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The answer is in your post. You should be eating before you get to that stage.Eating too fast always causes problems. Are you like this because you are sticking to 3 meals per day? Although this is what most Drs seem to like us to aim for most of them realise that for many it is not achievable. I normally eat Breakfast between 6.30 and 8 depending on whether or not I am working. I don't normally have a problem not eating again until midday but generally I only eat dinner when my husband gets home at around 7pm. & hours without food is a long time in anyones books so I have to have some kind of snack mid afternnon. Maybe try having a planned healthy snack in between meals(whilst still sticking to your daily calorie limit). This may take the edge of your hunger so that you eat slower and don't get stuck.

Who says sweet things are bad and savoury good. Who says we can't treat ourselves occassionally? I don't remember being told before I was banded that I could never eat cake/chocolate/sweets or anything like that again. No I don't think it was eating those foods that made me fat, it was eating more of these foods and other foods than was necessary. Having a band is a lifestyle not a diet. You have to be able to live with it and make choices. Some will be good some will be not so good. I much prefer the terms used by Dr Rick Kausman i.e. healthy foods and sometimes foods. The majority of our diet should be made up of healthy foods and we should eat sometimes foods sometimes! my diet so far today. Breakfast; oats cooked with Water and a splash of milk with added apricots and sultanas. lunch. 1 vanilla/custard slice. Basically a layer of pastry, witha thick layer of custard then another thin layer of pastry with vanilla icing on top. Shock/horror. I have a band and I ate that.Yes I did and I enjoyed every mouthful. It is school holidays and I decided to take me son for a treat.So does this make me a bad person, stupid or does it mean that I have failed my band ? I don't think so. It was a conscious choice that I made as part of a well balanced diet. I don't think we need the food police and yes it is good to call people when they are out of line on a post. i'm with you Leigha. Having said all that I find it very strange that the OP felt full after a few bites of those sometimes foods.I wish I was so lucky as for me those are the kind of foods that I can eat with no problems.

Everyone is different with what they can and can't eat. I eat onions all the time. I haven't tried celery but that is because it's not one of my favourite foods anyway.

I have no idea about the tubing cracking haven't heard of this before. The saline however would not cause any problems. Saline is used because it is the same composition as many of the fluids in our bodies such as tears. It is completely harmless. Saline is routinely used in first aid for cleaning wounds because it is so safe.

I am 8 months out and have had no unusual hairloss. I eat a normal well balanced diet that includes all food groups and do not focus on Protein. I take a daily multi Vitamin when I remember! Don't stress about hairloss - it does not happen to the majority of people.

I eat lunch yesterday, early as I was taking my son to movies. Thought I was fine. Got as far as our little local town and had to stop at the public toilets as I thought I was suffocating .Got in just in time and brought up a huge amount of slime. Carried on driving the 40km to the town where movies are and had to stop again - same thing. Thankfully after that it settled down. All I can say is I am so glad I live in Australia where we have plenty of public toilets and not somewhere in Europe(UK excepted).

Try sucking ice chips - for me they work far better than warm liquids when you are stuck like that. Makes sense really - you put ice on bruises, sprains, strains etc to reduce swelling not a heat pack.

I have never journalled my food before but decided to do it out of interest for a couple of days just to see approx what I am eating. I have tried using fitday via the lapband site but it doesn't work for me as many of the Australian foods are not listed. This is a pity as it seems to be very good and give very accurate breakdowns.So I have used calorieking.com.au as this lists local foods. The downside is it doesn't give very good info. I seem to be averaging about 1000 - 1200 calories a day.What horrifies me is the percentage of these that come from fat. It seems that about 35% of my daily calories come from fat! Does this mean I am stuffing my face full of unhealthy foods like butter, cream, cheese etc? No - I eat a varied balanced diet including all food groups. I am just amazed at the fat content of foods that you would think had little or no fat in them. E.g oats. I had oats for Breakfast this morning(cooked with water). Apparently 22% of the calories in oatmeal come from fat! With stats like these I don't know how it is possible to stick to a low fat diet. For those that low carb the figures must be far worse. For me this is a good reason to give up journalling, relax and just eat what I think I should be eating. If I don't I think I might become obsessive and stressed out trying to get my fats down to a reasonable level.

Cocoa that sounds just like my room.

And the weight lifting will help you get nice defined arm muscles!

Drinking normal liquid can make a stuck episode worse but the soda trick can help to dislodge the food. It is not intended to help the food down it is intended to help bring it up! It is not something your Dr will tell you it is a trick that a lot of experienced bandsters use. Which would you rather:- Being stuck for hours maybe days in pain waiting for the offending object to go down or guzzling soda which may bring the stuck item up really quickly and give you instant relief. Remember whilst the surgeons may be the experts on the technical and medical aspects of the band they do not have the experience of living with it on a day to day basis(unless they themselves have been banded). There are lots of things that you can learn from an experienced bandster that a Dr won't tell you.

Well I hit my goal weight today and am wondering what now.It was a bit of a let down - no bells, whistles, fireworks etc. That's probably because I have been feeling pretty good about myself for a while anyway and I don't think I look much different to how I looked a month or two ago. So what do I do? Do I set a new goal? Concentrate on maintaining or what. it's very confusing to say the least!

Thats's unreal. I can't believe you have to pay tax on something you win. Takes the joy out of winning doesn't it? It is also very discriminatory as what happens if you cannot afford to pay the tax? This would mean only the rich would benefit , poor people wouldn't be able to afford to win anything.

