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I haven't blog in few weeks or months, but wanted to let everyone know I am still out here, reading the blogs and forums to keep up with everyone. I spend more time on MFP these days. I started working out with a personal trainer 5 weeks ago and that is really working out good for me. I had really hit a slump in my program and was pretty much dead in the water again. My band was working, but I just wasn't eating very well. I had hit a spot again when food just wasn't my focus and was eating way to few calories. My trainer told me I was pretty much starving my muscles and my body was holding on to those fat cells for dear life. Sad I had to pay someone to teach me how to eat, but it is working. At first I thought there is no way I can do this. I am suppose to eat 3 meals a day and that is it. But guess what 5 weeks later, I am eating my 3 meals a day but I am supplementing a protein shake twice a day for snacks and most days take in 100 plus grams of protein. I still have my days I struggle but they are fewer and further between. My first month I lost 5lbs and 9 inches. I am hoping to lose 4 lbs this month and I will finally be out of the 150's.. While what a mile stone, I have not been this petite since high school. I used to think a goal of 132 was unreachable but I am finding out if you have the right attitude you can make anything work. Now don't get me wrong I have my ups and downs with the band but for the most part this is the best thing I every did for me. And seriously it really is all about me at this time. This is my chance, my time and my journey. Lap band is not an easy journey, it is paved with trials and tribulations. It will test your passion, it will test your commitment, you will have to fight temptation on a daily basis. There will always be food and lots of it, you have to realize that food to you is no different than alcohol is to an alcoholic or drugs are to a drug addict. My journey has consisted of distancing myself from temptations, I do not allow certain foods in my house or more specifically in my cabinets or fridge. I have no control of what others do but I do have control over what I put in my mouth. I find my self more aware of what others eat and I often think, man I used to eat like that and look where it got me. I think now my goal has become an obsession, I work my butt off, 3 days with a trainer, 6 days a week of cardio and logging religiously every morsel I eat. I have a new set of fears now, I used to fear not losing weight, my new fear is how will I maintain? I am trying to make exercise routine and part of my life. To all you newbies and those weighting to have surgery and lose of you who are struggling, stay positive, stay focused and if you detour, forgive yourself, pick you up and move forward. We can all get caught up in the soulda, coulda, woulda! Look at everyday as a new beginning. Good luck to all of you and if you know a nurse be extra special to them this week, this is our week to celebrate. It is national nurse week, so hug your favorite nurse this week and tell her how much you appreciate what she does.

