ParrotheadCathy

It's allergy season. Do you have any allergies? The reason I ask is that I am FINALLY getting over a terrible summer cold. My nose has run for three weeks and so much post-nasal drip. I had PB'd exactly twice since surgery and suddenly, I was sticking more than once in a meal, PBing at almost every meal and even having problems with liquid. I finally figured out that there was so much snot in my throat that it was causing my problem I took a decongestant and, there you go, no more snot, no more sticking, no more PBing. My doctor's physician's assistant said that a lot of people have problems when allergy season hits and they don't connect "band problems" with allergy problems. But it could be!

Oh, yeah, clothes buying. I have a friend who shops at Goodwill and finds really cute, stylish things in smaller sizes as she loses weight on South Beach. I shop EBay religiously. Just got a pair of gently used capris that look like new for NINETY-NINE CENTS. Add a little shipping and they were right at $4. You're not going to be wearing it long so look for the bargains. Consignment shops will cost a bit more but will still be less than brand new.

I believe it is sort of like that body dysmorphic syndrome where people only see their flaws and are constantly seeking a fix .... like those people that just keep having more and more plastic surgeries. We KNOW all too well what we looked like when we started this journey and, obviously, we didn't like what we saw or we would never have put ourselves through what we have! But the change has happened quickly. We got fat slowly and sort of let ourselves get complacent along the way because you didnt see the change in minute increments (but mostly when we had to buy bigger clothes). So now, we've changed one heck of a lot -- physically, mentally, the whole package. BUT we saw that old version of ourselves for so long that we really have a hard time seeing our NEW selves. I suggest that you go to a dress shop. Get a clerk to help you. Be honest with her and tell her that you've lost so many pounds and that you don't have any idea what will fit. Take 1 size smaller than you think you are right now and try on a ton of dresses. That's right, DRESSES. To me, a dress makes me feel sexy and pretty in a way that slacks never will. If that size is too tight, ask for the next size up. The clerk will be glad to bring it to you. Step out of the dressing room and look at yourself in the big mirrors from several feet away. But don't look at yourself. Look at the woman in the mirror and see her for what she IS today. If that 1 size smaller than you THINK you wear is a little snug, consider buying it if you think 5 pounds will make the difference. But for this one occasion, buy the prettiest dress you can find that fits you really well. No big flowers, no "tent" dresses. Buy something with a waist and that makes you look like you have more waist that you do. Try on every damn dress in the shop. But the most important thing is the way the right one feels when you slide it on. Really FEEL the dress. I swear I can tell if a dress is right before it's all the way on just by the way it feels. Go to the department store and get a makeover on your makeup -- the day the picture will be taken. Get a new haircut. Do whatever makes you feel pampered and pretty and I promise you IT WILL SHOW ON YOUR FACE.

PB does not equal vomiting. There is a huge difference, but most people don't realize that and think they are the same thing. When you vomit, your stomach contracts and forces out the contents of your stomach .... including chewed up food and stomach acids. That's bad for your port because the contractions can move your band. A PB is more of a gag reflex and pushes out food stuck in your esophagus. It's usually just the bite of food, fully chewed, that you just swallowed. Since that doesn't have to pass through your band, it's not the issue that vomiting is. I had PB'd twice since surgery .... once when I just ate too fast (because I'd waited far too long to eat and was so starving I just sort of shoveled it in) and the other time involved soft bread that just didn't want to go anywhere and finally came back. THEN I caught a terrible summer cold. There was so much mucus! I blew and blew my nose but there was a lot of post-nasal drip. Suddenly, every meal (even liquids) I got stuck alot and PB'd several times Now that the cold is over, I'm doing pretty good again. My doctor's office confirmed that the thick mucus that comes with any respiratory infection can cause multiple stuck (and PBs too). So watch out for infections!

