June 2007 Bandsters

[oreokitty 0]

I was banded on Jume 19th

I still get hungrey at times

BUt I am on normal foods so that helps holding me over

I just had my doc appointment yesterday for my 2 week and I am downa totall of 31.5 pounds

I was so excited BUT my clothes still fit WOW! I was hoping to go down a size soon I am sure it will before long.

I went swimming yesterday with the kids things went well with that.

We are planning a camping trip so that will be my next adventure.

I still have some discomfort

Good luck to everyone

[twinstwice 0]

Hi I am from Texarkana too and had mine done June 20th in Monterrey Mexico. Hows it going for you so far? In 2 weeks I have lost 12 lbs so its rollin now..need to start walking more and drinking more fluids. That is my goal for now.. good luck,,

[Nina_S 1]

Toni - It's a date! I guess that means that I need to set a mini-goal - I'll work on that.

Pippz - Congrats on the record!! You will be the lapband poster child.

Here is a short list of foods that are high in Protein. Hope this helps...

Foods High in Protein

Shortcut: An ounce of meat or fish has approximately 7 grams of protein.

Beef

• Hamburger patty, 4 oz – 28 grams protein
  
• Steak, 6 oz – 42 grams
  
• Most cuts of beef – 7 grams of protein per ounce

Chicken

• Chicken breast, 3.5 oz - 30 grams protein
  
• Chicken thigh – 10 grams (for average size)
  
• Drumstick – 11 grams
  
• Wing – 6 grams
  
• Chicken meat, cooked, 4 oz – 35 grams

Fish

• Most fish fillets or steaks are about 22 grams of protein for 3 ½ oz (100 grams) of cooked fish, or 6 grams per ounce
  
• Tuna, 6 oz can - 40 grams of protein

Pork

• Pork chop, average - 22 grams protein
  
• Pork loin or tenderloin, 4 oz – 29 grams
  
• Ham, 3 oz serving – 19 grams
  
• Ground pork, 1 oz raw – 5 grams; 3 oz cooked – 22 grams
  
• Bacon, 1 slice – 3 grams
  
• Canadian-style bacon (back bacon), slice – 5 – 6 grams

Eggs and Dairy

• Egg, large - 6 grams protein
  
• Milk, 1 cup - 8 grams
  
• Cottage cheese, ½ cup - 15 grams
  
• Yogurt, 1 cup – usually 8-12 grams, check label
  
• Soft cheeses (Mozzarella, Brie, Camembert) – 6 grams per oz
  
• Medium cheeses (Cheddar, Swiss) – 7 or 8 grams per oz
  
• Hard cheeses (Parmesan) – 10 grams per oz

Beans (including soy)

• Tofu, ½ cup 20 grams protein
  
• Tofu, 1 oz, 2.3 grams
  
• Soy milk, 1 cup - 6 -10 grams
  
• Most Beans (black, pinto, lentils, etc) about 7-10 grams protein per half cup of cooked beans
  
• Soy beans, ½ cup cooked – 14 grams protein
  
• Split peas, ½ cup cooked – 8 grams

Nuts and Seeds

• Peanut butter, 2 Tablespoons - 8 grams protein
  
• Almonds, ¼ cup – 8 grams
  
• Peanuts, ¼ cup – 9 grams
  
• Cashews, ¼ cup – 5 grams
  
• Pecans, ¼ cup – 2.5 grams
  
• Sunflower seeds, ¼ cup – 6 grams
  
• Pumpkin seeds, ¼ cup – 19 grams

I am also fan of quinoa which is a grain that is rich in protein. Here is a little background info..

The seed of Quinoa is an excellent food, rich in protein and high in Fiber. The protein is well balanced and is particularly rich in the amino acid lysine, which is difficult to obtain from other vegetable sources. It is also high in Calcium, phosphorous, Vitamins B and E.