Well this is my first blog on this site. I have this itch to write some thoughts out but I find my other online blogs pretty lonely. I have a livejournal that I frequent occasionally but it seems none of my friends on there are active anymore. And I have a tumblr but my friends that I've added don't add me back so I'm feeling a little lonely on the blog part. It's not so much that I want comments, I really appreciate them, but more than anything I just want to feel like at least I have the potential to reach somebody.. anybody. There is something that is very hard for me to deal with and I don't really know where I can talk about it with open arms. I just feel that if I put it out there that someone, somewhere is going to use it against me like what had happened on another website in the past (obesityhelp). I have a disorder called borderline personality disorder. Basically it is very hard to explain and pretty complex. BPD is not a chemically induced problem but rather learned behavior from a traumatic childhood of some sort. They say it is usually linked to familial problems but I had more problems from my school mates and people in the neighborhood constantly beating on me and making fun of me, that is what the doctors think was the trigger at least. I've ALWAYS been fat my whole life since I was like 8 but before that my sister was probably the culprit. There are things that I have only had a teeny tiny light shed on that she did to me but I do not even remember that specifically. I just remember the other parts. I have this in addition to OCD, so instead of having a life full of drug or sex addictions, I have addictions to other things that are repetitive in nature. I do a lot of video games because I take to them and I can get "lost" in them as I become addicted to them without much health risk. I get "addicted" to crafting things with my hands, like arts and crafts. I do a lot of jewelry crafting and other crafts that allow me to "obsess" over learning to make. I've sort of contorted that way as a means of managing my problem on my own with BPD and not being a statistic. Apparently BPD is curable and is usually cured as the person ages, but it doesn't always happen. I also have read that a lot of people with BPD never make it to older ages because they are prone to suicide before then. I feel I manage decent on my own but I am not perfect. I can keep myself from unhealthy habits such as drugs or alcohol or shopping, but I can't seem to control my thoughts. And I wonder how this will effect me in the long run of the WLS process. I don't think that it will be an issue with food because I have come to face that addiction and I don't get addicted to food like I do other things like my crafting. It's not the same. Food is a whole other subject for me. It's something that my family values a lot and Chef's run in my family down my fathers side. There is always gourmet food and lots of it around. Lots of fried foods and delicious elaborately cooked cunconctions that are just so delicious but not really healthy. I've never learned how to eat right or the right portions so basically trying to diet is so foreign to me. I don't understand how things go together with food (unfortunately that is never a craft I took to) although I can cook but I pretty much have to stick to a recipe because my brain just does not put things together with food very well. It's just hard for me. From the ages of 13 to around 19 I was what you may know as a cutter. I use to cut myself. I have not done it since around 18 but I say 19 because I had a little slip up that year. I have overcome that obstacle, as well. I had lots of therapy and psychological evaluations and drug trials but in the end it was something I quit doing on my own. But I will always utilize things I learned from my counselors. I had one counselor that had learned of my fascination with a book from school called Sadako and the 1000 Paper Cranes. We had learned as a school project how to make origami paper cranes and I took to making them very well that I got an award in class. That was in 5th grade. I had this counselor when I was about 15. So in the book when Sadako was in the hospital with leukemia, her friend had taught her the origami cranes to keep her occupied and they hung them from the ceiling until she passed. And I just loved that book, it reached out to me for some reason. So my counselor asked me to teach her how to make the cranes, and we would each make a crane of a different color paper and size each session we had. When I stopped seeing this counselor she flattened each crane and placed them in a box that we decorated together. I still have that box. I am by no means a hoarder, but I take to things that hold sentimental value. When my Mamaw passed away, my great aunt sent home her purse full of some personal belongings that were originally in that purse but some not. I asked my mom when she brought it home to me because I couldn't go to the funeral, what my sister had gotten. My mother told me nothing, she didn't have many personal belongings left because she went through a phase where she was giving away her belongings to people at church (she had dementia). I asked my mom, why did I get all of this then and nothing for her? She said, Thelma (my aunt) thought I ought to have it because she knew I take more value in things like that, the sentiment. It's so true that I do. Not everything do I keep but just little trinkets here or there from times in my life or people or memories of either. I don't know. Since I'm not going through with the WLS with insurance I am curious if they will still ask me for a psychological evaluation. Should I get one even if they don't because of this problem? Does anyone else have any sort of personality disorder or borderline? I'm so afraid of making a post in a forum because I don't want to be judged. I am not crazy nor incapable of doing things for myself. I am very smart and very much capable of working and things. I take no medications although I'm sure someone would try to put me on some but after having so many problems arise from medications I decided to self-help and I feel it has been good for me. I did in my teens along with cutting have issues with sex and drugs but I have overcome that on my own and I feel that I have a pretty good idea of how to keep myself from going to any bad place like that as I've not slipped up since those times. Anyway, just wanted to get that off my chest. Having BPD really makes things a lot harder on the brain aspects of things. I can usually catch myself when I am thinking too irrationally and all but sometimes I do get confused about being in denial, too under exaggerated or if I am being too much. Is there anyone out there who understands this, at all, whatsoever? Am I alone? Reference link: http://www.mayoclini...isorder/DS00442

