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Hi all. Man here. I got banded on 3/12 and had my first fill this past Monday with 3cc added. I had some initial restriction after I had the procedure but after a few weeks I noticed I was able to eat respectable amounts that weren’t going to allow me to lose any additional weight. I can definitely tell I have more restriction now after my fill but I am having a hard time determining if what I am feeling is food getting stuck or if this is my “new full”. After I eat I notice it feels like food is backing up in my esophagus and my chest gets real tight…is this my new full?? This may be TMI but I even feel like I could probably bring the food up if I had to and being on the verge of throwing it up if I take another bite. If I take this as my queue to stop eating and once the food has time to “drain through the funnel” I find myself feeling hungry again pretty quick. I had a bowl of chicken noodle Soup for lunch today with a fat free pudding and felt very satisfied at the time but now I feel very hungry! Am I not eating enough? Do I need to try eating more at meal time but just more slowly? Am I not chewing thoroughly? I appreciate any feedback. Thanks.

Another beautiful day and another chance to make this work! Jamie- I sure hope that having your gallbladder taken out cures what has been ailing you. Shiny- I haven't thought of jumping jacks in years! I am going to have to give it a try. (I immediately got a mental picture of black eyes. HA! Guess my jumping jacks will involve a really tight sports bra or an ace bandage!!) LOL. Things just aren't where they used to be, ya know? Ready- I am also glad that you had a true band experience. Sliming is the worst! I had an episode myself and I was amazed at the quantity. Where does all of that stuff come from?? I was blowing bubbles trying to get it all out. Sorry....TMI :smile2:. LilMiss- I have read on here before that steroids mess with a lot of people's weight loss. UG! You have a great attitude. It is a journey and you will get there! We all will!!! Tap- Good luck with finding a new tenant. Twenty months without problems is a great record. Just think: renovating an apartment= excersize! You are killing two birds with one stone...at least that is how I reason with myself when it comes to housework :sneaky:. Good morning and Happy Thursday!

I've been banded since Oct 29, 08 and to this day, I haven't eaten steak or salad since my banding. I'm terrified I'll get them stuck. Does that seem crazy? I don't have any problems with chicken, hamburger meat, grilled fish, or even lamb chops... but am terrified to try steak. And the lettuce in the salad scares me... it seems like pre-banding, no matter how well I thought I chewed it, it seemed like I'd always poop out a piece of lettuce.. (TMI, I know... sorry!) So, should I just suck it up and try them??? Are you guys able to eat steak and salads???

The Fiber One bars make me feel very uncomfortable after eating one too. I was told by my doc not to eat anything with too much fiber. Because the food sits in your stomach "pouch" right above the band where it's the most sensitive part of all your stomach you will have reactions to some foods you may not have ever had before. SO I tried a lil experiment and ate another Fiber One bar a week later and immediately had a bad reaction! ahaha The Pregresso Soups do the same thing to me as well. And I don't believe those have to do with fiber. But it's something in those soups that gas me up big time!! Sorry if TMI!! Just keep tabs on foods you eat. ;o)

Not to give TMI, but I am totally irregular since my surgery on 4/9/09. I have minimal pain overall and will be going back to work on Tuesday. (Yey!) The irregularity, coupled with the gas pain is a nightmare. I tried the strips and they do nothing. Also, I have lost almost 8 lbs in less than 3 days because I can't seem to hold anything in that I drink. Anyone else experiencing this? Is this normal?

I feel the need to comment on this. And if it is TMI, my apologies. I am really, really tired of liquids in, liquids out. Especially when I seem to get no advanced warning on the out part whatsoever!!!

Hi All, I had my surgery on March 15, doing better now with moving around and living normally again. I do have a problem with gas though, I mean seriously, I never thought I could make this many noises, or relieve myself so LOUDLY, like an explosion (sorry if TMI). Does this go away? I lost 13 pounds in the first 10 days and since then nothing. I have no restriction and get anything I want to down fairly easily. Hope the fill will change that..

so I went in this morning to weight in to start the process over, I knew i was short. So i wore my baggy pants cause more material, ate a number two meal from wendys, and manged my cell phone in my pocket. I have to be 40% bmi and I came in at 39.9%! lol so i have to come back in monday morning to do this damn thing. I almost said for get about it that simple and then i benged on chinese food and was like omg omg omg i need this damn thing cause there is no way i would have managed that with the lap band. Not to mention this drastic measure is going to give me the kick in the butt that i need to hit it hard core more than what i am now... so monday it is. I just hope i dont take a big bath room break before hand lol lol sorry if thats tmi.. love u banders and i cant wait to join the family

so I went in this morning to weight in to start the process over, I knew i was short. So i wore my baggy pants cause more material, ate a number two meal from wendys, and manged my cell phone in my pocket. I have to be 40% bmi and I came in at 39.9%! lol so i have to come back in monday morning to do this damn thing. I almost said for get about it that simple and then i benged on chinese food and was like omg omg omg i need this damn thing cause there is no way i would have managed that with the lap band. Not to mention this drastic measure is going to give me the kick in the butt that i need to hit it hard core more than what i am now... so monday it is. I just hope i dont take a big bath room break before hand lol lol sorry if thats tmi.. love u banders and i cant wait to join the family

