Okay...I went to the seminar for Dr. St. Laurent this past Saturday.

I didn't know that you have to wait 1/2 - 1 hour after you eat before drinking. Is that drinking anything..like not even a sip or two with your meal?

Also, he said you should expect to lose 1-2 pounds a week. I was hoping for more?

The point of banding the stomach is to create a smaller stomach, or pouch, above the band. You eat a smaller amount of food to have a feeling of being full. If you drink Water following your meal, you could wash the food out of your pouch and down into the bigger part of or stomach, and there goes that feeling of being full and you'll want to eat more.

The other problem with not waiting an hour after meals before drinking is, what I call the 'clogged funnel effect.' Think about your newly banded stomach as a funnel, the small part is where the band was placed. If you put chewed up food in the funnel, then add water, you could clog up the small opening which would make you regurgitate your food - what we here on LBT call PBing. PB stands for productive burp - a nice euphamism for regurgitating.

As far as the 1 - 2 pounds per week goes . . . 2 pounds per week would mean you've lost 104 pounds in one year. Some people do achieve that. Some people lose more - one of the current active members here on LBT has lost over 80 or 90 pounds in something like 6 months. That's a lot of weight, but she works really really hard at it. Exercises like a demon! The thing that the bariatric doctors don't tell you about the band is this: The band is just a tool. It won't magically make you lose weight. You have to work for it. It will make it possible for you to diet more comfortably because you won't be as hungry. That's it. You still have to do the work, either through a restrictive diet, through a reasonable diet along with exercise, or, ideally, both. If you don't do your part, the band won't do you much good.

I don't mean to make it sound like it doesn't work - it does. But it only works as well as you do. I've lost 42 pounds in 6 months, but I've only had one small fill and have little restriction. I'm also not exercising the way I should be, ergo I've lost at a rate of about 1.25 pounds per week - AVERAGE. In the last 8 weeks I've only lost about 2 pounds - not 2 pounds per week, 2 pounds TOTAL in 8 weeks. I need to get a fill and I need to get off my azz and exercise. See what I mean? The band won't do it all, all by itself. You have to participate in your weight loss.

I hope this helps you with your decision.

I recommend the band, and I'd do it again in a heartbeat.

As usual, DonnaB has summed things up beautifully. I was told a sip or two to wet my whistle was fine, but it is tricky not to keep going. I was used to gulping a lot of unsweet tea during my meals, so I am still relearning this behavior.

I think I need a second fill, as my restriction isn't great yet (3cc in an 11cc band). But I am working out at Curves and losing, so I will hold out.

Good luck with your journey, whatever you decide.

Yep, Donna said it. Drinking while eating is just to "wash it down," if you think about it, and that's something bandsters don't want to be doing. And 1-2 lbs per week is, by any measure, the healthiest pace at which to lose weight.

Welcome to LBT!!

Thanks for the advice Donna!! I'm hoping to have the motivation to exercise. A few years ago, what I refer to as my skinny dayz, I was running 3 miles - 4 times a week. That was a huge stress reducer for me. I would love to be able to do that again!!!

I'm going to try to start reducing the amount I drink while eating now to prepare myself. After hearing the doctor describe it and you describe it makes perfect sense...and probably explains why we eat so much before the band!!!

DonnaB did a great job in explaining everything. I'm just here to "second" her advice that you should not expect more than 2 lbs/week weight loss. In fact, that would be exceptional. Losing faster than that could cause some problems you don't want, if you think about it...skin that doesn't have time to adjust...muscle tone that doesn't have time to catch up...emotional issues that you won't have time to deal with.

I have lost fairly slowly...especially during my 1st year, but still, lost around 60 pounds, which made a big difference!

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