Search the Community

Hello everyone, I'm in the process of researching banding as an option and need your assistance. My greatest fear is of losing friendships. food is my friend, and I have a few relationships that are based on food and alcohol, and my greatest fear is actually all about losing these friends. I'm a huge emotional eater and party girl, and it's not the food and or the alcohol loss that scares me, it's losing friends that scares me as most of my friends are just like me. Any of you share these concerns? Any advice?

Hi I am looking for the Band Buddy / Friend . I am 41 yo with plans of having a surgery February 2011 @ NYU Langone Group by Dr Fielding Going through all the normal feelings of - scared, excited, scared, exited... and on and on and on. I need the surgery to stop overeating. Choosing the right food is not my vice. But portion control IS. I am not married and dont have kids. Pretty easy going person with good sense of humor ( most of big people are - i think it is a self defense mechanism?) I dont smoke and dont drink. During the pre-surgery seminar doctore mentionned I might start after the surgery to replace food obsession with alcohol. I hope NOT lol. As you can guess by my nickname - I was 'made' in the USSR. In USA for over 20 years. Live in Woodbridge NJ and very often visit family in Shisheadbay Brooklyn. So if you are in the area and looking for BBF - let me know. Sincerely, Russian BANDit.

This will be an unpopular opinion, especially since I am not a parent: Parents with children that obese should be held to the same legal standard that a parent who underfeeds their child would be. Of course their pediatrician should intervene and monitor progress at first, but ultimately, those parents are killing their child just as surely as if they were withholding food. My weight was not out of control until I hit college, so in no way do I blame my mother. The addictive personality comes from my alcoholic father. As a teacher, I often wonder when parents will be held "accountable" for their children. If the kid is obese and dies in gym class, it is the school's fault, the nurse's fault, etc. Just my opinion.Will def check out the show.

Ur 5 days out of surgery and consuming alcohol mixed with fattening coffee mix?

Yesterday, Day 21, I had 1 egg, 2 veggie patties for brunch and 1 oz beef tenderloin, 3 stuffed mushroom caps, some cheese and like a slice of summer sausage through the night. I also had a few sips of alcohol. It was my companies holiday party and I had a blast. We has some games too and I ran around like a crazy person and didn't hurt today. Still managed to stay under in Carbs, but didn't hit my Protein... Cal: 714 Carbs: 28.5 Prot: 41.75 Today: Day 22 post op scale Moved again! Yeah! Breakfast: 2 Scrambled Egg w/Cheese Snack: 40g Isopure Snack: 1 string cheese Lunch: chicken salad Snack: Crystal light Popsicle Dinner: 1 srv Stove Top Bake Water throughout the day. Cal: 867 Carbs: 32.5 Prot: 87.88 End of Day Observation: Felt like I ate A LOT today. Need to start working out tomorrow! Later everyone!

Not alcohol kind of drinker. I have Water, crystal light or tea with me 24/7. My 1 medication gives me horrible cotton mouth.

For me the biggest positive isn't something that happened to me but rather me learning and understanding what it means for someone to struggle with an undesirable behavior and not succeed at changing it on their own. I have so much more compassion for alcoholics and drug addicts and what they face now than I ever did when I was thin. Not to mention obese people of course! Seriously, I'm ashamed at how judgmental I was.

I made it to onderland [emoji1373][emoji1437]but because I haven't been weighing regularly I don't know when it happened. I am beyond excited. Been over 16 years since I was in onderland. I am so grateful and thankful for this decision to make myself healthy and fit. My relationship with food is so much healthier now. I don't obsess about anything I consume. If I do eat a carb mainly as dessert I don't beat myself because I know I make good food choices 90 percent of the time. I am proud of myself and how far I have come. Just like everyone else I get my fair share of not so favorable days in life but I don't seek comfort from foods or alcohol like old me would have. It is my choice to make me and keep me healthy. Please be kind to you because you are very special and don't give up.

not only is it acidic, it's carbonated. Not a good choice at less than a month out. You're still healing. Plus transfer addiction is unfortunately a real thing - some people develop issues with alcohol after bariatric surgery. So I'd be careful. we were told to wait a year after surgery to indulge - some people are told six months. Some may not have to wait as long, but 3.5 weeks is way too early.

