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This meal issue post op is puzzling to me, but I guess it's because every doctor is different. My post-op diet is to have clear liquids for 10 days, and another 10 of liquids along with protein shakes, milk, yogurt, and jello... I cannot eat mushies till day 21... It's interesting to see that everyone starts food at different times post-op.

Uh.. So I admit, I've been watching for that crossover to the under-300# realm: Weight at start (mid-April): 345 Weight going into surgery (30 Jun): 306 Weight @ 1 day: 310 Weight @ 2 days: 304 (dropping about 0.5# every couple hours) Weight @ 3 days: 301 (just measured), 299.8 (lunch) I seem to be losing roughly 2-3# per DAY. At this rate, I'll cross the 300# mark by the time I finish Breakfast. [### EDIT: I went back to sleep, so the best I can say is that I crossed it before lunch...###] This is not an exaggeration: I dropped half a pound yesterday over the course of *consuming* 16oz of Water. Obviously I had 4# of Fluid pumped into me at surgery. I've obviously lost that.. but I didn't expect initial weight loss in the 3#/day range. Honestly, I feel fine overall.. just hungry, not weak. I'm able to consume (water, yogurt, soup .. overall about 300 calories, with plenty of Vitamin supplementation) without difficulty, as long as I don't gulp things down. This, too, seems normal. Am I just lucky, or is this rate of weight loss actually not unusual? I cannot account for it on a simple calories in/calories out model -- it's as if the surgery has told my body to shed a lot of fat up front. I suppose it could be extra energy requirements during healing, but still -- a factor of 3x seems extraordinary. No complaints, of course. I just haven't seen this magnitude of response reported here before.