6 -7 hours between meals is a heck of a long time. Although the 3 meal per day regime with no Snacks in between may be ideal most surgeons recognise that it is very hard and can be unachievable. Mine has no problem with me having a snack inbetween so long as it is something healthy. Plan your snack so that you do not grab the nearest unhealthy high fat thing that you can find. Trying to become tight enough that you can go 6 - 7 hours without food often leads to being so tight that you can't eat proper solids and then you resort to high cal sliders that fill you up for even less time and end up gaining weight. Much better to have a planned snack if needed.

I am sure that there is fluid in there. 1.5ml is a very small amount of fill(depending on the size of your band) and for the majority of people is not enough to give restriction. I am surprised that you have only been back to your Dr for fills twice. At this stage your appointments should be far more regular. You need to work with your Dr to optimise the efficiency of the band.

See what married bliss does to you? Sad isn't it? It is a requirement of most insurers that you go on a Dr supervised diet first. They need to see that you are committed to the process and are not just looking at it as a quick fix. I think you should go and see your normal GP and discuss this issue with him/her.Then attend an information seminar - this will give you a far better idea of what being banded is like. For me meeting other people that are banded has been the best support that I could ever have. Reading stuff on the internet does not compare to discussing it with other experienced people face to face. It also sounds as though you have a problem with head hunger. i.e you eat even though you know you are not hungry. The band does not stop this. You may need to see a person that specialises in eating issues to assist you with this. The band is not supposed to be removed unless there are problems. Theoretically you can have one for life. HTH

I have been told that if you are stuck you should guzzle coke or similar really quickly. Just make sure you are in the bathroom as apparently it unblocks and brings everything up really quickly. I haven't been game to try this yet.

you don't say where you live so it is hard to know what foods are available. When I have a chocolate craving I eat something like a Nestle diet chocolate mousse. Low cal and it satisfies the craving. Once in a while I will have real chocolate but not every day like I used to preband. This is something where you have to depend on your willpower(or won't power) as the band doesn't stop you eating chocolate!

I was also going to ask if you were pregnant. Maybe you have a bit of reflux? Maybe you need some fill out. If you can't face coffee maybe you can try some warm herbal tea. It should still wake up your band and I am sure that certain ones are supposed to help nausea. Not an expert but probably something with ginger in? Might be worth a try.

In Australia we don't low carb and we have just as much success with the band as in the US.We are advised to eat a healthy, balanced diet that includes all food groups. I eat things like a poached egg on toast for Breakfast - far more satisfying than just eggs or egg whites or whatever. lunch might be tuna, salad and some wholewheat ryvita or similar crackers. Sometimes a toasted sandwich etc. dinner is Protein + veg + some kind of carb. I choose wholewheat options whenever I can. I have always preferred the taste of multigrain bread over white bread.I eat potatoes and rice but in small quantities etc. For a snack I might have fruit with some greek yogurt and a spoonful of natural untoasted muesli. I find this way of eating easy to stick to and satisfying. it means I am eating the same foods as everyone else and not cooking 2 different meals. I do not do protein shakes or supplements and have had no issues with things such as hair loss. Carbs are not the villians that they are often made out to be. Most of them have a protein content as well and among other things they help keep you regular. I don't see why you shouldn't include healthy carbs in your eating plan and still be successful.

it sounds like you have acid reflux which is a common symptom of having a too tight band. I suggest you go back to your Dr and get some fill taken out. Do not ignore it as it can be dangerous and lead to all sorts of problems.

I don't remember saying that I was opposed to all killing but I do have a problem with killing for "sport" or fun.

While we are at it why don't we just add humans too? If the reasons above are sufficient justification for being able to hunt for fun then I think humans fit the criteria. They are a nuisance and plenty of them are pretty mean too. Humans have done more damage to the environment than anything else. Yep that is definitely true and as a result they are taking over land and resources meant for other species. They cull(fancy name for kill) elephants and other animals when their numbers get to great.

Being able to eat 4 cups of food doesn't mean you don't have restriction. It all depends on what the food is and over what period. E.g most people could probably manage 4 cups of icecream or yogurt or Soup or similar if they tried. Especially if it is eaten slowly.these foods are all sliders , go down easily etc. Most people would struggle to eat 4 cups of a proper solid Protein e.g beef/chicken/fish along with some vegetables and a small portion of carbs. ideally you should eat a meal over 20 - 30 min. If you take longer than that you will be able to eat more as the food will have started to pass through the band. So before you blame the band you need to look at a couple of things:- What are you eating? How long is it taking you to eat? Are you cheating the band by drinking fluids to help the food go down easier? It has been said many times that the band is only a tool. It cannot do everything for you. You are the one that still decides ultimately what you are going to put in your mouth. But if you are doing the right thing and the band is not helping then you need to go back to your Dr and discuss your problems and hopefully sort them out. Maybe you need more fill.You didn't say what kind of band you have. if it is a Realize band then typically more fill is required to reach restriction than with a lap band. You may have a leak - has this been checked. Good luck - hope you sort this out and get back on the road to losing really soon.

You should be making sure that you are doing your part.Following the rules, making healthy choices, exercising etc etc.6.75ml at your stage is not conservative but the total fill level needed to reach restriction is different for everyone. Some people have far less(I have +/- 3ml) some need far more. The type of band also seems to affect this - if it is a Realise band then typically more fill is needed to reach restriction. Make an appointment with your Dr and discuss your lack of progress and how to handle it. He may also need to check to make sure you don't have a leak or anything like that.You may need to see the nutritionist for help with healthy choices.