Melissannde

I tried all kinds of non-chewable Cal. Citrate.. even cutting them in 1/4's and putting in applesauce or yogurt, they still hurt going down. I went to Bariatric Advantage Chewable Calcium. Hooray! No pain! For the amount of calcium they want me on daily, it was the most cost effective. Caltrate isn't calcium citrate.. it's calcium carbonate. My doctor wants me on the Calcium Citrate. He says it's better absorbed.

Fluoroscopy is a type of xray, it allows the doctor to see the stomach and band and the patient drinks a type of dye that is opaque to xrays (radiopaque dye).. usually barium. The dye shows up as white and the stomach as darker. Not all doctors use fluoro. Not all doctors fill the band completely and then back off. Granted, I don't know all there is about banding, but this is the first time I've heard of this method in 18 months of being on support groups. If you are concerned, please call the staff at your doctor's office and ask questions before you go in. My doctor uses ultrasound SOMETIMES to locate the port and that's all. I've never even needed a freezing spray. It's not painful. Just a tiny stick. I've always received my fills lying down, so if I should have an adverse reaction, there's no where to fall. ::grin:: Sometimes they have me do a little mini-crunch (situp) to bring the port nearer the surface. Since I've lost weight (I was SMO super morbidly obese), they haven't even needed the ultrasound machine. I do understand being apprehensive about the first fill. I was too and asked everyone who would listen, including pharmacists, about numbing medication. The first time was a little ouchy, because I was still sore from surgery, but not bad .. and I'm not good with needles at all. Please call your bariatric professionals tomorrow, or go to support group before your fill appointment and talk about your fears. It will help.

1200 calories sounds about right. If you'd like to fine tune it more, you could do what I do. I use the calorie goal function at The Daily Plate on LIVESTRONG.COM - Calorie Counter, Weight Loss, food Calorie Counter, Nutrition Facts | LIVESTRONG.COM. You input info such as age, height, weight, and how much you want to lose per week and it calculates how many calories you need. For me to lose 2lbs a week at "lightly active" I get to have 1484 calories a day. Most of the time that's a huge plenty for me. I buy lean beef (90/10 or better), skinless chicken (or remove skin before cooking/eating..depending on recipe), fish. I don't eat pork very often due to personal issues with the fat content (last time it gave me a gb attack..). The 90/10 is what our nutritionist advises. Yours might have a different opinion. Probably what you need to do is to adjust your cooking methods.. use a moist heat (crockpot, oven roast with foil over it, etc.) OR use something to "lube" the meat while eating. I like Dijonnaise or low carb ketchup, nonfat refried Beans, etc. Just account for the calories in your "lube" in your total for the day. Another thing that works is to eat your veggies WITH your meat. I know.. heresy but I find that mixing the textures works for me. My bariatric people (nurses & doctors) are OK with me eating the foods together as long as it is keeping me full long enough and I'm losing weight. I think the sipping advise is to get you trained for when you eventually get a tighter band and can only drink in smaller amounts. I don't know 100% if that is their reasoning.. ask them. :smile2: I still drink fairly rapidly sometimes and have no issues. It all depends on how tight I am. Sometimes liquids flow right on through and sometimes I can feel them hesitate .. Hope this helps.

I bought mine at Netrition.com - The Internet's Premier Nutrition Superstore! I don't recall the fat content, but it's probably low as the calories are A LOT less than regular PB. when you go there you can check the nutritional info and see if it meets your criteria. It comes in regular and chocolate. yummy stuff. I buy my DaVinci s/f syrups from netrition too. Enjoy.

Never an experience like that in 18 months of being banded. My doctor is conservative and doesn't give huge fills. I do know about the vasovagal response, but never had it happen to me with a fill.

My first one was a tiny bit of an "OUCH" because I was still tender at the incision site. Since then they've been no big deal at all. I understand being apprehensive.. I was talking to pharmacists and everyone who would listen about something to numb the area before the fill. Numbing wasn't necessary & while like I said, it was tender, it wasn't bad. Of course this was quite a while ago as I was banded in March of 09 and as always, YMMV. Good Luck.

Crispaholic, regarding the apples & pears, have you tried peeling them first? Sometimes fruit peelings agree with me and other times they just cause discomfort. I never know which it's going to be, so I peel most of the time. Probably a good idea anyhow with all the pesticides that are sprayed on apples. Good Luck.

Got mine yesterday. DH has asthma and is also exposed to lots of germs in his work.. so he gets one. I get one to protect him.