Quinoa is a very versatile food plant that can be cooked many ways and tastes excellent. The grain can be used as a hot cereal; used in Soups, casseroles and souffles; used in the place of almost any other grain, including rice; ground into flour; and toasted. An imaginative chef can find many more uses and ways to prepare Quinoa than those given above. Dishes ranging from appetizers through Desserts can be prepared from Quinoa.

Here is the nutritional analysis on quinoa... Nutrition Facts and Analysis for Quinoa

Nina

[hottytoddy 0]

There are 130 of us!!! Go check it out!!

http://www.lapbandtalk.com/f93/june-2007-bandster-calender-37160/index2.html#post509051

[ItsJustMe 0]

Hi Paula,

If you check back a ways on the posts, you can see my icky confession on sliming. It happened the day after my fill from eating chicken too quickly/too big of bites. MY FAULT! I also slimed on a few french fries and a lean pocket. Guess bread and ff's are not band-friendly for me. I had no PBing or Sliming prior to being filled. I did have vomiting, but it was related to a Migraine I had.

Let me know if you have any more questions!

Cheers,

Toni

Hi Toni,

I've been gone for a couple of days, but just had a chance to find you posts on your PBing & Slime :confused: You are so funny!!! Thanks!!

I don't get filled for the first time until July 20th. I've been eating regular food, chewed really well and about 1/2 the ammount as usual, but I haven't lost any more weight since I stopped the liquids only. I know I shouldn't be worried, but I really loved watching the scale move down.

It's good to be home and able to read al of your adventures with bandom.

[Snoopy 0]

I was banded on the 27th and I am on the mushie stage right now. I am eating things I shouldn't. I've had chicken salad today and for supper tonight I pureed hamburger helper that I fixed for DH. I know I am putting myself at risk for causing problems with the band but I can't seem to stop. I really don't feel any restriction at this point and I am wanting to eat reg food. My weight the day of surgery was 310. Today it is 304.2 I know what I have to do but I can't seem to get it together. I feel like such a failure right now.

Snoopy

[mvr 0]

Oh Snoopy, I feel for you!!!! Just because we got a band it doesn't take away all our compulsive overeating problems and weird head trips!!! I spent last night chewing chicken tacos I made for the kids then spitting them out instead of swallowing ( hiding in the kitchen so my family wouldn't know what a sicko I really am, as if they don't!!!!) I think the time before the first fill will be really hard because you don't feel too much from the band and are getting super hungry. My surgeon said lots of people put ON weight during this time or don't lose any but then get it together when they have good restriction. GOOD LUCK and don't be too hard on yourself, we will get better at this. Marga

[bcrazy7 0]

It says Quinoa has 636 calories in 1 cup!! Is that right??

[Snoopy 0]

I appreciate the support. You are right. There are so many more issues than just not feeling hungry. It did make me feel better reading your post:) I am going to try harder tomorrow. Probably need to get out of the house. I am off work right now and I am getting bored. That is always dangerous for me re:food. Thanks for letting me vent.

Snoopy

[hottytoddy 0]

Snoopy,

This is a very scary time for you... I KNOW!! If you read the posts from few weeks ago, I had a major breakdown over my sushi binge at 2 weeks post op... and my girl Toni bit the bullet a couple of times too!!

I was in constant fear that I was messing up my band, and sometimes still am. I guess when you can't feel something or see it, you wonder if it's in the right spot. My doc assures me that I would KNOW if I had a slip. Eating too much of the wrong thing puts pressure on the band before it's healed properly. If the band slips from this, it slips downward. Your stomach is much larger below the band and thus more tissue would be in the band if it slipped, causing severe restriction and nausea and vomiting.

Vomiting, I believe, causes the stomach contents to come back through the band and puts force from below causing the band to slip higher.

Anyway, be CAREFUL! Most of us have the same fears as you, obsession with food, and lack of willpower! We have got to hang in there a little bit longer... and the fills begin!!

Good luck!

