Afraid to eat...

[palmtreegirl70 1]

Hi there. I was banded on Monday (5/17). Everything went really well. My doctor did a single incision in my belly button and used Durabond instead of stitches or staples. I am still pretty sore, but I haven't needed to take any pain medicines with it.

I can't say that I have gas pains, but I do notice that when I take a walk, the burps start coming up. I am so afraid that I am going to throw up every time this happens. I also can hear my insides churning like crazy! I know I must be retaining a lot of fluids from my IVs and gas as the scale showed that I gained 7 lbs since Monday morning. I hope that when the gas ends and I rid myself of the Fluid I will go back to my surgery morning weight, if not lower. I don't think it is hunger pangs as much as my system trying to kick-start itself. Has anyone else had this?

My biggest challenge right now is that I am terrified to eat or drink anything. I have been sipping on decaffeinated iced-tea today. I had two bites of broth and a SF popsicle. I am scared to eat anything else at this point. I don't want to throw up and cause issues with the band slipping. I don't have restriction, but I know my stomach is still swollen from surgery.

I am so overwhelmed in how to eat from this point out. Any advice/suggestions/words of wisdom from those of you who have had great success?

Edited May 19, 2010 by palmtreegirl70

[mousek 4]

Hello, hope you are doing okay. I went to Slimband in Toronto and they gave me a binder to take home which is very specific about eating. 1st 5 days clear Fluid (broth, jello), next seven days cream Soups, yogurt, smoothies and Meal Replacement shakes, third week mushed up food like baby food consistency and then solid foods in small bites - hope this helps.

[jllybean1982 0]

Hi Palmtreegirl70! I know exactly what you mean about being afraid to eat! I was banded on May 13. I have just sipped fluids throughout the day. My nutritionist said it's better to take it slow then to drink too much and cause yourself to get sick. I write down everything I take in so I know that I have at least get a decent amount of Fluid as not to get dehydrated. The first couple of days, I too weighed about five pounds more than when I started. I panicked! lol It's definitely from all of the IV fluids and gas they put in you during surgery. I have been banded for a week and my scale shows a loss of ten pounds. I would just take things slow. You are healing right now. I am starting my full liquid diet tomorrow...I'm nervous, but I think it'll be okay. You know your body, so you'll know when too much is too much. :laugh:

[TinaM 0]

follow your docs orders to a tee

after surgery i think everyone is afraid to try the different stages of food but we all survived

remember what you were taught in the process with sips, small bites and lots of chewing

i worked myself slowly thru the food stages but above all follow your docs orders (not the message boards)

[BetsyB 9]

You can back-burner eating, but you MUST get adequate fluid---if you don't, you will wind up back in the hospital.

Sip liquids throughout the day--all day. It is critical to your well-being.

Foods, you can introduce at a much slower rate, as your body becomes ready. (I promise, it will!)

Each day, you'll feel lots better--it gets easier, fast!

[sbrewer67 0]

Hi Palmtree Girl, it is your hospital buddy. SOrry I am a little more alert today. I am glad you do not have the gas pains, I am having them pretty severe. I am staying with liquids and some SF Jello right now. I also have the rumbling of the stomach all day long. Wasn't sure what that is from but I assume the gasses and just the upset of the surgery in general. I have been doing a little amount all day long as to be sure I don't throw up. I just sip on something to keep hydrated, small drinks (very small)... So far so good. I do get the feeling I am going to throw up, and it has always been gas bubbles coming up, the dr office said that is normal when I called about it. I absolutely didn't want to start throwing up...

[Sunshine79 0]

My best advice is to sip slowly. It's a hard habit to break but most of us are used to gulping drinks down and that doesn't work real well with the band. And just try to pay really close attention to your body's reaction when you eat Jello or popsicles. Go slowly and stop if it feels like it's not going down right. For the first couple days, I tried to avoid eating and drinking when I was doing other things (watching TV, doing stuff around the house) and just focused on how it felt going down. I know it sounds obvious but as multi-taskers, it's incredible how unaware we are of those little things.