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Since the surgery may 21 I have not eaten anything bad, snacks, candy, sweets all of it is gone out the window, but wine....hm... that´s another story. I love to zip a glass of cold white wine in the evening. I have turned to light wine with little alcohol. I only have a small glass a few times a week and I enjoy it so much.

I'm not sure there are any restrictions. May want to wait 4 weeks just to be on the safe side? Just remember that alcohol can cause some dehydration making your band feel tighter afterwards.

As I said in the poll thread - I would do an unfill (or better yet, have my RN brother in law do it) .. Fill parties are just crazy and stupid in my opinion... not even for the fact of how much money spent on getting the band but more on the fact that there is not a sterile enviro and the risk of infection is too high. WASA... you are soo correct in saying alcohol alone is not enough... JMHO... Amy

Hello everyone my name is Steven and I am 52 originally from NY and now living here in Northern Virginia since 2001. My weight-loss journey is similar to many of yours as well. In my youth I was "Stocky" and I have progressed to obese by definition though I hide much of my weight and people never guess I am over 200 pounds. Like most here I have tried with limited success every type of diet and fad, skipped over a few like the growth hormone and starvation diet. Slim Fast for sure, Weight Watchers, Nutri System (several times) and always stayed with it for a short while, once I lost 26 pounds and kept it off about a year and a half. In the past 11 years I have gained just shy of fifty pounds and have every co-morbidity you can have although I am only pre-diabetic but just a matter of time before I have that too. In 2008 I went for a consultation with a bariatric surgeon to discuss the latest in techniques which at the time was the band. I didn't commit since I would had to jump through many hoops to get the band. Back then I didn't hear too much bad about the band. Now I hear plenty which leads me to the LGS procedure. I went for a consult with Dr. Denis Halmi of the Bluepoint surgical group here in Northern VA where I reside. We discussed the sleeve and the changes to my insurance which now has very few restrictions and hoops to jump through. No longer need a medically supervised diet for six months. Just some nutrition counseling, tests to ensure your healthy enough for the surgery and a psych eval to make sure you know what you are getting into. My surgery group required 2 weeks of opti-fast pre-surgery which I understand is to shrink the liver but that is usually for folks with BMI greater than 40 and I am 37. My surgery date was June 12, 2012 or more commonly known as my re-birth! I really felt like somewhat of a failure for not being able to manage my weight non-surgically but at the same time I feel like who am I kidding? I obviously can't/wont do it myself and I am slowly dying albeit not that slowly. I come from a long line of fat people with all the diseases of obesity minus heart trouble. I NEEDED THIS PROCEDURE! Every time someone tries to tell me I don't need that surgery, I can do this on my own, I politely ask them, if you were chemically dependent or an alcoholic (Which many of the people I know are either alcoholic or just about to become one) and you were given an opportunity to have a relatively simple procedure to cure you of your illness, would you do it? The answer is invariably, yes. I say that I am addicted to food and I needed this to save my life. Shuts em up every time! If you want to read a real easy to read and understand book about the gastric sleeve before, during and after surgery, I highly recommend the book "Successful Weight Loss with the Gastric Sleeve" It is written by Guillermo Alvarez the Doctor from Mexico. Great information. Thanks for reading about me! Steven

Sugar alcohol does not affect the blood glucose level like sugar. But I understand too much can cause diarrhea or discomfort in some people. I imagine how much differs from person to person but I don't know. I've had pure protein bars with no trouble. Sugar alcohols ok to eat on a low carb diet though according to my doctor's nutritionist.

Protein Plus is lactose free powder and has 27g protein per serving. I use the vanilla one only--I like to freeze berries fresh to actually flavor my shakes with. Since I am now doing pureed food, I also use either Almond Breeze Light or light soymilk to blend my shake or foods with. It is very good with strawberries and /or banana in a shake. As for the sugar alcohol issues, I would limit those and try to sweeten naturally with stevia. The art sweeteners have left my tastebuds uneasy, and I decided early that I would limit using those and to cook with natural ingredients as much as possible. I won't use cow's milk anymore. That tends to bring on gassy stomach aches. Knowing my lova affair with some bars, I would not stop at one or a half of one. So, for me, I avoid those--the GF ones sound like they are delicious, tho.

