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@@debd80 at 11 days i was only drinking liquids, broth etc (per my NUT) Protein Shakes obviously help satisfy the need for protein they are/can be filling your new little tummy is less than 2 weeks old it just had major surgery, tummy is hurting and a little angry at you for messing with it LOL most NUTS have different rules per their programs I was on a mushy/puree foods for a few weeks then soft phase (yogurt, cottage cheese etc) FINALLY solids you are allowed solids at 11 days!!! in my case at that early time, no way would i eat 2 or 4 oz but that's just my case per my NUT "Maybe I'm doing this wrong..." i would talk to your NUT maybe you misunderstood about your eating plan?? just saying.... at 11 days, if there is a problem with your eating you should be able to fix it, learn from your NUT (unless this is what your NUT prescribed!!) good luck kathy

I've made: chicken curry puree Chana Masala (chickpea curry) puree An Italian Puree (cottage cheese, parmesan, sauce, crumbled soy sausage, spices/herbs) Turkey Meatballs and gravy puree Hummus Indian Yogurt Soup (kadhi) I've found that pureeing foods that I like anyway really helps to keep eating interesting. There is no way I can eat the same thing over and over...and I hate using pre-packaged foods or "diet" foods.

I felt incredibly full, almost so uncomfortable that even when I had nothing to eat, I felt like I was close to throwingup I was like this for about 10-12 days post op. In the last two days or so I began feeling hungry and started on mushies but the level of uncomfort is almost like I am back to being one day post op. I am thinking its just "head hunger" since my tummy does not growl or am I weak from hunger pains or depreviation ( I know from the feeling, as I use to work 8-10 hours without eating sometimes). Differetiating the two is so important. Real hunger and Head Hunger, being on full liquids again and puddings and yogurts are lowering the pain levels around my stomach and gas discomfort So take it easy and stop eating after a couple of spoonfulls and question if you are feeling like eating anymore. I have my fill the same day as yours, and I dont know if I want it! more discomfort not looking foward.

I don't eat Breakfast if I do it is a yogurt about 10:00 8:00 - 10:00am 2 - 12 OZ DECAFS 10 - 11:30 24 OZ Water OR CRYSTAL LITE IN THE MORNING (done by 11:30) 12:00 - lunch 1:30 - 5:00 48 0z water or crystal lite 5:30 - 16 oz water with work out 7:00 - super 9:00 usually take a 16 oz bottle and sip on it and take it to bed (i get so thirsty at night) drink about 8 oz by morning. I Try to get at least 100 oz a day, but I always get at least 64. I find it more important to not drink after a meal than before. When I first started i had to force 64 oz down, A few months ago I was fighting hunger between meals but did feel like I needed a fill so my Nut. suggested more water. They say it has nothing to do with weight loss but mine sure picked up when I increased my water, altho... it could be many things.