Like Brockbabe, I got a prescription for a liquid pain med. Never took it, never took anything at all. My internist TOOK ME OFF all my meds (blood pressure, cholesterol and diabetes as of the day of surgery). I take a vitamin everyday. That's it. That's the whole reason I did this -- to get off all those pills. I cannot describe to you my daily joy that a handful of pills is no longer a part of my daily routine. My vitamin effervesces (just like Alka-Seltzer) and I add a little Benefiber to it, and some orange-flavored Crystal Light for taste. That's all there is!!! Yipppeeeeeee

Probably just gas, coming back for a visit. I remember when I thought it was gone for good....and then, suddenly, it came back.

My pre-op diet was for two weeks. I was supposed to drink a protein shake (with whey protein, specifically) for breakfast and then again in the late afternoon. For lunch and dinner, I could have 3 oz of lean protein (about the size of a deck of cards), some steamed or raw vegetables, and a single serving of whole grain carbs. I sometimes waited to eat the carbs later (so I could have a snack if I was hungry) and discovered that I usually didn't want it at all. I lost more than 8 pounds you're still looking to lose.

Brockbabe is so right! You are still healing. Between now and your first fill, you may not lose anything. I gained and lost the same 4 pounds several times. But once you get a couple of fills, start feeling some restriction, and are better able to eat as you are supposed to, you will start that consistent weight loss you've been impatiently waiting for! Also, understand that you can eat TOO LITTLE! If you don't give your body adequate "fuel", it will store everything you take in for fear it's going to stop completely. Track what you eat ... write it down or log it on one of several websites. Try to aim for 1,000 - 1,200 calories per day. Drink 8 glasses or so of Water.

Jill, most overweight people have a history of eating fast. That means they don't chew their food well enough and, even worse, they have eaten right past "full" so many times that they forget what it really feels like. We know "stuffed" really, really well. "Full" not so much, LOL. Try keeping your meals to no more than a 1 cup of food. Cut things into bites no bigger than a nickel. Take a bite, put down your fork, and CHEW. If it's drier texture foods (some meats are dry), a tiny bit of water can help you break it down. (I know, we're not supposed to drink with meals, but a small sip can help you adequately chew (especially meats) and I don't feel that that has prevented me from staying full.) Then swallow. Then take another bite. Somewhere along the way, you're not going to feel so hungry anymore. Then pay close attention. Some people burp, some people hicccup, some people feel pressure. "Full" doesn't feel exactly the same for everybody. I feel pressure. If I eat past that, and I have, I get stuck and PB.

Are you actually vomiting? Or is it PBing? There is a big difference. PBing is bringing up a bit of food that is stuck -- not stomach acid, no heaving. Vomiting usually brings up the entire contents of your stomach. A lot of people don't distinguish between the two. If it's PB's, you might be too tight. Or eating too fast. Or taking bites that are too big; Or not chewing well enough. If you are vomiting, you may have a virus and should talk to your doctor. Even food poisoning can make you vomit for what seems like forever. When I got food poisoning a few years ago, I thought I would throw up my toenails before it stopped. It went on for 14 hours. Vomiting involves that horrible heaving where your stomach convulses to push back everything that's in your stomach. That could have made your abdominal muscles sore, and your port is stitched to muscle. SO, how much actually comes up? That's the easiest way to decide if it's vomiting or PBing. Then address the problem. Hope that helps!

There should be some fill in your band unless they did a complete unfill instead of just taking out some saline. If they say that they only did a partial unfill, make sure they remove all the saline before they push it back in along with what they are adding that day. That way you know absolutely how much is in your band. Some amount of saline does "evaporate" (for lack of a better word) over time so when they did the unfill recently, you may not have had as much saline in your band as you thought. Now's as good a time as any to verify the level of fill. The very few people who have mentioned slippage on the forums I read have pretty much all said that they had a complete unfil followed by a week or two of liquids only, and then re-start the fill process.

There's a couple of things you might try changing to see if it makes a difference. First, try freshly prepared foods instead of Lean Cuisine or Hamburger Helper. HH, in particular, has a pretty high load of sodium which isn't good for you and helps you to retain Water (like you need help with that, right??). Trye writing down EVERY BITE you put in your mouth for a week. I think you might be as surprised as I was ... the couple of crackers I didn't think about added up to more than 100 calories a week; the spoonful of nuts in the late afternoon was more than 300 calories a week; the "smidge" of extra this or that, added up to as much as 200 calories in a week. Look even at the calories in Crystal Light and other flavored waters. Those little "stick" packets say to mix the contents of the package with about 16 oz. of water BUT if you read the nutritional panel, a serving is ONE-HALF A PACKET so that 1 packet is 10 calories, not 5. Some people drink several of them a day because they don't like water very much. That adds up to more than 100 calories a week if you're drinking them steadily. Pretty soon you've got 1000 calories which is an extra day's worth of calories. It's the little things. I have a friend who was hooked on those Vitamin Water drink bottles -- until she realized that one bottle had more than 50 calories. She was focusing on the Vitamins but realized she was taking in more than 1000 calories extra a week JUST with those waters. Try doing a different exercise. If you're going to the gym and working out on elliptical or whatever, try a few days of circuit training. If you're walking every day, try swimming every day We tend to settle into a comfortable rut and eat the same few selections of food, do the same exercise....shake it up! And, let us know if it makes a difference.

Some of that's an easy answer, some of it isn't. I do fine during the day at work. There's nothing much here to snack on that appeals to me. I eat a few dry roasted nuts if I get hungry mid-morning. Once I get home, I'm hungry. Since I don't live alone, that means there is food in my house I have no business eating (crackers, cookies, etc.). So I get dinner started, change my clothes and go outside and do yard work. That's exercise from me and I'm not milling around the kitchen, waiting for my dinner to cook, grazing on whatever is in the kitchen. The harder part is sometimes you will find youself looking for something to eat when you aren't hungry. One Saturday afternoon, I found myself standing in front of the refrigerator with the doors open, just looking. I literally had to laugh at myself, shut the fridge and walk away. Sometimes you don't pull yourself up and you do snack. I try to keep reasonably good stuff on hand for those moments, and I keep that stuff front and center in the fridge so that if I do snack, it's on stuff like low fat cottage cheese, SF pudding, etc.

First, make the doctor's appointment. Ask them to do a fill BUT to withdraw all the Fluid in your band to check how much is in there before they add anything. My doctor always does that. I asked why and was told that it was the one sure way to know that my band is not leaking. You've had had unfills and fills and the totals haven't added up so, get an accurate read of how much is in your band and go forward from there. IF it is still less than they believe should be in the band, push them to explain why they haven't used the word "leak". It happens. Not so very often, but it does happen. Second, start writing down every bite you put in your mouth -- and you are probably doing that for WW. Finally, I was told from the start, even before I had the surgery, that anytime I felt I was hungry in less time than 4 hours to EAT SOME Protein....a boiled egg, a half cup of low-fat cottage cheese, an ounce or less of low fat cheese. Protein keeps you satisfied longer than veggies or carbs. If you are satisfied, you will not end up looking for something to snack on. Note that I said EAT rather than drink. I read a lot of posts where people DRINK Protein shakes in between meals if they are hungry. I was told, and have found it to be very true, that drinking anything, even protein shakes, does not satisfy you the way chewing and swallowing solid protein will. And, GOOD LUCK!

I haven't had a problem with them. I certainly don't eat them in the quantities that I did pre-band, but I eat them regularly. Most often, it's a few whole grain crackers or part of a roasted potato. But I'm down 64 pounds in exactly 4 months which includes the first month after surgery where I didn't lose a darn thing.

Except for the past 10 days, I've PB'd twice and both times, I was at fault for eating way too fast once and the other time for taking too big a bite. The last 10 days, it's been every day but it is related to having a crappy cold with a ton of mucus drainage that has caused me problems. Finally, last night, I ate my dinner without a problem so I think I'm back to "me". Try cutting your food into small bites before you eat, not while you eat. Take a minute to really make those bits no bigger than a nickle. Then, when you sit down to eat, take your time. Put your fork down between bites. If you still have a consistent problem, then it's time for a small unfill.

