How are the banded Notorious Novembers???

[Glammaw 15]

WannaBe, I am with you. My dr. says that I am not "dieting" enough. He wants me to do "NO CARBS". First of all, if I wanted to do, or could do, no carbs, I wouldn't have needed the surgery. Secondly, I didn't think the band was going to require a lifetime of "dieting." So far, I have had no help, nada, zero help from my band. I have had surgery and for what. Now I am supposed to have no carbs. I didn't sign up for a lifetime of constantly thinking about, planning, or worrying over food. I was already doing that, without surgery. Now, I may have slippage from vomiting with a stomach virus. If I do have slippage, and I have a choice, my band will come out. It is not what I thought, hoped for, expected or researched. I don't want to be on a diet for the rest of my life....that is not a life. I have paid dearly for the past 14 weeks for this band and I want it to give me something back. Is that too much to ask? Instead I am told by my dr. to just give up all carbs and the scale will move. Also, that he has a friend who doesn't have a lap band who has lost 55 lbs. in six months on no carbs. Again, then why have the surgery. I know a lot of you are having good results and maybe I am weak, but this is not what I expected and not what I can live with.

[DivaStyleCoach 89]

AllThings - I don't understand how a "no carb" diet is even possible? Why would your doctor suggest such a thing? It sounds like a version of the Atkins diet (heavy protein) and that has it's own issues with fat content...

Enlighten me, please...

[Glammaw 15]

My dr. said "no carbs, zip, nada, none, and if he could say it in Chinese he would, zero carbs." He was very clear about what he expected. And, only 2 ozs. of food per meal, 3 meals per day. He said to use a dixie "rinsing" cup, not a drinking cup, to measure my meals. See why I am so frustrated with everything to do with the band??? He manages my band!

[DivaStyleCoach 89]

AllThings,

I completely understand why you are frustrated...is there another doctor in the practice (or nearby) you could call / visit / email to get a second opinion?

It just seems like he's trying to make it as hard as he can...but that's just this laywoman's opinion. What level of fill do you have? How recently were you banded?

I sympathize with your frustration level - it doesn't sound like your doc is easy to work with at all...

[Glammaw 15]

There are no other drs in his practice. I tried to go to another local practice and they would not accept me. My surgery was 11/21/2008, so almost 15 weeks out. I have had one fill on 1/20/2009 of 4 ccs. Now I am waiting for an upper GI before I can have another fill. He says maybe 2 ccs when I get my second fill. Yesterday I paid a copay for him to tell me to go have an xray and see him again after the xray. Also, to say I am not "dieting" and to have "no carbs, nada, zip, no carbs." Oh, and to eat only 60ccs of food, three times per day. Use a "rinsing cup, not a drinking cup" to measure my food. I am having 4 ozs, but he wants me to cut it to 2 ozs per meal. All with no help from my band. If I had it to do over, I wouldn't do it. Now I feel like even more a failure than I felt before surgery. Another mistake in a long line of them for me, I'm afraid. Do you do low carb or no carb? Do you eat 2 oz per meal? Do you feel restriction? How many fills and where are you?

[WannaBSkinnyB 0]

My doctor does not say anything about my weight loss since I only see nurses when I go in. They have about 8 nurses that do the fills. I guess once the doc gets his money there is no need for him to see you. The nurse just keeps telling me that since my BMI was lower than most it will take time. I am sick of hearing it will take time. How much more time?

Allthings- where I go you are not suppose to eat bread, potato, rice or Pasta. Which I don't. I am hoping with WW I will start losing. I can't get filled anymore since the last time I went in for an unfill of .15cc so I could get fluids down. So I think I am at where I can be with the fills.

Good news though this morning after WW for 2 days I finally dropped two pounds this morning. :scared2: But since today is my birthday I will probably gain that back today. Oh well at least I know WW will work. And I am finally under 200 today (199) even if it is only for the day. Tee Hee

:thumbup:

[DivaStyleCoach 89]

AllThings,

I feel for you...I would try talking to him seriously about how his treatment "plan" is affecting you and if he continues to be unwilling to adjust or help you more than he is, I would request a referral to another provider.

Did you go through insurance? Perhaps they could help you with finding a new practitioner - don't they have a Patient Advocate? Is there a State board or Patient Advocate that you could talk to?

There are no other drs in his practice. I tried to go to another local practice and they would not accept me. Also, to say I am not "dieting" and to have "no carbs, nada, zip, no carbs." Oh, and to eat only 60ccs of food, three times per day. Use a "rinsing cup, not a drinking cup" to measure my food. I am having 4 ozs, but he wants me to cut it to 2 ozs per meal. All with no help from my band. If I had it to do over, I wouldn't do it. Now I feel like even more a failure than I felt before surgery. Another mistake in a long line of them for me, I'm afraid. Do you do low carb or no carb? Do you eat 2 oz per meal? Do you feel restriction? How many fills and where are you?