Hi JennyBean, You are correct MOST people have to go very low in order to lose weight, I do, too. When you get low in calories of around 500-800 calories a day you do need to supplement more and some people take B12 supplements to keep their strength up from being weak. Everyone that I've known to have the Bypass or Sleeve, usually go very low in calories, more so than Lap banders, since they lose very quickly. Some say that going low will take you into starvation mode, for ME, starvation mode does not exist, I can't lose consistently at 1500 calories, I think when you are very young and have a very strong metabolism that may work for young active people, but if you are over 40 like me, that does not work. Well hopefully if we use our band wisely, we will have our bands to stop that regain .. Yes that is the dangers of going low it can ruin your metabolism, this is why I try to walk daily or get on the treadmill daily for about 20 minutes to keep my metabolism strong. Well I feel stuffed too, here is the thing, I eat very dense food, this way I don't have to keep my band too tight, for example, I think my band is now at the right spot. I feel tight in the mornings, but I can still eat all solid food, if I eat yogurt, I don't get that signal that stimulates my vagus nerve, the key to eating with the band is eating DENSE food, that will keep hungry at bay for hours. Really learning how the band works takes a course ...lol... For example, if I eat a boil egg or scrambled egg it will keep my fuller longer than eating yogurt or cottage cheese or a Protein drink, remember food has to be dense to send that signal to your brain, and dense food also give you that stuffed feeling, that is how MY band works. And if I eat a few slices of an apple -- that's IT, I plugs me up and I can't eat dinner, so I have to carefully watch my diet to eat more because the more dense foods I eat the LESS I can eat, this is something newbies don't understand well, this is why newbies make a mistake and get too tight, when in fact being too tight will create the opposite. Believe it or not, those who's bands are too tight end up eating MORE calories than those who are in the green zone at their sweet spot, because when the band is too tight, will be fighting heartburn and a feeling of misery, More acid creates a false sense of hunger, and the vagus nerve is not stimulated because nothing dense is hitting the stomach, and those who are too tight will get sick and tired of sipping protein drinks, and yogurt and panic and eat chips, candy, Cookies, soft carbs, etc and many don't' lose weight and many end up with slipped bands with no weight loss. If you are feeling stuffed don't worry about it, that is a good thing, I guess you need to focus more on making sure that you are not eating over 4oz per meal. For ME, when I eat an egg and drink some crystal lite, I am stuff and can't eat any more, the band is not about restriction but feeling satisfied, but for me, I get full. In fact when I eat two solid meals, I can't eat anything else, for example, if I eat breakfast and lunch, I will not be hungry for dinner, and if I eat dinner when I wake up I am not hungry for breakfast until around 10am or 11am.....so it's difficult for me to eat 3 solid meals per day...but if I was eating soft food, and protein drinks I would be more hungrier. The key to the band is getting the adjustment "just right" where you can eat solids and dense foods to plug up the stomach to keep your hunger at bay for hours, and my band is now doing that. If the band is too tight you will not be able to enjoy or get down healthy dense food that will stimulate the vagus nerve to keep you satiated for hours, like an egg, or apple. Hope this helps.

Really?? I had a few spoons of cream of wheat and two spoons of yogurt and I am in pain now on my right side spasming to my stomach not sure what caused it ... Could be gas I took gasx but no changes ... The pain comes and does... God I hope it has nothing to do with the constipation ... Lord help me!!!

Krisstep when you get past the horrible feeling from using milk in cream of wheat, you might try a little of the yogurt. I have become lactose intolerant since my surgery but it does not include yogurt, cheeses etc, only the milk stuff is a problem for me. If it is a problem I think there are things for lactose intolerant people to take before they have dairy and it works for them to solve the problem.

I'm trying more tea and that helps. And eating Greek yogurt...the oikos high protein ones too

Kefir is the oldest method of culturing and thus preserving milk. It doesn't need refrigeration so that was good before fridges existed. It is also self-perpetuating. Yogurt culture only lasts a few batches before it stops making yogurt but there are kefir cultures that have been around hundreds of years. You strain out the grains (they look like tiny cauliflower) and just add them to new milk. We used to have dairy goats and this is one of the ways we used the milk. Kefir is a little stronger tasting than yogurt.

I just got this in an email hope it helps UNJURY Unflavored: the Right Ways to Use Unflavored UNJURY can be added to beverages and many foods. Here are some of the favorite ways to use. First, do not mix UNJURY Unflavored in plain water. In water, you know it’s there. But you will be surprised how completely it disappears in fruit flavored Crystal Light, Orange Juice, Jell-O recipes and more. That is partly because UNJURY Unflavored is so clean and so thoroughly ultra-filtered. And unlike some similar products, UNJURY Unflavored has no added sweeteners or flavors. If you are lactose intolerant, please be assured that UNJURY Unflavored has 0 grams of lactose. Many customers who are lactose intolerant do well with UNJURY Unflavored. Favorites (these will vary by medical situation): Beverages (mix in 8 oz., or 16 oz. if desired): Orange Juice/ Orange Crystal Light Fruit Flavored Crystal Light... Fruit Punch, Raspberry... V-8 Juice Smoothie Recipes (see our website www.UNJURY.com or call 1-800-517-5111 for details) Milk for Cereal Coffee (not hotter than 140 F)* Food: Jell-O Recipes (see our website www.UNJURY.com or call 1-800-517-5111 for details) Yogurt - Start with a third of a scoop and mix to desired consistency Applesauce - Start with a third of a scoop and mix to desired consistency Oatmeal (e-mail Nutrition@UNJURY.com for recipe or call 1-800-517-5111 for details) Cream of Wheat (e-mail Nutrition@UNJURY.com for recipe or call 1-800-517-5111 for details) Pudding Recipe (see our website www.UNJURY.com or call 1-800-517-5111 for details) Soup (*note temperature information below) Tomato Sauce- Start with 1 scoop and mix into 1 cup of tomato sauce Mayonnaise -Stir 1 scoop into 1 cup mayo[1] (use to make chicken salad, tuna salad, egg salad, as sandwich spread, anywhere you use mayonnaise) Salad Dressing- Start with 1 scoop and mix into 1 cup of salad dressing Pudding popsicle recipes (e-mail Nutrition@UNJURY.com for recipe or call 1-800-517-5111 for details) Be sure to visit UNJURY on Facebook atwww.facebook.com/UNJURY to view more recipes and usage ideas!

