DesertRose

Feeling emotional is normal as your body is adjusting to the lower caloric intake. Pretty soon, you will feel like yourself again, you just have to give it a little time. P.S. My surgeon said no creamy Soups during the liquid phase...he told me to save that for the "mushy" phase.

Since being banded and diagnosed as Metabolically (Insulin) Resistant, I've come to learn a great deal about myself and my relationship with food. The band has been a wonderful tool in assisting me with recognizing my problem areas. I have done some REAL listening to my body lately and that has opened up doors I've kept locked up for so long, I've forgotten they existed. This, along with journaling, has helped me to unlock these doors and discover these hidden rooms inside myself. Today, I have decided to air out these rooms, by confessing. I've never been addicted to drugs or alcohol, nor have I ever been through a 12 step program. I neither claim to know anything about psychology, nor do I claim to be an expert in health and nutrition. However, I have learned for myself, that in order to begin a healing process, we must first recognize there is a problem, confess it and move on. This is why I am starting this thread. After some negative reactions from some of the posters on this forum, I am a little nervous about this, but this is something I MUST do for myself. Confession, after all, is good for the soul. Here goes: 1. I am a sugar addict. My body constantly cries out for sweets and no matter how many times I try to give up sugar for good, I always go right back to it. 2. I've kept this secret hidden from my husband, my family and my friends. People have made remarks that I eat like a bird. They don't know about the chocolate hidden in my closet. The secret trips to the snack machine at work. How I make "cover up" noises to keep them from hearing the noises of the wrapper as I open my 3rd Snickers bar for the day. 3. I don't like cake but I love frosting. I can't tell you how many times I've eaten a whole bowl of frosting or eaten all the frosting off the cake, then pretended to drop the cake in the floor to cover up my secret. 4. Sometimes, when I buy groceries, I buy a jar of Smuckers hot fudge and eat the whole thing on my way home. I drive by a dumpster before I get home so I can toss the empty container. I would be mortified if anyone knew this. But now YOU know. The Addiction Resource Guide difines addiction like this: The physical and psychological craving for a substance that develops into a dependency and continues even though it is causing the addicted person physical, psychological and social harm. The disease of addiction is chronic and progressive, and the craving may apply to behaviors as well as substances. Yes, my friends, I am a sugar addict. I thank God every day for making it possible for me to have the lap band, because now I know, there is hope and with the help of my band, I can start moving in the right direction. With the band I can feel full and satisfied longer, which will help to keep my blood sugar regulated and reduce the cravings. With the help of my band, and reading this forum, I'm finding the strength to say no and make it through another day.

Today, I had a huge chocolate craving but I was able to pass up fudge. For that, I am very thankful. I am also thankful for the health and well-being of all my children. :tongue:

The kind of depression I went through after surgery, felt very much like postpartum depression to me. It was dibilitating and hit me without warning, suddenly it vanished as quickly as it came. I have a hunch that this phase will be over before you know it. My sister and brother and my stepdaughter are all bipolar. Any time they experience a major upheaval in their lives, they have severe mood swings. Surgery is a big deal. Hopefully, it will pass very soon. Good luck.

Oh yes, been there and done that. After I was banded, I had to hide in my bedroom for a whole week (mostly recovering) to avoid the smells coming from the kitchen. My normal weight husband went right on and continues on eating the way he always has. Before my surgery, we loved to curl up in the bed with a good movie, a bag of popcorn and a whole bag of M&M's. I was actually 'grieving' for those times, LOL. Now I am trying to find other things to do while he Snacks away. Arrrgh... I'm cooking healthier, but that does not stop him from bringing the sweets into the house. Tonight I came home from work and there was a 2 litre of soda sitting on the counter. I don't touch it anymore, but what IF it were a huge temptation for me? Does he not think? On top of that, we have a 14 yr old daughter in the house....kids and soda...it's like liquid candy to them. I feel like chucking it out into the back yard just to show him how serious I am about keeping it out of the house. What can ya do?

Hi there. I did the Protein Sparing Modified Fast last year without the supervision of my doctor. It was a rather dangerous undertaking even if I did lose 23 lbs in one month. Basically, you do this fast while eating mainly protein, hence the protein sparing term. I became obsessed with my caloric intake and had a horrible fear of going over 400 calories per day. I felt like an obese anorexic. My research on it then led to the Kimkims diet and I'm sure you've heard the horror stories about that. Well, all this dieting and such low calorie intake wreaked havoc on my metabolism. My PCP has now diagnosed me as Metabolic Resistant, or Insulin Resistant. Now, to kick start the fat burning (I was banded in June and was losing VERY slowly) I've had to drop my carbs to 20 grams per day. The scales are finally starting to move, but it's still a huge struggle. I'm glad to hear that you've been under the supervision of your dr. and you're getting the bi-weekly blood work. Just be careful and don't fear good healthy vegetables. Now that you're on this diet, however, once you reach goal, it will be VERY important to SLOWLY introduce carbs again. Otherwise, the weight will jump back on in a flash. I'm not trying to discourage you or scare you, just want you to be aware of the risks involved and I had to learn the hard way. Good luck!