Portion size is & always will be a consideration but more so in the beginning because of the many nerves cut during your surgery I mentioned in my previous post. It can be easier to eat more than we actually should. I was advised 1/4 - 1/3 cup of food from puree slowly increasing until I was eating about a cup around 6 months. Check with your dietician about portion size (& calorie goals) as plans do differ. I certainly couldn’t eat more than what I was advised & took ages to eat it. I sipped on my diluted soups & shakes for a couple of hours. During the liquid stage I are two ‘meals’ a day. Not hungry or interested in any more. From purée I ate three meals & no snacks. One or two snacks (fruit or soft cheese or yoghurt) were added later around third month a think. Ten popsicles seem a lot. Are you eating them for their fluid content or because you’re looking them as food & maintaining old snacking/eating habits?? While they contain no added sugar they do contain sweeteners - artificial or sugar alternatives like monk fruit. Therefore they are still feeding your desire for sweet foods. Some develop a sensitivity to sugar alcohols (the artificial sweeteners ending in ‘ol’) & experience bloating, diarrhoea, etc. I couldn’t have potatoes either but could have rolled oats from purée (instant to begin so easier on the tummy & very thin & milky). Took me three days to eat a serve & it was the only carb I ate (except the bite or two of vegetables I had). We all need a small amount of carbs & oats are considered a better carb. I’ll say it again plans are different.

Hi Little Dog Lover-(I am one too ) You've been through alot and I'm sorry for your pain. I'm also an alcoholic (sober since 5/25/2000) and I congratulate you for seeking treatment! You can do this-believe in yourself. Please keep us posted. Hugs

My surgeon cleared alcohol after two months. He doesn't encourage it because of empty calories.

I was reading somewhere about how having a glass of wine is good for you and could help you lose weight.. Well, I never drink wine because I just don't like it very much, and I certainly don't drink during the week when I have to work.. but last night I went and bought a bottle of Lambrusco and had half a glass... boy was it good.. then I had another half of a glass... I'm feeling really good now.. then another half a glass.. then I started playing WoW with my hubby.... and listened to music.. I started dancing at my desk uncontrollably.. I mean, I litterally worked up a sweat. I had the whole chair involved.. it was like a 20 minute intense workout.. went and had another glass... played WOW, kicked ass and won 4 battlegrounds... made stupid comments in game like "wine is so divine" and "dancing is fun".. people probably thought I was nuts considering most of the people on there are 16 year old nerdy boys... Didn't go to bed till 2.. woke up with red tongue and teeth ... and yes, I brushed them.. still slightly a pinkish hue even today. lol. But, I lost 1 pound. HA HA.. So now I wonder.. isn't there such a thing as transferred addiction? like what if I become some raging wine alcoholic playing WoW and dancing in my chair everynight?? Do I need help???? Because even as I type this, all I keep thinking about is the rest of that wine and how I want just one more glass tonight....after I work out of course. lol.

Hey gal. I just posted on another of your posts and also sent you a message. BUt here is the liver shrink diet my doctor and nutritionist gave me to follow 2 weeks prior to surgery: Liver Shrink Diet Remember: Vegetables ar unlimited on this diet. (except potatoes, corn, Beans, and peas. Breakfast Protein shake or Protein Bar (You may use any shake as long as it has 220 or less calories and 10g or less fat/serving) Mid Morning Snack 1 small piece of fruit (if you have Diabetes add 4 oz low-fat yogurt) lunch Protein Bar (220 calories of less and 10g or less of fat) or Shake Mid Afternoon Snack 1 small piece of fruit (add 4 oz low-fat yogurt if you have Diabetes) dinner 3 oz meat (lean) - The size of a deck of cards steamed vegetables or salad with Fat-free salad dressing 6 unsalted crackers or 2 slices low calorie bread or 1 small baked potato 1/2 c fruit or 1 small piece of fruit Evening Snack 1 small piece of fruit (add 4 oz low-fat yogurt if you are Diabetic) (You may have non-caloric beverages on this diet) NO ALCOHOL!!!!!!!! Examples: Decaf. Tea, Crystal Light, sugar-free Kool-Aid, Water Follow This 1 Day Prior To Surgery: Clear liquids only including Jello, broth, juice, and any beverages listed above. Jello can be congealed, but do not put fruit in it it. (NO RED JELLO) & NOTHING TO EAT PAST MIDNIGHT (of course). This is just what my surgeon and nutritionist gave me. Of course everyone's seems different but I just thought I would give you something to go on. October 29th will be here before we know it!! We will both rock this band. :tt1:

