Crispaholic

Hi! Pixiepower....I have to say my operation went well....I had a lovely nurse and I was fine....the staff in the UK could not have been nicer.....on the day they should be able to tell you roughly what time you are scheduled.....I did not get done until the afternoon....I would have preferred the morning time....The problem with the Hospital Group is they only have one nurse in Dublin and one in Belfast so they never have slots for fills in the busy periods like after Christmas .....plus the nurse fills you not a doctor like some other companies like the Auralia Group...after my operation I went to my own GP just for a check up and for my own piece of mind...I also got my bloods checked 6 months after to make sure I was getting all my Vitamins..... Best of luck with the operation on Saturday

Was just talking to my sister she had gastric by pass surgery and after that they found out she has an under active thyroid....she has to take medication....however the doctor did say it is much harder to lose weight.....so the medication should help.....my one was fine got bloods done and it was under active....they put me on medication and it set my heart racing...took me off the medication, repeated the bloods and then it was fine.... My mother, sister and four of my aunts have thyroid problems....seems to be genetic.....saying that all of them are over weight ( except my sister due to her by pass) ....plus all of them and myself and my grandmothers all had their gall bladder out which can be genetic....seems we need to eat little and often......prior to the band I was eating a lot....but now try to stick to slow releasing foods' low GI foods which seem to work

That is excellent news....you must be feeling delighted with yourself.....I have lost 3lbs in a week after not losing anything through to over restriction....so I know how happy you must be feeling

I have heard nothing but thyroid whether under active or over active has a lot of impact on weight....and also your energy levels.....hope all goes well for you

I did not have a pre op diet either.....some surgeons ask you to do one so you lose weight around your liver.....they just want to ensure there is no damage caused to the liver when they are going in to fit the bad...that's what my doctor told me....so they ask some people to go on a diet ......I had my last super too....crisps...pizza and chocolate...the funny think is we think prior to the band we will never be able to eat these foods again....but we can....just not in the larger portion sizes we once ate them

Merle.....do not give up...Elcee gave me some good advice regarding slider foods....I think you did not get the correct fill....your story sounds like mine....I would get a fill and could not keep anything down...get a defil and then be able to eat anything....I am in the process of finding the sweet spot....my clinic were not happy about the vomiting as you can cause your band to slip and other damage to your throat....you need to clear your house of the slider foods....the chocolate...ice cream and start eating foods with a crunchy texture....if you eat salad before a burger it stops you from being able to eat all the high calorie food as the cruchy stuff is harder for the band and hence you feel full.....thirst can also be confused with hunger so drink a glass of juice before you eat.....I am an emotional eater and I eat when it is my time of the month....I also have PCOS so I crave carbs.....I have given up chocolate in the past week and I have lost 3lbs and feeling a lot better already.....I have gone to therapy to understand the issues around weight....mine I have traced back to my childhood when my mother had a drunk driver crash into her and she was two years in hospital...my dad could not cook so hence my unhealthy eating habit began....no longer was my mother cooking but we ate junk .....when things are bad I turn to junk....but it is a short lived pleasure....long term it only makes you miserable...and makes you feel a failure....stop sabotaging yourself and get therapy....it is really helping me get back on the band wagon as MCCLB has said a few of us have fallen off...Listen to Elcee she has many words of wisdom and her weight loss is proof it can work!

I got my band done through The Hospital Group in Bromsgrove just outside of Birmingham in July 2010. I did have problems with certain foods....still cannot eat bread and crackers because they are dry get stuck....vegetable and certain hard fruits were hard to tolerate....I have not heard of a sting sensation but the getting stuck feeling or foods not going down easily is a sensation that is common....best of luck

I know exactly what you are going through....Elcee gave me some good advice...I have been struggling with too much and too little restriction....I have started cooking meals...okay probably obsessing about it now...but happier I can eat...I have cleared my house of the junk high calorie 'slider' foods....too much restriction meant I was surviving on chocolate etc...thanks Elcee for pointing that out....I got 1 cc out on Friday and I can eat again....however I have to track everything I am eating as the restriction is not too severe....I know I need another fill now....even after a few days unrestricted...its that elusive sweet spot I have to find...but I was advised to contact the clinic sooner and not later...if you ignore it you end up putting on weight so head back and talk to the doctor...I eat fruit maybe an apple and grapes and some yoghurt for breakfast...really fast and the crunch in the fruit is good.....

