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Nice! I travel and entertain clients for a living, so I'm dreading the change from the band. The band restricts me from eating healthy foods (lean meats make me really sick) but doesn't do anything for fatty/slippery foods, rich desserts, and especially alcohol. I like your approach to daily eating though - gives me some hope.

Hey girl! I feel you. My surgeon told me no alcohol for 6 months but seems it's because of calories rather than safety. I'm 7 weeks out and I've tried wine, beer and liquor (I've told y'all I'm a rule breaker....but I'm 100% honest with my support group and medical team) and beer was by far the worst. I mean two drinks and I was hurting.... thik it's the carbonation. Wine and liquor I did fine with but I'm VERY careful about the amount and I drink extra water. Good luck!

I've noticed that, too, and it really burns me up. I personally believe that I should be allowed the same number of breaks as a smoker is, or that they should be forced to sign out and lose pay every time they take a smoking break. I don't like people getting paid to smoke, especially if it means that I have to work more because of it. Yes, I know it is a physical addiction and that people think they can't go without smoking, but alcoholics aren't given paid drinking breaks, are they? All I can say is that if I had a business and caught my employees sneaking outside for smoking breaks without signing out first, they would get fired. I feel that they would essentially be stealing from the company because they are getting paid for time that they did not work. I wouldn't be able to prosecute them, but I would fire them if they had done it repeatedly. I know people will say, "It isn't that much.", but it does add up. If you use the figures that Carlene provided, and the person is earning $10/hour (which isn't that much), you could be potentially losing $750 per month, per person. If you have several employees, and you live in an area of the country where smoking is very common, it could severely affect your bottom line.

Too late. That already happened. An airline asked a fat guy to get off the plane because he weighed too much. Again, too late. I interviewed for a job but didn't get hired because the guy told me I was too fat to fit into the office space. Also, airline attendants and myriad other jobs have weight restrictions. They already do that for smokers, as well as the obese. Well, they will probably cover you, but for a much higher premium. Wootsie, I agree with you and will restate my position. This is simply an issue of Politically correct control; smokers are looked at as pariahs -- even those who are so very careful never to smoke around anyone. When I smoked, I took GREAT pains to ensure that my cigarette smoke was NEVER around another human being, but I was still looked upon like I was a substandard, second-class human being, as evidenced by the judgmental tenor of the majority of the comments in this thread: "If you smoke cigarettes, you are unworthy of being in the human race, and I am SO much better than you." It's just that attitude -- and not the law -- that rubs me the wrong damn way. A non-smoker is not better than me, if I choose to smoke. Just as a slender person is not better than me, if I choose to be obese. Just as a non-drinker is not better than me if I choose to drink alcohol. This is just another one of the myriad PC movements, and the cigarette smokers are getting they turn on the "let's bash a minorty" pile. A few years back it was the people who wore real fur coats. They were labeled as inhuman simply because they chose to wear an animal pelt. Well, that "bashing" ran its course, people wear fur again without fear of recrimination, and now it's some other cause in the headlines. And please spare me the "but because of your choice to smoke, I don't get a choice of NOT getting cancer from your smoke" argument. I've heard it a ka-zillion times, and I'm not saying that it's not a valid argument. What I have a problem with is this holier-than-thou attitude running rampant through this nation -- and this thread. No one is entitled to think that they are better than me, for whatever reason. Go ahead.....bash away at me now.

My ballpark date is the first week of September. Diabetes does suck. I'll never forget the ay my doctor looked when I went into his office for my follow up from getting my results from my blood work the first time. I really thought I was going to tell me I had cancer. I really never struggled too much with my weight. I weighed 94lbs until my mid 20's. Then I was 120 until I got pregnant with my son. After I had him I weighed 170lbs. I worked out and lost it. Only weighed a 130lbs when I gave birth and lost last as well, and my third one got huge and lost that. I was hanging around at 108 lbs for years. I walk in my doctor looks at me and then at the results rubs his hands over his face, shaking his head with the perplexed look on his face. He tells me my cholesterol was 398 and my fasting blood sugar was 400 something. I had a hysterectomy in 2010 gained some weight after that surgery. I had to move myself and my kids from on military base from the East coast to the midwest. My husband was deployed. Me, 3 kids (15yrs, 12yrs, and 8yrs old at the time) 3 cats, and a dog in a minivan. Needless to say, I was at the hotel bar drinking a few adult beverages after 10+ hours driving. Alcohol has way too many calories. I gained weight from that and then the big one was I broke my ankle in April of 2018. I could not walk and they could not find the break. I went all summer and a 10 day trip to Disney World on a broken ankle. When I go back my primary care Dr. told me to stay off it. I did. I had to go on extra meds to control my blood sugars. I was gaining weight rapidly. In September I told him that I could not walk from the front of a store to the back to get a gallon of milk without being in agony. So we got an MRI and bingo. They could not get me into surgery till Jan 30! Then I had reinjured my ankle in May this year, Hairline fracture in my tailia. So, I get to start physical therapy again next week. WOOT. I did lose 45lbs with just my diet but I have not lost anymore in months. I know I can not lose this weight by myself this time around. I am using this chance to take back control of my health. Bread, my own homemade chocolate chip cookies, and ice cream are my weaknesses. I have read that cravings and your taste buds change after surgery. I hope my brain will forget as well.

