Banded over a year and having trouble!!

[Guest cathyb]

Please help! I don't know if anyone out there is having similar troubles but I can't seem to eat many healthy foods without ending up with a sliming incident. And it can happen after a bite or two. Right now I am subsisting on mainly Soup and yogourt. (I have even had incidents when eating some of the thicker soups.) I am feeling sorry for myself and so I am eating junk. I love cakes, Cookies, chocolate and more chocolate. The funny thing is, even with the band I have little trouble eating those things. I have been banded over a year and have had a lot of trouble with it. I have had small fills (less than 1 cc) and after a few weeks I have had it removed as I could not progress beyond a soft diet. I had to be completely unfilled for about 4 months and put on 15 lbs., which thank God, I have lost most of. <img src="images/smilies/happy.gif" border="0" alt="" title="" smilieid="60" class="inlineimg" /> It seems that I am so irritated after a fill that it can take a month for the swelling to go down. Most of my friends do not know that I have had the surgery and they think that I am bulimic!!! Sigh...and the weight loss is so slow.... I don't regret having the band because I saw how quickly I put the weight back on when I wasn't filled but I sure wish I could figure out how to manage it. The smaller the fill the more foods I am able to eat and the hungrier I am. The tighter the fill then I can't seem to eat anything except the junk. Does anyone have any suggestions

[Elisabethsew 50]

Have you discussed this with your MD? Maybe an esophagram would give you some answers?

[Dody 0]

I found my visits with my nutritionist and psychiatrist a big help. I learned that "junk food" seems to travel through the band with absolutely no problem. The band is merely a tool to help you make better food choices. It doesn't carry any magical ingredient that will make you not want chocolate..that I know of anyway. This has got to be something you decide for yourself. I have only been banded for a week and am absolutely no authority on the subject, but I'm learning hat wise food choices certainly do fill me up as much as any junk food would. Fortunately, or unfortunately, as the case may be ice cream is my vice. My surgeon suggested I take a tsp. with my medication and that has satisfied that craving and seems to be enough for me. I think telling people they can't have something makes you want it more. I've given up my carbonated drinks...gosh what more do they want from me :confused: and that was the most difficult thing I've done. I'm now using Sensation in my Water and have myself convinced it tastes like soda pop.

A lot of the band is in the mind. It will work well for you if you commit youself to following the rules, although at some point lots of people slip just once or twice. Tomorrow is always another day to get on track with. No one is perfect, but strive to eat the things that you know are good for you and will fill you up. Thankfully chocolate has never been my thing, so that doesn't bother me a all.

Good luck to you.

[Guest cathyb]

Thanks Dody and Elisabeth. I have had many visits with my doctor and many xrays, tube down the throat etc., to determine if there is a problem--either with the band or me. Frustratingly, there doesn't appear to be anything except my reaction to fills.

LOL...and as for the junk food...even though I love it, I would prefer not to eat it...it seems to be the only thing I can tolerate that gives me any sense of being full and takes away the hunger. I am trying other foods but haven't had any consistent success with them. I can eat 1/2 a chicken breasts one night and the next one bite sets me off. I think that stress has a lot to do with this, as well as the later I eat the better I can tolerate it.

[Yoda 0]

hey cathyb...yah, I suggest you discuss in detail with your Drs and get some action...but it seems you have already done that.

You KNOW the junk will go down easy. So you have to try and stop...plus it won't give you a full feeling.

Something has to be done though....the one thing my docs state is that you MUST eat "normal" food....in other words....do NOT have only soft food (like you are doing). he says it will NOT help you lose weight, it will make you eat more and feel hungrier....not to mention it isn't healthy.

Who were you banded by?

[kimmason 0]

okay, JUST when I was feeling confident ( my first day of cottage cheese) and I am being banded August 10th..I read this poor girls claim about probs with food. oh oh, and geeze don't tell me guys you can still eat chocolate ARGH., I love that stuff..lol and I heard we cannot take carbonated anymore as far as fluids ..why? what happens? I was talking to Nisrine at TBLC and she says she likes Long Island ice teas too sometimes and there is pepsi in it, she thought it was just ice tea......NOPE. Anyway I hope you sort out those issues and can eat without difficulty again.

