Ang1982

Ugh, I feel your pain, I was in ketosis state like 3 days out of surgery with the nasty smelling pee, the white tongue and funky mouth taste. ICK. Hopefully going to mushies will help it. Cuz ewwwie.
*hug* hang in there girlie.

It is all a bit confusing but it works out, and you are right that it will get better with time. But for now, let me see if I can help. Most docs, the ones that I know of anyway, say three meals a day but they also allow two or three "snacks" per day. My doc just calls them meals if they are over 100 calories, and says to eat every three hours regardless of what you call it.
I have what I consider perfect restriction (I have found my "sweet spot") and my calories range between 1100-1300 calories per day. I can only eat about 4-6 ounces of food at a time so I try to focus on my Protein first by following the 3-3-1 rule. It goes like this:

Each meal should consist of:
A Protein the size of the palm of your hand or a single deck of cards
A fruit or vegetable the size of your cupped hand
A complex carbohydrate the size of your cupped hand
Note - you portion sizes will get smaller as you get more restriction but this is a good place to start

[*]Follow the 3-3-1 rule

First have 3 bites of your protein
Next have 3 bites of your veggie
Finally have 1 bite of your carb

[*]Take small bites, chew very well, and pace yourself so you will know when you are full. (Using baby spoons and forks is a good way to train yourself to to take smaller bites.)
[*]STOP as soon as you feel satisfied. Do not overeat!


If you are hungry again in less than 2 1/2 hours, you probably didn't eat enough. If you are not hungry in more than 3 1/2-4 hours, you probably ate too much. You should adjust your portions accordingly beginning with your next meal.
I also have at least one Protein shake per day to be sure that I get the minimum required 80 grams of protein in per day (100 grams for men). I usually have two (one as Breakfast and one as my bedtime treat) because I workout a lot and my portions of solid food are so small now (and I like them), but one is enough for most people.
I use American whey Protein powder for several reasons.

It is lactose free (which often means less gas)
It has very few sugars and no artificial sweeteners
It has the highest protein per serving that I found (20g per scoop)
It tastes GOOD! It is not watery or slimy. (The way I make it anyway, see recipe below.)
The price is right. I buy at buildingbrawn.com

As for your question about drinking after a meal, the absolute best you can do is to wait an hour but that is often very hard to do. However, the minimum that you need to wait is 30 mins. so you don't defeat the purpose of the band. The reason for not drinking (in case no one explained it or anyone else is wondering) is that the band works by holding the food you eat in your stoma long enough for your brain to get the message that you are full with only a small amount of food intake. If you drink too soon after eating, the food is washed down through the band, into your vastly larger stomach (like flushing a toilet), before the message is sent. So you end up with all the calories that you just ate AND you are hungry again in a very short order.
To make the best Protein Shake you ever had, try this.

In a personal sized blender (I use the Hamilton Beach personal blender with travel lid 51101; just Google it)
Add the following ingredients (in this order for best results)
2 scoops American whey vanilla protein powder
3 teaspoons Hershey's baking cocoa (it has no fat, no sugar, and only 50 calories and is crucial to the flavor and cuts down on the air bubbles)
4 ice cubes
1/2 to whole banana (the potassium benefit outweighs the "cost" of natural sugars in the banana)
enough Water to fill the cup

[*]Blend completely
[*]ENJOY completely!


Substitutions/Additions:


For more Calcium use milk instead of water
Add 3 tablespoons of vanilla yogurt
If you add these ingredients, put them in the cup first and blend with the Protein Powder and cocoa before you add the other ingredients or the shake will not blend well.

Well, I know that is a lot of information to digest at once so I am going to stop. But please feel free to ask all the questions you want. I am full of ......opinions, yeah, opinions. I have also been banded for 18 months now and I have learned a few things, but I still remember how confused I was in the beginning too. You can PM me if you don't want to post your questions publicly, although others usually benefit when you do.
Good luck, and again, welcome to the losers' club! :cool2:

Hahaha I am sitting here at work grinning and giggling like a school girl. Too funny and too crazy.
Although I do not know much info on the DS weight loss surgery and up until today had no idea they had that issue but I do not understand why someone would opt for that surgery vs band or RNY. You may lose weight but eating high fat foods cannot be good for you in other ways.
Crazyness.

My luck I would forget they are in there - dump the whole litterbox in the garbage and throw them out by accident. Or, my DF would be wanting to help out and do the same haha.

Oh my gosh! Was it a smaller plane? Cuz something tells me one 500 lb guy on a 747 wouldn't make that much difference. How embarrasing for the poor fellow.
Granted I haven't flown as often as some but I've NEVER had to put my arm rests down on a flight. I didn't even realize that this was supposedly a "law". Interesting. I too have had the occasional flight that was almost empty and got to sprawl acrsos all 3 seats - no one said a thing.

Jet fuel price was $142.29 a barrel.