Hi all. This may be kind of long, so please bear with me. 13 years ago, due to a nasty divorce, I went on a diet of coffee and Water, and lost somewhere around 100 lbs in a little over 3 months. At that time, I started having major chest pain every time I had my period-to the point where I needed to be hospitalized every month for 4 days. I was throwing up bile and in so much pain every month-it was what I imagine a heart attack would feel like. They did extensive testing on me, and figured out that it was some kind of combination of endometriosis coupled with a strange form of pancreatitis. They decided there was some kind of pancreatitis involved, because during 2 different hospital stays, my amylase levels were way way up, and any surgeries that were consequently done triggered off attacks as bad as the ones I got with my period. They went in looking for the endometriosis, but never found it-although they told me that although they couldnt find it that didnt mean it wasnt there. I should also mention that until then, and after that I was never able to get pregnant, and we did end up adopting 2 beautiful children. I begged my dr to do a full hysterectomy, but he refused because they werent exactly sure what was causing the problem, so therefore they couldnt be sure that would stop it. I should mention that during this time, since they were testing for all kinds of things, they found I had a huge amount of gallstones, and they did a laparoscopy to remove my gall bladder. The surgery went well, however I did have an attack that lasted 4 days after, and the only thing that helped with the pain at that point was shots of dilaudid-(a form of heroin usually only given to cancer patients in their last days.... The doctor finally did put me on Lupron shots to stop my period, and I took them every month for over 5 years. The attacks all stopped, and I havent had a problem since. He did stop the shots 6 months ago, and although I have my period again-very irregularly, very heavy-I havent had an attack-thank goodness. Now, with all the reading I have been doing, I see that one side affect that is listed in the side affects that happen in less then 1% is pancreatitis. I also see that they wont put the lap band in someone who has chronic pancreatitis. Now I should mention that many pancreas problems are due to drinking excessive amounts of alcohol-which I dont do-not now nor ever. Other then maybe a glass of champagne on new years and a beer or 2 in the course of a whole year, I dont touch the stuff. The doctors never felt this was chronic pancreatitis-but they believed that endometriosis may be attached to the pancreas somewhere in my system which is extremely unusual. I guess my question is twofold. I have about 200 lbs to lose, and although I havent had an attack in over 4 years, of course I am scared to death that it will start again-I really cant even describe the kind of pain that was for me....My health is severely deteriorating due to the extra weight. I cant walk far because of my legs, my ankles are always swollen, I wake up short of breath very often, and I am out of breath from walking across the street. I really dont know how long my body can take all these extra pounds, and I have a 4 and a 5 year old to be here for. I am wondering if anyone here has had their pancreas affected by the band at all, and how it happened...If the surgeon is willing to do the lap band surgery, can anyone familiar with pancreas problems give me any suggestions as to what the dr could do to avoid it? Do you think the type of meds they use to put me under could also have something to do with the problems I have had? I know no one here is a dr, I am just wondering if anyone else has had any kind of experience with this sort of thing. I have been reading alot on alot of different message boards, and I havent seen anyone mention anything about it....:help: If youve gotten this far in my messy story, thanks for reading-and thanks to anyone who can offer me any insight. I do have an appointment in early July to start the ball rolling...I know the dr will have his own opinions....I guess I just want to know what others think as well... ~Dawn

I'm not sure if it's dumping but I found that I have a very similar reaction to sugar alcohols. Intense abdominal pain, sometimes with diarrhea.

yeah beer, soda. i love them both. i am 20 and have had lots of alcohol since i was 15..both of my parents are alcoholics, so this is just extra incentive for me. loose weight, and solidify my life as a healthy sober person!

I drink alcohol almost every weekend :tt2: (I'm 22 years old what do you expect :thumbup:) haha No but i love beer but since i was banded it kills me to drink it...but other than that i have no problems with drinking its much cheaper to go out after the band you get drunk after a few drinks :eek:

I've not read the effects of alcohol on post operative care. Is it allowed? I'm not talking about getting smashed. Is a beer or two allowed? A glass or two of wine? I know it is probably not a good idea, but is it prohibited.

