Syrah

I was worried about this for the soft / mushy stage, which I'm in. For this stage, I've used sugar free puddings mixed with a tablespoon or two of Protein powder. Sugar free Jello is also handy to throw in your bag if you are headed out the door to work or something. I also bought some very small containers and filled them pureed tuna + mayo + relish, and I have them at work in the fridge. Last but not least, low-fat Laughing Cow cheese wedges. They are only 35 calories and 2.5 G protein per wedge.

So what are the chances of never PBing? LOL! That's my goal!

(Btw, editing this post because I think I found the answer in the forums. Seems people have suggested drinking a total of 64 oz of liquids each day. That roughly equates to 1/2 c per hour for a 16 hour day... which is a whole lot of liquids. I would however still appreciate a response from someone on this. I'm soo afraid of doing something and hurting my band and/or stomach!) Onlyme, my doctor's office told me to drink 64 oz per day. That can include stuff like Protein shakes but they want most of it to be Fluid that has no calories or caffeine. That said, I was never on a liquid diet, per se. I went right to mushies from the hospital. I don't think you need to worry about drinking too much. As long as you sip vs. chug, you shouldn't overfill and stretch your pouch.

Copywronger, I felt that way for about the first week. It was a struggle to get much in. At this point, don't worry so much about calories. You are healing. Just get as much Water in as you can, as well as your Vitamins, until you can start to ingest some other things. That's what I was told anyway. Also, I found it difficult to get much down before about 11 am. I'm 2 weeks out and just starting to feel mild hunger at appropriate times. Listen to your body!

How can there not be restriction? Even unfilled, the band has essentially created a small stomach pouch with a narrow opening (into the larger stomach) that is about 1 3/4ths inch in diameter. I keep reading this here (that there is no restriction) but my surgeon told me that there is some restriction and that I will not feel as hungry as usual, partly b/c the band puts pressure on the sensors that cause hunger. He also said many of his patients lose 15 lbs or so between surgery and 1st fill (and this particular clinic does not do the clear liquid diet - you go straight to mushies from the hospital bed, after they know for sure that you are OK. Hey, maybe THAT is why there is not much hunger....). I have to say, I think he was right as far as the hunger goes. I have some appetite, but not much, and it is taken care of with very little food (lol). I hope this continues.

I printed that list and it was helpful. I did not need to use the toilet tongs though, lol! Guess I have a couple of spare cooking utensils now! The heating pad is a big thing. If you need to return to work early or travel anywhere, get some of those disposable wrap heating pads. Get a Magic Bullet blender. I use it several times a day. Best $60 I spent.

I have found a good option that is fairly tasty. I use 1 cup fat free skim milk, 1 scoop chocolate Unjury protein powder, 1/2 scoop chocolate Slim Fast powder, and mix it in the Magic Bullet. This comes to 20 grams of protein for 190 calories.

I am terrified to eat something like goldfish. My physician's asst. told me (pre op) that if you eat too many carbs, they can ball up and get gummy, and have trouble going through the passage. I don't think that's true but for my own good, I am going to hang onto that fear.

I dressed in a gown and paper booties the second I got there (no undies), and was put into a comfy recliner where they started an IV and gave me some heated blankets. I sat in that room with my husband and relaxed for a bit. They prepped me for surgery there as much as they could (started an IV, asked questions, made me drink something nasty) then they got me up and I walked into the OR and stepped up onto the table with a footstool. The OR table was a small but thankfully heated bed. They finished whatever they needed to do in terms of prep (with my gown on) and then put something in my IV to zone me out. Then everything else (including catheter insertion) was done after I was completely out. Everyone was very respectful and kind. I felt like I was treated with a lot of dignity. When I woke up, I had been re-dressed. My surgeon does all kinds of surgeries, not just lap band. They have seen it all / done it all. The good, the bad and the ugly. LOL. One thing that I hated was when they put the mask over my face with anesthesia in it. I could barely speak by then but I turned my head and managed to say, "clausterphobic." LOL. Then they just held it above my mouth until I went out / could tolerate the sealed mask over my mouth.

That is concerning that he would intentionally put a very small band on you, Vanaz. As my surgeon said, he avoids the really small band because he can always restrict the band but he can't make it looser. Let us know how things turn out for you, and good luck.

You probably do crave it because of that, Gummie. How far out from banding are you? I think once I get into more mushies and soft foods / solids (I'm about 9 days post banding), I can break free of so much sugar and sugar substitutes. I use a lot of Protein shakes, sugar-free puddings and jellos, etc. Frankly I am sick of sweet stuff. Once I can eat more "normally," I feel like I can get away from sweety stuff. I had dinner with my family for Easter. I ate watered down mashed potatoes. The things I craved most were dill pickles and bread! LOL.

I admire people who can lose quickly, but I am not a big proponent of super fast weight loss, partly because I know that I am a fairly slow loser. I don't want to set myself up for disappointment. I will be perfectly happy to lose at a slow but steady rate. Don't expect miracles, and don't compare yourself to other people contantly. We are all different. I was banded about 9 days ago and I know that I am down by at least 6 lbs right now (and, I just got my period PLUS I still have IV fluids retained in my fat cells, according to my surgeon). But I am not even going to buy a scale for another month or so. Good luck to you!

I had french onion soup at dinner last night (restaurant), as a matter of fact! I scooped out the soup and the crotons and the rest was pretty much broth.

Yes WABB, I see that now. Hence the apology. I forgot about unjury. I think Unjury is gross. It reminds me of baby formula. I told my surgeon that and he told me that he liked and recommended Isopure. LOL!

Speaking of this, how on earth does one get protein during the clear liquid stage?

I've told everyone. I don't care. I can be pretty mouthy and if people give me a hard time about it, I will have a comeback in my back pocket. If people want to judge me for making a decision that will improve my health, I'm happy to let them. That said, I did not tell my coworkers, because I had the surgery with just 2 weeks of work left (my last day is this Friday) and I was sure they would complain and urge me to wait (since we are constantly swamped). My motive was purely selfish: I am becoming self employed and I wanted the safety net of really good life & disability insurance covered "just in case."

Sorry WABB - I was responding to this (see quote below) but I must have misunderstood. I didn't realize you were referring only to the clear liquid stage but that makes sense. One thing that is bad is that it is nearly impossible to find Protein shakes (once you move to the liquid stage) that have zero sugar. I personally never had the "clear liquids only" stage, so I can't imagine how hard it is. I was on applesauce by the time I got out of the hospital.

You will probably be fine. I was banded on a Thursday and went back Monday. I was movin' slowly, but I made it through the day. (That said, I was lucky to recover amazingly fast - faster than most patients my doctor had seen, he said.) Plan to rest up on Monday night. But also plan for the possibility of calling in sick on Monday morning if you need to. Just planning for that mentally will take a load off your mind. There is no need to push yourself to the edge if you simply aren't up to it.

Are you eating and drinking v e r y slowly? If not, be sure you are. That could really help.

The nice thing about the band is that you can eat normal foods, at some point. You just can't eat much. That's one reason I chose the band. I want to eat normal foods, like a thin person. I just don't want the ability to overeat. (In fact, I really need to under-eat to lose weight -- another reason I favored the band.) Yes, you need to focus on Protein and produce first and foremost. But that's not a constant, hard-and-fast rule, and you can go outside those borders on occasion. I know that Wasabubblebutt will disagree with me, but I really don't think it's necessary to cut out all sugar, completely and forever. I have heard more than one dietician will say that that kind of extreme restriction will make you feel deprived and can easily get you into the same kind of trouble that led to your overeating habits. Think of it this way: By this time next year, when you are on regular food, you will probably be satisfied with two small chocolate easter candies (vs. half a bag - or however you may have eaten - in your past life). During my pre-op education experience, I spent a day at an educational seminar with a dietician. I mentioned that someone I knew had eaten chocolates on the holidays after being banded. I called it "cheating." She stopped me right there and said, "There is no cheating. You can have all foods. Yes, you have to make the best choices consistently, but if you plan to NEVER indulge, you can be setting yourself up for problems." I also think that once you get away from sweets and junk, you will not be as enticed. I am 1 week, 3 days past banding and there is Easter candy everywhere. It is not calling my name like it did in the past. (Of course, I barely have an appetite.) Right now my biggest struggle is not being able to have full-caffeine coffee. Wah! Good luck!

I have heard of people who got thru the process very quickly. In my own case, I was not 100 percent sure I wanted to do it, plus I had a ton of things going on in my personal life (got a new job, got yet a new and different job offer, wanted the surgery to be done before I made yet another job change, etc.). So in my case, my first appt. was June 2006 and I was banded March 2007. In between, I had the MMPI test, an upper GI, an EKG and a lung Xray, then surgery. But I've heard of people getting it all done within 2-3 mos. Good luck!

Sorrry, off topic: Wasabubblebutt -- WOW! That's a lot of weight to lose in a short time! Did you do anything out of the ordinary to lose it? Impressive.

I said this before, but healing from the band is a bit like the first day or two after you have the stomach flu. You are not that "into" food or drink and you don't crave stuff you used to crave (at least I don't - been banded for 1 week, 2 days). I used to drink 2-3 diet cokes a day and I haven't missed them at all. I really thought it would kill me. Call me crazy but now, Water sounds better. And I think I am fairly prone to addiction. But you said 10-12 diet cokes? Have you tried to cut back? Cut back by one per day and see how that goes. Even if you can get to 5-6 per day, for now, that would be a big improvement. I haven't read the links posted by Jack, but I am not willing to drink carbonated stuff routinely, if it means a possible threat to my band. When and if I get the urge, I will try to let it get flat before I drink it. Good luck.

The dietician I saw for my pre-op session was not a big fan of frozen meals, but I admit to using them constantly for lunches at work. Not now, but before I had surgery. They did not cause me to gain weight -- I had been at the same weight for about 5 years prior to surgery. Pay attention to fat and salt. there are some Weight Watchers and South Beach Diet meals that are not too bad for you - particularly the ones that include a chicken or turkey entree + veggies. There is a WW one that is turkey + green beans and I think it only has about 200 calories. I can tell you that I would become hungry not long after eating it, but if you eat it after you are banded (and I mean after you are through the healing / liquid / mushie etc. stages), I'm sure it would fill you up.

Good thing you were checked out. I have a mild kidney problem and it causes hypertension. Kidneys are nothing to mess with! Take care of yourself and cut back on your work hours, if you can.