make33

Hey you two!! Nice to hear from two good blokes from merry old!! My mother was a war bride from Welling Kent and my aunt (and other family) is there--living in Sidcup Kent! I'm so glad to see you've taken the right approach--knowing that this IS permanent and not just another diet to be followed! I really think that many don't research this tool enough and then are surprised when they can't eat as they always have. My best to both of you from Pennsylvania... :eek:

Wha-hoo for you!!! Like you, I was BLOWN AWAY when I was approved! Welcome (and yes, learn all you can about your future life BEFORE surgery!!) :confused:

I'm with Kacee--there certainly ARE ways to trick the band--eating five or six times a day, taking down chocolate, (which melts very easily, I can assure you!) cakes, or other goodies--ingesting way too many carbs! I was even eating 1/2 cup of oatmeal for Breakfast and decided it was too much and cut it back to 1/4 cup--was I still hungry? No--because I told myself breakfast was done! I've gotten two fills and I know I have a way to go to my "sweet spot" (I've got 1.5 cc in a 10 cc band)--so until I reach the right cc for me, it's GOT to be a lot of me! (Visits for fills are six weeks apart) That's why it is SO important to have the proper mindset when deciding to get the band--the band is NOT going to do the work for you!! :confused:

When I put an outfit on for work that I hadn't been able to fit into for months--only to find out the pants kept slipping down!! (no belt loops or waistband!) (It's now in my "to be given away" clothes!) :confused:

What kind was it?? Did it have lactose? And what have you been using pre and post surgery?? I find the

We had to switch to decaf at work because the boss has a heart issue, so I would say it took me about four days before it finally went away! Now if I have caffeine, it's okay and if I don't, it's okay too! And hey, your energy level after surgery is way up without the caffeine!! :ranger: (drinking decaf!)

It took me so long to figure it out, I've got a Word doc on it (and I've given it out so many times here!) So here goes: Go into the website Trying To Conceive Ticker and create your own ticker (be sure to remember your password!) At the end, highlight everything in the top box (the bb: box), right click and hit Copy. Then come into this site and go to UserCP in the Menu Bar. Go to Edit Signature on the left. Left click in the big box. Then right click and hit Paste. You should see your ticker appear. Be sure to go to the bottom of the page and click on Save Signature. When it comes back, you'll see your ticker at the top of the page. (Then to change it, all you have to do is to double click on the one at the top of the page)... __________________ Hope this helps! (I'm a trainer at work!) :biggrin1:

I am a BIG (no pun intended) Equal and Sweet N Low user and it was the first thing I checked into! Go nuts! It's perfectly okay...:confused:

If you were to use the whey Protein isolate powder, you COULD use 1 1/2 scoops in the 6 oz of Water and shake it up, which would give you 30 grams of protein. I was only getting 40 grams pre-op and then for two weeks post-op--it's too tough to get more at that time! I'm a chocoholic, so I buy belgian chocolate or chocolate malt flavors of whey protein isolate (NOT CONCENTRATE) from Amazon.com: Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, books, DVDs & more (and I always make sure to get the free shipping!). They honestly do taste great in just water!! Hang in, big guy, this time will fly by and soon you won't even remember it much!

These Christmas stories are such a hoot!! OMG, thanks everyone for brightening up this workday!!!

Have you gauged what you are eating through the use of a food Log? Check out the calories, Protein, and carbs you are intaking daily. Not drinking with your meals, are you? For the 6 months before I had surgery, I read everything I could find out about the Band and came across one woman's blog about her post-op experiences from Nov 06 through June of 07. It made interesting reading, but I did wonder how she could eat some of the foods she did (i.e. Christmas of 2006) Turns out she divulged in June of 2007 that she had started out by "sipping" with her meals and progressed to actually drinking with them!(h-h-h-e-e-l-l-l-o-o-o, washing the food right out of the pouch!) Are you exercising? If not, you may want to join a good gym or Curves near you--it's great for the psyche too! If you are only eating 1/2 cup of food three times a day (with a Protein shake or two interspersed) and watching everything that goes in, I'd say just bide your time and you're bound to begin losing again!

Wow--that is too funny!! I was so used to just stuffing everything in my mouth, barely tasting anything at all--that the real art of eating slowly and really chewing (and tasting, of all things!) food alluded me! This was my biggest shock--tasting foods! (and yes, I have had some changes in my taste buds also regarding foods I liked and disliked!) We now know that at 1/2 cup a meal, we value every morsel and make better choices for each meal!! :hungry:

The general rule for Bariatric Surgery is a BMI (Body Mass Index) of 40, and I'm sorry to say you only have a BMI of 36. Were you denied by the doctor or by your insurance company? If it was the doctor, call around in your area and see if you can locate one who will accept you. If it was your insurance company, you're going to have to consider being a self-pay. To reach a BMI of 40, you'd have to weigh 256 # - Keep the faith and something will turn up for you...

When I was doing a food log for my nutritionist for six months prior to surgery, I found this absolutely GREAT website Nutrition facts, calories in food, labels, nutritional information and analysis – NutritionData.com whereby I put in the food I ate and it actually gave me a real nutrition label for the food! The girls in my office have just found other aspects to this website they love, but I mainly use it for specific nutritional information. Good luck!