Ok, I am now 3 months postop and my cycle was very weird right after being banded. There were about three weeks where I was constantly spotting and then three weeks with nothing. NOW I am having a VERY heavy period and I am hurting ALOT. I had to leave work early yesterday because I could barely stand and I called in today and just stayed in bed. I have a heating pad on and it is barely helping. Is this common after being banded? Will they all be like this? Or just this time? I am probably going to stay home tomorrow too. Especially if it is as heavy as it was today. Sorry, I now this is probably TMI, but thanks for reading.

I had my surgery yesterday morning. I took the anti nausau meds in hospital and slept on and off for a bit longer there. I was okay with it since I didnt have much planned for yesterday anyway :sad: I had really bad gas pains last night that pretty much stayed in my ribs and upper stomach area. My stomach is still pushed out a bit and I know I still have quite a bit of gas inside. Walking around the house last night helped a lot....Although it did cause me to burp a lot. Today is seems to be coming otu the other end (sorry if thats TMI). I feel SOOO much better today although I still have some pain in the incission area and am still a bit tired. Im hoping the rest of the gas pain goes away quickly, so we'll see. Good luck with your surgery!

Rebecca that is TOOOOO funny....But for my own TMI, I think I'd rather go commando than have my father help me with panties!!!!

You should be able to put your arms above your head. I had no problem putting on a tee-shirt. As for pants, I wore comfy sweatpants. Your incisions will be high enough that you don't have to worry about the waistband touching any scars or hurting. I'd also suggest sweatpants as they are "baggy" which is "comfortable" and comfort is what you are going for in the beginning. This might be TMI, but what I had trouble with was putting on panties. In the beginning I needed my mom to help me with that. Its hard to bend in the beginning and can cause discomfort or pain. I'm 4 weeks out so if you want to ask more questions, feel free.

Thanks, everyone! This is good advice. I'm planning to shake things up with the exercise routine and see if that helps! I also am at the (sorry for TMI) very end of TOM, so maybe that's what's keeping on the extra weight? WorkingMom, I'm so glad that you're liking my blog! I took some more photos at a spot in Chinatown on Sunday night & will post them soon -- maybe tonight or tomorrow morning. Catherine

This has been on my mind for awhile now... and maybe it is a bit of TMI. I don't think it is really. Okay I'm creating a poll to see how many of you here actually floss your teeth. I mean EVERY SINGLE DAY like clockwork. Not just when you remember or have time, or when you know you have a cleaning or dental appointment. Actually, maybe I'll make that an option too. Not to worry, I won't make this poll viewable so you can be honest with your answer. The reason why I'm wondering is because, myself, I NEVER used to floss (I know, gross huh?). I was brought up with good dental coverage and all that. I just never did. Maybe I was lazy or whatever, I don't know why I didn't. Growing up my Mom would make sure I got my cleanings on schedule every six months, and even had braces. She took good care of my teeth! I've had three oral surgeries. One to extract extra teeth in preparation for my braces, then another to extract the same teeth (yes they were adult teeth) that decided they wanted to regrow. I was truly one in a million with that one! Anway, the last one was for the wisdom teeth. Okay I'm getting off track here, I'm just trying to say - I had no excuse for not flossing. I was taught better. Well, I went 6 years without a cleaning as of last year! Yeah, I know - gross again... LOL!! Turns out I needed to have some fillings fixed and a deep cleaning on each side. :thumbdown::scared2::confused: Yeah! That sucked!! Trust me, deep cleanings are a b*tch!! Anyway, I asked my Dental Hygienist how on Earth could I prevent this from ever happening again??? She simply said, well - floss. Simple as that? Well she did also then tell me making sure I'm getting my routine cleanings too will help as well. She said my pockets were ranging from 4 to 7's. Not sure if any of you know what I'm talking about, but apparently that's not very good. She said not super bad either for someone who has neglected my teeth for so long though. She said she had hope for me. So, I flossed every single day in between my deep cleanings and such.... Long story less long, I just went in for a cleaning and she told me I had the cleanest mouth of the week award! Wow!! She even called in my Dentist to check it out! He said wow, great job too. He said she's really tough when it comes to that and I should be honored... LOL!! Also, my pockets are all 2's now. So, flossing and regular cleanings really do work! Who knew? Share your stories if you dare. :sneaky:

