RockinGal

I am having my first cycle since banding and stepping onto the scale was a grand disappointment this morning. I was 1# away from being in the onesies club. I gained 4# & I knew it was happening! I have massive cravings and they all occur as I lay in bed trying to sleep. I have Fibromyalgia and pain causes insomnia. I gave in and tried to cheat decent by using Atkins indulge bars (1 per eve.) so I wasn't getting a lot of sugar and still getting Protein but it was a fail on my part. I knew it was wrong doing it, I make no excuses. I am just looking to you ladies for any advice on how you deal with this issue. It seemed worse than normal but possibly because I am hyperfocused on what I eat now. I am trying to exercise as much as possible which is difficult since I broke my leg in 5 places in bad accident in August. Still unable to walk unaided and waiting on total knee replacement in about 6 weeks. Once that is complete I am told I will have full range of movement and will be able to walk and use pool for therapy and exercise. I know that will help with being satisfied and feeling in control, until then any advice is greatly appreciated.

Thank you guys for the support! Come on March!

Remember how you felt carrying around that 90lbs that should be momentum enough.

As I posted before.... The fear is legit .... We are all DIET EXPERTS, but we've never been MAINTENANCE EXPERTS. But, then again, we didn't have our bands. I'll be following this thread closely. I'm not near there, but I love to read and become INFORMED. You all have become important to me!!!!

It takes our bodies a bit of time after the surgery trauma for the band to work. You heal for a very long time and your stomach slowly adapts to this device around it. Just follow your doctors directions on what to eat and introduce more Protein into your diet. The weight loss was slow at first for me, then it just happened.
Best wishes and Keep the Faith.

Going through the same thing as well. Nice to know we are together in this. Don't get discouraged, follow Dr. orders and watch for losses with tape measure. I know I have morphed dramatically in face and legs since my procedure on Jan.22,2014. Waiting on 1st fill to start really learning how to use this band to help me.
Sorry, about second pic. Was supposed to be my face before vs. 1 month after. Can't figure out how to get the other off. I had 2 incisions that just got horribly inflamed.

God bless you for bringing up this topic! What an absolutely wonderful thing to do. You and I think much the same. If I can't use it be a blessing to those who need it. I am an organ donor already if there were to be accident or I passed away, this is just another way to pass forward a kindness that could go to multiple recipients. I have always wished I had the $ to be more philanthropic, by donating skin you can do something that cash alone can't.
The Lord works in strange ways, it may be part of the destiny planned for us in overcoming our weight loss obstacles. We know the sting of being ridiculed and made fun of, so what a perfect expression of showing love to those who need help than to give someone and their Family the happiness and joy we now feel.
Great post!!!!!!

IDS New whey liquid Protein shots. 42g of Protein in a 3.4oz tube.....maybe start with half of one at a time.
180 calories and less than 2g of carbs.

There are also Protein shots you can take they are low in carbs and high in Protein, you can also look for soy protein and tofu.
You want to find things that are going to help your band work and more solid protein. How about fish?

I eat hard boiled eggs every day for Breakfast. Beans are high Protein. Peas, Broccoli, and spinach have good amounts of protein too. I love the Morning Star Farms Spicy Black Bean burgers. I spread a little hummus on them. Yummy.

Thanks to you all, will be going in tomorrow. Wish this all hadn't occurred over the weekend. Fluids are going in fine but have to be room temp or warm tea and broth.
Hate the onset of evenings when fevers go up and you feel worse in general. Using my post surgical pain meds and anti nausea. So much drainage that tummy is very irritated plus all the coughing/sneezing is making main incision and port sore. Hanging in there.
So sorry it hit you so hard it landed you in hospital. 30# of fluids would totally waterlog you, hope you weren't that dehydrated and that some of that was preventative fluids.
Leepers, nice to see you all over the board.

I am 4 weeks on Friday and for some reason having gas pains in upper left shoulder just as though I had surgery a few days ago. It happens, hang in there.
I used a heating pad on the area for the 1st week or so and it made things so much more comfortable. Hope that may help.

refried Beans on baked tortilla chips with some low fat cheddar cheese. I also like chicken Soup blenderized all together. I like to make a cheese roux and add chicken stock and some over cooked vegetables like broccoli or asparagus. my go to when I am on mushies is eggs sunnyside up with some pico de gallo or sririchi. chili. atthis point I bought chili without Beans. man that first bite was heaven. I licked the little bowl. it is important since you have no restriction to really concentrate on the portion sizes. it would be so easy to eat a whole can of chili. but if you don't learn portion size it is very difficult when you are getting your fills. so learn all you can about eating properly. or you will be in mental pain all the time. good luck as you advance your phases.

It's hard! Now is the time to dig deep and find the strength inside. You will love yourself for making it through. You can do it.

the dr will tell you if you have a slip
try not to worry although you will.....
dont fret until there is something wrong...
PS: when i burp, its my bands way of saying
i had enough, a signal.......

