NewLife'sGr8

Maybe gurgling is the 'secret handshake' for bandsters. lol

When you're filled to that "sweet spot" your ravenous hunger will fade away. That said, I still have days when I feel ravenous. On those days, I listen to my body (eat more) but usually make good choices of what to eat. I'm 5-years post op & almost -100#. Your selection of watermelon isn't a bad one though. It's mostly Water. Yes, sweet but naturally so (the best sweetness for us!), no added sugar. You really don't have to feel bad or beat yourself up about putting something yummy in your mouth like a naturally sweetened fruit. Everything in moderation is a good mindset. That way you're not doing the psychological sabotage to yourself - self-guilt, can't eat anything yummy or sweet, etc.. Those thought set us up for failure. Back awaaaaaayyyyy from those thoughts.... Rather, LOVE yourself in all your human glory! It's time.

Doesn't sound right. Call your doc! Worst for me was being blown up like a balloon. I normally have hi-pain tolerance but THAT was intolerable for me! Not even morphine touched it. Glad I will never have to do it again! Do you think it's possible that some of the gas/air they blew you up with, shifted to the left, working it's way out of you?

That gurgling stinks! It's socially awkward- just talking with someone in person or on the phone, and suddenly, deep body gurgle sounds (gas) piping its' way loudly up your throat & out your mouth. In a way, it mirrors poor upbringing- bad manners- like your parents didn't teach you to control your unpleasant body sounds, unlike tummy rumbles (hunger) which are uncontrollable. I remember I dated a guy a long time ago and he had that gurgling when he talked (DEF. not a wls patient). It was one of the reasons I couldn't bear being with him any longer, esp. in public. Now I do it, and for me, it's embarrassing. I wish it would stop or I could learn how to control it without the gurgles popping out unexpectedly at the most inappropriate times.

MISO SOUP!

You've made that first BIG step! Congrats! The hunger's going to last a few more weeks until you get a good fill that also restricts, and wha-la! You're suddenly not feeling hungry all the time, you eat to satisfaction, and you can focus all that freed-up mental energy on something new & cool- like painting or something.

OH! The best time to consume a Protein shake is right after a workout. Exercise literally shreds muscles. Protein within the 1st hr, post workout, rebuilds muscle.

Whey Isolate Protein is the best quality protein you can get. It's not a matter of taste. Rather, It has more SOLUABLE protein in it & Your body absorbs and metabolizes this type far better than any other. I usually get it from Vitamin World or GNC. I make a concoction-smoothie. Milk based (more protein), I toss the recommended amount of chocolate powder in the blender with Wymanns Wild Blueberries (antioxidants) straight out of the freezer (buy them in the frozen section). To that, I add Colon Cleanser (psyllium husks) to keep things moving along, *Warning! Too much will bind you & be a whole other 'situation' to deal with before you can resume normalcy with your band. I add liquid Collegen to restore/maintain elasticity, L-Glutemen (sp?) for muscle-support, Crushed Flaxseed or flax seed oil for Omega 3's (heart & brain function), liquid L-Carnitine (metabolizes fat), and Milk Thistle (supports weight loss). I take my multi-Vitamins & some hyaluronic acid (keeps joints cushy and skin taught) with the shake. Muscle Milk is good in a pinch too. Muscle Milk has a good array of vitamins & nutrients in it. They sell it pre-mixed at convenience stores with the individual drinks or you can buy it in quantity at the big box stores. They have powder too. Muscle Milk has more alcohol sugars (sweeteners) in it than whey isolate protein but if you really need to gas up quick & grab a quick meal for the road- Muscle Milk works. I always use Protein shakes as a Meal Replacement. Not something you want to gulp all day or suck down with meals as your 'drink". I don't count calories, but these shakes ARE caloric! Protein Bars are good in a pinch too. I like Pure Protein best & buy in bulk at BJ's. Great to keep a couple bars in the purse for those times when you're ravinous and won't get home anytime soon- like when you have to pop & go to work w/ no time to fix a lunch or eat breakfast. The other kind I like are "Supreme"-something found in gas-convenience stores near the candy. They're bigger & feels SO naughty because they taste just like gooey candy bars. When I get the GOTTA HAVE candy/ chocolate, I hit up a small protein bar- guilt free. Best luck in your journey.

