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Just banded last Tuesday. Happy to be now enjoying EAS AdvantEdge Carb Control shakes with 17 grams of protein and only 110 calories. Low fat, Low Carb, Low Calorie soy protein.

I was banded in December of 2005 and have lost 92-95 pounds. I am currently 31 years old and was married just a few months ago. I'm very happy, but very sick; doctor's are grasping at straws and really do not know what is wrong with me. I had my first weak spell in May. It was my then-fiancé’s family picnic at a park. We were inside, and I was able to eat a little of the delicious food there. We stepped outside to leave and, all of a sudden, as we were bidding our goodbyes, I felt terribly weak. I barely made it to the car, got nauseous, and vomited a little. My dh's uncle is a doctor, so they were able to wrap up my head in cold compresses and get me feeling better. It was a VERY stressful weekend as my in-laws were at my house, we had a lot of the agenda, and I was so worried about everything being perfect. I attributed it to stress. Fast forward several months. Just before my wedding in November, like 2 or 3 weeks before, I wake up early in the morning with chills and 103 degree fever. It was a weekend, so we went to the ER. I was non-responsive, and it was hard to rouse me according to my parents. I was very dehydrated which could have been caused by the fever. They ran every sort of test imaginable, and I was admitted overnight when my EKG came back a little abnormal - flipped t waves. I saw a new doctor in my new hometown referred me to a cardiologist. Essentially, whenever I would stand up in the ER, my blood pressure would drop scarily low. Ever since then, I've been monitoring my blood pressure and pulse rate. Rarely is my pulse less than 100/minute. My blood pressure is always lower than average which causes my heart to beat fast so as to provide my body with the necessary blood. Long story short, the cardiologist released me saying that the flipped t waves were probably due to the extreme dehydration caused by the spiked fever. I went on my merry way, relieved. A week or so later, exactly one week before the wedding, I had 101.5 fever. I went back to this new general practitioner I had seen when I was in the hospital. More tests for the flu and the like. I explained that I was going on a week long cruise but didn't have my passport. As such, if I were to get sick at sea and have to get off the boat, I would be STUCK out there with no way to fly home. His diagnosis? "Fever of unknown origin." 'Script? Take Tylenol and Advil alternatively every 2 hours until the fever breaks. Also, exercise 3 to 5 times a week. This didn't sit well with me. I was worried about being stranded in <?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" /><st1:country-region w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">Guatemala</st1:place></st1:country-region> or something, so I went to see the GP I've been having since I was a child. He's awesome, but is semi-retired and an hour from where I live now, so I was trying to establish a relationship with someone else. He looked at my blood work and noticed that my white blood count was a little elevated, indicating some sort of infection. Since I was on an antibiotic when I got admitted to the hospital, he treated me for some sort of unknown virus and put me on cortisone. He even gave me a prescription for another round of cortisone so that I could take it on the cruise ship, if necessary. I did. So here we are in February. After two fevers out of the blue ranging from 100.5 to 101.5, complete with body aches and chills, that prevented me from working, I decided that I needed to get help. We called around. I didn't want to go back to the "fever of unknown origins" doctor for obvious reasons. My GP in my hometown wasn't in the office that day. The internist I had seen years ago couldn't take me and the one here in town wasn't taking new patients. I ended up at the office of another GP. He was puzzled, especially since the fevers spike so high so quickly, and aren't related to other symptoms. The only thing that I have before is typically a little cough (I think it might be due to heartburn) and the fact that my band doesn't let me eat anything the day before. Typically, I can't even keep down milk! The weird thing is that, prior to the fever episode this morning, three days ago I ate 2 fried eggs and an entire chicken fried steak from Shoneys. Being able to eat this much is VERY atypical for me, but I didn't question it thinking I needed the Protein. This new doctor did another in-office EKG which showed not only flipped t waves, but also something wrong with the st waves. He ordered a nuclear stress test which I did the next week and didn't show anything. When I went in for the results, he did say that my November ultrasound of the heart done when I was hospitalized showed that I had mitral valve prolapse. I was shocked and he didn't have an answer for me when I asked why the GP nor the cardiologist mentioned it. He suggested I get on a beta blocker, Zocor for high cholesterol, and continue taking Zoloft for depression and anxiety. The whole game planned changed when I told him that my dh and I were not preventing pregnancy. All are dangers for unborn children, so he suggested that I not take anything. He attributed my weakness to the mitral valve prolapse. I told him that I could certainly contend with being weak when I got out of the tub and seeing black if I stood up too soon, but I could not deal with the erratic, high fevers that cause me such weakness that I have chills and literally have to contemplate whether or not to urinate on myself in the bed I'm so weak. I don't think it is fair for me, at 31, to have to make that kind of decision, but I digress. He had no idea what was causing the fevers. I asked, since I can not eat the day before one of these strange episodes, if the band could be moving around, stimulating a nerve or just causing irritation internally, thus inducing the fever to come on. He said that he didn't know enough about bands, but suggested I get in touch with my surgeon. I have an appointment with Dr. Lavin on March 5th. I also called the cardiologist's office. The nurse told me that my report from November said nothing about mitral valve prolapse but she will have the doctor take another look and get back to me. She was also surprised that he attributed weakness to mitral valve prolapse and said she had never heard of such a thing. She also expressed concern that he told me to get off of Zoloft cold turkey as that can have an adverse affect on people. I'm still waiting for him to get back to me. My question is this... I'm pretty sure that most of these episodes with the exception of the one in May, perhaps, happened after my last fill. Typically, when I'm under the weather, it is a struggle for me to keep food down. This is the case when I menstruate every month. Sometimes I can eat considerably more than others, albeit the entire chicken fried steak was the only time I've ever been able to eat so much. Three days later, however, I couldn't eat a bite of supper without throwing it up, I spit up all night long, and I awoke at 4:30 a.m. with the onset of chills. My fever rose to 101.1. Since my last fill, I have had a touch of heartburn, but the over the counter anti-acid pills do the trick and I suffer from it less than once a month. My fever/weakness episodes are becoming a lot more frequent. I've had 4 in the last month... one on Thursday, one the following Friday, last Saturday, and again this Saturday. I did the follow-up blood work this morning when I was sick in hopes that something would show up. My question to you is this, does it sound like slippage. My friend who is brilliant and a nurse says that there is a nerve that runs near your stomach that, when stimulated/massaged, causes your blood pressure to drop. There is one in your neck that you can massage to lower your blood pressure; he used to use this technique when he was a paramedic. Does any of this sound remotely familiar to anyone??? Say a prayer for me in the meantime. I just don't know what more to do or where to turn. Thanks!

