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an elevated level of ketone in the blood. Ketone is formed by ketogenesis when the liver glycogen stores are depleted and a process called lipolysis starts. Non medical terms = your body begins to use fat for energy and ketones are formed. Look up ketosis in google for some great in depth article. One way your body gets rid of ketones is through your lungs. It's like the alcohol smell, you can't get rid of it you just have to cover it up. Anyone who is loosing wt is making some and one way to test for them is the urin strips discussed above. Don't be worried its a good sign. It will go away when your wt stabilizes. My wife does not like the smell so I end up chewing a lot of gum.

I want to genuinely thank everybody who has responded............I am happy to report that the mere act of my taking the time to write my story and share it with all of you has begun sparking a bit of a change in me, I am feeling a little more hopeful again, feeling like maybe I can still make it work, I have even been eating better since my first post, it seems to have been a bit cathartic.....I also recently went to a 12 step AA meeting (although I am not an alcoholic) and found it very powerful too.......I simply substituted the word food everywhere they used the word alcohol...... In fairness to all here I think I owe it to admit that I just found out my un-supportive wife was doing things far worse than simply not caring about what foods I ate..............I don't care to go into details but any adult ought to understand what I am saying..... I must have been aware of this at some subconscious level and that caused my food addiction or compulsions to be extra hard to manage................... I plan to go ahead and get the study done to make sure the band has not slipped, and I am going to give it my all once again.... For those considering the band I just want to say that my experience shows that the lapband is not magic, it can and does fail if you are not ready for it.....Weight loss is an an all encompassing process of changing many things in your life...............The band will reduce your hunger and you will feel full quicker...............but if you are using food as a drug to make you feel better (as I was) you CAN and WILL find ways to defeat it........ The work is not over once the band is on, frankly it has only just begun...........all it does is gives you a little boost, head-start or helping hand in the process, but it does not run the race for you......... I think I will spend more time on this forum, I can see that the support, tips, tricks and experiences of others can be truly valuable in helping us succeed......... Thanks again, I'll keep you all posted, I need to go weigh in quick tonight before I start losing weight without knowing it!

Awww, thanks, Joni!! I don't drink a lot, but I do feel the alcohol VERY quickly these days. But, IMO, celebrating outliving the prediction calls for a drink...for me. I understand that some folks dont drink for various reasons, though. I'm still excited every day to see what new discoveries my sleeve has in store for me. My latest have been my collarbones and hip bones....

Its interesting that you had this happen to you and posted today because just this morning I was having a conversation with two Physician Assistats and one Medical doctor about it, I am a med student (PA to be exact)..... So it went like this, we were doing blood pressure, height, weight and BMI checks (as well as other stuff) at a health fair. Someone mentioned a patient that she recetly had who was 33 and had a BMI of 54, so one of my profesors said something to the effect that for those patients she really thought they just had to have surgery. Later another profesor came and she is bigger than me, and I asked her what she thought of the gastric sleeve, her answer was that she did not believe in those things because she saw too many patients with too many problems after having it (keep in mind that after more questions she admitted she knew little about the sleeve and she also has served mostly underrepresented populations who actually already lack health care), so I realized she would not be someone even willing to honestly talk about it so I left it at that. I later talked to the other PA and doctor (the one that had mentioned surgery earlier), they admited that they knew very little about the sleeve, but that there comes a time when people really needed surgery to succed at weight loss. After talking to them I realized what their apprehancion with it being done to someone with no immediate health problems, that they may not learn to eat (and or threat other underlying problems and take on alcohol or drugs when they cannot eat to deal with them) and might not be ready for a life change that it entails. Many doctors, PAs, NPs and other health care providers just don't kow the science behind it but see the patients who came to them because of gaining weight and other complications after the surgeries, not realizing that the majority of that was caused by the patient him/herself not the procedure (yes bypass has a lot of malnutrition but even that one is very successful with limited risk for patients who follow all directions). Has patients we need to keep in mind that this is a last resort surgery, I like many of you have a lower BMI (I actually lost a little weight recently I just found out and my current BMI is 35) but I have tried every diet in the book and those not in a book too! and nothing has done it! I confided in one of my teachers today and told her that I was having it done and why and after my explanation based on scientific evidence (I told her I have done a great deal of research and shared some with her before telling her I was doing it) she said she understood. Perhaps the best thing you can do is educate your doctor, and let him/her know that you have done your research (but back it up with information you have found) and let him/her know that you know it will take a great deal of effort from you to stay healthy (eat the Protein, Water, Vitamins, exercise and the like for the rest of our lives!) but that you just need help getting there. I believe if more clinitians knew more about it they would be more supportive. There are those (like I found out today) that don't believe in the surgery at all and will not listen even when research is presented to them, but your doctor does not appear to be one of them; just genuinely concerned. Make sure you are really ready for this change and if your answer is yes then you will know what to do! Good luck!

