I'm almost 8 months post-band, and I have been able to tolerate chicken very well until recently. I have PB'd TWICE in two weeks on chicken. What's up with that? The 2nd time happened last night while I was at the mall with DD in the food court. You know how some of the restaurants have bite-sized pieces on a toothpick for you to sample? Well, I sampled 3 different varieties of chicken back to back. BAD IDEA!!! I knew one piece was kinda dry, but I figured, hey, I'll just wash it down with some Water. Ouch, ouch, ouch!!!! Then it happened... eyes started tearing up, heart began pounding, chest hurt. I had to make a mad dash for the parking lot and out it came.

I don't understand why I have been able to eat chicken before, but now all of a sudden I can't! Oh well,,, I guess I'll have to add this to my list of foods to avoid.

I just PB'ed and slimed on chicken, once again, this week....so, I taking it off my list of things to eat!!!

Someone asked about fish....love it and goes down nicely...most seafood, but shrimp work for me. I plan on doing tons of fish this summer on the grill....great Protein source and low calorie!!!

You have to eat really slow and take smaller bites. I PB on certain stuff on some days-the band is tighter on certain days. I have a 4 cc band, and am 3.25 filled so far. My problem is that I lost 53 lbs, 13 months since surgery. I feel soooo great, that I am telling myself I am happy like this, but I know I need to lose more-at least 30 more lbs. I get alot of compliments, which makes it harder to lose this weight. I don't eat the right foods anymore, and that isn't helping. I can't eat bread, or pasta, it just won't go down. I have been craving chocolate alot lately, never liked it before this, so i am worried. Help me anyone with food choices. I am sick of ricotta cheese, cottage cheese.

Hi all..

I went out on saturday for a thai meal (wedding anniversary) and made some intellegent choices...

I had 3 small veg spring rolls with some chilli dipping sauce for a started which i ate slowly and chewed well no problems...

Main course was a little more interested and revealed to me an unexpected side effect....

I had a thai duck salad....now i said in my previous post that i can't eat meat....this is still true but with a difference...

This was thinly sliced ... well cooked (ie tender) and i cut it small.

Problem is that thai salads are the hottest food they make .... so i'm eating this lovely fresh duck, with raw onions, garlic, corriander and other things like loads of chilli.... delicious .. but as i had to chew really really well .... i was chewing chillis for ages ... which makes for more intense experience that i was used too...

Still lovely though and was perfectly satisfied with it...

Normally i would eat the spring rolls, the salad, a thai curry....loads of rice and noodles and a good desert..

Plus beer etc ... this time it was a lovely refreshing light meal....actually more enjoyable

Cheers all

Jamie

I can tolerate chicken on occasion. I bought KFC for the family the other night and I was eating a little beans and mashed potatos and I the beans got stuck What? I have never had a problem with beans! So, then I nibbled on the potatos and gravy...that was fine...after awhile I went back to the kitchen and grab a chicken breast and to my surprise :nono: I was able to eat it! :hungry: Holy cow! That was the best chicken I have ever had!!!!! :clap2: Now I tried some tuna fish the other day and I put mayo and salt and pepper....I drained it but not totally dry and it still got stuck....so I am swearing off tuna!!! :faint: And I do go slow and chew really well but tuna just does not agree with my band at all!!!!

i went to a mexican restaurant a few wks ago, had refried Beans, only a few bites. Before that, for the appetizer, they gave us a small cheese quesadilla.

I was able to eat it, in small bites, but after the beans, I started to feel sick, and had to use the bathroom. Since this last fill, things are really hard to get down, which is good. I just need to figure out what foods ar good te eat and keep down, meanwhile getting nutrition.

Hi,

Dr. Spiegel is my doctor too. I was banded March 31, 2006 (6 weeks ago) I am scheduled for my lst fill next Friday and I am scared. Have you been filled by Dr. Spiegal. How does it work? Does it hurt? How does he know how much to fill? I'm afraid of being too tight and then I'm afraid of not "getting my money's worth"....hahaha. Any suggestions on questions to ask him? Thanks for your help.

Hope, I sent you a PM to answer your questions.

I always use my Pampered Chef Chopper to chop up my left over chicken before attempting to eat it. Fresh cooked chicken I cut in very very small pieces on my plate, then eat one tiny bit and chew well before swallowing. Chicken salad goes down without any problems.

I turned down the chicken on a tooth pick at the mall because I didn't have a way to cut it up before eating it. I think this is a good rule to stick too.

Dry chicken chokes me up too, I'm just tossing this out here because I just had an apt. w/ my Dr. I told him about my Pb's episodes and he asked me how long it took me to eat? I said I eat about 1 cup in 15 min. He said that was WAY too fast my meals should be 30 min. long and my bites should me no bigger than a nickel! Okay so that put a whole new spin on the way I eat! Cause I chew chew chew by my bites are so much bigger than a nickel! I've taken his advice and have not had a PB in the last month! (Knock on wood)

Ditto to what wallisj said.....I am Having a really hard time finding healthy food to eat. Chips, chocolate, ice cream all go down no problem. Chicken meat, vegetables stick like glue. I have been at a plateau for two months and I know it is because I'm just not eating enough.:angry

Any meat that is dry usually gives me some problems. When I am eating out I try and stick with things that I haven't had problems with before and I try to order something with sauce or add something to it. When I have to add it I have used everything imaginable ranch dressing, ketchup, BBQ Sauce........

I can get ice cream, chocolate, etc. down without a problem so I just stay away from it.

Anything dry is bad news for me but i pb'd early on with yogurt! Too big a bite of anything can get stuck (it seems). I am one bandster that can eat anything just about if i take rat sized nibbles (not even bites) and chew to nothing. But again - if chewed to 'liquid' if too much in a swallow - trouble will happen. I read somewhere that the appropriate size bite is about the size of a dime. I also have found that if I pb it is usually the first bite and is becuz i am over hungry, talking or distracted, etc. I try to start every meal with a little prayer now - i guess more of a meditation, thankful for my food and reminding myself to go extra slow, etc. This band has been the hardest thing for me but I refuse to fail and i also refuse to buy another diet product, pill, go on another 'diet' etc. I've spent my last pennies on weight loss and if this doesn't work I will have it unfilled or taken out and be happy fat. I truly mean it.

Isn't the band a funny little contraption?

I can eat chicken, but ONLY if I take very small bites and chew it up a lot. Even then I can only tolerate small amounts.

I'm finding that I can tolerate seafood better than anything else. I've never been a seafood lover, but I'm finding that I'm actually liking shrimp, lobster and especially scallops. Go figure....

I can eat chicken just fine but I can't chew scallops enough to break them up enough and end up swallowing a bite that's just a little bit too big. I get a slight pressure in my chest until they pass.

I got my second fill last Tuesday. Boy has my life changed! I feel very tight in the morning! I have that first bite syndrome. I have to take super small bites and chew the heck out of it. I am having a hard time getting my calories in because it takes a long time to eat a little bit of food. I can only eat a cup at most at a time. So this is what restriction feels like!!!!!!!!!!

I find I do better with chicken and beef than I do with soft foods or pasta. For me, it's because I'm really carefuly with chicken and beef -- I chew and chew and chew. But with mashed potatoes or peanut butter or even pasta or cheese, I assume it's soft and it's going to go down easy, so I get lazy and don't chew enough. So for me, the softer something is the more likely it is to get stuck.