B-52

After my first fill, 4 weeks after surgery, I gained weight....I could still eat anything and I was hungry all the time.... I was told I needed to count calories, measure my portions, keep a food journal, etc, etc. I WAS PISSED!!!!! Very upset to say the least.. I have tried every diet under the sun, and failed, and NOW they're telling me to do the same thing as I did before? Why did I go through all that anxiety, a year of preparation, $$ out of my pocket, and major surgery placing a foreign object in my digestive tract...just so I can repeat something I knew like the back of my hand???? What a WASTE OF TIME!!!! Fortunately, I have a good Surgeon...he laughed at me....sat me down and explained the entire process, explained and showed me graphs of the Yellow-Green-Red zone, explained each one, explained how the band is adjustable and that his goal is to get me into the Green, and explained how we were going to achieve it...talked to me about the possible adverse effects such as stuck episodes and regurgitation, he took the time to explain EVERYTHING to me...even explained to me I was experiencing "Bandster Hell"....and why... And he was right...it took patience, a few fills, and some adjusting on my personal habits such as eating differently and giving up certain foods.... I'm glad he did that...after 4-5 months the band began to do it's job....a few more months for ME to adjust to the band, and I can say it has been heaven ever since....EASIEST thing I could have ever done to loose weight. That was over 2 years ago...I don't need to worry about counting calories, or portion sizes...it is a "Lifestyle" that has become 2nd nature without any thought or effort on my part....I have lost all y excess weight and body fat...I have not lost, or gained any weight in over a year...there is nothing left to loose.... I am back to enjoying things I like to eat/drink, it has CHANGED MY LIFE! It just took a little patience and trust in my Surgeon's treatment plan. I will say, I am glad I did not listen to other people, and many of their ill advise and also some failures, but stuck to my Surgeon's promises...and stayed the course with him.... If I had found this forum BEFORE surgery, and paid attention to the negativity that can come from here, I'm not sure where I would be today....

Relax...you're just starting out...it takes time to "Get into the Groove" so to speak.....took me months and a few fills...I also gained weight 6 weeks after surgery, and that was after my first fill of 4cc's. Everybody looses some weight just from the pre and post-op diets....but IMO it is not meaningful weight loss...that will come eventually...(if that is what you want)

Yo-yo'd with weight? Makes sense with a dilated pouch...able to eat more per serving....that is my warning sign, but instead of continuing I do my version of the 5 day pouch test to give it a chance to recover.... I'm surprised this person could tolerate and eat/drink beyond the pain....

I have never felt full or stuffed since being banded....as fa as feeling satisfied, for me, it is more of a lack of interest in eating, or food in general for hat matter.... I may have a meal, mainly because I know I need to, not because I'm hungry....a few bites and I just do not want to continue.... Some people only experience this while eating, between meals...I am one to experience this 24 hrs a day....I might also add that my tastes have totally changed also...food does not taste the way it used to....sme things don't have any taste at all..... The band really has changed everything.....

It's not a question of being safe...it is a question of learning how to "Listen" to your band....based upon the band's adjustment....some people, especially those just starting out, have absolutely no problem with these items... My band will not let me eat those things without difficulty, so I choose not to be bothered with the risk and avoid them all the time, along with other food items.... When you stop and think about it, the band is going restrict my intake, and let me each just so much, and very little of it...so why waste that small portion on Pasta? or Rice? What is the nutritional benefit? Why would I blow my whole meal on a single slice of pizza? Like I was taught from day one...start with the Protein first, and if the band allows you to eat more, then move on to the other things...but for me it is never pasta, rice, bread, etc....I make good food choices and eat very little of it....

I have had and met 2 goals (that I had set)...and continued to loose after each one.... What I had learned is that since this is not a diet that you can turn on or off, and if you are truly utilizing the band, then this is a new permanent lifestyle, with a whole new way of eating both in types of food and in quantity of food that becomes part of you, second nature and not a list of do's and don't s, the body will slowly and continually loose weight and then stop on it's own when it feels it has reached a point of equilibrium....not my goal, but where the body should be for a healthy normal individual........ Just as we slowly and continually gained weight and get fat by eating wrong and too much for so many years, the reverse will happen once the band takes over........ Even though I thought I was at my goal, I continued to loose weight and then settled out...I have not lost, or gained any weight in over a year, without giving it any thought or effort on my part......... My Dr. informed me at my last visit, based upon my total body fat %, that I have reached a point where there is no longer any excess weight to loose, and that my weight loss journey is complete.....if I were to loose any more weight, it would be a sign that I am loosing something other than fat, a sign I am not getting my daily Protein, and a sign that it would a unhealthy situation...a true starvation mode unlike the unrealistic one overweight people worry about. The Band truly has changed , and saved, my life.....

I agree with the "Gummy" thing...that's why I don't eat bread, among other things...but saliva alone is enough to do that. And yes, all you can - WANT to do is get it back up......... A little trick I do, when you get those types of stucks, is to drink Water...small sips warm water.....again the funnel analogy....when stuck, the water has no where to go, overflows, and it all comes up...once or twice and it will also bring up what food is causing the problem...

I experience it differently.....food will sit in my pouch for. Certin period of time...add Water and it will instantly increase the volume in my pouch , perhaps instantly double it...causes a lot of extreme pain, possibly from pouch stretching, and in most cases I will spit everything right back up. Think of a funnel with a narrow opening....whatever you put in the funnel will flow through the opening, how fast or slow depends upon the size of the opening..(restriction)... Now add water into the funnel with something already there passing through slowly....what happens...washes it through? More likely, overflow over the top of the funnel.... Of course, if you have a large opening, not in the Green Zone, then I can understand water flushing food through.....all depends upon howmnarrowmthe opening is.... I CANNOT drink while eating without adverse, and possible damaging (dilaton) side effects. But that's how it is and has been for over 2 years now with me.

Simple...people are fat because they eat too much.... Surgically, a band is placed around the upper portion of your stomach, when sufficiently adjusted, will prohibit, deprive, you from eating in excess....but you won't mind because if properly adjusted, you won't experience hunger of out of control cravings anymore either..... Weight Watchers and other diets, it is all about YOU....with the WLS, it is all about the BAND.... At least, that is my experiences....there are many people here who are not happy with their surgery....the band is adjustable and you are in control, in cooperation with your Dr., to have it work (or not work) to your liking.

I should also add, that where some people need to eat to feel satisfied, for me..I am ALWAYS satisfied...I guess the mere presence of the band, properly adjusted, must be stimulating the nerves in the vagus system all day, every day for over 2 years now..... I could go days without eating and never be hungry, not that I would want to....but I usually have to remind myself I need to eat something. I also know, if I were to get the slightest un-fill, I would probably experience hunger again.... Like the Green Zone says "Not Hungry".....period.

Being hungry after a workout is proof it is working and making a difference...you're burning calories! But don't give in and replace what you just worked at and managed to burn off.....have a recover shake to satisfy instead....with plenty of Protein.

All depends upon the band adjustment....I was not told to drink for at least 1/2 hr after eating because food can still be there....and I found that to be accurate from experience, not what I have heard.... I have, once or twice, drank large gulps of Water 30-45 minutes after eating, only to spit it up with remnants of food there....so I know in my case food does take a while to go through...I guess thats why I have good portion control and the band tells me when to stop....otherwise I could go right on eating I suppose. But I can't...the band will not let me overeat....(I've tried) so I never measure or worry about portion sizes... Also, liquids do not go right through.....depending upon how fast and how much you drink.....I have spit up straight water at times, along with pain probably from stretching the pouch, because i took some fast gulps..... I'm sitting here first thing this morning drinking my coffee, and it is going through very slowly....small sips or else...I'm always the tightest in the morning.... The band is like a funnel...if you pour water in it slow and steady it will go through slow and steady, providing there is no food there....but pour it fast and it will over flow..... That's why when drinking carbonated drinks, you have to know what you're doing, IMO.... Yesterday afternoon, the office people had a small cookout at work....I had 3 beers with no problems....did not eat a thing either....

Be Happy! Know your band is working which will only lead to success....and know this is all part of the learning curve and you just learned a big important lesson.... I would be more concerned, if after all this time, I never got stuck....as though there is no band at all and it was all a lie!

WOW...very good answers..... There is a very fine line between being too tight and not eating properly - differently than what were programmed to....the way I eat now I never could have imagined possible, yet still be healthy, fit, and full of energy..... My last fill, I went through 2 months at least of getting stuck, PB'ing, etc, sometimes several times a day....But I was determined, and I found through the school of hard knocks how to eat so as not to have problems...I also learned that there were certain foods I need to stay away from, not that I CAN'T eat them, they are just too risky so why bother....also it is interesting that the foods that are risky are foods I would be healthier if I did not eat them.....White Rice, White Bread, donuts, pizza, red meat to name a few...all things I'm better off without.... I hear stories all the time, where just because they PB'd, they think the band is at fault and get a un0fill right away...then 2 weeks later are complaining the band is not working....truth is, the band was TRYING to work, and they fought it by not changing their eating habits...the key to loosing weight....they are stubborn and want to eat like they foods and the way that made them fat in the first place.... Another thing to note, if you are getting stuck, your band is getting irritated, and perhaps swollen...continuing to eat just prolongs the irritation and you don't have a clear picture what is actually happening... It's as though you sprained your ankle, but you continue to walk on it...and then complain it gives you problems every day...you need to give it a rest... I do not judge other people's lifestyle and how they choose to live with the band, and always keep my "OPINION's" to myself, and only share what I experience and what I have learned personally......but I read stories HERE and THIS FORUM about what people are doing and the foods they are eating.....and I just have to shake my head, wish them luck...they're going to need it....

I gained weight between my first and second fill....it took a bit to get things properly adjusted...and I have been at my optimal weight for quite some time now...and no longer worry about dieting...

It's not going to do anything you didn't have before...in will not create, just restore. It will, or can get your band back to working "Optimal" as you say, but everyone's optimal is different based upon adjustments, etc.... So, IMO, do not expect anything "New" to happen, but do expect to get back to where your band was working for you "optimally"

What do you mean by "Messing Up"? and What do you think will be different because of it? What is the purpose of the Pre-op diet? All Dr.'s have different approaches to this, and you will get as many responses here on this forum...I will not say what I think, but you do need to think it through....

Very Well Said...you obviously "Get It"

When I get a fill, the first thing the Dr. does if pull all the Fluid out of my band, to measure it and check color, etc....he then replaces it with fresh saline. Well, one time when he tried to pull the saline out, he could not no matter how firmly he pulled... I had a kink in the tubing, and the more he pulled, the tighter the kink got..... Fortunately, you can see my port, AND the tubing right under my skin as clear as day, and you can easily see it kink, ...so it was easy to massage the tubing with my index finger to prevent it from collapsing while he worked the syringe....

I vote for Cardio....AND weights...but Cardio first....

People who knew me when I was fat, treat me like a superstar....for changing my life around, quite remarkably.... People I meet now for the first time, now that I am skinny and fit, well lets say my new sense of confidence positive attitude and love of life is contagious....so all my new relationships are positive. You reap what you sow.....what goes around comes around....etc, etc

You were just banded....what did you expect to be different from before you were banded? In the beginning it is as though there is no band there at all, and we are subject to the same behaviors and bad habits as we were prior. That's why the band is adjustable....it's a process...took me at least 4 months and 3 good fills....until then there is not much anyone can do but "Tough It Out" with traditional calorie counting and portion measuring, as though you were enrolled in Weight watchers or Jenny Craig....which we all know falls short of being successful...why else would we elect surgery? You are going through the toughest phase of this process....everyone has to endure it....that's why it is referred to as "Bandster Hell" I am at a point where this has become the "New Normal" if I didn't come here to this forum I would forget I was even banded...it is that easy for me....no thought or effort at all! But those first few months...they were tough...I thought I made a big mistake...I was as angry as I was frustrated as I was disappointed... I had to bear down and "White Knuckle" it....something I felt I could have done with out surgery.... However, slowly and eventually, with a few fills/adjustments, and many hard lessons to learn and habits to overcome, it became, as someone had said in another post "HEAVEN"...absolutely the best thing I could have ever done...to be at a normal weight with no effort, have excellent health, self esteem and confidence.... But you have to endure this Phase 2 first. I should also add....after 4 months, it was not as though a switch was magically turned on...it took me another 2-3 months of constant stuck episodes, severe reflux, etc, before I finally figured it all out, before I finally "Got It" That was over 2 years ago, no problems or complaints ever since....

I sympathize with your dilemma.....it's just that whenever I read anything, from anybody, and they tell other people definitive statements such as "The sweet Spot Doest not even exist" or "It is not even a tool"...I cannot sit idly by...because I, and other people DO experience those things. If you, and other people say "For Me, the sweet spot does not exist"...that is understandable..... Because "For Me'..I have been happily and blissfully in the "Sweet Spot" for 2 years now....so it does exist..perhaps just not for everybody. It's not you, people do it here all the time, telling other people things that are simply not true....may be true for them based on their experience, but to tell other people...well that's just wrong. Again, sorry for your troubles....does not mean everyone has, or will have, the same experience...that's all. Even though the band has been nothing but "perfect" for me...I still tell people considering this surgery that "It is not for everybody" and it is NOT for everybody....

Sorry..but if you come down to the Jersey Shore...you'll find me on the beach!

Not going to tell anyone else their business, but what you went through is the same I went through....My Dr. told me to wait it out also, with liquids...it too 2 full weeks before I could start eating again...but I'm glad I did wait it out...things did gradually did get better, but never the same....it made that big a difference....that was over 2 years ago...never had fluid taken out, never needed another fill..... I thought to myself I knew I needed a fill when I walked into his office...if I had gone back so quickly and had it removed, where would I have been then? Right back where I started? I was determined to change, and that is what happened. Again, I am not recommending. Just saying the way it happened for me.