I'm 5yrs out from Realize Banding. Right after surgery, I was in so much pain, they had to keep me in hosp. for a day. It was supposed to be an outpatient procedure. I think the pain originated from the port being sewn to my tummy muscle. My band was installed with no fill in it. I wonder why your new band is "too tight'? I'm pretty sure it's common practice to install the bands empty, though I don't know-know. Have you had any fills yet? My experience: A too-tight fill results in those awful hacking night coughs, bad burning acidy tummy & esophogus that could result in ulcers, vomiting (usually a mucus plug comes out & not much more), and no weight loss. It's important to get Fluid out asap if your band is filled too tight to prevent other medical complications like I've had.

Thanks for all the replies & info. I eat well; whole grains, reduced gluten consumption, homemade broths, organic vegs whenever I can, free range, etc. I learned that spices- cumin, curcumin (sp?), curries particularly 'hot' ones, aloe vera also helps reduce inflammation. I need to go with the natural anti-inflammatories because my once Iron tummy has lately become very acidy. I had a bad bad bought with night coughs and vomiting blood so for the first time ever in my life, I have to watch out for anything that might inflame my tummy & esophagus. I think this might be a really good thread for all of us suffering with arthritis & inflammation, who seek natural remedies. I appreciate everyone's input! I'm learning a lot. Most importantly, that I'm not the only one with this situation: multi-ortho issues compounded with inflamed band site.

The USA has one of the worst food supply, nutritionally speaking, in the world. It's full of chemicals and junk our bodies don't need. The reason we have one of the highest number of obese people in the world. American Sumatra has the highest. People are literally getting fatter and fatter because their bodies are perpetually hungry for nutrients that the food supply isn't providing. When I began eating for nutritional value, I felt a lot better with a higher energy level throughout my day. It was like a revelation. I started to really drop the lbs without starving. I eat to satisfaction, Usually, with my smaller plate plate than before organized with 1/3 Protein, 1/4 grain & 2/3 veg. I'm able to listen to my body much better now. I rarely crave sweets. My tongue still gets in the way of progress. I shake it off and get right back on the horse. I allow myself something once in awhile though now I'm considering nutritional value when choosing a treat. If it has no nutritional value, I don't get it. For instance, I buy only raw sugar. It has nutritional value. White sugar doesn't. Here's how to ween yourself into this way of eating: Buy the highest quality food you can afford, like, buy all organic if you can, free range, grass fed and whole grains; NO BioGenectically-Engineered foods, and stay away from highly processed foods. If you can only afford to buy a couple organic items, choose what you can on this list: buy meats without antibiotics or hormones. Buy thin-skinned & root veggies organic. Swap usual white carbs for sweet potatoes. It's one the most nutrient-dense foods on the planet. Seaweed is too. Avoid grains, corn & soybeans that grew from disease resistant seeds. Our bodies don't knowhow to process the bio chemical-mix of toxins and people are getting very sick. Many countries around the world have banned Bio-genetically engineered foods. You can pick a couple/few on this master list to start with & go from there. I discovered that if I eat for nutritional value rather than calories, I'm not hungry all day. My body finally tells me when it's time to eat. I feel satisfied, not full. I feel sustained throughout the day. The protein you eat can be measured like this: if it fits in the palm of your hand without the fingers, it's about as much protein as you need, per serving. It works for men and women if they use their own hands to measure for themselves. Each cheese stick is 1oz (16g). Each egg is about 1.5g. Whole grain carbs have protein in them already- a few grams. I still have my scale & measuring utensils but the more you get used to cooking everything (& ween off packaged stuff) you can eyeball it to pretty close to true measurements using palm measuring.

