a large bottle at Costco and add it to my breakfast yoghurt and to soups on the post fill days.

If you will actually be awake for more than 16 hours a day I would explain to your doctor and see if you can add an extra protein shake or what ever else you are allowed. If you are awake and moveing around you are burning more calories and your doctor should be sensative to that.

I know this is'nt what you want to here. You need to remember this is about your health. He is only a boyfriend. He's not your husband. If you have a stroke or heart attach is he going to care your you? You need to take care of YOU. I spent to much of my life worrying more about my job than my health. At 39 I had a minor stroke. 39!!! Personally I think he's worried you will get thin and leave him. To be truthfull I think you need to leave him now. I'm not going to be one of those people who say to coddle him and explain to him, and I will still love you to him. I don't think he's much of a keeper.

Some people refer to this time as Bandster Hell; because you are eating very small portions but only because of will power. Not to be a downer but your fill may or may not do you any good. I did not have any restriction until my 7 th fill at 9.4; and may have restriction now at 10 CC. Again, I'm not being negative just want to give you my experience. In regards to portions I recommend buying a digital food scale. Esp. one that lets you put on a plate then zero it out. Measure out your Protein as directed by your doctor (mine calls for 3 oz). If you need a snack between meals try to make it low cal/fat protein based cheese stick, fat free greek yoghurt. I do have fruit as a snack as well such as grapes or cherries where you can eat 3 or 4 instead of eating a whole apple. Also clemintines are good because they are small. These of course would only be appropriate once you move to solids. Have you been cleared to exercise? If so find something you think you can enjoy. Once you do something 28 days it becomes a habit. I highly recommend lap swimming (I use a Water proof MP3 player).

Calories per serving is super frustrating. During my mindfull eating classes I started reading nutritian labels my favorites mulitple servings per container are: poptarts (you get two per package), rolls (calories listed are for half a role). Who eats half a roll.

I have a problem overeating crunch foods (chips, cereal, crackers) so I would say not to be eating any nacho types chips. And they certainly are'nt mushies! For mushie chicken I recommend mixing canned chicken with low fat laughing cow cheese. I also would'nt make a habit off eating chedder/colby cheese because it's high in fat.

I do think it's great that you are asking a lot of questions now. There are people that post on here after the surgery who are unhappy and I feel bad for them. Some doctors are clearly better than others teaching people about the band. Okay, that said the band does'nt have a beginning or end. It's a tool to help you loose and maintain weight. It does not however operate in a vacuum. You need to do a lot of the work physically and mentally. There are people that have their band loosened for vacations. Do I agree? NO. This is how I look at it. Most thin people eat A LOT less than I did presurgery. However, they still enjoy food. They like pizza, cake, Nachos. The difference is they don't eat them daily; and their serving sizes are MUCH smaller. While some bandsters say when they hit restriction they can't eat certain foods; I don't have that problem. The one food that I've had a problem with? Baby Carrots! Carrots? Are you serious?! Presurgery I read posts that people did'nt go out to eat much anymore because food was just not that important to them. I thought that was pretty dumb but I can really relate now. You develop a new relationship with food. Regarding fills it can take a long time to hit restriction; for me 6 months! Would I get an unfill and have to take another 6 months to hit restriction? Ummmmm NO. Not to mention the cost depending on you insurance. The band is not a magic fix. Some people refer to the weight falling off. I should be so lucky. If you're planning on that happening. Don't. Some people don't have to exercise. Don't plan on that either. They say people loose 1-2 pounds a week. I have lost an average off 1 pound and I eat very conservatively and exercise 7 days a week. I would evaluate your expectations and address them with either your doctor or the nurse to see if they feel those expectations accurate.

Talk to your doctor but mine said day of surgery was day 1.

It is really amazing how much food people eat; and how many snacks! The grazing is another thing that once your not doing it it's kind of disturbing.

I am at 10CC's (I think 8 fills). I experience more of a no longer hungry vs being full.

One question I have for some of you who are loosing 3+ pounds a week is are you at restriction? I exercise an hour a day 7 days a week; eat a very conservative diet and am averaging 1 pound a week. I have to say when I read these posts I get depressed.

1. How long have you had your band? August 13,2010 2. How much weight have you lost? 32lb 3. How many fills and unfills did you get until you found the "sweet spot"? 8 I think 10 CC's 4. If you stick to a particular diet (ie weight watchers, low carb, atkins, etc) which on works for you? I follow the 90/10 rule. Eat healthy most of the time and special occasions like someone birthday I can have cake. I make sure to get 3 Oz of protein at each meal. 5. How often do you exercise? Seven days a week. One hour of Lap Swimming, water proof MP3 players are the best invention ever! 6. Does anyone do Yoga and how long did you wait until you started practicing again? No 7. Do you ever drink alcohol? No 8. What foods give you a problem? Not really. The only thing that has given me issues is baby carrots when I them to fast. 9. Does your port stick out? No. In fact it is really deep and the nurse really needs to look for it. 10. How much water do you get in each day? Probably 80 oz. I do drink a lot of decaf coffee being as the North East has turned into a frozen tundra. 11. Any tips that will help on the journey? Really think about what your food triggers are. You may need to cut them out of your life. I used to have all kinds of crackers, cookies, Baked potato chips, cereal. I would either sit down and eat half a box of cereal or snack on it all day. Now I only get to have crackers if I’m at a party and eat 2-3. Also start concentrating and thinking about what you’re eating. The more you savor each bite the more you’ll enjoy it.

