anon

Today has been an OK day Brekkie and lunch Cambridge packs 70 chargrilled chicken breast Dinner small baked potato, 1/2 tin baked beans, 20g cheese grated. 1/2 strawberry tart total calories: 972 Seems a lot of calories for so little, the cheese was 86 calories... wish I'd looked before I put it on my potato!!!

12/3/07 B: cambridge pack L; Cambridge pack D: 1/2 TEsco Indian takeaway for 2 only half the rice though! 1 small apple, 5 dried apricots, 150g natural yoghurt, 70 lemon curd stirred into the yoghurt 1tsp Peanut Butter Hmmm... had an attack of the munchies... total calories 1193! Must try not to eat for the sake of it!

OK, it sounds like you're seeing the surgeon. You need to ask about the different types of surgery available, what the relative advantages and disadvantages of each is. You should have a list of questions with you, like what life will be like after surgery, what sort of pre/post op diet they would like you to follow. How long will you need off work. How many times has the surgeon, done the surgery. Are there any support groups where you can speak to other patients who have had the procedure? This isn't an exhaustive list and you may not want to know everything that I've listed. They're just some suggestions on what might be useful to know. Hope it helps a bit. Hx

Are you seeing a surgeon, or are you seeing another member of the obesity management team? Also knowing what the aim of the initial appointment is, and where you are on your battle with obesity?

Hi, I thought I'd add my experience so far.... had op on Wednesday I had NO post op pain, just a little wind! Went back to work on Monday, with no problems whatsoever. I have no fill at the moment but have some restriction. I've lost 17lbs in 3 weeks and I'm very pleased!

the actual stoma stays the same, as I understand it... the pouch is stretched and 'hangs' over the sides of the band... but giving your pouch a rest it naturally shrinks to it's normal size.... (imagine fat hanging over the sides of your skirt waistband) That's how the surgeon explained it to me...

At the moment, I have no fill in my band... I'm a baby bandster! I cannot eat bread, or yeast based cakes (buns etc) not even a couple of mouthfuls without pain. If it's toasted... then that's a different story, however I dont' see myself being able to eat them with any more restriction than I have at the moment. I can eat rice and pasta, with no problems whatsoever, but that could change once I'm filled!

Today has been a good day although didn't have just fluids..... Cambridge shakes for breakfast and lunch 1 homemade beef fajita with salsa and natural yoghurt. Drank 2 litres of water as well as 1 mug coffee and 2 cups of tea. Feel like I'm back in control which can only be a good thing! No more seeking comfort in the bottom of a carton of Ben and Jerry's! Plan to have 2 packs and a meal again tomorrow!

I'm told that if you usually retain water around the time of your period then it can affect the amount of restriction that you experience. I've not posted on here for a couple of days.... mostly because they've been a disaster :rofl: and once I go off the rails, I tend not to keep a food diary! But let's just say that the band does nothing to restrict the amount of ice cream and chocolate you can eat!! So, I've got the scales out this morning in an effort to draw a line under the whole sorry episode, the upshot is that I've gained the 1kg that I'd lost last week. What did I expect eh? I'm not stupid! I had a bit of a barny with OH on Sunday and it kind of dragged into Monday... it lead me to the shops and down the 1/2 price choccy aisle.... (Lindor mini eggs, and Guylian mini eggs!) then the Ben and Jerry's was 2 for £5 so I had them too! Pre band I would have eaten all of it in one sitting, but I was happy with half of it on Monday night.... Then of course it was still in the house yesterday.... so I ate the rest.... I couldn't bring myself to throw it out! :o So anyway, in the morning I'm quite tight(even with NO fill! ), and this morning is no exception, so I'm taking advantage and I'm going to go back onto fluids for a few days, to sort my head out more than anything else! I've got lots of Cambridge diet still, so I'll be having that for a while and see how I feel at the weekend!

Your first port of call should always be your GP if you are looking to have a band on the NHS, you will need a referral from your GP. Each PCT has a protocol to follow and so it would be wrong to try and second guess what will happen where you are. In some PCT's they refer you to an endocrinologist, others have an obesity clinic set up. Some just refer straight to the bariatric surgeon. Good luck with your journey. Hx