On the subject of the artificial sweeteners debate, I pulled this from americanpregnancy.org, the only government run, FDA approved pregnancy website in the USA. For informational purposes. On the definitions page of this same website, moderate use it described as 1-3 times weekly average use, or less than once daily on medications. Fairy, I'd think about the 4x weekly Sweet n Low use. It's my favorite sweetener too, but I've resorted to using reg sugar or 2 Splendas in it's place until baby is out. Read on: Aspartame: (Equal or NutraSweet) Aspartame is not effective in heat nor for long periods in liquid form. It is often found as an additive to soft drinks, gelatin, desserts, pudding mixes, breakfast cereals, beverages, chewing gum, dairy products, and other foods and drugs. According to the Food and Drug Administration(FDA), Aspartame is safe for use during pregnancy and lactation. It is recommended to limit consumption to a moderate level. Aspartame should not be used by anyone with PKU (a rare metabolic disorder), rare liver disease, or by pregnant women who have high levels of phenylalanine in their blood. Phenylalanine is a component of aspartame, and it may not metabolize correctly in anyone who has these conditions. Sucralose: (Splenda) This is non-caloric sweetener that is made from sugar. Sucralose has been approved for use in baked goods, baking mixes, non-alcoholic beverages, chewing gum, coffee and tea products, confections and frostings, fats and oils, frozen dairy desserts and mixes, fruit juices, sugar substitutes, sweet sauces, toppings and syrups. It can also be used as “table-top sweetener.” Sucralose has no effect on blood sugar, offers no calories, and is deemed safe during pregnancy and lactation. According to the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), sucralose is safe for everyone to consume, including pregnant women. What artificial sweeteners are questionable or NOT safe to use during pregnancy? Saccharin: (Sweet 'N Low) Although it is not used as much today as in the past, it still appears in many foods, beverages and other substances. The FDA does consider saccharin to be safe to use for the general public. Former studies that had linked saccharin to an increased risk of developing bladder cancer have been dismissed by the National Toxicology program. But studies do show that saccharin crosses the placenta and may remain in fetal tissue, so its use for pregnant women still remains in question. . What artificial sweeteners are questionable or NOT safe to use during pregnancy? Saccharin: (Sweet 'N Low) Although it is not used as much today as in the past, it still appears in many foods, beverages and other substances. The FDA does consider saccharin to be safe to use for the general public. Former studies that had linked saccharin to an increased risk of developing bladder cancer have been dismissed by the National Toxicology program. But studies do show that saccharin crosses the placenta and may remain in fetal tissue, so its use for pregnant women still remains in question.

In my humble opinion, from a former all night boozer and party dude, long long ago and 60 days out surgery with 50lbs down and 25 to go. Please lay off the alcohol for a while. Be careful and not saying this is you, there is a high amount of addiction swapping in weight loss surgery patients up to 30% one study shows. Take care and be well. Lash

Hi all, Not sure if you will see this since this thread has been out a while.... As a single 40 something, alcohol is part of my social experience, and I don't want to give it up. I enjoy good wine, dinner parties that include this, good beer and the every once in a while, margarita. I would be lying to say that it concerns me that I can't drink....... In fact, it is part of my decision process and why I am waiting to get the VSG. I need to wrap my head around NOT drinking before I move forward.... I really appreciated the original post, very honest. Thanks for that!

I've always been conceided even when I was fat so I didn't think it was "that bad" but now I can truly see the difference and it disgusts me. I also get disgusted at the amount of food and type of food that people eat. I promised that although I was going to have this surgery, I would remain a fat girl inside for ever but I honestly get grossed out by the amounts of food that certain people eat. I feel like a hypocrite but can't help my feelings ... does anyone feel this way too? OMG YOU SOUND LIKE ME!!! I'm getting my sleeve next week, and I tell people now that I'm just your average VAIN FAT GIRL! My best friend ( who weighs 135 pounds) is constantly getting onto me because of my comments towards "women of size" who just don't seem to have MIRRORS IN THEIR HOMES! I'm really not trying to be a snotty B***H, I just think that if you are going to cram all that food into your body, at least cover it up. I cover everything! And Probably will for a very long time, EVEN after I loose all this weight! You look AWESOME, and yes, you should probably limit the alcohol use a bit, but you have still done a great job and have a lot to celebrate!!!