I love Dr. Robbins as well. Was banded Jan. 22nd & will be getting 1st fill in a little over a week. I think we have a very good team and are pretty lucky to be working with people who are passionate about understanding the issues of obesity and get the huge component of emotional/addiction eating.

I am now 2 weeks. And feel I might implode. Finally did get some relief the other night and it was hilarious. My 4 year old slept with me that night and I had my escape valve finally blow. Here is this little guy who out of dead sleep wakes and says "Mom, if you fart again and giggle shaking the bed I'm sending you to jail. I need to sleep not worry about breathing." I told him I was to be called the Tormentor. Gotta love a kid that young that has such a great sense of humor already.

I thought green means going 4 or 5 hrs without getting hungry between meals. Not "no hunger at all". ?

I like that idea Misty. Was actually thinking about doing the same thing. Though I was thinking about wrapping a couple pieces of thin deli meat around a cheese string.

My band has always been tighter in the morning. I start my day out with a smoothie (Protein powder, milk, greek yogurt, various fruit). By lunch time, it's loosened up & I'm ready to eat more solid/dense Protein. Alternatively, as Cheryl suggested, drinking a hot beverage in the morning should loosen your band as well.
Wouldn't it be awesome if the reverse were true... tighter in the evenings!?!

I agree, it looks like an ingrown hair. I would pop it and put peroxide on it a few times a day. If it doesn't get better, go to the doc. With things like MRSA, these days, you can't be too safe.

I haven't had this experience yet either, thanks for asking the question. I'll be watching the replies.

I just want to say this to those who are newly banded. If you are weighing yourself every single day and get disappointed that it's not moving every day, then you need to stop weighing yourself every day or know that the scale will fluctuate anywhere from 3 to 9lbs per day. You retain Water and it will go up. Our bodies fluctuate weight every day. What I weigh today may not be what I weigh tomorrow. This is the very same thing that like any other diet will make you fail. If you can't adjust your mind to the numbers on the scale without being disappointed or sad then you need to get rid of your scale. When I weigh myself and I see the scale go up a few pounds its okay. I might be retaining water or need to move my bowels tmi I know but its true or maybe I did not sleep good the night before. If you are doing everything right then stop worrying when the scale doesn't move. Some people go for months and don't lose weight. Normal weight loss for lapband patients is 1 to 2 pounds PER WEEK. Yes that is right 1 to 2lbs a week. Anything more then that is a plus. Put your scales away and concentrate on healing. The first six weeks you probably will not lose one pound and might even gain a few. Your body has to catch up now since it went from 3 to 4, 000 calories a day to maybe not even 500 on Clear liquids. It's holding on to every bit of fat it can right now. Did you gain all your weight in two weeks? No so you wont lose it in two weeks either. If you are disappointed this soon in the game, then what will you really do when you don't lose for six months because it happens. Be patient and know that it will happen.

Here's a simple explanation as to why we stall after 2 weeks:
http://www.dsfacts.com/weight-loss-stall-or-plateau.html
And to those of you that believe they should be losing 10+ lbs a month? This is not a realistic goal. Just do the math. You may lose this kind of weight the first month but after that 4-6 lbs is more realistic.
Very heavy people(mostly guys) who participate in extreme exercising for long periods may lose this kind of weight, but most of us can only look forward to a 500-700 calorie/day deficit which equals about 1.4 lbs a week. jmo
tmf

I think your being to hard on yourself. I am at same timeframe you are post surgical and haven't had a fill yet. Mine will be on 21st as well.
I think we need to remember that the 1st month post OP is about healing and getting used to band just being there. Once we get that 1st fill and start learning how to work with our band then I think we can start to set a monthly goal with the help of your team. I was told 1-2 lbs a week was realistic goal. I was told from the get go that normal for bands is slower in the short term but by 5th year out results were close to sleeve or bypass.
That being said, I also want the satisfaction of immediate results but know it took me a long time to get to place where I needed to be banded so I shouldn't expect it to just fall away post band.
Guess I am writing this to myself as well. I am reminding myself that there is always going to be an accountability factor since that band won't make chocolate cake or toffee bars taste any less amazing. We have to work the tool we chose.
I truly know how you feel about losing quickly. I caught stomach flu Friday and thought well at least I'm cleaned out and should drop 5# with luck. The following day I got influenza and am miserable. Again, my thoughts went to well, since I can't swallow much (sore throat), am still very nauseous etc... and basically drinking power aide zero and soup/broth at least my scale should make me smile. Wrong thinking. Guess what? I stepped on scale & I gained 2#. Don't know how but I know I can't let my scale rule my happiness if I know I am making the right decisions.
Not all successes are in #'s, losing inches is another way to get positive reinforcement without scale. Also, if you are exercising a lot you can gain muscle and it weighs more than fat, so don't be so hard on yourself. We just are getting started.
Smile, we are all on a journey and here to help each other.