I had my 2nd fill last week and I can notice a difference in the amount of food I can put into my mouth. I am really trying to be more in tuned with the soft stop signals to avoid discomfort. But last night it didn't work. My family went out to dinner to Celebrate my last day of teaching summer school-my vacation officially began!

I looked at the menu choices and decided a sizzling steak would be a great option. It's not that big and I could easily bring half home. I had 1 glass of sangria and nibbled on the salad. The steak came and I had 2 pieces. I cut them up nice and small. Well all of a suddent I got SO sick-it sort of felt like heartburn, but with the need to throw up (gross I know). I made 4 trips to the bathroom within 15 minutes. I am not one of these people wh can make themselves throw up-it goes against my nature! I was slimming like crazy. I manage to throw up in the toilet a little, but that was no relief. I went back to the dinner table after my 4th trip and said I need to go home. Fortunately dinner was over anyway. I brought home my dinner. Outside I felt sick again and threw up slime. Then I felt sick again and stood outside the car. WTH! When I got home I felt better.

I kept thinking about my upcoming cruise and now I am thinking about not getting a fill for it. I still need to learn what my body can and can not tolerate. I am guessing a steak is a no-no! Maybe I should just stick with seafood (which I love anyway).

So I learned that there are 2 kinds of being stuck -I've experienced both:

1. Hard stuck- when it feels like a rock is caught in the middle of your chest. You are slimming like a rabid dog! This is so painful you feel as if you may have to go to the ER if things don't improve! This happened to me when I was standing over chinese take out and pooped a shrimp in my mouth whole (during my 1st fill stage). OMG- it was the worst pain ever-seriously!

2. Regular Stuck -this feels like really, REALLY bad heartburn with the need to vomit. Slimming happens at this point too. You can sit and feel a need to walk around.

I guess I am headed to GNC to stock up on some papaya enzymes to keep in my purse.

Does anyone have foods that they must avoid on the Band for fear of being stuck? What are good choices for dining out?

I don't think anyone has mentioned this, but when you get seriously stuck you may want to go on full liquids for the rest of the day and the next. The stuck episode can upset your stomach and pouch, and there can be some swelling. So, you really may not have a problem with bagels, but eating one after getting stuck on steak might have been the issue.

I'm lucky that no foods are off my list, but if I wait until I'm too hungry and eat too fast, or don't chew well, then I get stuck. Sipping room temp pineapple juice or chewing papaya enzyme works well for me. I keep the papaya in my purse, at home in the kitchen and in my desk at work. Hope you start feeling better!

Some really great points!1 Thank you!!

Both times I had waited a long time before eating and I agree totally with isit5yet that we tend to eat fast when we are really hungry. When I was stuck my throat hurt for about a day. Good advice keeping to simple liquids after being stuck. Last night I went out and had NO bread at all! I order seafood which went down well.

Woodslass-you are right-different types of bread items react differently. I did have a little rice along with the bread before the steak got stuck (maybe 2 tablespoons). Maybe the bread is sort of covering the opening to the pouch and expanding and we all know bread can?? I will not have bread when eating out-just can't do it at this point. Mornings are also tough for me. I usually have a yogurt and sometimes that feels funny in my throat going down.

I knew there was a reason I needed to return to Lapband Talk. You ladies really came up with some very good points regarding getting stuck, getting unstuck, etc.

I have heard this over and over again through this site and at support meetings that when people say if they could do it start over again they would eliminate bread out of their diet. I too have trouble getting it out of my diet. When I do, my stomach goes down and I don't have problems with it getting stuck. Although, I must admit you can get away with having it a small amount toasted at times. But on a whole its not worth trying to eat it like I have in the past.

Someone mentioned above about room temperature pineapple juice. Could you expand on how that works? When you get stuck, do you drink it to get unstuck? How much? I have heard someone else talk about this before. Its similar with the papaya enzyme tablets (which I have tried every which way and have not done a thing for me).

I agree with having liquids after being major stuck problem at least for 12-24 hours. I think your stomach/band gets swollen and irritated. I did that the other day and I think it really worked. Today I am much better and today I did really well and everything went down without being stuck and it was a band friendly day!

Thanks ladies for your sharing and support it really helps. I feel like I am starting all over again because this is my first fill in over one year.

The goal I have found is not to get STUCK but let's face it there are times that you get stuck when you least expect it.

I can totally relate to the getting stuck! The food that gets me almost every single time is white meat chicken. Two to three bites, and I'm done. I've learned not to push it, because it will not work, and I'll be heading to the bathroom. A hard stop is never fun!