[Yoda 0]

Yup....beware Kim...chocolate goes down EASY. So you still have to have "control" and try and eat wisely even when you are banded. Why? Cause chocolate can be chewed easily into really soft liquidy form and can be swallowed no problemo.

[kimmason 0]

thanks yoda>>when I can remove the pebble from your hand....grasshopper...lol. So why not carbonbated beverages? Where in T O are you roughly I am newmarket way

[Yoda 0]

KIM>..if you do a search for the topic of pop/soda or carbonated beverages you will see several threads come up that you can review. There is lots of info on this site wrt that exact question and you can glean everyone's opinion on the matter.

Some docs say carbonation is okay; others don't. (even at TLBC, the docs are split on this). In my opinion, it comes down to whether or not you can tolerate it. I love my caffeine free diet pepsi and gave it up for about 3 mos. But, I'm finding I can tolerate it fine....so I have a sip here and there. I normally ingest about 2-3 cans a week when all the sips are combined (whereas before it was 4-5 cans a day).

I am a wee bit north of you (Barrie area)

[DonnaB 3]

Hey Kim,

Carbonation is a gas which expands. You drink it, the gas begins to expand and, if you're not careful, shoots straight back up and out. If you do drink it in small quantities and it goes past the stoma, when it begins to expand you'll feel like a balloon being blown up. I haven't done it because it can cause damage but I've read other post which describe the feeling and, frankly, I don't like fizzy sugar Water enough to go through that. I will say that there are some people here on LBT who drink soda and report not having a problem with it. The doctors says it's bad, people report it hurting, the science supports the expanding balloon theory so . . . pass thanks.

[Yoda 0]

Just to take the opposing view....diet pop isn't sugary and so it isn't drinking empty calories....there are ZERO cals in my diet pop.

Also, I have to respectfully disagree...not all doctors say that carbonation is bad. Yes, non diet drinks (ie. not diet coke) is bad and they will agree to that (empty calorie thing) but docs do not agree about the issue of carbonation at all. All in all, studies have not supported the "stretch the pouch theory" based on carbonation. BUT, that being said...absolutely, do what is best for you. Naturally, if you chose to not drink it...that is great...for others, they may choose not to drink it because it feels icky but for others, there are no bad feelings with it....I just want to ensure ppl hear both sides.

[NJChick 3]

The band is so strange. This morning I was able to eat Breakfast with no problems (turkey sausage). My lunch which consist of tuna and grilled veggies just took me 2 hours to eat, no lie. Maybe you need to take it very very slow and take smaller bites, I mean baby like. Could it be your trying to eat to fast. Proteins are more dense and it takes more concentration to get it down (and patience).

Sorry to hear about your problems.... hope this helps. :huggie:

[kimmason 0]

that is good to know and i am alittle confused but glad to hear opposing views, it just shows that it is not the same for everyone. and yoda..cool I drive up to barrie all the time, lol I used to live at the dunlop theatre where they had the BEST popcorn in town!

[Guest cathyb]

Thanks for all the support. I have been struggling with this for quite a while but I certainly don't want to discourage anyone from being banded. I agree that the junk food has to stop---and I have made a promise to myself to start eating better. I realize it may have to get worse before it can get better. I am so hesitant to eat anything because I don't want to start sliming and I have to stop that. There are foods that I haven't tried that I should. Interestingly enough, I tried cucumber today...convinced I would have a major issue and no problem!!! The good news is I am not gaining weight even though it is really slow at coming off.

Oh...and as for soda...I can drink it no problem. Go figure!

[kimmason 0]

okay so carbonated drinks is not a clear thing yet and do what works...I undersatnd the gas theory but it expands your stomach?? Nah I don't think so, just gas lookign to get out maybe/ anyway i will wait and see. i am here dying on my first day and i just finished eating a 650 yogurt .. meanwhile I smell whatever peter is eating upstairs ,,,,,MMMM, oh thatyogurt,thats a large one and I am STILL hungry, I am going to start eating the plastic container,,,,will that mess up my liver?