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I'M GETTING MORE EXCITED/NERVOUS EVERY DAY. I AM DOING MY SLIM FAST WITH SENSIBLE DINNER. I'M READING BEFORE AND AFTER BY SUSAN MARIE LEACH AND IT HAS INSPIRED ME TO START KEEPING A JOURNAL MYSELF.

Believe me,its not only the shakes,because I dont drink shakes of any kind,before or after surgery.even ones from fast food rest. I never drank,but because you are on fluids only,thats all thats gonna leave your body. Like someone else said,liquid in,liquid out

It feels good. But things have sloowwwwweeeeedddd way down. I haven't lost anything in a week and a half. But I'm not discouraged. I don't have much restriction but thanks to the pre op diet I am able to control my portions on my own a little better than before. I have only had to not so good experiences since surgery and I will be happy to share. 1st - One of my residents made me a big thing of banana pudding to say thank you. I decided to have a litte bit. Really only about a 1/2 cup but quickly found out that cream and me really don't do so well since surgery (not sure why this is) and I have to tell you....I have never cramped up like I did within an hour of eating it. I had to take some milk of magnesia and about 5 hours later I finally felt better. 2nd - My husband and I were in a tiff and BOY WAS I MAD and it just so happend to be on a night we made chicken and yellow rice. When I am mad there is no reasoning. I ate to fast and knew I was being STUPID but did it anyway. My chest was a little tight but I was okay. I wanted to just go to sleep and swallowed a sleeping pill with little to no water. IT GOT STUCK....OMG! I laid in bed feeling like I had the worst gas bubble ever and started getting hickups off and on. Mouth was watering and I felt like I was going to gag but didn't. I tried drinking water and it didn't seem to help. I finally got up and went and sat up straight for about 30 mins and FINALLY IT WENT DOWN.....whew! Thank goodness that was over. But that's it. Learning experiences. I now know not to eat or drink anything with cream. Which I have no business doing anyway. And I know not to eat if I'm upset and to take all my medicine with lots of fluids. I go on the 16 to get my first fill and I am looking forward to it. I want more restriction. I really can eat more than I should.

Hey girl! I'm about where your at with the weight loss. I got a fill last week and I felt restriction for that day but then the next day still feel like I have very little restriction. I scheduled another fill for next week. I did the same thing with the stuck feeling. I ate some butternut squash way too fast and omg it sucked! And dry meat is not my friend either!! Thanks for keeping us updated. Hope your fill goes well

It doesn't sound like he's losing too fast to me. In fact, it sounds pretty reasonable for someone that is complying with their post-op diet and is hopefully getting exercise. However, the nausea is definitely not cool and not typical. The fact that he is not feeling well would concern me. No one wants to lose weight because they are nauseous all the time. If all the antacids aren't helping, I would be concerned at this point about a potential stricture or GERD. He might need an endoscopy just to check out what's going on in there.

I tried using a straw to get down my protein shake. It was so thick that most of it stayed high in the straw and I didnt get much air. I was ok. I think if you drink thinner liquids you might get a lot of air especially if your drink fast and dont sip. I am only 5 weeks out and I cant gulp or drink more than a sip at a time.

Thank you, it was hard to find anything that wasn't fast food or overly rich food. And the free drinks.....I was good though

I'm not sure.. but I don't think it's realistic to expect to lose 200 pounds with the lapband. Sure, some people do, but 50-100 or so is more realistic. The weight loss isn't fast enough with the band for someone that large.

Well I thought it was my band-adversary but I looked and it was 4 days ago. I forgot to weigh this morning so I can't report exactly but I am sure that I am still in my 133-138 zone that I prefer to stay in, probably 134 based on what I have been eating lately. Since I was banded I have really changed the way I eat, I cook almost everything we eat from scratch, no more processed foods (except corn chips, my one concession to junk food). The funny thing is it really doesn't take longer or cost more once you learn what to do. I absolutely stay away from anything with high fructose corn syrup or artificial sweeteners, as far as I am concerned they are poisons that confuse your body and make you have fake hunger. I cook a lot of soups so that I can eat them at work and I don't have to pay attention to chewing or eating too fast like I do on regular foods. I think that is a key to my success is to always have a healthy, easy thing available to grab and make in just a few minutes, so I don't resort to grabbing a handful of chips. I learned that its OK to be hungry, I can sit there and be hungry for a few hours, its not going to kill me, if I am in the car and not going to be home for an hour, there is no reason to stop and get some fast food, just wait it out. Well, in closing, I hope some of what I have shared has helped those of you who are early in your journey and still trying to wrap your mind around the whole thing, it took me a while to stop fighting it and accept the mental changes that were necessary for me to lose the weight. Here is a picture of me from this morning....