Starting out at 198 (kinda) **** Hi folks. I don't have as much to lose as somebody who is, let's say, 302 pounds. I weigh 198 and have been at this weight for quite a while. I go to the gym once a week (it used to be more) and I eat an average of probably 1900 calories a day. My diet is currently free of most processed sugars and all soda, focusing on high Protein, low carb, and frequent salads with balsamic vinegar and olive oil. I do have several cocktails each weekend. I have the band and want to get to my goal weight of 145. ***** Hi folks. That person above is me - today. I was actually banded 16 months ago. I started out at 302. I lost weight like crazy and dropped 100 pounds in 7 months. I got moving on a treadmill one day post op. I was super compliant with post op eating and dropped 50 pounds before my first fill. WLS saved my life. I got to my green zone. Fill level is optimal. Then I stopped losing. What changed? A lot, now that I think about it. Here is some of it. Some of you know that I filed for divorce four months post-op and left an emotionally and financially abusive husband. Moved out of my home. Took my college age daughters with me. Long story, but smartest thing I ever did. I got WLS precisely so that I would have the courage to leave. It worked. We moved in with my mom. Nuff said. I've been in this state for a year now. One year. NSETBEx (not-soon-enough-to-be-ex) is blocking every step of the divorce and financially cleaning me out. Won't pay bills, college, etc, without court intervention, and continues to emotionally abuse my kids from afar. Nuff said about him. He doesn't deserve another paragraph. Me. What's changed with me? I became more social. For all of my adult obese life I was hiding in my house with my food. Now I go out with my bestie on weekends and listen to bands and go to summer festivals and make new friends. I've joined Codependents Anonymous and go to two meetings a week there. I go to therapy every two weeks -- she started out as a divorce coach but we switched to regular therapy. I go to Overeaters Anonymous about once a week. I joined a gym a couple of months ago and just ended 12 sessions with a personal trainer. The divorce is stressful as hell. It is killing me to think I will still be married at the end of 2015. We haven't even started negotiating the house and assets yet. My kids are home for the summer and busy busy busy. One is working a good intern job and one is taking four college classes since she changed her major and needs to stay on time for graduation. We three share my car in the evenings. Nuff said. I can't buy a house until the divorce is final because except for my decent salary, I am now flat broke. He's draining me dry, and all joint assets are tied up in the divorce. I'm in "waiting" hell. Where does that leave my weight loss? I have been down on myself for not losing weight these last 7 months. Then today I had an epiphany. We all start out every day from exactly where we are. Not where we were. Not where we think we should be. Where we ARE. So where am I today? Today I am a 198 pound 5'5" 54 year old woman who goes to the gym once a week and walks a 5k on the treadmill and works out on some strength machines. I eat high protein and low carb. I don't eat between meals. I don't eat foods with sugar. I drink alcohol on weekends which messes up my sugar and calories. I eat buttered popcorn in large quantities at the movies at least once a week which blows my calories to hell. I eat too many fried foods. What would happen if I stopped treating myself as a failure who hasn't gotten to goal after 16 months, and treated myself instead as starting out at 198 with a LapBand to help me? The circumstances of my life today are in some ways very different and in some ways very much the same as they were a year ago when I left NSETBEx. Same: stressful with constant divorce crap. Different: just about everything else. *** Hi folks. I'm starting out at 198 and have a little over 50 pounds to lose. I have a LapBand and I'm looking for encouragement and support to improve my eating and exercise more. Can anyone relate?

You may need to be scoped. Scans don't always tell the true story. I imagine you are on omeprazole or something similar? And you are avoiding coffee, alcohol, soda, and trying to sleep with your head/upper body elevated? I think if you can elevate the head of your bed, you will find the gas bubble problem to be better. Are you breathing through your mouth? Do you need a different mask? (BTW, after losing weight, I do not need to use my CPAP anymore! It is great!) I developed an ulcer 6 months after my surgery - for no reason. The doctor said it might have been a stitch that didn't heal well, I was on omeprazole for 4-5 months. A follow up scope showed that everything is now healed and doing fine, but I did buy a bed with an adjustable frame so I can easily elevate the head. Best thing I ever did (besides surgery!) The weight loss and head elevation completely resolved my gastritis and GERD. Even the Barretts esophagus resolved, which is amazing. Hang in there. Only good things to come for you! A year from now this will all be behind you and you will be a new person with most of these health issues resolved. PS: It could be that the pressure setting of your CPAP is too high. Have you talked to your sleep doctor? As I lost weight, my pressures were adjusted, until I didn't even need it anymore.