I know that some people have different issues, but one reason for some could be the lack of Protein. Make sure to get 40 grams pre-op and then 60 - 80 grams post-op. (i.e. a Protein Shake either made with powder or a canned shake is 20-24 grams of protein, so two a day sets you up pretty well!) Both of his children of a friend of mine had bypass surgery within the last two years and yet when I asked him what kind of Protein Shakes they used, he said "None". Maybe you can eat more with bypass, (?) but I KNOW I can't get enough protein in just by eating 1/2 cup three times a day! (Especially since I LOVE my oatmeal for breakfast=no protein!). :hungry:

Like all of you, I had serious doubts whether this 'tool' would really work for ME. Yeah, I read all of the wonderful things everyone was saying but I kept thinking "They're not like me--I'll bet their metabolism is different from mine! I'll have this surgery and never lose a pound!" And wha-laa!!! And like Audric, I am losing at a rate of 1 - 2 pounds a week--simply unbelievable!! And the very best of it all? I am FULL all of the time now!!!!! Congrats Jaymie, you go girl!

I was allowed Slim Fast Lo Carb and have recently found a canned drink called "Zoic" which has 80 less calories, less fat, less carbs, and more Protein than Slim Fast. I was also permitted anything sugar free, including fudgsicles--but each surgeon is different. Try this website to order what you decide to use (make sure to look for "free shipping"): Amazon.com: Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, books, DVDs & more Best of luck to you!

Luckily she's the exception instead of the rule! But sometimes in reading these posts, I must admit that I think some people think this is just "another diet" and if they don't like it, they can change their minds. You've proven what my mantra has been all along: the surgeon (and his Bariatric Center) is the leader and we MUST follow what they instruct us to do--it's the only way to play!! Thanks for warning the "young ones", Justin!!

Well, I did exactly as you are doing--I was practicing for the whole month before surgery--and I'm sorry to say it really doesn't help! (sorry!) After surgery you will be "sipping" for a few days, and then you may go to the soft / mushies, where you can use a small spoon and the food will pretty much slide right down without much chewing. You will remember-when it comes time-to chew, chew, chew and eat very slowly--and I thought I was totally great at it because I never had an issue: Until Wednesday, when I let some tuna fish go down without being chewed enough. I will just say that when you don't chew enough once, you learn your lesson well, girlfriend! My very best to you and your pre-op testing!

Everyone has said exactly what I was thinking! The only thing I want to add is that I'm almost three months post-op and when I gained 2 # at Thanksgiving, I started doing my food log again (like I did for my nutritionist for six months prior to surgery.) What I discovered is that I'm taking in 600-750 calories a day (and that includes 2 Protein shakes @ 100 calories each)--so by all means, don't put much store in that "1000 calories". Like everyone else said, it's MUCH MORE IMPORTANT that you get in all the Protein you need (and NOT from meat/ham, girlfriend!)--get yourself some whey protein isolate powder and drink, drink, drink!:biggrin1:

Yep, always on company time...... ooops! I AM addicted-- Sometimes I get a little burned out like when I read where someone did something really dumb and wants forgiveness from everyone and I stay away for a while (i.e. 4 hours!!!) but then I'm right back on again!! Thanks everyone, for making me feel sane!! :ranger:

whey Protein isolate is extremely pure and comes in such a variety of flavors and mixes with just a spoon or a shaker!! The website I use the most is Amazon.com: Online Shopping for Electronics, Apparel, Computers, books, DVDs & more especially if you watch for free shipping too! Just be sure not to get whey protein concentrate, which uses lactose as a major filler and must be blended in a blender! When I go to the drugstore and it just says "Whey Protein" I automatically assume it's concentrate--especially if it's low priced. (You will find the isolate is a little more expensive) Good luck to you!

Here's what I think: this Lap Banding is FOREVER...do you realize that?? This isn't just a temporary surgery that you will "get over" and be able to go back to your ways! Read everything you can on the band--there are a lot of vegetables you may not be able to do (you say you are a vegan)--and your lapse of judgment shows that you are not taking this surgery seriously. Perhaps you SHOULD reconsider this--it may not be your time yet.

I have just spent the better part of this morning (company time!) laughing out loud at this entire thread! You guys are just too hilarious! My insurance company wanted to see what I had done over the years to try to lose weight myself--and I almost laughed out loud! So I comprised a list, which I provided to every doctor I saw also--the list began with pills and shots in the early 80's (I KNOW you can see my age!) but what you might not know is that the shots were from the urine of pregnant women!!! When I began losing my hair in clumps, the doctor's office said "Oh, we need to change your thyroid pill!" That was the END of that two-year effort (even though I went from 177 down to 121)!! Here's some others I tried but haven't seen yet: The Formu-3 Diet Centers (you buy their dry tasteless food), Herbal-Life powder, Redux (ended up with some $ from that class action lawsuit!), Susan Powder (who I truly believed in--look at her, she was so thin!) Hypnosis at our local Holiday Inn (with a gazillion other people in the room) Now, I fully believe in what Longhorn says--after Thanksgiving I had actually gained two pounds and decided to start my Food Log again (like I did for the six months prior to surgery for my nutritionist) and discovered that I am taking in between 600 - 750 calories a day (which includes my two protein shakes @ 100 calories each), am working out at Curves twice a week and the YMCA twice a week--and yet I am losing at a very slow (although consistent) pace!! Wouldn't you think a person with a normal metabolism would be losing weight like crazy?? Well, believe me I'm not complaining! Like Longhorn, I had very clear doubts about the Band actually working for ME--I had been eating all the right foods and I've been working out since 1983--so I really doubted the fact that it would do me any good... Thank you, LapBand, thank you.........!

Hey, all I can say is welcome to every one of you!! Man, the hospitals must have been hopping all over the US!!! Everyone, take good care of yourselves.... :eek: