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Today was official Monday weigh in day. Down just over a pound for last week, so I'm reminding myself that's the correct amount to gauge my success by, instead of the 3+ lb loss of last week. Don't you just hate reality sometimes? My eating aha been okay. I made it up to 1200 calories yesterday, but when I looked back at my nutrients, I saw my choices were a little heavy on fat, so I need to watch that today. It's T-minus 2 days to my dr appointment and I can barely sit still with anticipation. Can't wait! Suzie, I'm glad you're feeling a bit better about your eating. I know you've got what it takes to succeed, but I'm excited for your appointment, too. I hope it gives you some help. Have a great day everyone!

Breakfast and I have never been friends. Then again, mornings and I are not on the best of terms either. I'm so not one of those people who get out of bed ready to face the world and any challenges that come at me. Rather, I get out of bed bitter, grumpy, semi-conscious, hostile, and mute. It takes a minimum of one cup of coffee before it's safe for anyone in the vicinity to approach me, let alone talk to me. If I attempt to eat sooner than at least 1 to 1-1/2 hours after I wake up, everything I swallow makes a return appearance. Before banding, I ate in the morning depending on craving, attitude, and general quirk of fate. Since being banded (while being compliant) I never eat breakfast. I know all the "rules" about breakfast. It's the most important meal of the day. You need to restart your metabolism after your overnight fast or your body will go into starvation mode. Eating breakfast makes your metabolism work harder all day to burn more calories. People who skip breakfast usually eat more calories over the course of the day than people who eat it. I've heard it all more than once, but the key word (especially in the last bit) is "usually." In other words, it's not always the case. Take me, for example. My normal routine is to wake up (reluctantly) about 8:30 or 9 (I love to sleep, and I work for myself, so I allow myself the luxury there). I shower, then stumble out into the house for a cup of coffee. Since I drink my coffee with cream (half and half, 20 calories worth, carefully measured), I try to limit myself to one cup. By 10, then, I'm usually ready to start my day. Generally, I get quite hungry by 12, so I begin fixing lunch and eat around 12:30. Then my tummy starts rumbling about 3 at the moment, since I need another fill. If it's not too terrible, I hold out til 4, when I have a small snack (cheese or something else protein rich). That keeps me until dinner around 6:30 or so. It's a system that works for me. I count all my calories and stick to my plan without issue. Well, every once in a while I start questioning myself about whether I might really be doing this all wrong, and I decide to have breakfast to see if everyone else is right. Today I planned to up my calorie intake anyway, so I decided that it would be a good day to experiment with breakfast. I got up at 8:30 and went through my routine, but at 10 instead of just finishing my coffee, I was sitting down to a healthy breakfast of about 300 calories. I ate it, finished around 10:30, and since enough time had passed, it stayed down. It was yummy, so I enjoyed it, and it was almost entirely protein, so it should have kept me satisfied until around 1 pm. By 11:45 I was hungry again. At noon I was ready to gnaw my own arm off, and all day since I've been hungrier than usual and exerting all my self control not to eat more than my planned intake. Now this may be evidence that my metabolism is working faster due to breakfast, but to me it's not worth it. I can lose weight without the boost, and I do it without the misery of constant hunger that breakfast seems to cause in me. Maybe that makes me a freak of some sort, but I've finally decided that what works for me is the most important thing. That, and losing the weight, of course.

Today I'm trying to combat my fear and eat more food! I've been paranoid about "being good" or being compliant since my fill a couple of weeks ago, so I think I've gone a little bit bonkers with keeping my calories low. I keep telling myself I should get at least 1000, but last night I came in at less than 800. I know that's no good and that if I don't eat more I will actually stall my weight loss, but it's hard to remember when I'm so anxious to get rid of this regain I saddled myself with. But, I want to do what's best in the long run, so today my goal is 1200 calories. From pt experience, I know that varying my calories is also good for me. My metabolism is so bad, that confusing it is sometimes the only hope, so with luck I can kill 2 birds with one stone. I'm also super excited for my appointment on Wednesday so I can see exactly how much progress I've made over the last 2 weeks ( my scale might as well be on another planet from my surgeon's) and to get another fill. So fingers crossed that more food will do the trick!

