2muchfun

You've done so well, aint it about time you posted some after pics?

Amen, and let me add that I also see many posts where the surgeon seemed to give very little instruction/advice pre and post op(or patients weren't paying attention?) tmf

Once again, let me be the contrarian here. No, it's not normal. Not for me. I was doing cartwheels that I gave away my fat clothes. I don't miss sweats, large parkas, not being able to tie my shoes without holding my breath, having stains on all my shirts from dribbling food straight down, underwear that could double as a sail or belts that belong on a sumo wrestler. Nope, I did a happy dance. tmf

you can search for members profile and posts in the search link above right. She has posted today. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/topic/161780-tummy-tuck-and-breast-left-on-tuesday-1218/#entry1897750

Your doctor has a very unique protocol for his/her patient? There may be some exceptions but I know of no other forum members or patients whose doctor advised them to lose 10+ lbs before their first post op appt? I assure you the lapband is not a joke. There can be so many reasons why you have not lost weight. Sodium intake, fluids pumped into you during surgery, meds, menstrual cycle, drinking a gallon of Water a day, etc can make you retain fluids. Drinking a gallon of water a day can deplete your system of needed nutrients, mostly potassium which enables your bodies muscles to operate normally. This is very dangerous to your heart so be very careful how much you drink? You could be losing the nutrients that you need to lose weight and your body is compensating by retaining those fluids? Slow down and eat normally. That means, eat Protein first, veggies second. Stop the extremes such as a gallon of water. Don't dwell on how much weight you lose at this point. I see this all the time and we've always been told that this is a time for healing, not losing mass weight. 11 days means nothing in this journey and no need to threaten to throw in the towel and panic until you've gone 4 months without losing weight. 11 days is a pebble of sand on the beach in the grand scheme. tmf

4 months into being banded I was still ignorant of how the band really worked. I had a general idea but I was eating too many foods every day that added up to me not losing 1 lb per week. She advised me to stop eating certain foods that were adding up to 400 calories a day. That's about 1 lb per week I was not losing due to drinking a beer a day, Snacks that did not satiate and I really can't recall all foods I was eating that were contrary to making the band work. I stopped drinking calorie laden fluids, started to eat snacks that satiate like beef jerkey(high protein), eating more Protein during meals and eating them first. She asked me to be brutally honest with my food intake and I was able to trim 400-500 calories a day off my intake without suffering. I was able to replace the non essential foods with foods that enabled my band to do it's job. I also picked up my exercise program. I was able to lose about 8 lbs a month for the next 4 months without the discomfort that comes along with "dieting". Although she never explained it, I now see that I wasn't getting that upper pouch squeeze that tells the brain I've had enough to eat. And eating more protein made the food stay in my lower stomach longer and of course, I now see that protein satisfies longer. Having said all that, I have to admit I've been a bad boy since Halloween. Went on vacation to Mexico on 11/3 and then Thanksgiving, now there's Xmas parties, Cookies, cakes, food, food and more food. I'm hanging in there with only a few lbs gained but I'm not sweating it because I've got the "tool" to fix it come January 2nd. Hope that helps? tmf

With or without the band, if you only eat 1,000 calories a day, you should be losing weight? None of us got fat eating 1,000 calories/day. What do you think is the problem? Have you ever tracked your calories or kept a journal? Are you still hungry after a meal? Do you snack? Have you visited with your nutritionist? What does your doctor say? Do you feel restriction or are you in the green zone? tmf

This is just how I handled bandster hell and of course, we all face it and deal with it differently. I just said what the hell. I ate what I wanted, but I did try to eat healthy foods from the lists. You know, Protein, salads etc. It was hard, and I fell of the wagon many times. I was in bandster hell from December 15th 2011 through March 30th 2012(approx). I lost 12 lbs the first two weeks after my surgery(11/28/2011) and then nothing till March 30th. I got my 3rd fill around March 30th and my first nutrition meeting at the same time. I was able to maintain my 12 lb loss from early December just because I ate the right foods and I did eat less due to the band. But I wasn't going to be in the uncomfortable state of dieting that I had experienced for many years of dieting. No way. But, that 3rd fill did it for me, along with some great advice from my nutritionist. I see no reason to go through the anxieties of not losing weight till you get a fill that gives you some restriction. I never ate just one cup of food till I got to the green zone. So my advice is to not sweat it so much and enjoy the holidays but eat healthy till you get that one fill that does the trick. Just my own advice. tmf