Hi Cat D, Going out to dinner with friends can be just as fun as before. Initially, you will want to stay away from drinking at all. Give yourself time to heal. If you are going out with them during the early food stages or liquid phase order Soup and ask for it to come out with everyone's meal. Once you are on real food again, you could either share off someone's plate or order an appetizer (again ask for it to come with everyone's meal) If you decide to drink alcohol (I had my first one after 11 weeks) plan to nurse it all night. Alcohol is much more rapidly absorbed by your new sleeve...you will be a very cheap date! I have found going out to dinner with friends just as enjoyable as before. It will become much more about time with your friends than it is about food. I am also very carefull to eat tiny bites, chew really well and take a lot of time between. This is a habit you should start to form anyway, but when I am out to eat I am especially mindful because I do not want to get overly full and make myself sick. I think my only new addiction is this Forum, LOL. I wish I could say I replaced eating with exercise, but I don't think I will ever be addicted to that.

I am 26 days post op and was wondering if i might be able to have one mixed drink? I am going to my company holiday party and was hoping that one drink wont kill me lol anyone know or has anyone drank around that time and been ok?

Products that are sugar free using many forms of artificial sweeteners and also products using natural no calorie sweeteners such as stevia should be fine and should not cause dumping syndrome. I am 3 years post-op RNY gastric bypass surgery. I strictly avoid processed sugars. I have a sweet tooth and that is one of the major causes that contributed to my weight gain over my lifetime. I limit myself to artificial sweeteners (such as Splenda and sugar alcohols), to natural low calorie sweeteners (such as Stevia) and to the natural sugars found in fruits and milk. I had diabetes. That went into remission when I left the hospital two days after surgery and I have not taken any diabetic medicine ever since and my blood sugar levels are good. I test my blood sugar levels periodically. I read the labels of all food that I consume. I look at the grams of sugar per serving. If it is above 5 grams, I look at the ingredients. The ingredients are listed in order by highest percentage, and if the first 5 ingredients contain processed sugar (in any of its many forms), then I avoid this food, like a plague. The sugars I avoid are sucrose (table sugar), fructose (honey), dextrose, corn syrup, high fructose corn syrup (HFCS), cane juice, evaporated cane juice, agave, molasses, corn sweeteners, brown sugar, barley malt, beet sugar, and pure maple sugar.

I'm afraid I really can't give you a straight answer, I can only share my experience. I was never a big drinker and always used driving as an excuse to not do it in front of peers. But when I did it, there was usually 1 goal and it was to not remember anything!!! I haven't had a sip of alcohol since my surgery, for a few reasons. 1) I'm afraid smelling it will knock my out, 2) the majority of what i enjoyed is carbonated, and most importantly there is now way I can justify all those calories!!!!! 1 long island iced tea has more calories than I normally consume in a day! It's weird how when you are banded you think of everything by the way of calories!!! Best of luck with everything!

Do you drink to the point of throwing up? If so, then you seriously need to consider giving it up. You don't want to throw up and dislodge the band. Regardless of whether or not you give up drinking long-term, you'll need to give it up for a period after banding, during the healing phase. Your doc will give you some guidelines on length of time to abstain, but I'd say at least a couple of months. Keep in mind that alcohol is empty calories, and can stall weight loss. But, it's also a diruetic. So, you need to drink lots of Water if you drink alcohol. And, if you are fortunate to lose a lot of weight with the band, you will have to re-learn your tolerance levels. Like you, I had incredible tolerance for alcohol pre-band. But, I really have to be careful now. I get intoxicated much, much more easily at -121 lbs! Tami

One thing that I have not seen mentioned is alcohol. When I revealed how much I drank, the social worker made me go to AA. I even had to get a form filled out (like when people get DUIs and have to present a form to the courts). I knew I would have to quit for the surgery and at least a year after. I was very pissed that the social worker was forcing me into AA. But now that I have gone for a little over 3 months, I'm glad she did it. I don't think I could have quit by myself after all. This of course delayed my surgery a few weeks, but I'm grateful to be sober too and can't wait for my surgery!

Kris- When I went in for my Psych. eval, I told her that I was a former alcoholic/addict and that I went to treatment a little over a year ago, she didn't seem to think too much of it, of course, I always start with alcoholic because for some reason that is more socially acceptable than drug addict, because that makes sense, right? I was pretty nervous about it, but they are mainly looking for red flags that indicate a person who is unwilling or unable to make long term changes to their lifestyle. Personality disorders, eating disorders, schizophrenia, etc. I, also take Wellbutrin and Effexor for depression and anxiety...... The fact that the clinician immediately began to treat you differently should not surprise you, people who have not experienced addiction generally have a hard time wrapping their head around it. Fear not my friend, your strength and courage to confront your opiate addiction has brought you to where you are in this moment. Don't allow your mind to create fear in the things that are beyond your control. Just continue to do the next right thing and trust that whatever happens is going to be okay, because you are okay - Nicole