The line I bolded is the one that stands out for me the most - NO doctor should make you feel like a failure - have you told him what his attitude / bedside manner is doing to you and how it is affecting your mindset? If he doesn't respond more appropriately to that, I would have serious doubts about his ability to work with you efficiently.

I do follow a lower carb plan because I'm diabetic (type II) and a confirmed carb addict. I crave things like crackers, chips, etc. Crunchy and salty are my downfalls!

I do eat more than 2 oz per meal - I was banded Nov 17th. The first phase was liquid only, then mushies for a week or two (I don't remember and my paperwork is at home), then a slow introduction or solid foods. I have had two fills, and the second one, I really felt good restriction. My doctor does not eliminate any food group, but he does tell me to emphasize Protein, then veggies, then carbs if I have room.

I do eat less than before - probably 1/4 to 1/2 cup of anything is enough to fill me up now. It depends on what it is and how slowly I eat it. I'm getting more sensitive to the feeling of "okay that's enough" that I get from my band, and after an initial couple of pb's, I haven't done THAT again - it's just not fun!

I am not a doctor, and since I don't know your health history, I can't say if what your doctor is doing is right for you, but it certainly sounds like he's not easy to work with. Perhaps sitting down with him and having a serious talk about this will help, but if not, I definately recommend contacting a Patient Advocate who might be able to intercede on your behalf.

[crystal525 26]

Thansk ddgalarza and everyone else! Althought I did apply for The Biggest Loser (with my best friend, Shaedie--she's getting banded in March and a new member of the boards). We decided whichever we got approval for first we would do! Obviously we didn't get accepted to TBL!

Most days, I know what my problem is . I don't always make the right choices (although portions are limited) and rarely exercise. I'll get myself pumped up, do it for a week, and fall off schedule again. I have exercised twice this week though--I'll weigh at the end of the week to see if it makes a difference. I just wish exercising was as addicting for me as food is! :confused: Even though I knew the band wasn't magic, the idea of being able to eat whatever I want, in smaller portions, and losing weight is so appealing. That's the food addiction talking. In the beginning I had no restriction so I had to fall back on willpower. If I had willpower, I would not have needed the band in the first place, right? In the last weeks since my 2nd fill I have started to feel restriction. Maybe the scale will be better at my next appointment this Friday.

Everyone--Let's keep our heads up! We are each other's support. Good luck to all of us!

Crystal

[ddgalarza 0]

I FOUND I FOUNDIT!!!!:confused: My sweet spot! Thank God, and I mean that! Before I could eat bread , no problem at all(which isnt a good thing for me because I am a carb addict). I could eat a whole 6" sandwhich from subway no proble and a bag of baked lays. But today as I sit here typing, my six sub has benn cut down to a 3" opened face and it questionable at this point if I will even be able to ge that down. I really hope that this is it and that it STICKS!!!

[DivaStyleCoach 89]

Congrats, ddgalarza! Isn't it funny how we crave restriction and when we get it we're so happy! :confused::confused:

Crystal525 - I'm right there with ya! I don't always make good choices either, but since my second fill recently, I make a lot fewer of them! I will encourage you to up your workouts to 3 - 4 times a week. I think if you do that, the results you will get (realizing that Non scale Victories - NSV's are as important as losing pounds) will encourage you to keep going.

I used to be a 4-day a week gym rat - when I worked in the same town that I live in. Now, with my hour-each-way commute, I wasn't able to get to the gym as often as I'd like, and I've had to discipline myself to work out. I now have a rowing machine in my house and have fallen in love with rowing.

I think I have a borderline addictive personality - once I "made the decision" to row, I don't want to stop...it's something I now do 6 - 7 days a week, when prior to that, I let the machine sit for a couple of weeks before I even got on it. I was like that with swimming too, when I was a lifeguard - not a day went by that I was at the pool and didn't swim at least a mile (72 laps). I miss those days...of course, since I was still making bad food choices, it didn't keep me from gaining weight, but I'm committed to making better food choices to go along with my commitment to exercise.

I've been off my feet before - I had an irregular heartbeat that actually caused me to pass out on the treadmill - and my doctor at the time recommended that I stop working out (it would 'stress' my heart, he said) and go on cardiac meds for the rest of my life. I refused - started walking again as soon as I got even a hint that it was okay, started slowly, and now I'm up to rowing 30 minutes a day (I cover about 4000 m in a workout now, I started at less than 1000).

It's definately a process - and you just gotta keep putting one foot in front of the other until you reach your goal. Talk yourself into working out for just 15 - 20 minutes as many days in a row as you can...when that gets easier, add a few minutes a day until you are at 30 minutes, and then add to that when you can.

