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Congratulations, bigjay!!! If you want to really feel how much you've lost, go to the grocery store and pick up a 40lb and 20lb bag of dog food at the same time!!!!! Thanks for checking in!

Maribelle, I wish I could say something to help inspire you but I've been there and have been told "it's only a tool". And I say why did I pay $30,000 for a tool that requires me to have the same amount of willpower "now" that I didn't have prior to getting the lap band. So before I got the band I was under the impression that solids were solids and they'd fill me up in my new small pouch and I would only be able to eat a certain amount be it healthy or non-healthy foods. Wrong, the junk food that I crave, especially during TOM still goes through the band without a problem. To me that's not the right tool and not worth the $30,000 and whatever else I'm paying this Friday to have it removed, thank God to be "normal" again! Plus if you're only able to eat a bit of Protein and you're still craving "food" you'll get it in. Maybe only a small amount of people behave that way once banded but they need to be aware it can be very difficult. So maybe you'll be able to get the "secret" of how the band is supposed to work for everyone and you'll be able to start losing the weight and won't be in the same position I'm in a little over a year later getting it taken out. I do wish you luck and don't mean to scare you but I was in the same position back in March when I joined this site to find out why I wasn't losing and that was seven months after I was banded. So I feel people need to know that there are certain people that will always have issues with losing weight even if banded. If that weren't true then Obesity Help - Weight Loss Surgery, Obesity Support Groups, Obesity Forums, Surgical Procedures wouldn't have their own revision section and plenty of bandsters are there! Good luck I wish you well and hope you find the answer you need, Nancy:smile:

In the market for a small scale that's accurate. Thanks!

YAY im glad everything went fine in the end and that u dont regret it.... i'm also super nervous and worried.. MY SURGERY IS TOMORROW! the only thing that is really scaring me is going under general anesthesia... i've never been under before and i am scared of not waking up. Everything else im fine with... im not worried about the pain or food or anything.. just the anesthesia. i cannot wait to get on the other side and start losing.. im going to subscribe to ur youtube channel!!

I'm not supposed to have them in the beginning either, I think because of the calories and possible sugar, but it was that or junk food...

WINDED, WEAK, SLEEPY, SORE AND TIRED!!!!!!!! I am going to list off the few things that have been going on since surgery and maybe you guys can help me: THIS WILL BE LONG SO BARE WITH ME. First let me start off by saying that the pain is decreasing day by day which is a plus. Now, ever since i got my surgery i haven't been able to drink Water like at all.. It hurts to drink water. I've been living on G2 for the past couple days and it's been a lifesaver but i am craving and yearning for water and it annoys and saddens me that i can't down a bottle or glass of fresh water. My mouth tastes funny and i feel like i have bad breath all the time and i can't kill it with water because MY STOMACH WON'T TOLERATE IT!!! ( can you see how upset i am? ) Second, i've never had acid reflux or dry heaves in my life so i'm not sure what that feels like but the past couple days i've felt like my stomach has been burning and it's been happening a few times a day so today, i went to the store and picked up some acid reflux meds and after popping one into my mouth i haven't had that uncomfortable feeling all day ( Thank God!). My question is, does this last a lifetime? i went into surgery healthy as a newborn and i would like to remain that way. Third thing on the list, my stomach has been extremely gassy. It rumbles as if it's hungry and 98% of the time i am not hungry so i don't know how to get rid of the gas in my tummy. Also, since surgery i haven't been hungry.. like at all. I've tried to have broth but it doesn't taste good and after a couple spoons of it i end up tossing it. My head hunger is nonexistent and cravings are kept to a minimum. My cravings include things like strawberries and pineapples ( weird i know!) . Please tell me my appetite will increase and i will have the urge to eat as oppose to eating/ drinking/ sipping out of pure necessity. I am fully aware that all this will eventually pass but i'm just a bit freaked out and feeling like i shouldn't have done this. Can you guys give me some insight on what i can do to feel normal again? i feel like i can handle anything but not being able to drink plain water is just about killing me! i loved water before surgery and i don't want to have to drink flavored water for the rest of my life. Thank you! Tiff

All the things you have listed are totally normal, and nearly all of us have experienced them the first few weeks after surgery. Though i have to say if you were "healthy as a newborn" i don't think you would have been needing WLS ( but i understand what you meant). Most people have trouble with water the first one or two weeks. Try adding some Mio drops to add flavor and help break up the surface tension. Again most people are on some type of antacid the first few months, and the gassy stomach and grumblings are also perfectly normal and there isn't much you can do about them. Just give your body time to heal and recover. You will slowly get your appetite back, though it will be different than before surgery. Instead of feeling the traditional "hunger", you will more feel 'empty', that it's time to put some food in your body. You will feel more normal again, you just have to give it time. While some folks are feeling much better at 1 week out, most need 2 or more weeks before they feel like themselves again. Hang in there, it will get better!!