Like you, I'm at goal, and I tend to find myself being a little obsessive about what I can and can't eat. Outside of drinking my butt off in college, I'm not much of a drinker, so I don't really have a hard time not having alcohol. I could, however, happily eat an entire bakery in one day. I only each chocolate around Christmas, or I will end up eating it way too often otherwise and I generally don't eat sweet stuff on a regular basis. I don't see a problem though with having something sweet and a glass of wine on special occasions. I had cake pops the first few days after my last plastics procedure, I have a few bites of cake when it is ordered at dinner events (a few times a year) and sometimes when I feel like it, I get myself a blueberry muffin from Starbucks. If anything my sleeve has helped limit my all or nothing mindset because I know that in theory I can eat whatever I want but I can only have a little bit of it so I'm no longer in danger of eating the entire pan of brownies. One piece and I am quite content. I think you should enjoy a piece of cake and a glass of adult beverage today. Life is about living and the few extra calories won't hurt you. Maybe add an extra workout into your day today as a way to offset the calories and to assuage any guilt you might feel.

alcohol is pretty harsh on your stomach under the best of circumstances... your stomach is healing right now. Wait a bit... it's not worth the chance of damage for a glass. I'm 5 months out and did add wine to my "diet" about 2 months post op... just a glass or two, but I do avoid it for the week after a fill for those same reasons. My major alcohol bummer is Champagne... I heart it, and the carbonation means it's a big bad no now. Wine just makes me miss it more....

Now I feel like we're having a useful discussion. WasABB's comments on alcoholism are somewhat on point also. The difference here from whatever I did before and any splurges that eventually took me off prior game plans is that there is a guaranteed end date to the vacation and a scheduled appointment for refill afterwards. That splurge mentality that has failed us before in trying prior diets is based upon the mental thought "I'm doing okay, I can have one day off, then get back on the horse." I chose lap-band because I know I have a problem with eating and that I do a terrible job of controlling myself. For this vacation, I am going in with the thought "I know I have a problem, I will do my best to utilize the skills I've learned to manage the vacation, but because those are ultimately not enough in the long term, I will be refilled after vacation." To me, this mindset and a specified end date is the biggest difference between pre-band diets/splurges and the circumstances of the vacation. Also, so we can avoid additional comments that I've already made up my mind, which is categorically not true, let me expand upon some earlier comments. Sometimes it is important just to have the conversation, but that conversation's utility is directly proportional to the strength of the rationale behind people's arguments. So please don't take my push back as denial, entrenched mindset, or anything else of that nature. I'm pushing back to further the conversation and probe the issues and/or because some of the comments raise genuine new questions about what I originally posted. I am quite conflicted about what to do and raise it now so that I can carefully think about this for 8.5 months rather than try to figure out what the hell I'm going to do 3 weeks before vacation.

Hiya, thanks for asking. Well I can say I TOTALLY fell off the wagon this weekend! Friday I went out for my best friend's leaving party, and my attempt at not drinking was met with abject horror by said friend, so in typically me style I decided that it would be fine as long as i substituted food calories for alcohol calories! So off I trot with an empty stomach, 5 glasses of wine, 1 cocktail, 2 parma violet flavour vodkas, and two bottles of WKD, and my good intentions lie in ruins! However Saturday morning I tentatively crawl onto the scales to find I am down to 181!!!!!! I sat on the bathroom floor weeping with joy, the last time I was 12 stone something was the weekend i moved in with my husband, and that was 12 years ago, and at that time I'd got a major eating disorder, and was cycling and swimming for hours a day just to get that low. And hey presto! I'm suddenly there again, but this time i am not killing myself to be there! :D Yesterday we had house guests so had the ritual of chinese take away food, so i had duck (thinking Protein but no batter or anything carby = perfect option) only for it to make me really sick! Never one to know how to quit whilst I am ahead I then stupidly decided that having failed to stomach food I could afford another night of drinking, so a pint of ginger cider, and two pints of WKD later my day is done! Yes, I know how much of a total cock-up this weekend has been and just to remind me how stupid I've been I weighed back up at 183 this morning, so back out of the 12's! But I am feeling good! Total disaster? Yes! Insummountable problem? No! I messed up, I am moving on, no big deal (usually I'd be freaking out right now), although breifly, I saw the 12's there for a while which means I can get back there and stay there by not wobbling off the waggon! I can do this! I have no more big social occasions planned until my anniversary weekend on 1st july, and after that nothing until mid-end of August, so a long stretch of no distractions, and no excuses ahead! Plus my one social feature of the week is ending this week, so I get my wednesday nights off to use more wisely, starting 29th I'm joining Zumba class followed by Fitness yoga class - can't wait! Back on it, but the flicker of 181 was enough to really help me believe that this can work again!! Wow, long post, sorry! Off to set up wii family trainer now and to get our arses moving!