POST-Operation Weight Loss Surgery Q&A

I was banded on Nov 20th. It has been almost 3 weeks. My post-op diet plan states that I should only be eating ¼ cup off food at each meal. I am eating more like ¾ to 1 whole cup of food at each meal. I feel like I am cheating!! I don’t really feel any difference with my stomach!! I feel like I have already started down a bad path right out the gate!!

Just curious. I know we are all on different post op diets and therefore some are losing faster than others. I myself have lost 8lbs. Jill

Hi Gang. Banded on 11/21/08 and already 22 pounds gone. I feel that I could eat anything now though. How do you know you are ready for a fill. I am on day 20 today and feel like I need more restriction. I havent tested any boundaries though as I am scared to get sick or throw up, so I am sticking to my diet and my small portions. I am hungry a couple of hours later though. Any advice?

OMG! My belly is itching so badly. I was banded on 12/4 and it is killing me. I just rub lightly to ease the discomfort. I put lotion around the strips in hope that would ease but only slightly better. Anybody else have this? I will be so glad when these things fall off. :wink_smile:

So I thought I would start this and see what people's weight was before the band (even if your not banded, still reply=) what their goal is and what the reason for having the surgery is - Most say to be healthy but I know their are others that have other reasons. Anyway this is mine Sarah - 20. I'm 5'4 and my weight is 118-120 but that was the last time I checked it (back in july I think) so it's probably more. Goal is probably like 65kgs so that's like 55-60kgs to loose. As for the reason, I'm 20 and have heaps of crap wrong with me - 97% not to do with my weight. That and I might be looking at a transplant later in life so I need to be in "good health" as the doctor p…

Hello all, I am about 4 weeks out and am feeling my old habits start to creep back into my life. I am following the diet guide lines and eating far less than I used to. BUT I am starting to see that I grab a bite of this and a bite of that before I realize what I am doing. I didn't come this far to sabotage myself. I at least realize and am trying to not have the mind set of oh well, I 'll start over tomorrow. Rather than eating a ton of Cookies I ate two weight watcher cookies and felt kind of bad. I am still controlling my intake and calories but just keep hearing that same old voice in my head "failure" Sorry, just need some words of encouragement. I'm sure t…

Today has just been the worst day since I was banded 1 1/2 weeks ago! Since I went back to work on Monday, I have been suffering from the worst backaches. I'm not sure if it's related to the surgery or not, but I have never felt so terrible! I have been happy this far about the amount of food I am eating (on mushies!), I have not been hungry or anything but it just all came to head today. All that was bottled up came out! man did it come out! first as anger, then as tears. Good thing hubby wasn't home,LOL! Bad enough that he happened to call at the wrong time (in between the anger and tears) The poor dog just wanted his dinner, and probably thought I was crazy! And o…

Hi, I am two weeks post-op, and most of the pain from the surgery has gone, except for my abdomen, particularly around the port area. It feels like a stitch in my side, which it is, literally. I am wondering how long does this pain typically last for? -Vangirl

I am starting to believe my family when they say that I am Bulimic. I am throwing up almost after everymeal. There are times I don' t get sick at all and other times that it is all that I do.I also am coughing alot and am finding myself cough and almost getting sick in my sleep. Has anyone had this problem in the past are know of anyone who has and what have they done to rectify these problems. I would appreciate anyones help. Oh, bu the way I had my surgery 11/15/2007 and have lost 95 lbs. Thanks Doreen Wagner:wub:

OK, heres the deal.....I literally just got home from having my third fill and already I suspect there will be problems. I just had a couple of rushed sips of water at the dr's office and left in a big hurry (he was over an hour late for my 4:30 appt). By the time I got to my car, I could feel the familiar gurgling starting but this time it lasted a long time and I was beginning to think it was going to get stuck.....is that even possible, to get stuck on freakin' water? I didn't drink anything else till I got home, then I tried another bigger sip. It felt ok going down, but I have been burping and hiccuping for over an hour then began to feel actual nausea. I guess I may…

I'm over a year post op lap band and I continue to have phlem and end up vomiting it up. Why? Are certain foods more likely to produce phlem? Is there anything I can do to reduce this?

Please excuse the stupid question, but I am still relatively new at this. Logic tells me that when the band gets tighter (like when you are at your "sweet spot") things might get stuck easier.....smaller opening=more possibility of stuck food....yes or no? I'm hoping thats not the case since I may be, and I repeat may be getting to a good level of restriction. I appreciate any input y'all may have.