RNmomtothree glad to hear you went to the doctor and got yourself sorted....take it easy now and give yourself a few days to adjust before eating harder foods.....the relief you feel is fantastic....I have also gone back on the advice of my nurse of tracking what I eat and drink...the band is a tool but not the complete solution so you need to ensure you are not asking it to do all the work for you

Thank you so much for taking time to respond....I think I was expecting to be like my sister who got by pass surgery...she lost 7st in a year and is now very petite....she threw up or 'dumped' when she over did it on sugar etc....I on the otherhand was about 5st overweight I am down 2st 7lbs since July 2010 however I was hoping to be more....as a comfort eater I tend to eat when I am busy at work or at certain times of the month....I think I have confused the band and what it is support to do....I equate pain / tightenness with the band working instead of seeing it as a tool....to aid me in making the right food choices....thank you

Well I got 1 ml taken out as I was told I was severely restricted having 7ml in a 10ml band.....I have gone from throwing up and taking 2 hours to eat my dinner....to being able to clear my plate within 10 minutes ....I do not feel sick or full but just content and happy I can eat....is this the way I should feel ....or should I feel a little restriction and tightness in my chest to signal stop eating....little confused as now I feel like I have no band fitted.....oh will I ever get it right with this band!!!!

MCCLB so glad that you see you are not the only one out there If it was not for this site I would be lost....the people on this are very kind....we are not in the minority....when I tell people I got banded they are why did you do that? You were not big....okay I was not too big....but I was always 3 to 5 stone heavier ....and knew I could not do a life time of diets....and punishment....I was most miserable at my lightest at 140lbs as I was starving myself...therapy has really helped me....I take one day at a time....do not beat yourself up...you are a good human being....I watched the biggest loser USA on tv the other day and saw this guy called Corey nearly give himself a heart attack try and run....he hit the ground....and I wanted to do was scream at the tv get the band....yes exercise but do not kill yourself in the process....as Mohammed Ali said to a reporter when he was knocked out by Henry Cooper....' the floor is no place for a champion ' ....pick yourself up and keep the fighting spirit

You need to get an aspiration ( de fill ) even if just a little....I got one the other day as I got too much fill....like you it just sat there....I was throwing up all the time....my clinic were not happy as your band can slip or you can damage your throat from throwing up withe the acid....plus you will put on weight as only the slider foods (elcee another member told me this ) will go down easily.....which are high calories.....you need to go back sooner rather than later you do not want to do damage to your band

I had my band fitted on the 1st of July 2010 and I have lost over 2 and a half stone....I had lost over 3 stone but put on a half a stone .....I went and got more fill about a month ago but I have not lost any weight despite walking and not being able to eat dinner....I can only eat crap which does not seem to get stuck....I had pasta today and it did not stay down....getting a bit upset that I have not lost more weight.....any advice?

Well I drove all the way from Dublin to Belfast....as there were no appointments for the next three weeks to get an aspiration....so I met the lovely nurse there and she took out a mil as she said I was way too over restricted and she was concerned the vomiting was damaging my band....hopefully I have not damaged my band.....my lovely sister drove up with me....and told the nurse all the issues I was having and she agreed that I would be eating high calorie foods as a result of the over restriction.....I had put on 2 kgs.....from having my fill too tight......so lesson learnt....I went and had a child portion of spaghetti bolognase and it was the nicest dinner I have had oh I felt so good being able to eat a normal dinner in public and not throw up