My name is Amy Workman and I am a bandster (everyone: HI Amy). I haven't posted on here in a long time and thought I might share with you my blog post from today. If any of you watched the recent Dr. Oz show about Lapband, I thought it might be nice for those of you just beginning to see a more realistic idea of the band. I was banded January 27th, 2009. I weighed 327 and today weight 159 pounds. I love my band. My before and after pictures on here are not updated, but you can find all my pictures on my blog. If you have any questions, please email me and ask away. Sometimes we forget when we were first beginning. Do you remember the first time you googled Lapband? Or the first time you logged into the forums...frantically searching for before and afters....looking at successes and getting pumped...stumbling upon a horror story and then getting scared? Do you remember the stupid questions you asked? I remember posting on lapbandtalk.com something like "is one cup of Wendy's chili bad for you?" Well, I am going to try and remember back to when I didn't know much about the band...and what information would have been helpful. Here goes... Did you know: I started at 327 pounds. My doctor, the wonderful and handsome Dr. Jeffrey Friedman, told me that the band is not always the best choice for someone who is a grazer. They find that the band is actually more successful for men, because men tend to eat in volume (sitting down for a huge dinner and getting really full, vs eating and munching on little things all day). Some doctors say that the band will not work as well for those of us who are or were really morbidly obese. I disagree. And there are plenty of us out here who are proving them wrong. Did you know: The band may not work for you? You could have the surgery and not lose much weight at all. It is not a sure thing. BUT, if you work with the band...it can and will work for most of us.What does "work with the band mean"? Every doctor has a different regimen they want you to follow. Every doc is different, as it almost every patient. Some say no pop/soda, some say it's fine. Some have a 2 week liquid preop and scare the sweet baby jebsus out of you about not shrinking your liver enough for surgery and not being able to operate (thank you Dr. Friedman). But, you will have to do your part with the band. You will have to watch what you eat. You will have to eventually get your ass up and exercise. You will have to make healthier choices and just be better. I know you are saying WHAT? That sounds like a diet to me. And I fail at diets!!! The band is a TOOL, not the Alpha and Omega of your weight loss journey. You can "cheat" the band by eating sliders and soft food. I for one could eat cheetos all day long and the band would sleep right through it. But with the right restriction, your band prevents you from eating that large pizza, the extra value meal, the entire bovine. You have to find a doctor that you can have a relationship with. They have to be open with you and you have to be open with them. You HAVE to go see them for fills. You have to follow up. You have to be a good patient. ASK QUESTIONS. What can you eat once you are banded? At this point in my journey, I can't think of one thing I CANT eat. However, there are somethings that I try to stay away from because they are difficult with my band. Example: Bowtie Pasta. It doesnt go down well. And then it just sits in my band and expands...causing me to PB (get to that in a second). I can't eat a sandwich, or a hamburger with a bun, but I could eat a roll if I tear off little pieces at a time. Hot dogs give me problems for some reason. Dry chicken or reheated meat (with the exception of a hamburger) often give me problems as well. I still drink soda, I still drink beer. I love Soups. I can eat veggies. I can eat fruit. Eating after being banded is about going slow. It's about chewing. They say with proper restriction that 4-6 ounces of solid Protein (a piece of meat about the size of your fist) should keep you full for 3-4 hours. Most docs want their patients to avoid "slider meals". Meaning, eating a bowl of Soup for lunch or yogurt for Breakfast isn't going to keep you full or satisfied because it will SLIDE right down. You want your food to stay in your pouch, and slowly drop down. Sometimes though...food may get stuck and then you get "sick". The Dreaded PB: A couple things may happen if a piece of food gets "stuck in your pipe" as Heather refers to it. You aren't going to die. It's not like it gets stuck and you need the Heimlich. But if a piece of food gets stuck, ain't nothing else going down until it moves or comes up. The first thing that may happen is a productive burp (PB). This is not throwing up. When something gets stuck, your slobber starts to build on top of it. For me, when this happens, I get a weird sensation in the back of my jaw. And if I wait long enough, I will have to get somewhere private (hopefully) and let it come up. What comes up is this weird slime/foam combo. It doesn't hurt. And hopefully...it moves whatever is stuck. Sometimes though, it takes a little more work. Sometimes that one piece of food I didnt chew enough will be down there for hours. And then, it's not PBing. It's sort of like dry heaving until that piece comes up. There is a tightness in the chest...a pressure. It's not fun. I will say that not everyone gets stuck or PB's. And most of us would agree that when we do get stuck...it's our fault. We eat without being present, we didn't chew, we ate too fast. Restriction and Tips for Eating: Unless you are extremely lucky, you will not awake from surgery with perfect restriction. Some docs put a little liquid in your band to start with, others wait. I had to wait 6 weeks for my first fill. And again, unless you are the rare case, you probably won't get restriction with your first fill. It took me several fills before I had good restriction. ASK your doctor what his/her fill policy is. Some docs are super restrictive with their fills. They only fill on a schedule. They don't care whether or not you have restriction. All I know is if Dr. Friedman hadn't let me tell him that I was ready for a fill...and if he had made me wait regardless of what I could eat...I wouldn't have been as successful as I was. You will know you have restriction when you have it. It's sort of like having sex. If you have to wonder if you had an orgasm or not...um...you