I eat fairly simply. Never been a spicy food person so no loss there. The only carb I knowingly eat is rolled oats. I can eat fish, all meats, eggs & cheeses. My tastebuds still are not fond of many vegetables & fruit I used to love though. The only takeaway food i’ve tried is Chinese chicken & cashews (without the cashews). As I can only eat small amounts, I focus on protein and eat little or no vegetables or salad - three/four spoons of protein (half a sausage, a small lamb cutlet, small chicken leg) & a small cauliflower floret & i’m done. Takes me three days to eat two scrambled eggs. I eat slowly & mindfully. If i’m stressed (like worrying about what I can eat when dining out) my body shuts down & I can eat even less. (I’ve had to calm several concerned wait staff stressing everything tasted delicious & the reason i’ve barely touched my meal is just me.) I find it hard to get my fluids in each day. Alcohol is an occasional treat now - I can nurse a gin & tonic for hours. Tolerated my first glass of champagne last week. Yay! Only vomited food once. I just wish the gurgling would stop and the hair loss. Listen to your body. Find what works for you. Everyone’s experience is different. Yes, you will have to change your diet & find healthier foods to eat. But this is a new and better world. Enjoy!

I just saw this....you're kidding, right??!! Where's the Protein you need? 60 - 65 grams??!! A Protein shake......alcohol (carbonated) Desserts.....I am speechless!!

Well, this is kind of fuzzy logic as well. 1)There are very few mothers that have ZERO support today. Look at WIC and welfare. Is it a great system? Hells naw! But they're not exactly left to their own wits and devices (and if somebody was driven to have a better life, they could, uh, not have any more kids, and start work / school as soon as the baby started school...but that's off point). 2) This is a bit disingenuous. Pro-lifers are not automatically pacifists. There's a difference between a baby and a terrorist, IMO. But as a country, we'd better be on the lookout for...baby terrorists!! 3) - nothing wrong with being born into extreme poverty. Both my parents were. Growing up, if they didn't grow or shoot their food, they didn't eat....and there were plenty of times they went without. There were some abuse / alcohol issues with their parents. My parents are first gen college grads. They were ignorant of scholarships, and so worked full-time to go to school. My point is, in America, most everybody has a chance. Being aborted is zero chance. If I wrote much more, I'd have to publish this post as a novel, eh?

I can't eat anything with any type of sugar alcohol in it. It's way too embarrassing. The gas is so loud it sounds like a freight train. That malitol stuff is bad news. I am going to try hard to give up all sugar. All it does is snowball and make me want more. The nutritionist at my last support group said our bodies don't even know the difference between sugar free either, and it will do the same thing. That's depressing.

I think its the sugar alcohol in it..

Most foods have the nutrition information right on the label. They will say if there is sugar alcohol in them. Are you going to have trouble giving up the diet coke when you get your band? We aren't supposed to have anything carbonated.

Living in a border town to the largest Navajo Indian Reservation, I am not so sure they survived any better off than yours. Many of the issues they deal with today are left over issues from years ago. A HUGE percentage are alcoholics. They do not sell alcohol on the reservation, so they come off and then attempt to drive home, leaving the reservation as well as our state with astronomical DWI rates. Their diets are so poor, that the diabetes and obesity rates are seriously over 70%! It is a difficult situation for ALL involved. And anyone thinking that racism is going away, only need to visit a reservation border town.....sad but true. The Navajos are a religious people now, what the beliefs were originally besides a worship of Mother Earth, I do not know------it is not something they share willingly. There is a high percentage of LDS among the Navajo. I KNOW their ancestors were mistreated----many of our ancestors were...... How to "fix" that now? I have no idea----living where I do, seeing how things are, I know the way it is it isn't working!! Kat

WOW this is so wierd...my assistant and I were just talking about this very same thing! I quit smoking in May and still have awful cravings, but not when I drink. I gave up drinking alcohol and coffee for the first 3 months and a year ago I got a new car so I stopped smoking in it back then. My assistant asked if I plan to start smoking after the surgery and my first thought was YES! but I really don't want to for health reasons. I have gained 15 lbs since quitting so a lot of my reasons for wanting to smoke are at night when I want to eat due to boredom...I would rather smoke but then again, I really need to do something else. Plus, if my stomach is smaller, maybe I won't have that "need to nibble" feeling. Still, I wonder what I will actually do. It would be a shame to quit for so long to start back...again....I quit for 5 years in my 20s and started back after a divorce and increase in going out drinking. :thumbup:

I am not worried about alcohol ,, it's when I drink I want to have a cigarette. I had to quiet to have my surgery. So I can't drink but one are two drinks .Before I would want one. Did y'all quiet smoking and went back?????

