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First off, I think what you are feeling/thinking is completely normal!! Those habits we've created are like a child's security blanket in a lot of ways. I was more nervous about all of the little things than the actual surgery... and I think I was actually nervous about the surgery but projecting it onto the little things that were easier to worry about. As for the beer... I was similar to you. I had my surgery when I was 20, and I just turned 21. I kept thinking "what if I can't *really* Celebrate my 21st birthday because I can't drink??". Did I really care about drinking? No, not really. But I didn't want to feel like I was losing something. I asked my surgeon specifically if alcohol was allowed and at what stage. He said I would be fine for my birthday (which was at the 5 month mark) but to be careful because... it hits you soooo much stronger and more quickly then it normally would. So you may be bummed that it will take you an hour to drink that beer, but guess what? It'll feel like you had more than one for sure! Please be careful though that you don't create a cross-over addiction. I am not saying you will, but just be aware I ended up not missing my drink and food at the same time, but now that I'm 6 months out I do occasionally have some liquids while I eat, but generally it isn't that much at all. Eventually you'll find a groove that works for you. The first couple months are the hardest because you are the most restricted. But at the same time, it is all mental and not physical cravings, which is a little easier than dealing with both at the same time. Overall it is a huge difference, but you seriously don't feel deprived. You have a few bites of food and you feel like you pigged out during thanksgiving. It IS satisfying because you feel good AND know that you didn't overeat... it is amazing really, especially once you pass the 3, 4 month mark. Good luck and keep us updated!

I wasn't given any restrictions but I restricted myself while I was on Vicodin. If you're on pain meds and you drive, you're driving while under the influence and can get in serious trouble. It's just like alcohol. So if you're off meds, you should be fine.

I am not a heavy drinker by means, but I do enjoy my glass or glasses of wine..and now all of a sudden it hit me, I am not sure how to incorporate it? I wont right away due to I am on the liquid diet.. but I am turning 40 in a couple of weeks and I dont know what to do, or how to introduce it?? I hope this does not sound dumb..I know I can not drink while eating, so does this mean I can have a have a glass of wine just before, then eat, wait an hour...then have another glass..lol..who knew this would be something that is making me confused!!! Thanks for all your help!!

I am 40 years old and have always been overweight. I have big bones and a large frame. I weighed about 160 when I got married back in 1989. After I had my second child, I had an allergic reaction in 1994 and the Dr's couldn't figure out what I was allergic to. I had to be put on steroids for 3 months and I gained 50 pounds from that. I was never able to loose that weight. So from there it pretty much started from 160 to 210 in 3 months. I tried and tried to loose that weight but no matter what I done the weight would not go away. I smoked from the time I got married in 1989 until Jan. 30, 2010. After I stopped smoking on Jan. 30, 2010, I gained another 40 pounds that I have not been able to loose which put me from 210 to 250 pounds. After I stopped smoking, I had to be put on blood pressure and cholesterol medication. I was diagnosed with non alcoholic fatty liver disease. I knew then I had to do something so I decided to go to a Bariatric Lap band Seminar at Princeton Baptist Hospital in Birmingham, AL. by Dr. Andrew Dewitt. I went to the seminar and decided that I wanted to pursue the Lap Band Surgery. I have Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama insurance and found out I had to do a 6 month diet with my family Doctor before insurance would cover my surgery. I started my 6 months diet in June and was done with it by December. I had to go through a series of different test and when those was completed and I was able to schedule a date for my surgery. I weighed 250 pounds when I started my 7 day pre-op. On Feb. 22, 2012 I went for pre-admission and weighed 242 pounds. Feb. 24, 2012 I had my lap band surgery. I went in surgery at 9:15 am and was done at 9:45 am according to my husband and mother. They was able to watch my progress on the TV monitor in the weighting room. Dr. Andrew Dewitt took my mom and husband in a room and told them how my surgery went. At 10:45 am I was in my private room and waking up. My mom and husband was already in my room when they brought me to the room. The nurse told me in 1 hour he was going to come in and get me ready to start walking. I had to walk the 4 hallways 8 times to equal 1 mile before they would let me go home. We was checking out and getting in the car by 3:00 PM. I couldn't believe how well I was doing. My throat was a little dry and I was a little sore but nothing at all like I had thought I would have been. I went to the Doctor for my 1st fill on Wednesday, March 14, 2012 and the Doctor said he put in 3 cc's. I weighed 231.5 at the doctors office Wednesday and today March 17, 2012 I weigh 229 pounds. I don't get hungry but I know I must eat protein and drink plenty of water. I think I am doing good since my surgery and I would recommend this surgery to anyone who really needs to loose weight. It is much easier than I could have ever imagined and I am well on my way to get to the weight I have always wanted to be. The only thing I must try harder doing is eating slower when I do eat. If you have any questions about the Lap band Surgery I will be happy to help in anyway that I can. My next Doctor appointment is on April 18, 2012.