Hey everybody, I am about 4 weeks out from surgery and doing pretty well.I have not had a fill yet and I was banded on 11/11/08 and will not be able to be filled until 01/14/09.This will be almost 9 weeks for me.I was just wondering how do you know exactly when you need a fill? How long should you be able to go in between eating? as long as your losing weight are you okay?Any advice would be appreciated.Also did anyone else have a hard time getting in all their Water in the beginning?:tt1:

I was only banded yesterday so I don't feel like exercising just yet but I do really want to make this work. I don't see my doctor until 23rd Jan when he gets back from holidays. How long did your doctor tell you to wait before exercising?

I had surgery about one year ago. I have a problem with eating sometimes. Sometimes, especially in the mornings, food seems to get stuck without going into my stomach. I must then throw up the food. After throwing up sometimes I can then eat and the food will go down. Othertimes I can eat or drink for several hours. I am not loosing weight. I have never had a fill. I have moved out of state from where I had my surgery so I have only been back to the surgeon one time. I know I need to do something. Any suggestions on what might be causing the problem?

Alright, I had a standard size band put in, but of course it's not filled at all with anything yet. I am having the strangest sensations. I have very little shoulder pain...hardly any at all. The most pain occurs when my stomach grumbles. Like the most painful hunger I could possibly feel starts to creep up on me when the pain meds wear off. My stomach grumbles really loud and it HURTS. I am only on Clear liquids, which isn't bad at all. I feel really full, but at the exact same time I feel starving!!! It's so weird. Do you have this aLL the time? My incisions are hurting of course, and namely the one over the port. OUUUUCCCHHH.

I went shopping tonight with my girls. the clerk asked for ID, I have my DL. she says this is not you in the picture". I felt so good. :tt1:

Okay I know this is a weird question, but I will ask anyways...LOL I was banded Nov 13th...so that makes me almost 4 weeks post op. On to the feeling I am having. Every morning when I get up (once the alarm goes off) while I am tossing and hitting the snooze button, I am getting this weird "squeezing" sensation. It is very hard to explain but IF you had it you would know it. It is not something that is painful or bothersome, just weird and I can't figure out for the life of me what it is. It is only happening in the morning after I have laid down through the night. Maybe it is a spasm????? I emailed the Bariatric Coordinator since she has also had the LapBand and s…

My question is this .. Is it normal to not feel like you have any restriction at times ,if you've never had a fill? I put a call into my surgeons office to see if maybe they could move my fill appt to December instead of January. I'll let you know what they say :wink_smile: .

I was banded on 12/01 & all is going well. I remember reading about almost unavoidable hair loss that will occur at some point due to the trauma of surgery & etc...I also remember reading that some people would take something called Biotin, I believe, to treat this. (I was just unable to locate where I had found this info on the site again). Could anyone enlighten me? How much Biotin should I take? How long should I expect to have to take it? Should the hair loss/thinning thing pass. I haven't experienced it yet, but would love to avoid it if possible. Thanks :biggrin:

Hi everyone. I'm a little over 2 weeks out of surgery, I started mushy food 4 days ago. I'm definatley not eating enough which I'm trying really hard to work on - but I've also had this almost constant acidy feeling in my chest (esophogus) and the back of my throat for several days now. Has anyone else experienced this? I do have GERD and am taking Prevacid every day, but it seems to have gotten worse since the surgery. I know one can become acidy from not chewing enough, but this definatley isnt the issue for me. I havent felt nauseous or anything, just acidy and uncomfortable :angry_smile:

So taday I was scheduled for my first fill and after being poked 6 times my doc quit and said I need it under Fluro and I have to wait until Friday. ARGHHHHHHHHHHHH I need a fill. Anyone else have issues the first time?:wink_smile:

Here is my question. Most of us have failed over & over on other diets. I haven't had a fill yet but I read how you are all eating so healthy. How has the band changed this for you when you were not able to do it before? Maybe I'm worried because I lost my willpower the other day and had a brownie and today a cookie. Maybe because I've been so limited on what I could eat these past couple of weeks that I'm craving everything. How do you manage it? What is giving you the willpower? Also, I feel like I am constantly eating because I can only eat a small amount at one time so I'm hungry an hour later. I have been avoiding the scale out of fear the past few day…

I have noticed for the past few weeks that while I am eating (it usually happens when I begin to clump and lasts until the pain goes away) I have been having gurgling sounds. I don't mean barely noticable, I mean people in the living room can hear them. What is this noise and why am I making it now? I have a theory, maybe it's the food that got stuck trying to spread out or make its way through, or maybe air trapped. What do ya'll think?