I often have a something like heartburn. No, not reflux, just mild heartburn. I've found a teaspoon of yogurt and it goes away. My nutritionist says that's not unusual.

2 weeks post ops and my team says I am doing great. Starting weight shortly before surgery was 293 and I am now at 277.... 16 lbs so far. My incisions have all healed, I have had no gas pains, nausea or any of the other uncomfortable complications I have read about here. Stayed on full liquids day 2-10 and still incorporate a lot of full liquids such as yogurt, cream of wheat and protein water into my daily diet. In fact you could say I am on full liquids all day, eating whatever else will go down comfortably for dinner, keeping an eye on my own personal nutritional goals. I was doing this for awhile before surgery anyways, and has now bwcome habit. I worry about progressing too fast with the diet. I asked my doctor if I ate something wrong, would it cause any problems with the band, such as slipping? He assured me that might have been true in the “old days” but that he now ties the lapband in securely by bringing up some of the lower stomach and stitching it around the band. The band will not slip by eating something wrong. He did say if I had a prolonged bout of throwing there was a slight chance of slippage, but unlikely. He also said that before the first banding the stomach pouch will not stretch as there is little restriction, any excess food just slips through to the lower stomach. His said I would be limited in what I eat by what felt comfortable “slipping through” and could gage how much swelling is remaining from the surgery by what size goes down OK. I would learn from trial and error what I could eat and what would be not be nice to me. So I have tried out various other foods to see how they feel, being sure to chew very well. This is very much feedback trial and error, as if I forget and do not chew well it does not feel good going down. I have the best luck on foods that are on the soft slippery type, like fish(scallops, red snapper), noodles, eggs and various oatmeals, even soggy morning cereal. All with no problems. No gas, bloating nausea or any other complications that I can feel. All went down just fine. Rice, flour tortillas and anything fibrous that can’t be chewed into pieces get “stuck” and I have to wait for it to clear before eating more. Not painful, just annoying. My nutritionist did say to avoid coffee as that has tannic acid which could cause ulcers on the band. I wonder if that applies to tomato products, such as spaghetti sauce, as tomatoes have tannic acid, as does wine, I think. I will need to verify that with her. I am thinking it may be the daily prolonged use of coffee that could cause an ulcer, but for now I just say no. The temptation is to keep pushing the limit, such as gobbling down a Burger King Steakburger ( I did not even though I probably could if chewed well), but I had better have enough self discipline to not do that or I have wasted my life, time and money on a procedure I do not respect. I log everything on FITDAY.com (have done this for years) and keep a careful eye on my calories, cards, proteins, etc. When I was on full liquids I was taking in about 800 calories and usually met the 60 protein goal. I am looking now at keeping my calories around 1200, so that I will continue to lose weight. My doctor has taken me off the high blood pressure med as I now test in the normal range. I have reduced my glyburide by 50%, and am slowly reducing my 24 hour insulin. I am experiencing fasting glucose of 120, which is about 100 points lower than pre lapband. So far I am very happy with my lapband.

My paperwork on a full liquid diet consist of: SF yogurt, strained cottage cheese, cream of wheat,grits,malt o meal (whatever the hell that is) vegetable & fruit juice diluted 50/50 with water, liquid protein supplements. At this point begin up to 1 protein supplements per day.