I'd seen a co-worker achieve amazing success with her bypass WLS. I asked her about it & she told me who she went to & what she had done. I then researched the various available WLS options; Bypass, RNY, Banding, DUO Switch (or whatever that's called); each procedure's benefits, fallbacks, possible complications, the actual procedure details, the risks, how many die on the table from each WLS procedure, and each year from post-opcomplications, the prognoses on each procedure, pre-op protocol, avg hospital stay, post-op protocol & long term prognoses. When I decided on the banding, I conducted a parallel analysis between the Lap & Realize bands (I chose the Realize). Then, I checked out the surgeons' practices, online. Read every page. I read every detail about each surgeons' Education, Colleges/Universities attended and whether they earned multiple degrees/ other specializations, their college ranking (if they're dead last in their class, I don't want em!) whether or not they graduated with honors or were awarded Fellowships (only the best of the best are), their affiliations & memberships & what boards/ committees they're serving on, whether or not they are graduate-school, teaching doctors, their practice histories (whether or not they've moved around a lot-not a good indication of quality), other specializations, their WLS philosophies & if they stay abreast of latest technologies, their success rate, if they participate with my ins. & what's covered / what's not, their surgery schedules (how far out they're booking surgeries), etc. Then, I went to Health Check site which shows patient-rating scores on a number of patient-driven experiences with their surgeon, plus with commentary. This site covers docs across a broad range of specializations, not just WLS. The site also shows whether the surgeon has been sued for malpractice or sanctioned by their licensing agency/oversight org. - for any number of possible violations. I found Malene Ingram to be an excellent fit for me & she was. After the surgery, though, you only see the PA's for fills, etc. I imagine the PA's refer more serious issues back to Doc Ingram, if it looks like more surgery is necessary.

It's totally normal. Muscle weighs more than fat so as we add muscle, we gain lbs. Can't judge progress solely by the scale. Rather, go by how your clothes fit. It will make you much happier day to day, particularly during plateau periods. Best luck in your journey. Be patient with yourself. You'll do just fine!

will you please explain the anti-inflammatory protocol diet? Never heard of it. I suffer from all kinds of inflammatory issues, yes, with the band but from multiple injuries, multiple ortho surgeries, plus arthritis all over literally, every joint. I bet I'd feel a lot better if I got he inflammation down. No NSAIDS for me since I'm banded. thanks

Bone broths are awesome! chicken bone broth has healing properties that help dispatch a cold quicker. Healing properties that university study-findings support. Beef bone broth extracts nutrients and natural Gelatin into the Water. Have you ever noticed how beef bone broth 'solidifies' when refrigerated? it's the natural gelatin extracted from the bones & marrow. I learned that one from my vegetarian daughter when she explained she couldn't take a supplement I'd offered her. Gelatin caps that encapsulate medicines are mostly made from beef bone gelatin. Who knew? There's some kind of French dish that Julia Childs made called beef gelatin mold or something like that. Could probably find the recipe online. Probably also excellent for hair, skin & nails Fish bone broth is also yummy for soups and gumbos or to cook brown rice in for added flavor in a seafood meal. It's kind of gross to make though. I usually buy a big, whole fish gutted, head on & bake or poach it. Get all the meat off for meals then pop the fish heads, back bones & tail into the pot- bring to boil, then simmer & drain. You can also save the bottom water from steaming clams & mussels. The chefs call the infused steam-water something special but I forgot what. I often just pop the bones in the freeze for later when I'm in the quantity-cooking mood. I make big batches and freeze them; soup-sized (gallon zip bag), rice-sized (2c in a zip bag), and in cubes, frozen in ice trays and popped into gallon zip bags- for added flavor when sautéing etc. Frequently, I add onions, garlic, carrots & other veggies into the pot to boil with the bones. Sometimes I take the veggies out when draining, & toss em. Other times, I pop the cooked veggies into the nutribullet & liquify them & add them back into the broth for a creamed soup texture w/out all the heavy cream calories. If I know my daughter's coming, I make a veggie broth with lots of root veggies, onions, garlic, etc. This one's particularly yummy with roasted acorn & butternut squashes, and carrots nutria-bulleted into it. Tastes SO fattening, but isn't @ all w/ no cream or butter added.

I don't watch The View, maybe caught a couple episodes when it debut's. I thought the whole premise of the show was to get women of varying ages and varying opinions, to speak on certain topics so the public could realize there are a wide range of opinions on any given subject out there. I thought it was up to each individual watching to take the discussion, to form their own opinions.. I was banded in '09. due ortho injuries resulting in multiple surgeries, I wanted to have enough nutrients to heal well. I requested a slow. gradual fill which I'd hoped would coincide with the end of surgeries. 8 surgeries in 4 yrs; 2 with lots of blood loss that rendered me unknowingly, extremely enimic. It hasn't been easy but I did lose 100lbs in those 4 yrs. In 2013, I experienced band complications of my own doing- picked up smoking cigs after 5yrs smoke-free, due to extreme mega- stress. The stress inflamed the band site. Smoking inflamed the band site, Alcohol increase inflamed the band site & a too-tight adjustment following the last of my surgeries further complicated already well-inflamed band site. I ended up awake all night with those uber annoying, hacking, night coughs. Then, the acid reflux. Burning all the way up my esophagus to my throat-OW! Then on top of the cough wake ups, I began also waking up an additional 2-3x's a night, vomiting blood that pooled in my tummy from the acid. I had the band loosened & gained 15lbs in 4 mos. The gastric symptoms were treated with omniprozole & some other liquid tummy med & it healed nicely. The PA put back 1cc and it seems ok though there are nights I still cough all night. Still trying to figure out the new sweet spot. I've lost 10 of the 15lbs I'd gained so am now @ 95lbs lost, 5yrs out. Even with all that, I'm not considering tossing the band and giving up. I'm pretty confident that once my mind's in a place where I have reduced that mega-stress enough to stop quitting smoking again, my tummy will stop being so inflamed & the band will again do its' job. I have 25-30lbs to lose to get to my goal weight. I'm not offended by Rosie's comments @ all. It is what it is. My PA informed me the band has had a low success rate in general; that I'm an exception to the rule. So what! I'm glad I'm still in the 50% group of band successes. I took Rosie's comments with a grain of salt; it's just her opinion based on whatever she knew @ that point in time. We've all done research to chose whichever WLS we get. What I discovered that informed my decision to get banded would probably offend the sleeve & RNY people. Who cares? We're all in this together, learning as we go, even Rosie. Anyone who makes their WLS decision based solely on "Rosie said..." should maybe consider a lobotomy instead of WLS, IMHO.

Mesa Sunrise multi-grain (corn, flax,quinoa, & amaranth) Cereal. It's organic & Found in the natural food section or cereal isle. Being all whole grains, it already has Protein by itself. Add a generous amount of milk- more protein-, walnuts (even more protein plug Omega 3's) and 1/2 banana (potassium). I eat it with no sweetener. I like the taste of the grains, walnuts, banana in milk together. Sweet enough for me as is. Not breakfast, but I add Beans to a lot of things too. I make whole grain brown rice with garlic, onion, black beans & shrooms, S&P. MMMMMmmmmmm it;s a real taste bud treat. I also do a 'white batch' w/ brown rice, white beans like navy w/ carrots, celery onion & garlic. The southwest one has brown rice, black beans, corn, salsa, cilantro & garlic. That one's yummy topped w/ a dollop of sour cream & chopped scallions. I package them single-servings and family-sized portions, in zip bags then freeze. Gr8 for quick grab-n-go lunch (defrosts by lunchtime for microwave). They're healthy meals, w/out takeout/ delivery fat, calories, & price. For dinners, I make a side of meat & veg. Sometimes I add chickpeas to my salads to boost protein. Hummus & chips are good. Lots of different flavors. For chips, I try to get some kind of whole grain kind. I like trying new things. I just tried some wild rice chips that were awesome! I also like a variety of those bean-based chips. Super yum w/ hummus.

I'm of the mindset that it's up to each individual/couple to decide where/when to reveal the most intimate aspects of themselves. Personally, I would have that discussion well before sex. My reasonings are: -sex is as intimate as you can be with another person, particularly when you want a longterm relationship with that individual. I want relationships grounded in mutual trust, which includes knowing each other's most intimate secrets. -I would want to share my most personal "secrets" well before sex; i.e.: not just before you go into the bedroom or wherever, because If I didn't discuss the scar at all before sex, I'd be afraid of shocking him, turning him off, or having him lose his erection when seeing it unexpectedly, out of left field, particularly if it's a new scar that wraps around the whole body. -Typically, when people see other people's scars, it tends to instigate questions and discussions about how, where, why & when you got that big scar. I can see it stopping the "moment" and going into a side-bar on the scar for awhile. I wouldn't want to interrupt our passion the first time we have sex. -everyone deserves to know if there's something unpalatable about their love-interest, that might be too much for them to live with. It's different for everyone. Some people just can't deal with garish scars, however shallow it might seem. I'm not one of them re: scars. Still, I'd want to be informed & not be shocked unsuspectedly, particularly when I'm knee-deep in the passionate throws of 'our first time' sex. Personally, I'd want to know if my love interest had something unpalatable that I couldn't live with, like a 2" penis. It would really suck thrying to pretend it didn't matter. Sure, it might be shallow, but it's something I couldn't live with long-term. -I believe everyone has the right to choose who to spend the rest of their lives together, with full disclosure.