I thought it would be helpful to start a thread to help when you are tightly restricted. I'm still a very baby bandster, and I'm lucky, I have quite good restriction with no fill. Reading through the what did you eat today, I've been quite concerned that it is so easy to resort to eating junk instead of good stuff.... If you can snack on crisps or chocolate then you should also be able to snack on: Crackerbread, danish rounds, breadsticks, oatcakes or cream crackers Smooth Brussels, tuna or salmon pate or spread/sandwich fillers Cream cheese like philli, boursin or brie and maybe hard cheeses Smoked salmon with cream cheese - they sell them as little appetisers in the supermarket very yummy! Homemade veg Soup of any description whizzed up Oat-so-simple Marmite (if you’re a lover) or Peanut Butter Nuts and/or seeds (very good for you too) Mashed banana? Slimfast (or similar) shakes Cuppa soup (maybe croutons?) Yoghurt Fromage Frais If you are stuck for fruit & veg choices then: Carrot and swede mash Well roasted parsnips Broccoli or Cauli florets without the stems with cheese sauce Sweet potato Mashed potato Mashed banana Try raspberries they should go down ok Better still make a lovely smoothie – nice and thick with fruits, oats & nuts Healthy evening meals whilst very small, if you add a sauce will go down easier. Eat very slowly with a teaspoon so that it can't be eaten in in huge mouthfuls.... a lessson I'm still learning! Fish is the bandster’s friend Steamed or poached salmon in dill/lemon sauce Corned beef hash Plaice Florentine Crustless Quiche Lemon sole goujons with tartare sauce Fish pie Oat-so-simple Salmon fishcakes with a buerre blanc sauce Creamy mash & gravy Cod in butter sauce Shakes Soup Quorn cottage pie Semolina/custard/mousse type things Soft baked potato with butter and cheese (no skin I hope that if you're really tight that this post helps you.... it's not my original work, I've read it somewhere else and thought it might be helpful.

I told my OH, and my best friend, who promptly told all of our mutual friends!!! ( Serves me right, as I didn't ask her to keep quiet!) and another friend who has said not a word to anyone else, her thoughts are that if I want to tell anyone else it's up to me (I wonder who is my BEST friend really) I've not told my parents, or my teenage sons... I live in a small village and the whole village would know in minutes! I don't want people watching everything that goes in my mouth all the time.... What I eat is nobody's business buy my own, I'm not accountable to anyone but myself!

6/4/07 B: natural yoghurt and 1 orange L: nothing! too busy and forgot! D:1.5 poppadoms, 3 spoons raita, chicken tikka nargasi, small piece of naan, 175ml red wine calories 605 7/4/07 B; natural yoghurt and orange L; 1 Frikadellen 1 piece of bread... got stuck golf ball OMG! the pain:eek: D 1/8 small quiche, 1 baked potato with 2 tspn philadelphia, 125ml cloudy apple juice, about 2 mouthfuls of simnel cake followed by ANOTHER GOLFBALL!!!! Calories: 1053 8/4/07 B: None felt tight so just drank lots of water Had pre dinner glass of Chateauneuf du Pape (red wine for the unitiated!) L: 1/2 slice roast beef, 1/2 yorkshire pud, 1 spn carrots, 1spn green beans, 1/2 spn cauliflower cheese, 1/2 new potato. Pudding! Home made brioche pud, with custard, small portion but still 320 calories worth! Snack 3 milk tray choccies(not my favourites, but hey..) Tea: 1 sliver o fhomemade lemon meringue cake..... I've eaten everything slowly today and have enjoyed it all. Total calories: 1257!

SaggiJ, You do know what the bandster rules are regarding meals, don't you??? they are as follows... 1. No drink 30minutes before and 45 minutes after food 2. Eat good quality, solid food that will stay in your pouch and give you satisfaction. 3. Eat you protein FIRST, then your vegetables.... then if you have room you can eat the carbohydrates!!!! If you eat the mash first, then you are asking for trouble in the weight loss stakes..... You also know that it's small bites.... no bigger than 10p piece then chew chew, chew!!! taking larger bites and swallowing them before they're well and truly mushed in your mouth, is asking for trouble, especially when you're tight! Success depends on following these rules and working with your band, not against it! Come on girl, you know what you should be doing!!!

You can contact Dr Chris direct using the email address below, he will be able to tell you where he now does fills and schedule and appointment if that's what you want. Dr Christiaan DEBRUYNE Steenwagebstraat 42 1820 Melsbroek Belgium +32 2 751 7777-+32 476 39 80 74 email chris.debruyne@advalvas.be http://www.obesity-assist.com/

Ok, here's what I think, you've traumatized you tummy with the chicken, and everything is tender and swollen, to add to it you have cold which sometime causes additional swelling.... go back to fluids for a couple of days and give your stomach a rest. It will probably settle down. Call your doc if you're worried.

5/4/07 B: usual porridge with grated apple Snack: natural bio yoghurt. L: cold roast chicken breast Snack; 1/2 apple and 3 thorntons chocolates!! D: homemade fish pie (from the freezer!) Total calories 998! Dunno how that managed to stay beneath the 1000 calorie mark! I went to get the Easter Eggs for the children in the family and just had to buy some..... would have been 250g before today I only had 30g of chocs.... And yes! I ate half an apple, skin as well, just like I did pre band!!

Welcome to the losing side Sara! I wish you a speedy recovery and a good shrinkage of your liver as your weight goes down!!!

I'm no saint, really I'm not! I just don't feel like scoffing my head off! I paid for my danish pastry with the most awful golf ball!! Well today's intake is as follows: B: usual porridge with grated apple L: Mocha coffee from Costa Coffee D: Homemade slow roasted garlic and lemon chicken and a braised little gem lettuce 175ml Red Wine Total: 875 Calories. I've not eaten dinner as yet and this is the first time for me with chicken.... fingers crossed. I've made a conscious decision to eat only solid food that will 'stay' in my pouch and provide lasting feelings of fullness, so I'm avoiding yoghurts and soups, once this lot that I've made and is in the fridge is gone I shan't be having any more, I think that they tend to 'run straight through' and don;t satisfy me as much.... I'm tracking my calorie/protein/fat/carbohydrate intake at www.weightlossresources.co.uk which is a subscription site. It'll track your exercise calories too if you input the details. Alternatively I think that fitday does the calorie thing for for free, but the food database is American so you'll probably have to enter a lot of your own foods, but it is free so that's a good thing. www.caloriesperhour.com will give you the exercise figure. but I think that fit day does that too! hope that these site help you if you want to keep track.

I'm 15 days post band now, and I have to say that I ate exactly like you do, right up to the day before my op (my doc didn't ask, for a pre op diet and I had a lovely 'skinny' liver when he got inside!) In all honesty I've not done it or wanted to do it since the day of the op! My post op eating plan is a lot more flexible than most on here too, with 1 week liquid 1 week sloppies then work up to solids. So I'm eating 3 small meals a day, and 1 or two snacks! I've eaten a couple of things at my old craving pace and have paid dearly with the dreaded golf ball pain!!! Soon put paid to that idea!

Oh, must say congratulation on your loss! your ticker looks really great!

The price of the fill is that! but as she is only about 40 minutes away I've not included any travel!

OK, I've not kept up with this so this is a catch up page.... more contributers would be helpful, I know that there are more Brits out there..... No offence my American friends, but sometimes, I look at what you've eaten and have no idea what it is!!! (what ARE grits? We use grit to stop the cars sliding on the icy roads!) 30/3/07 B:25g porridge made with skim milk and grated apple L: M&S organic celeriac and parsnip soup Snack: Cambridge diet mousse D: Small bowl of homemade bolognese sauce no pasta. Snack: 39g plain chocolate :D Total calories; 913 31/3/07 B: porridge as above Snack: Cambridge mousse L: 2 eggs scambled D:small portion of homemade fish pie Snack: Organic bio yoghurt plain 2tblspns pureed mango Total calories: 1123 1/4/07 L: homemade fish pie Snack:hot cross bun D: Muller healthy balance yoghurt Total calories; 667 2/4/07 BAD JUNK DAY! B:1/2 danish pastry L: 1 large scone with cream and jam D: 1/3 takeaway curry with rice 1 1/2 poppadoms with raita dip 1 glass red wine Total calories: 1172 3/4/07 B: Usual porridge L:1 rye crispbread with cottage cheese (100g) Snack: 1 organic natural yoghurt D: homemade meatballs with sml portion pasta 1/2 shape yoghurt 60g Total calories: 760 That's me up to date!

Yeah, about 2.5 hours from London and Manchester, ( I live in the Midlands) I'm happy with my proposed aftercare provider. She only sees MIDBand patients though, so it's not much good if you have any other type of band. I'm two weeks out now and I still have good restriction, not viscious, in as much as I can eat bread, vegetables etc, but one rye cracker (finn crisp make round ryvita like crackers, thicker and more yummy) with cottage cheese and that's me satisfied, in fact, VERY FULL! So, I'm hoping I won't need a fill for a good long time and at £130 a time I really hope I'm not there every month

Apparently so!! The best thing I heard about fills by Dr Chris is that he is really good at finding just the right amount of restriction from the 1st fill!! How great would that be?!! In fact, as I type, I'm wondering if I should consult him too!!!