I see a lot of folks saying that frozen yogurt is bad... The non frozen yogurt has 0 fat; 5 Mg cholesterol; 150 Mg sodium; 510 potassium; 15 carbs with 15 grams coming from sugars; and 11g of Protein. The frozen yogurt from Brahms has 2 grams of fat; 10 mgs of cholesterol; 60 Mg of sodium; 6g of sugar and 10g of sugar alcohols; and 4 g of protein. It is no sugar added and has the splenda label Would the frozen yogurt be bad to use as a Protein shake base? I like the consistentcy better but ive heard a lot of negative remarks regarding frozen yogurt. Reg yogurt is fine.... I actually like cottage cheese better as a base though; yogurt plain tastes so bitter. Any insight? I cant do Greek yogurt; it is too acidic for my tummy. Thanks y'all. I have not been sleeved yet but ive started incorporating Protein shakes for Breakfast to get the habit established.

OK, I'm back and able to type a bit more. I decided just to post here instead of a PM as others may benefit from my experience. I first came to AA just over 14 years ago after hitting one of my bottoms. I don't call it rock bottom as I know I have the capacity to go lower if I were to relapse. That has been true for me in the past. Addiction is a cunning, baffling, powerful foe as I knew deep down I was doing things I did not want to do, but felt powerless to stop the cycle. I repeated the same behavior time and again expecting different results, only to have things turn out the same. I would abuse substances because I didn't want to feel or confront the emotions I was dealing with. I treated substances as a reward when times were good and as a crutch when times were bad. The bottom line, for me, is that these substances weren't my problem. I was. They were my solution to help me cover up the reality of my issues and they worked quite effectively for a long time. Until they didn't. And that is when I was given the gift of desperation. I could no longer go on the way I was. I had to make a change or life as I knew it would lose all meaning. I was at a turning point. I had reached my bottom. Some of you may be asking, "What substances is he referring to? Alcohol? Illicit drugs? food?" The answer is, "Yes", to all three. I have found that I abused food in no different way than I abused alcohol. Through the help of AA, the need to use alcohol was lifted, but then I was able to replace that addiction with food. So, I very much believe it is quite plausible to begin abusing alcohol in new ways if you are no longer able to abuse food the way you used to. And if you were abusing it prior to VSG, then even more so. Trust me, there is not a single person who walks into their first AA meeting on the best day of their life. Nobody wants to make that first appearance and nobody wants to admit they are an alcoholic. To be honest with you, I don't want anybody admitting they are an alcoholic if they truly aren't. I wouldn't wish alcoholism on my worst enemy. But if you believe you may have an issue with some addictive behavior issues, then know that the rooms of AA have provided simple solutions to millions of people who have been able to lead much happier lives free from their addictions. I was just telling somebody yesterday that if you would have asked me to script out what I wanted to be like 5 years after getting sober, I wouldn't have been able to script it any better than how it turned out. Yes, I still have issues. Sure, I am only two and half years post VSG. But I know that this and many other options in my life wouldn't have been even possible had I not stayed sober. Going to an AA meeting does not make you an alcoholic. You are not going to be thrown into a back room and have AA shaved into your hair. Know that every person in AA, at one time, felt very similar to how you are feeling right now, and they are there waiting with their hand out. All it takes is willingness to make a change.