One of the things I am doing in anticipation of my VSG surgery is experimenting with foods that will be allowable after the procedure. A few nights back I was taking my walk and found myself craving something sweet. When I got home I took care of the craving by eating 6 ounces of Chobani plain Greek Yogurt. It was one of the most filling things I've ever eaten and the nutrition is good. The taste, however, was not all that good. It reminded me of sour cream, which gave me an idea. Today at the grocery store I picked up some onion Soup mix and when I had my yogurt I tried adding some, effectively making the yogurt taste like onion dip, albeit much more healthy. It was delicious. The onion soup mix does have some carbs so that requires accounting but it's not much and the flavor boost is tremendous.

That's is true . Also if u take Greek yogurt and drain it overnight and add a little evoo the next day, you'll have labaneh . It's our version of yogurt in the "Arab world" lol

I weighed in for week two and I'm at 288. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little let down since its only a pound, but I'm also not surprised. I've been having a hard time adjusting to eating on a schedule and eating consistently. It seems like my metabolism has completely shut down, which makes sense. The other thing is that I haven't been active at all. Between school through the week and work all weekend I've been giving myself an awful lot of excuses to not work out. I have a treadmill so at the very least I can be doing that. Hopefully I can settle into some sort of routine. No pain or discomfort at all this week. I have noticed I keep feeling my port. I don't know if its just a nervous habit to run my hand over it or the sheer fascination of being able to feel this strange object in my body but I do it a lot haha. My appetite is back, but still in a strange way. I'm having a really hard time trying to tell if I'm hungry or if I have the urge to eat. The urge to eat (and overeat) is in my head. Other than knowing its 'time' to eat, or knowing that i need to eat something I'm not sure if I'm feeling hunger. But when I do eat, I want to eat a lot. I've been trying to limit myself and have been doing a decent job but I definitely need to drinking my shakes more. I've ventured into new territory with my soft foods, I've been making chicken salad and chicken with bbq sauce. Does anyone else feel like by the time they add all the stuff to make it 'soft' they've added a ton of calories? I've been using miracle whip instead of mayo (which kills me lol), and substituting Greek yogurt in anything I can get away with (because it still tastes like sour cream), but still- it adds up. Any tips? I haven't really pursued vegetables except for potatoes (again-super starchy! help!), but thats on the to-do list for this week. In other fun news, I just booked my first real vacation ever! I'm going to North Carolina in May when school lets out to visit my best friend. I'm so excited because I feel like that's enough time to make a big difference. Since she doesn't see me everyday, it'll also be interesting to see her reaction. Plus ya know, beach ocean swimsuit blah blah blah. Should be quite an adventure!

I am a little over 2 weeks out also and I am experiencing what you are experiencing. I have had some trouble getting some foods down, but once they are down my stomach hasn't been sensitive to anything. I haven't had anything with sugar or any sweets but I do find myself snacking on SF puddings and Jello and yogurt. I also am not really following the guidelines set by my doctor and I know that is wrong. I should be in the pureed foods stage but quite frankly the thought of pureed meat is nauseating to me so instead I eat little bits of meat and chew them really good. But nothing tough. I had 1/2 a meatball for dinner last night and that filled me up. I have also been eating Beans (black & white mixed with chicken broth) for lunch because they are high in Protein. But I don't puree them. I feel like they are soft enough. Soup has been my best friend, especially egg drop from the chinese restaurant. But I get what you mean about hunger. I have been experiencing that also. Although I know it is head hunger, but the littlest amounts of foods satisfy it. So if you have to snack, just stick to sf Snacks, apple sauce, yogurt and you should be ok.

It gets better! I went through the same thing. In reality, there really isn't much you CANT have in the long run. I had a little bit of Pasta but made sure I ate the chicken first. I certainly won't make a habit out of it but it's nice to know that if I want a small portion I can have it and it's not the end of the world. I still get repulsed by some foods at 9 weeks out. Yogurt is absolutely disgusting and I can't get it down even though I try. Right after surgery Protein shakes in all forms made me gag. It's much more pleasant once you get moved to real food.

