magical lapband.. has anyone else experienced this?

[Nykee 13]

I feel so different...

I read thru the posts over the year.....and I feel like I am the only one this happened to... and I want to share it, but its so different than everyone I am affraid I will look like I am putting down people or showing off or look like a total liar.

I LOVE this thing that happened to me and no one understands and I have no one to talk to about it,, and I hope I can not ramble too much and be clear.

I would like to know if others felt any of this... or if they can explain how its even possible. magic? lol

sooooooooooooo

info:

I got a tight fill two and a half months ago. My first real fill experience with restriciton and all that.

I was so tight, I was on liquids a month and mushies a month and just started solid food a week or so ago.

I couldnt take but a sip of juice upon waking... and after a couple hours I could add more sips of juice or milk slow but didnt try to come up...All day long I struggled with thin Soup and milk and juice....the later in the day the more I could get in.. Then I could have some mashed potatoes and thicker soup......late at night I could have chips, Cookies, sherbert, more Soup and mushies, toast, and lots of juice and milk wiht it..but not solids.

I ate the same thing's for 2 months...(see above)

The MAGIC:

I always stopped eating when the band gave me the warning feeling, I did NOT try to have more and push it and feel like I couldnt help but have some more.... I simply stopped.

I didnt Pb or slime or golfball or any of that stuff. And still havent.

(I did spit up real gently sips of juice in the A.m. until I figured out what was too much and I had to gag myself a few times when I ate too many chips or drank too much to releive the pressure, but within a few weeks I knew how to avoid that)

PLUS: IT DIDNT BOTHER ME MUCH AT ALL... eating so little, so different.

Those two things dont make sence to me. NOt reality!

I do not use any self control to stop or to feel fine about it. (well alittle)

It was just automatically what my brain wanted to do and how it felt.

But that was NOT how my brain felt before......(quite the opposite) and HOW could the band change my brain?

LOOK WHAT I MEAN:

Prefill eating habits....just a few months ago this was my life:

I HAD to have fast food daily, many times more than once..I would feel all uptight if I couldnt get my little burger, KFC snacker, cheese curds, hershey pie, egg mcmuffin, ect...

I had a rootbeer float or a coffee drink or a smoothie everyday, minus maybe 4 times a month. Sometimes 2 or 3. I had to have one or feel sad.

I could drink 1 to 5 slurpies a day in the summer.

I drank a gallon of milk and juice per day. There had to be milk in the house at all times and everyone made sure of it, daily ritual. If I was out of juice and no one would get me some I would cry and feel lethargic until It came and then I would gupl it like a maniac feeling blissfully refreshed and alive again.

I went out to china, resturants, KFC, buffets, about 4 times a month.

I would spent bill money on it unable to resist. I did this all the time..

I spent money we couldnt afford on pizza and fast food all the time. I would seriously be holding the money, knowing i cant do it and the food was just too tempting.

The house food I ate was corndogs, nachos, frozen foods, candy, chips and Cookies, cerial.. we made a simple meal maybe once a month. I liked fast small amounts of junk foods over a meal.

I didnt eat alot at once. but I ate plenty.

Soooooooooooooooo.... WHY.. HOW.. is it not bothering me that I am missing out on all this.. I thought it would be tormenting.. I thought it would SUCK...

I dont even notice the fast food joints when I used to plan my day around them.

I got a slurpee and a cofee drink and a smoothie once and I never finished them, didnt care for the thickness becasue it caused restriction and I rather use it for milk and juice. Now I dont get drinks (cept root beer float)

Of course we havent gone to a resturant for months... that was out life!

I watch my kids eat the corndogs and pizza and cerial and nachos and I sometimes take one bite and chew it and spit it out and otherwise I dont give it much thought.

??????????????I should be drolling over the pizza, saying "god i want some" and moan and groan and make it get away from me...??????????????

Ya know..

I have been dieting for 20 yrs... I have tried it all and it has always been so hard.. I would feel deprived and want it even more. It would take a HUGE effort to refrain and follow my plan. IT was Hell and full of anxiety and fear and hope and failure.. I made rules all the time. no milk, no carbs, no fast food, ect ect.. and it never lasted.. EVERY diet sucked cuz I couldnt stop my desire and craving for the foods I liked.

So... how come I dont care now that I cant have it... just cuz the band makes it so I cant eat it all doesnt mean I dont still want it and crave it...like I always have..

I started each day guzzling ice cold OJ...and taking two vicodan before I got out of bed. Couldnt live without it.

How can I keep from just gulping more without caring about the consequences...and regret it later...??