probably didn't. Restriction will keep you full and satisfied for 3-4 hours. You will be able to eat less. Restriction DOES NOT RESTRICT YOUR BRAIN. You may still mentally crave things. You will have to learn the difference between head hunger and physical hunger. This is very hard. When you do have good restriction, you will have to change the way you eat. This is easier said than done. You should be taking small bites. For example, if you are eating steak, you need to cut that sucker up into pea sized bites. You need to chew. Then, set your fork down and wait a few seconds. You should eat sitting down. You should pay attention to what you are doing. You will learn that things like eating in the car is rarely going to end well. (Always have your emergency PB kit in your car. A couple of bags, some papertowels or handywipes. Trust me.) You probably shouldnt drink with your meal or for 30 minutes after. liquids can help push your food down...thus...cheating the band. How much weight will I lose? How quickly will I lose it? Now you know that there is no one answer for this. Statistically, Lapband patients lose around 40% of their excess weight. SO, if you are 100 pounds overweight, statistically you will lose 40 pounds. I hate statistics. And remember, they are an average. 17 more pounds lost and I will have lost 100% of my excess weight...and I am not alone. It can happen. However, there are so many factors that go into how much and how fast. Genetics, age, diet history, personal support, family life, exercise. Some weeks I lost 7 pounds. Some weeks I gained 5. The weeks I gained, I gained because I ate poorly. I cheated the band The weeks I lost, I ate and made healthy choices. There are some weeks, even when I WAS doing the right thing...I didn't lose. It can be frustrating. But you can't give up. You will have to keep upping your game. At some point, even with the band, you will either have to adjust your food or exercise. But, I feel like the band is "cheating". I feel like if I have WLS, I am weak. I'm gonna tell you what. Who gives a flying monkey's ass?! Cheating what? Cheating early death? Cheating sleep apena? Cheating high blood pressure, sore joints, diabetes? I say CHEAT AWAY then. There is no shame in WLS. It's not about will power. It's not about failing. It is about trying to find a tool that works to give you some power, give you your health. I tell whoever wants to know or will listen about the band. And yes, I have heard "Oh...well...I thought you did it the hard way"...or "hmmm...that must be nice". I say listen FOOL. There ain't nothing easy about the band. It makes some things easier but it is still work. And I find that people either give you 'tude about the band bc they are afraid or jealous or because they don't understand. Either way, that is okay. I will educate or I will ignore. I feel like if I were to say "oh, I am just watching my diet and working out"...that I would be lying by omission. AND, my real fear is that someone who is overweight will think "Well, Amy did it "the old fashioned way", and they will feel like a failure when they try and do not succeed. Will my relationship fall apart if I have the surgery? We all hear the stories of what happens when someone has WLS. The divorce rate and seperation rate is a little higher for us. There are several reasons. One, for some of us....when we lose weight, we become a different person...or the person we would have been if our bodies hadn't been our enemies so long. Our expectations may change, we may want more. OR, our partners may not be able to deal with the new us. OR, as in any relationship...sometimes it's just time to move on. I don't think that having WLS should make you fear losing or changing your partner anymore than the normal person. There are tons of bandsters out there still happy and maybe even happier with their significant other. Sometimes though, even though we can't see it or don't want to admit it...we have settled. And once you start to shed your cloak of security or denial...you realize you deserve more (too bad we don't realize that to begin with. Long story short...people change and grow...with or without weightloss surgery.Are you worried about complications: No. But most days I am not a worrier about things that may or may not happen. I heard recently that the stats for band slipping are about 5% and for erosion, about 1-2%. Slipping for example, can be avoided most of the time and according to the docs...is easy to fix. Erosion is of course a little more scary. But I hope that by always paying attention to my body, my band, and how I am feeling...I can avoid it or if it ever happens...catch it early.Do fills hurt? Mine never do. My doc has never done one under fluoro. He gives me a numbing shot and then the fill.How many fills do you have to have? To get restriction, it took me 4. My first year I had around 6 fills. My second year, I had 2.Will you ever have the band taken out? Lord I hope not. Even now that I am at goal weight and weight loss is more of what I do instead of what the band does for me...it's always there. It's my safety net. It will keep me from ever being 327 pounds again.Why did you choose the band over other options? I was 28 when I decided on the surgery. I didn't want my stomach cut apart. I still wanted to be able to absorb my nutrients. I wanted to be able to eat sugar and other things without getting physcially ill. I liked that the removal of the band was a possibility if something went wrong. I liked the idea of being able to control my restriction. And even though I bitched and complained along the way, I liked the idea of a slower weight loss (vs Gastric bypass). It gave my skin and my brain a little more time to adjust.Did you know there are different brands of lapbands? I have the Allegran Lapband. Ask you doctor your choices and the differences. Mine is a 10-11cc band. Some are smaller.Were you worried about the loose skin? Barely. I figured I may look like a saggy deflated sack after I lost my weight, but I would rather be deflated then morbidly obese. And I am lucky. My skin is nowhere as bad as it could have been. Again, so many factors go into skin. Age, genes, working out, sun...etc. Would you do it again? In a heartbeat my friends. In a heartbeat. It was the best decision of my life. It was a tremedous catalyst for change. I can't think of one negative consequence of the band.