I'm now doing a 20 minute rowing program with music before and after to get me to 30 minutes. Once I hit 40 minutes, I'm moving up to the next level rowing program, and then I'll add more music until I reach 60 minutes. That's probably where I'll stop - I get bored just looking at nothing but the walls when I row, but the alternative isn't pretty, so I do it.

Hang in there - sounds like you are moving to the right mindset and it will work for you!

[crystal525 26]

ddgalarza--CONGRATS...I will be praying for a fill and GREAT restriction on Friday! I'm so happy for you!!!

Ebony--my commute and work is my problem. I live in the Maryland Suburbs and work in Washington, DC. My commute EACH WAY is an hour and a half on a good day. I am gone from 7am until 7pm everyday. Yesterday, I went home and got straight on the treadmill for 20 minutes. That's what I have to do. If I sit for even a minute, I'm done for the night. I have an addictive personality...just for all the wrong things. I only quit smoking when I had a breast reduction 2 years ago...never went back though--but gained 20 pounds in the year after--which led me to the beginning of my band process.

Again--we'll all get thru this! I find that when I come here and read and post, I feel more motivated and more responsible for the choices I make. I'll be back daily!!!

Thanks for getting me thru my "funk". :confused:

[DivaStyleCoach 89]

Crystal525 - I'm glad I could help...when I post to motivate others, it motivates ME too! I read on another thread that someone mentioned they know they are messing up when they don't post every day - it's accountability and when they come to the site and note everyone else's efforts, it makes them work harder.

One of the great threads is in the Exercise area - there's one where we post our exercise activity and duration on a daily basis - you can probably find it by looking for the current month (or past months if you want to read some of the history). Some of the posters are real athletes - they work out every day and post some really big numbers. I'm not to that level yet, but I'm working on getting there by summer.

Check out that thread and see if it inspires you further!:confused:

[WannaBSkinnyB 0]

I FOUND I FOUNDIT!!!!:confused: My sweet spot! Thank God, and I mean that! Before I could eat bread , no problem at all(which isnt a good thing for me because I am a carb addict). I could eat a whole 6" sandwhich from subway no proble and a bag of baked lays. But today as I sit here typing, my six sub has benn cut down to a 3" opened face and it questionable at this point if I will even be able to ge that down. I really hope that this is it and that it STICKS!!!

Good Luck I hope it works for you. I have been there and a few days later back to before. So I hope for you it stays for you. Keep us posted.

[kpsc1030 0]

My dr. said "no carbs, zip, nada, none, and if he could say it in Chinese he would, zero carbs." He was very clear about what he expected. And, only 2 ozs. of food per meal, 3 meals per day. He said to use a dixie "rinsing" cup, not a drinking cup, to measure my meals. See why I am so frustrated with everything to do with the band??? He manages my band!

That is what my Dr and nutritionists have suggested. No carbs until I lose 75 percent of the weight. I have slowly added back in vegetables and fruit. Their point is that you need to try to lose as much weight as possible in the first year. I am a carb addict too and it was hard for awhile but now I breeze right through it. Although, my little secret is that one day a week I do eat something I really want as long as the band allows me too. So far it has worked for me...just don't tell my Dr! It sure gives me something to look forward to as well. Good Luck...I know it is not easy!

[jms462001 9]

Thank you for trying to keep us positive. But all these things you pointed out I did before the band and lost. So why did we get the band? I am not losing a thing on the band. I am going back to a diet I know works for me. My issue is why did I get the band if I am going back to the making good choices and exercise. I certainly did not need a band for that. I am not sure what the band is suppose to be doing, other than making things stick and pb'ing. It is really getting hard to try to stay positive with something I have yet to see do anything for me.

I'm sorry you are not happy with the band. I have issues at times too. I don't know who talked to you or what research you or some of the others did. It seems that some people were led to believe that they could eat anything they wanted,would naturally eat less, and the weight would fall off. This was not my expectation. I expected that I would be giving up lots of foods forever. I expected that I would be eating very small amounts of Protein and vegetables at each meal and supplement with Protein Shakes. I expected to lose the weight quite quickly or hoped to lose most in the first year. I expected this to be similar to the many diets I had been on with the difference being that I would not be hungry once the fills were sufficient. The difference that I expected is that this time, unlike every other time I have lost lots of weight, I would KEEP IT OFF. This time I will not gain it all back plus more. This is what my expectations of the band were and are. So far it is meeting those expectations. I still cheat and eat things I should not like on any diet, but we are all human and just get back on track. But, we just have to change our way of eating, band or not, or we will not ever lose the weight. And, we need to exercise,something I am very inconsistent with unfortunately. We just have to take little steps in those areas we find challenging whether it be food choices or moving our bodies! I hope we all can have much success as time goes on. Remember, many people do not adjust to life with the band and start losing until they are 6 months out so hang in there!!!