judych

..and im content, mostly, as well.... good post Shoshanna. . im two weeks out from a fill of 1 cc and having difficulty eating. ive been eating mashed potato and Soups... but im feeling now its time i should be back on solids. Oddly enough, i can eat a small amount of bacon plus on fried egg of a morning.. but it takes me over a half hour. Tonight i had a chicken burger (small) , a small potato in its jacket plus a tablespoon of salad on my plate. i was so hungry. for the first 1/4 hour i was miserable trying to eat. i persevered, waited, and in the end i managed to eat what i had on my plate. i had some light sour cream and fresh dill as well... it was about two cups max id say, but it took me an hour to eat, at least an hour. chewing up to fifty times each time, as i got further into the meal i felt better. im not sure what goes on with that... but just over an hour and i had finished my meal and felt great. satisfied for the first time in weeks. i know that im supposed to get up and leave the meal after 20 minutes.. but honestly... i was still starving and had eaten no more than about six small mouthfuls. not enough. im not sure this time whether that 1 cc was overdoing it. im giving it another week and if things havent looked up im having it removed. i had 3 ccs already and was losing.. slowly but surely.

please dont eat any more baked potatoes... at least not for a while. i know what you are going through post op. its jolly well hard going. Just start back on your liquids again. Can you add more spices to your Soups? if you can satisfy your taste buds with more flavour it will make things better for you. when i was on full liquids i put mild salsa in my soups, garlic powder, you name it, i used it lol. when i took a mouthful the flavour stayed in my mouth long after i had swallowed. thats important i think. it enables you to savour your food even though your food intake is limited right now. How sad that you dont have anyone at all to share the lapband experience with at home.... and, yes, you are right, this group is marvellous, and we do care about each other. Keep posting. you will always get support here Only my husband knows ive had surgery... and i have three children, my mum still is alive, plus three grandchildren. My youngest daughter knows as well but she doesnt live here. If i didnt have hubbie to share it all with and use as a sounding board, i would feel very lonely i think, so you are doing really well. just dont do yourself any damage though... go back onto your liquids, and like i said, add more flavour if you really need to. Best of luck. judy

goodness me, thats a lot of tablets. No, ive not had a single meds either before or after surgery. i had a hernia as well so im really glad im getting away with no meds for reflux. Are you going to get your band checked?? having these reflux issues... could it mean a slippage..do you think?? it needs to be thoroughly checked i think.

no worries EllizabethAnne.... if you want to email me about anything feel free to do so. Yes i think one pound a week is great going as well. I am concerned about fast weight loss because i know that the gall bladder can become a problem if weight is lost too quickly... especially with women. Plus the fact that im too old now to carry that sort of quick weight loss very well, and i still want to look good as well as feel good. im 66.

iguess you just need to look at the positive side.... that you wont have to worry on vacation.. im sure the dr will see your point of view if things change.... just take each day as it comes. ive just had my second fill two weeks ago.... i was losing weight but he decided to put 1cc in me. im still waiting to get over the problems that i experience post fill..... im not having any more fills if i continue to lose. im not exercising yet im losing about one pound a week.

would you believe it takes me two weeks to recover from a fill? even just 1cc?? im down on protein and must start making shakes until i can get back to normality again.

..and good on you for bringing it out here, because its here that you will have fellow banders who are/have gone through the same emotional issue. I mean... this is forever... right? we have crossed over a surgical line that DICTATES now, to a great degree, how we can eat. !! ( I know we can still cheat but its nothing like being free to eat anything. !)i have felt the same way ! lots of times ! even now... three months and more out from surgery. !! i have days where i would just like to be free to eat everything i want... you know? .. BUT.... eating everything has a big price to pay for me. Do i want to continue just eating everyday to feed my overweight body and give me a temporary fix? I dont think so. ! the band gives me room to step back (because i jolly well have to now... lol. ) and think twice about what im doing. And, whats more, when i dress myself now, and get undressed, im not hating the person im seeing in the mirror. WE pay a price for improved self image (not to mention the health benefits we get ) ... that price is loss of freedom with unlimited eating. You will get used to this new way of living. The emotional pulls are strong... it makes us realize just how we lived under the rule of our emotions. Good luck. Just take each day as it comes. YOu arent alone in this and you will be really glad with the outcome.

how wonderful that you were able to so thoroughly enjoy your trip and eat what you wanted, and still lose weight. the ideal combination. So youve had three fills now? how much have you had now ? what size band? im over three months post op, had two fills which amount to 4ccs in a 10 cc band. im having trouble, two weeks out, eating properly. i had that the first time around as well... i dont know whether i should have another fill or not. im losing, steady but surely. why i say im not sure about future fills... early in nov im taking our youngest grand daughter on an 11 day cruise.. i dont want to be having issues with food getting stuck etc while we are away. how long did it take for you to recover from the initial fill procedure? its nearly two weeks for me and it was nearly two weeks the first time for me as well. by the way, i just love the sounds of your trip. which part of Italy did you go to? did you see a lot ?

dulcolax is great stuff... it does the job well. i hope you feel even more improved now.... good luck

i still have but not all the time. for example i had a fill about ten days ago, and ive needed protein drinks since then. i take a long time to recover when i have a fill... thats just me. So.. for these times i have the drinks to make up for any dietary loss. i had to do the same the first time i had a fill as well. Sometimes i may just have a drink of it out of the blue, becuase i enjoy them so much. Also if im in a hurry first thing of a morning and cant sit down long enough to eat breakfast i will have one then. they do still have their place... just not everyday.

i dont find it easy to expell gas through belching either. Gas -x is the main thing that is taken here for gas... also, ive found that sitting with my back straight, head back and arms above (my head) bent with my hands touching the back of my neck stretch my diaphram enough to expel the gas. Try some of these things... everyone is different. Maybe this will help you out.

it will go down well. you have muscle swelling on that site from the surgery and that will be hard and possible risen for a while. ive always had that happen on my surgery sites. my port area isnt noticeable at all now. im just over 3 months post op.

this is so true. in three months ive lost 41.38% of my weight.... and my loss hasnt been fast. just slow and steady. this is a great way to look at ones weight loss. thanks for bringing it up. judy

lol.. thats funny. Im glad that its all going well for you. way to go.

i agree... and, you know?? i think this is the only way that was left for me to go...my weight loss is slower but steady and im really happy with that. I dont think i would have been disciplined enough to stick with small portions and eating slowly if it hadnt been for the band. This band has helped me through days when i lacked the motivation of positive mind set to keep going . I couldnt be eating huge amounts now even if i wanted to. Ive just had my second fill.. it was only 1 cc. that was over a week ago. im still feeling the tenderness in my pouch. the dr made an appointment for me for two months time. i dont think i will get any more fills .... if im continuing to lose i dont see that its necessary. I have to wait so long after a fill before i settle down again that im inclined to give the next fill a miss. i guess it will depend on how my weight loss goes in the next two months. we will see. There is no way that i could have been consistent,before the band, like im being made to be now.

ygarza... what great news that finally you made it. congratulations to you and all the best for your continuing journey. im sure it will go really well. Just take it easy and give your body time to heal. all the best. judy

berries im fine with, i havent tried watermelon yet... its not the season for it here yet... bananas, the same as you. im uncomfortable with them, but do try. they are so rich in potassium that i need them. i havent tried apples, peaches or apricots yet. will do when our summer comes around again.

thanks for these tips on how to eat fruit. i will try this with bananas, i have some here that i need to eat.

what a shame you cant eat them....

try not to be stressed over it all... just take is slow and easy with your soups and you will be fine. i know what the mind games are like. In fact id say that everyone here went through those. i feel for you but theres nothing to be worried about. like i said, just take things easy.

...lol... thanks for sharing this humerous account with us... its a refreshing change.. all the best with your new lifestyle.

well spoken. i use the term starvation mode, but i use the term loosely.. ive known that my body shuts down with weight loss very easily. ive never been at that point where i would say i was literally starving, its just that my body kicks into survival mode, whatever you like to call that. i dont lose weight at all when i drop my calorie intake below 1200... i try to move my intake around a lot from day to day. it varies from about 1000 to perhaps 1400-1500 the next day... that does work for me. however, i know that my metabolism is very slow and very efficient. i had so many goes on the Atkins diet that im sure i did something to my metabolism then.

yes, that sounds good. its worth trying out. i agree, we need to eat some fruit daily... i havent had a decent amount for some time now without suffering from it.

Jachut... ive been moaning and parking my backside right in front of our wood heater in southern tasmania.... we had 7. lol.

..more on this comment.. i have a 10 cc band and i have about four ccs of fill.