jcordova204

I had a fill yesterday. Doctor gave me a half CC to fill me up to 6.75 in my band. He handed me a bottle of Water and I took a big swallow. We both heard a bunch of gurgling and I laughed because literally just an hour before I was able to drink a huge mug of coffee without a problem in a few minutes. Doctor took a quarter CC out to see how I felt and the water went down okay. He declared me "green."
I didn't know how I felt about this. I thought to myself "What if it still doesn't work?" I asked the doctor what I should do if I'm still over-eating. And he said "Well, this is your soft ceiling for your fills so from here on out, if you're not losing weight, we'll need to take a closer look at your diet and exercise. It's a tool. It won't lose the weight for you."
BOOM. I've heard it a billion times before (the lap band being a tool) but I didn't really think about it.
I will be honest. Over the last several months I learned how to eat around my band. Good ways to do this are drink while eating (washes the food right through the band into your stomach). Especially if I'm eating cake or Cookies - a glass of milk will slide those suckers right into my stomach. Drinking alcohol makes the band feel looser so I can eat more.
Being one who loves to over-eat, I did this with some degree of frequency. I'm lucky that I didn't make myself gain weight, just maintained where I was (you can only get so many calories in if you're drinking a half gallon of water to get a meal down). I didn't measure my food, didn't really think about it. I stupidly thought my lap band would just magically stop me when I got full.
Well... for that to actually work, I have to follow the rules. Now that I am consciously following the rules, it's working great. I thought with the lap band I could get away with not "dieting" for the rest of my life. By "dieting" I mean measuring everything, eating small portions of healthy foods, and skipping sweets. Okay, I know people are probably reading this thinking "What the hell did you expect, you moron??"
I guess I expected life to carry on as usual without thinking about food as much. But it turns out this is similar to starting a healthy lifestyle except the band DOES help in reducing hunger. But it doesn't eliminate the desire to binge. That's where self-control comes into play.
Without the band, I could try to discipline myself to eat a small plate of food (one cup) and eat tiny bites and wait 20 seconds until the next bite. But I would eat the cup and still be hungry. WITH the band, my little pouch fills up and provides the illusion of fullness (let's be real, it's not actual fullness because NO ONE gets full on a 300-400 calorie meal unless they're naturally 4'10 inches and weigh 90 pounds).
For this to work I need to be mindful. I need to follow the rules. And I need to cut the drinking (both alcoholic and drinking water while eating). This is pretty much the extent of the power of the lap band. It's not going to change me, but it makes it possible to change.

This will be about 4 weeks for me. I feel like I'm thinking about food more often right now and then I eat, at eat too fast so I get stuck. Gotta slow down and got to feel satiated for longer
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My next appt is on January 24th. Two weeks. Ugh
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Congratulations @@Banded_Beauty!!! I'm at a stall right now I'm 7 weeks post op, down 12 lbs. feeling good but hope to see the scale drop some more. Christmas was a bit challenging but so much better than previous years! I've started exercising, 30-40 mins per day, so things should turn around. I go for my 2nd fill in Jan 20th. At this point I only have 3.5 cc's so hopefully that top up will help. You should be proud!!! Way to go. I would love to stay connected congrats!! You will inspire me
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This will be about 4 weeks for me. I feel like I'm thinking about food more often right now and then I eat, at eat too fast so I get stuck. Gotta slow down and got to feel satiated for longer
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My next appt is on January 24th. Two weeks. Ugh
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So I can eat raw cauliflower and baby carrots fairly easily.. do you think this means that I definitely need more fill? I only have 3.5 cc's and am not losing weight.. I have been stalled between 11/12 lbs for the last two (almost three).any thoughts?
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@@weneebug, how's it going? I'm 7weeks post op and have been maintaining a "stall" for about two weeks.. frustrating but I know it will change. How's things for you?
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Congratulations @@Banded_Beauty!!! I'm at a stall right now I'm 7 weeks post op, down 12 lbs. feeling good but hope to see the scale drop some more. Christmas was a bit challenging but so much better than previous years! I've started exercising, 30-40 mins per day, so things should turn around. I go for my 2nd fill in Jan 20th. At this point I only have 3.5 cc's so hopefully that top up will help. You should be proud!!! Way to go. I would love to stay connected congrats!! You will inspire me
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Wow!
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