elcee

Chips (crisps) tend to be a slider food. They are easy to eat a lot of, same as popcorn, crackers etc

This is a classic sign that your band is too tight. Have some fill taken out so that you can tolerate proper food and you should start losing again. Although it might sound as though a tighter band would equal quicker easier weight loss it does not, it actually slows it down as you end up eating high calorie slider foods as they are the only thing that will go down.

Sorry to hear that the cancer may be back. It is possible that this is linked to the pregnancy - I believe that pregnancy hormones and cancer are not a good mix. I hope that everything goes well and that you are soon blessed with a bonny bouncing healthy bub. You have had a whirlwind couple of years with some pretty rotten luck. Lets hope that your luck is about to change and that things start getting better. All the best.

Do you have to get it removed? Is it currently causing problems? Would it be possible to get it completely unfilled for a while and see if that helps? There are people out there that thought their bands were not working and they have gone to a different Dr and things have been successfully sorted out. Wound site infections are relatively common but they are not a deal breaker. Generally they are easily cured. The acid reflux is a problem but is it possible that your band is too tight? Do you currently have fill in it or is it empty? I would want to ensure that I had explored every possible avenue to get my band to work before having it removed especially if I wasn't intending to have some sort of revision. I see that you are new on here - have you had any kind of support previously? If not there are lots of people here with lots of experience that might potentially be able to suggest something that helps. It would be nice if it would be possible for your esperience to be able to be turned around from a negative one to a positive one so if there is anything we can do to help or any advice that we can offer please let us know. If not and your surgery is already scheduled then all the best - I hope it goes well.

I would have said that once banded it was a definite no no. Although the fact you have said you could have used this an excuse makes it sound as though it is something you don't really want to do as though it is something you do because you feel you have to. Personally I don't think people should ever do things that make them feel uncomfortable. Maybe things are different these days ( I am getting old)or maybe it's just a difference in countries/cultures but when I was younger this was not something that people were expected to do. Oral sex fine - swallowing no. I even find it amazing that in US magazines they have adverts that promote some product that takes away the taste. Don't know if the product is available here but if it is it certainly isn't advertised in the mainstream press.

Chocolate. These days instead of having a big bad I try to eat either a small Freddo frog or a Curly Wurly. The Curly Wurly is pretty low cal but it takes a little while to chew and tends to satisfy the craving.

Just wondering why you need so many. Wouldn't 1 new fork and spoon or at the most 2 be enough?

I lost all my excess weight in approx 6 months. I went from a BMI of 32 to a BMi of 23, I continued to lose and have now settled at a BMI of 21.4. However as I had a lower starting BMI that only involved losing a total of 53lb so my experience doesn't meet your criteria!

PS. Crackers very rarely cause a stuck as they dissolve before they get to that point. Bread is a major cause as it is doughy. Protein foods are probably the biggest problem especially if they are dry , tough or overcooked. For this reason you should choose moist cooking methods and eat your meat with a little sauce. Also dark chicken meat goes down a lot better than white chicken meat.

No generally when food is stuck it doesn't come up. It is STUCK. What has happened is that you have swallowed a bite that is too big or not properly chewed or something that may be difficult for you to eat post band and it has lodged in the opening between your band and your stomach. It sits there and can cause anything from mild discomfort to extreme pain. This can last from a couple of minutes to a couple of hours or in extreme cases a couple of days. Whilst it is there nothing else will go down so trying to move it by drinking won't help, you will bring the liquid up but the object remains lodged. Your body also tries to move it through by producing excess saliva. Again this saliva won't go down so you have to cough or spit it up. This is what is referred to as sliming. Different people have different remedies.They include:- Papaya enzymes (never worked for me) pineapple juice Doing an arm movement similar to the chicken dance. Getting into downward dog position Jumping up and down. Drinking a can of soda really quickly - if you try this make sure you are close to the toilet because apparently it loosens the stuff and brings it all back up really quickly, I have never been game enough to try it. Sometimes it is possible to cough the item back up. After the stuck episode your oesophagus is likely to be swollen and irritated. I have found that sucking ice chips helps to reduce the swelling and the discomfort. It is also recommended that you stick to liquids for a while after a stuck so as to give the area a rest and a chance to recover. The aim is to never get stuck but I think most of us manage it at some time or another. It often happens because you are not paying attention to how you are eating or because you are trying to eat in a hurry.

It could have that effect without being banded too. Yuk. The only way I can way broccoli is if it is really soft and in some kind of sauce otherwise forget it. Hate it when it is raw or cooked so it is still hard and the stalks are inedible anyway. If I had to eat half a cup of veg then I can think of other ones that taste much better! LOL

Thanks.

I NEVER eat that little , or at least i don't think I do , can't be sure as I never measure it. I put the food on a plate and judge it that way.