Lissa - You are awesome! Congratulations on all your success! You mentioned having a drink to celebrate and I had to smile. It reminded me of what the NUT said at our preop meeting - alcohol is frowned on, but we'd be "cheap dates" cuz it would take so much less to get a buzz. I quit drinking many years ago but found that interesting....

What is it like the month after surgery? Arn't you put on an all liquid diet? Isn't that hell to get through??? Arn't you starving since liquids pass through easily????? I'm not big into crackers, candy, alcohol or juices/soda.... my issue is carbs.... I think I will do well, I just wonder how much the band will help me.... And thank you ladies for your thoughts and help!!!

I was full liquid for a couple of days post op then puréed adding solid foods each day and cleared for anything except carbonation and alcohol at 5 weeks.

I don't think it's about the calories or the stomach stretching as much as it is about the addiction. Diet or Regular I think it's a slippery slope for many of us (not all). I have known several people who went back to "just a sip or two", "I'll limit myself to one can a day" or whatever. It just gradually creeps back up. I was sleeved 5 months ago and still battle with this almost everyday. Especially if I'm eating something I used to always have a Pepsi with (pizza, Chinese). Pepsi was sooo my go to comfort item. Almost daily I have the desire for just one! But I know me-and it might be just one today but it wouldn't take long for that one to become two and so on. I also agree with the write above who said that even drinking diet soda was making her crave more sweets and carbs (that actually has been proven by MANY studies. Everyone has to chose for themselves and maybe it would never be a problem for some (just like not everyone who drinks alcohol becomes an alcoholic), but if it was a problem before surgery-It will most likely be a problem after surgery if you start up again.

Apparently post gastric bypass and less so with the sleeve alcohol hits quicker. Our coordinator stated that they tried shots At the support meeting and labeled it a17 sec drunk.

I was told no alcohol for a year, but I broke that at about 7 weeks and had a few glasses of wine with some girlfriends one night and I was perfectly fine. I had a pretty high tolerance for alcohol before though so those 4 glasses really did nothing for me except give me a headache the next morning.

when are you allowed to drink after being sleeved? I am 4 weeks out now.

Hi Lau! I am right there with you... I am now 21 but I had my surgery when I was 20. If you have any specific questions feel free to PM me. How to know you are emotionally ready? Honestly, you are the only one who can answer that. I have always been very emotionally mature for my age since I had to deal with both my mother and my grandfather being sick from a very young age. I knew that I could handle this emotionally. Emotions are pretty crazy during this process. You have your base problems, like why do we overeat in the first place. You have to deal with giving up food as a crutch. Find other ways to deal with those emotions. Some people turn to exercise, some people turn to alcohol. You have to make sure you have a strong support group (these boards, your parents, a therapist if you want, your friends, an in person support group) to make sure that you don't turn to the wrong things. After the surgery you have to deal with the extreme changes in your body. They might be good changes, but change can still be difficult. You will never eat the same way again, in public as well. You won't be able to drink the same way (you are a cheap date now lol, one drink has a lot of potency in your tiny tummy). You also have the pre-surgery emotions... the anxiety, the excitement, etc. It is a lot, but it is definitely do-able. You CAN handle it. BUT, the question is whether it is worth it or not. If you are seriously concerned, talk to a therapist a few times. They don't bite and they would be able to answer your question a lot more professionally then any of us

Hey, I have a question for the post op people here. I start my 8 day liquid diet on Sunday and my husband wants to have a couple drinks with me on Saturday night. I know I may never really be able to drink again, so would like to do this. I don't want to put my surgery at risk in any way, my understanding is that alcohol is out of your system in 24 hours. Did anyone else do this? Thoughts?