This was one of the things that I worried about also. It made me feel kind of sad because I thought I would not be able to sit down with the family and laugh and talk and EAT, EAT, EAT. I pictured myself sitting down with a lettuce leaf & a dallop of cottage cheese while the rest of the family kept on enjoying my home cooking. However, I learned that it doesn't have to be like that. Sure you can enjoy some or most of the foods you cook for them, with them, as long as the portions are much smaller. I'm also cooking healthier for my family and we're eating pretty much the same thing. I take as long to finish my small portions as they do eating all they want. BTW: they don't have weight problems, thankfully.

What a wonderful concept! Today I am thankful for the life God gave me. He meant for it to be prosperous and healthy and I thank Him for showing me the way to find that again.

I've had friends who have come and gone and I have friends who have stayed through thick and thin. Sometimes I've had to walk out of other people's lives because of their addictions, etc. that would have pulled me down with them. One quote I've always tried to keep in mind is: "Don't be dismayed at good-byes. A farewell is necessary before you can meet again. And meeting again, after moments or lifetimes, is certain for those who are friends." ~ Richard Bach If you are true friends, she will be back. When she does, try to forgive.

By reading these replies, it appears to be different for everyone. While I am a novice, my reply is, it was one of the hardest things for me to give up. Then my fill doctor looked me straight in the eyes and said, "if you continue to drink with your meals, the band will FAIL". The word FAIL hit me like a ton of bricks. I still hear and see it in slow motion. However, I do keep tea or water on hand just in case something gets stuck. Just knowing it's there, and I can allow myself a sip if needed, keeps me sane.

How wonderful for you and what an inspiration you are. Feel free to share any tips with us newbies. Congratulations and great job!:cool2:

I'm so sorry...lost my train of thought. My point was, it might be best to go slow and easy with the fills. Allow yourself to adapt. Good night...

I agree with the poster Jack. It always helps me to take my time. I've had a "stuck" incident and have had problems since. Today I tried to take a tiny bite of BBQ beef. I chewed and chewed, but it got stuck. Tried the hot coffee trick, no luck. Then tried the "downward dog position" from Yoga and boom, it popped out, along with the coffee and it all landed on my bedroom floor. At that moment my pride and dignity went out the window. DH walks in and sees me bending over with my rear up in the air and this mess on the floor and he looked horrified, nevermind, I will stop here...TMI!

Thank you to all who came to my defense. The whole point of my post seemed to get lost in whether or not I should have asked for an adjusted price, or expected special treatment and/or blamed Subway because I had WLS, or whether or not I should have even gone to Subway, etc. Really, my main intention was to warn others to be careful when they ask for a special order and to spread the word about the poor service I got. I do not blame all Subways or all servers at Subway for this one incident. Just to clarify, I was nice to the young man and was willing to drop the whole thing until he was so horribly rude to me, then made the 'disgusting' remark. Come on...we do NOT have to take this and I do not have to get over it. If you don't stand up for yourself, who will? We have to be advocates for ourselves. If you don't stand for something, you will fall for anything. For those who didn't quite get the gist of my post, please read the title. For the last month or so I've been reading this forum, I'm finding it lacks the whole support atmosphere I had expected. If we wanted to be preached at, we would talk to our surgeons and/or fill doctors. However, for the most part, there are very knowledgable and decent people who post here who have plenty of sound advice to give. For that I am very appreciative. Thank you all and have a good night. No hard feelings please. We're all people at the other end of these modems and we're fighting the same battle. CAN'T WE ALL JUST GET ALONG?:biggrin:

Ok, everyone, I thought this was a support forum. Telling me to "get over it" when I experienced a very humiliating moment in a public eating establishment when I POLITELY asked the server to adjust the price does not feel like support. We've all endured our "moments" during this journey and if any of you had the same issue, I would try to be supportive. Sorry I mentioned it.

Wow! You've lost over 100 lbs. - THAT in itself should be a great motivation to get moving again. You only have 53 more to go! I have read about other people going through some challenges that interfere with the lap band way of life, so I am sure it's easy to slip back into old habits. Just try to remember why you chose this way of life in the first place. Maybe you could pull out some of your worst 'before' pics and remember how it felt to be that over-weight. Please be encouraged. I'm a novice, but I can tell you that I would give anything to have already lost that much weight. Hang in there...you CAN do it!