Oh, and I don't count carbs. I use MyFitnessPal, which keeps track of them by default, but i don't pay much attention. If you're choosing and eating high protein foods first, you will likely find that your carb intake naturally remains in a controlled balance with your other nutrients.

20 lbs in three weeks is an impressive loss. Remember that the guidelines only say that someone who has been banded can expect to lose 1-2 lbs per week, and that's an average, which means that there will be weeks when you will not lose anything, unfortunately. Even worse, there may be weeks when you put on a lb or two. The important thing is to remember that you took a long time to put on the weight, it will take a while for it to come off. Trends are more important than individual weigh ins. As long as your weight is trending downward, you're doing well. As far as Protein goes, every doctor/nutritionist recommends different amounts. My nut. says that I have to get a minimum 50-60 g per day, and anything above that is great. So I count up to 50 to make sure I get the minimum, but after that I don't worry too much. Your recommendations may vary, though, and I always suggest that you follow the post-op guidelines provided by your practice. You'll do fine. Just remember to be realistic and patient. Patience really is fundamental. Good luck!

Tomorrow is absolutely another day, Suzie. Instead of thinking about the afternoon where you didn't stick to plan, think about the morning when you did, even in the face of obvious temptation! Success isn't determined by how many times you fall down, but by how many times you get up. (Can't remember who said that, but I do know they were absolutely right!)

The metal used in the band system (that includes tubing and port) is titanium.

Hilary, so far I have not considered the sleeve. I still have hope that I can reach restriction with the band, and I really dislike the idea of amputating the majority of a healthy organ unless I really feel that I have no other choice. I still have 2cc of space in my band, plus I know that they can be filled a certain amount past the stated capacity. In the end, I will follow my doctor's advice. If she fills the band to the point where she feels she really cannot responsibly add more Fluid and I still don't have an effective band (fingers crossed that never happens), then I would consider her suggestions for a next step, even if that meant the sleeve. Of course, as self pay (my insurance excludes all forms of weight loss surgery, period), I'd need to feel very sure and take some time to save the funds. I hope it doesn't come to that.

I was advised by my doctor not to eat before a fill, and since my appointments are almost always in the morning, it's easy for me follow that advice. I don't eat Breakfast. (I know all the ideas about metabolism, etc, but after tracking my calorie intake over months and months, I have found that when I eat breakfast, I actually end up eating MORE calories throughout the day, not fewer). I just have my coffee, get my fill, then do liquids for the rest of the day, and usually the day after as well. Suziecat, congrats on passing up the Easter candy, and good luck at the party today. I'm sure you'll do great, but I hope you enjoy it as well. For me, daily weigh ins are a matter of accountability at the moment. I have a bad habit of avoiding the scale as a way of avoiding the truth. When I only weigh myself weekly, it's just too easy for me to say, "oh, I don't have to get on the scale until Monday and today is just Wednesday. I can't totally eat this extra food and just work it off before Monday." But I never do, and that splurge on Wednesday turns into another on Friday, then Saturday, too. So I weigh every day and just remind myself over and over that fluctuations are normal and it is only trends that need my time and attention. Sometimes that's harder to remember than others, but when I need a reality check, I just check in here and someone drags me back down to earth. My challenge today is mostly one of scheduling. I have a bunch of errands to run that will keep me out of the house for several hours today, since I have to spend time at the barn where I board my horse in the middle of them. That means I will be away from my cocoon of healthy food when there's a chance I could get hungry. In the past, that and the ease of fast food were often my down fall. Since I can't do that now, I think I'll try bringing a Protein bar with me and eating that if I get hungry. I hate wasting calories on Protein Bars, but since I keep them around for emergencies, I'm guessing this would count as one. So that's the plan, and I aim to stick to it. Have a great weekend everyone!