I'm a little over 3 weeks post op as I was banded on 3/12. I have followed my doctor's orders to the letter regarding my diet. I'm on the soft food diet as of now. Prior to the surgery, I was on the pre op diet where I lost 11 lbs. in 2 weeks. I've lost a total of 18 lbs. now. Yes, that's a lot of weight, but I haven't lost anything since the first week post op. Since I started soft/mushy foods, I've not lost. In fact, I've gained. I don't get my first fill for another 3-5 weeks. Here's what my typical diet is: Breakfast-Protein shake 1/2 Apple juice (TMI-To help with constipation) Lunch-3 oz. Turkey lunch meat 1 oz. of cheese 3 crackers Snack- Low fat String Cheese Dinner-3 oz. baked fish 2 TB-Green Beans 2 TB-Mashed Potatoes My Water intake is not as good as it could be, but I do get in around 48 oz. a day. In addition, I'm walking 30 minutes a night on my treadmill 3-4 times a week. What gives? Why is that scale not budging?

OH MY GOSH YOU GUYS!!! Check out my ticker! 257.2!!! I got below my own personal goal this morning, with a little help from Milk of Magnesia! That crap made me gag so bad I thought I was gonna puke. I hadn't had a #2 (sorry TMI) in 2 days and knew it was gonna be a doozy when it kicked in. SO---I'm officially down 40.3 lbs PRE-OP! My personal goal was to be down 40 lbs because it's a LOT of weight and it's a nice round number to start counting my post-op weight loss from. 50 is gonna be here so fast! I'm heading out to the bay area now to our hotel, going to get a salad a California pizza Kitchen and hot tub and get a massage. SO nice. Hubby has an Iphone and I'll update you all as soon as I can. Wish me luck! (((hugs)))