I was banded on 12-1-08 and My gas problems lasted only a couple days (lucky I guess) my problem is not feeling hungry but thinking hungry. Mental hunger is a problem for me. Physically i feel full after having a Protein shake which for me is very comforting. I'm thinking that its just withdrawals from a lifetime of bad habits. My attitude has been to just stay positive and wait it out until my brain realizes that this is just how it is now. Anybody else get the mental hunger? If so how do you deal with it.

I was banded on 11/13. Problem is, I have no idea where my port is. Is it under an incision? Reason I ask.... I have been having pain in my right side, when I twist or move and it is excrutiating for about 5 seconds, then goes away. When I press down there, I feel a hard lump somewhat deep down. Is that my port or do I have a hernia?

I had my 1st post-op appointment today, five days after my 12-3 banding. I had posted about how my Dr recommended only Water, and then a few SF popsicles, until this appointment. Anyway, I made it through the five days without any trouble, and with only water and a total of 3 popsicles. I am down 15 lbs since the surgery and a total of 43 lbs down since my initial consultation. I'm off to a good start and I'm excited about it. My Dr now recommends two weeks of Protein shakes for all three meals daily. I had an 8 oz chocolate shake for dinner tonight that I bought from the office and I was pleasantly surprised. It was MUCH better than the EAS AdvantEdge that I had …

Hi everyone, I'm so happy I started eating real food again today, well actually yesterday! I cheated by 1 day. yesterday I had some scrambled eggs, and mashed potatoes. Today I made homemade chili! I ate about 1 cup with some cheese and sour cream. I have a question though....what is slimming? I have heard alot about this, when you eat too much or almost get something stuck. what exactly does it feel like? just want to be prepared. I have not had any problems yet, but did have some gruggling today. thanks for any feed back :thumbup:

Ok. My fault totally. Not the band. I love my band. :cool2: I got in a hurry eating and got stuck . I did not panic as I have read that it does not good. I simply went to the bathroom and carefully concentrated on not throwing up. HOWEVER, the whole sliming process and working a bit of what was stuck up was nasty :tongue:. Took a long time to be able to get a drink in and it stay down (about 4-5 hours). I was just patient and calm and grossed out and got through it. I am not eating slowly and paying attention. All of this on mushies! Dear Lord, help me when I move to solids :sad_smile:. Anyway, the band definately has my respect and full attention now an…

Was just wondering. if you take diet pills after having the band placed, would it cause problems with the band?

Just in case any of you need a good laugh, I'll tell you the story of my first fill today.... Background: I was banded Nov. 17. Ten minutes before surgery my doctor explained how he doesn't put any fill in during surgery because of potential swelling. I'm 3 weeks out today. For the last week and a half I've been able to eat almost like I used to (no bread, no diet coke, a bit less though). So I get called back and the nutritionist puts me on the scale and asks about my eating. She says I'm doing well, puts me in an exam room and leaves. Doctor comes in, reviews my stats and says, "ok, well I put 5cc's in when I put in your band because the band was too big." I…

I was banded 2/13 and have not been able to eat anything except 1 ice pop since surgery. I have no desire to eat and I am on a clear liquid phase as per my physician. I have developed an infection at the port site as of this morning and I am on antibiotics. Did anyone experience the amount of gas I am having? I feel a constant pressure to the point of nausea and then gas soon follows. Liquids are going down fine. Anyone?

Hello, I'm one year postop for the lap band and was doing very well for the first 3-4 mos. I lost 25 lbs and was very excited and finally felt I was on the road to really becoming who I wanted to be. As my band started getting filled I have had a few minor problems such as vomiting, or getting food stuck, which required multiple trips for readjusting. Now as I'm at, I believe 8 cc's I still feel very upset because I'm not losing anymore weight, in fact, I've gained about 10 lbs! I only needed to lose about 65 lbs, and I'm not by far morbidly obese. It seems as though all my weight is in my gut! I had lost alot of weight years ago after my second child (now 21) and have…

So i am 4 weeks post op...... my food intake is cut in half and i have not lost a pound. my total weight loss is 11 lbs and i go in for my first fill tomorrow. is this normal??? Please help.

I am thank for the reply from Losing it in texas. I have tried multiple times to insert my ticker into my signature and it keeps coming up invaild file. what am i doing wrong. is there anyone out there that can help me.:wink_smile:

to see if my ticker will come up

:blush:The GREAT news is that I've lost 32 pounds since being banded on 11/5/08. I have my first fill scheduled for next Tuesday. My doc said to be eating a "normal" diet for one week prior to fill - what exactly is a "NORMAL" diet?? I've been eating tuna salad, eggs, turkey burgers, soft veggies - what I don't know is what SHOULDN'T I eat - how about a salad? I feel like I need to expand my choices, but I'm afraid to eat something full of carbs or something that will get stuck??? HELP!!!