If you thought it would be fast, you were misinformed. We were told 1-2 pounds a week. I have lost more than you and I too am OLDER but much heavier than you were. Wanna trade? LOL My loss has come from being on liquids for over 6 weeks now. I'm sure once I can actually eat food, it will slow down. You aren't in a race with anyone; let the process work.

If you are a low BMI, I think you should get feedback from low BMI-ers. Not sure if you will lose as fast as a high BMI-er.

HAHA uhm, well i dont have to be on a liquids diet, but i have to do the 6 mo. diet so i thought i'd try it and give it a go....so tonight i had a really small portion of lasanga (i'm married to an italian what can i say). And then I drank the vanilla slim fast shake, now i havent had slim fast ever or atleast i cant remember, and it was tasty wow i didnt think it was so good, i probably should have drank it slower but, when i was finished i was so full it was crazy, just like wow, who knew right? the vanilla was the only one i got, does anyone else have any recomendations that i could try? now i'm worried i'm going to drink the slim fast like i drink sodas oh god lol. probably not the best for me, cooontrol control. anyways i wanted to share my superb slim fast experience...lol

No you should not be able to only eat 2 ounces. You are not even a month out and the first month is for healing!!!!!! You do not have restriction yet. You may not have restriction for several fills down the road. Don't rush things. Right now you need to be focusing on healing, eating slowly, learning to sip, getting all yor Protein and fluids in and chewing. Practice, practice, practice! As you get restriction, you will eat less and less. Don't let yourself get discouraged. This is a long process. You are just getting started. You are actually in the hardest phase, sometimes referred to as Bandster Hell because you have gotten the band, but it is not working for you yet. Someone posted that this stage is like getting a new expensive sports car. It is wonderful and you just can't wait to take it out and drive it really fast - see just what it can do. But it doesn't have any gas in it yet. You have to get some gas put in (fills in your band) before it will really do all it can do. You will get there. Just keep reading about what each stage is like on this forum. I know how impatient you are feeling. I have been there. I am now 4 months and 4 fills out and have lost 60 pounds. My band is finally working like it is supposed to and I am a happy camper. You will be too, before long!:redface:

Hello, so i booked my flight, downpayment made and schedules surgery june 6th..same day i am flying down.. I had the money so it took me 1 day to decide on this..whew now im wondering did i move too fast..i feel good about though...:-)

I was readmitted to hospital 2 days after my initial discharge... Hadn't been able to tolerate liquid meds- caused nausea, vomiting and dry-heaving. On top of all this, I had the worst diarrhea 5 days post-op through day 8... My surgeon thinks it might be a new lactose allergy, so when I'm feeling better i'll test milk out again and see how well I tolerate it. With the meds (Zantac, roxicet), I found that each time after I took them, I would instantly start to dry heave (surprisingly the med actually stayed down each time... Don't know how!), I think it had something to do with the smell/taste... I've always been a gaggy person if I smell or taste something gross, but in this situation I stayed nauseous all day long, unable to get in my liquids so ended up readmitted for dehydration and to sort-out my meds plan. Haven't been able to take anything for pain now except childrens tylenol, and I'm on Prevacid solutab now instead of Zantac- something about chewables go down fine. I also have a PRN order for compazine (anti-nausea med) that is a suppository... A little gross but when you feel like crap and cannot keep anything down it definitely works fast and does the trick (plus I'm a nurse, so it doesn't gross me out too bad). I'm home now, and feeling MUCH better-- able to meet fluids and Protein goals each day, but still cannot do liquid meds (I tried again, and failed again). That being said, I still have some occasional pain but I'm just grinning and bearing it... Another complication, though I bet it's fairly common, is that I became really itchy around my incisions which were all covered with steri-strips. I also developed a warm red rash around them too- kinda bumpy, almost looks like poison ivy. It had been 9 days since surgery, so the clinic nurse had me remove the steri-strips (in case they were causing skin irritation), and apply hydrocortisone cream... While I'm really happy that all the incisions are healing nicely (doesn't look infected, it's definitely an irritation due to the adhesive) nothing has changed so far, so I'm going to call my doctor's office in the morning if it's still not better when I wake up. With all these issues it's been a rough 10 days, but I have yet to regret a thing! I know this was the right decision for me and for my future, and I am so incredibly grateful for all of the support I've received from the message boards-- you all have been so great!