Hi all, I've had great success with my surgery... List 100 lbs in 10 months... But I've been drinking wine again and it scares me a bit. I'm wondering if I've changed my obsession with food to alcohol. I really never drank much, I always got horrible headaches. But I don't now. Anyone else having issues like this.

hahaahahaha! I think her advice is the standard BS claptrap spouted by most RDs whose job it is to toe the party line with old bs information. "Eat within 30-1hour of waking." Add extra meals to your rotation... Remind me again, aren't you doing pretty well maintaining your present weight? Do you ACTIVELY WANT to gain? If so, then yah. The party line advice is the quickest way to accomplish that. LOL. I would just chalk it up to opinions and asshats...we all have 'em. Right? Nod, say yes mam. Then do your own thing. Do YOU think you have an exercise, food, or alcohol issue? **** I "rawlk" or walk 1 hour a day and try for 7days a week. I don't always hit 7 days. I also try to do 20 minutes of core strengthening and balance work 2 x per week. I'm not as focused on getting this done as I am my walking. ***** And lastly, I'm crazy busy right now. And realized I hadn't logged my food since Saturday--until today. I probably won't go back and log in past days cuz no time. But I'm still sitting at 131.6lbs today. (I have been eating mostly the same foods each day so...basically my same top of the week routine. But I'm a logger through and through! Love it. It's mah jam!

My liquid diet post surgery is any liquid (except caffeine, carbonated or alcohol)--does not have to be clear! Soups are fine as long as there are no lumps and even yogurt if no lumps or seeds! They said you get more nutrients that way, you feel better and it doesn't hurt your sleeve.

Good luck. Plan on at least a month with no alcohol following a taper. You want to give your body time to heal. Pay attention to your heart rate and blood pressure during this. If you really start to spike, talk to your doctor about benzos. There are parts of your brain which were severely suppressed with all the alcohol in your system and the benzos will help. Nice of your room mate to help. Make sure your roommate is familiar with DT symptoms. A small part of the population (esp. those with seizer disorders) is susceptible and it can be life threatening.

Oh lads, I had THE WORST DAY. It started off with a protein pancake. It was a sample from the chemist and it tasted so fake, so I put some canned whipped cream and sugar-free syrup on it and by breakfast end I'd used up over 300 calories without feeling satisfied so I ate a protein bar but then I felt sick. So I didn't eat lunch, got hungry and lost the battle that had been raging in me for over a week to buy junk (yeah, I crapped out on the challenge). So I'm stuffing my face with chickadees and Mars Bars knowing full well its going to make me as sick as a dog. Lads, the taste wasn't even good! The chocolate was sickly sweet and the chickadees were overly salt and processed nothingness. THEN came the dumping and reactive hypoglycaemia. After I recovered I ate a white bread roll with smashed banana and chicken nuggets. I literally don't know what happened to me. I have been SO GOOD for months with only a minor slip up now and again. What the heck??? Back in the saddle tomorrow and I'll assess the damage at next weigh-in, but I feel like an alcoholic that is on that naxalone drug and I couldn't even get "high" just sick and now I'm regretting everything. Sigh. Oh lads, just when I thought I was in control. Oh well, onwards and upwards. Sent from my SM-G930F using BariatricPal mobile app

I have developed a plan. I imagine that with 26 people, they will start splintering off into smaller groups so I will gravitate to whatever group she is with. From there I will kind of gauge the situation. This thing ends around 10:30. Since it's a work thing, there's no alcohol. I'll assess the situation and see if an opportunity arises and ask her to go for a drink or something after. This is not something I have done before so it remains to be seen if I can follow through on it.

Your post was incredibly brave and admitting and accepting you have a problem is the hardest thing to do. I deal with a food addiction but I also have a mother that is an alcoholic. She never wanted to do anything about her problem and to live through the devastation of it personally was one of the hardest things. I will say it is one heck of a beast so I wouldn't suggest going it alone. You need someone that has been there done that. That's kinda what this place is for us. I would suggest going to some type of group meeting having a sponsor is the best thing you can do.

