iwannabealoser

I have been banded for almost 4 months now and havent lost much AT ALL. A few pounds since surgery which was all at the beginning on the all liquid diet. Im just gonna put myself out there because I am failing and frustrated. Here is my situation. I had my band placed with a small fill in it already and since then I have had one fill. I have no idea how much is in my band because my doctor did not tell me and was stressing that the cc's are not what matters, its the feeling etc. Well, before the fill I really had no restriction. Now, i do but after about 3 or maybe 4 bites of food, I get this feeling like a lump in my throat and it HURTS. I have to drink something to get it to pass.. If i dont drink anything, I either sit in pain and cant eat anymore or I have to throw it up. Its so frustrating. Obviously my drinking while I eat prevents the band from being able to work, but I dont know what I am suppose to do. If I stop eating, I am literally only eating about 3 bites of food, and I dont feel "full", I just feel a pain. Is that what full is suppose to feel like? If anyone has advice I am so appreciative. And if anyone is reading this thinking Im so dumb and Im just doing it wrong, I really am not sure what I am suppose to do differently. I went into this with so much excitement and Im feeling really deflated. My husband is paying money every month to pay off the loan we got in order for me to get the surgery and I feel so guilty that I am not losing anything.

Thank you all so much. I am glad to know what I need to change. I have a new look today and I will try my hardest to take smaller bites and chew more!! I really appreciate the help. :wink2:

Im suprised he didnt give you the box so you could have the serial number and such. Someone else mentioned this already but there are more than 2 sizes bc I also have the 4cc band, so if your DR carries the 4cc and 10cc, he may consider the 10cc the large band and that COULD be what you have. I would just call and ask him flat out.

I was told that they are not okay during the clear liquid phase because of the pulp, but I assume after that you can have them. My dr didnt say NOT to

Why is it that some people have 10cc bands and some have 11cc and 14cc. Mine says its a 10cm but only 4cc. And my dr put .8cc in when he put it on. Will I get less restriction since I can only have 4cc? I don't understand why there are so many different ones.

Im only 12 days post op but I think I kind of understand the fear of anorexia thing. Ive noticed on liquids that I am losing so fast and then yesterday I ate a few bites of real food(something bad) and even though it was a small amount, I woke up today with my first gain, and 1.5 lb gain at that! It confuses me beacause overall I was still way under the calories I normally would have eaten in a day pre-band. Makes me a little apprehensive to eat anything solid even when I am allowed to. Liquids is working so well. I dont want to gain 10 lbs when I go back to regular foods, but I dont think I could really become anorexic because although its a little scary to eat solids again, I can't hold back forever lol I love to eat too much. Ill just have to make sure and get a fill if I start gaining when I go to solids. Not sure if thats kind of what you are feeling or not, but like someone else mentioned, if you really feel that you could become anorexic, let your doctor know and maybe you could talk to someone to help you through the mental part of this whole process.

I currently weigh about 3 times a day. I record my morning weight, but I also check mid-day and again at night because like another person mentioned, I can usually predict my morning weight when I know my weight before bed. I hope that when the pounds start coming off slower, I will move to weighing every few days or every week. Right now, I like being conscience of my weight, because if it goes up or doesnt move, I know that I will be making up for it the next day. It really keeps me moving in the right direction

i get horrible hiccups. like I feel em coming up slowly and they are deep/hard. I dont know why though because I am on all liquids still and theres no way I am eating too much or too fast because I follow the 2 oz every 15 minute rule and i drink slowly and usually am not even able to finish the 2 oz bc the hiccups are just so annoying and painful. I also had a hiatal hernia repaired and was considering maybe that had something to do with it. I hope this isnt a regular thing.

Thanks for the heads up and glad to see you are doing better now :-)

I'm newly banded:thumbup:, only 6 days out, but I am starting to wonder the best way to go about clothes when I start changing sizes. When I am home, I don't mind just wearing oversized shirts and PJs and stuff but I am going to start working in a few months and I can't afford to buy so many clothes in every size. How do most people do this? So far, I have decided I will probably buy dresses so they can fit me through a few sizes but are there any other ideas? :thumbup: I think I might start scouting the thrift stores now and just pick up anything I see that's nice and work appropriate if it's in a size that's anywhere between my current size and goal size.

Thank for all the input everyone :-) You are all so helpful :-)

I am on my 5th day post-op and I just literally cried over popcorn. I am so insanely hungry. I cant have anything other than liquids for 6 more days. I have been doing ok, but my husband has been eating cereal and sandwiches and stuff that doesnt smell up that house because he is trying to be considerate. But the kids asked for popcorn and OMG it smells so delicious! Last night I was so close to just eating a few crackers and letting them dissolve into mush in my mouth but i held back and today Im so close to messing up again but Im holding back. I am taking this an hour at a time literally but I just cant forsee being this hungry for another 6 days! Is this normal?! I just want a few bites of something!

Thanks so much. I will go eat a popsicle now, I havent tried that yet! I dont have any clear Protein shakes but if Im worse tomorrow, I will probably go ahead and have at least a small Protein shake. Glad to know its normal, I was seriously feeling like such a fatty/loser for crying over food. It reminds me of when I was preggo, I think the cravings are even stronger now, bleh! Thanks again! And if anyone else has more suggestions, Im open to that too :-)

I just added myself to the spreadsheet. I have a record of my weight, so I was able to fill in the first week weight, although that was my surgery day, so I just used the average between a couple days before and a couple days after. Im very excited about this because the only real goal I have already set is to be in Onederland by christmas! Then Ill go from there and set more goals to get to my final weight. woohoo Im so excited about this!