So Ill be in New Orleans thursday through Sunday - staying on Canal street! I'm sure Ill blow the new way of eating out of the water wanting to try all of the good food and all, but at least i can only hold a little Any locals have suggestions on the best places and food to try? Good bars for mingling? Must do's and must see's? Have a locals meet up for coffee?

I am around 2 1/2 weeks out, and I didn't have a BM for several days either, and when I finally did one day it was very loose more like diarrhea, but remember you are on a liquid diet, so I guess that was pretty normal, from the way my Dr. reacted at my 8 day post op check. Now as soon as I started eating regular food again I also started adding benefiber to my Protein shakes because I knew I was not eating enough Fiber, I was mostly eating meat, eggs. cheese, things to get the protein in, yes I was also trying to eat fruit and veggies, but I know I am not eating enough of them to get all the fiber I need and I don't want to be constipated. As far as the hunger, it is called Bandster Hell because you are not getting any bennifit from the fills yet, just try to eat more often when you are really hungry an watch the choices you make and hopefully this time will pass soon because I an still in it myself:sad:

That's happened to me with every weight loss campaign ever (and likely will with this one). For me it makes sense...any kind of weight loss requires me to pay attention/be conscious about food and it's effects, self-consciousness is just another facet of it. For most of my life, I wasn't actually miserable about my weight, I just completely ignored it! Once a year or so, usually after seeing a particularly unflattering photograph, I resolved to "do something", with varying successes but it wouldn't be too long until I got distracted by life. You, of course, know on your head that you look better in a swimsuit than all those pounds ago...your heart just needs to catch up. When in doubt fake it 'til you make it!

I'm 6 weeks out. At four days post-op you are still a cocktail of drugs and anesthesia and gas so that is what you will be feeling right now. Once you start sipping anything stronger than clear liquids you will most definitely be able to"tell" when enough is enough, for me I felt that with clears too. I suppose every person's signal is different but for me that early out it was very painful pressure in the spot where the new stomach is. If I took too large a gulp I would feel that same pain but instead it would be in my esophagus. If you are worried that you will find a way to "cheat" the sleeve because there is no real dumping, don't worry, pain is a VERY good behavior modifier! And once you are on solids there is the risk of "sliming", a hideous experience I recently had with a food I have already eaten post-op.

Okay FIRSTLY my friend I want you to hear this. YOU DID NOT FAIL AT THE BAND. THE BAND FAILED YOU. YOU DID NOT FAIL AT DIETS. DIETS FAILED YOU. This is important because you are placing blame and guilt on yourself that you do not deserve. Secondly. I was also VERY hungry the first two weeks after my sleeve. It seems hit or miss, some people deal with hunger and some don't. My hubby and I both did. So did my friend who is almost 3 weeks post op right now. It's okay, it sucks but you WILL get through it. While you are in this liquids phase, you won't feel too much restriction unless you chug stuff which you probably won't :huh0: Once you get on soft foods you will start to feel it, and even more so on solid foods. If you eat a bite too many you will feel pressure in your chest, like a bad heartburn or just a major pressure in your sternum. It's very uncomfortable and once you have felt it a few times, you learn to stop eating before you get to that point. The nutritionists and nurses in our surgeon's office stress, you do not WANT to feel that... you want to stop eating before you feel it. You will experience it most in the first couple of weeks on solid foods when you are learning. I have only felt it once in the past month and a half when I accidentally ate too much turkey (it was only 2 oz! I can usually eat more than that.) That's the other thing is different foods will make you feel different, you can't always eat the same amount even if it seems similar. chicken and turkey, pretty similar, but it affected me differently. Also, 2 oz of chicken might fit comfortably today, and not tomorrow. So treat every meal like it's the first, and proceed carefully. Hang in there, the hunger gets better. Promise!

