ElfiePoo

I never feel full. My band does not physically restrict how much I can eat. However, it does keep me from being constantly hungry, so I just measure out my meals, record everything in fitday.com and that's how I know I'm 'full'. .

Why can't you use Excedrin? I take Excedrin migraine because nothing else works when I get a headache and other than a caution about crushing it or biting it in small pieces so it doesn't get stuck, my doc didn't have a problem with it. .

None of you have problems with these things, as in eating too much, causing cravings for more 'goodies', etc.? .

My doctor had no problems with alcohol or carbonated beverages other than the carbonated might cause pain. I rarely drink but I did have a couple glasses of champagne on Christmas day. .

I'm not sure what happened yesterday but I normally aim for 1200 calories and I really missed it by a lot! At the end of the day fitday was telling me I'd only eaten 700 calories. I had to go back over my calculations several times to make sure I hadn't screwed something up since it sure didn't feel like I'd eaten that little. Not complaining, I'll take it. Particularly since my scale says I'm down 2 pounds this morning. Today I start my Tae Bo and after ridding myself of the holiday carbs this past week, I feel like I might actually have enough energy to do it for at least 30 minutes. Busy morning, so off to get started. Hope you all have a great day! Melody

Leigha: I'm getting serious puppy cravings just watching your Sugarbaby videos. He is so freaking adorable!! Elcee: I know what you mean about portion sizes. My husband and I always shared meals when we went out. Now that we're both working on losing weight, we share a meal *and* there are leftovers to take home...and our 18 year old son gets to enjoy it as well. It is so nice, though, to get up out of a chair after dinner and feel 'good' versus feeling stuffed and groaning about how miserable we are because we ate too much, eh? Welcome to all the newbies to the list! .

Sounds like it's time for a fill. Even a very small one may make the difference. Hunger = need for a fill. .

By the time I hit 6cc back in May, there were so many things I could no longer eat - bread, chicken, eggs... After an unfill in July (I was up to 8.75cc) back down to 6cc, within a week I found it interesting that I no longer had a problem with any food but the hunger is controlled and that's where I'm at now. I can eat anything, and as much of it as I 'want' but I choose to limit my calories to 1200 and I'm avoiding wheat and sugar products because both set off obsessional cravings. .

Merry, Been there, done that. I found that certain carbs cause cravings...and the obsessions...for food. After I cut sugar and wheat products out of my diet, the craving lessened. Yeah, I still think about food but not 'obsessively'...and with the band removing the hunger component, that's enough to let my self-control take over. .

My meals are planned at least a day in advance so I never find myself standing in front of the fridge wondering what to eat when nothing sounds good. I don't go there since I may not want what I planned, but I certainly enjoy it when I'm sitting down and eating it. I always measure out the amount of food I know I should be eating. I never just eyeball it. I never go back for seconds. I also bought myself a special plate for my meals. It's smaller than my china plates so I don't get this visual of "OMG...a rabbit couldn't live on that" feeling. My 10" plate is the perfect size to hold my food *and* give a visual satisfaction. .

At this point, you're probably quite swollen so even chewing well and small bites may not be enough. If you can keep fluids and mushies down and are able to resist the solids, I'd go back to fluids and mushies for a week or two to let the swelling go down. If you can't resist the solids, then I'd go for an unfill. .

Vlp, This was me before I asked them to take me down to 6cc last July. Interestingly, within a couple weeks of going down to 6cc, I no longer had trouble with eggs, chicken, bread, etc. I think it was just a matter of letting the swelling going down (caused by the constant stuck episodes). The first time I hit 6cc, I couldn't eat any of those things so I think my band area just needed a rest. .

My surgeon suggested no carbonation unless I was a masochist. According to him, it will not expand the pouch (only years of overeating will do that) but it may be extremely painful to burp. About 8 months after surgery I took a gulp of some diet soda...went down and literally exploded back out. I don't have to sip Water so it never occurred to me that I should 'sip' the soda. He was right...it was painful. Since then I have had the occasional diet soda and if I sip it, no problem. I tend to avoid it though since I find even artificial sweeteners get me to craving sweets. .

Hi Scoobie, If I ate until I was 'satisfied', this band wouldn't help me at all. I know what I *should* be satisfied eating and I portion that out on my plate, take my eating eating and when I'm done, that's it. We no longer put serving bowls on the table and I never go back for seconds. It took a complete unfill for me to realize that the band was working. I thought it wasn't working because I was looking for physical restriction...a limit on how *much* I could eat and even when I was overfilled I could still eat as much as I did pre-band. When my band was unfilled, within hours I was ravenously hungry. I'd forgotten that's what I dealt with before the band. So I had my band filled again, but only up to 6cc. That hunger disappeared within minutes of that fill. What a lesson for me! For all of these reasons and experiences, I measure out my food. My goal is a 1200 calorie day with carbs around 30, although if I go up to 60, I don't sweat it. Normally, I start the day with 2 eggs and 2 slices of bacon for Breakfast. For lunch it's a small salad or 1/2 cup of low carb vegies and 3 oz of Protein. For dinner, I'll have the same as lunch but add 1/4 cup of a starch. This is just a sample of how I eat. If I can help further, let me know. Melody

I had to drag my butt out into the freezing cold this morning in order to get to Sam's club during business hours. Otherwise I'd have to deal with the 'blue hairs' as my sister calls them. While I was there, I was rewarded for getting out early! Years ago I did Tae Bo which I enjoyed a lot but then my VCR broke. We replaced it with a DVD so no more Tae Bo and I couldn't find a DVD version of the Basic Tae Bo...just the 'Boot Camp and 'Maximum Workout'...don't think so. I found a Basic Tae Bo DVD this morning! Woohoo! They only had *one* so I'm thinking they dragged it out of a dusty box in some corner of their warehouse. I feel really good after a couple days of eating 'clean' and am just trying to stay consistently focused. The only downside is that I've once again lost that little Water layer beneath my skin. My legs, hands and arms look 'skinny'...but I'm *FREEZING* without that little layer of insulation. If this continues, I'm going to splurge on a couple pair of silk long johns next winter! Melody

No, we've never done the easter basket thing with the colored eggs, chocolate, etc. so no food holiday here. Good thing because I have nothing to sidetrack me in the near future! .

I'm not sure where you're getting your information or why you would say this but my surgeon does use a 14cc band and has not had anyone come back in to get one out. I also could not find any reputable statistics showing that you are more likely to have problems with a 14cc band than a smaller one. Please share your reputable resources (not interested in hearsay or anecdotal references). . .

After my fist fill - what are the dietary restrictions ? Varies by doctor. Mine had me on solids 2 weeks after surgery. Some keep their patients on liquids for an entire month post surgery. Some take 30 days to go through the phases of the postop diet. Do I have to crush my meds like post-surgery ? Varies by individual. Some can only take liquids or crush pills. At 6cc in a 14cc band, I can still take aspirin sized pills without crushing them, but I do bite them in half...just in case (not willing to try and see what happens if I don't). Do I just eat less than what I did pre-surgery? Again, varies by the individual. Some do low carb, some restrict calories, some do Weight Watchers, etc. I try to follow a 1200 calorie low carb diet...something I can do now because I'm not hungry. Impossible to do pre surgery. How may fills do folks get - before reaching the 'sweet spot' ? Varies by the individual. Some don't need any fill but it's not the 'number' of fills, it's the amount in your band. My band is 12cc - is there a specific 'fill' level to expect ? No. Do 'fills' hurt ? is it an office procedure ? If the person knows what they're doing, then it shouldn't hurt. Yes it is an office procedure. Do I still need to seperate fluids and solids while eating ? Or can I eat and srink simultaneously ? I do (separate them) because if I drink during my meal, I end up getting stuck, although a 'tiny' sip if I do get stuck on food, will usually resolve the situation. .

I'm at my sweet spot with 6cc in my band and I can eat way more than a cup if I want to. .

It's not bad. It's just the band they chose to use. .

You're a good friend. I was asked to be a bridesmaid (this was year's ago) for a friend but she wanted all her bridesmaids to wear the exact same dress and allowed the bridesmaids to choose the style (by majority vote apparently). While it was her day, I didn't feel it was necessary for me to 'boob bobble' in a strapless, body hugging sheath that looks good (maybe) if you're 15 and without an ounce of body fat but is laughable on a 270 pound woman. I turned her down. Ask the bridal shop what the absolute last day is to order your dress. At that point, you can try it on and decide where to go from there. I'd go big because you can always take it in but you can't take it out. .

So can I...and I'm at my sweet spot. Even when I was overfilled and getting stuck on things, I *could* eat as much as I did presurgery. The question is...are you eating because you're *hungry*? If so, you need to get a fill. If you're eating just because you can or fall prey to head hunger...the band won't help with that. A lot of people find that when they eliminate carbs (particularly those found in processed foods, wheat and sugar), those head hungries disappear. You might try that if that's what you're dealing with. .

Thanks! Oh and something you might find interesting. Gastric bypass patients still have to deal with the ghrelin hormone because their digestive system is rerouted but the stomach stays intact. It is not uncommon for a gastric bypass patient to end up getting a band. I've been doing a lot of reading up on the vertical sleeve, which does remove the stomach, and have discovered that about a year or so after the stomach is removed, the body figures out how to start producing that ghrelin again...and it is not uncommon for a VS patient to get a band at some point. .

Hi Tina, What I love are the stories of anti-Atkins doctors being converted to the idea of Atkins as a healthy diet by patients who stick consistently, lose weight *and* get to the point of not having to take any of the meds they've taken for years (cholesterol, diabetes, etc.). It's hard to argue with results. .

Deb, That is wise advice! I've struggled this last year in my own band journey, learning about the band and how it's supposed to work, what my responsibilities are in this whole process, etc. I made the decision early on not to avoid my appointments just because I felt like such a failure...and I think that's what helped keep me from giving up on the band completely. When I finally saw the surgeon 10 months after surgery (fills were with his nurse), he looked at my chart and said it's pretty obvious I've been trying and I said 'really'...because my weight had been rollercoasting for the previous 10 months. He said, "Yes. the ones that don't try, don't come back." So great decision to go see your doc! .