November 2010 Bandsters - post op

[♥LovetheNewMe♥ 1,216]

QUESTION ABOUT THE 2 WEEKS OF LIQUID: I had my surgery Wednesday in Spain; my doctor is Spanish and he said that he is more agressive about getting his patients back on normal foods quickly. I am on liquids for 3 days, soft foods for 4, and then back on regular food the second week after surgery, with restrictions. Has anyone else had a food regimen like this? Any thoughts?

I was banded in SC and my doctor progressed my diet very quick. I was on full liguids for a few days, then mushy and within a week and half from surgery date I was eating solid foods. I found that fish and shaved lean deli meats were the easiest for me to eat.

[topazz 4]

Had my appt today and got my first fill. They put in 2 cc's. liquids for the next two days and mushies 2 days after that. She said I may not eel anything for about 2 weeks. I go back in a month and we'll see what happens from there.

I have lost 8 lbs since my last visit a month ago. She was very pleased. She said I should lose about 1-2 pounds a week, so to keep up the great work!! But I am hungry like crazy all the time! i'm glad she was happy though. For some reason, I thought I was supposed to have lost a little more, so I feel better about my weight loss.

I'll be back on solids by X-Mas , so let's see how I do!

[wakeuprn 1]

Good job Topazz!

[7Grijalva7 1]

I had surgery on Nov. 16th. I haven't had a fill yet nor am I scheduled for one yet. I go for a check up on the 28th of Dec. I am only down 9 pounds. I lost those 9 pounds a week after surgery and nothing else has dropped. I feel like I'm failing with this band. =(

[dk4k 15]

Don't give up, B*town Girl! It's only the beginning of what is going to be a long journey. Maybe talk to your dr.'s nurse and see if you are getting enough Protein and calories in.

[CharlyinCO 0]

I am so grateful for this website and this thread. I don't post often but I do read whenever I get a chance. My first Dr appt I was 205 lbs. On surgery day I was 193 lbs. I am currently 183 lbs and frustrated as heck. I was banded Nov 5. Lost 10 lbs the first week and been yo-yoing up and down between 182-185 for the last 6 weeks. I was starving from day 5 post op. Have had an awesome recovery without any of the most common complications I have read on here. I have been able to eat like pre-surgery the whole time. I had my first fill on Dec 8. I have a 10 band and they put in 4. At first I felt a little bit of restriction, but now I am back to feeling nothing at all and hungry all the time. My next fill is not till Jan 19 and I am so dissapointed with my progress. I have made a concious effort to eat the foods I am supposed to eat.Have completely changed my diet to what I am supposed to be doing, but still no weight loss. I am experiencing a lot of burping and regurgitating. Is this normal? Reading here it seems like I am not the only one dissapointed in the progress but I had hoped to have lost more than 10 lbs in 6 weeks time. Any thoughts?

P.S. I just started working out this week as I had foot surgery 4 weeks ago.

[Brooke3 0]

Hi all!! I just found this website and I love it!! I was banded on November 23rd. Over the last month I have lost 25lbs. I am very happy, but I am still sore. I have at least 75 more pounds that I would like to lose. I'm finding a lot of the posts on this website to be very helpful. Thank you everybody for your input!! If anybody every wants to chat, I am always willing to share my experiences! Good Luck to all!

[7Grijalva7 1]

Thanks dk4k! I'm just not getting the whole Protein thing. I don't drink Protein Shakes or anything. I do eat protein Meal Replacement bars...maybe that's not enough protein? I can go a week and not see numbers move on the scale so I say screw I will eat what I want and be happy. Childish thinking I know right? So yes I'm doing it to my self but I feel like I have no control! I was told a million times that the band is just there for support...I just can't seem to make that stick in my head when I chose fast food over homeade healthy foods! Its hard!!!!! Sorry for venting a little too much!

[topazz 4]

[quote Sorry for venting a little too much!

Never aplogize for venting!! this is why we are all here...to help and support each other. You are doing great, and you will continue doing well!! Everything is a whole new learning experience. We are still working out our kinks. Soon it will all fall into place!

I am hoping to behave the next few days. I had my fill of 2 cc's a few days ago and do feel minor restriction. I usually eat Chobani mixed with oatmeal for lunch, and yesterday, I could not finish the whole thing. Hoping that is a good sign of things to come. But I still do get hungry. Like the dr said, it could take about 2 weeks to feel if it is working, so I'll wait and see.

Have a great holiday everyone!

[topazz 4]

Ugh! I totally blew it this holiday!! I reaally tried! I tried to stay with Protein, like the meats and cheeses, but there was too much tempting going on and I gave in! I did okay with dessert though, I had one chocolate covered Oreo, and that was all. With the dessert spread they had, I really had to hold back! Maybe because I was full form the other bad foods I ate!! UGH!!

Now I am homebound for the next 2 days due to a blizzard coming and that will make things harder!! i tend to want to eat more when I am home. Hoping I can really get back on track. I will not even step on my scale, as I am terrified to see my damage!