DO YOU HAVE ANY FAMILY THAT HAVE A BIG BACK YARD FOR THE RECEPTION!! THAT WOULD BE SAVING SOME MONEY. WHEN I WSA MARRIED TO MY EX AND WE HAD NO MONEY WE DID EVERYTHING OURSELVES. FAMILY MEMBERS LET US USE THIER ROASTERS. WE BOUGHT A HAM AND DID THAT. 15 BUCS FOR A WHOLE HAM. I MADE RIGATONI IN A ROASTER. 15 BUCS FOR THAT. I DID A ROASTER OF GREEN BEANS 10 BUCS I SPENT ON THAT. I MADE A BIG PICKLE TRAY 15 FOR THAT. I BOUGHT A MEAT AND CHEESE TRAY FOR THAT. 20 BUCS. i MADE MY OWN ROLLS THEY FREEZE WELL. I MADE MY OWN COOKIES THEY FREEZE WELL. JUST TAKE THE NUMBER OF RSVP AND CACULATE HOW MUCH YOULL NEED. I MADE PUNCH TO DRINK WITH THE 7 UP HAWAIIN PUNCH AND VANILLA ICE CREAM. I HAD COFFEE. I HAD SOME CHEESE BALLS I MADE 2 . AND THE WEDDING CAKE AND ALCOHOL WAS MY MOST EXPENSIVE THING. I SPENT ON MY RECEPTION WAS 1000 DOLLARS TOTAL CAUSE THIERS THE FAVORS WHICH I MADE MY OWN AND I MADE MY OWN WEDDING GLASSES. OH AND I HAD CRAYON FAVORS SO THE THE LITTLE KIDS COULD COLOR ON THE PAPER ON THE TABLES. KEEPS THEM BUSY. AND WITH WEDDING DRESS AND TUX RENTALS I SPENT A TOTAL OF 2000 FOR EVERYTHING.

I agree with everyone about the potluck dinner, not a good idea. If you want to save money on your reception costs, consider having an "appetizers only" reception. You can serve a mix of hot and cold appetizers. Be careful how many you choose, too many appetizers can get expensive. Also make sure it is clear on the invitation the type of reception you are having. You don´t want your guest expecting a full meal. Here are a few ideas: Finger sandwiches Brides cake and Grooms cake chicken salad in small pastry cups Meatballs cheese balls with crackers Mini petit fours Mini quiche bites Wedding Cookies Fruit and Vegetable trays Cheese straws Strawberries dipped in chocolate pin wheels chocolate fondue with fruit or cheese fondue with bread or veggies sausage-cheese balls oriental chicken wings The possibilities are endless. Since you are on a budget, I would stay away from alcoholic beverages. You could serve wedding punch or different kinds of tea. I went to a wedding once where they served raspberry tea and it was really good.

THATS REALLY SAD. I HATE THAT FOR YOU. YOU COULD PUT IT THIS WAY, IF YOU WERE AN ALCOHOLIC, WOULDN'T THEY SUPPORT YOU AND TRY TO HELP YOU IN ANY WAY TO OVERCOME YOUR PROBLEM? MOST THIN PEOPLE HAVE NO CLUE WHAT IT IS LIKE TO BE OVERWEIGHT OR EVEN OBESE AND MOST OF THEM HAVE NO TOLERANCE OR EVEN SYMPATHY FOR IT. THEY SIMPLY CANNOT RELATE.

Welcome to the forum! Mobility issues and pain may be improved with weight loss surgery. You will see a few patients that are disabled that are in wheelchairs. They still have success with weight loss. "Speaking of which I am an "alcoholic". On the wagon and have it under control but still might as well mention it. Damn I am one F***ed up specimen." Not fucked up - you are human. We all have things to overcome in life. You are on or off the wagon? Make a plan to have counseling/therapy/support for alcoholism in place before your psych eval. It may help your approval for surgery. The psych eval is mostly for liability for the surgeons. It also is in your best interest to be in a good mindset to make this surgery successful long term. I can relate to addictive personality. I changed the behaviors over to healthier addictions. Working out. This has developed into distance running. Worse addictions to have in life. best of luck to you, Jenn

You'd have to look up the carb content but yes it will hinder your pre op diet- so will the vicodin. You are trying to shrink your liver before surgery to reduce risk of injury to it- and both alcohol and vicodin are not conducive to shrinking the liver by any means. You really would be endangering yourself to not go off both of those before surgery.

I'm about the same spot. The only issues that I have had, was if I ate to big of bite or eat too quickly. Haven't tried alcohol yet and made it a goal to stay off for a year. I can pretty much eat what I want, but am still eating a lot of "soft" foods. Eggs though still kinda give me a problem if they aren't cooked just right.

Sarah-lu1 You didn't fail right, the band failed. Food compulsion is not a conquer, fail dilemma. It's a curse, a constant fight, fight, fight. We have to eat. It's not cigarettes or alcohol that can just be stopped. You are fighting! Doing everything in your power to win the fight. But you have not Failed!