The full feeling is DIFFERENT. I no longer feel full in my lower abdomen.. it's higher, upper abdomen/lower chest area. And it's not so much of a full feeling, but a feeling of satisfaction. It's an adjustment, but not that difficult to make, esp. if you go into this with a positive attitude. :smile2: I still sometimes wish I could keep on eating.. yes, it's sometimes aggravating that things taste good, but I can't eat more. I just put the extra away for a later (3 to 5 hours) meal. It also helps to measure out your food (3oz Protein, 1/2 cup low carb veggies) and that's ALL you put on your plate. I no longer serve family style..that leads to overeating too often. We fix plates and carry to the table. And use smaller plates. You're asking good questions.. keep it up.

I use the livestrong site too and I don't find it to be accurate at all. :smile:

I know someone who is banded and doesn't do "formal" exercises as in going to the gym because of other health concerns. Their doctor just tells them it will probably take them longer to reach goal, but that there's no reason they can't. I think this person I know would engage in more structured activities if their health allowed.

If you like DaVinci & Torani.. you can order Torani from Amazon.com at great prices .. 3 bottles for 16.80 or put them on automatic order (I have 3 bottles of chocolate sent every 3 months) and the price drops even lower and shipping is FREE. Netrition.com has every flavor that DaVinci makes.. and that's a lot!! Prices are a bit higher, but selection is fantastic, and shipping is a flat 4.95 whether you order 1 thing or 100. Try the Pumpkin Pie or the Gingerbread (my current fav) s/f DaVinci. Just make sure that you do order the s/f. I ended up giving away 3 bottles of peppermint.. cause I made a mistake. Whoops.

I'm not hungry all the time.. but I sure want to chew. I chew s/f gum, or sometimes grab a piece of beef Jerky. Or if you know you should not be hungry (ie only 2 hours after a meal).. try drinking some Water. The other suggestions already posted are also good.

I don't mean to be unmotivating.. but yes, it is shocking that we probably aren't burning as much as we hoped. I figure it's better to UNDER estimate what I'm doing (and be pleasantly surprised) than to over estimate and wonder why I'm not getting the anticipated results. You haven't been doing the exercise for nothing. You're getting your heart and lungs in better condition, you're toning and building muscles. Muscle is much more efficient at burning calories than fat. Just if you've been using the machines calculations..it just might not be as much of a burn as you thought. I said Might not.. it also might be right on target or below.

The estimates on the machines are really inaccurate. When I would record my exercise at livestrong.com/thedailyplate, I would cut my time in half. ie: exercise 60 minutes.. record it as 30 to make up for the discrepancies. Then I got a Polar HR Monitor and was shocked to find that even cutting my workout times in half, I was still getting credit for too much work done. If you have the funds available, I'd try getting a HR monitor, preferably one with a chest strap. I had a cheapie w/o a strap, it didn't work very well. Polar makes good ones, or there's the Bodybugg, GoFit Wear (I think is a bb clone). Omron makes excellent pedometers, I bet they make good HR monitors too. As to how much time in the gym? Mon: 3 to 4 hours (weights, RPM, Zumba, Yoga, abs class) Tues: 90 min (Yoga, Cardio) Wed: 2 Hrs (Body Pump, RPM) Thurs: 90 min (Pilates, Cardio) Fri: either a day off or 1 hr of Body Pump Sat: If I worked out Friday.. 1 HR of Zumba. If I didn't work out Friday.. 2 Hrs.. Body Pump & Zumba. Sunday: Rest. I do extra Zumba classes when I feel the need and have the energy. Calorie burn for me.. according to HR monitor.. is an average of 200 cal/hour. But it can depend on the class, the instructor and other variables. For example: today, Yoga was 75, RPM was 216, Zumba: 267, Weights: 295, Abs: 44 (the Yoga class was 30 min & Abs class was 15 minutes). Hope this helps

That's my recipe... well, I posted it.. I didn't create it. :smile: Glad everyone is loving it so much. ::grin::

Btrieger is right, not enough calories can stall weight loss. Also, if you're so tight that all you can get down are "slider" foods which are typically higher calorie, that can also stall weight loss. The third thing that can be happening is that you might be at a plateau, where weight isn't moving, but your body is reshaping. But I think Btrieger has the right suggestion.. get a small unfill. I've had a .2 unfill before. 1/2 cc might be too much, but your doc will have the best estimate of the amount that should come back out. You want enough removed to help you feel better, but not so much that you lose appetite suppression. Good luck.

