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What a horrible way to respond to someone who is scared. One day you might need some compassion. I hope you get it when you need it and remember how helpful a compassionate response can be.

Well congrats on the surgery and sorry that your doc isnt the best. 1. My doc says no Protein shakes/drinks AT all. Do you agree? ( because i don't at all, nor does anyone i talked with ) I was on protein shakes made with Water then milk, Jello, broths, water for 2 weeks after surgery with a goal of getting 60 grams of protein. I must admit toward the end of the 2 weeks I started with some yogurt, smooth Soups, cottage cheese. 2. Two weeks of broth & juice ( no milk,..ect ) 3.Do you have the stitches removed or do they dissolve? I had the super glue to close me up. No issues. Could take a shower 1 day after surgery. 4. Should i be taking any Vitamins or something? I'm getting at most 500 cals a day. I was told not to start vitamins until 2 weeks after surgery. LIke the above poster, must be chewable or liquid. 5. What did you eat the first week, second week & then finally at a month? See above for first 2 weeks, week 3 added soft Proteins like eggs, cheese, sliced lunch meat, tuna, Beans. Week 4 could add regular protein like nuts, chicken breast or steak (small bites and chew very, very carefully these are notorious for ) 2 months after surgery we can add carbs. Not because our stomachs cant take it, just because they want us to focus on protein. 6. Can you take Gas EX? Yes...My doctor also said I could start taking my other meds 1 day after surgery but to take 1 at a time with plenty of water. Any big pills had to be split or crushed (ask pharmacist or doctor before crushing cause some pills cant be) Good luck on this exciting journey!

1. for how long? the first day and a half i pretty much stuck to small sips of Water and that was fine. but you should listen to your doc. your tummy is swollen and hurt-y and he probs knows what's best. 2. broth/juice/protein shakes.. yep. i wasnt to have milk either, although i've seen that some people drink it and are just fine. 3. i had to have some stitches removed because they started poking out about a month after surgery and it scared the poop out of me. but the nurse told me that sometimes they dissolve and sometimes they dont. having them removed didn't hurt at all. 4. chewable multi-Vitamins are the way to go. i try to have 3 a day along with natural supplements my hippie doctor gives me to take. i wouldnt recommend swallowing pills until a month or so out. (of course check with your docs office about that) 5. the first two weeks SUCK. all liquids. everything liquid. Soup is great. i got a hand blender and used it for lentil soup. and i added water to thin out split pea soup and that was great. i was told tomato soup would be too acidic and hurt my tummy, so i stayed away. start of 3rd week i finally was on mushies.... lowfat cottage cheese is awesome and not as bad for you as eating a lot of mashed potatoes. mashed cauliflower (after cooked) is good... anything mushy. scrambled eggs are good. there are threads on here with lots of mushy ideas. i took advantage of of my slow-cooker during my mushies phase. and after a month (i'm at a month and a half) i can pretty much eat whatever. dry chicken breast is basically off the table for me, as is any meat that's too dry. if you take little bites, getting things stuck is really not nearly as much of a nightmare as you might think it will be. everyone is different! you will find what works for you through trial and error. i've found i don't lose weight if i do carbs so i try to stick with things high in Protein, veggies and some fruit. add lowfat cheeses to things for extra protein. 6. take gas-x! it totally helps. they say the chewable is better than the strips. it has more... gassy...fighting...power... or something. this was a long response. anyway. good luck! it gets infinitely easier once the pain is gone and a couple weeks have passed. oh! duh. also. yes. my surgeon was and still is basically invisible. he didnt show his face before OR after the procedure and i still, a month and a half later, havent really talked to him. this, i hear, is pretty common. especially amongst highly sought after surgeons. Mine has a couple offices here in southern california (los Angeles area) and is always busy. but his staff is great and if/when i have questions i call them and they always get back to me right away, tho not the actual surgeon himself... hope that this ends up being the case with you. ok, really. i'm done now.

it sounds like you may have been too young to have this surgery. I hope you have your own income so you can take charge of your own food. That would really help. Also, maybe find an exercise partner. There are lots of activities you can do to stay active that don't cost anything. Maybe take on the attitude "I'll show YOU"! if mom continues to not be on board!

This is the bottom line. Your body NEEDS fuel, and when you starve it, you are pulling from ALL your stores, not just your fat stores. If your ultimate goal is health and a long life, you should work to conserve (or better yet, build) muscle and bone.

Jacqui is absolutely right. The human body simply isn't made to sustain itself on so few calories. It can survive for a while - while consuming muscle, thinning out bone (pulling calcium), and sure - burning fat, but muscle is so much more desirable when a body is starving. 1-2 cups of food (depending on the food) per meal is a reasonable meal. 1 cup of chili may be more than sufficient for a meal, but 3/4 c of vegetable Soup and 1.25 cups of salad may be more appropriate for another meal. If I only ate 1.5 cups of food a day ... well, I'd be skinny all right. And committed for therapy. If a 'healthy' person eats that little they're called anorexic. Even more so if they exercise regularly. Unless you're eating 1.5 cups of animal fat = 2,773 calories. 1.5 cups of vegetable oil = 2,890 calories. 1.5 cups of nuts = 1,422 calories. Then 1.5 cups of any other foods will fall well below 1,000 calories and 1,000 calories is the general set point for a moderately active person and putting the body into voluntary starvation.

This half cup thing is a ridiculous myth. If you were truly eating 1/2 a cup and eating nutritious, low fat food, including vegetables, then you'd be eating about 300 calories a day. If all you can eat is 1/2 cup, you'll need to eat more than 3 times a day or you'll be rather malnourished in a few months time.

I am post op 1 year and 1 day. I could eat way more than 1/2 cup up until 2 months ago (4th fill - 5.6cc). Now I am lucky if I get 1 cup in at a meal (which is what my dr's recommendations are. ) 1/2 cup is not much food. All dr's have different guidelines. But until you are at proper restriction you are probably going to be able to (and want/need to) eat more than that. I was eating 1 1/2 - 2 cups of food until i reached my "sweet spot" Make good choices and you'll do fine. Make sure you are honest with your dr when you go for fills, let him know if you are hungry or eating more than he suggests. That will help him adjust your band properly. Good Luck To You!!!

I have said this on another thread but apparently the band is different for everyone because for me... IT IS ALL ABOUT RESTRICTION!! I used to be able to eat a ton of food and appetite wasnt the reason for it...now I can barely eat a cup of almost anything... so I lose weight! I dont diet, I dont ever eat low fat or low sugar foods, I dont work out but I consistently lose weight because I eat less due to restriction. OK, yes, if I ate ice cream all day (it slides right thru the band I guess) I could probably gain 100 pounds but with regular food I just cant eat as much. When my fill is right I lose about a pound a week. I have had two very long plateaus (one was 8 months and the other 2 or 3 months) because I needed a fill and couldnt seem to get down to LA (5hours of hellacious traffic) to do it...no big deal, its not a race. I was bursting the seams of a size 18 and now I wear a Gap or Calvin Klein size 10 consistently. Got a fill a week and a half ago and have already lost three pounds...I got a fill doc closer to home...good luck to all.

200 lbs gone in 2 years. No, the band doesn't work. I work the band.