I ended a long term relationship (16 years) with an alcoholic back in April 2016. I strongly recommend Alanon for you. No one deserves to be treated like this EVER! I'm so thankful to be living life on MY TERMS and doing what is best for ME. That includes weight loss surgery! Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Have read about the "sleep Lab" required for all pre-op considerations, what else do I have to look forward to...??....there is a letter from my Dr. that has to be written, justifying the need for the proceedure.....and what else...???.... question:: I am a lifelong skim milk drinker...is this going to become a problem..?? question:: am I going to be hungrey all the time..??... question:: how about eggs as a source of protein..?? question:: and how do I deal with social alcohol drinking...can I..??..no no..??? question:: how long a period of time between first Dr.'s consultation, and the actual proceedure..??...., as the holidays are approaching....... question:: does the lap band stay on for Life...?? question:: I take a number of meds each day, that are for chronic conditions, does the band effect the potency of the mgs. I take now...??? question:: how does one know when a "fill" is needed..?? question:: I have had two spinal surgeries...does that play anypart in my being considered as an apt candidate..???:party:

I did not have to do a sleep lab or sleep study at all. I had to get an abdomninal ultrasound to make sure I didn't have gall stones, if I did I would have had to have my gall bladder taken out before the surgery. I had to get a ton of blood work, EKG, chest xrays, a consult with a nutritionist, a psych evaluation by a psychologist, letter of recommendation from my MD, BMI of 40 or above with no co-morbidities, or 35 and above with co-morbidities. I was at a 40.8 with no co-morbidities. It took me about 2 months to complete all the tests before I got my surgery although I could have done it as quickly as 4 weeks. My doc required a 2 week pre op liquid diet, so I had to allow time for that. It is a pretty fast process, pending you have no trouble with insurance approval. You can still have skim milk but maybe not for a week or 2 after the surgery, I only just got banded on August 20th, so far I am not hungry all the time. Eggs are a great source of protein, once you get to that point that you can have them again post op I am really not sure about alcohol, I know we can have it again at some point but I am not sure when. You will have to go a period of time without it. The lap band is made to stay in for life ALTHOUGH if you want to have it taken out, you can. I am not sure about the meds, I know we can't have pills so you might need to have them compounded into a liquid or if they have a chewable version of it. I get my first fill on 9/25 they usually do the first fill by 5 or 6 weeks depending on the doctor....and honestly I am not sure when after that. I think you need to get a few until you are comfortable- meaning eating, getting full and holding it down and still losing weight. I am not sure about your prior surgeries, not sure what they would have to do with surgery. I hope this helps a little bit. I am sure their are other banders out there that can answer your questions more accurately but I thought I would jump in a try to help answer some...good luck!

eat and drink (nothing major just water)? I had to do a six month diet pre-op and one of the things they taught us to practice was to separate drinking and eating: no drinking 30 mins before and after a meal), so I got out of the habit of drinking while eating. it really helped to not be fighting that urge post-op. It was hard at first. drink alcohol? my doc says no alcohol for a year. 1 drink acts as if you had 4, so you get drunk very quickly (no driving!) and you make worse decisions when that intoxicated. I plan to stick to it, maybe a sip or two of my husband's drink now and again. eat fried foods? Haven't tried - trying to put off that temptation for as long as possible on that one! I'm telling myself not to waste my opportunity with junk food if I can resist for at least the first six months. go out to eat? yes, I've shared with another person or got a cup of Soup or something. I eat very little still at 3 weeks out. I was oddly not tempted by much of what the other people ordered. Spicy foods? No problems at all, in fact I've been adding hot sauce more frequently to my food. Pasta/rice/bread? Empty carbs, my nutritionist says not to eat it for tha first 4-6 months at least. I plan to try quinoa soon. smoke? weed? cigarettes? cigars? Nicotine causes ulcers in your healing stomach. The doc was very clear that if you use nicotine, you get ulcers, sometimes bleeding and leaks. We all had to test nicotine free for 6 months before surgery (and definitely not for the first year after, but preferably never again) in my program. That includes e-cigarettes and chewing tobacco (all nicotine). I wouldn't chance it, personally. Pot makes me puke, so I avoid it. I don't know anything statistical about usage after surgery.

You can do both...I am! I eat whatever I want, just very small portions. I have been to dozens of restaurants since my surgery and have never went without...and still lose weight. I have even had alcohol, not much but I have. I fortunately am not much of a carb/sweets person so I may have a bit of an advantage but it can be done! Never say never, shouldnt even been in the vocabulary. Best of luck to you, it does work and you will do great!