Lots of good advice here. So many patients place so much concern on the surgery when the after-care is just as important. There are so many patients who post here that they don't know what to do next and can't find any doctor to give them a fill. If you go to Mexico, make sure you have a support system here before you make that plunge. BTW-Find a nutritionist near you who is familiar with WLS of all types. They can be so valuable. tmf

Only about 90% experienced the same. You're still in the healing phase. Your band won't start working till it gets the right adjustment(fill). Till then, it's just another diet. Good luck. tmf

For me, prior to the band, even eating healthy foods would not have satisfied my appetite. My satiety trigger took a lot to activate. I simply had to eat till I was so full there was no room left for food. Now, thanks to the band, I feel satisfied much sooner so I eat so much less. Of course, the band hasn't stopped me from eating Cookies, cakes and pies. It does seem to help me eat less of those foods but I know I'd blow up like a balloon if I was around that stuff too often. I went to a lunch buffet yesterday. First time in many many months. What astonished me was how large the portions of food on others forks as they shoveled quiche, quacamole, pies and cakes into their pieholes. OMG, I cannot eat bites of food even close to the amounts of what I saw yesterday. That's part of it too I think. So, I know I could not have done this without the band. My food choices prior to surgery was about the same as it is now, only then, it was much more and hey, why not throw some extra cheesecake on top of that too. tmf

Kime-Lou, you're fretting over something that happenes to all of us. It's normal. two weeks is really nothing in the grand scheme of weight loss. When you get to a 2 month plateau, then pull the panic button but two weeks of not losing is nothing to be concerned with. After 6 months of being banded, you're weight loss will slow down to 2-6 lbs a month. Much of the early weight loss was water/fluid that your body stored. Now, it's fat you will be losing. You say you burn 800 calories more than you consume? Mathematically, that's about 1.5 lbs of fat loss a week. But, the scale does not show actual fat loss. The scale will show your weight including any extra Water you've retained due to eating too much sodium, meds, menstrual cycle or carbs. Most of us will plateau for a few weeks and then suddenly 2-3 lbs will just fall off. You're doing great considering this is the Holidays? tmf

Well, first of all, you're going to want anesthesia. This isn't much fun without it For me, the anesthesia was incredibly traumatic. It took me a week to start to feel normal again. I was in shock for the first 3 days. It's just an uncomfortable feeling for me. I don't see where many other forum members complain or comment on the anesthesia? It's mostly the pain from incisions and shoulder pain from the gas they pump in you. Good luck and no need to worry over it, it's a necessary evil. But it does make me be very careful not to mess up my surgery because I do not want to go there again. tmf

Cheryl is right. This is so normal and plateaus can go on for a month or more. Sometimes it's just Fluid retention and sometimes it's muscle mass addition. And sometimes its neither and your body is just adjusting to the new lifestyle. Losing weight is a math equation if you can throw out the emotional aspect. But it's not standard linear chart to your goal weight. It's more like a stock chart where there are days, weeks and months of positive gain(weight loss) with an occasional pullback. See below, the line is improving as it goes up but there are days and weeks of static movement.

What feeling?

Every doctor is different so you should speak to his/her office? Did you get a pamphlet or instruction book before surgery? I was on liquids including shakes the first 4 days and then mushies for another 4 days. tmf

Nessa, some bandsters do not lose weight. It's a fact. But, it's rarely because they followed the rules or approached their journey in a rational manner. You have to understand that some obese people do not want to give up their food addiction. They will find ways to sabotage their surgery and will eventually fail. Most of these bandsters post here and seldom give complete answers to needed information. Like, what are you eating, do you exercise etc. Some people simply do not lose because they think they have to eat 500 calories a day still. That won't work in the long run. Some are angry and blame the doctor, band, this forum. Maybe a small fraction of those are accurate, but the vast majority of us lose weight. You have >75% or more chance of succeeding with the band but about 2% if you just diet. Only you know how hard it is to lose your weight? If you know a better way, you should try that first. tmf

Heather, 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! 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". Good luck! tmf

And of course, people who are unhappy or are recipients of a failed band will post more often than someone who is successful and just goes on with their life. I know if I buy a product and spend a lot of money on it, I'll find a review board someplace and speak my mind. So, what happened to Nessa2012? Her profile disappeared already? tmf

Another contrarian point of view. I've drank beer from day 31 on. Only one of course. Seems like one fills me up much more than pre surgery. Now, on occasion, I've drank two, but hours apart. Seems like Corona is flatter than miller lite or most domestic beers. Chugging is out of the question. I think the reason why they want you to avoid carbonation is the fizz can expand your pouch and could be very painful. If you do break the rules, do it very slowly. Sip like you're a 13 year old girl having your first beer. Be very careful if you had a fill in the last 2 days. Take it easy and stay safe out there. tmf

Taijos, It is normal and you may be mistaking full for satisfied? Satiety is the goal here. You have reached the green zone when you can eat 1/2-1 cup of food and you feel like you are satisfied and can stop eating. If you can eat 300-400 calories of healthy foods per meal with the proper nutrition distribution, you are probably in the green zone. For many of us that means weeks or months of learning how to eat with the band. It's a re-education of your eating habits and it seldom comes naturally. For most of us, it meant finding restriction by eating the wrong foods or eating the wrong way and discovering that the band won't allow everything we eat to pass through without a struggle. Stuck episodes and sliming were part of the education for me. This makes you re-think how you eat. How fast you eat, how large your bites are and how much you chew, play a large part in reaching and managing your green zone maintenance plan. The green zone rarely just happens, it's a aha moment and comes and goes as will your band's attitude. Hope this helps? tmf

Every doctor has a different protocol. Some want only liquids, some low carb and some doctors, like mine, have no pre-op dietary plans. Also, doctors can and will vary from a basic pre-op plan depending on the patient. If he/she feels that your liver may be too large, he/she will probably go with an atkins type diet. You should go to a seminar and ask what the doctors pre-op diet is? tmf

First, you should fill in your profile so we know you better and can offer more informed advice? Sometimes we think of eggs as a slider food and it really isn't. You still need to take very small bites and chew, even if it's scrambled eggs. Learning to eat with the band can take many months. I know I thought I knew it all after 6 months of being banded but it took me nearly 9 months before I finally got it. And to this day I still have stuck episodes with sliming on occasion. There is also the possibility that you are too tight. The only way to know is to follow the rules and if the sliming and getting stuck continue, you should ask for a small unfill. Likewise, give it some time as you could also still be a little swollen from the fill. The tiny extra squeeze around your stomach can cause some irritation which in turn causes some edema in the band area. This narrows the passage from the pouch to the stomach. Good luck. tmf

You should do what your doctor tells you to do? I don't think any of us are privvy to his guidelines? I was banded November 28th, 2011 and I know what you are going through over these holidays. I ate a lot of Soups, especially egg drop Soup, tomato soup, some vegetable soups where the veggies are soft. About 3 weeks into it I was allowed to eat deli turkey and that was terrific. I also ate some meatloaf and hamburger helper foods. I would stay away from meat for now. Especially chicken and steak. Dry meat and breads could get stuck in your band and compromise the surgery. You don't understand how to eat with the band yet. If you get food stuck in the band, you could damage the sutures he placed around your stomach to hold the band in place. Mostly, I ate a lot of the foods I was allowed to eat. I know they recommend 1/2 cup but I don't like being hungry so I ate more than that. Hard to get fat on a cup or two of tomato soup. tmf

After a few months you find it's much easier. However, there are those doctors who believe it's OK to drink before, during and after you eat. You might double check with your doctor. Go to youtube and look for Lapband, Dr O'brien and video 3 to see what he has to say about this? tmf