parisshel

I didn't have coffee on the "no" list; in fact I was served a cup of it postop in the hospital! That said, I don't tolerate the caffeine content anymore---too much of a "zip" now that my calories are so low. So I drink chicory mix coffee (like they do in New Orleans!) or decaf. Otherwise: I usually eat the same thing for breakfast every day, alternating between: --two melba toast like crackers with butter and jam (lightly spread) or softened Peanut Butter (2 tsp total) or oatmeal with a bit of butter and brown sugar. I don't use light products--no access to them where I live--but I don't get freaked out about using "real" butter, sugar, etc. I just don't load up my stuff with it.

Thanks, Jean, for this thorough response. I also think that given the radiation does one incurs with fluoroscopy, it is perhaps not a good idea to do more than one fill/year this way. I'm particularly grateful to read your last paragraph, as today I'm quite uncomforable with this fill (I sense I've very sensitive to restriction). I can drink fine, but trying to get mushies down is just not happening. I will wait a few days to see if the band / stomach settles in, if not...back to the radiologist to get some saline withdrawn.

I felt this same way as you. I had an empty band and a (relatively) slow loss but I was pleased with my loss. I felt restriction even with the empty band and stuck to my prescribed portions. I did not want to get a fill, but at the same time if I didn't, my surgeon would have seen me as a non-compliant patient. (He's a bit of a jerk anyway.) I specifically ask the radiologist doing my fill for a "small" fill....like 2 ccs in my 10 cc band. He did 4 ccs, saying really I should have had 5. And today I am completely nauseous. I had to stay home from work, in fact. I sense I'm one of those people who are very sensitive to restriction and I should have listened to my instincts rather than trying to comply with the surgeon's orders. If I'm still ill tomorrow, I'm going to get some or all of the fill taken out. I don't care if I'm only losing 2 pounds a week---that's fine by me. That's 2 pounds a week with no hunger or cravings....and, more importantly, no nausea!

For my protein sources, I turn to beans (kidney, garbanzo, refried), hummous, lentils, loads of fish, yogurt, milk or soy milk (although I think soy milk has fewer grams of protein vs. cow's milk). I'll have some peanut butter from time to time but it's a trigger food for me. I use toasted sliced almonds on my salads, and add some cubed cheese, too. I wasn't a vegetarian to begin with but gave up meat when I got banded.

This sounds like me, too. No bread, pasta, anything fluffy, no red meat except for rare ground beef and even then it sometimes doesn't go down easily. Also just found I couldn't eat ripe peaches...too fibrous and they get stuck in my throat. Oh well. I can live without peaches.

With the new report out citing the relationship between bariatric surgeries and completed suicides, psych exams should be looking for signs that the pre-op patient is open to consulting post op should suicidal thoughts occur. The psychiatrist I saw prior to my surgery asked me outright if I was the personality type to seek help should I feel despondent after surgery (due to slow loss, or inability to adapt to my changing shape/attention etc).

I bread my fish with crushed and seasoned cornflakes. Drizzle with some oil or spray Pam on them before baking. Yum! Can do with chicken breasts as well.

Previous poster is correct. Ads pop up based on personal interests/browsing history/your demographics. Not that you were browsing "those kind of sites" but perhaps the algorhythm picked up something about weight or weight loss and that ad was generated. Adspace on sites can feature random ads, not necessarily known by the site itself. While there is bought ad space on LBT, there is also space on this site for these random ads to pop up.

@Jenny: I could have written this myself! This is precisely what I'm experiencing, too. Re fat: I make sure to add some avocado to my meal, or some cheese to get in some fat. It helps keep me satisfied and has some benefits such as less-dry skin and hair. Re meat: I can only tolerate moist hamburger, too...no other red meats. That's ok; I'm don't miss steak or pork anyway. Re not waiting until one is starving to eat: my biggest battle, too. Waiting far too long for lunch today, and, as you described, ended up starving AND in pain. My chest still hurts, in fact, and I'm still starving. Must.slow.down. and must not arrive at the table soooo hungry.

It's a good sign that you are doing deep research as you reflect on weight loss options. I'm "only" six weeks post-op, but happy to share my thoughts. I'm not fearing loose skin once I lose my weight, but at my age vanity is less of an issue than it may be for a younger person. I doubt I'd do plastics, (the recovery time is just too long for me) but that is an option for many. In any case, I would NEVER let the fear of loose skin prevent me from taking off my weight...being fat is far uglier imho than having loose skin. My loss has been slower than some others banded on the same date, but I've made my peace with that. I currently have an empty band and that may be part of the slower loss. The important thing for me is that I feel GREAT, that I eat extremely healthfully now, and I'm not gaining weight, which would have been the case had I not gotten banded. I've lost 14 pounds in six weeks---had I not been banded I would have gained during those six weeks at the rate I was eating. So that is a great thing! And I'm hoping my first fill will bring a more rapid weight loss; if not, it's ok because the scale is going down anyway. I have had no nausea nor vomiting. I am extremely compliant with my post-op directives. I was off two weeks and needed that--I was tired after surgery and you are kind of wiped out emotionally plus you don't eat a lot during this time. I'm glad I didn't go back to work immediately. Your last question about adjusting to the new way of eating is the most important question you could ask. For me it was not difficult but I had months of getting my head mentally prepared to make this change. This is not like a diet, by that I mean you do not have the flexibility to "cheat" as you would on a diet. On a traditional diet, the worst thing that can happen if you cheat is you gain weight. With WLS, the consequences of non-compliance are much graver...ranging from discomfort (food stuck, etc) to damaging your insides (stretching out your pouch or esophaegus). So my response to your post is that the most important thing you can do for yourself is be honest with your ability to completely change the way and nature of your eating habits. You cannot go into this surgery on a whim (and that is why I'm thankful there is a pre-op journey to get there). You need to be mentally ready to adhere to your surgeon's post-op rules.

I was recently on a Skype session with the home office and even THEY could hear my stomach! Yes, I've never had so many loud noises. But I'm getting used to it and everybody knows I've got a lapband so I just blame the band. 'Cause I don't have a dog.

Madrid has a number of larger hospitals and clinics. Inquire with the Digestive Surgery department of these...these are the services that do WLS.

I'm 6 weeks post-op with an unfilled (for now--first fill will happen in two weeks) band. Over the weekend I started having some brief but extremely ntense pain between my breasts...like spasms. So painful I had to sit down. Each spasm only lasted about 5 seconds but they recurred; by Monday I was having several per hour. Nothing was stuck (I follow my postop directives to the letter); the pains occured outside of mealtime. The pain was only between the breasts, not radiating out anywhere else. Of course I googled "symptoms of a heart attack" and then saw my GP. Based on an examination and my responses to her questions, she ruled out a heart attack and thought it might be irritation from the band. She put me back on Nexium (I think that is what the drug is called in the US); a pill I had been prescribed for one month following the banding. Because she is unfamiliar with the band (I'm her only patient with one) she advised me to see my surgeon. By Tuesday my symptoms were gone (I had started the Nexium Monday night) and I got in to see my surgeon. He only kept me for 1 minute (but took 100 euros from me for those 60 seconds) and said he thought it was the band moving around (not slipping, but turning) since it was unfilled. He said that once I get my fill it should resolve the problem. Anyone else experience the type of pain I described above and had it resolve with either medication or a fill?

Small storage containers...you'll have lots of leftovers. (Or, just be ok with tossing stuff.) Blender, immersion blender, masher thing.