Hi Lucky Losers! Welcome to some of the newbies... hugs to those of us who are frustrated... and high fives to the ones who feel great, feel better, or are losing! I've had a very frustrating last 3 days. I hopped on the scale 3 days ago before heading to the gym. I had gained 5 lbs! I had not eaten or drank a drop. I had not pooped either. I am NOT PMSing, I had my period a week ago. (sorry men for TMI), I did not have an unusual increase in sodium, and I had not eaten off my allowed amounts/calories. Sun/739 cal./63 g Protein, Mon/776/83, Tues/911/76, Wed/704/70, Thur/933/76g, Fri 830/61g I have the realize band and it has the online program that has a food and exercise diary (which are very user friendly) and recipes and hints, etc. But there are a bunch of online food diaries. My dietitian and surgeon's nurse BOTH recommended keeping a very accurate food diary. ESPECIALLY in the beginning. We didn't get morbidly obese by eating a couple extra yogurts. (I didn't at least). That being said, it is very easy to eat more than you think you are. I am measuring EVERYTHING I eat & drink (when I am home.) I bought the Biggest Loser scale at Bed bath and beyond. I think it was $15 or so. It's very easy to zero- you put a plate on it and then turn it on and then just put your food on. After you add your first item- you just shut it off and on and then it zeros again for the next item. You stick to 2 oz. of a protein item and then 2 oz. of other. I found it difficult to measure stuff in measuring cups.. as I only have one 1/4 cup and am not going to wash it 10 times a day. My nurse told me to aim for 800 calories a day. 600 being the absolute lowest and 1000 being the highest. 3 meals a day (4 oz. total) and no snacking in between. The only "snacking" is liquids or protein supplements in liquid form. If I get hungry, I first try a sugar free Jello or Popsicle. If after 20 min I am still REALLY hungry, I brush my teeth. (then food doesn't taste as good)... after that if I am still really hungry I have one of the weight watchers 60 cal. yogurts. I do have soy milk (I like the light vanilla versions) 8th Continent Light is only 60 cal. a cup. I add a scoop of Protein powder like unjury (that has 20g of protein) and then 1/2 cup of a low cal fruit. (like no added sugar frozen blueberries or peaches). This usually helps zap my hunger. If I am not near my magic bullet/blender then I drink a Muscle Milk Light. (160 cal and 20g of protein). If I am still hungry I leave my house... go for a walk or bike ride. So, all that being said. If I am sticking to low fat, sugar free items and staying under 1000 calories... how the HE!! do you gain 5 lbs?! Well, the only explanation is Fluid. I did forget to take my BP pill for two days. Maybe that had something to do with it. I didn't drink as much Water the day before the gain... that has a lot to do with H20 retention and the #2 issue. I took a good healthy dose of metamucil... and (I know TMI) but lost 2 lbs. the next day. I am still 3 lbs up. I also started working out with a trainer this week. (sudden starting of exercise can lower your metabolic rate... but only temporarily) I did all sorts of things my body hasn't done in a LONG time. (lunges, elliptical, weights, etc..) Perhaps a combo of all of these are factors for the gain. I'm one of those obese people in the health care field. I know way too much about all this stuff and am proof that knowledge regarding health does not mean power. But I will tell you a few things that may or may not help explain this. The first week after surgery, when we are on a clear liquid diet with only protein powder... our bodies are FREAKING out! They think we are on Survivor on a deserted island. We go into a sort of semi-starvation mode. Our metabolic rate does slow down but it doesn't stop. A sudden decrease in calories causes our bodies to catabilize (devour our muscles and other lean mass). That's why it is so important as soon as you can, to exercise. The body will use energy from your liver and other organs first... then lean muscle.. and then fat. So you have to keep building up your muscle. Now, we are losing some fat too, just more muscle than fat. That's also why it is so important to get adequate protein. Now, your protein source is important. When choosing a protein supplement.... look at the ingredients. The preferred kind of protein is ISOLATE... not CONCENTRATE. Isolate Proteins are more easily absorbed by the body. They are pre-digested so that 90% or so can be absorbed as opposed to concentrate where only 20-30% might be absorbed. That's why when you drink some of the cheaper prepared Protein drinks (like slimfast or EAS or Atkins advantage) you can get bloated and sometimes get diarrhea or have to go to the bathroom really fast. They are simply a lower quality protein and aren't absorbed as easily. So when choosing your protein supplements... if your Dr sells products in his office- they usually are some of the best choices. Most of the products designed for the bariatric patient have isolate protein whey. Sometimes it may have both.. just try to pick stuff that has isolate first then concentrate 2nd on the ingredient list. A friend of mine who had the band back in November told me that whenever she hit a plateau or worse, when she was gaining, that she would stop eating regular food and switch to bariatric stuff. She said it always kicked her weight loss back into gear. www.bariatricchoice.com or www.wlsvitamins.com I don't work for any of these companies and am not selling their stuff. It's just where I got some of my stuff. I also recommend the obestityhelp.com and their magazine. One lady at my surgeon's support group ate ONLY bariatric stuff for the first 3 months and lost 60lbs. Also keep in mind you guys, just like on Biggest Loser, it's not HOW MUCH you lose.. but percentage. Those of us who are bigger are going to fall faster... than someone who is 100 pounds lighter. Also someone who has been dieting before surgery is going to lose weight slower than someone who has not been. My Dr. didn't require a pre-surgery weight loss diet. I think that is one of the reasons the first 30 days the weight came off so easy for me. Getting back to fluids. It is soooooooooo important not to drink anything 15-30 min before you eat. And the most important thing is to wait 30-60 min after you eat before drinking anything. Otherwise you wash the food right through the first stomach... and then you are hungry again. I will hop off my soap box now. I hope this info helps a little. If anyone has a specific question... or wants to send it privately in a message, I would be more than happy to try and answer it. One thing I know for sure... your dr's office works for YOU. If you did not get answers to your questions, call them and ask to speak to the nurse or nutritionist. IF you didn't have a pre-op appointment with a nutritionist/RD then make an appt. They will really help look over what you are eating and help you get more bang for your buck (calories). Also, if your dr gave you different advice than what I am saying... then PLEASE do what your dr told you to do. I am ONLY telling you guys about my experience and what my dr advised. I wish someone would put me in a drug induced coma until my fill. SIGH. And I hope my fill on Tuesday helps this hunger. This Suc&s! Peace my fellow lucky losers, Laura P.S. I was in Peace Corps about 15 years ago. I lived out in the middle of bumfudge in South America. I went from 230 to 160 lbs during those 2 years. I had no electricity and no running water. If I wanted veggies I had to buy them in the nearest city an hour away or grow them in my garden. I only ate tuna or Beans because the meat they sold in my village was not refrigerated. There were no restaurants where I lived. Everything I ate had to be cooked. I had to walk or ride my bike to get any where. I thought I had this obesity thing conquered. It was the best weight loss program EVER. I returned to the U.S., started grad school, started my old bad eating habits... and shot up to 250 lbs in a blink. Anyway, that's where the peascorps name comes from.