[mjsafari 0]

Suzzie - we found grilled chicken breast strips at Sam's club. They came 3 bags in a box. Each bag can be microwaved. They taste great on their own or with a little BBQ Sauce. Very quick and easy.

Nina - thanks for the great info!

Congrats everyone on the great weight loss!

Missy

[faithmd 14]

Okay, for those of us banded late in the month and struggling through our full liquid and mushy stages, I'm going to post my tough love speech. I remind myself of this everyday. It is NOT easy to stick with this diet, especially when so many other seem to be moving faster through tthe stage than I am. But I do remind myself that moving slowly MAKES SENSE and my surgeon's group has had NO SLIPS (other than one that was totally the bandster's fault-eating things he shouldn't a few days out). Ready?

I am a person who wants data to back up most things a health care provider is doing to/for me. The Allergan website (the folks who MAKE the LapBand) says this about food stages:

Post-Surgery Nutrition

After surgery, you will need a new nutrition plan. Your surgeon

and/or dietitian can help you learn about and get used to the changes in lifestyle and eating habits you need to make. It is very important to follow the eating and drinking instructions beginning immediately after the operation.

In the first few weeks after your surgery, you will be on a liquid diet since only thin liquids will be tolerated by your stomach at that time. As you heal, you will gradually progress to pureed foods (three to four weeks post-op) and then soft foods (five weeks post-op). Finally, you will be able to eat solid foods.

Granted perhaps there is new research that says prolonged periods on liquid diets are not necessary and the Allergan site just hasn't been updated yet. I would wonder what a surgeon who advances quickly's complication rate is and more specifically what their SLIP rates are. Are they advancing people faster because of the AP band and the selling point that it's less likely to slip because of it's width? Is there a study they can show you to support the shorter move to soft foods? Has surgical technique changed and is there a way now to access the back of the stomach (not previously accessed because of it's proximity to the spinal nerves) and suture the band (I haven't heard of it)?

The reason for the liquid diet is because the band gets "seated" on the stomach and held in place by scar tissue that forms during the weeks we are taking in liquids. The stomach is a muscle, and that muscle has to churn and undulate to digest and move food through. Liquid requires little stomach movement to process. When we start to chew something, that lets our digestive system know that food is coming down, fluids begin to be secreted to aid in digestion and the stomach starts moving in preparation to start the breakdown of food. The band is held in place on the front of the stomach by sutures in the stomach where it is pulled up and over the top of the band, then sutured to itself. There is nothing holding the back in place, the surgeon tunnels behind the stomach to pull the band around and then scar tissue forms to hold it. That scar tissue can't form properly or as well if the stomach is churning and moving to digest. Kind of like pulling a paper cut on a knuckle apart every time you bend your finger, it takes forever to heal.

At least that's what the band folks have said for years that is how it all happens. Perhaps someone somewhere has done a new study and what we've always believed is actually not right. It's possible.

Do you see now why I'm hesitant to eat early?

Of course, if someene can show me concrete good data (not just a study with a sample of a few patients) that the longer liquid stage is not necessary, then I'll be happy to change my thought process.

I look at it this way, if I were pregnant and my doc told me I had to be on liquids to keep my baby healthy, I cannot imagine being desperate enough to put my unborn child's health at risk. I'd be on that liquid diet PAST the date the doc told me to just to be on the safe side, wouldn't you? Why won't we protect OUR OWN health with just as much vigor?

Why do we risk our own health when we know that being in liquids is for a finite period of time (two weeks, four weeks, six weeks, whatever)?

Why on earth are we "cheating" and risking our bands? Just because something goes down okay doesn't mean it isn't setting us up for damage later. Damage we do now freshly banded may not show up until a year or two down the line. Maybe we have a bad episode of vomiting and because we just couldn't wait to chew, we didn't get good adhesion of scar tissue early on, it may slip.

Really think about it, folks. If it were to protect an unborn life, we'd do anything. This band is the key to our new lives.

[hottytoddy 0]

OK, here's the deal.