You will definitely feel the restriction! My surgeon's dietician told me that after ALL weight loss surgeries, the stomach capacity is basically the same. As in my post above, you will have to learn your body's new signals. You CAN overeat if you eat too fast and don't pay attention. But if you do, you will feel miserable for hours....and you won't want to do it again!

Hi Rose! My name is Jessica and I'll be getting my sleeve in May also. May cant come fast enough!

Was cleared to eat anything-but to avoid bread, at only 5 weeks post-op. I can only tolerate such a small amount of pureed food, when I eat chicken I feel like an elephant is sitting on my chest. Now I'm becoming afraid to eat! I'm still drinking 2 shakes a day (have to!) for 60 grams protein, but meals are not enjoyable! I can only tell when I'm full, when I'm too full. I don't get sick, but feel like I could. Even One egg is too much! I have to stop when I've eaten about 75% or risk the elephant feeling! I'm happy to be fading away, but I worry that it will be too fast and I'll also age faster, too!  I do get all my vitamins in, plus the protein and about 32 oz. water so I'm ok nutrient-wise. Does this phase pass? Is this unusual? 

Yes I’m excited to go exercising I had some weight drop pretty fast and I’m just ready to see what I can push my body to do! But I’m also still lazy do there’s that lol and this not working thing is not helping.

I have to agree with the staff at your doctor's office. I just got a fill and when I eat too fast and swallow big pieces of meat, I get stuck. I am in so much pain I have to throw up to feel better (I know I should not be doing that, but it is the only way I feel better). I don't get acid reflux anymore at all. So try and slow down your eating and chew, chew and cut off very small pieces of food. I was told the size of an eraser. That seems to work for me. Good luck.

Would you be driving? I had my surgery in Mexico. I was alone there, I did have a grea coordinator ad sleeve sisters bt I felt pretty well a couple of days post op. I was in the hospital two days then in a hotel two more days then I flew home. I felt pretty good but not good enough to drive drive for any amount of time. The lack of food scared me. If someone is driving you it would be nice to have some company for recovery specially in days that you are not feeling well and you might need some extra help. The drive should not be bad if someone else is driving, just make sure you stop at least every hour and walk around to prevent blood clots (it's what my surgeon suggested) and if possible wear some compression stockings. My worst fear as always been blood clots because they can kill you silently and fast! I made a YouTube video about preventing them. Good luck in your journey!

Protein as long as you are getting that in then you will be fine with sticking with liquids you are wanting.. It took me a week or so to get back any want for something other then liquids. I am finally able to eat mushie items but have to be extremely careful with what I choose to eat. If it has to much sugar in it I feel like I'm going to die. If it wasn't really what I wanted but I ate it anyway I feel like I'm going to get sick. Either way it sucks however this past couple of days "1week and 2-4 days out" I have felt like trying more and more. I start on my chopped meats Monday so I figured I would go ahead and test the waters with the juice from Soups with chunks in it. I have started spooning out mushie items from certain dishes I fix for the family, and I have to say it's staying down pretty well. I did however eat to fast last night and felt horrible for a while. Stay strong and know that the stage you are going through now WILL PASS!! You are only 4 days out when I was 4 days out I felt like crap. Pain in my chest and shoulders from gas, and the discomfort of not wanting anything but Water. It's not easy in the beginning but it gets easier as the week progresses I promise!!

Have you ever read something posted by Tom, d**k, Harriet (or even - gulp - Jean McMillan) and wondered, "Why is she being so mean?" Although I've felt that way myself, I have to admit I've offended others by being so outspoken (not just in the world of WLS, but in my "real" life too). Sometimes that kind of behavior is coming from a troll or a mentally imbalanced person (I've run across a few of those in 5 years on LBT and 5-1/2 years on another WLS site), and the best course of action then is to follow the simple (if difficult) advice my mom used to give me when my brother was picking on me: "If you'll just ignore him, he'll stop." Sometimes that kind of behavior is coming from an otherwise normal person. I won't claim to be normal (whatever that is), but now that I'm out of the hospital, taking my medication as prescribed, and have been freed from my strait jacket, I'll give you some thoughts about what's really going on when someone's being mean and why it can be so hard to hear. > Sometimes we need to hear things that make us uncomfortable. If no parent, teacher, boss, doctor, or other authority figure had ever corrected my errant behavior - if they had instead said, "It's OK, Jeannie, we understand why you hit your brother upside the head, and here's a baseball bat to use the next time" - I would never have learned the lessons I needed about getting along with other people. I might even be in jail by now. Or back at the funny farm for a forced vacation. The firm-but-caring approach is commonly known as tuff luv, and it's not meant to go down as smoothly and deliciously as a chocolate milkshake. It's meant to be astringent, sour or strong enough to get your attention fast and force you to pay attention to something you hadn't noticed before. Which can be something that's putting you, your band, your health, or your life in danger. > Sometimes the "mean" person is reacting so strongly because the other person has said something that pushes their buttons. The underlying message (even if the mean one isn't conscious of it) is that inside, we share some tough stuff about our eating and weight. One of my hot buttons, for example, is the issue of personal responsibility, so when I see someone blaming their band for everything that's wrong in their life as well as the world's famines, wars, and plagues, my eyes start to bulge out of my head from the increased pressure of my brain, which is swellilng fiercely because I have to hold on so tight to my own reins of personal responsibility. I'm reacting this way because I see myself in the other person, and I don't like what I see. Should I act mean because of that? Of course not. Am I human for acting that way? Absolutely. > Sometimes the "mean" person has the best intentions in the world, but his or her advice comes across too loudly or too harshly because of what I call the New Convert Syndrome. A friend of mine who's a smoker once told me that people who have just quit smoking are now on fire with the conviction that no one should smoke and complain the loudest when someone else smokes in their presence. This also can happen with people who've undergone a sudden or very recent religious conversion. That kind of life change tends to be surrounded by very strong emotions, and those emotions compel the convert to speak at length and with a great deal of single-minded enthusiasm about their new religion. I started going through that about 3-4 months after my band surgery and it lasted about 18 months after that. Then my inner fire changed from leaping flames to warm embers, and I was probably a lot easier to get along with then. None of the above may apply to you. If that's the case, I suggest that you follow some classic 12-step advice after reading this or any other post on LBT: take what you need, and leave the rest. Thank you all for your attention. I must now return to the regularly scheduled program, which consists of me letting our 9 dogs in and out, in and out, in and out, all day long. Jean

I have to agree with the others, banding doesn't seem as drastic as the bypass. I have friends who have done both, with the bypass ones I see major hair loss, which I didn't want, and losing weight way too fast and then major surgeries to get rid of the excess skin. Banding seems to be just as effective as long as you follow what your doctor says. I'm pre surgery and looking forward to moving ahead with my journey. My doctor felt bypass was a better option for me because I like sweets, but I know once I set my mind to it I will leave them alone and I am determined to be a success! Just research and ask lots of questions, this site is great for learning all kind of things. Good luck!

The Fill Is When They Tighten The Band Around Your Stomach. It Restricts How Fast The Food Travels Between Your Pouch And You Stomach. Its Actually Not Painful Either. My Dr Always Uses Lidocaine So Things Are Very Comfortable. I Have Had About 5 Or 6 Fills, But On The Other Hand I Have Also Had Releases. My Band Seems To Get Really Tight Around My Period And That Is When I Need Fluid Taken Out Sometimes. Right Now I Have 2.9 In My Band And I Am Golden Right Here. I Am Loosing And Can Eat The Proper Amounts. Good Luck To You!!