superluli

hey nouzi! i am fasting too and it's my first ramadan with the band. how are you doing this year? any tips? i haven't lost any weight i thought i would lose so much. i eat ok portions for iftar ( Soup and 1/2 cup of food) and more before i sleep (1.5 to 2 cups), but even though i don't have a sweet tooth in ramadan all i do is think of and crave sweets. sugary drinks like appricot juice which is a very typical ramadan drink here. do you have those cravings? any luck with curbing them? how r u doing with Water? can you squeeze in enough and still eat in those little hours we have?

One hour before I was leaving for the doc I found myself able to drink, so I had a cup of Water, some bouillon and two spoons of honey. I feel SO much better. I decided not to go today and wait it out now that I can drink. I really don't want an unfill, i am not doing very well with my weight loss so i really need this fill to whip me into shape. Thanks everyone for all your inputs and help. Water tastes so yum

Thanks everyone for your input. I hope today goes better because I am seriously really thirsty! And I have a massive migraine now.. My doc is available today in a few hours, so If I still can't drink properly I will go. I can't live without water, I live in a really hot country!

So you were feeling the same as I was then it got better? I sure hope that happens with me... Fills are expensive and a long drive out.. I am trying some hot bouillon now, comes up n down, hope it stays down eventually

Hey guys, I just had my 4th fill yesterday brining my total up to 7ccs in an 11 cc band. I felt a bit restriction before my fill, but after a hot drink I found I am able to eat a lot and I got hungry quickly when I ate less. So I went for a fill. I feel like ****, that constant stuck feeling and sipping water and clear drinks super sloooow. I think I only drank one cup of liquids today. I am stressed, my car broke down and is costing me a lot to fix I am missioning around and my dad is sick. Could it just be stress? Should I wait it out and maybe this feeling will go away? Has that ever happened to anyone? Or should I suck it up and go get an unfill?

My doctor said there is something called gastric balloon that is done for people who need to lose weight for the surgery. It's a balloon that is inserted through the mouth to the stomach then filled with saline solution keeps you feeling full but has to be removed within 6 months. It should help people lose 25-40 pounds or more even. I am not suggesting, but I just thought i'd share my knowledge Good luck to us all on this journey.

I had stitches, I had my surgery in Egypt so maybe it's a 3rd world country thing It was the easiest thing, I could have plucked them out myself, however I don't suggest you do that...

Why is there a pre-op diet? What's the rationale behind it? I didn't have to do it, only heard about it on this site.

I too expected too much from my band. 5 months post op and 20 pounds less and I don't feel proud, I feel like I am yet again under achieving. People compliment me and I think, I should have done better. I have been at the same weight for 2 months now, I have fills, restriction, I eat less, I am much more active but it isn't working. Today I went to my nutritionist who I have been visiting for over 4 years pre band so he can help me shake things up a bit. The health analysis sheet i got had the best scores I have had since 2008. But it's really hard to be happy when other people are doing so much better and when you should have lost twice as much by now...

As a self proclaimed sushi addict I can tell you you will be fine. I can't tolerate bread or normal rice or Pasta but sushi is not a problem. I am on my 3rd fill and today I had 12 pieces of sushi. I eat between 10-12 pieces once or twice a week, which is fine by me (used to eat 25 and more) Break the roll into a few bites, 2-3 is doable, it's messy but it works. The soup will help you because it relaxes your stomach. Until my last fill I would have eaten all of that with no problems. If ur worried stay away from the rice and you should be fine. Enjoy a night off and hit the gym extra for the next three days if you feel too guilty. You deserve a treat it's a marathon not a sprint.

Hey! I was handed in November like you and have about the same CCs in my band as you. I get this pain, you feel the food going through your asophegus and it hurts, then once it passes the pain is gone. it lasted for one bite when I was at my second fill, now it's the first 3-4 bites and longer if I don't chew well. Here's how I avoid it: have something hot beforehand, soup or tea, it relaxes your stomach. While you cook nibble on a few things, chew them really well while standing up, by the time you sit down you'll have gone past that first bite syndrome. Chew chew chew and rest your fork between bites. It's a long boring process to eat so keep busy with conversation or tv or a book or something... The pain is mostly in your chest right? I think it is something normal with the band...

I have a similar problem and I don't know what to do. I have 6.25 CCs in my 10cc band and it hurts with every bite beginning to end. I learned about this 'have a hot drink first' and it helps me in the morning with Breakfast, but in the evening when if i have Soup before my meal I end up eating more than I should and my appetite is quite big for the rest of the evening and night and I find myself getting tempted by everything! But if I have no soup then I can only eat like yogurt. I need a middle ground

There is mind-full and body-full. The band totally takes care of body full! Really! But I am finding it more difficult to stop myself just coz my plate isn't done or because I really want those last few bites. So mind-full is all about you. Last night I went out for dinner with work, ordered sushi, was full after 6 pieces! I knew it, my body gave me very clear signals, yet I still went for a few more! Today I looked at the food I packed for lunch and thought it's so little! 4 meat balls and 3 tbs of mashed zucchini, I haven't even finished it yet and the day is almost over. Don't worry just keep getting tighter till you are in the zone, you'll know when you are there

And to respond to your original post, when people tell me it's the easy way out I jokingly respond 'well I can't be good at EVERYTHING I do! Something's gotta give' I totally own up to the 'easy way out' thing and say well if I can find something that makes my life easier why not cut myself some slack? Would you refuse to buy a microwave coz it's the easy way out of using the stove to heat your food? If you can have a friggin microwave why settle for a stove

What annoys me is how people make you feel like you are getting rid of the plague by losing weight! It gets so condescending! They try to compliment you by telling you how awful you looked previously? That's supposed to make me feel better? Yes yes being fat is bad for you but it's not the worst thing in the world! You will still be the same person when you lose weight. You won't be a better person! Sorry, just venting!