Im officially banded! I had my surgery July 1, but I had it in mexico so i just got home last night. Surgery went really well, liquid diet is not so fun lol but Im doing pretty good. So excited to have it all over with! When I woke up in recovery I actually freaked out for a second bc I didnt feel any pain right away and I was afraid something happened and they werent able to give me the band. I dont know why I was so worried that would happen lol but anyways I started to try and sit up a little bit and felt the pain and couldnt help but smile because I knew that meant it was in there and from here on out its just following the "rules of the band" best of luck to everyone having surgery coming up! :thumbup:

I havent even been banded yet and this has already become drama! Who did you guys tell? --I told my husband, mom, sister, and one friend at school. I trust ALL of those people but one thing led to another and now everyone in my class knows (8 of us) and my whole immediate family knows. Its not a huge deal, they are all people I am pretty close to, but it was not my plan What are you regrets about not telling? --So far, there is only one person that I considered telling and didnt and that is my best friend. I feel a little guilty not telling her but I want to wait until after the surgery because I just dont want her to worry about me What are your regrets about telling? --I was suprised at how much these people broke my trust, I NEVER would have expected it, we are really close, but it got blurted out and now more people know than i would care for, but its still a relatively small circle of people, so Im not too too upset about it. What's the purpose of telling? --Well I told people bc its something HUGE in my life right now and its hard not to want to talk about it. I was also hoping for some support Should I wait for results then tell? --Looking back, I would have probably only told my husband and mom and sworn them to secrecy. Other than them, I probably would have not told anyone, even after results. Are you able to eat in front of people without having to explain your eating habits? What do you say to explain them? -- I have not been banded yet, so cant answer.

kick butt!!!! Cant wait to be in your shoes!!

I was not told to do the liquid diet but I want to try anyways to make sure my liver isnt so fatty, but Im not sure which liquids are allowed and which arent. Is it just Clear Liquids? Gatorade and Water is not nearly filling enough. Can I have milk? smoothies? Also, I am noticing that all the liquids have more carbs and less Protein which is the opposite of the pre-op food diet. Is it becuase I am drinking the wrong things or is it ok to have more carbs when you are doing liquids? Is it just the consistency that helps my liver, or does the nutritional value of the liquids make the difference? Sorry for all the questions, but I am on day 2 and so confused. I would rather not starve myself if it isnt necessary but if thats what its suppose to feel like, then Ill stick to it. :smile2:

Is it just me or do people put the most unhealthy delicious food in front of you the minute you tell them you are trying to eat healthy. Jeez oh petes. :smile: I have one friend at school I told about the surgery and my diet Im doing now and she normally eats healthy about 75% of the time, but ever since I told her, I swear she brings the junkiest food like pizza, soda and stuff that I am totally craving but not going to even touch. Yesterday she told the class she is going to bring us all cupcakes. :thumbup: She NEVER brings cupcakes. why now?! I think she is trying to destroy me lol Either way, I am sticking to my diet :tt2: because it is working and Ive got a pretty aggressive goal (IMO) that I set to reach before surgery.

I think we have the same friend! lol :smile2: My friend lives in an apartment and ever since she saw our home, which is a condo, she keeps talking about how they are going to buy a place too and the only reason they are waiting is because they want it to be perfect, and she never fails to mention the 4925834 reasons why she would NEVER buy a condo lol as if i care, we bought it for us, we made the decision based on what we wanted to pay, how much upkeep we wanted to be responsible for, the area, etc etc. And I told her what school my kids are going to be attending and wouldnt you know that she rushed to put in her kids application too and then she actually requested her child be in the same class!! are you serious?! lol she is like a leech! But I agree with what you said, ultimatly she is ok, she truly does help me out at times and she is there for me and thats worth a lot, but i cant help but be annoyed somtiems lol

aggh Im only 9 days away! :smile2: I was not required to do a preop diet but im gonna try anyways. started all liquids on the middle of yesterday (i ate food for breakfast). Im really confused on which liquids are allowed though so Im just trying to do my best

As far as flying, it should be fine but wear something comfy. I am having my surgery in Mexico so i have to fly home 2 days after the operation and pretty much everyone who has gone to mexico had to fly home that soon so it must be safe. Maybe just a little uncomfortable but I plan to wear a loose fitting dress or something. And as for your vacations, good luck! I have a mini 3 day vacation/family reunion about a week before my surgery so im nervous about that too but I know I have to do what I have to do. I knew one girl who had the lap band done a week or two before christmas and she did really well. We all were at her house for dinner on christmas so she made a Soup (among other things) and we all assumed she just ate that, but knowing what i know now, she probably only drank the broth.

I dont mean to be offensive because I know we all have our own food struggles and I dont mean to judge at all, but I personally just dont understand the logic of eating everything "bad" now. These foods arent going to disappear after I get banded. I will just have to eat less with the band. And it seems like most people dont have that many if any completely forbidden foods. I mean, I know soda, but as far as pastas and such, it seems like most people are able to eat it if they chew it well and eat it in moderation. And if i cant eat those foods after my band, good riddance, they werent doing me any good anyways lol. But I will admit that I am going to have a nice dinner the night before surgery (with permission of my dr). Mostly just because I know it will be a long time before I will be able to eat solids again lol

oops sorry, I dont live in Canada either, didnt notice this was in the canada forums