Lillyanne_M

I don't think there's anyone on here that doesn't love to eat! :smile: The great thing about the band is that you probably won't feel like eating for a while after the surgery. If your doctor is like mine, you'll be on liquids and then pureed foods for a while and, at least for me, it helped me adjust my appetite and eating habits. I still have to watch what I eat, but it's easier than before. Knowing you can't eat some things without making yourself sick helps a lot too. I absolutely HATE being nauseated and throwing up so that's a great motivator. The size of your pouch will help you eat a lot less. Don't worry so much, it's going to be the best thing you ever did for yourself!

Hi I have fibromyalgia too, although mine is a mild case compared with many people. I can tell you that losing over 40 pounds has made a difference in my joint pain for sure. The biggest impact on my pain I believe has been cutting out the sugar. I had surgery Jan 9th and stayed off the sugar for about 3 months and had almost no symptoms of Fibro! I slipped and got back on some sugary foods and it came back. I got off the sugar again and the pain, fatigue and crabbiness is almost all gone again. Simple. No one knows for sure what causes Fibro but at least for me, I now know for sure what aggravates mine. I can also tell you that when I don't get enough exercise, I start getting depressed. When I get back in the gym, I feel much better. Good luck and stay positive. This will be the best thing you've ever done for yourself!

1. It's not my band that tells me I can't eat Pasta and rice. It's my doctor! It is hard to stay away from those things, but I'm following his advice as closely as I can. It's no different from other diets in that respect. Which leads me to 2. I don't feel like an imposter because I guarantee I'm working as hard as anyone else on a supervised diet. Sometimes, this is even harder than Weight Watchers because my doctor says I have to stay low carb. It is definitely possible to overeat and defeat this band. Also, I don't exactly volunteer the info that I have a band. I don't lie about it, but I say I'm eating less and exercising more. And that's the honest truth. The band is not magic. This is a lot of work! Good Luck!

This is me all over. I've always been overweight so I have no idea what I'll look like when I get to goal. I still have 60 lbs to go and I've only been this thin one other time in my adult life. The other day, I noticed a man looking at me and it freaked me out a little. I'm so used to thinking people are looking at me because I'm the fattest person in the room - especially here in South Florida, which is kind of like L.A. when it comes to the amount of time people put into how they look. It occured to me that now, I'm not sure why he was looking at me. Maybe it was because he thought I was attractive? Who knows? I certainly don't and I'm afraid I'll never have the confidence to say, "OF COURSE he was looking at me because I'm HOT!" This is something my sister would never even debate in her head. She would just naturally assume he was staring because he thought she was cute. I don't think I'll ever feel that way and it makes me a little sad.

I was 199.4 this morning too! Congratulations to US!

I officially go to Onederland this morning!!!!!!!!! WOOHOO!:thumbs_up:

I wanted to share my small victory today and ask if you'd like to share yours: I sat down on one of my dining room chairs to tie my shoes today and realized the arms of the chair were not squeezing my hips! I actually fit comfortably in the chair. I could've cried. I didn't mention it to my husband who was standing near me because I just don't think he would have been as excited as I was about it, but I knew you all would understand. :ohmy:

I went on a cruise a couple of weeks ago and was a bit worried about the food. I relaxed a lot and found there were lots of things I could eat and I just stopped when I was full. I don't really have any problem foods because I avoid most breads and rice and stuff. I just ate the Protein and a little of the veg on my plate. The dining room even offered a sugar-free dessert every night, which I did order and enjoy. Of course, by the time dessert rolled around I was pretty full, so I only took a few bites, but it was enough. Since you have the same waiter every night on a cruise, ours started to notice I wasn't eating much of my meals. He asked me a few times if I didn't like my food. I just said I was full. He caught on eventually. Then one night he actually asked why I always ordered the sugar free dessert. He wanted to know if I was diabetic! I laughed it off and just said sugar isn't good for me. Anyway, I actually LOST a pound on that cruise, which has to be a first on any cruise anywhere! I think eating out is totally doable and shouldn't cause you any anxiety. Just eat your protein first, stop when you're full, and don't sweat it!

My doc says no coffee because it's an appetite stimulant. I find exactly the opposite to be true for me. When I drink my cup of coffee in the morning I don't feel like eating until about 11 am. What can I say, it's all I have left!

I got my first fill of 4cc 5 weeks after surgery. I'm doing great!

I guess I can't help but wonder if these docs you are doing it at set amounts (like .5 cc's a time) are only trying to get "come back" business.... hahahahahaha -- Thoughts? I don't know about the come back business thing. It's possible I guess, but my surgeon does .5 cc fills after the initial fill too. His office does 1 year of follow-up and unlimited fills that are included in the surgery cost. It's a good thing too 'cause I paid out of pocket :drool: Anyway, I think .5 cc fills are normal.

