AVDavey

I think Julia N nailed it, from a sideways point of view. People who think they can get the lap band and not change anything at all are going to be sorely disappointed. The lap-band is a tool. It's kind of like saying, "I've got a hammer now, why isn't my house built?" In my case, I spoke with my doctor about my concerns with the slower pace of weight loss than I wanted. I, like Julia, have increased my Protein intake and combined it with the aforementioned aggressive fill. I'm starting to see weight loss again. The lap-band is a tool. It has to be in conjunction with lifestyle changes. I know of someone who got gastric bypass. The guy lost 100 lbs of weight within about a ten-month period. We are now 3 years later, and he's gained his 100 lbs. back. By his own admission, he's not doing what he needs to do to keep it off. If you're not losing, talk to your doctor. I'm not where I want to be yet, but I can see the pathway there.

Apparently this is not an uncommon problem. After surgery (December 2010), I lost about 30 lbs within a couple of months. It was awesome. I then noticed that I was able to eat way more food than I should have been able to comfortably eat. My clothes were getting baggy, but weight loss had kind of slowed down. I went in and got another fill. Wasn't quite working for me. Still stuck. I finally asked the doctor a couple of weeks ago for an "aggressive" fill. She agreed and told me to stick to liquids for a day and mush for two days since I was pretty tight. This last fill was AWESOME! I now find myself satisfied with MUCH less food, and because I'm not hungry all of the time, I actually am able to make wiser food choices. This last fill taught me that there is another area of existence called "hungry," and "not hungry." The goal is to go from hungry to not hungry. Prior to the lap band, my states of existence were "starving" and "stuffed." Before I go out to eat with friends, I eat a Protein bar. I can then make much better food decisions. I'm now trying the grilled fish with rice and vegetables rather than the largest portioned meal on the menu. I made home-made barbecue spare-ribs for the family and ate one spare-rib, a small serving of corn, and a dinner roll. I was totally full, but not stuffed. I feel alert after dinner, not in a food-induced fog. I say all of this to say, ask your doctor for an aggressive fill. You'll probably be a bit nauseated for a couple of days, so just eat chicken stock and light Soup for a couple of days. You will notice a huge difference. I still see the menu pictures with plates of biscuits oozing with gravy, but they just don't have the same appeal. One bite of the biscuit and gravy is enough to satisfy the cravings. Poached eggs and whole grain toast do it for me now. Once again, ask your doctor for an aggressive fill. It really helped get me back on track. Hopefully it will help you as well. If it's too tight, they can fix it.

This is a good question. I think it may be that I'm treating people differently, therefore people treat me differently. I know I'm much more likely to look people in the eye and be friendly. I feel less of a need to make myself invisible. On a wonderful side-note, my 11 year old daughter gave me a hug over the weekend. She said, "Daddy! I can reach my arms ALL the way around you now!" I asked her if it was because she was getting bigger, or if I was getting smaller. She said, "I think a little of both."

I think B-52 makes a good point. Getting stuck was kind of the whole point of the lap-band! One sure-fire way to not get stuck: don't get a lap-band!

If you keep your bites of meat to about the size of the end of your pinkie finger, you should have no problem at all. The BIGGEST problem that I have encountered is if I don't eat and let myself get too hungry, then I'll tend to eat too fast. If you try to eat too fast, you are almost guaranteed a hard stop, regardless of what you're eating. This is a lifestyle change. Your fear of staying the same has to be greater than the fear of change. I was scared of the lifestyle changes too, but I was more scared of staying the same. If you're going to wait until you never have any fear at all, you'll be waiting a VERY LONG time. Here's a little truism that I have come to realize: never make a decision based on fear. It is always wrong.

In my experience, that hasn't been the case. There is a learning process. Where people get into problems is when they don't listen to their band. When you hit a hard stop, your best bet is to stop! Don't try to force anything else down! It will pass, just don't force it.

Don't be worried. It's not as bad as we might make it appear at first blush. The solution to being stuck is to simply stop eating until it passes. It WILL pass unless we try to eat something really stupid, like a massive piece of steak that would get hung WITHOUT the lap band. End of story. Honestly, I'm kind of glad that I get something stuck every once in a while because it reminds me to stay on track.

I can totally relate to the getting stuck! The food that gets me almost every single time is white meat chicken. Two to three bites, and I'm done. I've learned not to push it, because it will not work, and I'll be heading to the bathroom. A hard stop is never fun! If I am REALLY hungry, I eat cottage cheese. It doesn't get hung up, I get the Protein, and it satisfies that desire to eat something. I've learned to not let myself get too hungry or else I'm going to try to eat too fast and.....BAM! Hard stop! A Protein Bar gets rid of the "horrible hungries" as well. Strangely enough, steak doesn't give me the same problems that chicken does. I'm not sure why. The idea behind the papaya enzymes and pineapple juice is to tenderize meat. It helps break down the meat faster. If it's bread that's got you hung, I don't think they will work.

I was wondering if anybody else has had the same experience as I have. Most days, I can manage most foods if I eat in the right proportion and chew properly. Other days, SOUP will almost give me a hard stop! I was wondering if anybody else has had days like this, and what causes it. I am absolutely thrilled with my lap band. Even though the days I describe can be a bit annoying, I am so glad to have this tool to assist me in my weight loss.

It's been an interesting journey for me. I haven't lost a lot of weight since the band, but my clothes are definitely looser. Also, I have had several people who haven't seen me in a while comment on the fact that I've lost weight. The band is a tool. If you don't use it, it won't work. I am learning how to use the band, and I am rededicating myself to exercise. I have been very surprised by how much more energy I have, but I will admit that exercising is a bit of a chore.