I was dehydrated by the end of my second week. I had to force myself to get more liquids. I felt better immediately. This may sound odd, and it is purely psychological, but I now buy the small 8 oz bottles of water. Trying to finish the small bottle is just not as daunting a task. When you have finished 8 in a day, you get your 64 oz. it works great for me.

So I am officially 2 weeks post-op today. Thought I'd share my experience for those interested. We'll start with the stats. I've lost 18 lbs since the surgery, and 64 lbs since I started this process 8 weeks ago tomorrow. The surgery apparently went very well, doctor said it was one of the smoothest he'd had. There was awful pain post-op that lasted about 5 hours. It really was bad, probably the worst pain I've ever experience. It quickly subsided after that, and I have really had a pretty easy time with it since. I went home the day after surgery, and began adding Protein shakes and Water on day 2 post-op. Things went well, and I was able to get my required 60 grams of protein and 64 oz of water almost right away. The afternoon of Day 8, for what seemed to be no reason, I started feeling very nauseated, and extremely tired. By Day 9, I could not stomach the thought of Protein Shakes of any sort (which I absolutely hate since surgery BTW). Day 9 consisted of me just basically just getting in my water, and even that was a struggle. By mid afternoon I was feeling so horrible, and I thought I was having the beginnings of a panic attack. I was sweaty, dizzy, and felt like I was going to pass out. I decided to take my blood pressure out of curiosity, and it was 98/45. I was obviously a bit freaked out, and called the doc. He speculated that it was most likely that I had lost so much weight so fast that I was probably over-medicated now for my high blood pressure. I was taking 10mg of Amlodopine and 100-25 of Losartan-HCTZ. He had me stop the Losartan completely, and take half of my Amlodopine starting the next morning. I felt better (but not great) on Day 10, but by Day 11, I was 100% back and feeling great again. I had started a tiny bit of applesauce on Day 9, tried yogurt, but could not stand the taste. Day 11, I added in cottage cheese, and Day 13 started with some roasted sweet potatoes. food has been absolutely no issue whatsoever. With the exception of the BP issue, nothing has made me nauseous, and while I have no sense of hunger, I also have no sense of feeling full. I actually find the process frustrating as I feel I am trying to sort out quantities, frequencies, etc by myself. And while it's going very smoothly, I have a lot of self-doubt about rather I'm "doing it right." My doctor does not give quantity guidelines as he feels it varies so much from person to person. He also does not give calorie guidelines as he doesn't care about calories as long as people are putting the "right" foods in their bodies (I know this is VERY different from most). I reached out to the BariatricPal community and asked to see what their doctors recommended in regards to quantity, which has been helpful. I saw that there were recommendations not to exceed 4 oz per meal, so I have been sticking with that, but I can definitely eat 4oz of cottage cheese with no problem at all. Never get a sense of fullness (again, I'm also never hungry), never feel back pain/pressure, or pain/pressure in my chest or any of the other symptoms I hear about. All in all, I consider myself very lucky. Things have gone as close to perfect as possible. Even the blood pressure issue, while unpleasant, is exactly what I was hoping to get from the surgery. And while the food re-introduction is stressful for me, it couldn't be going better. Just thought I would share my experience to-date for those who maybe going through the same thing, or about to be! EDIT: Oh yeah, and I forgot to mention, I'm only about 7 lbs away from not being morbidly obese for the first time since I can remember (probably at least 15 years). He's to being severely obese (for now)!

So I start my 3rd week post op this Thursday, we are leaving to go camping for the weekend on Friday. I know I can bring yogurts, cans of tuna and applesauce, etc. I can cook eggs also.. Any other easy ideas anyone can give me? I will bring my personal blender too lol, just need a few more ideas without it getting into too many ingredients or time spent on meals. My post op instructions had a few ideas but not many.. I really can't wait to cook for my family again, but I don't want to make big dinners just to have to puree them for myself. I think I will wait a couple more weeks then be able to make healthy high Protein meals for dinner.