If I am REALLY hungry, I eat cottage cheese. It doesn't get hung up, I get the Protein, and it satisfies that desire to eat something. I've learned to not let myself get too hungry or else I'm going to try to eat too fast and.....BAM! Hard stop! A Protein Bar gets rid of the "horrible hungries" as well.

Strangely enough, steak doesn't give me the same problems that chicken does. I'm not sure why.

The idea behind the papaya enzymes and pineapple juice is to tenderize meat. It helps break down the meat faster. If it's bread that's got you hung, I don't think they will work.

Papaya enzymes will help if what is stuck is Protein. More specifically meat. they will break down the Proteins and help break down the food. to my knowledge they will not help with bread, etc.

Greg

Do papaya enzymes really work for stuck episodes? I have read warm Water helps, but if the enzymes really work I'd like to keep them on hand at all times.

Yikes, shouldn't have read through this thread while i'm waiting for approval.... am very scared now. Help!

Don't be worried. It's not as bad as we might make it appear at first blush. The solution to being stuck is to simply stop eating until it passes. It WILL pass unless we try to eat something really stupid, like a massive piece of steak that would get hung WITHOUT the lap band. End of story. Honestly, I'm kind of glad that I get something stuck every once in a while because it reminds me to stay on track.

I'm just so scared that i'll end up eating cottage cheese and Protein drinks for the rest of my life for fear of getting stuck or vomiting! lol

In my experience, that hasn't been the case. There is a learning process. Where people get into problems is when they don't listen to their band. When you hit a hard stop, your best bet is to stop! Don't try to force anything else down! It will pass, just don't force it.

Thank you for your responses. I had an appt with the pulmonologist today. He totally scared me to death about the change in lifestyle this will be and stuff. He told me he had a patient who had the band, lost all her weight and then decided she didn't want to deal with the lifestyle changes and wanted to eat, so somehow she ate through the band causing it to stretch somehow so she could eat more...........now i'm nervous cuz i could so see myself wanting things to change once i lose the weight.........am i panicking? I know i need to do something cuz i hate the way i look and i'm sick of the yo yo dieting. But when you get to a point where you are happy with the way you look, don't you just want to eat normally again?

If by "eat normally again" you mean burgers, fries, pizza, Pasta in GINORMOUS quantities.. No, I don't want to eat normal again. I'm not quite at goal, but getting close.

After two years of being banded, eating lean Protein and low carb veggies IS my new normal. I don't want to go back to eating junky foods on a routine basis.

Do I have chips and salsa when we go out? yes, I do a little. Do I eat Queso.. yes, a little. Do I have them at home and indulge daily? NO! The key is moderation, not deprivation.

You can always, always, always "eat around the band". IMO the pulmonologist had no business relating a negative band experience to someone who's considering the surgery without explaining how the problem could've been averted!

I eat all types of protein and as long as they are tender (not soft.. there's a difference) I have no trouble the majority of the time. I seldom get stuck at 2 years out and have good appetite suppression.

To those who are having issues with various types of protein..a couple of suggestions. 1) warm drink or cup of Soup immediately before the meal (ie, don't wait 30 minutes before eating the protein) 2) use a "food lube".. ketchup, mustard, bbq sauce, gravy, etc. whatever you like to lubricate the meat. yes, it will add some calories, but as you're not "drinking" the stuff.. it shouldn't matter all that much and usually helps the meat go down. Recently I've been enjoying using greek yogurt as my lube.

Yes, it is a change in lifestyle, but a good one. You can do it!!

I have to say that this is the topic that scares me to pieces about getting banded. I feel like I will be too afraid to try anything at all. Can ya'll explain the actual size of your 'small' bites that you cut your meats, shrimp, etc. into? Thanks.

If you keep your bites of meat to about the size of the end of your pinkie finger, you should have no problem at all. The BIGGEST problem that I have encountered is if I don't eat and let myself get too hungry, then I'll tend to eat too fast. If you try to eat too fast, you are almost guaranteed a hard stop, regardless of what you're eating.

This is a lifestyle change. Your fear of staying the same has to be greater than the fear of change. I was scared of the lifestyle changes too, but I was more scared of staying the same. If you're going to wait until you never have any fear at all, you'll be waiting a VERY LONG time.

Here's a little truism that I have come to realize: never make a decision based on fear. It is always wrong.

I've been stuck a hundred times, oddly... never on steak. I eat it once a week. Maybe I'm just extra careful cuz I know that steak is a problem food for so many. Give me shrimp and it's practically stuck before I get it in my mouth!

I have to say that this is the topic that scares me to pieces about getting banded. I feel like I will be too afraid to try anything at all. Can ya'll explain the actual size of your 'small' bites that you cut your meats, shrimp, etc. into? Thanks.

About the size of an english pea or a (normal sized) pencil eraser.