I've been so busy cleaning and doing laundry today, not to mention reading the forum off and on :frown: that I forgot to eat until about 30 minutes ago. So I chop up a quick salad and sit down to eat. Being in such a hurried state of mind, I completely forgot to take small bites and chew properly. The 3rd bite got stuck!! I never knew what people meant by the "golf ball syndrome" until now. It was the worse pain of my life! Thought I was having a heart attack. It seemed to even close off my air pipe. It went on for a good 3-4 minutes before I finally took a few sips of hot coffee. WOW...I have learned my lesson. Now I am scared that I've done some damage. Do I need to go on liquids for a few days? Help please! :thumbup:

I, like many others did not vote either way because my answer really would not fit either category. I do not think it is ridiculous. It has crossed my mind that if I were to die, while being obese, my family would have to endure finding a large enough burial outfit, casket, etc. Have you ever seen "What's eating Gilbert Grape?"? Very sad. There have been times in my life when I was so angry and frustrated at someone who had mistreated me that never seeing me again would be the ultimate revenge. However, after turning to God and learning to forgive, I now realize there is JUST TOO MUCH TO LIVE FOR. Life is a great adventure just waiting to be had and it will be so much easier now that I have the band.

Try Nutri-Ox from Sally's beauty supply. I'm having the same problem and this was recommended to me. I'm going out and getting some today. Losing my hair would be bad since it's down past my butt and I never cut it except for trimming the ends.

Hello! I was having the EXACT same problem. Albeit, doughy breads, etc. would get stuck. My problem was I couldn't JUST SAY NO to the sweets and 'slider foods' like mashed potatoes, etc. My blood sugar levels were going crazy and if I ate 1 miniature candy bar, I had to have a hundred more to feel satisfied. In order to get my blood sugar regulated and reduce the cravings, as of Monday I have banned all forms of sugar from my diet (for now). This is so I can get it out of my system and sort of detoxify. I have also reduced my carb intake to about 20 grams per day. Right now I am living off grilled chicken, salmon, tuna, cottage cheese, cucumbers, salads with olive oil & vinegar dressings, decaf tea, 1/2 cup steaming hot coffee per day (yum) and in the a.m.'s I do a Protein shake because my band is too tight. This has helped me greatly. But, we're all different. You just have to experiment while you're finding good restriction. Good luck and I hope you get that appetite under control. It will help a lot!

Just for the sake of General Discussion, I wanted to post this here. On Monday I made the decision to start significantly reducing my carb intake. Not the Low Carb most people might think about, where you can never touch even the good complex carbs again, etc. Let me begin by saying that over the last 5 years I've done Weigt Watchers, Cabbage Soup diet, South Beach, Atkins, etc. I lost very little with WW and the CS diet, a little more with South Beach and a LOT with Atkins. If you know the science behind Atkins, as I am sure many of you do, you would understand why. For me, Atkins worked by getting my body to burn fat for fuel. I did this the right way by following their rules for induction and lost a lot of weight in the first 2 weeks, Water weight mostly, but a lot of weight no less. I then began slowly introducing the 'good' carbs into my diet and all was going well. However, I was not able to stick with this because I started getting hungry a lot and the weight came back on, hence another failed diet. Now, with the help of my lap band, on Monday I decided to start doing low carb again. I have lost 5 lbs. since. Prior to this my weight loss was very slow. Now I'm beginning to feel more energetic and my appetite has almost diminished. Don't get me wrong, I don't eat bacon wrapped in butter. My typical day's menu looks like this: B - Protein shake (I am too tight in the a.m. to eat) L - small salad with a little grilled chicken - (dressing is olive oil & vinegar) S - 1/2 cup cottage cheese or cucumber slices D - grilled chicken or salmon, with a small side salad I remember to drink plenty of water. No kidney problems, constipation, etc. I take the sugar-free metamucil every day to keep me regular. My multi-vitamin is my friend. Any comments, good or bad, are welcome. Have a great day. :bolt:

You are right, I shouldn't have gone to Subway expecting not to eat the bread and not be charged for it, etc. BUT on the same token, my family was wanting Subway, which is much healthier than most fast food establishments, and I was trying to accomodate them. The guy behind the counter seemed friendly enough so I thought I would ask. Well, it turns out that he was not friendly at all...LOL. Thanks!

Wow, I've never heard of an Obesity Law Firm. Good for you, I'm so happy you've been approved! Good luck in your journey.

At this particular Subway, the 6" sub was 4.99. The price of everything is going up! :bolt:

Thank you all for your replies. And while I do understand some of you who say that we shouldn't ask for "special treatment"...the sentiment behind my post was how mortified I was to be treated with such rude behavior just because I POLITELY asked if he could charge me less since I was not getting the bread. YOU DON'T KNOW UNTIL YOU ASK. That's the whole idea behind the little card. However, as I said, I will not allow others' ignorance to get me down. I chalk it up to a lesson learned. It's just horrible that an employee in a public eating establishment would make such rude comments about a paying customer. I wonder what's wrong with today's world...and with the economy you would think they would be trying harder to keep their customers. Maybe being "lap band friendly" would over-shadow their whole Jerry marketing scheme. I don't know. But, I do know, I will not ask for special orders again. :bolt: