Food Choices 1 week post op

[PaulDonovan 0]

I realize the conventional wisdom is clear liquid for the first week or so but I've found I can eat almost anything but in more reasonable portions then before.

Of course I have to chew well, and not eat fast.

I have NOT had my first fill yet but as long as I don't over eat, throw up and / or eat high caloric foods am I OK? Am I in danger of screwing up my lap band surgery?

[crzytchr 3]

I realize the conventional wisdom is clear liquid for the first week or so but I've found I can eat almost anything but in more reasonable portions then before.

Of course I have to chew well, and not eat fast.

I have NOT had my first fill yet but as long as I don't over eat, throw up and / or eat high caloric foods am I OK? Maybe/Maybe not Am I in danger of screwing up my LAP-BAND®®® surgery?quite possibly

This depends on when you were banded. If it was a couple of weeks ago or more, you are quite possibly ok, but the post op diet of liquids is in place for a reason. I suggest you call your surgeon and ask what he/she thinks. It is my understanding that the band is stitched in place and if you eat too soon, you may cause that to not heal properly due to the churning of your food. If this occurs too soon, you may be causing damage.

[Cocoabean 430]

What were your post-op instructions? Conventional wisdom is there for a reason. You really want to let your stomach heal.

If you are very hungry, call your surgeon and ask what you might be able add to your post-op choices. I was doing very well and able to move to mushies earlier than expected.

[PaulDonovan 0]

Can anyone shed more light on this stitch-the-band-in-place idea?

None of my literature said anything about stitching the band in place. What would the band be stitched to? my stomach?

If that is the common procedure, THEN it would make sense to me not to eat solid foods. But I hate it when people tell me to just do something without explaining WHY.

[janellody 3]

When you eat solid food your stomach moves around a lot to break it up. When you drink Clear Liquids it doesn't. If you are eating solid foods within a week after your surgery, you are most likely interrupting the healing process, which means that you may be jeopardizing your weight loss. I suggest you go back to clear liquids for a couple weeks.

[macleay 0]

Can anyone shed more light on this stitch-the-band-in-place idea?

None of my literature said anything about stitching the band in place. What would the band be stitched to? my stomach?

If that is the common procedure, THEN it would make sense to me not to eat solid foods. But I hate it when people tell me to just do something without explaining WHY.

My doctor says he puts a few small stiches in, which holds the band in place while the stomach heals and gives it a chance to build up scar tissue which will help hold the band in place.

Drinking only clear liquids for the first week, and then slowly adding other liquids allows this healing to occur. If you eat regular food, your stomach is moving as it digests the food and it interrupts the healing process.

My doctor has said that many people eat regular food immediately after surgery and have no problem, but they're not building a strong foundation and the damage usually isn't immediate, it's in six or more months when some have problems with band slippage.

That is my understanding of why.

[Cocoabean 430]

Can anyone shed more light on this stitch-the-band-in-place idea?

None of my literature said anything about stitching the band in place. What would the band be stitched to? my stomach?

If that is the common procedure, THEN it would make sense to me not to eat solid foods. But I hate it when people tell me to just do something without explaining WHY.

LAP-BAND®.com - LAP-BAND®® System Procedure - Watch Video

"Also, to help hold the LAP-BAND System in place, stomach tissue is folded over it and stitched together." From the above link

http://www.obesitylapbandsurgery.com/tectec.html

#12 has an image of the stitching.

The first link is from LAP-BAND®'s website. The second has an image of it on #12, its not the best picture, but it gives you the idea.

These stitches anchor the band in place making a slip (where the stomach comes up through the band) less likely to occur. You really want to give those stitches time to heal and become solid. Our pouches still grind food.

I'd think once we are on solids that lots of gyrations occur around the band--that is my guessing only, not medical fact--the gyrations part, that is.

Edited January 23, 2010 by Cocoabean
clarification :-)