BUNNY7

That was a quick reply Well I'm also from the South - South Africa and we have our own dietry bad habits. Red meat, rice and potatoes in huge quantities. We're a meat eating nation and barbecues are a way of life. Well done for realising what the cholestral does - I have a high cholestral count and am permanently on meds for it. You are making such a great choice - you must miss the fried chicken. We have Kentucky Fast food here but you southern fried chicken is probably way tastier. I also avoid it as it's just loaded with everything we bandsters are avoiding. I have just made a huge pot of vegetable and lean meat soup which is a Godsend when I'm feeling hungry and deprived - it satisfies both needs.

I totally get you.... and want to encourage you as I was exactly where you are in terms of not taking it slow. Since the last fill 6 months ago it has changed. I wouldn't DARE take big bites and believe it or not I am now forced to chew slowly and small bites. If I don't the 'stuck' food feeling is horrendous and I have to leave the table and walk about. Fortunately it passes - my mind has learnt not to do that so I don;t. That's pretty amazing for me who can be soooo rebellious with food. I think I just need a tiny fill more to bring the portion size to the right amount so thank you for encouraging me. I sit in the higher range for getting to the sweet spot as my band is sitting at 9ml. Most people statistically reach that right fill at 7.5ml so you are still have a lot of lattitude which is great. I will let you know when I take the next step for the next fill. Not quite ready....

Thanks for your encouragement... my great temptation is chocolate and boy does it go down easily!!! Do you know that both coca-cola and chocolate contain caffeine and with chocolate you get a serotonin release? No wonder they're addictive!!! Well done for losing all that weight!! Wow - I;d be totally delighted. Is there any reason why you haven;t had any more fills? I CANNOT eat more than a cup of solid food - I'm just tooooo full and want to be sick. It has made the way I view a plate of food totally different. I get the Alfredo meal - pasta is a 'slider food' for me so I can eat way more than usual if I have it. I just try not to go there! Never heard of a 'green zone' before - what is it? Sounds like a run through the park at goal weight God bless and let's try to avoid the sliders this week.

I was banded in Sept 2010 so it's my 2 year anniversary in about 6 weeks time. It's been a journey of "starting overs" for me. Reaching that almost mythical 'sweet spot' took over a year to reach - my doc just never seem to give me the guidance I needed if I look back. I struggled on with insufficient restriction for way too long until for the last 5 months of last year I just threw in the towel and gave up. Well post Christmas holidays and I had put on 3kgs which was actually amazing as we had gone crazy with our eating and drinking over the season. I suddenly realised that actually the 'enemy band' was actually helping after all as I had obviously not consumed nearly as much as I had done in the past. While feeling pretty bloated and uncomfortable, my hubby and I started to really watch what we eat. It;s now 6 months down the line and while the loss is SLOW being almost 60, we are both down 5kg (11 lbs). So I hope that for those of you who are battling with portion size (1 cup max should be totally satisfying) go and get another fill! I am still eating slightly more than I should be at optimum restriction so now I am trying hard to pluck up the courage and go back and get a few more ml in that band. I am soooo nervous that I will have too much restriction - I lost a lot of confidence in the band working properly but I will eventually pick up the phone and make that appointment. We were all so excited and hopeful - let's just encourage one another to not give up and do what we have to do to win this battle. Would love to hear what some of your daily meals consist of.... the recommended amount for me is half a cup of food per meal. I cannot see how so little can be health???? Anyone able to help?

I was so happy to read your post this morning. It will be 2 years in Sept and I had my birthday on Saturday. Talk about moving slowly but happily, after a 6-month rebellion and depression about the whole thing, I am slowly, slowly changing. Being 60 next year might be helping. The one big change I've noticed is how I view the quantity of food on my plate. Too much makes me draw away! Before it was 'pile in'! So my attitude is changing and so is my behaviour. Thank you so much for posting.... it was such a lovely feeling reading your encouraging letter to me. Bless you. Warm wishes from South Africa.

My heart goes out to all of YOU... my dear friend, who is a counsellor, often asks me this question: "What unmet needs do you have that you're replacing with food?" So I ask myself: 'At this moment I really want to eat something even though I'm not hungry. What I really need ...... (is a calmer and more peaceful heart or my stress levels to be lowered or to know that I'm loved or to love myself more as Ive been self hating or to make peace and forgive X or to deal with my loneliness and boredom or to bring down my anger/irritation/frustration etc etc. My life pattern has been to fill that void by nibbling, wandering to the fridge and staring inside. I'm involved in a course which is called Boundaries which is a popular book all about when to say yes and when to say no to take charge of ones life. I'm working on that NO to the nibbles and trying to identify what need I;m medicating with food. I Hope this gives you dear fellow strugglers some food for thought and encouragement to do a self check as you turn to the naughties. Wishing you strength and peace and self control in the week ahead.:scales:

Sorry, mixing up your user names.... all this fluffiness is going to my head being a bunny!!!

I get the feeling that you guys are missing each other's point. I thought Formerly Fluffy was trying to encourage you to seek another option not because you're a problem but the band might be.... My doc mentioned that to me before the op that I might find it doesn't work for me/my personality/ temperament. That doesn't make me bad just that Imight want to consider another option. I DON'T want to go there at this point and want to keep on trying. You've had such a challenge as I have.... let's keep positive, forgive Formerly Fluffy for putting things down in a way that you could be misunderstood and just look at all the positives.... WE STILL HAVE OUR BAND AND OUR DOCTORS . Have a good week

Hi there.... we share a banding birthday and my experience is very similar to yours. I also have had 4 fills and the restriction is ever so slight but mostly not enough. I also eat far more that the recommended palm size/half a cup. I followed a thread on this site called 'starting over' and those ladies have been so humble, so helpful and so honest about how tough it really is for a lot of us bandsters. They have lost loads of weight, gained weight but still are winning - suggest you read their posts. Most of them had the banding done over 2 years ago. I haven't lost more than a kilo since December so was feeling totally discouraged and wanting to give up. They have inspired me and i'm feeling more positive and ready to try another fill.... always dread them as I arrive feeling guilty! I'm going to book for my next fill in the new week so will be holding thumbs for both of us. :thumbup:

Thanks so much Diane - I so enjoyed reading your post and how honest and open you were. I related on all sorts of levels and your child picture hit a cord for me too.... so right! Sometimes I;ve felt like just ripping the thing out and saying 'I'm over this!!!" The hard thing is I have a dear friend who had this done a year ago and seemed to cruise through it losing most of her weight in 9 months. Seeing her success helped me make my decision but our journeys couldn't have been more different. Also she was afraid of putting me off so never shared any of her struggles. I had a totally over optimistic outlook despite masses of research on the web prior to the decision. It never really prepared me for the uncertainty, bewilderment, confusion and utter frustration of not feeling what my friend told me to feel for.... She kept on saying 'Listen to your body and it will tell you when to stop" :sigh: - my body is mostly silent = the rebellious pizza incident of last week. My attempt and seeing if anything would happen ... still waiting. Only thing that happened was a weight gain. Haven't done that again though as I'm aware of band erosion and slippage. Do you have support groups there and if so did you use them and did they help?.... Bunny / Des

Hi there and thank you for your huge encouragement - brought tears to my eyes!!! I really salute you for your perserverence and the hope that you bring me. You have reminded me that it is a journey and that I'm not a statistic belonging to the group of 'they couldn't do it'. Bless you for your kindness and effort in responding to me....:Angel_anim:

I was banded last September so I found reading this thread reassuring on one hand but depressing on the other. I have battled to find restriction and so battled with portion control and self control!!!