I was banded a week before you and have only lost 14 pounds. I've just begun adding intentional exercise (vs. just walking) so I hope to see some better weight loss. Otherwise, I stick to 1200 cal/day and follow my post op rules to the letter. I am making peace with the fact I'm a slow loser. What I love however is how good I feel...I no longer go to sleep hating how out of control I was around my food, nor wake up thinking about what I'm going to eat. (I mean what "crap" I'm going to eat.) All that to say that rather concentrating on what I find is a very slow loss, I'm concentrating on how much mental weight has been lifted from my head. Thank you, lapband, and your ability to help me help myself. PS: My band is empty for now, but I've got my first fill coming up on May 15th.

I fly internationally quite frequently and I'm really surprised to read a doctor said no eating before, during or after a flight. My flights are 12-14 hours long! I'd keel over if I didn't eat before, during or after! Maybe for a short domestic flight that rule is feasible, but I'm going to check with my surgeon (who also does a lot of internationally flying) before my next longhaul.

I think it is perfectly normal to question the idea of voluntarily placing a foreign object inside your body...it is indeed pretty science fictionlike when you think about it. That said, many people have plates, screws, etc in their bodies (I have a rebuilt ankle made with titanium!) so it's not all that exceptional. So I look at my band as I view my ankle--without these foreign objects, I'm "broken". But with them, I'm in recovery.

Banded March 20th; first fill May 15th. Wish my current loss was faster but it's a loss so I'm not going to complain. I'm enjoying my way of eating (small portions, no breads, Pasta, anything that might get stuck) but I miss raw vegetables. I haven't yet reintroduced salad stuff as I've read many people have issues with lettuce, raw carrots, etc. Otherwise, I'm pleased with my decision and have no regrets at all so far.

Well done! You can truly see the weight loss!

My girls (15 and 17) have known from my very first consultation. The younger one was scared something would happen to my during the surgery so we talked a lot about that, using facts, statistics and comparing the risk of surgery with the risk of mom staying fat. I'm 5 weeks postop and my kids are teenagers, so the world turns around them and they don't even remark on my eating habits except to complain that I eat too slowly. They do remark that it looks like I've lost some weight, which is nice. But otherwise it's no big thing for them. I'm open with everyone now about my Lapband, so my children knowing about it and possibly talking to others about it is not an issue for me. I would consider the above advice, however, about what you want to teach your kids about honesty and owning your decisions. For me, keeping this a secret would cast a spell of "shame" on the whole thing (secrets = something we are ashamed of) and I want my kids to look at my decision to take back my health and look better as something positive, not something shameful. There is absolutely no shame in having WLS. Au contraire!

I'd love to be part of this. I have no real-life support group where I live; my surgeon/ the hospital did not have one so I only have LBT (and people IRL but they aren't bandsters). I'm overseas but my phone line gives me free calls worldwide.

I went through this prior to my surgery. But the day I got banded, the food funeral stopped. And I don't miss it one bit, seriously. I'm only one month postop, but I've never had a moment where I miss being able to eat "like that" since my band.

Keep reading this board; read only successful weight loss blogs, read successful maintenance blogs. Stay away from "diet blogs" where the writer never loses weight and always looks for pats on the back--it will justify your off-plan behavior. Poke around this site and read the posts of people who have taken off their weight/maintained their weight...let their good habits rub off on you! Studies show that surrounding yourself with people (virtual or real life) who have done this successfully will help keep you on the straight and narrow.

Hmmm. Pork is a dry meat and one I know I stay away from. I've never figured out how to cook pork chops so they stay moist.

I'm totally with you here. Even though I know intellectually this is the norm, I still cannot understand how I cannot see more of a loss at this point. One month post-op, I stay at or under 1200 cal day of real, post-op approved foods (protein first, fruit, veg, no bread, Pasta, etc). I really hate to say this, but one month on Weight Watchers would have had me with a similar loss, and without surgery. That said, I could never sustain Weight Watchers in the longterm, whereas I know I can work the Lapband for life. But I read these blogs/posts where other bandsters banded around my date are dropping weight like crazy and I don't understand why them and not me. And then I get that crazy radio in my head that says that I'll be the ONE person for whom this band does not work.