parisshel

So many different answers on this thread; it really proves how unique our bodies are and how differently we all respond to the band. I would not be able to eat red meat because I can't chew it down to "applesauce" consistency. Even ground beef...it just is too dry. Same for breads, Pasta. Rice I could eat but I choose not to, as I have to eat it too slowly to bother. Who want to eat rice one grain at a time? I can't chew lettuce enough to have it go down safely, but I can chew endive properly so that is my salad base. Contrary to other commentors here, I can eat eggs in any form with no problem. It's one of my go-to sources of Protein when I'm too tired to cook. I can also eat nuts easily and I often use them in my endive salad.

No, I don't eat the same things that I ate prior to being banded. I cannot eat any red meat, for example, and that used to be something I'd cook a couple of times a week for dinner. Now, only my kids get hamburgers, but not me. One of the biggest changes is that I don't include a traditional starch at every meal, which was always my way of eating before. Before, my Breakfast would include bread, either in the form of toast or a croissant. Every single day! lunch would also include a starch: bread or chips or potatoes...I really needed this to feel full. Dinner was the same: it included Pasta or rice or bread. I thought I was eating "balanced" because I hit all the food groups! Now, I don't eat any bread or bread products, rice, pasta, or couscous. I haven't had a sandwich in three months. I can't imagine even being able to eat bread without it getting stuck, and I don't want to see if I can, because then it is a slippery slope back to eating as I did before. I eat much more protein--that is the ticket to staying full for me. Much more fish than ever before...I eat fish most everyday. (Before the band, I would have fish maybe once every two weeks.) As for staches, I eat bits of potato or sweet potato, or I have another starchy veg like peas or Beans. But not until I've eaten my Protein. I used to drink a lot of carbonated Water and one diet coke a day. I stopped all carbonated beverages the day of my surgery and have never had one since. Now I only drink milk or water or iced tea. I do miss my fizzy water, but not enough to go against my post-op rules. I used to eat dessert...a lot of dessert. I couldn't imagine not having Cookies or cake after my meals...and snacking on them in the afternoon. Now if I have a sweet, I have one cookie (the size of an oreo...not a "big" mall-sized cookie) and I don't eat cake at all. Most importantly, I am not forcing myself to eat this new way. I am able to eat this new way and not feel that old feeling of "dieting" because my band has turned down my hunger/cravings. Also, without the traditional carbs my cravings are dimmed as well. Hope this helps!

I gained 3 kgs during the period between my first consultation and my surgery...I walked into the hospital wearing the ONLY pair of pants that fit me. Ugh. That said, I did enjoy the holiday season eating everything without guilt or restraint, as I knew I was going to do a 360 in March. And I did. And I totally threw out that one pair of pants once it got too big.

Can you recommend some good Facebook pages that aren't filled with products being pushed? Thanks.

Three months post op and this is a typical daily menu for me: When I wake up, I drink a glass of Water. 30 mns after that I have breakfast: either a small bowl of oatmeal, or a slice or two of dry cracker--like Melba toast--spread with a bit of butter and jam. Mid-morning I drink my coffee and milk beverage (around 11 am). lunch is always 50-100 grams of Protein, usually fish or chicken. I do not eat red meat since being banded, as I can't chew it enough to swallow it safely. With that I have a small salad usually endive with either some bits of avocado or some crumbled nuts mixed in. I'll have a calcium-based snack in mid afternoon: a small (100 gr) plain yogurt, or a small bit of cheese. dinner is the same as lunch, but with some cut up fruit (right now I'm doing watermelon or cantalope) instead of the salad. (No room for both in my little pouch.) Here is the list of what I don't eat, by personal choice: Pasta, any bread or breadlike item such as croissants or cake, rice, couscous (semolina), red meat, even hamburger, veal, pork I sip on water all day long. The hardest bandster rule for me is not drinking during a meal, because I'm really used to drinking when eating. (Plus I'm thirsty when I eat!) I don't particularly use light or low-fat items, and I don't consume processed foods, Where I live it is very easy to live on whole, not genetically-modified foods so I'm lucky. If there are any pre-ops reading this, don't let this scare you. I thought I'd really miss being able to eat "normal" (or huge) quantities of food, and that I'd feel really deprived having to follow my postop directives, but for me that is not at all the case. For that I am so grateful that I finally got the band, and stopped dieting the traditional way.

Let's see....before I went to college I did the pregnant women's urine injections. (I can't believe my mother paid for this.) Acupuncture by "stapling" my ears (also paid for by my mother). Once I had a physiotherapist recommend The Papaya Diet for spot reducing. "It will take the fat off your hips but leave your breasts!!!" he said. Um....I didn't go back to him.

I had some restriction with the empty band alone. I feel I have about the same restriction now with a 4cc fill in a 10cc band. That said, 80% of my restriction is done mentally , but the band makes the remaining 20% easier for me. The band has significantly dimmed my appetite so that makes making appropriate choices easier.

Agree with labwalker; that's a whole lotta saline in one fell swoop. I'm not surprised you are feeling very restricted. See if it settles in; if not I'd get some taken out. You want to be able to eat comfortably and not have to resort to slider foods just to eat.

You've done fantastic, both on the weight loss and marriage fronts! Sounds like you are really living well with your band...not relying on an overly tight band for limiting your calories, but doing it yourself with a "little" help from this tool. Be proud of yourself!

Hi everybody! Great to read everyone's updates. I had my first fill three weeks ago (4 ccs in a 10 cc band). While I don't notice that much of a difference---I had pretty good restriction with an unfilled band already--it gave a bit of a jumpstart to my weight loss and my weight is moving down at a nice pace: 2 pounds a week consistently, whereas before my fill I had a lot of stalls. Now I see a little drop each time I step on the scale! I'm pleased with this overall. At one point I had this feeling of "Hey, I could've gotten the same results with Weight Watchers!" but that was just a brief moment of insanity. Because I never would've stuck it out this long with WW without falling off the wagon, or feeling deprived, or feeling insanely hungry and always thinking about my next snack or meal. With the lapband, I have none of that old dieter mindset. As I said to someone yesterday, for me, the lapband doesn't make losing weight easy, but it makes it simple. Good to see everybody, and keep checking in! Have a great summer in your new, smaller body!

Banded in March and have also noticed an effect on my vocal chords. I've never read about anyone else experiencing this so I'm glad to see your post. I was thinking it was merely dry food sitting on my vocal chords, because when I drink water 30 mns after eating, the problem resolves itself. But I hate how my voice sounds all cracky after I eat...until I can drink. I'm going to mention this to my surgeon at my next check up.

I don't think age has anything to do with the success or failure of lapband surgery. There are a lot of older people on this board who have had great success with this tool. I'm 54 and very pleased with my loss so far; it's slower than some but at the same time I like a loser band, I'm fairly sedentary, I'm just out of menopause...all factors that contribute to a slower loss. But hey, 2 lbs/week is perfect for my lifestyle. You are recently banded and it is normal you haven't lost yet...you are still healing. Please don't feel bad about this; it is absolutely normal. Many people actually gain a bit after surgery while waiting to find their sweet spot. Please give your band some time; follow your postop directives to the letter and you will see...this will work for you, but you need to do your part, too.

I had nausea the day after my fill but it wasn't because I was too tight. Something about the fill (or the barium drink) just made me bilious. It calmed down after a couple of days.

Well done, beautiful lady! And a big thank you for all the support you give us on this forum! You really do pay it forward.

This is the best response I've read on this thread and says everything I've been thinking. I wonder what the true motivation is behind anyone (not just the OP) coming onto any forum and bashes the theme of that forum. I cannot be to prevent people from getting the lapband...because I know of no one who would read something like this and suddenly decide not to get a lapband, based on one person's experience. Everybody does their own risk/benefit analysis, and their decision should be respected, whether it be to go ahead and have surgery or not. Your analogy to the risk of getting a pedicure is a good one. And if you went on a pedicure forum and told your story, do you think it would stop people from getting pedicures? No, it would not. Things happen all the time. Life is a constant weighing of risk, and we all like to mitigate as much risk as possible with every decision we make.

Please update us on Missy when someone hears something. She has been such solid support for many of us on this forum. And let her know we are thinking about her.

I don't use them except for if I have to replace a meal...I always have one in my purse in case I can't eat a real meal and feel my blood sugar dropping. That said, I like Atkins and hate Quest bars. I cannot understand the good reviews about Quest bars...they are slimy, taste awful and unnatural. On the other hand, one would never binge on them so that's a good thing!

Could be blood sugar, or meds, or low Iron. Have you had a complete lab workup lately? I'd start there. Well done on your impressive weight loss!

I did a big food funeral for the three months leading up to my surgery....gained about 10 pounds, I'd say. But have been completely compliant with the post op directives since my surgery...and am down now 24 pounds. I don't have any regrets...yeah, I could be at a lower weight right now had I not allowed myself everything I wanted. On the other hand, this all took place during the Christmas holiday season and it was the first holiday season I've ever experienced guilt-free. I ate everything, loved it, and didn't feel bad because I knew I was going to change my life on March 20th. So I totally get what you are posting about, and I suspect lots of WLS patients do this as well.

Oh, that's a relief. So maybe the movement (the slip) was provoking irritation. I'm glad they caught it before it got worse. I hope the unfill resolves it, and you can stay strong while this clears up!

Just commenting to say I love your user name. (Also, good advice.)

I've always liked sweets and did not find the band increased that. What I have found, however, is that if I don't start on the sugar, the desire for it goes away. Post surgery I was weeks without sugar and didn't think about it. Now that I can have a small treat from time to time, I think about sugar. Which means I really have to cut it out altogether, because it "calls" to me and can hinder my weight loss efforts.

I incorporate cheese often, but in tiny amounts. Dabs of goat cheese in my salad, or melted grated cheese on refried beans. Just enough for the taste and a hit of calcium and protein. I never, however, just eat it on its own.

The very first bariatric surgeon I consulted told me he no longer did lapbands, and said "they now take out more lapbands than they put in." So I found another surgeon. That surgeon told me he refused to do the Sleeve, based on the lack of longterm data (the procedure is still considered "new", certainly when compared with the Lapband), and (more importantly, at least to me), that he currently had several sleeved patients on his ward in the hospital, being treated for leaks along the staple line. And that is one long hospital stay, when those leaks happen, with bad consequences for the pouch. In the end, I choose the lapband because cutting out part of my stomach? Um, no. Just the thought makes me squeamish.

This sounds like my experience. Next time, I won't be so anxious. Knowledge is power!