Hi, My name is Brandi I have decided to do the lap band my procedure is 2/16/2011, I had my blood work done this morning I am so scared im not going to be able to follow the diet and eat healthy!! Food is my passion I eat when im mad, sad or just happy!! Im an addict to sweet tea and soda so I know its going to be rough my pre op diet is only 5 days worth of protein shakes so hopefully i will be able to stand it!! I have so many questions and worries about post op. I have watched so many videos about peoples journeys and some have complained about never eating the stuff they once loved again or not being able to eat in restraunts cause there food gets stuck I know its different for everyone but any advice would help me severly!! Oh one more thing I have never ate heallthy very long any recipes or names of some pretein drinks that will get me thru or some food ideas for my mushy food stage?Thanks

Hello Brandi and welcome.

Just breathe, it will be ok! This is a big change mentally and physically, you have to be patient and take your time with it, don't be too hard on yourself. Most of us are food addicts, we all love food and we've all freaked out with the thought of never being able to have our favorite things ever again. We didn't get to the sizes we are because we love salads and boiled chicken lol. You just have to tell yourself you are doing this to be healthy, you have to want the change more than you want your favorite foods. Don't think about what you might be giving up, it's just food, yes I said it, it's just food, you are worth more than that.

I don't tell myself that I will never have Mcdonalds ever again or I will never have this or that again because that had been the basis of every crash diet I've been on, it's caused me to panic in the past and has caused me to feel deprived and in the end, that kind of thinking was what's caused me to fail over and over again. But that's just me.

The band is restrictive, it's to help us from pigging out and to help us make better choices in making every bite count towards nutrition and not pleasure. it will never make our food choices and will never cook us a healthy meal, and it most definitely will not exercise for us .

Yes, some of us can't eat certain foods anymore, but that is something you will gradually come to find out for yourself and you may not even want those things anymore once (or if) they give you problems. I know that thought seems impossible in the beginning but it can happen, and has happened for some of us.

Right now if I wanted to I could eat Mcdonalds, but I'm choosing not to because I didn't go through all those hoops, and my surgery to sabotage myself. Will I ever eat Mcdonalds, or any other of the junk food I love ever again?, yes, one day down the road I will allow myself to have it as a treat, maybe just some of a cheeseburger and not half the menu like I've done so many times before. But I choose to not incorporate "poison foods" in my everyday eating, like I used to. I go to restaurants with friends and eat, much less than before, and I always have lots of leftovers, but I still can enjoy myself, I just don't over indulge anymore, there's no need to and no uncontrollable drive to anymore. Those are the changes I've chosen to make, and you will and can make your own healthier choices too. Don't look at it as an end all to yummy foods, it's a gradual lifestyle change. We are not perfect, we have bad days but we move on from it and push ourselves to get where we want to be.

I never thought I could do this either so you are not alone in that, but I made my change in August 2010, and I am now 7 weeks post-op. I still have days when I doubt myself, but this site is awesome and very supportive, it keeps me on my toes. Being here is a constant reminder of what I am doing and helps me stay accountable for my choices.

I wish you the best of luck. Remember anything worth having is never easy. You can do this!

A friend of mine has the lap band and she eats almost everything she did before. She said that she doesn't eat as much steak or chicken as before, it takes her longer to eat it because she has to chew it more. And bread she rarely has. Other then that she eats everything she did before. HTH

It is normal to get all freaked out. Just relax. They will give you the tools that you need to succeed. If you feel you are lacking in any area there are so many tools online. Good luck!!

...and dont forget you are WORTH the effort.