Scoobie

I have a raw food cookbook and everything I've tried from it has been delicious. Takes a little more pre planning etc but I did enjoy the foods I did try.

Sorry Bluemoon, I didn't intend to hijack your thread

Sorry Bluemoon, I didn't intend to hijack your thread

Oh and the size of my meal, well volume wise anywhere from 1 1/2 - 2 cups. 4-5 ozs meat/fish etc. I could eat more, but have no desire to gain back what I've lost so I'm stuck doing a strict diet.

I'm getting an average of 20 grams protien per meal and choose higher Protein Snacks (turkey pepperoni, cheese strings, cottage cheese, natural almonds etc). I track all calories consumed as well as protein etc. Track all exercise, wear a heartrate monitor when exercising to see carlories burned as well.

I'm sort of in the same boat as you. I have 9.5 cc's in a 10 cc band. I know I'm not at my sweetspot yet because I get hungry 1.5-2 hrs after eating. I eat Protein rich foods and follow the guidelines. I had a fill 12 days ago and I do at times, have some minor issues (need to chew more etc), but I am generally not satisfied after eating. I feel like a whiner posting this again, because I've already complained about how I feel (sorry guys ) in an earlier post. I'm just amazed with this much fill that I'm not there yet.....

I'm sort of in the same boat as you. I have 9.5 cc's in a 10 cc band. I know I'm not at my sweetspot yet because I get hungry 1.5-2 hrs after eating. I eat Protein rich foods and follow the guidelines. I had a fill 12 days ago and I do at times, have some minor issues (need to chew more etc), but I am generally not satisfied after eating. I feel like a whiner posting this again, because I've already complained about how I feel (sorry guys ) in an earlier post. I'm just amazed with this much fill that I'm not there yet.....

I've had 2 fills and for me I wouldn't say they hurt, I could feel the needle going in for sure. And the 2nd fill the port was/is sort of on it's side and the nurse took 2-3 tries at it. That was a little uncomfortable, but still wasn't horrible.

I've had 2 fills and for me I wouldn't say they hurt, I could feel the needle going in for sure. And the 2nd fill the port was/is sort of on it's side and the nurse took 2-3 tries at it. That was a little uncomfortable, but still wasn't horrible.

You're doing really great. I had surgery dec 3/10 and have lost 26 lbs, which includes 10 lbs pre op diet. So you are moving at a good pace in my opinion

good luck!

I've been having things like lean turkey pepperoni, cheese strings, laughing cow cheese triangles, bell pepper strips, cucumber rounds ( sometimes topped with a little feta cheese).

Thanks happiness, I agree. This isn't something that has been tried yet. When they let me do my next fill in 4 wks I'm going to ask for that to be done.

No she doesn't take it out to check the amount. I will definitely ask her to do that, very good idea! The port is definitely easy to find, but it is flipped on it's side it seems.

Your success gives me hope. Thanks so much for the encouragement and advice, I soooo need it right now.

Hi

thx for reading and replying

hmmm, I hope the nurse is hitting the port. This last time she did take 3 attempts at it because it seems to be flipped in it's side a bit, but then she said "yes, ok there we go" so I'm assuming she got it. I sure hope so.

I don't have a Realize or Lap brand. Mine was done in Canada, I'm not 100% sure the brand off hand, but I'm

positive it isn't either of those.

What do you mean by buckled? I haven't seen that term before?

I think Im doing really well with my eating and the

nutritionist says I'm doing great with my food choices. I talk to him once a month and share a weeks worth of a food diary with him. Being diligent about my protien and keeping my carbs to a minimum. Staying away from sliders for sure (even though I want to eat everything in sight including my own arm at this point ). The nagging hunger is what gets to me most. I feel like the "old" me again, thinking about food 24/7 because my tummy is always growling and I start

feeling ravenous.

I'm glad you reached your sweet spot!! That's awesome. You know how I feel, thanks so much for responding

I'm trying to stay positive.... I mean I'm really TRYING hard to stay positive, but it is so hard. So now I'm up to 9.5 cc's and no restriction. I'm really hungry, in fact I feel as if there is no band. I can eat anything, no issues. I am finding it increasingly difficult to not eat myself into an oblivion. So far it's calorie counting, and battling that constant, nagging hunger, the last thing I want is to regain any of the weight that I have lost. My biggest fear is never getting that restriction. I have to wait another month until I get another fill, and quite frankly I'm running out of room in my band. I'm feeling overwhelmed by feelings of failure and that maybe I'm that person who this will not work for. Most of the time I try not to think like that, but since this last fill not changing anything, it's getting harder and harder to feel good about this process. Anyone else out there been through this?

