2muchfun

This is a hot topic that has been discussed here many times. Dr. O'Brien(AUS) also has a video discussing this. Video #3 discusses the drinking issue. All 4 videos are very informative. I was banded before I saw the videos and before drinking and eating were acceptable(to some). So, I drank a lot in-between meals and before meals, so I didn't miss the fluids. Now(in the green zone), I'll sometimes have a glass of wine or a beer with my weekend meals. Drinking with a meal or not drinking with a meal doesn't seem to effect my band either way. But, this will be something you will have to tackle and experience on your own as some patients don't do well with drinking and eating. Especially before you find your green zone you should make every effort to not drink and eat. jmo tmf

Lannah, You appear to be one of those who likes to stir the pot? Take 3 days off and come back and re-read your post. Hypocrisy abounds!

I guess you can count this post as one of your "hated" posts. If you plan on posting to any forum asking for advice, you sure well better expect to get it. If you expect people are going to tiptoe around your hypersensitivities, expect to be disappointed. tmf

That's a tough one to advise on. Every insurance plan is going to be different so it's impossible to know? And even every insurance plan within a insurance company will vary, so no way to tell. And taking it one step further, insurance plans for BCBS(for example) can vary from employer to employer depending on what that employer allows to be included within the plan. Go fish? tmf

You should fill in your profile so we can advise you better? Have no idea where you are in your journey? tmf

I don't do anything except try not to do the same stupid thing again for a few days. Stuck this morning again. Slow down tmf, slow down. tmf

If you are new to this, stretching your pouch can only be done by eating too fast, too much and not chewing. You will be having a major stuck episode and the pain would be excruciating. Stretching your pouch usually takes weeks and months of disobeying the rules. If you are new to this, you probably do not have any restriction and your portal is wide open. I could eat anything I wanted the first 3 months. And sometimes I did. But the food passes through the portal into your lower stomach, not stretching your pouch. tmf

Tara is right. The foods that don't allow your band to do it's job need to be thrown out and definitely don't buy more. I know how easy it is to eat lots of slider foods but come 2013, don't do it. tmf

Your post is very common mainly because almost every one of us has had the same experience 6 weeks or more into this journey. Seems like most all had selective hearing when we went through the seminars, research and nutrition meetings? I know I did. I really thought I'd immediatly start losing weight and feel satisfied with a small meal. HA! Not a chance. Some are lucky and it does work that way but for most, not! I was banded a little over a year ago(11/28/11). I lost 12 lbs the first two weeks and then nothing for the next 3.5 months. Then I got my 3rd fill and met with my nutritionist. The weight began to fall off after that. Relax, what you are experiencing is very normal and has happened to most of us. Seems like I was hungrier after the surgery than ever before. But, I was a good boy and ate healthy foods, but maybe not the 1/2 cup I was told to eat. Try to eat the band way as much as possible. I know it's very hard and none of us wanted to go back on a diet immediately after surgery. You'll be in "bandster hell" until you get the fill that gives you enough restriction for the band to work it's magic. That may be 1 fill or 6. No one knows. Till then, like our esteemed forum member B-52 says, " "Until there's restriction...It's just another diet" tmf

Breakfast: Egg beater omelette w/turkey sausage and a sprinkle of cheese Snack: apple/cutie oranges lunch: leftovers, usually salmon, chicken. Sometimes I'll have deli turkey on oroweat sandwich thins. snack: 1.25 oz of jerky(costco) dinner: last night, salmon on salad. Or stir fry veggies with chicken I just try to keep the fats down and get my Protein in first. I usually stay away from carbs as much as possible. Not entirely of course, but I keep it down. I always did well on the Atkins and South Beach diets. tmf

You should fill in your profile so we know you better? tmf

Let me apologize in advance for my default response to your topic. Your post is very common mainly because almost every one of us has had the same experience 6 weeks or more into this journey. Seems like most all had selective hearing when we went through the seminars, research and nutrition meetings? I know I did. I really thought I'd immediatly start losing weight and feel satisfied with a small meal. HA! Not a chance. Some are lucky and it does work that way but for most, not! I was banded a little over a year ago(11/28/11). I lost 12 lbs the first two weeks and then nothing for the next 3.5 months. Then I got my 3rd fill and met with my nutritionist. The weight began to fall off after that. Relax, what you are experiencing is very normal and has happened to most of us. Seems like I was hungrier after the surgery than ever before. But, I was a good boy and ate healthy foods, but maybe not the 1/2 cup I was told to eat. That enabled me to maintain my 12 lb loss till my 3rd fill. You'll be in "bandster hell" until you get the fill that gives you enough restriction for the band to work it's magic. That may be 1 fill or 6. No one knows. Till then, like our esteemed forum member B-52 says, " "Until there's restriction...It's just another diet" tmf

If you are a new lapband patient you are not expected to lose weight the first 30 days. It's a time for healing, not losing. Don't expect to lose significant weight until you get a fill that helps you to find restriction. The reasons are far too many to list here, but if you do lose weight, it's a bonus. tmf

75 lbs is awesome. I wouldn't sweat gaining a few lbs over the Holidays. Just hit it hard come January 2nd and get back on track. You already know what you have to do but don't beat yourself up. Most all of us have a setback here and there. Very few here who lost weight continuously month over month to their goal. And I'm obsessed with my scale too. I weigh myself twice a day, morning and night. No harm, no foul. tmf

I've put in a gym in my basement and I've added some minor weights, treadmill, elliptical and recumbent bike. I found some of those soft floor mats at allmat.com. Of course, that was all expensive. But the least expensive and most effective equipment I bought, was the Tony Horton 10 minute workout at Beachbody. Not too expensive and easy to use. I added some extra resistance bands, found some resistance exercises on youtube and I'm very happy with the less expensive methods of working out. Beachbody.com allmats.com tmf

Those white bread buns are a problem for me. They dough up in the pouch and can cause a stuck episode for me. I'd stick with homemade burgers, turkey etc. using whole wheat thin buns. LOL...I just remembered a bike trip I took last summer. Rode 40 miles roundtrip, the longest the wife and I have ever gone on our mtn bikes. We were so hungry when we got back to the parking lot. My cyclemeter read 39.9 miles and I wanted it to read 40 dammit. So I was riding around in circles trying to get it to turn over to 40 and my wife yelled at me to git my butt over to the car and take her to eat, NOW! We stopped off at a Carls and I ordered a double Memphis BBQ burger. Took me 45 minutes to eat it and two minor stuck episodes but it was worth it. "Note to self, don't burn off 1600 calories between meals or you will inhale your next meal." tmf

I did too in the beginning but I can eat them now. I have to be careful what kind of bread I use. It can't be doughy bread or dry bread and I have to use deli turkey since it's so soft and breaks up easily. I wasn't able to eat them till about 8 months into my journey and I think a lot of that was due to learning how to eat with the band. Very small bites, chew, chew, pay attention for that stuck feeling, sip a little Water if necessary. I don't make it a habit and probably only have a sandwich once every two weeks or so. I also use the low cal wheat flat breads so I'm no consuming a lot of flour. tmf

Well, it's probably disolved by now I would imagine? Why would you try vomitting if it's in your throat? Vomitting causes your stomach to convulse and can compromise your surgery. The stomach is pulled up to overlap the band and is sutured into place. You could tear away those sutures causing the band to slip up your esophogus. Do not ever induce vomitting now that you have the band. I'm sure you're OK but for future reference, don't do that! tmf

DaCoop, I went to a Xmas brunch Sunday and of course, there was tons of food of all kinds. It was amazing how much food people piled on their plates, but the most amazing thing was the bite sizes. OMG, I saw forks full of food that would have stuck me up for two days I'm sure. I look at the size of each bite I take now and I'm amazed at how well I've adapted, but disappointed it took me so long to figure it out.LOL Merry Christmas tmf

Your post is a very common post mainly because almost every one of us has had the same experience 6 weeks or more into this journey. Seems like most all had selective hearing when we went through the seminars, research and nutrition meetings? I know I did. I really thought I'd immediatly start losing weight and feel satisfied with a small meal. HA! Not a chance. Some are lucky and it does work that way but for most, not! I was banded a little over a year ago. I lost 12 lbs the first two weeks and then nothing for the next 3.5 months. Then I got my 3rd fill and met with my nutritionist. Relax, what you are experiencing is very normal and has happened to most of us. You'll be in "bandster hell" until you get the fill that gives you enough restriction for the band to work it's magic. That may be 1 fill or 6. No one knows. Till then, like our esteemed forum member B-52 says, " "Until there's restriction...It's just another diet tmf

I have no idea how much he put in. And, it's really not important to compare? Each doctor puts in different amounts of saline at surgery. Some give 0 and some give up to 5 CC's at surgery. Every bandsters stomach and band placement will be different. So, a good surgeon may place the band higher or lower on the stomach depending on the shape? Every patient's stomach lining will have a different thickness and different level of fat surrounding the stomach. So, there is no norm. And yes, you will be hungry till you get that one fill that gives you the right level of restriction. tmf

For me, it was the surgeon and the nutritionist that has been important. I went to a couple of support groups and support groups aren't for me. But as you read these forums, you will see that we all have different approaches to the journey. You should use the search engine on this site to do your research. There are thousands of posts you can read. Of course, I have no idea where you live so I can't recommend a surgeon. But, it's so easy to google bariatric surgeons in your area. Most all of them offer seminars. Go to as many as you can. Go to their support groups and get feedback from their patients. Good luck. tmf

I ate thick soups, oatmeal, cream of wheat, scrambled eggs, refried beans,mashed potatoes, mashed carrots, cottage cheese, yogurt, soups of all kinds(blended), applesauce, overcooked cauliflower, noodle soups(very soft noodles,overcooked), lentil soups.

Just curious? Yeah, line dancer's right. It's of no importance. Every bandster travels a different path and no need to compare. Low losers will only get depressed. If you were on a pre-op diet and did realy well, you will probably lose less than someone who had no pre-op diet. If you have 200 lbs to lose, you'll probably lose more than someone who had only 75 lbs to lose. tmf

I think she's still on mushies? So, no cups of food yet. Just cups of liquids. I ate lipton soup and filtered out some(not all) of the little noodles. Also, I had egg drop soup. The eggs add Protein and fill you up over broth. Probably not on your liquid diet but like Jalangy I was starving and drinking more crystal light or tomato juice just wouldn't cut it. jmo/tmf