LoLo9826

I bought them thinking there was no flour in them, but alas, its yam flour or something. Haven't tried them, but they're sitting in the fridge! Thinking I will stick to no Pasta at all- don't want to trigger a craving I've managed to stay away from. Of course, depends on the person!

I've used them too. Don't care for them at all. I am of the variety that would rather not have it then eat something I don't like. :-)

I've never used them, but Hungry Girl uses them in a lot of her Pasta recipes. I think the website is www.hungrygirl.com

Yes! I used to buy them all of the time. I've tried pretty much everything! lol! I used them in place of spaghetti noodles. They don't taste as good as Pasta and they smell fishy, but for the zero calories, the substitution is worth it. I had to make sure to use Tomato paste with my sauce because the sauce doesn't tend to want to stick on them. After I boiled them, I drained them immediately in cold Water and then used my kitchen shears to cut them up into small pieces because they are a little hard to digest. They are definitely worth a try, though. :-)

So I've been researching the heck out of everything and came across a low-carb substitute for Pasta. Shirataki noodles...say what? lol thought the name sounded funny Any who, I've been using 100% whole wheat pasta (in small amounts of course) but my husband was recently told he has high cholesterol. They gave him a couple of months to try to lower it by changing his diet before the put him on medication. I was banded on Nov. 2012 and decided to change my entire families eating habits along with my own...lol My husband only had like 15lbs to lose and my 17 yr old daughter has about 40lbs to lose. Either way they have been very supportive in my journey and willing to try whatever I put on the table. This makes my life soooo much easier. Now back to the subject. Has anyone tried these noodles and are they good? If so, how did you prepare them? I LOVE pasta and hope I can find something that is delicious and healthy for me and my family.

... when I would complain about being able to see the port bump on my tummy. Because there used to be WAY too much tummy to ever thing you could unearth that thing. I can remember thinking no way would I ever have to worry about that.
But here I am... 7 years out and almost at goal wieght. I had my Lap Band surgery in '07. I have now lost about +/- 80 pounds. I have maintained a weight of between 158 and 170 since April of 2012 and I'm really proud of myself. I exercise at least 3 times a week. I am certainly not perfect with my eating but because my main issue was always Portion Control and feeling satisfied/full, the band has really changed my life. I have not had any issues with my band to speak of. My blood pressure is in a normal range (off those meds!) and I feel fantastic. I have attached some before and after photos.
Love to all!
Gina

There's Wonderwoman! I told you that you reminded me of her. Gorgeous Tricia - Long black hair, blue eyes and yes, nice colored/dark tanned skin ...
I look at the old you and I can't make myself see that any of the old you even belonged to you.
I love ya Tricia_K and again thank you for giving me continued support and counter motivation.
**BIG GIANT HUG**

I avoided cameras for a long time, so when I went looking for a before picture, there wasn't much of a selection. Can't believe I didn't purposely take one lol. Ah well. Here's the few that I found. Hope this works :/
The first one is me at my heaviest, 262lbs/119kgs. Notice my hand in the bag of chips lol.
The second one is me at 105kgs, I believe...

313-208. Back to 227, but seem to be on a downward trend once again...

I knew that no one would actually tell me that drinking was okay. I was just going through a tough time. I have since recovered and pulled myself out of the pits of hell! lol jk Although, I did feel pretty awful for the next few days following- guilt was horrible. I think the worst part though was my appetite the next day. OMG! I wanted to eat everything in sight. My band of course did not allow me to make any more regretful decisions but believe me I tried. So here I am back on course and determined to stay on the straight and narrow. I appreciate everyone comments! Oh and to answer your question back2petite, my stomach did feel a little bloated but otherwise it was fine. I did call my advocate to confess the next day. She told me that carbonation is fine in moderation but to remember beer was high in calories. I guess all docs are different. That being said, I will find other ways to relieve stress before turning to alcohol again. Like I said earlier, my appetite was insatiable, not to mention the headache. Thanks again!

My concern is about alcohol in general. No one NEEDS beer. There is a very real risk in transfer addiction. There are a lot of people after WLS who become alcoholics.

General rule of thumb- bubbles bad. I doubt you did any major damage to your band in one night, I just would not recommend making this a habit. Not only does beer contain carbonation it also has a lot of calories.
The hard stuff without the bubbles takes less to give you a buzz so you don't get the carbonation and you take in less calories. Like someone said above wine can be enjoyed. New Year's Eve I had a glass of wine while my friends toasted with champagn. I figured out that it takes far less to give me a buzz now than it did when I was 50 lbs heavier.

well, some dr's frown on carbonation (from beer and soda etc)..we cant do anything about what you did now.....its over and done with. as betty said, better choices need to be made esp since you are kinda still newly banded...if you get very worried, call your dr and let them advise you....as chenie said, wine is better

Stay away from the bubbles. I drink the hard stuff occasionally and haven't had any problems.

I'm sure you know no one is going to tell you that was ok. But you can always make better choices in the future. Good luck.

I have been told many times beer is bad. I have had Wine .

I was banded on 11/15/2012 and have yet to experience Hair loss. Does this mean it might happen later on? :/ I have been taking Biotin since 2 weeks prior to surgery and it has increased my Hair growth. I pray it continues, my hair is thin enough as it is thanks to the flat Iron I used on a daily basis. lol Good luck to all! Hope things work out.

congratulations on learning your lesson about chewing, sorry it had to be the hard way!
Re the bruise after filling - that could just be something you have to live with. I have never had a bruise after a fill. Perhaps you bruise more easily?
Merry Christmas!

You will find after every fill you have to learn to eat all over again. Smaller bites, chew even more, pause between bites a little longer. Life with the band is a big learning experience, especially in the early stages.
Hang in there, you'll get used to it

I am 12 days post op and I am in love with mashed cauliflower. I have also baked the cauliflower pieces in the oven and mashed them up with a lil bit of I cant believe its not butter and it was fabulous. Taste like baked potato. Good luck!

Give your body a little time to recover. We should be active immediately post-op, but two days post-op I consider active walking around the house or maybe down the block... not really shopping. If I lay down or sit too long, it's really hard to get back up because I get stiff and all sore all over again.
Don't overdo it because it will increase your overall recovery time. And the sore throat is from the tube they insert during surgery. That should go away pretty quickly.

Make sure to get your fluids! I was the same way and found that I was dehydrated! I drank tea with Splenda and it really helped with my hydration. After I was properly hydrated, I felt like a new person. I am 6 days post op and can say it does get better every day

Hi lolo,
Expected! It happened to me after I went to mall one day after post op. I'm post op 10 days but its expected. Don't over due it or you'll get a cold like me now. Heating pad. Muscle soreness is expected. I have it everyday especially I'm my abs and back.

I believe it works and am afraid to stop to see! LOL

Hair loss in our mid 20's is hereditary on my mom's side, my grandma is 82 and has been using hair pieces for like the last 10-15 years because without them she is pretty much bald. So my mom started taking Biotin about 7 years ago and I noticed my hair was getting thinner too so I started taking them and my sister started as well a few years ago when she noticed thinning, and we are both young, she's 29 and I'm 31 and yes the Biotin makes a difference. It makes our hair thicker and stronger and I have by far way less split ends then I used to. The Vitamins can be pricey and when I finish a bottle and go longer then a month without buying another one, I start to see way more hair coming out in the shower when I wash it. So yes, It definetly helps!