I agree with this poster. I see this frequently when people join AA. they develop another addictions. Often to cigarettes and coffee. It is a very good idea to seek some professional help. I have lost about 50 pounds in a year with about 30 more to go. i spent a lot of time in shopping malls over the summer. I needed to buy some new clothes, but I also discovered that every mall now has those frozen yogurt shops . You pay by the amount you put in your cups. I only lost 4 pounds in 3 months, because of my desires for the frozen yogurt on a hot day. Thankfully it is getting cooler and my closets are full so my desire for the frozen yogurt is waning. i just hope I can get rid of this left over Halloween candy now!

Thts great about your job! You are full from just soy milk at breakfast? Breakfast - 1/2c yogurt lunch - 1/2c baby spinach salad with almonds, craisins, 2 tbsp fat free raspberry vinegrette. 1/2c yogurt. snack - 1/2 pita, 1 tbsp PB with sliced banana dinner - 2/3 lean cuisine, 2tbsp salsa, 1/2 banana 8oz fat free hot chocolate 2 8oz servings skim milk Water Hot tea Exercise - 1 hour zumba class I feel like I are a lot today. But I did well on exercise so I am not too worried. Will do better w/ Protein tomorrow.

Thank you!! Do you notice any more restriction yet? My desk is directly next to the lunch room (there isn't even a door so I look into it all day). Someone brought in a pan of brownies, and twizzlers. GRR! I didn't eat any but that was torture. lol. I told a couple of co-workers about my band and one was very curious! She has looked into the band before and wants to go to a seminar. I was glad to be able to educate someone about our lifestyle. Breakfast - 5oz yogurt with berries Lunch - 1 arnolds sandwich thin with crunchy PB, 1/4c applesauce dinner - 5oz yogurt, sm banana snack - tons of Water

Thanks ladies! I am in Miami now and getting on the cruise ship tomorrow afternoon. Thought I may as well pop in tonight. I am being very careful but I am allowing myself one "treat" a day on this vacation. For example when we dock in Key West I am allowing myself some key lime pie. I feel like i am losing weight pretty rapidly and am STARVING often. Maybe i need to eat mre... Cuz I rarely eat an entire cup in a sitting ( i lose interest). Sleepy one - I am not sure what your doctor considers mushies. It could be pureed food or soft foods. I started w/ Greek yogurt, chilis, anything ground/shredded in a crockpot with BBQ sauce or Italian dressing. Here is what I did today: Breakfast - 1/2c Greek yogurt lunch - 1/4c tuna salad, 1/2 banana dinner - 1/4c spare rib, 1/4c salmon, 1/4c potato/veggies, 1tbsp bread pudding

Debbie, that so exciting about your diet returning to normal tomorrow! Yay! You will be getting fills in no time, and 37 lbs without one is amazing. Did getting your esophagus stretched hurt? Sounds painful to me. I am very sorry about your mother in laws declining health. I pray she is in a good place emotionally and is not in much pain. Breakfast - 6oz yogurt lunch - 1/2 tuna sandwich on wheat bread, about 8 grapes dinner - 3oz crockpot pork shoulder, 3oz sweet potato snack - went to baby shower, had 4oz fruit punch and 1/2 piece of cake Exercise - 1 hour of walking around the lake (about 3 miles) I gotta admit I have been struggling emotionally the past few days. I am dealing with low self esteem due to being the fat girl for so long... It's so hard to see myself any differently :/ I also feel guilty whenever I eat food I really enjoy.. Or treat myself.. I keep wanting to push my daily calorie count lower and lower. I know it's unreasonable.

breakfast 3oz yogurt 4 oz granola ceral lunch tuna 1oz cream cheese ( mixed into tuna) 1oz sweet relish ( mixed into tuna) wheat thin crackers 1 string cheese snack banana dinner 3 oz minute steak 2 oz green Beans 3 oz peachs snack fudgesicle I went to the gym for one hour did cardio for 30 minutes and strenght trained for 30 minutes also.

Breakfast - 6oz yogurt with sliced strawberry, 8 almonds lunch - 2/3 lean cuisine fajita egg roll, 1tbsp blueberries, 2 tbsp salsa dinner - 3oz bison, 1/4c wild rice, 1 pita chip with hummus, 1/2 date cookie snack - 6oz yogurt, 5 wheat thins Liquids - tea, Water No exercise today. I am just pooped. 4 days of exercise this week when my goal each week is 5. So, Monday is a fresh start. Seeing my trainer tomorrow.

Breakfast - 1/2 cup activia lunch - 1/4cup egg beaters scrambled w/ salsa, 1/2 cup Greek yogurt dinner - 1/4cup diced peaches, 1/2cup beef chili Tried MIO liquid Water Enhancer today... Not bad! And I got a new exercise DVD I am going to try tomorrow. Going to have some Water or iced tea with miralax before bed.

I'm so sorry to hear about your dad, Jen! You must be very overwhelmed at the moment. I can understand, as we had a heart attack scare with my grandmother last weekend. All you can do is be there by his side and stay positive. He will be in my prayers. Breakfast - 5oz peach yogurt with 3tsp granola lunch - wheat pita with crunchy Peanut Butter, 2 strawberries snack - 8oz tea, 8oz milk dinner - 1/2 slice pepperoni pizza, 1/8c mixed green salad Dessert - 1/2 slice chocolate raspberry cake Water Exercise - 20 min wii free step

Hi Jennifer. How did the weigh in go? Have you tried doing more or different exercises? 28lbs is awesome! Breakfast - 6oz yogurt with sliced strawberries lunch - 4oz Pork loin, 4oz peach fruit cup dinner - 2oz granola, 6oz Greek yogurt snack - 8oz skim milk Exercise - 30 min walk/jog with dog I was wayyy low on calories today. Just didn't feel like eating much. Met up with friends at karaoke bar for happy hour at 10.. Tons of food and alcohol around me but I just had Water. I was hungry and more food to up my cals for the day probably would've been a good thing, but I just didn't want to slip up :/ I am going to 2 parties tomorrow and know I will be eating unhealthy food this weekend so I'm trying to be balanced.

Oops, forgot to post my meals: Today: Breakfast: 1 turkey sausage Lunch: Protein Shake Dinner: 1/2 cup broccoli, 4 oz fish Snacks: (confession time) mini m&m's 1/4 cup frozen yogurt

Didn't do that great today. The family dinners and brunches are taking a toll. My cravings are bad and I'm not making great choices. I am mad at myself for slipping into some old habits. I am going to have to write down a meal plan for this coming week and exercise extra hard. No excuses! Breakfast - 4oz yogurt, 5 almonds lunch - 1/4c hashbrowns, 1/4c scrambled eggs, 3 grapes, 1/2 piece of French toast with tbsp syrup snack - 3/4c raisin bran with 1/2c skim milk dinner - 4oz catfish, 1/4c sweet potato, 1 broccoli spear Snack - 3/4c mixed berries with some fat free reddi whip

whymomwhy - When you say drink do you mean alcoholic? Did you find it affected you a lot more now that you're a bandster? my doctor recommends no alcohol the first year but says I can on special occasions. Going to a cocktail party in September and would like a few sips. Navigating parties is so hard now! I think social occasions were my biggest downfall in eating and not taking care of myself pre band... I'd go to potlucks and hit that buffet 2 or 3 times, try every single dessert and have a few cans of pop to wash it down. Anyway, thank you for the motivation!! I am going to support group on Weds and therapy on Thurs, and just trying to be more busy. Breakfast - 6oz mango yogurt dinner - 1 sm wheat tortilla, 1/2 turkey italian sausage, 1 tbsp mozzarella, 2 tbsp tomato sauce snack - 8oz milk Was feeling really sick today (Worst cramps i have ever had) and slept through lunch completely. Tomorrow back on track.

I've had a little bit of chest pain today, sort of like I'm stuck but I'm still able to eat. Not sure what's up but I'm being careful and sticking to yogurts and Soups for now. Breakfast - 6 almonds, 6oz yogurt, 2 strawberries lunch - 1/2 flax pita, 1tbsp Peanut Butter, 1/3 banana sliced, 5oz yogurt dinner - 3/4c beef chili with cheese, 4 saltines snack - 6oz blueberry yogurt, 5 wheat thins Liquids - hot tea, Water Exercise - 1 hour zumba class... so much fun!

My exercise has been horrible the past week. Back to it tomorrow, no excuses!!! Going to gym right after work. Breakfast - mango yogurt lunch - 3 baby carrots, 1/2c spaghetti with 3 mini meatballs (was hiccuping after.. Didn't sit very well) dinner - yogurt Snacks - green tea, skim milk

Hi Vlynnfogg. I am still on the liquid post-op diet. Just made me some potato soup, thin. It is yummy. I guess liquids don't hang up so I never feel like I am over doing it. Hope I am not. Did you feel that way at this point? I will be glad when I can have food so I can feel the band working. It is still awhile before I start solids. next week is purees,pudding yogurt and even soft scrambled egg. I guess I will be able to tell more then?

Thj, glad to hear you are okay, and hanging in there. Tpagern, this stage will be over before you know it. Well maybe not that quick, but soon anyway. Anything is better than the pre-op in my opinion. Cream potatoes, yogurts, and eggs never tasted so good! Soft cooked veggies if you are a veggie eater (chewed well). I think the real stuff starts the 5th week? Anything pulverized, or chewed to a puree will go for mushies. Lots of sf drinks in different flavors help pass the day too. High protein helps stave off the hunger. LOTS of protein. You have taken all the first steps to being a more secure person. Look at all you have done for yourself! That takes courage! Go for long walks, and hop on that bike (after dark if that makes you feel better) All this exercise will cut your time nearly in half to reach your goals. I think you are going to be surprised how much easier things are going to get each month. YOU CAN DO IT!! Where is Lo2us?? Are you okay? Lisa, would you mind sharing some of that determination with us? We all need a dose every now and then.

Am I the only one who has had post-surgery complications? I tried to find the post-surgery thread but it appears to have disappeared!!! I ended up being re-hospitalized five days after my surgery because I had paralytic ileus - essentially my intestines just stopped moving entirely and nothing - including gas - could go anywhere. It was extremely painful. I was in hospital for four days. Now I am back home but I am having trouble with the incision over my port - it came partially open when they took the staples out and while it is not open all the way to the port (i.e. it is partially healed) it is an ugly mess. I have to go to the clinic every day to have my bandages changed and for it to be irrigated and checked, and it's going to heal into a massive, massive scar. One of the surgeons from the team who treated me reassured me that they could "revise" the scar later and right now we have to focus on saving the port - which of course makes sense - but after having so many complications it's hard not to be discouraged. I am on antibiotics for the open incision. At least I have not have any trouble swallowing at all. I am at the pureed foods stage and have had yogurt, cottage cheese, oatmeal, and pureed sphagetti sauce (with meat in it) no problem. My stomach is so happy to have real food in it again! For lunch today I'm going to try scrambled eggs and for supper mashed potatoes with some pureed apple pork. I'm eating under 1000 calories a day and not having any trouble sticking with those portions - I already have 3 ml in my band. From when I started the pre-surgery diet I am down 20 lbs, 2 pants sizes, and my BMI is down almost 4 points. So it's working. But no more complications, please!!!

I haven't had the refried beans do you know why they said no? I had scrambled eggs w/ cheese; flounder sauteed in lemon and a teaspoon of butter, yogurt (greek). On Tuesday when you go to mushy you still can't have refried beans? I am trying the ricotta recipe tomorrow.

Hello all, had a question. I'm needing some ideas for my pre surgery diet. I'm looking at the protein drinks, and bought some fat free yogurt and small 2% cottage cheese servings for snacks. I start this tomorrow and I'm trying to get a handle on everything. Thanks!:confused2:

I had this problem too and during the clear liquid stage, the doctor had me taking liquid immodium. 5 days later, once I was on the 3 shakes a day, he has me having one activia light vanilla yogurt (70 calories) a day to regulate my stomach flora and I am fine now.

jerseygirl I'm in a similar situation...I've started eating yogurt with Protein Powder for Breakfast, today I'm going to try premade tuna salad in a cup I've been eating Soups at lunch the meat and soft veggies and dinner I made some meat with condensed mushroom Soup (don't add water) in the crockpot cooks it very tender. I've been adding sugar free popcicles of some sort in the evening or a Protein Shake. I also eat low fat piminto (sp) spread or cream cheese on Triscuts, I can only eat a couple of these but they go down ok and don't get stuck. I find the rules they've been telling us about all this time really have to be stuck to at this point that's why I was feeling so bad a few weeks ago eating to much, to big, not chewing... I still can't get a lot of Water and my milk consumption is down but a small meal last me a long time. The whole thing makes Kirk feel bad cause when he's home and we go out I order a side of mashed potatoes and eat a quarter of it.