Now I take a sip or a couple slow drinks of warn grape jice and NO PILLS...

and so be it...

I dont even cry over MY PILLS.. HEllo! I needed those..

I took 6 a day and now take 6 a week. I am in pain but I am accepting the pain too... and I HATE PAIN and I never in a million years would of thought I could give up my pain releif... I mean I would of thought I would get an unfiill before giving up pain control! (I couldnt crush them cuz I couldnt keep it and the juice down until about noon)

HOW in the world Could a tiny little feeling from my band make me stop eating and not care about food... after you can see how I was before.

Well... I assume the band just tells my brain and thats that... Or my brain reacted to the band in that way.... and its just one of those things...

HOw lucky am I!!!!!!!!!

I see people on here having so many problems..... with the restriction and control and being hungry and obsessing over food and going through all that stuff I always went through before... and thats normal..

But becasue I have NO problem stopping eating and NO problem with cravings and dont even mind being hungry....(when the band restricts me). And as tight as I am I do not Pb and that stuff....

I wonder why this didnt happen to more people like it did to me.

NOW... when I am not restricted i am as out of control as before and cant resist........

RESTRICTION in the smallest form...controls me and protects me...

Its like a gift from another realm....

Sometimes it feels so easy.... I cant understand fully how many problems people have with it and then treatrd like its all normal.....and part of the process...and OK...... Sometimes I just want to scream 'hello.. if you really stopped eating the MINUTE you felt that weird band feeling, you would never have these problems... and 'I can feel it easily way before it gets close to getting bad, so why cant you?.... and 'who gives a crap about food... god, we are surpose to be letting go of talking and thinking about food food food... who cares if you never eat this or that again, ect ect..

BUT I know that they are doing is normal and what I am feeling is rare....

I have this rule about never allowing my self to go too far and not letting food be my slave... BUT, How am I following that rule I made is beyond me.

I dont know if anyone would read all this..

But I am wondering if anyone was like changed like magic in any way...

[itsyvonne 0]

Nykee -

Why ask why?!?!?!?

Just enjoy.

-Yvonne

P.S. No, it hasn't been that magic for me, but luckily it worked anyway.

[jillrn 0]

My surgeon did say in some people the band pressure itself sends some sorta signal to the brain that you are not hungry... and no one knows why it occurs or why it only occurs in some people. Consider yourself blessed and keep going! Jill

[Nykee 13]

yeah,, well its not just hunger.. its more.. Its sending more than lack of hunger..

I do feel blessed...

but its also problematic

[Jachut 487]

So encouraging Nykee. I really want to start right NOW, my op is on 9th December. I have desperately wanted to avoid (and have done so far) that last supper syndrome but I really wanted to get some weight off before the op and I just cant do it. I cannot eat little enough, consistently enough to lose weight. I dont pig out, I dont binge but I just cant keep my portions small enough to really shift weight.

You remind me that this IS going to work.

[Joyce in VA 0]

Nykee,

I have no where near the restriction or change of mind set that you have but I have noticed some of my food preferances have changed since I was banded. For instance, before my band, fish would have never been my choice when we go out to eat. Now I order it all the time. Also I beleive once you go off carbs you no longer crave them. When I eat them it seems I am hungerier. With me it seems if I eat a heavy meal for supper I am hungerier the next day. If I eat light in the evening I don't get up hungry. Food has controlled our thoughs for a long time and I would love to be where you are. I am working on it. I am glad you found it early.

[Teresita 0]

You are not alone, it is amazing how the band really can change your life. I am proud of you and I want to walk in right beside you in this.

[mercedes 0]

I still havent had a fill and I have probably gained more than half of what I originally lost...(havent changed my ticker though)

I Cant wait to feel this way too!!!!!!

One question, how is it you get a rootbeer float? I was told no more pop EVER again.

Is it okay to break this rule? I kinda thought this was the grand rule of rules.

[La_madam 20]

Nykee, WOW

Thanks for all of that!

I can only speak for me..I know for me that when my restriction level is good..I do not even think about food. It is the strangest thing..there is NO obsession on when I'm going to eat again or what am I going to eat. ..sometimes I forget to eat. The last month my 1.5 cc's have been great restriction for me..I have been at 1.5 level since the end of June and had not lost any weight but the month of October I have lost 7 lbs and it is only the 3rd week of October...something has changed.

I'm very happy for you..sure sounds like things are finally working out for you.

[NJChick 3]

Great Post !!!!

[MeganA 35]

Now you get it!

I'm happy for you.

And remember, restriction can change as you lose weight. Try to remember what this feeling feels like so when you start to notice it changing you go in and get a fill ASAP!