I was banded in '09. Oh, I remember those seething post-op hunger days. Actually, it was ~6months of hunger, being on that MediFast liquid diet pre-op and then through long weeks of those post-op early band adjustments. Oy! I fell & got hurt literally, just before the surgery & injured pretty much all my soft tissues beyond belief. I think if I wasn't so overweight, my injuries would've been far less. I Ended up having 8 surgeries in 4 yrs (including the band installation). Because I wanted to be sure I had enough nutrients to heal well from the surgeries I had to eat for nutritional value, so my plight was a bit different. I had to get enough hi-nutrition calories in to heal in me, and still lose weight. For that reason, I requested the band adjustments be increased slowly over time. I think it was all that pain from being injured, and owey post-surgeries that eradicated my hunger, over those 4 long yrs. I lost 100lbs. I couldn't exercise like I used to but I have a few long stints of physical therapy which kept me in pretty good shape while I lost the LB's. Now that I'm mobile again, I haven't figured out getting that exercise in & I've gone a bit flabby & notice my skin sagging in all the wrong places. Def Need to get on that exercise wagon again! After the last surgery my hunger rose and I gained 15lbs in about 4 mos. It scared me. I was more active. Just walking around all over sans devices triggered that hunger button again. I'm now back in the tweak-it stage. Life-stress, & I mean mega-stress, encroached upon me, so naturally I did the worst thing I could do & picked up smoking cigarettes again after being 5yrs smoke-free. Ugh! It began when I was told I needed that 2nd hip replacement. The stress hasn't let up. Nope & I haven't yet toned my mind down enough to quit yet. It IS a priority though! Yes, for all the bad things about cigs we know about, but what I didn't know was: smoking irritates the band site big time. I ended up with a bad case of acid tummy, burning esophagus, up all night with those signature band hacking night coughs & waking several times a night throwing up blood to boot. Literally, No rest for weeks. So, I was treated for a possible ulcer. Fairly Easy fix. Omniprozole (sp?) to calm the tummy & some other liquid tummy stuff too & the symptoms went away. YAY! Right now, we're still figuring out that sweet-spot of a band adjustment. Last visit, I lost 3 lbs in a month. I thought it was terrible. My PA said it was great because most who get liquid taken out of their bands come back in with 10-15lbs up. That made me feel a little better. Right after that, he introduced me to 2 nutritionists who, according to him, were super excited all day to meet me- all week, in fact, he said. Wow. That really surprised me. I thought I was doing really terrible. We talked about my methodologies for band success & I got their rubber stamp of approval for my consumption techniques as well as a free consult with two good nutritionists, which really got the much needed wind back under my sail. What I've learned in all this is that eating for nutritional value instead of counting calories keeps the body satiated. Whole grain carbs (Not wheat, multi-grain) brown rice, more veg proteins; Beans, nuts, hummus, using almost exclusively olive oil, hardly any butter, buying organic whenever I can 'cuz the food supply in this country is one of the worst, nutritionally, in the world. supplements, I try to remember to take them religiously. Far from perfect, I go in spurts, but do my best to remember. I also get ice cream now & then, eat dark chocolate fairly regularly (for the nutritional value, of course), fall off the boat, get back in. Not wanting to go back up in weight is a big motivator. I was a very unhappy (with myself) fat person who's hunger button just would not shut off. Ever. I was perpetually hungry, Yes, plus a stress eater and all that other psych.-junk in you head-eater too. But now, I honestly think I have a mal-functioning hunger button now that I've done a bit of research on it. I still live some days perpetually hungry. On those days, I graze, conscientiously all day; a few bites of yogurt, one egg, a palmful of nuts or two here and there. It doesnt take much to satisfy. Eating well eventually gets to be habit. I stopped thinking about food all day, every day, some time ago. Not sure when it happened. It just went away without me noticing it. hmmm.... what a relief! The moral: Take it slow & steady. We banders won't lose overnight like the Bypassed & sleeved do. Do your best to keep active & switch your focus onto something else, thats fun. Just when you think you're way, way off, you'll surprise yourself how right on track you've been. Like me, just when I thought I was doing terrible with my tummy tool; a couple of young, skinny, pretty nutritionists came along and told me just how Fab I looked & how impressed they were with my success, (wha-whaaaat?)- and got me all chit-chatty wanting to know the nitty-gritties about how I did it. Go figure. Hang in there doll. The best is yet to come! You can get through this early hunger phase, like I did, like we all are- one day at a time. <3