marykb

I've eaten a couple of tsp. with banana and also on a slice of whole grain bread.

Do you mind if I ask what "not always being careful" means? What did you do that wasn't careful? Thanks, Mary

Congratulations!

I have never had a problem with egg salad.

I usually have around 500 calories a day. Sometimes a bit more and sometimes a bit less.

I have been in therapy for a couple of years now, for a different issue, with a psychiatrist. I have found it is very helpful for me now dealing with weight loss and surgery. Since she knows me very well, she knows the ways I can sabotage myself (as I've done many times before surgery) and she really helps me be realistic in what I'm doing. When I get frustrated because I don't feel like I'm doing this right, or discouraged because I feel like I'm failing at this, she has been wonderful. I agree with Spartan though, if you don't already have a relationship with a counselor, I think it is a really good idea to get a specialist. Mary

I got home from work and while I was changing clothes I remembered I'm supposed to weigh today. I usually weigh in the afternoon because that is when I see the Dr. Anyway, I jump on the scale and am just ecstatic to see I've lost 4 lbs. I finish getting dresed and then I realized that I always weigh with all of my clothes on. So I weighed again. Instead of 4 lbs, I'd lost about .5 pounds. I was telling my husband and he started to laugh because I had just weighed myself 2 days ago and completely forgot about it. It ends up that I'm almost exactly the same as I was 2 days ago--at least I haven't gained anything.

My Dr. says no drinks 20 mins before and 1 hour after. It does seem like an hour lasts forever sometimes! I drink before I leave for work, which is a 20 minute drive--then I eat Breakfast when I get there. I've found the best way for me to know when to eat or drink is to use my calendar at work. I set reminders for when I need to eat--after 20 minutes, then after I finish eating, I set a reminder to go off 60 minutes later. That really helps me know when to eat and drink.

I am on 2 oz or 1/4 C of food 3x a day. If I get really hungry, I'll have a protein drink as well. I've been banded since 4/8 and the most calories I've had since then has been 809. Most days I'm between 400 and 500 calories. I thought I would be completely exhausted, but I actually have as much energy, if not more, than before I had the band.

My Dr. has said the same thing to me. He had more patients that had slippage with the Lapband than the Realize band, although there were still very few patients that had slippage overall. He also folded my stomach over the band and stitched it down. I really hope that it doesn't ever slip. I asked a lot of questions about that before surgery because I have a very sensitive gag reflex. I have been known to throw up over and over just due to post-nasal drip! The Dr. told me that as long as you weren't violently ill for days, chances of slippage were very, very slim. Mary

I was told that mushies were soft foods, but I still needed to chew well--I didn't need to use a blender or anything. I could eat things like scrambled eggs, cottage cheese and things like that. I just made sure that I chewed my food until it was the consistency of applesauce before I swallowed it.

I've only told my husband, aunt and a very close friend. They have all been very supportive. I purposely didn't tell anyone I thought wouldn't be supportive, would behave like the food police, or would make snide comments to me. I wish I could have more supportive people around me, but this is just how it is, so I need to get support where I can find it. Mary

I was at a cookout last weekend and they had some crackers, cheese and meats out, so I had a few small pieces of turkey--which worked. I've also eaten about 1/4 of a hotdog at a cook out before. It worked for me because my son ate the rest and I could just tell people I was sharing with him if they asked me about it.

I don't count when I'm chewing, but I do count when I drink. I have a tendency to take a big drink and after I have it in my mouth realize it is too big of a swallow. So, I have to swallow 3 or 4 times to get it all down. You would think I would have the hang of it by now. :biggrin:

I'm pretty happy so far. I know this won't continue, but I've lost over 30 lbs very quickly, so I'm enjoying it while I can.:tongue2: I haven't had a fill yet (my surgery date was 4/8), but I'm not super hungry every day. I've noticed if it is slow at work, or not much is going on at home, I'm much hungrier. I was busy yesterday and after Breakfast I didn't get hungry again. I made myself eat 1/2 piece of bread with a bit of turkey and cheese on it at 2, but by then it had been over 6 hrs since breakfast. I hope I can keep this up! I just know it is going to get harder, the longer I keep at it.

Congratulations!

I"m 5'7" and my goal is 180. We'll see how hard that is and how I feel, look, etc. and if I can go from there. If I decide to set a lower goal, I will at that point. But, I would be very happy at 180. Mary

Congratulations!

I had my surger on 4/8 and every once in awhile, if I turn a certain way, I still get some pain. I think it is pretty normal to still have a bit of pain after 1 week. It takes quite awhile be fully healed. If you are concerned though, call your Dr. Mary

I don't blame you! I would be going nuts. It was bad enough for me to be on liquids the day before surgery and a week afterwards. I can't imagine being on liquids for over a month! Mary

I had this problem as well and used Benadryl and Calamine lotion and that helped a lot. Mary

I know how you feel. We spent $12,000 on it and I feel like I am throwing our money away if I don't succeed and succeed quickly. When I go to the grocery store, or out with my family I see all of these people enjoying themselves and I feel like a failure for not being a "normal" person who can be healthy and lose weight on my own. While I'm glad I'm losing weight and getting healthier, I also regret that I ended up in a position where I had to get the band to begin with. Mary

My pre-op diet was just my regular diet. :thumbup: I had my surgery on a Thursday. Monday and Tuesday I wasn't supposed to eat very much meat--I could eat whatever I wanted to otherwise. Wednesday was liquids. Other than that, I ate whatever I wanted before the surgery.

Congratulations!

I also had surgery on the 8th and went to the Dr yesterday. I was supposed to have a fill, but the Dr said I was doing fine and if I wasn't super hungry between meals, I didn't have to have a fil. Some days I get hungry and some days I don't, so I put it off. I have to admit my terror of needles had something to do with it though. :laugh: