bamakaren

Went to the local stock car races with hubby and friends. Of course i don't drink beer, but tried one of the Mike's Lemonades - holy smokes - only drank about 1/3 of it - had gas like i've never had gas before and it hurt like crazy. Stomach swelled and i played a musical symphony for hubby all the way home. The was the first carbonation i've had since i was banded and will definitely be the last.

i have problems with lettuce, grapes, and watermelon, however i can eat raw spinach and cantelope.

Toddy - agree 100% with you. I hit my green zone with my fourth fill also. 7.5cc in a 10cc band. it's only been two weeks and i too have wondered if i'm a little too restricted, but am so excited that i actually have restriction and the band is helping me that i wouldn't dare take any out. for the past few days i've been really concentrating on the small small bites and eating very slowly and it's been working great. i lost 2 pounds the first week and another 2 pounds this week so i'm very excited. 1-2 pounds a week means i will be at the weight the doctor's want me to be by Christmas - woohoo.

I get stuck quite a bit but i use it as a reminder to slow down and take much smaller bites. I basically cut any meat up into baby size bits and i put my fork down between bites. This makes me slow down and then i don't have quite the same number of stuck episodes. However there are some foods that stick no matter what i do - like lettuce. Being a rabbit at heart this is very upsetting to me - i luv luv luv salad and since my last fill just can't seem to find anyway that i can eat it comfortably. Oh well that's a small price to pay. I've been dropping 2 pounds a week and i'm very happy with that so i'll be glad to sacrifice the salad.

For those who "think" they have restriction believe me when you finally hit that green zone you will "know' you have restriction. I kept thinking "this is it" everytime i had a fill and then just kept on eating almost the same way. When i had my last fill and finally really did have restriction i knew it - there was absolutely no doubt about it. Keep getting your fills and you will absolutely have no doubt when it happens. It took me a long time and am soo glad it has finally happened.

I have a doctor that is very conservative. I wasn't filled for the first time until 4 months after my surgery. That's why it's taken this long to get 4th fill. Im just so very happy that it is finally working. I was so frustrated and a little depressed about it, now i'm feeling strong and ready to finish this thing

I was banded in Feb 2011 and have struggled since. It's been a long year and half and i've only lost 25 pounds and that was mostly in the first couple months. Well i finally got my 4th fill last Monday - i'm up to 8.5cc in a 10cc band. Woohoo - I finally have restriction. It is so awesome - i've lost 3 pounds in 4 days. I've gotten "stuck" several times because i'm used to eating faster. I've had "pb" for the first time ever because i eat too fast and too big of bites. this is awesome. I'm eating such small portions and get full and stay full and it is so wonderful. I actually know that this is going to work now. Ive hit the sweet spot and it feels wonderful. For those of you frustrated like i was - keep getting those fills when you hit that sweet spot you will definitely know it.

Finally finally i have found restriction at 8.5cc. This is awesome - now i know what everyone has been talking about when they said you will know it when you hit your sweet spot.

Well its good to hear y'all are doing pretty good. I have done absolutely terrible. My doctor is very conservative so i haven't had any restrictions, only two fills up until last week and had gained back 8 pounds of the amount i had lost. Went in for another fill last week and FINALLY i think we have got restrictions. It's absolutely amazing how different this feels. this is what i thought it would be like wheni had the surgery and it took 8 months to get me there. Oh well, no sense crying over spilled milk - i think i'm now on track from some decent weight loss. I've started walking again and hopefully the weight will start dropping.

That is so awesome - Way to GO!!! I am so excited to hear of all of you who have done this with no fills. I have a very very conservative doctor. I was banded on 2/7/11 and he won't even see me again until the middle of May and then will determine whether i need a fill or not. I have been very very worried about that, but now see that it is possible to lose without a fill. Thanks so much for sharing - i feel much more confident now.

I gained a 3 pounds back when i went on mushies, however come to find out it was because i wasnt eating enough calories. Everyone on the forum told me i was starving myself because calories were around 700-800. Once i increased calories to appr 1100 per day the weight started dropping off. I'm now losing 2-3 pounds a week and don't feel like i'm dieting. Don't worry about not feeling full - there will come a time when you eat to your limit and you will definitely "know" that you have. It took 2 times for me to figure out that moment when i shouldn't have another bite. Now it's easy i make my small plate, eat and stop when i hit that moment. Then i'm not hungry for the next 4 hrs or so. I've only been at this for almost 6 weeks and already have myself and my diet on a routine and i love it. Good luck!!!

I was banded on 2/7l/11. I haven't had any fills yet and not sure about restriction. I just absolutely know when should not swallow one more teeny tiny bit of food ha ha. So far the only things i "cant" eat is macaroni and cheese, and grapes. Very very painful. Now i'm afraid to try any other pasta and that's one of my favorite foods. I had 1 fried ravioli last night and it went down very easy - maybe because it was crispier - not sure. I'm not having any trouble with bread and i can eat think crispy pizza ok.

I keep lookin gover there but i notice there isn't much traffic so i've just stayed on this one.

Congratulations - i'm so happy for you. That's even better than seeing it on the scale. You Go GIRL!!!!

That is absolutely fabulous. I'm not supposed to go back to my PCM until 6 months post surgery. I'm hoping i can get off mine then too. Love love love being banded.

When i dine out with hubby we split a dinner and share the salad. It's great, we just decide together what we want and ask them to bring an extra small plate. When dinner comes i take off the plate what i want. It's wonderful and talk about saving money. Hubby is excited too, not only about the money but he's eating less, feeling better, and losing some weight also. Totally win win for both of us.

Banded 2/7/11. I have lost 15 pounds since then. Hope I can continue to lose 1-2 pounds a week. My doctor won't see me again until 5/18/11 to decide if i even need a fill the. I think i have a very very conservative doctor and it worries me.

I take 2 benefibers in the morning and 2 in the evening. I'm now nice and regular. It took me a couple weeks to get a good balance.

Had the same exact thing happen to me. First off - make sure you're giving your body time to heal. Secondly - i started watching my calories at week 3. Before that I was only getting 700-800 calories a day - that's when i was gaining. I've now found that if i stay at appr 1100 calories a day i'm having a steady loss of 2-3 pounds per week. Also start walking - i starting walking at week 3, it helps you feel better and keeps the weight coming off too. Give you self a break - you're doing great. Keep it up.

Benefiber tablets baby. I chew 3 a day, they taste great and keep me regular. I was miserable before someone turned me onto them.

Agree for sure. I'm 3 weeks post banding. Was so frustrated the first couple weeks because I lost initially then gained a couple back when i started mushies but now i'm back on track. I wasn't exercising and my calories were always below 900. Now i keep my calories around 1100 and exercise. The key is definitely the exercising. And it doesn't have to be much - a 30 minute walk everyday has me losing. It's awesome. I'm down 14 pounds now and feel like there is no stopping me. My doctor also cleared me for the stationary bike and treadmill but no weights until 8 weeks out.

Anybody who has a name about chocolate is a ok in my book. Thanks for all the insight you provided. It's a little overwhelming to think that your life has changed FOREVER because of this band. It's great to hear how you're maintaining "normal" eating habits. Glad to know I should be able to do this with portion control and smart choices. My husband is very supportive and would like to loose a little too, so we're talking about going the share dinner route. I figure if i eat 1/4 off of his meal when we go out that should be more than enough for me and him. We all know how those restaurant portions are made for 4 people. I'm so excited to be on this journey and it's great to hear from the pros. Thanks for sharing. Every little bit of encouragement just makes me that much stronger.

Thanks for the info. I do need to start exercising and haven't yet. I will do that tonight and hopefully it will get better. I never thought about the starvation mode but i'm sure you're right. Going from 2500> calories a day down to under 1000 must feel ridiculous to my body. I wish i could keep off the scale everyday and just get on once a week but i just cant. I think i'll just track my weight on a graph or something once a week - maybe that will show more of a steady decline. I'll get on the exercise tonight. I haven't been snacking but i do have a Protein shake mid morning and mid afternoon. It not i would never be able to get that protein in. I'm only eating about 4-5 ozs of food a meal so it's hard right now. I'm supposed to be at 3/4 cup (6 ozs) but i'm afraid of getting that too full feeling of pain. I haven't quite got the gest of this "full" feeling and knowing when to stop eating yet. I think next week i get to move up to 1 cup/8 oz so maybe that will help cut out the Protein shakes too. I make sure that i don't have anything to eat after dinner which is so not like me . I appreciate the help - this is hard to figure out and being able to come on hear and get feedback from people who've been there sure does help. Thanks so much