I, too, don't eat if I'm not hungry. I do however drink A LOT of water. If I'm short on protein I will try to get that in through liquids if I'm still not hungry.

Yeah, soups and smoothies I can see would be good uses. On the package it says "add to any food" but other than liquid food, what ways can it be used? I understand unflavored does not mean flavorless, but it shouldn't have an odd, unpleasant flavor either. I bought the liquid Protein drinks, also by Isopure, and they don't have that aftertaste, but they are pricey, comes out to about $2.50 each on amazon (for a pack of 24). Thanks for your comments.

I don't think you can OD on yogurt. Lol. If that's what tastes good right now, why not? I don't think that you have to worry. Sooner or later you're likely to get tired of yogurt and move on to other things. As long as you're getting all of the nutrition (Protein, Vitamins, etc.) that your doctor recommends, you're doing great. Congratulations on your weight loss!!

Today I had my 2 week post op visit. Part of the appointment was to meet with a dietitian and another patient. It was such a good experience speaking with someone who had also went though this procedure that I wanted to check out this forum. My journey began when I visited my family doctor on Oct 14, 2010. I wanted to consult with her about weight loss options as I was nearly at the end of my rope with the yo-yo weight life style. 3 times in my 39 years I had lost 100+ lbs only to eventually gain it all back. I realized that if I had been fortunate to have not developed some of the horrible weight related illnesses like diabetes, but that I was realistically pushing my luck. It was time to take a more serious look at getting healthy for the rest of my life. She recommended that I contact Grand Health Partners (GHP) and specifically Dr. Randy Baker. I was fortunate enough to be able to attend an orientation the following day. Now others will have differing opinions by my belief was that this timing was put forth by God. Had I not been able to attend an orientation so quickly I'm sure that doubt and stubbornness would have crept in and I likely would have reconsidered. The orientation was terrific. It was very obvious that GHP was concerned with taking complete care of the patient. The list of on staff team members was most impressive. Not only did they have the expected surgeons and medical staff but they also had dietitians, exercise physiologist, and behaviorists in house. My initial meeting with Dr. Baker confirmed my beliefs about GHP that I had established from the orientation. Dr. Baker answered all of my questions and addressed all of my concerns. We discussed all of the available procedures and determined that the sleeve offered the best option for me. The time from that initial consultation to my 2 week post op visit today has been a whirlwind. For the sake of shortening this story, if that can be done at all at this point, I weight 66 lbs less today than I did on that fateful Oct day. I lost 28 lbs on the 2 week pre-op diet and now an additional 26 lbs since my procedure on Jan 10, 2011. I have a long road ahead but I know I can make it. Thank you for taking the time to read my introduction. I look forward to sharing with all of you and hope we can learn something from one another. Take care.