I was also a fast eater and have had to learn to slow down. Practicing prior to surgery is OK but until you feel the consequences of not doing it then it is hard to get right. Even when you know what happens from eating too quickly it can be a mistake that you make more than once! Eating on the go is not a good idea at all. That is the easiest way to get stuck and that can be uncomfortable, painful and embarrassing depending on where you are. Once you are banded you need to pay full attention when you are eating - do not try combining it with any other activity or you will come unstuck! (Actually stuck would be more appropriate)

Heartburn is often a symptom of being too tight. Possibly you are too tight and not eating the correct types of food that would keep you satisfied. The heartburn could also be from eating too close to bedtime or eating foods that cause high acid production . It is also normal for the restriction to wear off. It happens because as you lose weight the band does not fit as tightly around your stomach. Also small amounts of the liquid evaporate over time. This is why constant followup with your Dr's team is such an important part of the process. You need to schedule an appointment to discuss this with your Dr.

Basically it means that you are able to eat less than before the fill and should not be hungry for a couple of hours. Once you have some restriction you will find that you have to take small bites, chew lots, wait between bites because if you don't the food can cause problems and may even get stuck.Some people find that there are certain foods that they can no longer eat. Bread is one that a lot of people find difficult. You have to relearn how to eat and what suits you and what doesn't. It is possible to feel some restriction before a fill . Just the band being placed does make a difference to when you were preband. Also some Dr's put some fill in the band whilst you are in surgery. The restriction does ease off after a while and then you simply go to the Dr and get another fill. Each fill should make some difference. What you shouldn't expect the fill to do is to suddenly make good food choices for you. That is something you have to do all by yourself. Unfortunately no matter how much fill you have a lot of the "bad" foods will still go down easily. Foods such as milkshake,icecream,custard,chocolate, Cookies etc. For this reason they are termed slider foods. Some people keep going for fills untill they end up too tight in the mistaken belief that there is some ideal place where they will just be able to eat a tiny amount and never feel hungry. Fills also do not control head hunger - that is something else that each person must learn to deal with in their own way. Hope some of this helps.

It would be nice if they could write these reports in plain English so us average Joes can actually understand what they are talking about!

It's definitely a positive. I've been that drunk once since getting my band and I promise I am not going to do it again. Woke up in the middle of the night feeling like c@@p and thought I'll just make myself vomit as then I will feel a bit better(always worked in the past). Well the theory was good but the practice wasn't. I could not make myself vomit so had to suffer for longer. Lesson learnt.

Well done

Exactly You can eat what you want within reason.But you have to recognise that if you choose to eat sweets etc then the band will not stop you, they are for the most part empty calories and they are also high calorie so you probably won't lose weight. You do need to make sure that you get the required nutrition in daily. A lot of people here focus on Protein but there are lots of other things that are important ( Vitamins , minerals). I try to get all my nutrition from food rather than by using supplements so I eat from a wide variety of food groups. I did not need to cut carbs out of my diet to lose weight but the carbs that I chose to eat were for the most part healthy ones. Wholemeal bread, grains etc,even potatoes. Yes they are a healthy food - they contain potassium which is essential in a healthy diet - half a small boiled or dry roasted potato is not going to hurt - they become a problem when people eat mounds of them smothered in butter and cream! If you need the structure of an eating plan that is fine. Your best bet would be to go and see a dietician and work out a personalised plan. If you don't want to do that then there are any number of diets available on the net - heck if you are like me you have probably tried most of them before. I liked the fact that with the band I no longer needed to be on a diet, but that does not work for many people. Find what works for you and then go with it. Whatever you choose to do the band makes it easier.

Lellow has reminded me about the noises. The first few months after surgery I burped a lot, it the changed to farting which is definetly not good. But it all seems to have settled down and those minor inconveniences are long forgotten. My digestive system does still make lots of really loud gurgling noises. I am getting used to them and they don't really worry me except occasionally at night when I am trying to go to sleep. Then they can feel very weird. But to swap all that ugly fat for some strange noises seems like quite a good bargain to me.

So my input here was not valid? I'm afraid for me that has been the biggest "negative", it has been fun but it has cost me a fortune. The OP asked what negatives we had experienced personally so that was what I posted. I cannot make up negatives that I don't have. I do agree though that I was being a little flippant.I should have urged her to get her brother to see a Dr urgently as bringing up black bile is a sign of some kind of internal bleeding and it shouldn't be ignored.

I have just thought of another negative. I have to be careful when I drink as more than 2 glasses of wine and that is me finished! It makes me a cheap date so i save money but I have to be careful and remember not to overdo it. I also waste so much food. I buy things thinking I will eat them and don't manage to finish them before they go off. Fruit is 1 of the main things that this seems to happen with, I hardly eat any fruit any more.

I have had to spend a fortune buying new clothes and have done serious damage to my credit card. I also keep having to reintroduce myself as neighbours and other aquaintances don't recognise me.

I make my own muesli - raw oats, seeds, sultanas, other dried fruit that I fancy etc - and eat it with greek yogurt. It is healthy , filling and makes great roughage! If I want a little extra sweetness I have a teaspoon of honey or Stevia.