As of now I am totally addicted to Diet Pepsi. My medical team has told me that I must give it up, not have anything carbonated, and the caffeine at first is also a no-no. Initially, I thought it would be so wonderful if some day I could drink the pop again. BUT - after more thought, why? Isn't the point of this journey to be healthier and start a new path of taking care of myself? So, I have given up alcohol and cigarettes, and will give up the Diet Pepsi too. It's full of nothing good. And aspartame is being shown to have nasty long-term effects.. good bye my love...don't let the door hit in you in in the ----.

So add alcohol wipes to the list of things I cleaned my face with after

Hi i too had my band done 3 years ago & i lost 88lbs, but then a miracle happened, I had a baby, I was told all my life i couldnt have babies, I too have put about 60lbs back on through my pregnancy & having a slipped disc in my back I called the hospital today & the lovely nurse has booked me in for an xray to check my band I have a 14cc band & had 9cc fluids in 3yrs ago, not sure if its all there now? Today ive changed my eating habit to when i first had the band, & i havnt felt hungry at all & i actually felt restriction again, first time in a very long time I got into a bad habit of eating the wrong foods & drinking at meal times & too much alcohol... Ive had to remind myself this is a TOOL, & its only going to work again if i help it, If i dont help it then i can't expect it to help me

Very sorry to hear that your wife is not that supportive. This certainly has to be a factor in your present situation. I, too, have a huge sweet tooth. I could stop eating fatty foods without a problem, but controlling intake of sweets is one of the hardest things for me to do. I changed over to sugar free candies. What that does for me is that it satisfies the craving for sweets, but I know that if I overdo it, I'm going to be hurting, in the form of gas pains and other short-term gastric issues from the sugar alcohols.

This weeks weigh-in: 172.2lbs - HELLS YES - 90lbs down! I've been away for a few weeks so this is going to be a long one! SORRY ahead of time. I had a realization about my band Saturday morning. The besties and I were headed out for a day of bridesmaid dress hunting (yes I know, less than a month away) after a late St. Patrick's Day night. I rolled out of bed and figured that we would hit up a drive-thru on the way since I felt kind of like death. I am a coffee fanatic! I neeeeed a cup of joe in the morning before I even open my eyes. My regular routine is to have a few sips before my shower and getting dressed and then I eat the same oatmeal type concoction every morning. Same time, same portion, same everything. I never have problems in the morning. Since my last fill, I have had a few issues when I am on the road. Twice now, the Mr. and I have checked out of a hotel without coffee or breakfast and stopped in at McDonalds or Tim Hortons on the way since it is such a long drive home. We are in a hurry!!! Because I do not drink and eat with the bad, I have made the mistake of trying to eat first without the coffee. Things that would never get stuck, do. I couldn't figure it out and thought that it may be my band reacting to alcohol (for shame Jennifer, for shame). Well, this Saturday - BING!!! the light bulb came on after throwing up into a take out bag in the front seat of Sparms' new car while Mama G sat unfazed in the backseat. Totally embarrassing. They are both totally supportive and have really taken this journey with me but it sucked making them pull over to ditch my bag of slime. Then, it came to me - COFFEE LOOSENS MY BAND! I should not be eating anything solid in the morning until I have had a warmish liquid in there first. I have heard and read about this with many bandsters but never thought that it applied to me. Well, now I know. Over a year out of surgery and I am still learning and adapting to my ever-changing band! Work is nuts!!! Wedding stuff is even more nuts and life seems to be whizzing by! We leave in 12 more sleeps. Both of our suitcases are packed, the passports are locked and loaded and my dry whiter-than-snow skin is just dying for some sunshine and some humidity! I get my hair done today too! I've never had my hair done by a real professional. I stop by at the local strip mall for a chop here and there and because I have curly hair, no one can ever tell that it is a shitty job. Not today friends. I am hitting up a real professional! I am going to wait to put up this post so that I can include a pic. I'm hoping for something natural looking.UPDATE- The trip to the salon was worth the head message alone! Really liking how soft it feels. He even straightened it too! I felt like a special lady all afternoon. Over the last few weeks, the wedding odds and ends are being tied up. Saturday night, Sparms Bestie and I went to my Mom's house. Mom is a scrap-booker, card maker and crafter extraordinaire. We made gift tags for these gorgeous little ditties that we are sending home with guests: (this is not my photo, nor our guestbook). Collectively, the tag dream was materialised! They turned out better than I ever expected. This proven by the fact that we used none of the things that I purchased specifically for them! Thanks Mom and Sparms! Mama G Bestie braved make-up and underwear shopping with me. I have to admit, stores like that were really intimidating for me before. I don't wear make-up often at all. Partially because I have always purchased crap that I don't use more than once or twice. Mama G took me in to Seph*ra and wrangled a shop girl to test a bunch of powders on me.(Who wants sweat lip shiny wedding shots?) I would never insist on this alone. I would do my best to pick the one that I thought matched my colour and be done. After that trial, I know that I am completely clueless. I would assume that my skin was pink, not yellowish. What the hell do I know? Obviously nothing! Left the store with some great stuff and a little bit of an interest in make-up. I always believed that I would never be able to buy something from "V*ctoria's S#cret". Pssh, who cares? That place is STOOPID anyway! HMPH. Well, I hate to say it... I couldn't have been more wrong. These bras are like little silk memory foam pillows for the girls! The straps are made out of some kind of anti-slip material that feels like money on my skin! I was floored. I wanted one of everything! Mama G stood beside me and was my courage. We had so much fun chatting and browsing that all anxiety went out the window. I flipped through the drawers looking for a white strapless for under my wedding dress. They didn't have it in white at the one location but I found the style that I wanted and they held it for me at another location. The next day, the Mister and I went to pick it up. The Mister totally enjoyed the store more than he would ever care to admit and he bought the bra and a bottle of a perfume that I had been raving about. It's called "BOMBSHELL". *cough* *cough* HELLS YEAH I AM! I am also a very lucky girl! I love my friends and family... and they love me too... most of the time. lol.