Faith, I appreciate your dedication and desperation to convince all to comply as we all should. You're will power is indeed commendable... seriously, I mean that!

We all have our reasons for being overweight. Never lost the baby weight, POCD, addiction, laziness, genetics, etc. Not everyone who is obese has the truly addicive, psychological, uncontrollable urges that some do. Everyone of us wants to chew. Everyone of us wants to taste. Everyone of us loves to eat. However, not everyone of us can reasonably stick to such a stringent diet in the 2-4 weeks post op without giving in to our obsession at least once. It doesn't make it ok. It doesn't make it healthy for the band. It doesn't make us feel great about doing something to help ourselves. It makes us feel like failures. But it's the real world. I'm tall.. that's why my BMI is lower... cause I can eat like a freakin linebacker!

I don't get a fill for 8 weeks. If I could go 2 months being perfectly compliant with a stringent diet, without cheating even once... I would not have needed this surgery. That's just the way it is with me, and obviously a few others here as well. The times that I've done wrong I didn't even really realize it at the time... I can't explain it... one minute your fine, the next you realize you've done wrong. There's sometimes no thought put to it at all. It just happens. Perhaps there should be INTENSE phychological counseling before this surgery. Months of it... just to make sure you can handle the overnight loss of compulsive overeating. My doctor didn't require it for me...he knows about my postop failures, I've been honest with him.

This doesn't mean it's OK. I'm not encouraging anyone to screw up. We all know the dangers that are present with poor decisions. NOBODY has posted that they are eating freely cause they want to and that's just the way it is. Nobody is giving anyone an "atta boy" when they mess up. All we are trying to do is let the offender know we've been there, done that, picked up our boot straps, and moved on.

Personally, I do not think this surgery should be compared to being pregnant. But on that note, there are NUMEROUS things that pregnant people aren't supposed to consume but do anyway because they are going crazy with an addiction (and society is pretty much OK with it). A perfect example is my friend who is 6 months pregnant. Her husband scolds her for an OCCASIONAL Coke. So she hides them in her bikini drawer and slips a sip when he's in the shower. She gave in. She was miserable and addicted to something she's consumed for years on a daily basis... and occasionally she drinks one. You also aren't supposed to eat deli meat, hot dogs, processed meat of any kind, sushi, some seafood (too much iodine), etc, etc, etc. People also gain up to 100 pounds with pregnancy - very unsafe for the baby and mom - but people hear that and generally laugh. Again, I don't think this surgery should be compared to pregnancy. We aren't perfect with that either.

I do love myself, that's why I had the surgery and was a self pay at that. However, I also know that someone putting a band on my stomach does not end years of daily food abuse. I'm doing right at week 5. I'm not overeating. I'm trying to make good choices. But I have messed up since this surgery a few times and by the Grace of God my band is still in place. I pray everyday no long term damage has been done either.

Personal opinion - I think Inamed is overly conservative because if not, and people have complications, they will sue. That's what we do in this country. Dr. Ortiz (pioneer of the band, trained US surgeons, on the Inamed Board and Inamed Advisor) doesn't even do a mushie stage. He does advancing liquids for 3 weeks and then solids, regular solids. He wants you mushie, liquid, soft FREE for 3 weeks, then a fill.

Sorry this is so long. Again I appreciate everyone who is walking the straight and narrow and am SO truely proud of you. However, for those of you who have strayed a few times, I don't think any less of you. I don't think you don't care about yourself. I don't think you think it's OK that you've messed up. I don't think you're "playing chicken" with the band. I think, like me, you're weak and have a problem and are desperatly trying to get help.

Tomorrow is another day. Get up, eat right, and exercise. Lather, rinse, repeat.

PS - Amazingly, I have been 100% compliant with carbonated beverages! I drank about 6 Diet Cokes a day before this surgery, and have not cheated once. I guess that one was a little easier for me than the sushi...

I love you all! We're all in this together!