If you are an American, HIPAA law prevents your employer or future employer from being able to access your medical record. No medical practice would go giving out that information unless they want to get sued. It is against the law. Sent from my Nexus 10 using the BariatricPal App Ummm, Horse S**t. Sorry, HIPPA was wiped out in 2009 when the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 was passed. One of the provisions was an automation of doctor and hospital records via federal grants to state hospital associations. The public reason was "well it will make it easier for people's medical records to be shared with other medical providers in case of emergency." And that is a dang lie. If you want more information than you ever want on this, I am very sure I can prove that assertion. For the purposes of this discussion, if you have serious drug/alcohol or psychiatric problems and you think the government, law enforcement or big pharma doesn't know it, you are wrong if you have third party coverage. What this means is even though you think your attempts to get help won't or can't be used to keep you from purchasing a firearm in the future, hurt your job prospects, create difficulty getting insurance and professional licening et. al. YOU ARE FLAT OUT WRONG. That patient privacy/HIPPA form that you sign is not worth the paper it is printed on. I self pay and have to work very hard to keep my information out of that system. NOTE: you might ask, why do I care? I really don't give a rip about being one more data point in a government data base, but my ex-wife is a government employee (and bi-polar) and she has access to the whole dang database. She illegally tracks everything I do on the system and let's my kids know everything about my medical history, with the hope of embarrassing me. I don't want her, or anyone else to know. So I work very hard to keep it private. I switched to a non-ObamaCare insurance plan. My doctor is not on the state electronic record system. Most of my pharmaceuticals are purchased from other countries because its cheaper, and no one has a record. So the assertion that it's ok to get help with drug and alcohol problems because "the government will protect your privacy" is VERY, DANGEROUSLY wrong. Sorry. That's a fact and I will gladly defend my position to anyone who wants more info. But this isn't a political site,so I don't want to get too far afield on this, so please if you disagree or want more info please PM.

Danila I'm sorry you have to do all liquid. My surgeon has done over 3000 sleeves and I don't have to do all liquids until after surgery. I'm on low carb (Atkins style - just had an omelet and bacon yumm). I heard from some you tube videos of people that went to this surgeon we actually get a last supper the night before surgery! Anything we want including alcohol. Yea!! Anyone else get a last supper?

I had severe gastritis to the point I had to take 3 prilosec a day plus tums. Sugar alcohols from sugar free gum and mints was the culprit. It took over two weeks to completely heal it. Now I only have SF gum once in a great while. Also, it's weird, because my surgeon told me SF gum was safe, but I completely over did it. Like I binged out on it. Im 10 months out, so I feel comfortable chewing gum but most places will tell you absolutely under no circumstances: NO GUM. Dont want to get it stuck if swallowed. My bariatric team kinda shrugged when I told them I was chewing gum. I had a barium xray of my pouch and everything is good now, but my stomach lining was seriously irritated for a long time because of it. Constant burping, gas, almost a heart burn sensation and my pouch BURNED and hurt when I ate or drank anything- thought I had an ulcer, but no, gastritis and too many sugar alcohols.

I think there are some people who need formal help to deal with their issues surrounding why, what, when, where and how they eat. I think there are some harsh realities for all of us to face up to about why we ate so much and let ourselves gain until we reached some state of fatness that required surgery. But I also think that by being honest with yourself and facing up to the reality you can face the issues and move on without professional help. By the way I think if you are prone to falling victim to another addiction seeing a shrink won't stop you it will just give you a neutral person to talk about your new addiction with. I think that if look at alcoholics, gamblers etc until they were ready to give it up and stop on their own they didn't stop. If you mentally aren't ready to give up all the comfort of food, mentally and start channelling that time and energy you spent eating into something out there are tons of other things that are safe you can obsess about. I can say after 5 years I am still not a gambler, huge drinker, smoker, druggie or basically anything else but a person.

