Why not CHEAT??!!?

[Kathy473 1]

Well, I just found this thread today and all I can say is...WHOA! :confused: And I thought about maybe giving some advice but I think you may have gotten enough by now. I can see where some things might have been misunderstood or taken totally the wrong way. I can see both sides of the argument but it still all boils down to talking to your doctor and listening to him/her. I asked questions on this board and got great advice from everyone and sometimes I used it...sometimes not. I have given advice to some people but I also usually tell them to check with their doctor. Right now I am eating mushies and I have been banded since September but I eat mushies because I choose to eat them because PB'ing is just not my cup of tea! And...yes...I do chew my food well. So I have become a "soup" person and love it! I also see it a little healthier too eating Soups...veggie, Tomato, seafood, etc. My doctor told me to take care of my band and I am. To follow his directions and I did. Did I heal correctly, yes. Have I had any problems...only PB's YUCK! :faint: Do I trust him? Totally!

I don't know, I am tired...so maybe I am rattling on a little. I am on my 5th or 6th cup of coffee today and I drank a Coca Cola Blak (yum) and I am still tired....go figure!!!! It is a beautiful day here in Santa Fe, TX and I am in my office....grrrrrr. :angry

[PhotoNut 7]

I don't think that continuing this thread is beating a dead horse at all. Nor do I think it is re-opening a can of worms so-to-speak. I think that the thread was started with a very important question, "Why not cheat?" and I think that the responses that have been given have been very important to many people who might have the same question.

I do, however, think it's a shame that people take things so personally and feel the need to strike out at others in an attempt to defend themselves. If you look closely at every post, they all recommend calling your doctor for his or her recommendation. It seems we all agree on that point. But the deeper issue here is why do we find ourselves wanting to rebel against the very thing which we wanted so badly - control over our eating. Isn't that what the band represents? Control? Once that control is in place, why does it then become something to challenge and resent?

Keep in mind that there are some who don't feel that need to rebel against the "rules". This doesn't mean they feel superior or better able to succeed when they try to enourage others to follow the rules. Obviously, those who do follow the rules have a desire to succeed, and by encouraging or suggesting that others do the same it does not mean they are attacking anyone. Perhaps they just care a lot and want the best for everyone. Perhaps they are reacting in much the same way as you would when you see a small child reaching up to touch a hot stove - you would jump up and grab the child in an almost scoling tone and tell them no! Would you do this because you want to tell the child how stupid he is, or would you do it because you care and want to protect the child? Now, before anyone takes offense at that and tells me they aren't a child and don't need a mother, please understand that I am only comparing the reaction of the onlooker, not the ability of the child to preceive danger and the maturity to avoid it.

When you walk into a group of bandsters that ALL fear erosion and slipping and you say, "Why not cheat? I eat crackers, french fries and chicken and I was only banded a week ago." you should expect some of these reactions. Does that make us lecturers or nerds or Nazis? Um, no. It makes us caring people who are responding to what appeared to be a genuine call for help - help me understand why I should not cheat. And in my humble opinion, I think a lot of people on this thread have provided very good reasons not to cheat. Will some still cheat? Most definitely. Will some learn from the thread and avoid cheating? I certainly hope so. Should we consider further discussion about this topic beating a dead horse. I would hope not. This is why we are here. And someone out there is getting a lot of good out of these posts.

[StrawartS 2]

I think I just realized that we are all on the same side. :confused:

If whatever you are doing is OK by your doctor, it's no longer "cheating." It's following new rules that your doctor decided make better sense for your personal journey.

[PhotoNut 7]

Exactly :confused:

[cashley 0]

Since the "Ask your doctor" answer is turning out to be the concensus.... we had a lot of debate for nothing.

I think a lot of people were "fighting" for the almost the same thing but in some cases the doctor's rules and Inmands rules are different and I believe that is the part that really got some people "exicited" about this fight.

I bet doctor's all over the country have this same debate amoung themselves at the big "Inmand User Conferences"

[Tess 0]

I understand your frustration because just like you I have a family that I still have to cook for. I have a husband and 4 children, none of which have a weight problem. I am now 4 weeks post op and feeling a little bit better about my mushy diet. The hardest part so far was the liquids but I kept telling myself that I did not come this far just to give in. I know how hard it is to have to cook a big meal for the family all the while your stomach is growling but it will all be over soon. When you feel the urge to give in try and go for a walk or clean a closet. Keep yourself occupied. Its just not worth the risk of your band slipping or doing some other type of damage. Hang in there and remember you are on your way to your new self and you are worth the sacrifice!

[leatha_g 4]

One has to wonder why a doctor would vary his protocol from that of the maker of the band. Hmm..

So, who's got the most at stake here. The maker of the band who surely doesn't want a lot of bad publicity because there are slippages all over the place or a doc who's business it is to do surgeries, including repositioning, replacement etc and gets to charge every single time.... :confused:

By the way, I don't work for Inamed, but the question does come to mind.