GRRR!!! So mad at myself!!

[DebWS 1]

Ugh! I totally blew it this holiday!! I really tried! I tried to stay with Protein, like the meats and cheeses, but there was too much tempting going on and I gave in! I did okay with dessert though, I had one chocolate covered Oreo, and that was all. With the dessert spread they had, I really had to hold back! Maybe because I was full form the other bad foods I ate!! UGH!!

...

GRRR!!! So mad at myself!!

I haven't posted in a while, and I can relate to topazz's 'grr.' I have never been quite so aware of how much food there is, everywhere, during the holidays. While I managed to mostly stay within reasonable limits, I gained 2.5 lbs over the holidays and now am trying to get rid of it! I am confident I'll prevail, and grateful that it was only 2.5 lbs where it could have been 5-8. Still...it doesn't feel ike progress.

I was also interested in recent posts about fills taking up to 2 weeks to 'kick in.' I had a fill in mid-December. I felt essentially no effects from it, but about 8 days later I was gobbling down a couple pieces of sushi (I find that I am absolutely famished at about 10:30-11 AM and need a snack then to hold me till about 1:30 PM). I wasn't thinking, I didn't chew enough, but reverted to the old way of eating. It got stuck. It was NOT fun...so not fun, that I vowed never, ever to repeat the experience. The sushi did go down, but it put me off of sushi, perhaps indefinitely. Just a reminder that sometimes, things are working, even when you think they aren't!

Best,

Deb WS

[cherluvsdan 0]

Hi Everyone!

I haven't posted in a while either. I'm with you on the struggle over the holidays. There's food everywhere! My nemesis this holiday season was tamales. I LOVE them. I did have a couple of them (not at once). I tried to eat the filling first and eat just a bit of the masa. That seemed to work.

Where I'm struggling is with eating slowly. I really try to wait 10 minutes between bites. I don't always make it. Especially if it's someting I really like. I'm not wolfing my food or anything and, so far, I haven't gotten stuck (thank goodness). I just really struggle to eat as slowly as I'm supposed to and I worry about stretching my stomach as a result. Anyone else having the same problem? How do you handle it?

[G Rose 0]

How is everyone doing? I too have never been so aware of food as I was over the holidays, and I did indulge! But I got back on track January 1 and I'm moving along. I think we do have to have some indulgences now and then or life's not worth living!

I've got my second fill this week on Thursday. I hope I start feeling some restriction!

[tigger7614 0]

Hey everyone! So, I stepped away from the boards (because I was discouraged at my progress and feeling like I wasn't doing as well as everyone else was doing) but now I am back. I had my band "installed" on 11/22 and since then have lost 33.2 lbs. I had one fill on 12/9 and don't really feel anything from it. I did ok over the holidays, only because I was sick and didn't fix myself a plate, but rather stole my hubby's fork for 4 bites of food. That's all I could get in before he finished!!!!!

My doc told me that he wanted me on Protein Shakes for 8 weeks POST-OP (not including the 4 weeks PRE-OP). When I saw him last week because I was sick, he said he wanted me to continue the Protein shakes. At that point I decided that the reason I am not losing weight is because I am not eating enough, so I decided to start eating real food. I had a Protein Shake for Breakfast, ham & Turkey slices and cheese for lunch and chicken with Beans and tomatoes for dinner. Well, I also had 2 pieces of bread. And a bite of a brownie. Well, fast forward to 6:00 a.m. the next day and I was having the most intense pain I have ever felt. I'm not a "let's go to the hospital" type of gal, but this was so bad I asked my hubby to take me to the ER. Before we all got ready, the pain had passed. So, I'm guessing I was stuck. Like debWS, I am put off from bread, probably forever. Being stuck is something I NEVER want to experience again....so if that means I have to stick with softer foods, chew til there mush, and take 45 minutes to eat, then I will.....I will try.

I struggle a lot. No support from my surgeon or the office, I don't have a support group out here (other than you guys), I don't have any one I can talk to about the procedures (because the only ones that know about it are my parents and my hubby), and no one in my family is all that healthy (so me talking about protein shakes, low carb diets, healthy eating isn't very well received). My hubby actually said to me with the chicken dish "it's good, but it needs a side like rice or potatoes". REALLY????? I can't eat that stuff, why would I tempt myself. It was at that moment that I realized that this is about me and my will power. If I'm cooking dinner, I will make what I can eat. If they want to cook....well I can always have a protein shake

Sorry for the vent. It's been too long. Thanks for "listening"!

T

[G Rose 0]

hey Tigger, I think your weight loss is great! 33 pounds in six weeks is wonderful!

I too have a lot of weight to lose and I get discouraged because other people are losing faster, but I only eat real foods. So what if I'm losing more slowly...I do enjoy what I'm eating! I eat the same food as everyone else, at least so far. Haven't had any PBs or pain or anything stuck, and I've eaten pizza, bread, rice, potatoes, you name it. Just less than I used to!

I'm going to make a goal to post here at least once or twice a week. We need the support from one another and I need the encouragement and tips.