Happy new year people! So I was totally going to see if anyone wanted to do coffee (think that was mentioned a couple of months ago by someone, heh) when I was back in NZ but it was super busy for the three weeks I was back, so... yeah. Hi Pockets! I've had my band for 7 years as of last December (I'm 26, I got the band when I was 20), and it's worked really well for me. One thing that I thought was rather major that they DIDN'T tell me about when I got it was the potential for indigestion/heartburn when you get to your goal weight (or rather, just past the sweet spot on the band). I don't know about anyone else here, but I had never had indigestion before I got to my goal weight a few years ago, and every time I've had it since it has hurt a hell of a lot - not sure if this is because it gets aggravated by the band or not, but either way. Heather (at Dr Fris' office on the North Shore) just sort of shrugged it off and we agreed that having the band tight enough to help me stay at around 56-57 kg (just above my 'ideal' weight, think my 'ideal' is 55kg...) was too much, so now I just aim to stay around 58. I've also noticed that it tends to be triggered by stress half the time - I moved to Europe, no one here knew, I got indigestion several times; I told a friend at work, no indigestion since. Go figure. There are, of course, other complications like slippage, etc, but like Laura said, I found the benefits have far outweight the risks. Actually, Dr Fris told me that a patient of his had moved to London, the band slipped, and he flew all the way back to NZ to go to Dr Fris rather than get it fixed in Europe. That suggests to me that any problems caused by that are manageable on the short term at least! Oh, like Laura and AJ said about the band not working/changing habits, I remember discussing the band with a neighbour who told me a friend of hers got the band, then while still on the liquid diet was melting chocolate so she could drink it... Needless to say she never lost any weight... People who don't know much about it (or don't want to know...) tend to think it's the easy way out, but it is just a tool you can use, like listing everything in the weight watchers book or calorie counting or some such. Like AJ said, you can sabotage it (like with the chocolate drink mentioned above)... On the flip side though, it is a rather strict tool as if you forget about it and take a big bite of a sandwich or eat too much too quickly you will definitely know about it (more so the further along you get). Changing your eating habits takes a bit of getting used to - I still find that I have to pay attention when I visit my family as I wasn't living at home when I got it so they never slowed down their eating along with me (my ex-bf did, really appreciated that! Funny thing is he still eats slower now - when he has time to, anyway, heh) - old habits die hard I suppose. Other little things I've noticed are that I've turned into a bit of a light weight on the alcohol front (I used to be able to handle it really well, my tolerance has halved I think - I don't drink very often, but when I do, anyway. Mind you, the nutritionist at Dr Fris' office also told me to drink a glass of wine a day...)... I've also noticed that flying long haul can really mess up my eating patterns now - flying from NZ to Europe or vice versa generally has me surviving on one or two meals a day for a few days, compared to three plus Snacks... Just little things, but it's interesting when you start noticing the non-weight related changes. I really like that if anything happens the band can be adjusted or, if needed, removed. I like that there is the option if needed, though considering how much my abs/stomach hurt after the surgery to get the band in there I think it'd have to be something pretty serious for me to get it removed, heh. Ok, I've rambled on for ages... Ahem. On the other front, I went to Dr Fris' office when I was back in NZ (the same day I flew in, no less!) and got a top up - I hadn't gained as much weight as I thought, thank goodness (scales at a specialists office here said I was 65...! Dr Fris' scales said 60... Argh.). Had half a mill of solution added - tiny tiny amount, but talk about feeling it... Fortunately I could use the long haul travel excuse when visiting friends... This is the first time I've had to totally rely on Heather for advice as usually my intuition regarding the band is really good, but I just haven't been feeling it lately. It felt loose and I was hungry a lot of the time, but then I went to Bremerhaven on a work trip two weeks before coming home and I was barely able to eat for the entire weekend (epic stress = no food apparently!). It took a little while to settle as well, as usually I'm back to normal within a couple of days (I've never had to do the liquids after inflation thing), but I was feeling a bit restricted all the way up till Christmas... Guess this was a fine line inflation, really, but it's feeling pretty good right now. My grandparents did a full roast meal for my family the night I left NZ and I managed my usual serving of that fine, so that was good. Now I just need to get the running sorted out again and try and get my knees to stop screwing up and I'll be good to go (or rather, stay at the same weight, or perhaps fit into my favourite pair of jeans again - I fit them at 58kg or less, lol) again. Heh. Actually, on a more light-hearted note - I'm familiar with the problem of not being able to fit some clothes because they weren't a large enough size (some - I was size 18 at my heaviest, 96kg - this was mostly preventative surgery because the pattern was 'gain weight no matter what I do' and the only way appeared to be 'up'... But I did have a couple of instances of not being able to buy stuff I liked cos it didn't go to size 18...)... Now I've discovered that if I'm not careful and, say, get to my goal weight (which I'm not planning on, I decided a couple of years ago that 58 is where I'd rather be), I will be too small to fit clothes from Kathmandu and Bivouac, which is where most of my clothes are from... Oops. Aldesa - I'm with Laura on this one, that sucks! Are they able to do anything about it? Laura - go you! You can do it! What's your goal weight again? And how far away is your 21st? Hmm. I'm making a nice big pot of Soup and I can't remember how long it's been boiling for. Oops again. Forcing myself to eat something before I pass out again. Yay jet lag!