I got my 3rd fill 10 days ago, got banded 5 months ago. I just got to that level of restriction where I am full for longer hours and with smaller quantities! Before then it was nothing. Now I get shoulder and chest pains when I eat things like bread, Pasta, rice, peas, meat. I think that's how it should be, right? It made me finally ready to quit all of the above (except for sushi, it's totally worth the pain) When I stick to liquids, mushies, veggies and soft Proteins I am completely fine. It can't possibly be from the operation! It has to be directly linked with how tight you are and what you eat. Because after my first fill I got that pain for one bite, after my second fill it was for the first 3-4 bites and now it's throughout the majority of the meal making any of these foods listed above completely unappealing to me. Which is the whole point of this lap band I think... Do you see any similarity between what I experience and what you do?

From my own impressions I thought the sleeve is more suitable for people who want smth low maintenance and the band requires more maintenance. The end result is in the end up to you. Of everyone I know who has done both sleeve and lapband I see that half of them got thin and half didn't. It boils down to you when it comes to success and failure. when it comes to the band experience, here is what i think are the advantages of the lap band: - adjustability. I am also still single no kids and hopefully that's in my future. I want a healthy breast fed baby and to do so I will need to eat more. And I will gain weight - it's part of the experience and the beauty of being a woman. God made us this way. - restart. Fall off the wagon? Get tight again and start over - proven. I know someone who had the band 10 years ago. It's been around for a while longer than the sleeve, so you know pretty much what to expect be it good or bad - I still have my complete stomach. If one day I need to remove part of it due to a tumor or something, I'll have the full 100% not 40% Its disadvantages are: - high maintenance - reflux and heart burn - slow weightloss, and hard work, no different than being on a diet but it makes you stick to it for the long term - risk of slips and port problems The sleeve has different advantages and disadvantages, so it's about choosing which advantages you want more and which disadvantages you can deal with more. Best of luck with the sleeve. i am curious to see what you will say ten years from now. I am too risk averse to go through a surgery that hasn't hit the ten year mark, but thank god for gutsy people like you and early bandsters!

How about some healthy sliders? Air popped pop corn with a little butter flavored Pam on top? Maybe getting a bit more tight may help? I find if I eat a lot during my meal I don't have appetite to snack, so if you fill up on healthy things for lunch there will be no room for cravings later. Finally, how about a hobby to ocupy your evenings? Don't beat yourself up, take it a day at a time an it will come

I was the same. Slept ten hours at least every day. I enjoyed it though, snuggling in bed every day watching tv and sleeping so much, sleep is good But I was lucky, I live with my sis and she pampered me big time! She got up early to make me my own liquid food to take to work and made me liquid dinner every night! I'd say stick it out, once you start eating u'll get energized again and your body will soon adapt. I just had my 3rd fill 5 days ago and just started eating solids tonight, this morning it was so difficult to get out of bed, but it gets better

I think it's best to stick to Clear Liquids. I lived on skim milk, chicken broth and Jello for the week after surgery. Then added non clear liquids like Soups and yogurt the week after. Make sure ur stomach heals well and don't work it hard. I went from work to bed and bed to work coz I had no energy the first two-three weeks, but it flies by.

I also had gallbladder surgery two years ago - thankfully my gallbladder surgery was a breeze! I don't even remember being in pain at all after surgery. I expected the same for the band, but sadly it was not true - the Band is more painful... there's a significant difference. My gallbladder surgery was the reason I thought 4 days was enough. But I feel like expectations play a huge role in it. I expected the gallbladder surgery to hurt a lot - so I guess I was more mentally prepared for pain. and the opposite for the Band I expected it to not hurt as much, so I wasn't prepared. Don't worry though, it all passes, just take whatever painkillers they give you My first few days I hugely regretted this, and was really depressed, but I was told i'd feel like that, and it passed. You lose a lot on the post op diet, so it motivates you. Good Luck

I didn't even take a full week. I did it Wednesday and was back at work on Monday. It's all about getting over the incisions pain and the air they blow in there. Take the full week, but no need to lose vacation days.

I find it hard to find motivation when I am unhappy. Perhaps you can focus on feeling happier, do things you enjoy, see people you like, get a new hobby, go out and have a laugh, get some excitement in your life. Maybe then you'll be more optimistic and motivated?

It's normal. I sip on a skinny latte from 9-10 then have yogurt and Cereal between 12-1. Starting from 3pm I can eat anything with little restriction since I am not that tight yet - I try not to I learned to love the yogurt

Thank you! I really needed to see some cases where people haven't had any major problems in the long term