Hey y'all! I've had pcos for 10 years now and was banded 5 months ago. It is the number 1 reason why I opted for the surgery.So far, I've lost 72 lbs!! I stopped taking my birth control pills 3 months ago, because I was getting horrible acne on my neck. I tried plenty of different kinds of birth control and it was in fact the reason why my acne was so bad. I'm super excited because I just finished my cycle for the 2nd month in a row. This is the first time in years that I've had a normal cycle that has lasted between 5-7 days and stopped. I still want to lose 60 more lbs before I try to get pregnant. stay away from sugar, eat small amounts (I still aim for 4 oz or less per meal per my dietitian), get 60-80 grams of Protein a day and get yourself addicted to working out at least 6 days a week. I started walking 1-2 miles at a pace i could handle 1 week after surgery and just tried to push myself a little harder every day.

Lori is right Mark, always follow your docs instructions. I have come across some confusion in my instructions w/wording between my doc & the nutritionists sheets (btw: doc approved their sheets as well). I need to ask him about those. The question I have is can you use milk or soy milk in your Docs directions for Protein shakes / drinks. Bottom line is nothing too thick/heavy must be smooth puréed/blended shakes, no chuncks, no seeds or long fibers. I have been drinking shakes for years & made both my kiddos baby food so I have this part down pat. I know what blends well & what doesn't. Well mostly anyway Forgot my taste buds are usually wonky for a few months after surgeries. I had to add a banana to my shakes to give a little more flavor. Also, added a pinch of cinnamon. It was pretty tasty.

I had surgery on April 15, 2013. I always get at least 80 grams of protein and I take all my vitamins including 5000 Biotin for hair. I drink all my liquids and follow the diet I was given pretty well. About three weeks ago my hair started falling out. My surgeon said it shouldn't fall out for sleeves but here we are. I knew going into this it was a possibility and I thought thin and healthy and bald was better than fat with good hair, but I'm having a hard time accepting this. When you go through trauma, hair can fall out. Last week my scalp got sunburned on vacation! My friends who've had sleeve and RNY all say it will grow back. I'm praying for it to be soon!

I'm just under two weeks post-op. I was operated on here in the states and my post-op diet is as follows. Day of surgery, we're allowed NOTHING at all. No Water, nothing. That sucked. Stage 1: just water (this was the day after surgery) We could only sip no more than 1oz over 1 hour. Stage 2: Clear liquids, sipping no more than 3oz over 1 hour. Then we were sent home on day 3. Stage 3: sugar free & low fat full liquids, sipping no more than 8oz over 1 hour. We're supposed to get in 48oz liquids a day plus 60 grams of Protein. During this stage the doctor approved water, crystal light, coffe/tea, broth, sugar free Jello, sugar free popsicles, sugar free juice, tomato or V-8 juice, yogurt Stage 4: pureed/soft foods. This is where we can introduce things like fish, tuna salad, egg salad, chicken salad, imitation seafood, cheese, cottage cheese ricotta cheese, eggs, baked chicken/turkey. So, I go see my doctor in two days for my 2 weeks post op appointment and this is where he'll advance me to stage 4-pureed foods. Personally, I cannot wait. I'm so sick of drinking and can't wait to taste food again, even though it'll look like baby food. LOL I guess I could get to my question now. Once I start eating again whether it's during the pureed food stage or once I start to actually eat normally again, how long does it take for you to know if what you're eating is going to agree with you? Is this something that you feel immediate or does it take time for your stomach to say, 'NOPE' this ain't happening?

I was sleeved on 2/19. I'm still on liquids but having an extremely hard time getting them in due to the "slimes". No matter what I drink it happens. I haven't taken in protein because the sliming mixed with the shakes consistency makes me dry heave like crazy. At this point I don't know what to do.