Here goes: When I was on my pre-op diet, I swear I thought I would die on liquids. A couple times I chewed up something (cheeseburger, pizza) and spit it out because I needed real food in my mouth. When I was on the pureed stage, hubby and I took the kids to the movies. I was licking the popcorn - didn't eat it - but the butter/salt was soooo good! I started drinking alcohol as soon as I was able (4 weeks according to my dr.). I started slowly but now (5 months out) I can drink more than I should. I don't do it too often but this week at a work event (meaning the drinks were free) I had 2 drinks and 2 tequilla shots over the course of 3 hours. I've tried drinking from a straw and it doesn't bother me as long as I can remember not to drink a lot at a time. I've also tried soda, but the carbonation bothers me. I cannot drink soda from a can or bottle (too bubbly). I can drink a very little if it's a fountain soda and I let it go a bit flat. Good news is my favorite soda - Dr. Pepper - no longer tastes good to me. Same with french fries - I used to adore McD's french fries, but now they really hurt my tummy.

@@bacon, I added an extra mile to my walking today. One down and five more to go for the week! My food was pretty good but I got yelled at by both of my daughters. After church we had lunch in a restaurant and I had a bowl of Soup and ate the chicken and hard boiled eggs out of a salad. Then I took the rest home because I'd had enough. So far, so good. Then my daughter and I shopped for her laptop and a few other items and then I came home with the overwhelming desire to fry up a dessert for everybody. I did, and had three or four of these tasty little things myself. Not a great choice but not the end of the world. Probably about 400 calories at the most. Then I had a kale salad. A few hours later I was hungry again and had another kale salad. Then I walked my extra mile for the day and here I am now. The yelling came long distance from my daughter in Madrid after I bragged about the delicious dessert I fried up. "Mom, why would you cook something like that after all the work and progress you've made? Nobody needs that stuff in the house." Then my older daughter chimed in (love group texting, don't you?) saying "Yeah, you shouldn't have made them. I didn't ask for them." So anyway, they are both right. I'm done eating the treats. They came out wonderful but I don't need them. I was proud of how they turned out and I had a few, but that kind of food will derail my weight loss. So I'm done. My younger daughter suggested that I research healthy recipes and make those kinds of foods when I get the urge to cook or bake. True. Anyway, my weight was up this morning when I woke up. It was very discouraging, especially since I had no alcohol this week and haven't gone to the movies to eat. However, the old body here is hanging on to the fat, and it's not going to let go until I up my exercise. So @@bacon's challenge came just in time. I'm going to push that extra mile each day. It's not that hard because I was a sedentary slug, so every extra bit helps. As for the 5k, I'm starting to believe it is doable. My knee pain was gone today like a miracle when the steroid shots kicked in finally. I walked the dog around the neighborhood and felt really good. My mini goal this week is to get back down to 195 by next Sunday. I'm going to walk an extra mile each day and stay away from alcohol and sweets and movie crapcorn. My daughter is in town until next weekend, and I'm taking her and her cousins out to Olive Garden Monday for dinner. I will have soup and salad and a meatball and NO breadsticks. I'm very happy to have this thread for daily check in. Thank you all. How did everyone do?

Honestly I think alcohol was the downfall of my maintenance phase. My body metabolize it faster and a drink or two when you get it. This led to me wanting to drink more and over the years I definitely added weight to my body because my eating habits haven’t changed much

Hi all! So I just came back from vacation where I ate solids, drank alcohol and had edibles! Good times! But don't worry, I am back to my dull healthy life I did read some post about drinking after the sleeve and was super cautious about it. However, for me, I was able to handle my alcohol just fine. For reference, Im a whiskey girl and I drank it straight to avoid soda and sugar. I also had some vodka spiked mimosa's. Now, I'm not much of a smoker and prefer alcohol to marijuana but every once in a while I'll have an edible. This time, I had half a gummy worm and experienced a full high! After laughing uncontrollably for 2 hours I knocked out for 4 hours! Then I woke up an ate a full meal! No restrictions! The following day I had a small bite of the remaining half of the gummy and felt the SAME high as the night before. I ate 6 chicken wings and a chicken tender! Thats a whole lot of food for me right now. Personally, edibles are not my favorite distraction but this was definitely a different experience post surgery. I am SOO happy I didn't eat the whole gummy. BE WARNED!