I am 12 wks out & I eat, although I eat very differently than I used to. A great too is myfitnesspal.com - you can send friend requests & view other people's food diaries. It's a great tool for tracking your daily calories & Protein, as well as getting ideas of what others eat. Feel free to send me a friend request. My user name is Kayte819 on there as well. Here's a sample of my typical day: Breakfast: large iced coffee w/ a large amt of 2% milk & splenda. (I hate milk otherwise, but it's a good source of protein) A.m. snack: RTD Muscle milk light vanilla latte flavor Lunch: Ceasar salad w/ grilled chicken. Eat chicken first & a couple bites of salad Dinner: seared ahi tuna & sauteed spinach P.m. snack: chocolate power crunch bar I drink lots of Water or unsweetened iced tea. You will eat again! The 1st 5 weeks were really difficult for me, but hang in there....it gets better! And I've lost I've lost 51 lbs since 1/28/12,despite several long stalls & several poor food choices

Really, a sip is fine. The idea is that eating and drinking fills you up too fast and pushes food through the stomach too fast. You could get an episode of dumping....really I will never try it again it was so awful. Best thing to do is sip a bit before you eat, s,all sips during meal if you must and then really wait the full 1/2 hr to allow proper digestion. Otherwise your pushing undigested food through...not healthy or nutritious.

I'm feeling pretty good today, I'm tired but it's hard to find a really comfortable sleeping position. So, I just don't sleep. I figured out last night that if I mix a little cereal and protein powder in my yogart that I don't get hungry as fast. It's not the best taste, but at this point it's not as much about taste as it is about nutrition. I'm feeling pretty accomplished. I have all of the bows made for mother Beth's wedding and all of the table decor along with one boot just waiting on approval to make the rest. Need to get a list of people so I can mark them as I make them. ... HOW do I get myself into these things...Oh well it's fun and it's turning out beautifully. I will be so glad when softball is over so I don't have to see Larry B anymore. I wish that he could be like all of my other ex's and just not have to have any contact with him. But, NO I was stupid and started an office relationship...STUPID...I can avoid him pretty good but he always makes up reasons to come by or email or some something that I have to answer or acknowledge him. GRRRR, it's frustrating. Moving on... My band and I are getting along pretty good. I stress ate some cheese Saturday night and now I'm stressing about whether or not I have slipped or damaged my band. I won't be doing that again for sure. I need to drink more it's just that I can't drink a lot at a time and then I forget to pick it up and drink. It's hard not to drink with meals as I've done that all of my life to help me fill up. I've done pretty good with it. I am sure it will get harder once I am on solid food. I'm proud that I have lost twenty pounds since this journey began. I hope to lose another ten this week if I'm lucky. I'm trying really hard to follow the nuts guidelines and only eating three times a day. I have figured out what full feels like. It's kind of painful. It's going to take a while to figure out the signal to stop before the painful point. Hard to believe that point can be before I've consummed 1/2 cup of food. I used to eat LOTS more than that. I've discovered I like blogging it's rather refreshing to get all of my thoughts out of my head. I wish I could exercise I am ready to hit the gym. I think I'll go for a walk in a little bit. ...Maybe I'll do that now...ttyl

I'm feeling pretty good today, I'm tired but it's hard to find a really comfortable sleeping position. So, I just don't sleep. I figured out last night that if I mix a little cereal and protein powder in my yogart that I don't get hungry as fast. It's not the best taste, but at this point it's not as much about taste as it is about nutrition. I'm feeling pretty accomplished. I have all of the bows made for mother Beth's wedding and all of the table decor along with one boot just waiting on approval to make the rest. Need to get a list of people so I can mark them as I make them. ... HOW do I get myself into these things...Oh well it's fun and it's turning out beautifully. I will be so glad when softball is over so I don't have to see Larry B anymore. I wish that he could be like all of my other ex's and just not have to have any contact with him. But, NO I was stupid and started an office relationship...STUPID...I can avoid him pretty good but he always makes up reasons to come by or email or some something that I have to answer or acknowledge him. GRRRR, it's frustrating. Moving on... My band and I are getting along pretty good. I stress ate some cheese Saturday night and now I'm stressing about whether or not I have slipped or damaged my band. I won't be doing that again for sure. I need to drink more it's just that I can't drink a lot at a time and then I forget to pick it up and drink. It's hard not to drink with meals as I've done that all of my life to help me fill up. I've done pretty good with it. I am sure it will get harder once I am on solid food. I'm proud that I have lost twenty pounds since this journey began. I hope to lose another ten this week if I'm lucky. I'm trying really hard to follow the nuts guidelines and only eating three times a day. I have figured out what full feels like. It's kind of painful. It's going to take a while to figure out the signal to stop before the painful point. Hard to believe that point can be before I've consummed 1/2 cup of food. I used to eat LOTS more than that. I've discovered I like blogging it's rather refreshing to get all of my thoughts out of my head. I wish I could exercise I am ready to hit the gym. I think I'll go for a walk in a little bit. ...Maybe I'll do that now...ttyl