Definitely share your concern with your doctor, but as far as I know, the band is made of a majority of silicone with tiny amounts of titanium. I'm not aware of any nickel. Check with your doctor, and if you're still worried, call the manufacturer of the bands and see what they have to say. Informing yourself if the best strategy. Good luck!

Good for you! It's also important to remember that doctors predict a patient with the band will lose an average of 1-2 lbs per week. If you figure 5 months contain 20-22 weeks, that puts you right on track (actually on the high side) for your losses. Congratulations! A lot of the time, it all comes down to perspective.

I think I would have asked about their ongoing plan for fills and adjustments. How much, how often, etc. I also would have asked if they had a plan for fills if it turns out that the correct fill level is elusive or difficult to achieve? Are they willing to fill more often if after 4 or so fills there is no noticeable input from the band regarding satiety? I would have asked what happens if I still have no effect from fills when I am close to the recommended capacity of the band? These are the issues I'm dealing with now, and I think I could have saved myself a lot of time, disappointment and worry if I'd asked them earlier in the process. Good luck!

Reality has set back in. For the first seven days after my last adjustment (first one in 6 months) I was in paradise. Scale kept dropping close to a lb per day. Yay! Thanks, Santa, that's just what I always wanted! Then there was the aberration of a 1 lb gain that I knew had to be bs, so I ignored it, checked my food log, and chalked it down to sodium. Since it was almost all off the next day, that's still my story and I'm sticking to it. Today, the scale just stayed still, so I'm exerting a lot of energy reminding myself that as long as I AVERAGE 1-2 lbs per week down, it's all good. I'm good. Everything is fine. Can y'all hear me chanting, "Ohhhhhmmmmmmmmmmmm?" I know I can't expect any weight loss to be smooth and perfect and steady downward every time I get near a scale (but, oh, wouldn't that be wonderful?), but it's tough to remember that when my inner toddler is whining, "Are we there yet?" every five minutes. It also doesn't help when my inner b***h can't stop pointing out that if I hadn't taken all those months off and regained, I wouldn't now be facing the extreme frustration of trying to lose 10 lbs I had already lost. She's so annoying sometimes. Still, I am what and who I am and where I am, and I can't change that by looking backward, only by moving forward. Went shopping today to stock up on lean protein and make sure I had enough variety in the house to keep from getting bored and cranky, which makes me want to break rules. No rule breaking here, just good healthy food and lots of protein (good thing I love chicken). I know I can do this, especially since I have another appointment coming up in 5 days with the promise of another fill if I need it (oh, I do, I do, I swear I do!). I can no question hold out until then. And after that fill, I will be able to hold out until the next one. If I weren't strong enough for that, I wouldn't have come back with my tail between my legs a week ago. I'm here, I can do this, and I'm too danged stubborn and cussed to give up now. So there!

Wow, sounds like you have great docs! Keep up the good work and enjoy your upcoming vacation.

Yup, totally normal. Mine generally tries stick to every 4 weeks However, since I have been banded for over a year now and not reached good restriction, she has recently upped me to every 2 weeks until we get the level right. Then, hopefully, I won't need anymore for a while. At least not until I've lost enough weight for the band to loosen naturally.