Hi, I haven't been banded yet (planning on Jan '08) but I was recently diagnosed with Fibromyalgia. My rheumatologist says it might go away when I lose all my weight. I just wondered if anyone here has had FMS and if it improved after your weight loss. Thanks!

How many calories are you all eating a day? I'm curious because I've always been told you should eat a minimum of 1200 calories a day to avoid "starvation mode". If I was still going to Weight Watchers, they would recommend 1400-1500 calories a day for my weight. My doctor says I should eat 1000 a day. What do your doctors say?

Went to Jazzercise today and the instructor had us lay on on our stomachs on the floor for stretching. I was only laying on a thin towel and I had to turn over because my port was sticking into my ribs! So, no laying on the floor anymore I guess.

I got my first fill on Tuesday. My Dr. put 4cc in my 10 cc band. I have no problems eating and I feel satisfied after about 1/2 cup to 3/4 cup of food, but I'm hungry 2 hours later! I'm still on mushies, so I'm hoping this will change when I get on solids. My Dr. says I should only eat 3 times a day, but I'm just starving in between meals, so I've been having small snacks, like 1/2 cup of cottage cheese with a couple of tablespoons of applesauce. I don't drink within an hour of eating, so that's not the problem. Anyone else have a similar situation?

I have started to eat more solids and I can go a little longer. Still, I don't see how it's going to be possible for me to eat only 3 meals a day, which is what the doctor says I should eat. He says I should be eating about 1000 cals a day, but I can't eat 333 calories per meal. I just can't fit that much in. The only way I'm going to get that many calories in a 1/2 to 3/4 cup portion is if I drown everything in butter! Right now, I'm eating between 900-1000 cals a day, but that's because I eat 3 meals and 2 snacks a day.

my favorite mushie is fat free refried beans with a sprinkle of grated cheese and a small dollop of light sour cream. So good! If you like mexican food, that is. I don't even really miss the chips.

I went back to my Jazzercise class just this past Monday. I was banded on Jan 9th, so it was a little less than a month. I was going pretty regularly before surgery and I LOVE the class, so I was looking forward to going back. My surgeon said I was cleared for exercise a week after surgery! I felt like I needed more time, so I waited. I haven't had any problems, although I've been taking it easy with the ab routines.

I'm going a little crazy with the liquid diet thing. I had to do liquids for a week before surgery and now it's more than a week after and I don't think I can stand it anymore. Blended Soup grosses me out. I can't stand the taste of "light yogurt" anymore. I'm sick to death of sugar free pudding cups. It seems like everything on the list of approved liquids is something that's been super-sweetened with splenda or aspartame, except the aforementioned Soups. I am dying to eat just something as simple as a scrambled egg! Anyone have any tips or tricks? I'm supposed to stay on liquids for another week before I can even start pureed foods. I don't feel any discomfort when eating and I can eat 6 oz. or so of soup before I just loose interest. I wonder how long everyone else had to stay on liquids before they could move on to stuff like eggs and cottage cheese? By the way, I didn't care at all for cottage cheese before, but it's starting to sound pretty frickin' good!

Thanks for the encouragement. I'm crabby about it but I'll try to stick to it... I know it's what's best..I just needed to vent, I guess.

My husband asked me the other day, "So what do they do when you get to goal?" I was surprised because I don't think I ever asked my doctor this question and I don't think they covered it at the seminar. So, what do they do with your band when you get to goal? Do they unfill a little bit until your not losing anymore?

You'll do fine! I had to do a full liquid diet for a week prior to surgery, but it meant also no sugar at all. I felt cruddy for a few days, but now, I'm not craving carbs anymore. I have fibromyalgia and my symptoms have lessened a lot. I'm pretty sure it's because I'm off the sugar.

I was banded on the 9th and am on a full liquid diet until Jan 23rd. Today I had: 8 oz. Protein shake made with 1% milk (I can drink about 6 oz. at a time slowly - I finished the last 2 ounces about 1/2 hour later) 4 oz. light fat free peach yogurt 4 oz. blended soup Minute Maid Light fruit drink. Usually I eat about 4 oz. of something and feel satisfied. I can't say I feel full - I haven't felt the same kind of fullness as I used to feel before the band - it's different. I ate almost 6 oz. of yogurt the other day and knew after the last bite that I should have stopped one bite earlier. I just felt kind of bad in an undefinable way. So, I just don't try to eat any more than 5 oz of anything other than a clear liquid.

I wasn't sent home with a prescription for antibiotics at all. All doctors are different I guess.

I'll be a week post-op tomorrow and I wonder if I'm losing too quickly? I started a full liquid diet on Jan 2nd, had surgery on Jan 9th and I've lost 14 lbs. already. That's a pound a day. Is that unhealthy? Since I'm on liquids, I only get in between 400-600 cals a day. Thanks! I'm a little worried that my hair is going to fall out or something!