I feel totally DRAINED today. I think I may have over done it a bit yesterday, that and TOM(time of the month) had to show up...dang it! I did force myself into going for a walk, I thought maybe it would give me some energy but it only drained more out of me. I think I'll have to take a nap. The one thing that I absolutely hate about the band is not being able to take pills normally. I have to cut them in really little pieces and put them in applesauce or pudding to get them to go down. I hate taking pills anyway so having to take six small pieces of one pill is FRUSTRATING! Last softball game is tonight!!! I really like it but I think ten weeks is a too long, it's tough keeping everybody committed. Besides it will be good not having to see Larry every week. I have to plan the bbq next I'm waiting until I'm on the soft food stage though, I want to eat like everybody else...Just not as much. Well that's all the energy I have for my daily random thoughts...It's off to napland!:sneaky:

I'm sorry to hear about this. Sometimes a change in routine and stress (even during a fun vacation) can affect restriction. My only suggestion is to tank up on liquids and be very careful with your food choices.

K, I know, we all go through stalls. Mine started after week two and is still going at week six. I feel like I'm going slowly insane. I have about four lbs in those four weeks. Overall, I've lost 25 lbs in six weeks. My current weight is 220. I track every calorie, and am always between 600-800. I get at least half an hour of exercise a day, a few days a week I get an hour or more. I drink Water - usually 7 glasses, plus one Protein shake. I take my Multivitamin. I get 65-85 grams of protein per day, aiming for the upper end. I keep my carbs around 35-40. And I feel crazy. Obsessed. I've started weighing just once a week so that the daily disappointment isn't too much. But what am I doing wrong!!! I feel like I am doing something terribly wrong for my body to lose almost nothing in a month at these restrictions. And the hunger is not helping. I am not a lucky one who doesn't have hunger. I take Prevacid twice daily for acid control. But I feel so hungry every day that it is overwhelming. I'm not fantasizing about any wonderful foods, I'm fantasizing about not feeling so hungry that I feel physically ill. Does anyone have some advice or supportive words? I'm pretty overwhelmed today! I know this was the right decision, but I'm not sure if things will ever move in the right direction.

In denial: I may have given the impression that I'm struggling with the limited quantities....that is not my struggle at all...I have to pay attention to what I'm eating so that I cam make sure and get enough Protein in. Alot of us on here are trying to find creative ways to cover all the food groups because you really can't eat that much at one time. Most of the time I don't feel like I'm dieting even though I'm eating healthy food...I'm just trying to get the best nutrional value I can for each meal...I'm rarely hungry and so I, like many others have to try to make the best choices we can when we are hungry. Jachut: I eat TONS of veggies....steamed and raw...I guess maybe it's possible to over do it on the good carbs. That menu was for today and doesn't reflect what I eat every day. I have steamed veggies with almost every dinner...but I do think that somewhere along the way I'm going to have to cut back on carbs....I always seem to do best on a higher protein/low carb kind of plan...I guess I just wasn't taking into a count all the carbs(even though they are good carbs) that are in fruits and vegetables.

The advice from successful losers (and it's working for me) regarding carbs is this - eliminate all white carbs; they are the starchy ones (potatoes, rice, Pasta, white flour products -bread/crackers/crust/etc, corn). Carbs from veggies/fruits are acceptable but need to be limited to less than 50/day unless you are a very active athletic person. Besides helping with the weight loss, eliminating those 'evil' carbs will also curb your cravings for more carbs and make staying on the food plan much easier. You've got a good start on your weight loss....keep up the good work!!

Well, after countless hours and days, I've decided NOT to go through with the VSG. I'm healthy at 90 pounds over weight. I will do everything I can to lose these 90 pounds the natural way. I will be meeting with a weight behaviorist to get help with my addiction called food. That combined with weight watchers will hopefully be what I need to succeed. I just wanted to thank everyone on this site who helped me make an informed decision based on what was best for ME. I wish everyone much success with which ever road they chose on this weight loss journey!!