Hi Hilary, I so understand your frustration. I woke up with it this morning, even though as far as I can tell nothing changed between the time I went to bed and the time I got up as far as my body was concerned. I stepped on the scale and saw it was just the same as yesterday, and after the high of my first week back on track when it seemed to drop steadily every morning, that wasn't exactly exciting to see. But at the same time, I'm almost glad it happened in a weird way, because I know that eventually I'm going to hit plateaus or small gains and I think it's probably good that I'm seeing proof of that now when I'm still enthusiastic and faithful about checking in here often for support and information. Your words about your boyfriend, though, made me sad. Please don't play the mind reading game with him. I do that all the time and over the years (and after a good bit of therapy) I've really learned that not only is it bad for my self esteem and my confidence, I'm also usually wrong about whatever I thought the other person was thinking! As long as he's supportive and loving and not trying to criticize or sabotage, it sounds like he's doing his part to help you through this. If he didn't find you attractive, he wouldn't be with you. Men are like that. If you need his praise to pump you up for your wl journey, you may have to tell him that, but don't assume that because he doesn't say something that he's unhappy. And think how awesome it will be when you're losing again and don't even have to wait for the compliments to roll in. You do sound like you need a fill though, if you're hungry every couple of hours. That's how I feel right now and I can't wait for my appointment on Wednesday. For the first time in the year since I got my band, the green zone seems like a place I can actually get to, instead of a fantasy world, like Oz or Neverland. I hope one more fill puts me there, but if not, you can bet your booty I'm making a follow up appointment for 2 weeks from Wed just in case! Have a great day, everyone! It's Friday!

Love it!

Everyone freaks out, and most of it do it more than once at different stages of the journey. You'll be okay. This is hard, and anyone who says it isn't is either lying or one in a million. But hard is nowhere near impossible. You can do this. Try not to look too far ahead. One day at a time is more useful to you now, especially during the liquid diet. Sometimes, it even needs to be 1 hour at a time, or 1 minute at a time. Every minute and hour you get through are accomplishments, and before you know it, they add up to days and weeks. Keep your head up and keep moving. I know you can.

I've been thinking about this a lot. For a long time (seems like forever) I've been so obsessed with numbers that I haven't thought about goals outside of numbers on the scale or on the tags of my clothes, but I think that at the moment, my ultimate NSV goal will be to be able to mount my horse from the ground under my own power and not have to use a tall step to get up there. That will mean both having a smaller body to lift and more strength for the lifting. I think that would make me very, very happy.

Karen, that might be wise, even if it will hurt. Actually, it's a bit like the whole WLS journey. You got banded for your health, and in doing that you had to make sacrifices (no more mindless eating, no more high calorie binging, no more scarfing down meals), and while part of you may miss those bad behaviors, you know that in the end you're physical self is better off without them. If you share your feelings openly and honestly with those people in your life and they can't or won't accept and support your decisions, then your emotional and mental self might be better off without them in the long run. Everyone here knows what you're going through and will support you. You won't be alone as long as you have the boards.

I tried to post yesterday, but after I composed a big, long (obviously brilliant ;-P) post, the Internet ate it, so I gave up. But like always, I'm trying again! Stephanie, good move getting all your stuff out of That Cabinet. At least if you don't have to go in there for your own things, you won't be faced with temptation on a daily basis. If I were you, I'd be acting like That Cabinet had been mysteriously sucked into a black hole and no longer existed. Suzie, BIG bravo on your walk and on the Water situation at CB. I watched a series of videos yesterday by a band doctor in Australia or New Zealand who said that current theory says that foods move through the band within a minute, so he allows his patients to drink while eating IF they wait for a full minute after swallowing a bit of food before taking a sip of a drink. It makes sense to me, but when I had a tiny glass of wine (totally ok with my doc) with dinner last night, I found I forgot to drink it because I was concentrating so hard on chewing and pausing between bites! I ended up sipping on it after dinner through the evening. Which was actually nice. I don't think I'll be really changing my habits for ordinary drinks (which for me is water or Crystal Light) but it was nice to have a couple of sips of wine that complimented my food, and I didn't notice any difference in satiety after I was finished. Not making a suggestion to anyone, just found it interesting. Yesterday I stepped on my scale and it had gone up a pound, but I knew based on my calorie intake that there was no way I had gained a pound overnight, so I had to talk myself off the ledge and remind myself of that a few times before I was able to put it out of my head and go on with my day, but sure enough, it was back off this morning. I'm thinking it was sodium, so I'll be keeping an eye on that. Hope everyone has a great day today! Just look forward to the weekend!