HIya good luck with the Optifast, this was the hardest part of the whole journey for me, especially no alcohol as I love a chardonnay I stuck firmly to it as I was too scared not too, but I am sure if you had a little fruit it would be ok, how about 1/2 banana with the shake blended together.............out of interest, I lost 6 kgs in 2 weeks on this, but it was damn hard, hehehe, call in here for support if u need it........where again are you having your op? XX Amourette

I was 320 when I first started my weight loss adventure. I couldn't even walk on 2 on the treadmill. The best advice I can give you is to eliminate carbs, sugars, alcohol as much as possible. I lost 40 lbs preop by doing this. Good luck on your venture.

My surgeon/nutritionist team strongly recommends severely limiting alcohol intake. They've never said anything about irritating the stoma, but their biggest concern is the carbonation from beer causing stretching, and the 'empty' calories from any alcoholic drink. They say a very occasional drink isn't horrible, but they don't want me to get in the habit of drinking frequently. I try not to give people medical direction unless I'm relaying it from my surgeon/nutritionist, and I try to be careful to point that out. Not sure if Mattintosh is relaying policy from his surgeon or from the company he apparently works for (getbandednow.com)

I am down 200 lbs! You don't lose that kind of tonage drinking alcohol! It is full of empty calories. If you have solid restriction the kind that causes you difficulty drinking cokes and beer the you will find that Vodka or Jack or whatever will sit and burn. A little each sip. I know people that have had serious trouble because they "tested" their bands. Its not worth it. I say don't do it. There is a guy that owns one of the Bandster boards. He Drank and not only got the burned stoma from drinking but lost his band as well. All from drinking. The question initially was is it ok to have a drink. If you are asking me I say No. All for the reasons above. P.S. Good advice is priceless doesn't matter from whom it comes. Sheesh!:whoo:

@@Proud2BMe - I wanted to say thanks for sharing your story. I am going to be sleeved on Wednesday. I only drink occasionally and don't have a drinking problem. However, addiction does run in my family. I haven't had anything to drink in two weeks now because of the preop diet. I know the recommendation to never drink again, but since I just have wine occasionally I figured it will be ok to have a little here and there in the future. Your story makes me seriously reconsider that thought. My brother in law had RNY about two years ago and seems to have a problem with alcohol now too. He also went through a divorce and I thought that might be more his reason. I do wonder though. My brother is an alcoholic and has been doing it for awhile. He's to the point where it seems nearly impossible to stop, even after a DWI and $10,000 down the drain. I urge you to follow your own instinct and seek some professional help. Stop it in its tracks. Don't let the disease leave you down and out, like it does for so many. A friend of mine did AA and said it really turned his whole life around. You faced WLS and lost all that weight. You took such a huge step at making a better life for yourself. Don't let this stop you. Get some help. You can tackle this too. Thanks again for sharing.