My surgery date is tentatively set for the 13th of February, and I am having a mini -freak out moment. I guess I am worried that I will never have a 'normal' life again in the social food setting. I tend to ask a million questions, so I will try to limit it to a few. These may have been asked before, but I searched and didn't come up with any threads that had a lot of direct answers, so please don't get mad if it has already been asked:

1. How small is a small bite? I have heard people say the size of your pinky nail, but my surgeon said it could be the size of your thumb! that's a huge range! So what size of bite do you normally take? and how long do you wait between bites? Did your size of bite change after you started getting fills?

2. How many times do you chew it? I have read 20-30 times. Is that enough for all types of food? Or do you chew more for certain types, such as chicken or lettuce, etc.

3. How small is a sip of Water? I really like to guzzle water, so I know this is something I will have to change. Is there pain if you drink too much water? Or do you just kind of spit it up? If I take smaller sips, would I be able to take quite a few in a row instead of guzzling larger sips? Or take a bigger sip (not a guzzle) and wait longer for the next sip?

I will leave it at that for now!

Cheers,

Janna

I started out using a baby spoon after banding until I got use to taking small bites. No matter what it is I'm eating I chew until it is liquified . Put your fork down between bites and wait one minute.

The first week of being banded is hard to get liquid down, b/c of swelling. Just small sips 1oz per 15mins, but after the first week it will get easier and easier. I can now down 16oz of water in less then 30mins.

Good advice!

When I take a bite it's the size of my baby finger nail. I make sure I finish what I have in my mouth before I take my second bite of food. I've never had a "stuck" episode.

I can eat anything in moderation except rice or apple skins... they feel weird going down so I avoid them.. and no carbonated beverages at all.

Tom, Toronto

Banded July 6 06

Wt. Loss: 156 lbs

I find a small bite can ranges around a 10c (Australia) or quarter (USA) sized coin. The size often is dictated by how long it is I'll have to chew for. I aim to have all bites the consistency of a paste and have it in my mouth for up to 30 seconds before swallowing . meats take longer to chew, therefore I have them in much smaller sizes. Items with skins like an apple or other fruits and vegies with skin i chop up in small pieces to avoid not being able to chew down to a paste the skins. a half an apple is all i seem interested in. Bread or pastas I eat as well but with tiny bites and longer pauses between mouthfuls, as they have a tendency to give me a pain if I eat them too quickly. Teaspoons and oyster forks I also use at home as utensils. They slow down my eating and comfortably measure out the size I should be eating.

As for sips/gulping, I've always been a thirsty girl. After about 1-2 months post surgery I could get back to drinking my beverages at the former rate with prior large sips, however I don't drink with meals, I suspect I'd feel rather uncomfortable as a result of solid food and liquid in my stomach.

My doctor says bite should be size of fingertip most say big as a pencil eraser. I chew till its mush and I still guzzle water unless it's really cold. Best of luck.

I'm not sure if I remember my doc telling me about "bite size", but definately chew, chew, chew. After all, you didn't get your mouth size adjusted, so you can take a normal bite in....but you wont get it down unless its chewed very well after you have restriction. For me, chewing well is more important than bite size.

I can take normal drinks of Clear liquids with no issues. I wouldn't try crazy big gulps, but certainly have no trouble drinking regularly.

My bite sizes depend on what I'm eating and how long it takes to chew to get to a mushy consistency. Meat size bites are going to be smaller than the bites I take of softer foods. I think chewing is the biggest thing that we have to get use to! I giggle when I look at other people eat and think about the size of food that goes down without being chewed! Water was only a problem when I first got banded, now I can as you say "guzzle" if I want to. Don't freak out about not being "normal" again in social food settings. People don't even notice. They are so wrapped up into their own meal they don't pay attention to me. When I'm at dinner I'm known as the "Chatty Cathy" because I take a bite, have a little conversation and push my food around, take another bite, have some conversation and push my food around! Pretty soon everyone is done and I haven't "finished" and I just say "that's fine, I'm done, I'll just take the rest with me for later". In reality I ate exactly what I was suppose to. Remember, every person is different with the band. Your experience may be totally different from everyone here, however, you will adapt. There will be certain things you can control and some you cannot. It truly sounds more intimidating than what it is! Don't freak out, enjoy the journey! I will send you a prayer on February 13 that everything goes smooth!

I always use a baby spoon not so much for the bite size but to keep me from eating too fast.

I was banded on the 4th of this month. It hurts if you take a large bite and swallow. I can fill if trying to go down and it's painful. Same with liquids if I swallow too much. I'm still learning...

I hear it gets better, I am only a few weeks out so I know I'm still healing.

my surgeon told me to cut your food up as if you were about to feed it to a baby... and they have always said at least 30 chews i sometimes need more depending on what the food is such as meats just about any kind i have to chew it until it pretty much mush