Understood. I try to avoid fast food. It's high calorie, fairly low satiety, and loaded with who knows what that would probably gross me out if I knew it was in my food. If I'm forced into it, I also try to go for Wendy's chili. The important thing is that whatever you choose, control your portion size and count your calories. And still practice small bites and slow chewing. As far as alcohol goes, it's a similar story-- control your portions and count the calories. Wine is, in my opinion, the best bet. It's socially acceptable to nurse a glass of wine forever, you have a variety of flavors and styles to choose from, and it's not mixed with anything carbonated or high in sugar/calories to add to its negative impact. Also, there are proven health benefits to red wine in particular, provided it's consumed in moderation (1 glass per day). Don't be surprised or insulted by people who caution you after reading this type of question. In the end, everyone just wants to help you succeed. Good luck!

You can do it. My preop diet was 2 weeks of nothing but skim mail and Water. Honestly by the end of the first week, I didn't want anything. At all. Yes, it was bad, but I made it through, and it actually did help prepare me for the diet stages after the surgery. After 2 weeks of milk, a whole week of Protein shakes was like a vacation! Just hang in there. No part of this process is really "easier" but all the parts of it get easier all the time. Good luck!

Suziecat, I have a part-time family. My best friend lives with me at the moment, and her husband lives here part-time (long story...he's a nurse working in another city and is having trouble finding a position to transfer to here, but his schedule basically allows him to work a week, then have a week off). My friend has always been my biggest supporter. She went with me to the seminars, accompanied me to my surgery, and helped me out during my recovery. Her husband is a great guy, but he doesn't know much about the band (despite being a nurse), so he's a bit clueless at times. Like, he made a stir-fry thing for dinner last night and I think he was a bit hurt that I didn't eat it, but right now it's so important to me to count every gram of Protein and to make sure I'm getting enough, that I was just afraid to. He also never cooks with recipes or keeps track while cooking, so I couldn't program it into Myfitnesspal to track everything. I felt a bit bad, but being successful is hugely important to me, so I stuck to my guns. My doctors never forbid anything, including pastas or salads, but it's always protein first, so if I want spaghetti and meatballs, I have to eat the meatballs first, then only have as much spaghetti as fills out my 1 cup serving. So usually, it ends up just being meatballs. I keep track of calories mostly automatically, not because it's that important to me. Since I use Myfitnesspal to track my protein, it automatically tracks calories too, and I like knowing what the general ballpark I'm in is like. I got myself to 1000 yesterday and plan to keep it there. I know for myself that my base calories needs are just under 2000 (I'm a total shortie) so if I don't keep my intake well under 1500, I absolutely won't lose. Plus, the 2000 calorie figure is an overestimation for me. While that's what all the formulas come out to, I actually have a naturally very slow metabolism - I have to reduce drug dosages and wait longer between doses than normal, as well. So no more than 1200 is really my safe zone. Doing well so far today, hope everyone else is, too.

While you're still so close to surgery, you're still dealing with Fluid retention, gas, bloating, and unhappy tissues that were handled during the surgery. Your weight right now is about as accurate as pulling the number out of your hat. Honestly, the best thing to do is to stay away from the scale until you're fully healed, about 4-6 weeks out from surgery. If you find that impossible, at least make sure to only weigh yourself 1-2 per week until you've fully settled into being a good, healthy bandster. Then, you have to remember that weight fluctuates daily, even from hour to hour, and it always will. Lots of little things can affect the scale -- fluid, sodium, barometric pressure, bowel and bladder content, the gravitational pull of the sun. Seriously, your weight will ALWAYS change. The important thing is to remember that the pattern is what's important. If you go up several times over several weigh ins over several days or weeks, THEN start to worrying and reevaluate your eating and exercise. But a random weigh in so soon after surgery isn't worth the scale it's appearing on.