BigJedda, I'm so sorry he's feeling threatened by your changes. If you love him enought to work on it, couples counseling (even just one or two sessions) could help him to communicate what is really threatening him. Yeah, you've certainly changed physically, but you're also happier and a little less emotionally needy and maybe subconsciously he sees that as a sign that you need him less and it scares him. Sit him down and talk to him GENTLY and see if he'd consider a session or two. Love is damnably hard to find in these times. So don't say goodbye unless you have no choice. Good luck!

I have a 10cc Lap Band AP with 5.6ccs of fill.

Pick your fast food carefully. Some burgers are flame broiled, and those would be less greasy than those fried on a griddle (i.e., Burger King is flame broiled and Mickey D is fried on a griddle). My favorite fast food is Zaxby's My big treat is a Blue Zalad with buffaloed chicken on it. It has some blue cheese crumbles in it. i don't use their full-fat blue cheese dressing but use my own lite blue cheese. I have eaten this about once a month since I got back to "real" food.

Trish, how much fill do you have? It sounds like you are too tight. Did it just start happening recently or even closer to when you just got your fill? You can get tighter. And, I've had a rough week and a half because I caught a head cold and have had so much thick mucus draining into my throat and then to my stomach that it was partially blocking the stoma. Heck, masked potatoes got stuck and PB'd one night last week. I felt like I'd hit bottom or something. Mashed potatoes??!! Anyway, I feel like I can relate right now. Talk to your doc. Sometimes, even a slight unfill, like .2cc can make a ton of difference.

I understand completely! I never let being fat keep me away from my precious beaches, but to know that people aren't looking at me and wondering what I was thinking when I put on my suit is a very good feeling.

Since it's a bite of toast, I agree...drink. That will soften it to mush and it should go ahead and pass.

I've read quite a few posts in the last months on this forum and another one about papaya enzyme tablets helping with stuck episodes, etc. Well, last night on TV I saw an entirely different use for it. I was watching Iron Chef America. The "secret ingredient" was octopus. I've eaten octopus more than once and it's kind of rubbery/chewy. Michael Symon was cooking a pot of it and he put a handful of papaya enzyme tablets in the pot! They asked him about it and he said it would tenderize it. I think I'm going to buy some and try it with other meat in the crock pot. I would NEVER have thought of trying this but I can see the logic so I'll let you know once I get to give it a shot!

I was told not to use them. Growing my, my Dad had a couple of hard and fast rules -- no chewing gum and no straws. As a result, I never ever chew gum and the only time I ever used straws (after I left home, LOL) was in sodas from fast food. Since I now do not drink soda OR go to fast food places, they simply aren't even a question. In case you're wondering why no gum and no straws, I had a great-aunt who smacked her gum and sucked on a straw until it made that loud, rude noise that told everybody she was at the bottom of her glass. Daddy didn't think that was very lady-like! Guess that gives my age away a bit since not so many females worry so much about being lady-like. Of course he also gobbled his food and I learned to eat too fast by sitting at the table with him. And now, I'm having to really work at unlearning that. So, maybe it's just as well I only have that bad habit to unlearn instead of two extra ones.

Well, I don't crave sweets, really, but I do sometimes miss carbs, LOL. I don't eat very many carbs anymore and sometimes silly stuff like croutons or crackers look very tasty, indeed! I won't say I "DIET" but there are those days when sitting down to the "right" meal isn't very appealing. Back in the old days, I sometimes had a bag of popcorn for supper because it was late, I was tired, etc. Now I do feel that I have to prepare something appropriate. I don't ever really get hungry now unless it's been about 6 hours since I ate -- and that is perfectly normal. I eat my meal and I'm satisfied. I do occasionally eat a bit of something sweet. Yesterday, some evil person brought 2 dozen hot Krispy Kreme donuts in to the office and I ate a bite of one (way less than half). And I usually have a very small slice of the monthly birthday cake. I enjoy the heck out of those little treats. This isn't about being punished on a daily basis. It's about living with healthy moderation. I only recently got to my sweet spot and it's actually pleasant to not obssess over what I'm going to eat and when. I have to make those right choices but it's not the hard work that it was only a few weeks ago.