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I hope our June 7 bandits are doing well. June 8 are just about there too. Although there are too many people to address individually, I am thinking of you all and reading your posts with interest. The description below is for soon-to-be-banded in case they are interested in what exactly happened in (an Australian) hospital. *Checked in at the hospital and paid. They took me up to a bed where I dressed in a gown, injected an anti-coagulant into my leg and put some surgical stockings on. They also measured my bp, temp etc. and checked my stomach for any lesions. *Waited a couple of hours (2nd off rank) and was wheeled down to theatre. The anesthetist explained about meds post-op and explained what he was going to do. At this point, right before the op, I needed to go to the toilet again (I had my period). They were going to bring me a bedpan but I pursuaded them to let me walk. *Upon returning, I was wheeled next to the operating table and slid on. It looked a little small but had some attachments for arms to spread out. I can't even remember going under. All I know is that they let you keep your gown on while you are conscious. In fact, my 'modesty' was protected right throughout my hospital stay. No bedpans, no getting undressed in front of people, was even allowed to put in my own suppository (ew!) *It only seemed like a moment until I woke up from surgery. I was cranky and kept telling them how much it hurt. They gave me some pain killers. I was wheeled to my room and got a call from my mother. I wasn't quite myself yet and kept telling her that it really hurt a lot. When she called a few hours later, I was fine. *I slept for a few hours I guess and then changed into my pyjamas. It retrospect, I should've brought a nightie as I had a leg massaging machine attached to me and it was awkward to put the pyjama pants over the top of it. *I was nil-by-mouth. Dang I was thirsty, though the IV drip helped. Nurses came throughout the night to adjust IV, monitor vitals etc. *I had to press the buzzer for the nurse everytime I went to the toilet. She unhooked my leg massagers and helped me get up. *Went to the toilet by myself and changed underwear/brushed teeth. I may have sneaked a tiny bit of Water. Tip: don't drop/rest anything on the floor, it's too hard to pick it up again. *Spent the night in a room with excessively noisy/sick/dying patients. Wasn't ideal but I felt fortunate that I wasn't too bad. *In the morning, was allowed to drink water and juice. They tried to make me eat jelly too but i rejected it as am vegetarian. *Got another anti-coagulant. Saw the doctor, got instructions and prescriptions, my mother drove me home. Didn't get a barium swallow to check the band's position. *Now am at home, am able to do everything I need to (I live alone) but pain meds are important. I'm still in a bit of pain post-banding (it's been about 48 hours). It was hard to sleep in bed last night and I woke up at 4am needing pain meds. I know I just have to wait it out. I haven't felt like coffee or anything other than water, though I'm forcing myself to have vegetable juice mixed with pea Protein powder and a liquid Vitamin. Anyway, everyone's experience will be different from mine. Just wanted to give specifics for the curious.

If you mean falafel, I think they are really great. But I can't promise that the particular brand available in the super market is going to be good. It may be, may not be. As you probably know, it's a middle eastern vegetarian sandwich. If the falafel itself is made well, and it has a well made sauce and a fresh pita bread, they are really good. If you have a chance to eat one in a good middle eastern restaurant, that might be the place to start. If you try the one in the store and it's not too good, you may not want to try one again. That would be a shame because a good, fresh falafel is truly grand.

Miso Soup is like a stock based soup. I have vegetarian & vegan friends who use it regularly as a soup or to add to other meakls. No lumps or floating food in it. completely safe xx

That is really good to know, thank you! Some of my favorites now that I know will be a challenge post-band are Sushi (NOT Sashimi, I love the vinegared sticky rice), but not raw, I like the vegetarian and the crab rolls, salads galore, nuts, chicken, steak, falafel. But I'm up to the challenge!

Hi everyone I was banded early March and while I am coping very well with most foods I am having problems with all types of meat. I've tried the slow cooker and also smothering the meat with gravy - and of course chew, chew, chew, chew - but not having any success. I am wondering if anyone else has this problem and if I should persevere or give up and switch to a vegetarian diet. Any suggestions would be appreciated esp info re other food sources of Iron, Protein, etc etc. Thanks Bayside_bobbie

As long as it's not all soy all the time, it's OK. I'm not pregnant, so I'm not worried about having deformed children, at least right now. Anything in excess is bad for you -- Water is even bad for you if you have too much of it. I'm not a vegetarian, so I also eat a lot of chicken and fish, which balances out the soy (of which I only have one shake a day). Not to mention the fact that cow's milk really isn't that much better -- even if it's organic, it's still full of cow hormones. And I simply loathe the taste and smell of milk. whey Protein makes me want to puke.

I'm wanting to be at least vegetarian at this point, but need some help getting started. I don't care for processed food, so I'm hesitant about vege burgers and the like, but I guess I'll need them for the Protein. The protein is what has me stumped because I don't like Beans. How does this sound for a start, and please rip it apart if it isn't a good plan: Breakfast: Protein shake sweetened with Stevia and fruit Lunch: Veges and ? dinner Veges and ? See where I'm stuck?

This was meant to go above my last reply, but the edit got it all wonky! ------ Thanks so much for replying, everyone!! But I'm now more nervous lol! You see, that's exactly my worry: I've never had an issue with portion control, eating right, exercising every day... I've worked with nutritionists, dietitians, and personal trainers, had to log my normal eating & exercise habits, had to log my dieting eating & exercise habits, etc. All agree that I should have long been back to my original weight. I have to drop to about 500 calories a day to lose weight + my workouts, hence my questions about whether the band will cause me to be able to comfortably maintain that. To give an idea of where I'm coming from so you can understand my worries better: I've found by logging my normal food intake when not dieting is between 1200-1500 calories a day, 20-30% fat intake, 52-70grams of Protein, no meat, no dairy, refined sugar products only about one soda a week (until I started school this past 2 months, now that's terrible at 1 a day! I definitely have to fix that!), Multivitamin most days (I do forget at times!) + Calcium supp, and 7-12 glasses of Water (depending on how much I drink during workouts). I'm a non-junk-food-vegetarian, so my diet is mostly greens, whole grains, brown rices, and legumes. The one exception to my pattern of eating is that once a month my spouse and I order takeout and have a little livingroom picnic My workouts have ranged anywhere from a normal amount of 1hr of aerobics + weight lifting to the extreme of 17 months of training for an event that involved 5-7 hours of cardio a day (15-22 miles of speed-walking and jogging woodland trails), pilates/yoga and weight lifting. During dieting, they have had me raise my calories to various levels to see if I was eating too little to lose, aiming for a specific fat or protein intake, number of meals a day, setting a rigid pattern of exercise, etc. None of this has caused any lasting change in my weight, fat%, shape, nothing. Like I mentioned before, if I started dieting hard enough (500cal/day) at best I would drop 10-15lbs at first and then regain it. I can't eat as little as I need to to drop and keep off weight on my own, eventually I return to that 1200-1500 area out of sheer hunger. I've had a lot of checkups and they can find nothing physically wrong with me that should be causing the weight to stay on (such as hypothyroidism). My medications *are* considered a possible cause of holding on the weight. So, ultimately, will having the band really be able to keep my from feeling too hungry? I know this may seem like a foolish question, but I've only seen dry data info and people discussing how it helped them get to a healthy habit of eating for themselves. Is anyone out there needing to drop to a caloric intake as low as I need and not starving during it with the help of the band? I truly appreciate your responses all! Very very much!

I looked real quick about b-12 deficiencies and only find that people who have had gastric BYPASS surgery have that risk and that is because food bypasses their stomach which is where B-12 is absorbed. The body stores B-12 so that a deficiency is pretty rare, unless you are a strict vegetarian. B-12 sources are meats and dairy products. Deficiency results in anemia, causing fatigue, weakness and sometime stomach upset. So, I suppose it's possible....but I'd talk to your doctor more or get a blood test before supplementing. http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/druginfo/natural/patient-vitaminb12.html

My surgeon has his patients do one month of the post-op diet. I think I lost 2 pounds in the month. However, it was enough for the dietician to reccomend me for the surgery, which was good enoughfor me. I had my surgery December 8th, 2006 and I'm down about 40 pounds so far. I was interested when you said you are a vegetarian because since I have had the surgery I eat lots more veggies and very little meat. Meat does not agree with me at all since I had my surgery.And that's ok with me. Good luck to you with you upcoming surgery.

I was a vegetarian for about 10 years (Which, ironically is when I gained all my weight.. mostly from Pasta and chocolate) during HS and College. I got "You don't LOOK like a vegetarian" all the time. I can laugh about it now.. but it was kind of annoying back then. :-) Anyhow, I"m a full fledged meat eater now... so sorry I can't help to much.. but I'm sure you can still eat a good veggie stir fry or veggie burger post-op.

Also, if you have a Whole Foods near you, they sell a lot of great protein powders that are vegetarian and vegan. I've been buying most of my food there (primarily because I hate synthetic sweeteners and all the weird chemicals that are used in conventional protein powders). They sell soy protein and hemp protein, among other things. Just read the labels, because a lot of the non-animal supplements have fewer grams of protein in a serving.

I am not a vegetarian, but I can appreciate how annoying that must be to be asked such a question.... I hope you hear from your insurance company soon...that would be great...I was denied by insurance company, but went ahead and did the self-pay...I am so glad that I did....I couldn't be happier...been banded one month tomorrow...

:nervous Hello from Ohio! I've been vegetarian for 52 years (I'm 56) and I'm so sick of being asked (sometimes diplomatically and sometimes not) how I could get so fat if all I eat are vegetables. Being veg. only means I don't eat meat, fish, and eggs. Everything else it fair game! I did want to pass on a communication I had with Bariatric Advantage products. None of their vitamin supplements are vegetarian--the vitamin E comes from fish oil. I'm still awaiting insurance determination and I hope to be banded the first week of June. I'm fortunate to have approval from my primary insurance guaranteed. If the second company declines coverage I'm only responsible for about $1,000. I'm just hoping that my secondary (Humana) doesn't require the 6-month physician-supervised diet I sometimes hear about. My BMI is 40.8 and a six-month diet may result in a BMI too low to qualify. Does anyone have the experience of being required to diet for six months?

Hi all, I am getting banded in August and am concerned about getting enough protein considering how little I will be able to eat. Could you give me some ideas of what to eat/drink and how many grams you get a day? Thanks!

http://www.indigoworld.com.au/weightlosstips1-eng.htm#BodyType Another version of weight loss for your body type sort of thing. Only this one seemed different to me from most of the ones I usually see (where they give you three body types only). The quiz I find sketchy though. But I thought it was interesting, taken with a large grain of salt, naturally. Probably because I am a type D and I was a vegetarian for nine years and I sure do love my dairy. I actually digest dairy better than other things (like I respond to lactose better than fructose or something). But according to this, I need to eat more veggies, something I already suspected

http://www.vegetariantimes.com/recipe/ Vegetarian times is awesome for some great recipes. You can also add some meat in stuff if you want. Some of my best recipes have come from that magazine over the years. Their veggie lasagna is yummyness. And they have taught me to add Beans to stuff. And other stuff to things. Like veggies.

817 calories for today. I'm back to drinking lots of water inbetween meals - it really does help. Don't know if I can keep up the 800 calories for more than a week tho - it sure is not much is it? It seems tho, that I really have to go low at this stage of my "journey" to loose. Julie, I'm very close to being a vegetarian - I do eat fish tho..........and once in a while make a pot of turkey/chicken chili. How long have you been veggie? I've really thought about going full veggie lately! No wonder you have cheese around..............see, I would never think to have a piece of fish/chicken as a snack - cheese - now that's a different story! Sorry to hear about the date - thought it might be the "friend" you had talked earlier about - maybe it's time to "move on" and open yourself up to seeing what/who else is lurking about the vicinity - put out that bright, outgoing, gorgeous Julie to some lucky guy! OK all - in a couple of months, when we know what's happening in our lives in the fall - we'll plan your trips to the NW. We'll see the sights, and go to all my NIA classes. Start saving for the air - all else provided by the Betty/Alan Bed and Breakfast.

I think it's an awesome plan too, to follow a proscribed diet, if you want to, during the weight loss phase. You go girl! You're taking control of your life and the speed of weight loss you desire. I think that's great. I'd been thinking about doing Weight Watchers for long term support as pre-packaged foods are hard for me (I'm vegetarian). I think the band works really well in combination with a diet, if that's what you choose. I've lost almost all the weight I've lost by paying attention to calories.

I'm vegetarian and I'm big as a house! I'm not Vegan, I eat cheese, and I love bread, which is why I'm a fat vegetarian! Perhaps being on the Band Wagon I can become Vegan! :confused: I'm veg because of ethical reasons, although I love meat and will on very rare occasion eat humanely local raised meat sometimes, and fish.

I agree with Jack. A vegan and vegetarian are not the same thing.

Has anyone tried going "Vegan"?. this is the term used for vegetarian diet. I try it for a week and gained 4 ponds ! Crazy..! Has anyone else try this. it is basically no meat and lots of grain, fruits and vegetable. It's not hard to do , but it is not being effective for me ...Hum.......B4U

LapBandit, THANK YOU for the advice. We already have low-fat cottage cheese and fruit in the house most of the time. Popsicles or fudgesicles for dessert are a good idea. You're right that I should talk to her (and I will, once she's in less pain--I talked to her earlier today, and she sounds terrible :phanvan). It also occurred to me that I should talk to our parents, as she still lives at home and they'd know what she likes. Other suggestions? What could I cook for Mother's Day dinner that has lots of Protein but not too much Fiber? I am a vegetarian, so no meat

But you see my point? You HAVE put food in your mouth that wasn't perfect food. Others do too, their choice might be pizza. Yours is something different. You don't stick to the perfect diet 100% of the time, none of us do. Nobody on that pizza thread suggested eating pizza daily is a good thing. That was my point. Now, with the veggie diet I would agree with you. I used to be vegetarian and if I could I still would. I gag when I eat tuna but due to band challenges about the only two foods that go down without barfing are tuna and Protein shakes. I just can't do other dead critter. I don't care for it anyway and just thinking about chewing chicken or beef to a liquid state makes me want to hurl again.

pizza was my thing. My husband and I could eat our way through 5 large pizza's, garlic bread and coke, and still be hungry. Now, I make the choice to NOT eat things that made me as fat as I was. In the last 2 years, yeah, I can count on one hand the times I have eaten something that was as bad as a pizza. I am pretty careful with what I put in my body. It is my temple. And if I want to live a long, healthy life, I need to. But, again. That is *ME*. My body. My choices. I was just sort of pointing out why it may bother other people. If I wanted every one to eat just like me we would have a world full of vegetarians. Actually, that wouldn't be a bad thing. If the veggie way of eating was even more mainstream than it is now, it would be so much easier to buy good vegetarian food! LOL