xavier

Good luck to all, my band is the best thing I have ever done for myself...I self payed and it was well worth it!

Even two years out, I still try to overeat but I have my band very tight and even one serving of cheese puffs will put me in trouble! I am a slow learner I guess because I still try to overeat! PS: Those Russel Stover sugar free chocolates (shiney green bags) will keep you from being constipated!

This happens to all of us if we are honest. I have my band very tight and if I eat more than a few chips I get in trouble fast...very painful! But I keep trying...why am I such a slow learner? Hang in there...

I have wondered about the effect of the changes we have made on our families. I have seen people post pictures of their kids who are obese and wondered if the parent doing this would help. Glad to see it is making a change for all of you.

My first was a banana and it was an hour after I ate it. I was driving and had to whip the car to the side of the road! Two years later it still happens because I get distracted and dont chew enough when I am around other people! I guess I am a slow learner! Its all worth it as I am now 4 pounds from normal BMI!

Why is the greek yog a no? Also what about refried beans? Are they ok because they have a ton of protein?

Happy birthday!!! You are an inspiration to all...you have rocked the band! Love to hear all details of the PS in your blog...I'm scared to do it but not liking my wrinkly saggy tummy. Someone called theirs a pita bread and that sure is what it looks like...

For now, dont tell anyone that you are not 100% positive will support you! Its not worth it and you can decide at any point later to tell...peoplehave huge issues even with other people's weight (because of their own, Iguess) so just be careful and go slow!

I know exactly what you mean and although I am two years out I sill have some of those thoughts...much less though. Maybe it will take our whole lives to get rid of them completely!

It also helps your stomach recover from throwing up if it has gotten swollen/inflamed.

5-6 weeks off for lap band?

I would say only tell the people you trust and confide in about everything else until you see how it goes. Later if you are strong enough to handle some ridiculously negative people, go ahead and shout it from the rooftops. But for now, be careful and protect your own feelings first!

I had this complete lack of interest in food for about 6 weeks after I was banded and still have it briefly from time to time. It wasnt just that I wasnt hungry it was also that I didnt care at all between say broccoli (or anything crazy-healthy and low calorie) and ice cream or pizza.I believe it is because the band presses on the vagus nerve. I didnt want to eat but I could. So I just tried to plan healthy meals and I thought it was pretty great. Now, of course if you cant eat that's a totally different thing. But if you can, but just arent interested you just need to eat what you know to be right nutritionally.

For anyone who has ever felt restriction or been stuck (isnt that all of us?) I sure would NOT recommend beef jerky! The thought just frightens me!

Agree completely. I have one every morning because I am too tight in the morning for real food, I'm not a breakfast person, and I'm way too lazy to do the blender thing! They usually have the chocolate at costco but I order the vanilla and the strawberry for variety. Yes its $10 more plus shipping for the case of 18 but I think its well worth it. One time I got a mail order case that was clumpy and I complained and they sent me two cases free! I think I will be using these for the rest of my life because 30 grams is such a good start to the day!

Dont sweat it...I didnt have any instruction except NPO at midnight the day before and mine went perfect....this is so much more stressful at so many points in the process than it needs to be!!!

Horrible people are everywhere...surround yourself with supportive loving people and, mostly, be kind to yourself! That nurse is surely an very unhappy person, be glad you are not her or married to her or her sister or whatever...

Everyone has the fear that they will be the rare person who doesnt lose a pound! I felt that way because I had been obese and done every diet, pill, and exercise regimen there is and obviously failed them all. In fact, I think I gained a little after every attempt. Long story short, this has been pretty easy and I can say not only that I have succeeded but I can now say with complete confidence I know I will be at a normal weight for life! I love my band and so will you!

I really didnt tell anyone but I do see people looking at my tiny portion sizes with a look that I think means they think I lost weght by starving myself. I feel (I know this is partly just my head) that they think I am judging them because they are fat and now I'm not. Ifeel a little uncomfortable eating around people because of that but I prefer that type of uncomfortable to the uncomfortable of being obese or worse, being obese and eating around people! I feel its a good trade so I am just constantly telling myself I dont care what people think or say and hoping to convince myself! That's why I love this site because we all know the situation and have all experienced the same things. Whatever people are saying it comes from THEIR psychological head issues with food...dont get sucked into it, we all have our own to deal with right?

Take care of yourself, Crash, you are fine! Everyone cheats and if youre lucky one day you wont be able to eat more than a couple of bites of BBQ so you wont feel bad about it...start your journey by being nice to yourself!

I do feel as I get closer to goal my face is wrinklier but people always tell me I look younger now...who knows? Its definitely worth it and sometimes I cant believe how my knees etc dont hurt anymore, its sometimes like walking on air. (I am 48)

If you have dairy intolerance, try the soy or hemp protein powders.

Well I eat pretty healthy now but I do eat whatever tempts me occasionally. I dont eat anything low fat or diet or anything like that. I let myself have whatever I want but because my band is pretty tight I can only eat a tiny amount of it. I might have eaten a whole pizza back in my preband life but now I could probably eat a half a slice at most so I dont feel guilty at all. I have never dieted or exercise with this band,,,I think those are a recipe for failure (didnt we fail the diet exercise thing and thats why we got a band?) so I just dont think a reasonable amount of 'guilty pleasure' is a bad thing...moderation!

First give yourself a break! Your band is not filled so its like not having one. In fact, my fill doc says if its less than half full (5cc in a 10cc band) you still dont really have a band. This is bandster Hell when you are not at your sweetspot and you are just trying to diet (if that worked we wouldnt all have bands!). Anyway, give yourself some time, dont compare yourself to others if you can help it and just try to be reasonable in what you eat. When you get to that sweet spot you will see the huge difference having this band can make. A good fill or several will have you eating tiny meals and losing weight but that may be a while from now. A year from now you will be laughing about these current struggles. For me, the band has been a freaking miracle because I want to overeat but just cant! You will get lots of support here...best wishes!

It is interesting that you put your ring size...I have had to get three new (but cheap) wedding rings as I have lost weight and the next one I get will be a nice one and it will be the last! I also got rid of a lot of shoes that were too loose...good luck, its all downhill from here!