I am on my feet all day (I'm a teacher) and prior to surgery I had all kinds of tests - all normal. This may be TMI - but I'm just getting to the end of my cycle and it looks like the swelling may be going down a little. This was my first one since banding and today is day 7! So perhaps my hormones are out of whack.

Ok this may be TMI but did anyone have to do #2 a lot after a fill? I had my first fill this morning going from 0.6cc to 3.0cc and have had to go to the bathroom 3 times already today. I haven’t gone like that since pre banding and eating 3000 calories a day. I didn’t eat anything unusual yesterday, in fact it was a smaller than normal portion day for me (about 1000 calories).

Well I'll tell you what, you are right, your perception and relationship with food will change. Mine came before the surgery when I was pre-op and I had some major stuff going on and I could have gone out and had a hot fudge sundae. (or french fries or a belgian waffle) but I couldn't, I was on my pre-op diet. I felt what it was like not to be able to fill that void with food... so I ended up going and buying some new clothes because I went down from a size 18 pants to an 11 pre-op. And I am reluctant to report that shopping has sort of replaced food. I am only a few weeks post op and I am struggling with all kinds of things, wanting to replace food with other things and since I am post op, not feeling up to the rigorous exercise I'd like to undertake. That's what you gotta keep reminding yourself. The first big aha moment for me came when I completely stopped taking all my meds. I am just waiting to see if my bloodwork says I need to continue any of them. Also, post op I have a TMI problem most bandsters don't really deal with and hoping a course of anti-biotics take care of it, but it also has a huge effect on how I feel about food at the moment. I can honestly say, I don't turn to the refrigerator. I am probably in a weird place mentally at the moment so I wouldn't say my result is typical.

There are a couple of possibilities. It could be that you are being too restrictive with your calories. In that case, your body is in starvation mode. It will hold on to everything and cause your weight loss to stall. The other could be that after coming off of the liquid phase of the post-op diet, that you are losing weight, but you are also displacing what was basically an empty colon (TMI?) with solid waste. In that case, you are losing weight, but the adding of solid waste to your colon makes the scale stay the same. Start measuring yourself. That is a better way to tell if you are losing than just relying on the scale's numbers. Good luck to all of you!

I've had this problem both before and after surgery...(tmi?) What works the best for me with no cramping, etc. is Philip's Milk of Magnesia. Its not the best taste in the world, but if you pretend its like a shot its fine. Hope that helps.

So - I "was" one of those people who hardly ever got sick - maybe once every two or three years and just a little cold (with exception of flu twice in my life). Since being banded in Dec though....I just started my THIRD cold, plus I have had an ear infection and (warning TMI) TWO yeast infections (which I have never had even one before). WHAT THE HELL. I said to my husband last night - hm, do I want to be fat and never sick or skinny and have colds all the time....grrrrrr what could I be lacking?? Im taking a Multivitamin and Vitamin C and Calcium. Can I go to the doctor and ask her to test me to see if Im deficiant in something or do they do that? Its starting to get on my nerves and Im tired of making my husband and kids sick. PLUS - Im having a PS consult soon and I have to get this figured out or their is no way I can get plastic surgery in May (maybe) if I cant fight off infection.

I was really scared too at first. I even cried right before surgery and my Doc talked to me and calmed me down. They wheeled me in and put the mask on me as soon as they got me situated in the OR bed, so I was out of it fast. After surgery, my mouth was VERY dry and yes I was in pain(only when I tried to move and get out of bed). I did get out of bed an hour later to go to the bathroom and I asked them if I could walk(the quicker u start walking, the quicker it will work out all the soreness ur feeling). The next week, I was still in pain, but again, only when I was trying to get out of bed or if I twisted wrong. My pain was consistantly on the left side where the doc had made a deep suture inside me. I had no pain whatsoever at my port site or even where the actual band was located. I was constipated for 6 days.(Sorry if TMI) I have been having trouble sleeping on my sides, which stinks cuz I am a side sleeper at all times! I won't lie, there has been times when I've cried to my husband and just felt like I could give up, cuz I was just so frustrated with feeling bloated, swollen and on top of all that, Mother Nature had visited me as well and not getting to sleep on my side was really getting to me. I was losing alot of sleep. I did forget to mention, I was up walking ALOT and the same day I came home from the hospital, I went to a restaraunt with my hubby and son to let them eat some dinner and get me out of the house. So, it's not alot of pain, it's mainly just feeling uncomfortable. I am on Day 11 now and feeling back to normal pretty much! Sorry this is such a long post, but I thought I would fill you in in my details. I know before my surgery, I was reading all kinds of posts trying to learn everything possible! Hope at least some of it helped. LOL. Good luck with ur surgery and I will keep you in my prayers!!