Hi Ladies and Gents!

I am in the early stages of seeing if I qualify for banding and I noticed that a lot of you have described what it is like to be "stuck". It sounds horrendous and painful! This leads me to believe that it is hard to cover a physical reaction (grimace, holding your arms above your head, rocking, etc.) if you are out in public. My question is; if you are out to eat and you get "stuck", how do you keep from looking like you are dying in front of everybody? I imagine that it does not bode well if people are going around clutching their chests or stomachs while moaning in pain at a restaurant...lol...How do you deal with it?

Thanks for your time!

I try to eat easy things when I go out such as soup or something I never have problems with. I I were to get stuck I imagine I would go to the bathroom or outside. That's a good question

I excuse myself and head to the bathroom. I've gotten pretty good at quietly vomiting whatever is stuck (usually from eating to fast). I still get the occasional "are u ok" coming from another stall.

After 2the 1/2 yrs of doing this, Im pretty proficient. My husband always teases me that Im just making room for dessert.

Good luck

Marci

I just say excuse me, I'm not feeling well. I hold my intestinal area, and no one wants to follow THAT into the restroom. Never had anyone ask if I'm ok in stall though.

People have seen that I obviously puked because I tend to get bloodshot eyes when I throw up. So I make a point to splash Water in my face before I go back out.

Breath mints help too!

The thing is always know where the bathroom is. When I get stuck I stop eating and just sit and talk, I can still talk, it is stuck in the Band not my mouth. After I have stopped eating in a few minutes I can tell if it is going to move on through or it will soon come up. My eyes start to Water and I know get up and go now!

In the bathroom I will wait till no one is in the bathroom and then bring it up or if someone is not leaving anytime soon I will go in the stall and flush the tollet as I throw it up as I do not want someone's meal to be ruined.

I have been Banded for almost 3 year and the bathrooms at most places and I are friends. But I have learned that if I wait too long and start for the bathroom too late it will just continue to come up with force in my mouth and that is worse than anything.

In the past year I have not been stuck but a few times and once for about 4 straight days during the Thanksgiving holidays untill I used the “drano” solution which is diet coke (not cold) mixed with lime juice and meat tenderizer and drink big gulps as it goes down and right back up with full force along with whatever was stuck in there. Not pleasant but works.

I do not make a big scene when I get stuck usually my husband will not even know till we leave the resturant. But there are some drama queens I am sure.

Cheri

I quickly go to the bathroom. Sometimes repeatedly. People may think I am strange but that is their problem. plus I have always had to go to the little girls room more frequently than most people I know so they are probably quite used to it.

Hi Ladies and Gents!

I am in the early stages of seeing if I qualify for banding and I noticed that a lot of you have described what it is like to be "stuck". It sounds horrendous and painful! This leads me to believe that it is hard to cover a physical reaction (grimace, holding your arms above your head, rocking, etc.) if you are out in public. My question is; if you are out to eat and you get "stuck", how do you keep from looking like you are dying in front of everybody? I imagine that it does not bode well if people are going around clutching their chests or stomachs while moaning in pain at a restaurant...lol...How do you deal with it?

Thanks for your time!

lol... take heaps more chewing time !! its the only answer.

we wouldnt get stuck if we ate according to the guidelines that we know. Im finding now that i can eat a wider variety of food... for example, treat myself with the crackling from home cooked port.... i can actually eat that !! never thought i could. but, i chew at least fifty times.small mouthfuls. it goes down without a whimper. (dont worry.. lol... its not a daily practise to eat it. )

so... its taking time to chew.. chew... chew.!

i would say that everyone here who has had bad experiences of being ''stuck'' would have to admit that they didnt take the time to chew enough, or wait enough ime in between bites either. ( i have come to recognise that there are two spasms in the aesophagus.... those two motions are what push the mouthful of food down into the pouch... i wait while i feel that going on... counting every time.) Usually i count about 30 -50 between bites.

im sure you can get around it easily. Just dont forget that band that you have inside you when out eating socially. lol.

lol... take heaps more chewing time !! its the only answer.

we wouldnt get stuck if we ate according to the guidelines that we know. Im finding now that i can eat a wider variety of food... for example, treat myself with the crackling from home cooked port.... i can actually eat that !! never thought i could. but, i chew at least fifty times.small mouthfuls. it goes down without a whimper. (dont worry.. lol... its not a daily practise to eat it. )

so... its taking time to chew.. chew... chew.!

i would say that everyone here who has had bad experiences of being ''stuck'' would have to admit that they didnt take the time to chew enough, or wait enough ime in between bites either. ( i have come to recognise that there are two spasms in the aesophagus.... those two motions are what push the mouthful of food down into the pouch... i wait while i feel that going on... counting every time.) Usually i count about 30 -50 between bites.

im sure you can get around it easily. Just dont forget that band that you have inside you when out eating socially. lol.

...spelling error... that should read PORK...... sorry.

Definitely off to the bathroom, sometimes clutching my mobile phone and complaining about workmates in different time zones. Lol.

I have also learned my early warning signs and am becoming better at listening to my band. Now, if I could just remember to ALWAYS eat slowly,I would probably be fine.

I cant tlk when im stuck, my voice goes all funny.

I cant tlk when im stuck, my voice goes all funny.

Mine too, and the people I eat with are also banded so will say, "Are you okay?"

... most times being stuck just requires time to let whatever is stuck go down... but my problem usually isnt being stuck... its being lucky enough to taste whatever it was again. Usually its my own fault by eating too fast.

If I think something is going to come back up....I have become proficient at the bring the napkin to my mouth move......LOL Its graceful and non alarming and gives added comfort while you wait for your body to decide what its going to do.

Great thread ladies...good info for the pre-banders and us newbies who have yet to experience that. I go for my first fill 5/29 and have often thought about this. I will be sure to experiment for a while before going out to eat.

I must get an awful look on my face when something gets stuck, because my husband says, "you ate too fast" didn't you? I give it a couple of minutes to see if it will move down and if it doesn't, I have to get up and walk to ladies room. Usually by the time I get there it moves down but if not, I put my arms over my head and do a lot of praying to get it to go down. I have been so good since Christmas not getting stuck but I cannot get over eating too fast like the house is on fire! I guess I am a slow learner or just a glutton for punishment.