For those of u that r 6-15 months out, what is eating like? Will I ever be able to have pasta again? What about alcohol? I'm a week away and wondering what I got myself into.

im 3 months banded and i can eat EVERYTHING, just slowly and chew well. since ive been banded ive had pizza, steak, pork chops etc. while i dont care for 99 % of alcohol, tonight im having a strawberry margarita in celebration of losing my 1st 25 lbs ! (Woo hoo! i hit 200 today !) so remember, you are in the early STAGE of being banded," and this too shall pass." good luck !

Sorry to hear about your pains...these things will drive emotional eaters to food for sure, and very understandable! For those who love me, I explained to them that I am a food addict. The same concept as an alcoholic and smoker, or even drug addict..food WAS my go to drug. I explained that as a child a snuck and ate after hours..and that I binge eat when I am stressed, sad and bored. This seemed to help those I love understand and support me. I have only told my love ones about my journey, as I do not owe anyone outside my loving circle, an explanation.. which reduces me having to hear unwanted opinions. The decesion is not east and is yours to make. However, as a mom, I was afraid of not being here with my little one. But after researching over a year and understanding the pros and cons! Best of luck in whatever you decide!! You have support here on this site for sure!

The Friday confessions were such a big hit last week and all the way through Monday that I thought I'd open it up for the entire weekend. My flame free confession? I had 4 glasses of wine last night and I smoked (because I was drinking of course) The really bad part is that when I started drinking I had only had about 20oz or so all day, so about half of my Fluid intake yesterday was alcohol. Mmmmmm Reisling

Yeah, I'm a diet soda addict myself. I won't get banded for a few more months yet so I have time to indulge But my doctor doesn't have a problem with diet soda. He just said a lot of his patients stopped drinking it because of the discomfort. I'd be happy if it gave me a tummy ache. Diet soda doesn't have any nutritional value and the chemicals don't do us any favors. I am sad about the beer. I love, love, LOVE beer. Anyone can see this based on my chub since it's a high calorie drink... I'm preparing myself to abstain from alcohol as much as possible once I am banded. Whenever I do indulge, I'll make sure the beverage is high quality and expensive since it'll be a real treat!

My surgeon doesn't have a problem with carbonation as our digestive system is not a closed system, the gas will escape. The problem is that it can be an uncomfortable process. For me, soda is too carbonated. I'll sip it sometimes, but usually it gives me the hiccups. yuck! Beer I am generally OK with. The thing with alcohol and non-diet soda to remember is calories. Diet soda can increase your appetite due to the chemicals in it.

Have banded three months now, and my have been told by my dr that I can have pop once in awhile. At first I didn't want to even drink any with the risk of "over doing it" now within the past two weeks I catch myself drinking a little sip here and there. How much is too much I really can't drink too much cause it is too sweet? What about alcohol? What types of drinks are ok? Not ok?

I find that when I am not busy doing something I am thinking about food...what the kids and hubby had for dinner and what i'm gonna be able to eat in 2 weeks....well if I am busy I don't think about it and I don't dream about it. Husband asked me last night..."Wife, did ya buy me any candy bars?" I said "nope" those will be something you will need to buy from here on out!...It's like an addict, who tries to run around with others who are doing the drugs or alcohol in front of them. It's hard for the recovering addict not to partake. I really wish people who don't have a weight problem would understand that.

Going on vacation next week any suggestions?

Dear Tinalpn - couldn't agree with you more ! Had my band in 14 yrs ago and regained most of weight 4-5 Years later. Over two years ago decided enough was enough and just started eating sensibly, no alcohol. The weight fell off. It's been a life style change NOT a diet.. I don't believe the band had been helping for several years and recently discovered it has eroded. Had the band out 4 days ao. Feeling a bit rough but determined NOT to regain any weight.

You look FABULOUS!! Sweets were the main reason that got me overweight. So I hope I can avoid them the rest of my life. I sorta feel like an alcoholic when it comes to sugar. I seriously hope those cravings stay away from my door!