I had an unfill, due to problems, well, today, I ate 4 small slices of pizza, a big no no. I was hungry, but, 4 slices, and I had no restriction. I didnt feel full, and I wanted more. I see my doc on Monday, I have to get the restriction back. I have to its really discouraging me, and for eating that, Im really beating myself up. Those 4 slices was like eating 2 slices of regular pizza size. Anyway. I hate it and I want my restriction back. Its like it passed right through the band. No drinking nothing, Ugggggh. Im failing and I hate it. I was doing great. Now look. Anyway, I had to rant about this. This is killing me mentally. :thumbup:

I was banded on Friday the 5th. I have done well was actually ready to go to work this morning until my daughter had a fever of 101 so i had to stay home. What I'm confused on is the sound my stomach is making. I'm forcing myself to drink and eat because I'm not feeling hungry right now but i know I need to in order to heal, but after like maybe 1-2 oz of something I get nauseated and don't want anymore. the confusing part is that my stomach is rolling like its dying of hunger and I'm not feeling anything for hunger just pain. Is this normal?:biggrin:

Hi there, I was banded on October 30th, and had complications - the tubing (to the port) snapped in TWO (can you believe it?). Well a week later I went in for emergency surgery - they fixed the tubing, and now I feel great. Except for one problem. During the week that I was in pain (between the two surgeries), I couldn't eat or drink much of anything. They had to put bags and bags of IV's in me to get me hydrated. Well going without food for so long was so tough! Now that I feel great, and I've been eating again, that's ALL I'M DOING! There's no saline in my band, so I'm eating normal foods. I'm not completely "off the wagon," (I've been trying really hard to eat healthy,…

Hi Everyone, Has anyone tried to follow the South Beach diet after WLS? This is what i've most had success with (as far as losing weight) and wasn't sure if anyone else tried this after surgery and had success. Thanks!

Hi all! I just had my first fill, but I am definately not getting full as I hoped I would be from my meals. I have a 10cc band and they put in 5cc's. I have lost 12-14 lbs right during the preop and right after surgery, but I completely stuck now (for 3 weeks). I intend to start exercising more over the coming weeks. One drawback to not being allowed to have Diet Coke, is drinking more skim milk. I know it's good for you, but still liquid calories:redface: Anybody else out there with a lower BMI take a while to really start losing well?

Hi, I was looking for anyone who has a unexplained tightness to the point of not being able to drink Water without it feeling like knives. I was wondering if this could be stress? coffee? Salt? lack of hydration (I am not very good at drinking water). The last time I had this happen I had some Fluid taken out and it worked for a few weeks. I don't want to take any more out or I won't have any in. :sad_smile: Anyone have any suggestions on making the tightness go away naturally? thanks for anyone's help. I have been banded 3 1/2 months

Hi there, I am only 4 weeks post op and feeling pretty good but have very very little restriction. I know this is normal but the weight loss has stopped and I can't get a fill for 5 weeks. I have gained and lost the same pound over and over, like a lot of us. What do I do, eat 1200 calories or what. Sorry, just venting a bit. I am happy with my 13 pounds loss but just don't want to gain until I get my fill. I do wait until I am hugry to eat but it is pretty often now.

I am 1 week post op (almost) and I gained 6 pounds in the hospital (fluids, I guess) and hadn't lost it yet. I got on the scale today, SAME 6 POUNDS. Suspicious, I got on the scale with an 11 pound cat (she was just at the vet, 11.2 pounds). The scale was stuck!!!!!! I lost the 6 and an additional 4!

Hi all... I was banded on 12/02...what a popular day. I feel great considering all I went through... was hungry coming out of surgery and for the entire next day but, now I'm fine. I've heard of Bandster Hell I guess it's when we get hungry because we haven't had our fills yet. Anyone familiar with this? How about a time frame????? is it a common occurance? Any info would be helpful!

What type of Clear liquids can I drink, besides crystal lite?

the dreading " backed up feeling":redface: I am 16 days post op.......and I am still dealing with constipation. I am on full liguids and purees. Heres the thing. I weaned myself of my natural lax... coffee....... 2 cups every morning. It is really the only thing that works for me. I hate taking ex lax, and M.O.M Will I ever be able to have coffee!! :thumbup: Keri

So I know that liquids aren't recommended about an hour before and after a meal. But what if you're having soup? Does this mean I'll never be able to have soup, like let's say chicken noodle soup, because it might just slip through the band?

I googled sample diets and it looks pretty similar to what I'm doing- despite the fact I don't have a personal trainer 7 days a week. What is their secret? How are women dropping 7- 10 lbs a week?