Megan

[leatha_g 4]

Sounds like a great phenomena to me, however.. I'm concerned about the soft foods. The band is not meant to only be used with soft foods (soups, ice cream, gravies, mashed potatoes) eventually, the calorie dense liquids will slow you down. Hard Proteins - fish, chicken, etc are really the thing that helps work the best and also keeps your Protein level on an even keel. Leave it to me to call attention to this, but the 'soft food syndrome' is not your friend. I'm really glad the band is working with your satiety, however. Keep up the good work! Congrats!

[vinesqueen 2]

WOW Nykee! Amazing post. It doesn't matter is what you feel is unique to you, this is amazing work. The band isn't just about food, it's also about the head.

Again, amazing post.

[chichigirl 1]

Oh Nykee, you are doing totally awsome!!! In less than a year's time you are already redefining your lifestyle. No more fast food, that's huge to give up, I also notice you have given up a lot of the really sugary foods and drinks, how great is that!!!

You need to give yourself much more credit than you do for having self control. I don't know of anyone personally who stops the instant they feel the restriction the way you do!!! Wow, what an inspiration you are for those of us who don't do that. You are so right about doing it that way, that's the way I believe the band is suppose to work, but like so many others, I have pushed it before and had the stupid PB. My own fault, I admit it, I need to follow your example!!

I don't call it magic, rather, I call it miraculous what all of us are able to do with this little band. I am so very glad to hear how well you are doing, don't put yourself down and don't allow others to either. You are obviously much stronger than you give yourself credit for and it's time you accept that.

Thank you so much for the wonderful post. I certainly have gained a great deal from it and from the looks of it, so have many others. Keep us posted on your wonderful progress. We are so proud of you!!!!

Cindy

[Nykee 13]

wow

thanks people

i cant even remember why i was scared to talk about this

now i feel special, and thats not easy............ thanks so much for the kind words ans appreciating my post!

jachut)

I have desperately wanted to avoid (and have done so far) that last supper syndrome

>>>>>>>>>>I was ready for a month of pigging our on all my favorite foods and thats when they told me I had to lose 40 to 60 pounds before I came or they would not do surgery and ithat they can tell when they get in me if i had rapid weight loss and if I havent they will pull out if the doctor thinks ts risky ... the fat on the liver gets in the way or something.

I was really pissed... I lost 41.. (low carb works)

But I still got the 'last supper' cuz they had a really nice buffet for dinner and then we ordered a pizza room service, right before midnight... (the cut off time for food)

Even though I was able to eat after banded... I still consider those my last meals,, lol

but I really wanted to get some weight off before the op and I just cant do it. I cannot eat little enough,

>>>>>>>>>have you tried low carb?

you can pig out on crap and lose weight fast..

I mean, if its just for the pre op .. and not for a lifestyle change than its fine.

I found a few things i liked and ate them as much as i wanted..

as long as you stay under 20 carbs on average a day... you will loose even if you eat like 5000 calories and 300 grams of fat..

Its coool

I lost 41 pounds in a month and a half..

my daughter lost 14 pounds in the same time (she was 154 before)

My cousin lost about 20 in total..(she was 165)

these girls had EVER ONCE went on a diet cuz they loved food and didnt care about alittle chub,

But they saw what they could eat and we all did it together FOR FUN and well my daughter found out how different she looked with out the 15 pounds and she has changed her mind about alittle chub beung OK.. she was really cute shaped..(she is 17)

my daughter went back to normal eating and it took 7 months before she started gaining it back..SHE IS JUST NOW LOOKING at 150 and when ever she wants to lose it again she can, but she doesnt really care (I am so glad.. when I was 145, i thought i was the fattest cow in town)

My cousin went back too (and she is a hog) and her weight didnt come back on for like 6 months and she is still down by ten pounds

We were all really shocked how they didnt gain the weight back real fast, at their size,, i thoughts thats what happened when you resumed carbs..

heck.. we were shocked they lost so much in the first place..

It really works. There is a catch.. Think of it as only having ONE rule.

You cannot cheat.... if you cheat, you wont lose 'less'.. you will not lose at all and you may even gain.

Cheating is simply having more than 20 carbs a day.. (I honestly sometimes had like 50 a day, and did cheat like 4 times on a big meal.....but thats cuz i was so big...and its easy to do days with zero or 5 carbs...but i wouldnt risk it....

the girls stuct to 20 strictly and didnt cheat ever.

Funny thing was.. The biggest challenge is finding out what you can eat thats low carb but you dont feel your 0n a diet and it takes alot of research...

Well that turned into a carb speach didnt it.. lol