2muchfun

There are many to choose from. Myfitnesspal.com has one that many use. If you click on my ticker it will take you right to the site to set up your own. Here's a thread that explains how to do it. http://www.lapbandtalk.com/topic/124594-ticker-tutorial-for-vst-lbt-with-pictures/page__p__1777278__hl__ticker#entry1777278

Erica and others. It's very refreshing to read honest personal assessments of yourselves and the lack of success you've achieved. I think for many of us we secretly share some of the same fears now and going in. For me, it's how much I want the thin life. I want it desperately, and for me, this is my ticket, my one opportunity to make it happen. I've bought the lapband pitch, hook line and sinker. And I'm glad I did. You will have to find something other than food to be passionate about. For me, this is it. I sincerely hope you find that switch that motivates you as much as I am. Good luck. tmf

Mary Lou, This happens to about 90% of Bandsters. They don't put much saline in your band because they want you to heal. The hole is too big so food passes through as if you have no band. You may feel just as you did before surgery. You will have to deal with extreme hunger at times till you get a fill that will give you enough restriction. It's called "Bandster Hell". No one told me about it till after I had it. I went into this thinking I'd come out and instantly not be hungry and a few bites would satisfy me. HAHA! Joke's on me. Well, I was in BH for about 3.5 months till my 3rd and 4th fill. I'm in the green zone and you will be too. But till then try to make wise choices in the foods you eat. Protein first. Remember: "It's just a diet until you have restriction"! tmf

So glad there are others who can relate to your dilemma. I like candy, chocolate but was never addicted to them. Good luck and you might try KayTee's route before you throw in the towel? tmf

My suggestion is to see a psychologist who specializes in eating disorders. No one here is going to be able to convince you to eat healthy. Or, at the very minimum, see your doctor's nutritionist/dietician. They're about 1/4 the cost and it can only open your eyes to other choices. It does sound like you were not ready for this step but it's not too late to find the path. tmf

Some people don't think before they put their mouth in gear. I remember asking a woman I knew when her baby was due. She said he was born last week. Insert foot here! tmf

BTW-Why don't you just eat dill pickles. It's a slider food and should go down easy. tmf

They're all slider foods and no harm done. You won't feel restriction with liquids unless your band is too tight. Blood is dripping down my chin from biting my tongue! tmf

I follow that same path of weight loss as dhales. I was at 192-194 for 10 days, then over one weekend I dropped to 188. Now I flirt between 188-192 for the last week. So if the trend continues, I'll drop to 185 and hang out between 185-188 for a few weeks. I used to sweat it but not anymore. tmf

You're 2.5 weeks post op! You're not supposed to be losing weight yet. This is a time for healing. If you consume a lot of sodium or carbs, that will cause you to withold fluids and cause you to gain weight. Chill out girl. There's a long road ahead of you still. tmf

Hunny, I think you're reading something between the lines that never existed. I just posted information, no judgement here. tmf

I forgot to post this link. This is a basic manual for bariatric patients and may not conform to your doctors wishes so take it all with a grain of salt: http://www.peachtreebariatrics.com/docs/Gastric-Band-Patient-Manual.pdf

Hope your doc isn't like Sojourner's? Not that he's a bad doc it's just that 6 weeks is too long for many patients. Some of these docs are so inflexible. Every patient is different and some of us learn how to work our tool/band sooner than others. Yes, you need a fill. I started feeling a little restriction with fill #3 and by #6 I was in the green zone. Don't be afraid to ask your surgeon for a fill even if it's only 3 weeks since your last. You shouldn't have to suffer through a diet with no help from a band you paid $10,000 for. Dieting sucks and we all know how well we succeeded with diets. They're uncomfortable and don't work so get a fill. Remember, "It's only a diet till we get restriction"! tmf

I've been reading here for quite a while and for me the pain was minimal. My biggest problem was dealing with all the drugs they pump you with. I was in shock for about a week over all the anesthesia, meds and oxygen they gave me. The pain from surgery was nothing for me and I went back to work the next day but I also work from home. I've read where many people take one to two weeks off before they go back and sometimes some people have some pain in their shoulder from the gas they pump in you? There are also folks who suffer pain from the incisions but people are all different in their pain tolerance you know? Good luck with your career choice. My daughter graduated last year and just finished her student teaching requirements. She's teaching science, physics and biology in a local charter school starting in August. tmf

You're going to be in "bandster hell" for a few weeks. And Honk is right. Soup is a slider. You can be in the green zone and soup will slide through. I can eat 3 cups of slider foods. Normal food would be 3 ozs of protein(chicken, fish) and maybe 2-3 ozs of a vegetable. If you're going to feel restriction, you'll have to eat meat. But eat it in small bites, and chew much more than ever, and eat slowly. If you feel a pressure in your chest/stomach area, that's restriction and you'll have to learn how to eat again. It took me 6 fills before I got to the green zone. tmf

Scared? Of what? Needles? Youtube lapband fills and you'll see it's quite painless. Like a mosquito bite. I watched the needle go in and watched the doc push the plunger down. No feeling at all. In fact, the first fill had no pinch or needle prick pain at all. The others had a little bit of a pinch feeling but it's no big deal. I'm not saying that to be macho, I'm sure most everyone here would back me up. tmf

Anume, is that really as soon as the Doc would let you in? Sometimes you must get pushy with the docs or the schedulers. Some of these people who schedule appts are petty little despots and get off on the little bit of power they have. But if it was your choice, good luck. tmf

Magicfan, I hear ya. Unfortunately or fortunately we're all so different, there's no way to have a uniform method of treating obese people. We all got here in different ways and all lead such different lifestyles. I read how others are doing and how they do it but I rarely agree with or follow the same path to success. 3 months from now you'll be advising someone just like you who is frustrated with how their journey is going and you'll tell them hey girlfriend, been there, done that and the best is just a few weeks away. Why don't you call your surgeon tomorrow to see if they can move your fill up a week? All they can say is no? tmf

This came up a week ago: Clip my toenails and tie my shoes without grunting and losing my breath. Fit into an airline seat without rubbing shoulders with the skinny people around me. Getting down on the floor and playing with my grandkids and my kitty. Sliding into a cafe booth and not having to push the table away. Knees not aching after just walking around the park. Playing golf again without my gut getting in the way of my swing. Having shirts without the obligatory stains right where my gut sticks out(all of my shirts are stained in the same spot) Going to the Water park and not wearing a t-shirt all day because I'm a fat slob. Going to Mexico with my wife in November and being able to remove my shirt and not scare small children(although the scars are still a little scary) Getting rid of some of my meds. And finally(drum roll) Be able to "Ride the Rockies" 6 stage/day bike riding event next year. Woo Hoo! tmf

No offense Mom but you are confusing many different issues here. 1st. I haven't seen your Drs orders but almost always this pre-op diet is to shrink your liver not a rapid weight loss program. Read Pandora's response above. 2nd. Jim is right about your metabolism slowing down if you starve it. Again, is this a weight loss program or liver shrinkage program? 3rd. In this pre op time, you will be losing mostly Water and not fat. " If I'm eating 800 calories a day and THAT hardly causes me to lose weight" 4th. It appears you don't understand the basics of weight loss math? It takes 3500 burned calories to equal 1 lb of weight loss. If you consume 1000 calories per day and burn 2000 calories per day, you will burn 1000 X 7(days) =7000 more calories than you ate in one week. That's 2 lbs on a good week. 5 lbs of real fat loss in one week is unheard of so you must know that most of that is water loss and that loss will continue for about a month post op. You may need to lower your expectations? 5th. You seem to be making an argument for not choosing the band and if you really are this adamant, you should hold off on any WLS till you are ready to make a full commitment. Otherwise you may fail. Most all of us will swear that it does work but you've got to commit to it. tmf

Think "Bad Day" not bad week. I've had a few bad days but I let myself enjoy it knowing I would get back on the wagon the very next day. Of course, I'd never schedule a cruise vacation as I understand those are ungodly bad for diets.

What's for dinner tonight? Better take it easy, you never know what's going to bite you back? I'm trying to recall what I wanted for my first real meal? I think I started with salmon or chicken and soon found out my stoma was wide open and I could eat most anything. Since it was December I didn't really mind. Still had prime rib for New Years. tmf

I agree with TXGirl. I'd layoff any pullups, chinups, leg lifts or anything that would stress your abs. That port needs to meld into your muscle or it'll flip over. tmf

I've read where some can feel it and can feel a fill or when food passes through it. Not me. Can't feel a thing except when I'm stuck. tmf

I was always hungry and requested to come in a week early for my first fill. And the same for my next 2 fills. My doctor isn't really confrontational and he had no prob with my requests. Maybe there's more to why your doc wants to wait but it sounds like you could use a fill. I'd give it a couple of weeks and if you can continue to eat anything and if you are very hungry all the time, tell him you are struggling to stay on a diet and that you are not feeling any restriction. Some docs like to sneak up on restriction and maybe that works best, but I would prefer getting there a little faster. I agree that working with your band is best but if you lost most of your weight through the liquid and pureed phase I would disagree with him. If you are gaining weight or staying the same, he really should allow you a fill. But if you can feel restriction and continue to lose weight, why rock the boat? tmf