vickyd

I might be wrong, but it seems to me that there should be someone at your medical school (an instructor perhaps) who could give you an unfill if you ran into an emergency situation. It might be worth checking in to...

Your instructions are a bit extreme but I agree that you should follow your doctor's orders. If you don't like the Muscle Milk then try some other protein shakes. Everyone has different tastes so hopefully you can find one you like. There are also unflavored powders that you can mix with whatever you want.

I have felt that way from time to time. My NUT finally convinced me to make myself have a protein drink on those days. I don't like doing it but if my calories are too low then I dont lose and I definitely want to get my protein in so I don't start losing my hair.

First of all, congratulations on getting accepted to Medical School! In addition to the things you already mentioned, my suggestions would be cans or pouches of tuna, chicken and roast beef, cans of turkey chili, Soup, fat free refried Beans, canned veggies, Protein bars, nuts, beef or turkey jerkey and dried fruit. Hope that helps!

Some people (me included) have trouble digesting the whey protein that is in many shakes which results in a lot of gas. You might want to try a lactose free shake (Muscle Milk Light or GNC Isopure) and see if that helps.

Nope - I was too scared that I might mess something up and not be able to have surgery. My last splurge was the night before my pre-op diet started.

NUT = Nutritionist

Hi Karen! Welcome from another December bandster. We have an on-going thread in the POST-Operation area called "December 2010 Bandsters out there?". Feel free to pop in and introduce yourself. Also, I have a question about your diet...I don't see a lot of Protein listed at all. I realize that you have a gluten allergy but you can eat protein, right? I'm just suprised your surgeon is ok with you eating such a small amount of protein... Good Luck to you!

A lot of us go into this hoping it will work but worrying that it won't...it's normal since we have failed at so many attempts to lose weight in the past. The biggest piece of advice I can give you is to go into this with an open mind and be prepared to do your part. Over the past 5 months since I had surgery, I can't tell you the number of posts I have seen on here by people who were frustrated and giving up because they weren't prepared to make the lifestyle changes necessary to be a success. For a lot of people, once the swelling goes down after surgery they don't feel any restriction at all. This time period until you feel restriction will be the most challenging...your band won't limit your portion sizes as much as you want and you will probably wonder why you did this if it all boils down to willpower...just keep remembering why you decided to have surgery in the first place and that this period of "bandster hell" will no last forever. Also, don't compare your weight loss with others...there are people on here who were banded at the same time I was who have lost more weight and some who have lost less. Everyone's experience is different so don't make yourself crazy by trying to compare... I can honestly tell you that having the surgery is the best thing I have ever done for myself. If you go into this with the right mind-set you will do great!!

I met with mine twice. Once at the initial consultation and again during my pre-op. The only other times I have met with him is on the day of surgery and for my 2 week post op appt. After that, I only meet with the PA (who charts my progress and does the fills) and with the NUT (about every 2 months or so).

You could probably use another fill since you can still eat larger quantities of food. My surgeon's office looks at a lot of different things before deciding on whether or not to give a fill: 1) weight loss, 2) how much you can eat, 3) hunger between meals, 4) your opinion as to whether or not you need a fill. Every time I go in, I fill in a questionnaire with all of this info and then discuss my answers with the PA before we make a decision on whether or not to fill. So far, I have only had 1 fill but at that time I was doing fine in all areas except the fact that I was getting hungry about 1 1/2 - 2 hours after eating. She gave me a fill and I was fine after that...

My surgeon's office told me that as long as your band isn't super tight you should be able to take some very small pills without having to crush them(all of my daily meds fall in this category). As far as pain relief, I stick to liquid pain relievers (I keep bottles at home and at work) but there are some disolvable pain relievers that you could use. I don't take a lot of tylenol, etc so maybe someone else has some better suggestions.

I hate to say it, but that could also be part of the problem. Prepackaged meals have a ton of sodium which could be affecting your weight loss. Maybe try buying a rotisserie chicken at the grocery store then heat up canned veggies or have a salad to go with it...that won't require cooking and might be a better choice...