Hi! MCCLB ...... Well meet your sister....I am the exact same....I actually put on weight too....and have yo yo'ed ......It is funny as you joined the site on the 16th of March which is my birthday.....Like you I suffer from depression....I was not on medication until later in life....but was depressed on and off during my college years.....a lot of my depression is caused by my unhealthy relationship with food.....a lovely lady on this site told me before she thought of junk food as an alcoholic does with alcohol....she said to clear my house of the junk food....and as we are human it is okay to indulge and taste junk the odd time....but to go out and buy it not store it in my house....this was really helpful.....I am actually decreasing my anti depressant medication....it seems I was over filled and regurgitated a lot which can cause damage to the band....I actually would throw up and then try eat a few minutes later....it was a physical and psychological battle that needed to be fought....I am with a therapist and learning not to feel so negative about myself....food is a reward and also a punishment for me.....so now I have to divorce food and remarry it all over again in a more loving relationship if that makes sense.....we are human so who cares what the doctor thinks....you are the important one...and it is really brave of you to acknowledge and accept that you were sabotaging yourself....that is the battle half one....thank you for cheering me up.....I have been in the same position....but feeling a lot better now that I accept my strengths and weaknesses

A happy story....I am delighted to here that....I stopped losing weight and actually put it on as I was over restricted .....so just got aspirated today so hoping I will start losing again...great reading your post

Hey ...thanks for the advice Elcee....I called my clinic in Dublin and they are packed out for the next three weeks....so they asked if I would be okay to go to Belfast....so I am going to make the 2 hour trip up north tomorrow morning...the lovely nurse agreed with you she said I have too much restriction and she would prefer to see me asap as the vomiting can damage my band....so I cannot wait to go tomorrow to get some out....she said you are right I would put on weight as I am surviving on high calorie foods instead of eating proper meals....thank you so much for your advice....i hope to get back to losing weight and eating normal food again instead of crap

I am just wondering if anyone else has experienced an increase in their sex drive since surgery......mine is unreal....could be down to the increased confidence about losing so much weight feel dam hot and sexy

You will be fine....I was banded 1st of July 2010 ....believe me you do push the boundaries.....and one thing you forget it mentally you have to adjust your eating habits and the amount you eat.....I look at my plate and I think no way I need more and then after a few mouthfuls I have to stop.....give yourself time to heal....sure you have not even had your first real fill yet....any problems feel free to ask us all...great online community ....and they really helped me in the early days.....now stop beating yourself up

Ah you have the famous bubbles they are nothing to worry about....you have to retrain your head not to drink or eat too fast....you have to take it very slow.....it takes a while for you to retrain your brain....all the bubble are normal....they advise you not to drink for 30 mins before you eat.....and definitely you cannot eat and drink at the same time as you will get sick

You are still swollen from the internal surgery.....I was advised by my doctor to not eat.....meat...bread....or rice for three months post surgery......it is too soon to be eating meat....stick to soft foods......you have just over done it....I would not worry at all...the band is stronger than you think

Thank you I will call my nurse when they are back open following Christmas.....I have had enough of eating crap.....I would not mind I never ate chocolate before the operation....I was a bulk comfort eater....loved pasta....chinese.....or big dinners.....now I am upset that I am living on quick sugar fixes....which I know is not good

Just wondering if anyone out there is like me.....I had my second fill and can barely eat an egg on a small pitta bread without feeling pain. I also threw up after eating some slices of apple.....Saying that I could eat three bags of crisps....bars of chocolates.....frosties......peanuts.....and still not feel full....I am feeling a little upset as I want to be able to eat healthy but all the healthy stuff pains me :thumbup:

Hi! Starandmoon You should have your fill 6 weeks after your operation as you would still be swollen from the operation...Cora seems to be busy and the Hospital Group seem to have too many people wanting fills coming up to Christmas hence it is hard to get an appointment....Give Emma a call and tell her you are not happy and you may have to blog your unhappiness on this forum ....you should get a date pretty quick....It will take about 3 to 4 fills before you find your 'sweet spot' I am over a year now and just got another fill which is my max about 3 weeks ago....doing well...any questions feel free to give me a shout!