I got a little bit of cramping and increased my potassium intake via adding in some avocado and bananas to what I was already eating. For example, I'd put avocado in egg, or banana with my yogurt. I don't know if the muscle pain you're getting is from cramps, exercise, or just general pain, so I don't know if that'll help. The only time I've taken magnesium citrate is for constipation, and that was pre-surgery. If the pain is a constant, I'd call the doctor.

I could'nt have anything until the day after, all Doc's seem to be different. They gave me small cups of Ensure and applesauce. Then the next day I started back on Protien shakes from GNC, Lean Shake is good and apple sauce, greek yogurt and lots of water and diet snapple. Hang in there, the next few days will be rough but worth it.

So Orientation was very informative. I weighed in at a whopping 291. Yikes!!! I have an appointment with the surgeon on Oct 15th. So I am starting the pre-op diet to start to lose the weight that the surgeon will reccomend. We went to the store and I got a scale, a food scale, and some food to start. Today was the first day eating smaller portions and goodness I was hungry. Through Kaiser they want you to eat 3 meals a day and NO snacking. So for breakfast I had, at 6am, 1/2 cup of egg beaters, 1 oz fat free cheese, and a yogurt. I was pretty hungry by 9am. So I drank a bunch of water, it didn't seem to help though. For lunch I had 3 oz of deli sliced turkey, 1 green apple, and a yogurt. That was at 11:45. Dinner time felt like it was forever away. I had to wait until my boyfriend got home from coaching flag football, the team won. He got home around 5:30. I know that seems early to eat dinner for some but since I go to work at 6:30 in the morning its not to me. I feel okay right now. I am tired and a little weak feeling. I would think that after a few days of eating this way my body will get used to it. It is challenging but I think that it is good to start early and get used to eating smaller amounts.

Not true. Here in Austria we start normal food at day 4. It has to be chewed to mush, and there are restrictions, like no seeds etc, but we start solid food on day 4. Day 1 is water, day 2 is soup, 3 is yogurt and 4 is solids. But, you can't eat the amount the OP mentions. You have to eat within a 20min window and follow all the rules etc. I started the gym 4 weeks post op. Cleared of course.

I saw the clip with the 2 female patients on his website. One showed what she ate in a day. It consisted of several large spoons of yogurt and some other not identifable mushie stuff. If I had not already researched the band and what you can eat and the changing of eating habits I woud be completely turned off by it and would not even consider the band. . I cannot imagine eating unidentifiable food for the rest of my life. Foertunately I know that this is not necessary and it is possible to eat most regular foods in moderation. ns reach ny health goals.

I went in today to see my dr for a regular monthly visit, I'm 10 1/2 mos post op and was expecting a fill but he decided not to do one. He thought since I'm staying satisfied for 4 to 4.5 hrs between meals and an occasional snack of yogurt or low fat string cheese, he thought I was good to go. Although my weight loss has been slow, it's been steady, 2-4 lbs a month. Just now have been able to introduce walking into my journey in the last couple of weeks so hopefully I will see a difference in toning. I totally forgot to mention hair loss to him, sheesh. My hair is thinning, I take Biotin but the last 3 weeks I've noticed it really is thinning out. Had blood work done by my PCP this week and all was normal except Vit D, he increased that. I'm wondering if I'm not getting enough protein. I'm not good at tracking, especially if I cook or make something homemade I'm totally lost on MFP. Now eating out like Wendy's chili (small) or Chick-fil-A grilled nuggets I can pull nutrition facts off internet. Tues I got stuck really bad on a DEVIL food choice, don't judge, i was craving a burger, so I got a Wendy's Jr cheeseburger and brought it home, well, like an idiot took too big of a bite and got stuck BIG time and ended up puking my stomach up it felt like, needless to say I don't want another burger for a long time. Surgeon today said to me and laughed "bet you don't want a burger anytime soon do ya" lol, and I replied NOPE! He seems to think I'm really close to being in the green zone or maybe in it, hope so. If I can increase my activity and exercise I'm praying I will see more weight come off than 2 to 4 lbs a month.

Sounds great! After 8 months since surgery greek yogurt is still my favorite food but miss my ice cream sooo much. Freezing it sounds like a winner...Thanks!