A doctor contacts Inamed in order to become certified to install bands and be trained how to do so. Then, he takes what he's learned and modifies it to his own agenda?? Modify the rules for eating, add a stitch here or there or leave one out. Perhaps you stumble on perfection, or perhaps you've now put your patients at risk for more complications? If I were questioning my doctor. This is the one thing that I would certainly question.

Anyway, I'm sure the poor person who started this thread has been able to make her own deductions and has made a grown up decision as to whether she wants to start out 'cheating' or not. Truth is, most every single person here has cheated, does cheat or will cheat, but it's good if you're informed. That way you get to make a conscious decision of whether you want to venture outside the lines and you also take ownership of any complications that may or may not result from that.

Just so you know, however, slippage doesn't come in the form of 'ohmygawd, I ate a whole hot dog, a piece of pizza and drank a coke and now I know my band has slipped.' It's a much more subtle thing, in some cases you have no symptoms at all. Many of us only learned our bands had slipped as we went for fills and saw it under flouroscopy. I can't say I know any one person who can pinpoint when their band slipped or one particular episode that would have caused it, so please do not be fooled into that comfort zone of ' I ate all that and my band is still fine.' Because that is just not always the case. I think we have many folks here who can attest to that, unfortunately. :eek:

There will be plenty of time to test your band. It's meant to be for life. My advise would be to baby it as much as possible in the early days, especially the healing days because although there are people that vary, the general consensus is that there is a reason for healing time - to allow the scar tissue to anchor the band into place, not JUST the stitches, but the entire band is being 'seated' into the scar tissue. If you move into eating solids too quickly, this anchoring process becomes hindered and possibly you now have LESS of the scar tissue than is necessary to keep the band from slipping up and down on the anatomy and eventually it UN-Seats itself from it's proper place. Then, you get to go have 5 more incisions to reposition it, if you're lucky. If you're not so lucky, the stomach has been strangulated to the point of cutting off the blood supply and the damage is such that you don't get to replace the band and you may even have to have additional surgeries to bypass the dead portion of the stomach. I don't know about you, maybe I'm a naysayer, but to me, that's scary. But, we may have more control over that than we even realize. Perhaps??

[bbrecruiter2000 1]

Hi Leatha,

AMEN to both your posts.!!!

I'd like to start off saying I was one of those bandsters that was starving from day one. I had no restriction and I could tell by day three or 4 that I was going to have a real hard time with the liquid diet, then creamy, then mushy then solid food. I called my doc on day five and told him how hungry I was. He told me to start on creamy soups!!! I so wanted food that I chewed on a piece of bacon and then spit it out. That really helped. I did not deviate from my docs orders because I know how important healing is and I remained compliant.

I agree with the poster that said that compliance is important from the beginning. When you start changing the rules of the manufacturer and the docs thats when you start cheating on yourself.

Its highly possible that in addition to preventing yourself from throwing up and ripping stitches and sutures that the post op diet is also to maximize weight loss as well. IT also helps us to change the way we think about food. The addiction to eat for all of us both physical and mental is so strong. At least in my case, I really felt that sticking to a plan and making the healthy choices required to be successful has been my saving grace and has kept my band healthy and happy at 3 years post op.

FOr all of us, it started with "only one french fry", just one piece of cheesecake. The only way to be successful with any WLS and permanent weight loss is to change the way you think about food .

I know every doc is different, but throwing up by accident cause you swallowed a french fry and its stuck is a sure way to cause your band to have problems.

Babs in TX

334/180 ish

-150 ish

banded 3 years really soon!!!

[3loves 0]

I am staying out of this debate b/c you all have it covered, but I just wanted to say how much I appreciate leatha_g!! Do you know what meekness is? It is power under control. Leatha ~ You are a wonderful woman full of wisdom....THANKS!! BTW, I love the rest of you too....I just had to share a bit of my heart.

[Murphles 0]

Nobody said that someone's needs for explanation makes them a child. But not all instructions can be explained to everyone's satisfaction-for many reasons. Sometimes patients emotional situation does not allow them to process information particularly well in the moment. Sometimes individuals education level makes it almost impossible to explain all of the science and statistics that go into a decsion making process. Sometimes, there is no no "evidence" to support one path do vs another. Today I counseled a patient. He too had an implant and his surgeon wanted to take it out and replace it with another for a nonFDA approved indication for this implant. There are no series of patients like him that we can look at for success. I can give him information and an opinion.

Oh for those of you that are concerned that your doctors are deviating from recommendations-yikes, 90% of medicine is really not studied. If we did only what the FDA recommended today-all would come to a screeching halt. Or my favorite, aspirin and tylenol would never ever be approved today.

I can give patients information. It may or may not be something they can fully "get with ." I can so do my best-but you, the patient, have to own your responsibility for your health.

I think this debate and this support network is just that-an example of individuals seeking out information and understanding.

I am really greatful for being a part of this.

[Telly 4]

ZZZZzzzzz's. (gigglesnorts herself awake)