I am 3 months post op and have only lost 20 pounds since my surgery. I have been so upset about this. Now I realize I am angry. Not particularly about the lack of loss... more about the circumstances leading up to it. Here's my story: I decided in 2008 to have a lapband. I found a surgeon who seemed nice, caring and competent. I talked to a couple people on lapbandtalk who really liked him. My insurance would not cover it without a 6 month diet and I had a very painful hernia that needed a repair, so we paid the band portion of the surgery. It still ended costing close to 10K. The surgeon called me the night before my surgery to tell me he had accepted a job in another state and he wanted to give me the option of cancelling my surgery and finding a different surgeon. I elected to stay with him and have my surgery the next day. The surgery went well. It was quite a bit longer than anticipated because I had some mesh from a previous hernia repair that had balled up and grown into my flesh. he had to cut it away a piece at a time. I spent the night in the hospital and got out the next day. I had a significant amount of pain. It did not feel like gas, but still I took lots of GasX. It did not help at all. When I went in for my one week post op he was obviously high. Very high. At 3 weeks I developed a seroma (a Fluid filled pocket under the skin). I called him and he said to come in. He looked at it, poked it with his finger and said "Yep, it's a seroma. You can go home now" I asked him if he was going to have me get it drained, he told me he didn;t believe in it, as that can cause an infection. This was on Tuesday. On Thursday I called and told him it was getting infected. It was draining a dark color (should not drain, and the color should be clear/pale yellow) He said "You'll be OK. I'll see you on Monday". On Friday I called and told hm my temp was 101.6. he said "You'll be OK, I'll see you Monday". On Saturday my temp was 102.8. I had my husband take me to the local hospital. They did a CT scan and lots of blood tests. They admitted me and I needed surgery the next morning. I had 750 cc's (about a litre) of pus in my belly. I was an hour or so from sepsis. They left the wounds open and I was on 4 different IV antibiotics for 6 days. I left the hospital with a massive yeast infection, open wounds and a wound vacuum. When I went in to see him the next week he had the gall to say "I wish you had come to my hopital so I could take care of you" I did well with my weight loss, but I always had pain. A kind of pulling, burning pain in my chest and constant pain in my port area. I assumed this was not abnormal, just the price I had to pay for my weight loss. In 2 1/2 years I lost 113 pounds. It was quite slow towards the end, but I was still quite pleased. I was even planning plastic surgery even though I still had about 60 pounds to lose. Then one day I woke up with terrible pain. Called the surgeon who had taken over my care and his nurse had me come in for a unfill. It was Thanksgiving week and I was not happy about this, since I was going out of town in a couple of days. That night I was at a support group for a different surgeon. The pain got so bad I went to the ER there. It turned out my stomach was huge and emptying very slowly. I was told I had gastroparesis. I was in constant pain. We started a new insurance 2 months later. It took me a month to get into a gastro doctor. She did a EGD and found out I had a major erosion. My band was sitting in my stomach. The baratric department at Kaiser (our new insurance) scheduled me to see a surgeon and get the band removed. I was really sad about losing it. I was told I could apply for another surgery, but that it takes 10 months to a year to get it done. The band removal did not help my pain. i had chest pain and severe debilitating left arm pain. The only thing that can cure gastroparesis is a gastric byass. Didn't matter, I had to wait my turn. I found out a friend of mine (another one of his patients) who got her band 4 months before me had hers erode 4 months before mine. One is bad luck, 2 is a bad doctor. After 10 months (and 50 pounds gain) I was finally at the top of the list. BUT...... I was informed this surgery is elective and it was going to cost me $10,000. Even though it was the only thing that may cure my medical condition, it was still elective. So....now here I am. 3 months post op and down 10K and a whole whopping 20 pounds. I am so angry. Angry at what happened to me, angry after finding out he had been censured by the medical board for alcoholism, angry at the thought that the reason he put me off when I had my infection and I almost died was because he was high, and angry this idiot is still out there maiming people. Sorry for the long rant and thanks for reading it.