I had my own personal issues with Peanut Butter as well. It was'nt until I moved over to honey nut Peter Pan crunchy that I had to force myself to stop. So you are not alone. I don't know if its the salt or the suger or what. I have stopped buying it completely. I do occationally buy salted peanuts in the shell. They give me a salty snack but I it takes me longer to eat them because of the shell. I also only eat them standing up over the garbage so I don't get to comfortable. Yes, I know peanuts are bad fat, calories, salt. \ You can buy PB2 online which is defatted peanuts that are ground into a powder. Regular and chocolate. Occationally I add it to chocolat Protein shakes on post fill days.

STOP EATING SOLIDS! Yes I know I'm yelling. Whether your band has any filling or not you stomach is still healing from surgery. You could be doing permanent damage! Clear liquid diets suck, but they are there for a reason. I know I'm being harsh but I think you knew people would be harsh when you posted this. The band does not prevent being hungry. I am six months out and just now getting restriction which means until now not eating has been all will power.

I would only think it's bloating if you are consuming a lot of salt. Are you visiting with a Nutritionist; or attending any sessions on mindful eating? I did'nt really have a diet required by my insurance but my doctor required that I loose 30 pounds. As part of my presurgery classes I learned that I did a lot of mindless eating especially carbs of all kinds: crackers, cookies, low fat baked potato chips, children's cereal. You need to really evaluate what you eat. I won't say to journal because I don't. One thing I do is look at my shopping cart and ask myself if I would be embarassed if my doctor saw me at the grocery store! While I would'nt say I'm a low carb person; carbs don't keep you full like protein.

I feel that way in the regular ladies dept. One reason is that I am pair shaped so while I may fit into a XL tops I clearly won't fit in the bottoms in that section.

I think all off us WANTED to loose really quickly but for some/most of us it is'nt super fast. Let me start by saying I don't regret having surgery at all. Due to other medical concerns I had was 8.5 months from first consult to surgery. Much longer than most! Not all doctors require a liquid diet. I ended up doing my own diet which toward the end was 2 whey isolate Protein shakes with a low cal/fat/carb protein based lunch. The more you loose now the easier it will be on your surgeon and the lower your end game loss. I had port area pain after surgery but no pain from the other incisions. My biggest issue post op was actually a reaction I had to surgical tape which gave me welts. Uggg. I was on liquid tylenol only. Post op diet I recommend Stock vs broth. Mrs Dash no salt Flavorings added before heating are great! I bought a personal size blender by Hamilton Beach($15) where the mixing container is a travel mug; so no washing an extra piece. I buy whey isolate Protein powder at Vitamin Shoppe good prices and if you don't like something you can exchange. I also buy Ready to Drink at costco, Premier Brand 160 cal. 30 g Protein. Greek yoghurt has twice the protein of regular. I buy chobani fat free with fruit but have to add splendra because it's sour. Post surgery I mixed it with a stick blender adding Tablespoon of milk to thin it out. Post surgery follow your doctors orders to the letter. Post op diets ARE for a reason. Go on YouTube and watch a surgery (no blood so not gross at all). You will see how the surgeon attaches the band by sewing parts of your stomach above the band to parts below the band. Many people post they are hungry so they moved to solids at one week. Unless your doctor approves it don't do that! You don't want your stomach churning while the stiches are fresh! I had been exercising presurgery. Four days after surgery I went back to the gym but only did the treadmill; started out reallyyyy slow for 30 minutes and worked my way up (no incline). At two weeks I went back to lap swimming (1 hr, daily) freestyle no breaststroke or butterfly (Highly recommend swimming, love having a Water proof MP3 player). I did go on walks after surgery to get the gas moving and to prevent bloodclots. After swelling goes down and before fills your body will be just like it was before surgery. This will be a diet; both in serving sizes and food choices. I am 6 months out have had I think 8 fills and hopefully am now at restriction. Some people get restrction sooner than I did; lucky them. Some people loose faster than others. Very frustrating. Averaged out over six months I have lost about 1 pound a week. This means some weeks I've lost nothing. I exercise daily and follow what I would call a pretty strick diet 90% of the time. I wish people would'nt post how "weight is falling off" because many people don't experience that; and I think it creates false expectations. I totally understand getting frustrated when you feel your working hard on a diet and the scale is not moving. If you have clothes in your closet that don't fit I would try them on occationlly to check your progress. There have been times the scale is not moving but I am loosing size.

Are you at restriction? Does your doctor advicate Snacks or having larger meals and not eating in between? My doctor prefers that I not snack. Butttt my Nut says it's okay to have small snack before going to the gym if there will be a large gap between lunch and dinner. Based on the above philosphy I would consider larger meals and try to cut out the snacks (eating more veggies will be less calories and fat then cheese and crackers). For Protein shake I would recommend Premier Ready to drink 160 cal for 30 g Protein. That would be 100 cal savings. For fruit depending on the season I like grapes or cherries becuase you can eat 2-3 and it's not like commiting to a whole apple. I also like Clemintines because they are so small.

Since my last fill I've notice a difference in the morning. One thing in particular is taking my morning non chewable vitamins. I take several small pills and they kind of feel like preband when you swallowed something without water and it goes down slowly. So even with the water I get this sensation. I do not have any probelms however with my morning breakast which is Chobani Greek fat free fruited yoghurt with: half scoop whey isolate, splendra, benefiber, some kashi go lean. Greek yoghurt is thicker than regular yoghurt and I do have the cereal in there. I'm hoping I may be at restriction. I don't think I would want to be tighter than this in the morning since I don't really want to have a protein drink for breakfast. I like chewing.