Hey guys, So I am doing fantastic.... I am down 78lbs. I do a 5k at least 2-3 times a month, I'm working on improving my speed right now! Since I bought my fitbit in January about a month before surgery, I've walked 500 miles! Crazy how active I am now, and I love it. I used to hate exercising outside because I didn't want people to see me...now I hate being in the gym! I love being outdoors. I have been experiencing the crazy hair loss. I knew it was gonna happen, so I've accepted it....but I don't like it! lol Anyway, so my real reason for posting today. i was never a big soda drinker before surgery, once it a while when I went out I would have a soda. I've been drinking tea, water, crystal light and protein shakes since surgery. I haven't had any alcohol since July 2013, and I don't plan on starting that up again. But I have to say...I am DYING for a diet coke lately! So I'm not really clear on why they said no soda - is it because it can open up the cravings and addictions? Or is it because it can actually harm your stomach? Has anyone had a soda or a few sips here or there?

Thats awesome and i think its a great idea to get a head start. my surgery was 2/17/14 and i started preparing myself in october when i signed my paperwork and got my surgery date. i started making small changes like substituting 1 meal for a protein shake. i bought all kinds of protein shakes to find ones that i really liked. i stopped drinking soda and alcohol...i believe thats what led my post-op diet to not be as challenging. i didnt think the pre-op was too bad either. i dont lose as much as other people, but i am happy with my weight loss. i feel great and have no complaints about my decision, it was the best decision i ever made!

Hello Friends. Doctor's visit today, it's official, 38 pounds down. This was my first visit to my M.D. since my surgery. He is in Russia but the staff I know very well as well as the other doctor. Very proud of my progress and came into the exam room to hear my story. They said I am "glowing" with enthusiasm. About the butt. I will shamelessly tell you all that losing weight for me has come at the price of getting a few more "tags" down there. I have a TAIL now coming out my arse. This was a problem exasserbated by detoxing and the foods, weight loss and diabetes. I have a rule... *** If it makes the pain go away, I don't care where I have to shove it, I'm there*** I keep lovely pump bottles of moisturizing soap with anti-bacterial cleansing agent in them at each wash station in my house. I keep another bottle next to the toilet and I keep the Hand Gel with Vitamin E and B5 Anti-Bacterial at my keyboard, by the telephone, at each wash station and in my bedroom. You wouldn't know by looking at my house but I am a germ freak. The brand I use is Bath & Body Works and the fragrance is Coconut Lime Verbena. It smells fresh, clean and is very gentle on the skin. I do use that moisturizing soap in my Grand Canyon for "a little extra fresh" after going potty. We must do for ourselves what we would do if we were are own mothers and in my case I do for myself what mother did not. (it is what it is) In OTHER NEWS: Speaking of mothers...I start therapy tomorrow!! All kidding aside, I have my 1 PM with my new therapist who specializes in addictions. **I have figured out that there is no giant leap between drinking alcohol to numb and eating food to numb** so addiction counseling it is. MORE NEWS: Because I can't seem to finish a sentence without thinking of four more and I can't complete a task without beginning another and all the other BECAUSE things I discovered, my doctor put me on Ritalin. I took a test online by CHADD and bombed, I mean poster child for A.D.D. here. My son is on Adderall, my daughter should be so figuring genetics is at play along with the new responsibilities at work, time to grow up and address the problem. And so it is. I'll let you all know how it goes. Love to everyone!~ You all mean so very much to me!!!

hi hun the port is on the left hand side just below your ribs,you cant see it but sometime you can feel it.you drink fluids after op,cup a Soup etc not sure bout alcohol,have you paid your deposit not long now hun:thumbup:

The sugar free margarita mix is actually pretty good. I would make mine virgin because I dont' like the alcohol, but when I was on Atkins I actually drank it quite often. They also have diet cranberry juice that you could mix with vodka. I dont' know how carbonated Mike's hard lemonade is, but they do make a light version of that as well. Hey look at that...I CAN make alcoholic drinks healthy!!!

Hey Everybody, Cals today very good until I got to the bar. Then...... like Phyl says.... there was this Vodka......and..... Well I felt the need, NEED, to drink. I wasn't wasting cals. on fancy drinks so I downed the vodka straight. Lemon drops, you dip a lemon in sugar, down the vodka, then bite the lemon. Did you know that Vodka taste exactly like rubbing alcohol? Yuck! Cals today not too good, not horrendous, but not too good. OMG, I just glanced at the TV, which I am not watching, and Tom Cruise sliced someones head open straight down the front. DH's kind of movie, YUCK!

it is mainly caused from alcohol,there are no statments to say it is caused from lap band and lets be honest here you can get more wrong with you from yo yo dieting,and being overweight anyway it's a chance you take most people are happy with the band being fat and getting a band,i think there is more chance of getting disease from being overweight ie diabetes would you not agree would you sooner be fat:w00t: