AnonWY

Damn, I got stuck for the first time today! That was not pleasant at all, and it's 100% a wake up call. I was in a restaurant and it was all downhill after one bite. I had to wait for the restroom and I thought I was going to pass out. It hard to breathe and i was trying SO hard not to vomit in public. I tried to get sick in the bathroom but to no avail. But, the action of trying to make myself sick made it better. Now I'm petrified to eat anything. Ugh.

Hey all - I'm a newbie. Banded by Dr. Vernon on July 7th. The band hasn't "kicked in" yet, but I'm doing well with sticking to the nutrition plan. Today was my first 'cheat' - I had about 3 bites of ice cream during an ice cream social at work. The pre-op me would have downed a full bowl and only stopped because others were there. Since I'm not that restricted and I can eat, I have to be very careful not to overeat. It's all about learning to listen to my body. I would love to join you all in the post-op groups. Looked on B&W and the Faulkner site and couldn't find the information. Can someone fill me in (pun intended) on when they are?

I was banded on July 7, 2010 and right now I have very minimal restriction, if any at all. I'm down about 17lbs or so. They key for me has been really sticking to the nutrition guidelines set for me. Today was the very first day I really strayed from the meal plan. There was an ice cream social at work and rather than have the huge bowl I normal would, I had about 3 small spoonfulls. I'm trying my best to practice for when I do have restriction. I'm chewing my food really well and the most important thing I'm doing is listening to when my body says I'm full. I never did that before.

Moved to Stage 3 today! Hello foods! So interesting the difference in what our doctors direct us to eat post-op. My doc had me on Protein shakes and Water for two weeks pre-op and two weeks post op. I was hungry, but I didn't cheat one bit. (So unlike me in previous weight loss attempts.) I saw the nutritionist today and she moved me on to stage 3. Mushy and soft foods...but not entirely. I can have chicken and fish and mashed potato. I'm so happy to eat something new! I was one of those people that thought I wouldn't feel my band really working until my first fill. But tonight I had a 1/2 cup of potato and a few peas. A put in on a small plate and I couldn't even eat half of it. I stopped eating when I felt full. And I'm sitting here 40 minutes later very full. YAY!! 15lbs in total since pre-op. I'll take what I can get!

I was banded back on July 7th. Still feeling just a tinge of discomfort around my incision site, but nothing I would classify as pain. Still feeling pretty tired. I've never been one to exercise, but I'd really like to make the most of this new life, and I'd like to get started. When did people start exercising after surgery? Besides walking, did your doctors specifically encourage/discourage any kind of exercise?

I'm with @LilMissDiva - just stick with it and take it one day at a time. I was banded on July 7th. I'm not sure doctors properly set expectations about post-op weight loss. If not for obsessively reading these forums, I might have been disappointed too. Everyone is different, but if you don't put any expectations on yourself over the first 4-5 weeks, and just try to stick with what your doctor tells you. As far as weight..don't forget about Water weight!

I was banded back on July 7th. Thought I'd chime in with an update. The first week after surgery kicked my ass. The pain wasn't too bad, as long as I stayed ahead of it via my prescribed pain meds. It just felt like I did a ton of sit ups. What really got to me was my complete lack of energy. I had surgery on a Wednesday and was set to go back to work on Monday. I did...and lasted two hours. It was just too much too soon. I worked from home Tues-Thursday and on Friday I really felt back to my self. So if you are like me and thinking you'll just bounce back, please take my advice and take the time to let your body recover. I had back surgery in December, so I figured this surgery would be nothing compared to that. But surgery is surgery, and it's exhausting. As for the eating/drinking. My doc has me on protein shakes and clear liquids. The protein shakes haven't been too bad. Trying to get in my water. Sugar free popsicles are a nice treat. Tried the chicken brother - not for me. This past Friday (11 days post-op) I was allowed to start eating yogurt...hello heaven! Going to the nutritionist on Monday and I think I'll be moving to mushy next week. By far, the two hardest things for me have been the exhaustion and the HUNGER! Good lord, I don't think I've ever been so obsessed with food in my life. (Probably because in the past I would just eat anything I wanted.) But right now, in 'bandster hell', I feel like food is haunting me. Pizza, burgers, chips...I want it all! Thank God for this band! I don't feel a lot of restriction, so I think I could possibly eat some of the stuff I'm craving, but why go through ALL this just to cheat and go back to old habits that clearly didn't work. Not worth it. This band has helped me a LOT in modifying my expectations. My mom had gastric and the weight dropped so fast. I'm glad I had others tell me to be patient. I'm down about 12 lbs so far (including pre-op). On one hand it doesn't seem like a lot, but on the other (more important hand...GO ME! Chronic heartburn sufferer pre-op - none since post-op. Sorry for the novel, but I wanted to share my update with those of you going in soon. Best of luck to all. Choose yourself. Follow your doctors orders. Believe that you have the strength because you do. Don't sell yourself short. It's just food. Your health and well being is more important than the instant gratification of food.

Banded on July 7th. Doing well. Less post-op pain than I thought. To me the pain feels like I did about 5k situps. sleeping hasn't been too tough but I have to be careful when moving on to my side. Stomach is swollen and uncomfortable but really not all that bad...yay! Definitely not hungry

Very happy to have found this forum to chat with others who are having surgery this month. Best of luck to you all! My surgery is scheduled for July 7th. I can't I'm nervous really, just anxious to get moving. Having been on the liquid diet for two weeks, I can't get my head around the fact that post-surgery I won't have the hunger cravings I have now. My mom had gastric about a year and a half ago and she looks amazing! She said that I won't have the cravings...she better be right