I was actually given a prescription for a disolvable medication (can't remember the name) instead of having to crush them. I have since switched to the pills and since they are so small I can swallow them with no problem. I started taking it a month before surgery after my endoscopy indicated some damage to my stomach lining due to reflux (I was unaware that I even had chronic reflux). Since I was prescribed it after surgery and they have never told me to stop taking it, I still take it every morning...

Everyone's caloric needs are different. A lot of people stick to 1200 as a guideline but there are also many people who do better with slightly lower or slightly higher levels. I don't exercise as much as you are and my best range is 1,000-1,100 but there are people on here who exercise a lot and lose better at 1,400 or even higher. My suggestion would be to "tweak" your calories slightly and give it several days to see if there is any change. Also look at what are you eating...I seem to do better on a lower carb diet (below 40 g per day)...again, that's just what works for me. You will find that throughout this process you will be continually evaluating what you are eating and making slight changes in order to keep things moving.

Good luck to you...I'm sure you will do fine. Your husband is probably a little bit nervous himself...both about you having surgery in the first place and also about the unknown (how your new journey will affect him).

How many calories are your eating each day? With all of the exercise you are doing, it is possible that you aren't eating enough.

Many of us on here have a realize band. Other than the fact that the different tyes of bands have different capacities, there are really no major differences. There is a lot of good advice here regardless of the type if band they have...Welcome!

It is possible but be careful about setting unrealistic expectations because you don't want to get down on yourself if you don't meet that goal. I consider myself a pretty fast loser and I have averaged a little under 3 lbs a week but my weight loss has slowed down significantly over the past month. I also started out with a little over 160 lbs to lose so I expected the weight to come off faster than those with less to lose.

I know Joan...I don't do very well with fruit (for some strange reason I don't like eating it)...so far, my NUT hasn't said anything about me not eating it but I really need to figure out a way to incorporate it into my diet. I'm glad you are doing better and not throwing up anymore...hopefully they can start giving you fills soon so you can start feeling restriction soon. You are doing great...hang in there!!!

Definitely try some other brands of shakes. I like chocolate and vanilla Isopure from GNC...the nice thing about GNC is that you can return it if you dont like it (ask them about their return policy). Unflavored protein powder is another great idea to help mix things up. I have also heard good things about Syntax Nector...I haven't tried it myself but know several people who love it.

My biggest concerns would be how far does she have to walk to class, does she have to walk up stairs, how heavy is her backpack? I probably would have been able to sit through a class (I had surgery on Thursday and was working on Monday and had very little pain), but I don't think I would have been able to carry a heavy backpack and walk across campus to attend classes. I would think that if she explains that she had surgery (she doesn't have to be specific about the type of surgery if she wants to keep it private) then her professors will be understanding about missing a class or two. She could also contact another student in her classes to get copies of notes from so she doesn't miss anything.

My surgeon requires all of his band patients to stay overnight. I had my procedure at 7:30 am and was discharged around 3:00pm the next day after having my barium swallow test. I wasn't in a lot of pain but for those who are in pain one of the benefits of staying overnight is that I had a morphine pump for pain control rather than just oral pain relievers.

In addition to what everyone else said (which is right on target), I have found that even the documentation provided by my surgeon's office had some mis-information because it was geared to lap-band, sleeve and bypass patients. The documentation said no lettuce for 6 months but when I was talking to my NUT about a month after surgery she told me that no lettuce wasn't a lapband guideline but instead was a guideline for GBP. Personally, I don't drink a lot of coffee but do have it a couple of times a week and haven't had any issues. I was always told not to drink carbonated beverages and I haven't other than a sip here and there but I really don't miss it (and I was horribly addicted to diet coke). I also have lettuce quite frequently and haven't had any issues. I really don't agree with any food being automatically off limits...there are people who have issues with being stuck on certain foods and have had to remove them from their diets but I think everyone needs to determine for themselves what foods they should and shouldn't eat.

If I wait until I have a physical sign them I'm usually already too full. I rely on weighing and measuring my food and then I only eat that much. When I'm finished I don't feel "full" but instead I am no longer hungry.