[faithmd 14]

I truly hope that no one thinks I am speaking down to them or judging them because they have slipped up. I certainly am not! I am trying to point out the reasons why it is so important to try to get back on that horse and toe the line as long as possible.

I would never dare to say that merely being banded would end years of food issues. Lord knows if I could make it to 371, I have had some food issues, and continue to have them.

I posted my tough love because it is (as I said) something I have to say to myself every day, if not more often than that. I am by no means perfect. If we screw up, we screw up...Hopefully no harm done. Take the time to evaluate what happened and get back on the path you should be on. My concern is not so much for those who make a mistake once or twice, my concern is that there are so many out there who say, "Oh, it's okay, it went down fine so I guess I can do it." Or those who look at what other's diets are and advance theirs faster than their surgeon or nutritionist reccommended.

I do agree that sometimes companies can be really conservative, likely in an attempt to shield themselves from possible litigation. But as you yourself said, the granddaddy of the band in the Western Hemisphere supports three weeks of liquids before moving to solids. My belief is that chewed really well most solids could be considered mushy so I totally understand the jump over mushy to solid.

I posted what I did because I truly do not believe that everyone got a good education about WHY they should be sticking to whatever liquid stage their surgeon or nut wanted them to. So often physicians have a tendency to say not to do something, but never explain the how and the why behind it. If you can give me a good reason for something, I'm much more likely to accept it. It somehow makes a tough thing a little more doable if I know that reason for it is important.

I am not comparing being banded to being pregnant in any way. However, I am pointing out that we would all do the very best we can for a child, yet we tend to be lax when it comes to our own health. Heather, you make an excellent point when you say perhaps we should have lots of counseling before we have a bariatric surgical procedure. I think we should. You are so right that it is impossible to just say STOP and then do it. If we could say STOP to ourselves, we wouldn't have been fat. But the band requires so much from us, I think (or at least I hope) that we were all fully informed about the changes we were going to have to make after banding. It isn't easy. I knew it was going to be damned hard so when I got closer to being banded I started to practice behaviors that I read about here and other places. I started eating Proteins first, I got baby utensils to eat small bites, I stopped drinking with my meals, I tried to get used to chewing, chewing, chewing (the hardest for me to do). I obviously could not have handled decreasing my intake amounts pre-band, but I did the best I could. I researched, researched, researched. Am I tooting my own horn? Am I the poster child for bandsters? NO! I am pointing out that I got to that "place," I came to that magical moment where I just couldn't take it anymore. I decided (as we all did) to have SURGERY to lose weight. What a crushing blow, to admit that I just couldn't do it alone. Well, I could probably lose some, but I knew it wouldn't stay off. I needed this tool, so I learned as much about it as I could, I learned why we do things. I think if you are going to go so far as to have surgery, you should take some accountability and not say, well, I couldn't do it before, so the band will just stop me. How many threads have we all read where someone thinks it's okay to be so tight they PB on just about everything because that's how they are losing weight? That is NOT good. That's not protecting the band, or ourselves. I am only trying to catch us (and myself) and support us being as healthy and proactive in this journey as we possibly can be. I want every single June Bandster to be successful and healthy in their weight loss as they can.

And Dammit, why did you have to say SUSHI????????

(WAAAAAAAAA, I want some sushi!!!) Gosh, I love that stuff!

[rcorn60035 0]

Since surgery, I find myself criticizing what my husband and kids eat. Now that I can only eat tiny portions, it's made me realize that the amounts I (and everyone else) ate, is really way more than we need. I find myself saying things to them without even thinking. I feel so bad. I'm wondering if anyone has done the same thing. For example, they ordered Chinese the other day. You know how big those portions are!!! My husband ate the whole thing. Even before surgery, I couldn't eat it all. I found myself thinking I couldn't believe he could eat all that food. I don't think I said anything to him but I didn't even like thinking that. I am certainly not in a postition to criticize anyone else.

I now know why everyone says that Lap-band is a transformation in more ways than just weight loss.

Anyone else have this problem????