During the WLS Seminar, the surgeon mentioned that the dietician is going to tell us all that we must not drink coffee. Forget the Starbucks, no more Dutch Brothers, skip the home brew. This, my friends, was devistating news to me. See, I don't drink alcohol. I've never smoked and never even thought of touching drugs. But coffee...oooh coffee. I drink it all day long. I would rarely buy the good coffees (Starbucks, Dutch Bros) but I would drink a pot of coffee a day. When asked the reasoning behind that idea, the surgeon said the focus needs to be on giving your body only what it needs. "Okay", I thought, "I totally get it, I can do this!". Saturday was my grande finale. That night, I ran the coffee pot parts through the dishwasher and put it all away. Sunday I tried a cup of black tea, then some diet green tea with ginsing later in the day. No caffiene headache, and I felt pretty good. Monday was pretty successful too. Yesterday though...yesterday was a doozie. I REALLY wanted a venti white chocolate mocha frappuccino from Starbucks. As in, it was all I could think about all day. I had a headache, I was tired, and seriously doubting my decision to go 'cold turkey' on this whole caffiene-free thing. A coworker suggested grabbing a Pepsi, but again, my focus is on transitioning to what my body needs not what my head wants. So I resisted. Has anyone else had to give up anything (besides the yummy food!) to get in the right mindset for surgery.....or do you think it's better to "live it up" while you can pre-op since you'll essentially never have some things again (if you stick to the plan)?

the numbers... lets start there because that's what matters here right!!! when i went into surgery i weighed 233# and today i am 221. i have been down on myself for these numbers mostly because it is easy to get into a comparison game with other wls folks and this is absolutely silly. i have lost 12# in a month and this is indeed spectacular! if i continued to lose at this pace i would be at my goal weight in six months! however, i know this may not be a realistic goal as my weight loss has been extremely slow over the past two weeks...according to my surgeon a 1-2# weight loss a week is what is expected with the lapband and any more than that is phenomenal. i have not been as diligent in tracking my measurements which will be key for me because let's face it, we all need some way to measure success, and if the scale is not moving it can quickly become...well, depressing. i picked up some new vocab while perusing this site and found that NSV's are also a cause for celebration! this may seem like a no-brainer, but i have never thought of doing this the past 800 billion other times i have tried to lose weight. so here are a few of my NSV's... doing some type of physical activity---> daily! sticking to allotted food items--->daily! logging my food, mood, and exercise-->daily! testing my blood sugars-->daily! trying to be encouraging and supportive to at least one other person on this journey--->daily fitting into a pair of jeans that are one size smaller! needing to wear a belt with all of my other pants! improving my time and distance when walking outside finding ways to celebrate that do not include alcohol and food my pain... my pain is virtually non-existent and i can pretty much do everything i was doing before surgery. i still have some discomfort and pain in the area of my largest incision at times. i am still not able to sleep/lay on my stomach and i still have some swelling in this area...(anyone else have this 4 weeks out)? also, i seem to have developed a slight headache issue...this happens at least once daily and i am not sure of this is due to my sugars dropping too low, a sign that i'm not drinking enough, or that i'm letting too much time go by between meals...i'm keeping an eye on it. a lump... i have had what feels like a lump in my throat for the past 3-4 days...i'm also trying not to read to much into this as i have had this feeling before pre-band and it has been attributed to anxiety...anxiety! what anxiety?! i have been off work for almost a month, completed school a week ago, have been eating better for almost two months and have been exercising daily for the past month...what gives? being on this forum i have come to understand that this is sign of other things, like being stuck, being too tight, reflux, gas, and on and on...i have not had a fill yet and i am able to get down liquids and foods just fine...i'm going to see my primary care physician this friday who is also banded and i will discuss this with her. burping... ok...so i am finding that burping has become...weird! about half of the time when i burp instead of going out they go in and then i spend the rest of the night expelling this gas from various places or burping outwards all that i burped in several hours later...does this make sense? anyone else experience this? burping outwards is grand! support... my biggest supporter in this journey, my husband, was banded yesterday! i am so happy for him and happy to have him take this journey with me! he has decided to name his band "wife #2"!!! i am thankful for this site and other social media that i use and for all that have commented on anything or reached out in any way! i am on fitbit, mfp, and youtube as phatkatblue please add me if you use any of those outlets...the more support and encouragement the better:) i have also found that getting on these sites encouraging others and reading their stories has been good for me as well... till next week in weight loss and beyond...

I just posted this on the general board. Have any of you asked yourself this question? I could be getting cold feet as my April 2 date gets closer, maybe I'm looking for an excuse but now that I'm on the preop diet and making a serious attempt to lose weight, I'm losing weight. Im following all the rules, getting myself ready, i.e.: drinking tons of water, stepped up my exercising, dropped all carbs, no alcohol, concentrating on protein. So, the question I'm asking myself that Im sure you all asked yourselves: If I'm losing weight now can I do this without the band IF I continue following these rules which are the same rules I'd have to follow with the band? Those that asked yourself that question, went through with the surgery and can now look back....what are your thoughts on this?...thank you so much for your insight. ELCEE, B52 and Corrigan Im counting on you to reply!!!! : )

I could be getting cold feet as my April 2 date gets closer, maybe I'm looking for an excuse but now that I'm on the preop diet and making a serious attempt to lose weight, I'm losing weight. Im following all the rules, getting myself ready, i.e.: drinking tons of water, stepped up my exercising, dropped all carbs, no alcohol, concentrating on protein. So, the question I'm asking myself that Im sure you all asked yourselves: If I'm losing weight now can I do this without the band IF I continue following these rules which are the same rules I'd have to follow with the band? Those that asked yourself that question, went through with the surgery and can now look back....what are your thoughts on this?...thank you so much for your insight. ELCEE, B52 and Corrigan Im counting on you to reply!!!! : )

Okay so this weekend, I was a mess. I didn't eat much, but for the first time since surgery, I drank alcohol. Not just one or two, but 5 drinks! I am NOT a drinker! I went out with a friend dancing, and I was hoping the dancing cancelled out the alcohol but who knows. I shouldn't have drank that much. I have no excuse for it other than the guy in my life upsetting me and I just needed to have some fun. I won't make that mistake again. I'll try to find another way to release my frustration! Also, last night, I ate some things at my moms that I shouldn't have. Sooo much guilt! :-( Anyways, besides all that, I lost almost a pound over the weekend bringing me to exactly 50% of weight loss. Meaning, I'm half way there! And in only 4 months! I still only lost less than 2 pounds in one week. That's below my average so I'm a little worried. It's probably due to the over consumption of alcohol. Uuggghh! I'm worried my weight loss is starting to slow down. I've still been working out really hard (4 to 5 times a week) and I'm doing the couch to 5k. I start my 4th week of it today. I really like that program! I'm hoping to lose at least 5 more pounds by the end of this month. Anyways, back on the wagon today! Hoping to lose another pound or two by Thursday!

Do not drink it from the bottle. Pour it into a glass and let it sit for a while before you start drinking. Sip it slowly and see how you go. Some people handle it fine, others don't . Just make sure that the 1 beer doesn't lead to 2 then 3 then a bowl of chips, peanuts, chicken wings etc. The problem with alcohol apart from the empty calories is that it often causes us to make poor food choices as well.

I drink a lot (lol). The main thing I find is alcohol has somewhat of a "loosening" effect, meaning my restriction seems much less if I have a couple. However, I often will when I'm out so I don't get stuck (ug, getting stuck in public really sucks)....and it sometimes loosens my inhibitions about eating slides. Aside from those side effects, I still love my wine!

Can drinking heavy with the band have effects? Not like alcoholic status but like one heavy night of drinking?

Well I used to not believe in the "honeymoon period" but I am a big believer now. Not in a bad way, but here is what happened for me personally. This is *just my* experience, yours maybe different I lost about -46lbs during the first 3 months post-op. Then I hit a wall. Month 4 I lost -2lbs for the whole month and it has been somewhat of a struggle ever since. I say struggle just because you might secretly be thinking that at 4 months post-op I changed something (downed MCD's or ate ice cream or quit working out) but quite the opposite was true. I worked my sleeve diligently every day, ate the right foods, weighed and measured, and tracked my food, and got to the point at about 8 months post-op that I was working out every single day. So it's not like I fell off the wagon and then bellyached about why I couldn't lose weight. I finally accepted that the honeymoon (again for ME) was over and I was just going to have to ride this out with diligence and patience. I'm closing in on 17 months post-op and guess what? I still exercise (not daily anymore...went back to work full-time and found myself with a whole lot less free time) I still weigh my food, still track it, still eat on my surgeon's plan about 90% of the time. I also didn't have any (ZERO, ZIP, NADA) alcohol until I was 1 year post-op (1 year and 1 week to be exact, Halloween party woo hoo, I had some wine...such a boozer, lol!) So I guess you could say I was a rule-follower and it is still taking me a looooooong time to lose the weight. So take it for what it's worth. I think the more you can lose right after surgery the better off you are cuz at some point it's going to slow down. WHEN is really hard to say, because it's obviously different for everyone. As far out as I am, I'm still losing...just very very slowly.

Lying awake in bed due to reflux caused by attempting to eat steak earlier tonight and I get this "revelation". ( Nothing like the clarity that comes in the middle of the night) My mind must have been thinking over some of the stuff I read earlier today and I suddenly realised that the symptoms in this article describe what used to happen to me in my early 20s. There were a number of occasions when I would feel hot, cold, nauseous,shaky have ringing in my ears and want to pass out. In fact the once I was at the pub with my BF who is now my DH and I literally dropped. I was fine 1 minute and passed out on the floor the next. It was so embarrassing as everyone must have thought i was extremely drunk when in fact I was on either my 1st or 2nd drink. At the time my GP said that it was probably a hernia but reading this dumping seems more likely. It was usually brought on by alcohol especially any type of clear spirit such as vodka. Luckily I haven't had those symptoms for years