I understand the frustration when you see posts that go against all the "rules" you have been told and are trying to stick to. I also understand how you may feel being an RN and have more medical training than other folks. BUT........ Every surgeon has their own set of "rules". For example, I see so many posts about people "cheating" on their liquid pre-op diets. This makes no sense to me as I did not have a liquid pre-op diet. My pre-op was 2 weeks of Atkins to shrink the liver and it worked great. I don't understand why people are being put through all that, but that is what their surgeon wants. It seems like a punishment to me. Another example: I've heard many people say their surgeon told them no alcohol for the rest of their life and other surgeons say none for the first 6 months. Another example: I was not required to jump through any pre-op hoops except the Atkins. I do mean zero.... no blood tests, no sleep study, no shrink ........ nothing. Another example: Many surgeons require patients to stop smoking, others do not. I could go on forever with all the different rules......... My "rules" may be very different than your "rules", but we both can see success with this band

All the comments above are accurate. You may need to seek counseling as to the reason you "replaced food with alcohol" for me, food was my friend, my constant companion, my stress relief, and utmost, my anger/anxiety relief. I have had to redirect my emotional eating to something else. In the middle of my journey, i too turned to alcohol. Weight gain scared me and so i did some soul searching and decided i needed a healtier coping skill. Recently it has been the gym and i find that i get irritable when i cant make it there. This is not only a journey of weight loss, but a complete rediscovery of who I/we want to be. It is scary to face the world and reality without a comfort so learning alterative healthy coping skills is a must. You don't want to trade one addiction to another. It's a slippery slope. This site will be a great source of understanding and support, however, you have to search within you and find what you want to change. Good luck with your journey!

queen, I would definitely give your surgeon the flick and speak to another expert. There is absolutely no reason why you should put up with lack of advice or support. A fresh perspective and a friendly doctor might well be able to address your issues so that you can feel positive about the changes you have made. Alcohol is toughie and also takes away appetite for some - I am fresh at this but for the medium term i don't really want any as it lowers my resolve with food and i am very overweight and can't afford the calories. Looking at this afresh might help you - find a good doctor to advise - set short term goals and build up to eating the quantity you need and temporarily stop the alcohol. Sounds easier in words than practise i know, but maybe you just need to rewind and remember the enthusiasm u felt when u first got banded, and make a fresh start. Wishing you all the best

Thanks guys, I will definitely take your advice into consideration. The bad thing is I did not start drinking until after I had the band. But I do understand that alcohol does carry a lot of calories and carbs. And I have made the decision to give it up at least only drink it minimaly. And try to get back on this train. I have come too far to be defeated. Keep offering sound advice, it does help. Thanks again.

You have to have surgeon that's part of your team of supporters. If you don't feel like your doctor is giving you that support, or even listening to you, then you have the right to find a new one without feeling bad. And Yellowrose is right, alcohol is full of carbs and calories that will work against you for losing weight. I know there's a lot of controversy about alcohol post-banding, and it won't "hurt" you per se, but it's definitely not good for you (it's not good for you pre-band either!!). Maybe changing surgeons will help you re-focus on the plan and get back on track.