I had a .2cc fill in April that made it hurt to eat.. I was PB'ing .. having to drink hot tea to be able to get ANY food down. I went and had the fill taken back out. Immediate relief.. and in fact, had to fight hunger for a few days by pushing fluids until things settled back down. Waited till July.. got the same .2cc's back in again. Now it's near perfect. Just a little bit tight, no PB'ing. So, my advice... if it hurts to eat, if you're having to drink something warm to be able to eat solid foods.. think about having some taken back out. Of course it's your decision.. but I didn't like it hurting.

Nope, you're not weird, or at least you're not alone. I've had that experience too. In fact, that's why my doc won't give fills any closer than 4 weeks.. because of his experience of fills sometimes taking 2 weeks to make themselves known in some of his patients.

Try nutritiondata.com

If you're too tight in the morning to eat.. and this is a problem for you.. try drinking a cup of coffee or tea, then try to eat. I know of one bariatric nurse who is very successful and banded over 10 years and breakfast is the one time she says she breaks the rules and drinks with her meals. Steelcut Oatmeal is better for us than regular or instant oatmeal. It can be made overnight in the oven or crockpot.. google for recipes. Another easy breakfast is hungrygirls egg in a mug. She uses eggbeaters in her recipes.. I find that 1 whole egg plus 1/4 cup egg white (or separate one egg and discard the yolk) is about the same volume and works well. HungryGirl.com Lots of folks will only use eggbeaters or eggwhites because they don't want the cholesterol. My numbers are excellent as to HDL & LDL and I want the Omega3's in the eggs I use (eggland's best). If I'm in a huge hurry, I drink Muscle Milk LIGHT in the rtd boxes (vanilla or strawberry.. chocolate tastes nasty) or make a Syntrax nectar Fuzzy Navel drink. One other breakfast I like is Dannon plain greek yogurt (5.3oz cup) with 1/4 cup Bob's red Mill Muesli and 1/8 cup blueberries. The Muesli is a little high in carbs, but I only eat this when I have intense workouts planned ( I workout most mornings). Hope this helps a bit.

I'd ask if they have an ultrasound machine to help find the port. They had to use that on me for the first several fills.. I've lost enough now that it's not necessary. Best of luck on Monday.

Call your doc's office and talk to the nurses or dietitian/nutritionist. They can help you and should not scold you. I think usually what the bariatric professionals mean by "no snacking" is no junk food. Healthy Snacks, with controlled amounts of calories should be OK. I went through this early post-op, though mainly at night. I took a container of yogurt to bed with me and ate a spoonful when I woke up with hunger pains. I think you need to eat something with more Protein in them than crackers. How about a Light & crisp Wasa cracker with a wedge of light laughing cow cheese? A container (5 to 6oz) of low fat plain greek yogurt with 1/8 to 1/4 cup blueberries? A small to medium apple (organic if possible) with a weight watcher's string cheese stick. Try to keep the calories under 150 and the protein high. And include the snacks in your overall calorie count (if you are counting.. some don't. I do). Hope this helps.

Do you need to use a machine? Can you lie down on the floor and do regular crunches? I do understand that some folks have trouble getting on the floor.. I've been there myself and still have issues when my knee is hurting.. I'd think at 7 months out you'd be OK for crunches.. start gentle and at low weights and work your way up slowly. You could always consult your physician or ask a trainer who is familiar with banded folks.

Let's see.. what do I fix for the family and me? Saturday: Stuffed Poblano peppers. (took 90/10 grnd sirloin, browned with onions, mixed with quinoa, bell peppers, tomato sauce..use this to stuff the peppers, which were cut in half long ways). Some sort of veggie.. probably broccoli as we love it. Sunday was "Beer Can Chicken" and a huge pan of stir-fried squash, zucchini, garlic & onions. The stir-fry was done using spray Olive Oil Pam. Monday I went to support meeting, so wasn't home for supper. I don't know what the family ate. (my kids are college students living at home, so they're capable of feeding themselves.) Tuesday: Baked Catfish, Steamed Broccoli, carrots, cauliflower Wed: Spaghetti sauce made with 93/7 grnd turkey. Whole wheat Pasta, tossed salad. I had my sauce over grated Zucchini. The rest of the family had the pasta. I think I might have tasted 3 noodles. Tonight: Leftovers.. DD & DH had 'sketti. I had a big snack at 5pm of mango chipolte salmon & wasa crackers & a handful of baby spinach and I'm not hungry again yet. DS isn't home from college yet.. so I don't know if he'll want chicken, stuffed peppers or will have spaghetti. I very rarely fix rice or pasta.. when I do it's wild or brown rice and whole wheat or dreamfield's pasta. I basically cook low fat, low carb and if the family doesn't like what I provide, they know where the Cereal is.