2muchfun

Dumb rule but the best way is to go on Atkins. Most of the weight will be excess fluids but if it makes your Dr happy so be it. Plus, you won't starve to death since you can eat a lot of Protein. It's only 3 weeks so you may not miss the carbs all that much. 2nd option would be Paleo. Nothing white in your diet. No flour, no sugar and no dairy. But for the quickest amount of weight loss(not necessarily fat loss) would be atkins. imo tmf

Hang in there. It will happen. tmf

This may sound corny Eli but this is a song lyric from the Doobie Bros from back in the late 1980 that always kept me from giving up: From the song, One by One... album, One Step Closer Even when you're close to a dream It can still let you down You'll always have a chance to give up So why do it now tmf

Severe cravings but do you get restriction or satisfaction after a small meal? I have too much restriction and can't eat much but I'm still hungry most of the time. tmf

How many calories are you consuming a day? If you don't know you might want to keep a journal? If you keep gaining weight, what kinds of food are you eating? tmf

This is not uncommon. Much will depend on what you eat but the bottom line is this: Many if not most bandsters have surgery and lose a few lbs after surgery. 2 weeks after surgery you may enter bandster hell where you're hungrier than a May bear. It's all you can do to not gain weight during this stage of your journey. Usually 4-8 weeks out you will get a fill. This may or may not give you enough restriction to slow down your drive to eat lots of food you shouldn't be eating. By now many bandsters will have plateaued and are concerned they are doing something wrong. Maybe they are? For many of us the road to restriction and satiety can be 3-10 fills and 3-12 months and losing weight depends on how good a dieter you are? I lost 12 lbs after surgery(I had no pre-surgery diet) and then plateaued for 3 months. Remember, it's still a diet till there's restriction. And you said nothing about restriction or how much or what you are eating? tmf

You may have restriction simply because of the swelling. Most of us realize some sort of restriction right after surgery and usually within 2 weeks the swelling goes down and then it's bandster hell for a few weeks/months. X your fingers and hope you're one of the few lucky ones who needs no fills? tmf

Banded, Slime is when you take a large bite, or don't chew and the food is struggling to go through your esophogus and pouch. You'll feel a lot of pressure around your diaphragm and some discomort. Your body secretes a thick slippery mucous to aid the food through your stomach but sometimes it backs up into your throat and it's not a bad idea to visit a sink or toilet nearby to remove it. It's disgusting and after a few episodes you may not want to go back there again. It's not a good idea to try to swallow this stuff as it only adds more pressure on your pouch and can increase the pain. Spitting slime out relieves the pressure and the discomfot/pain that comes with it. tmf

Pain meds like oxycodone can cause your digestive track to slow down to a halt with some people. I already knew this before having surgery so I skipped the powerful pain meds and went without. tmf

shakes are sliders, you shouldn't still be drinking your food unless the Dr orders it. I lost 12 lbs my first month and then nothing for the next 3 months. It's not unusual unless you're in the green zone already? How many calories do you consume per day and how much are you exercising? tmf BTW-For those of you who are new here, it helps the rest of us if you fill out your profile so we know when you started and where you are in your journey. Also, adding the ticker is instructive.

If you want to prepare for the band, cut out the fat free ice cream, milk(1/2 maybe?), cheese(1oz tops), Pasta, soup, wraps. Once you have the band and reach the green zone you probably won't be able to eat most of that stuff. If you eat 1800 calories a day you may lose but very very slowly. salad is fine as long as it's not mostly iceberg lettuce. Spinach and darker greens have much more nutrition than plain lettuce. LIke someone said earlier, we all eat much less than 1800. I eat about 1200-1400 but I'm very active and exercise about 45 mnutes a day. tmf

Slime, not slim. Sliming not slimming. tmf

Anthem BCBS out of PA.

I have bcbs but I like bsbs much better.

I don't get it?

BS, total freudian slip?

Banded 12/30/2012? It's so good of you to come back from the future to keep us informed You look great btw. tmf

Doesn't the sleeve cost about 3 times the band? The old saying "Follow the money" may not apply to every bariatric surgery as some folks really do need the sleeve but maybe some don't? tmf

Isn't this period between the fill and solids mentally painful? I hate this time because you are so impatient to find out if you finally have restriction but have to wait 3 days. I really didn't see any restriction till my 4th fill so Xing fingers your first fill does the trick. tmf

Ketosis is when your body is burning fat for fuel since there are no carbohydrates to burn. A cracker is basically a carbohydrate. tmf

Nice job McFly!

Ditto what Mis73 said. And after that there is no set standard since everyone is different. Your journey will not look like most anyone elses.

Don't take this the wrong way but I would recommend a psychotheropist. I'm sure your doctor has a list of therapists who specialize in eating disorders and how to deal with them. You can still use the band to get to your goal so there's no reason to have it removed unless it's medically necessary. BTW-All of us have an eating disorder of some kind. It's never our stomachs that fill themselves up, it's our mind that controls that function. So you are not alone with your dilemma. tmf

Have you tried a complete unfill?

Sara, I think I can speak for most of us and say that most bandsters were enormously hungry after surgery. Like the others say, it's important for you to heal at this point so don't eat ineligible foods at this point. You may get away with it in a month or two but now is not the time. Don't beat yourself up over falling off the wagon though. I ate pretty much whatever I wanted two weeks out(very lenient doc) and didn't put on any weight and didn't lose any either. I figured I'm in bandster hell and I didn't have this surgery just to go on another diet but fortunately the little restriction I was getting allowed me to eat less. tmf