I felt the same as you, and I actually gained a couple of pounds in the week after the surgery. Part of that was, I'm sure, my body's reaction to the drugs and anaesthesia etc. But it came off eventually again. That combined with the severe limitation of food in the pre-op diet put me into starvation mode. The thing that I am starting to learn with the lapband is that this is the last time we will see those numbers that we are currently seeing on the scale. We shouldn't gain it back again and we should lose it little by little. I'm not a fast loser, but I feel much happier with my 50-odd loss and know that I'll never be near 300 pounds again! In time I will be able to say the same about the 200's. Focus on eating really healthy food, eating Protein every three hours (even if it just a little), drink your Water, and when you can start, do some exercise. I thought this was a miracle cure too, but we still have to do some of the work, and eventually our bodies will reward us with a loss. And something that I've really had to learn is, the scale doesn't tell the whole story. Welcome to band land, you'll do great. Mary

Thanks for checking in. I am feeling much better. Finally able to get my Fluid and Protein intake in. I think it just took time for everything to get out of my system. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G890A using the BariatricPal App

I'm 7 weeks out I lost 44 pounds at 6 weeks for I have been in a stall Monday make two weeks of it and I'll be 2 months but yes I could eat 3oz sometimes it depend what kinda if protein it is chicken breast I get full really fast that shows that you heal very well your rt on schedule in my opinion

Hey guys! I am new to this forum. First let me say that it is so inspiring to see how supportive y'all are with each other. I am so excited to get this surgery and feel some support from other people going through the same thing. I'm 23. I got the lap band 3 years ago. At this point the sleeve hadnt been approved yet. And before surgery I was 250. After surgery I really got on the bandwagon, but I just couldn't lose the weight. I struggled with trying to eat constantly. I threw up constantly. Even Protein that I was supposed to eat, I couldn't get down. It was depressing. It was enbarassing. I couldn't go out to eat without staying in the bathroom throwing up all my food. It was awful. I got down to 230 and that's where I stayed. After 2 years my stomach started growing over my band and I had to get all the Fluid taken outta my band and I've gained all my weight back and more. I am now today July 4th at 265 and these past few months have been the most depressing of my life. One night last month I laid awake at night and couldn't stop thinking about getting weight loss surgery again. I considered bypass but that's just too major for me and idk about having children after that. The sleeve sounds perfect! I really hate the band. I hate throwing up constantly and being on the bathroom at all social occasions cause I can't get food down. Are there any quirks I need to know about? Foods that make you sick or what happens if you eat too fast? I'm waiting to hear back on my insurance but Im pretty sure they're going to approve it. I've already called and asked. So I'm very excited!! And I can't wait! I just hope I don't have to do the 6 month criteria. I look forward to the support from y'all and I'm excited to start this journey!

Has anyone tried the bariwise fruit protein drink mix? Is it good?

Good luck with that one. The only way that I know an insurance company will pay is if the employer who contracts with the insurance company (in your case Cigna) will add it to their coverage options. Then, of course, it would have to be an option for all the employer's employees, not just a single person on the policy. You can speak with the person in your company who negotiates the contract with Cigna and try and convince them that it is something worth paying for. Only your employer knows what kinds of pre-existing conditions exists in your company (that they are paying for), but I would go in armed with data that talks about how wls can reduce the need for high blood pressure and diabetes medicine, stress incontinence, acid reflux, etc. My sister is currently looking into it for her company. She wishes it is something that was covered, but she works for a small law office and is actually the one who negotiates the contract. She, of course, will have to get the partners sold on the idea, but she can at least look at the costs differential before she brings it up to them - which she expects to be significant.

According to research, and i think Alex mentioned this, your body can only metabolise around 25 to 30 grms of protein at any time so be careful not to overload your system, some people will be ok having an intake of protein that big, but i had type 2 diabetes and if u eat too much protein it metabolises into glucogen and will be stored as as fat , .. it sounds good to experiement and make something that u can tolerate but be aware that amount in one go might not be the greatest method to get your daily intake in

I eat the chewable fiber tablets (yeah, the big chalky ones, 2-3 of them per day) and put a spoonful of bran into my morning protein shake. I have a salad with each dinner (for some reason, I can get lettuce down easily) and that seems to do it for me.

You are doing extremely well with your weight loss, congrats!! I don't see a problem with the protein bar as breakfast if it's not causing you to stall, and clearly it's not harming your weight loss efforts. Your calories look ok too. How many grams of Protein are you getting in per day? The protein bars usually have 20 or so. Also are you on a multi-vitamin with Iron? I don't see why you'd need the red meat except for the Iron content, if you prefer other meats and protein sources. Do you like chicken and does your sleeve tolerate it? What else are you eating through the day, please give me samples of your meals. I need tips from you with your weight loss! And then we can see if you're getting enough protein too.

Hi Rocky, I am going to echo what the others have said. It is perfectly normal to have reservations and fears. Best way to over come that is research and then evaluate for yourself what is the best course of action. Don't rush into anything. Seek out advice and opinions from your Doctors who know you best. What about your support at home? Have you shared your thoughts on this with anyone? My situation is pretty is clear to me. I am going to die if I don't take this weight off period. I am a walking time bomb. I started a 6 month supervised diet on Oct 12 tipping in at 486. I am 44 years old, I have had nightmares about dying and I have even had nightmares about dying on the operating table. Regardless of these nightmares I am pushing forward with this surgery as I believe it is really my only option to have a shot at a healthly life. I have a lot of faith in my doctors and I know they'll do a good job. My wife is 100% behind me on this and she is well aware of the risks but we feel its a risk that must be taken. I am not trying to scare you more Rocky. I am trying to encourage you and tell you do not let weight or fear dictate the terms of your life. You only get one go round in life. You need to research and make the best decision you can for yourself. We are all here for you to listen and offer up some friendly advice but at the end of the day you have to live with the decisions you make. Good Luck,, Jim

singer1, I'm not sure what rules you're referring to but you'll probably get a bigger response if you start your own thread. More people will see it and comment if you start a separate thread. Sorry to hear about your problems, my best suggestion is to call your doctor as soon as possible. Heart palpitations and faiting spells MORE than justify a trip to the doctor's office. Good luck and I hope you feel better soon. Elizabethsew! Great name, do you sew? There aren't many people that do these days. I slept in bed from the first night post op and was able to sleep on my side at about 3 days, was comfortable at about 5 days, and didn't really think about it after 8 or 9 days. I'm not a big fan of MediFast. The Protein I'm using is called Body Fortress - you can find it all Wal-Mart for about $17 for a big 'tub' of it! The one I buy is the vanilla flavor and I mix two scoops (40 grams of protein) in 1 1/2 cups of fat free milk, 3 tablespoons of fat free, sugar free chocolate pudding and 1 tablespoon of reduced fat Peanut Butter and blend it up for a minute or so. The protein mixes easily but the peanut butter takes a minute to blend in completely. It tastes like drinking a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup. Mmmmm. It IS higher in carbs and fat because of the add-ins so I alternate days with my protein cocktail on one day and Isopure clear (50 grams of protein, 0 grams of carbs) the next day. I really look forward to the protein mix days! lol Onother good thing to eat if you're on full liquids is blended Cream of chicken and Mushroom Soup from Campbell's. Mmmmm. I'm on mushies now (I was banded on March 7th) and I'm learning to chew, chew, chew and when I'm done chewing . . . chew a little bit more and even then only swallow a little bit at a time. It's funny how old habits die hard. I've been on mushies for a week now and today was the first day I wasn't just CONCENTRATING when I ate and before the 2nd bite I had swallowed a piece that was too big. It went down but my band let me know on the way that it wasn't happy about it. At least there was no PB. Whew. Congratulations on getting your band and good luck to you on your weight loss journey. Let us know a little bit more about you, maybe set up your "signature" in User CP so we can keep up with you.

That is great!! Please tell me what you are doing....I am at 16 weeks, started at 240 and I have only lost 40 pounds so far. I was a size 22 and now I am a size 16 and weigh 205. I admit I don't exercise at all. And I am hungry...alot. But I do eat well...protein first, then vegetables. Besides exercise, is there anything else you might suggest?

I have the same issue kinda, but with coworkers.. I'm a nurse and work with a whole lot of women. I had already lost almost 30 pounds prior to surgery, but it wasn't really enough for many people to start noticing. I haven't gone back to work yet, but I'm down almost 50 pounds total now. My scrubs are getting loose and I'm pretty sure they're going to say something after not having seen me for a month.. I don't really have any desire to tell them I had weight loss surgery. It was a hard decision for me to make and it's just not something I want to share with anyone other than a few select people. Plus, I know what they've said about some of the patients we've had that have undergone various bariatric procedures when it "apparently just didn't work or something" and all the judgment that goes along with it.. Like it wouldn't be awful enough for that to happen anyway.. then to know all your coworkers knew you had this surgery and you still failed to lose weight? No, thank you! Luckily, there's a Meal Replacement shake fad going around on in my unit.. so my plan is to just tell them I've been drinking Protein shakes like the rest of them, eating smaller/low carb meals, and exercising. True enough. I still don't know how well that's going to work though. Especially if they prod me about what kind of surgery I had.. I don't really want to lie to anyone, but a lot of them aren't really the type to know when to just mind their own business either. So hard.. I kinda dread going back, actually.

I love hummus it's so yummy! I hv no problem with it and its a good source of protein.