Huge kudos to you! I bet it is a phenomenal feeling. Wow, wow, wow.... 130 lbs. Good for you, love reading posts like this. Good luck going forward

Would be nice to hit the fast forward button and be where we want to be, wouldn't it

You are doing really well! I'm nearing my 2 month anniversary on February 3rd and to date have lost 12 since surgery for a total of 21 pounds (9 lbs lost on pre op diet). So you are doing great. I soooo know how you feel about clothes not feeling looser, me either. Cannot wait for that. Wishing you continued success.

oh and good luck with the fill.

Thanks for the reality check. No doubt about it, being newly banded opens up a lot of questions, and for me, HUGE fear of failure. It is such a learning curve and it can be hard to trust in the process. So much to learn, so much to take in. And I say this after researching 3+ years before getting the procedure. It's like actually living it is a whole different thing. Thanks for posting this - invaluable.

Oh wow!!! Pat yourself on the back, that is super exciting

i've got I pair of jeans I'm dying to get back into as well -- I will be over the moon when that happens.

Good luck on your first day, knock 'em dead

Oh wow!!! Pat yourself on the back, that is super exciting

i've got I pair of jeans I'm dying to get back into as well -- I will be over the moon when that happens.

Good luck on your first day, knock 'em dead

It's already been suggested a few times but I LOVE myfitnesspal. It's excellent

Hi Pixistix

thanks for the feedback. I got the 6 cc's figure from the nutritionist when we spoke the first time, he pulled out my file and got the number from there. So I'm assuming that is correct, but maybe I should contact the clinic to confirm? When I went for the fill, the nurse said the requisition said to give me a 2 cc fill. So that's where I got the 8 in total. Wonder if this is correct.

I'm eating more than 1/2 cup. My surgeon suggests 1 cup total per meal with the emphasis on protien. I would say for the *most* part I adhere to this guideline. I haven't gone nuts, I'm actually really proud of how well I've held it all together despite having the nagging hunger/growling stomach. Just counting calories currently, really being mindful so I don't gain. Looking for some help from the band now

I do try to drink Water all day, but I could be upping that for sure. Haven't been drinking protien shakes since my "full fluids" stage post op. The clinic wants us to use them sparingly.

Again, thanks for taking the time to respond -- much appreciated. I am going to keep plugging along and do my damndest not to get discouraged.

Wow! 6cc at surgery? I think you're the first person I've ever heard of whose doc put that much in at surgery!

At any rate, hang in there. When I had my fills I never felt anything for about 2 weeks. Then *wham*, one morning I'd wake up tight and have to be super careful in my chewing. It would ease up again in a few days but still noticeably tighter.

As someone else said, at this point, even the tiniest fill (even .1cc) might take you from hunger to the sweet spot. Don't give up yet

thx so much for the encouragement, I need to hear experiences like this to know this has happened to other people too (not feeling restriction after fills). I know .... The 6 cc's at surgery worries me, only in that now that I've had a 2 cc fill I'm already nearing the bands capacity. I feel weird that I already have so much in my band and don't feel much difference, if any at all. I hope another small fill might do the trick or better yet I will start feeling some restriction in a week or two ( fingers and toes crossed). I will feel pretty defeated if I reach my max and that's it .... No restriction whatsoever. Trying to stay the course and be positive.

.

The difference between restriction and not-restriction can be a very small amount of saline, but the difference is night and day.

Another thing to consider is that, for some inexplicable reason, a fill can actually take a couple of weeks to "kick in." I have no idea why, but I have experienced it first hand.

Both before and after restriction, I have found that focusing on nutrition and activity is most productive for me. Exercise helps my mood and motivation to eat well (oh yeah, and I guess it's also pretty good for you). And now that I can't

eat nearly as much, it's really important to get my nutrition in.

A nutritious snack mid-morning and mid-afternoon really helps me. I'm not starving at meal time, so I make better choices and don't eat too fast and run into trouble (now that I have good restriction). If I go to the gym in the evening

and am hungry before bed, sometimes I'll have a Protein shake.

Good luck on your journey -- and hang in there. It will

work!

thank you for the feedback. I am in this for the long haul but I guess my worries are getting the best of me. I hope I just need a couple weeks maybe, like you suggested. Here's hoping. Trying to be patient, when I start getting hunger pangs after and in between my three healthy meals and two healthy Snacks I get discouraged, it starts feeling like the "old me". I don't want that life anymore.

Thanks for the words of encouragement, it does help to read it