and I just wanted to share this with you. You all may think this is minor but for me - OMG - this is WAY BIG!!! Anyways.....today my husband didn't feel like cooking and by the time I get home from work it's almost 7 or so and too late for me to even want to cook. So my husband decided to order a pizza. Now I don't know if I have ever told you all about this but pizza is my all time favorite food. I could eat it every day for every meal. To give you an idea of how much - when I was pregnant with my son Nathan we ate so much pizza that when I asked my kids what they wanted for dinner they would tell me anything as long as it isn't PIZZA!!! Now this is coming from KIDS so you know I was eating alot of pizza. Well anyways, today my hubby ordered 2 large pizzas with all the things that I like. Now granted pizza isn't the best choice for me to be eating (and with my current level of restriction) I wasn't even sure I would be able to. But I could and guess what?? I had 3 slices - not your normal slices of pizza - these were about the size of saltine crackers - and I couldn't even eat the full 3rd one. But what was big for me is the fact that I set the plate down and didn't attempt to eat more because I knew that I wasn't hungry and I was SATISFIED!!!! This is the first time that I have had pizza in about 2 months and I didn't get any prior because I was afraid of what I would do when it was sitting in front of me. I feel so good right now that I could probably run around the block!! (But then my kids may have to dial 911 cause I would have a heart attack by the time I made it home!) Thanks so much for letting me share this with you....you are the best group of people around and knowing that I can share this and you won't judge me just makes it that much more special!!!! :D :D

Carmen: I am soooooooooooooooooooo proud of you and yes it is a BIG HUGE ENORMOUS deal. Isn't it great when we finally listen to our bodies and push away when we are 'FULL'. The problem in my humble opinion is we never knew what that feeling was till we were banded. At least I never did. I ate till I was busting just because I could. Now I eat because I am nourishing my body not because I am fulfilling a believed NEED.

Good for you. COngratulations!!!!!!!!

Darn, Lioness. When I saw you ate 3 pieces and felt great, I felt much better about myself! Tonight was my FIRST pizza since banded, also! I've been beating myself up for 2 hours because I ate 1.5 pieces... regular size pieces, not cracker size. I didn't eat the crust (or bones, like we call them.) It wasn't a large size, but a medium size pizza, so the pieces were average. But I'd think one slice sans bones should do the trick. I'm fretting cause I should be stuffed, but I'm not. I could have finished the 2nd piece but tossed it to my dogs in a panic. And I told them they weren't allowed to have pizza, but I had to get rid of it THAT fast.

Please tell me 1.5 pieces isn't a hogload for my pouch. I used to eat a huge salad with ranch, 1/2 a large pizza, and 10 wings. No problem. Then I'd hold my stomach while whining, then eat ice cream to soothe the pain.

I think I have a pouch while most of you guys have a pouchette. That's why I can eat more.

Carmen, HUGE HUGE HUGE Victory!!! Whoo hooo!!! pizza is one of my trigger foods as well.

One of the empowering things about having "permission" to eat what we like and NOT diet, is that it's not as scary to stop - we know that the next time we're dying to have pizza we can have it. There is no more gotta eat the whole thing NOW so there isn't any left to tempt me tomorrow. Once we really believe that we can have our favorite foods when we REALLY REALLY crave them, their power over us is diminished. It really is very freeing.

Lisa, I call them "pizza bones" too! lol The fact that you have been so restricted lately, and then can eat 1.5 pieces of pizza, is a prime example of how your restriction can fluctuate. Please do not freak out over having eaten 1.5 pieces. You do not sound overly full to me. Somedays you'll be tighter than others. And the first PB is almost always a complete surprise - it will be after you think you've got it all down, and then one day you'll be in a hurry and eat too fast, or not chew as well as you should, and suddenly your eyes will get big as saucers and you'll freeze - "deer in the headlights" look all over you. Honest.

Carmen, congrats again!!!! :D

Today I'm suddenly thinking about food.

Ever see the Saturday Night Live skit with Bob Newhart acting as a psychiatrist? His female patient sits down and says she's afraid someone is going to put her in a box and lock it shut.

So Doctor says, "I can help you with two words." So the patient scrambles in her purse for pen & paper, looks at him intently, then she's ready to write. Newhart screams "STOP IT."

lol

. And the first PB is almost always a complete surprise - it will be after you think you've got it all down, and then one day you'll be in a hurry and eat too fast, or not chew as well as you should, and suddenly your eyes will get big as saucers and you'll freeze - "deer in the headlights" look all over you. Honest.

Donali thats exactly how I felt last night when I took a bite of a meatball and either I did not chew it well enough or it was to big of a bite or I ate it too fast..or all of the above I did not actually PB but I froze and my mouth was watering, I was standing over the kitchen sink praying to god it would go down after about 10 minutes it went down PHEW!!! This was the first time I have ever experienced anything to that magnitude.It was so painfil, I had the hiccups and the golf ball pain in my chest I definately had the deer in the headlights look all over me, my hubby didnt know what to do, I could barely talk to tell him what was wrong. After it went down I threw those damn meatballs(2) well 1 and a half in the trash!

Yeah, I hate that feeling... lol

Originally posted by La_madam

. I definately had the deer in the headlights look all over me,

LOL, my co-worker has become quite familiar with that 'deer in the headlights' look.

I've PB'd very few times, but the times I have is usually with her (she's a terrible influence). Now she's gotten to where when she sees me lay my silverware down and become quiet, sort of trying to tell if things are gonna stay down or come up, she'll quietly ask if I'm allright.

When filled, my band definitely became boss and I really liked that.

BTW, pizza was my first PB ever. Nowadays, if pizza is my only choice, I only eat the topping.

I used the pizza as a test, hoping I wouldn't be able to tolerate it. So far, no prob. Darn. Pizza is one of those things my job springs for way too often and I really wanted to be able to give it up. I never crave it, but it's one of those things I simply can't say no to. I mean no problem at all in the belly. Feels good, bread and all. Darn, darn, darn. WAIT A MINUTE..... today is a day I drank Water till I ate... maybe there's something to waiting that 1/2 hour after all! Sabotaged!

I probably don't even have a band. I'm probably one of those new studies where they implanted a disintegrating placebo. The infected port was just added for realism.

You were really hypnotized, and your mind was implanted with the impression that you had a band. Unfortunately, "pizza" is your code word, that lifts the suggestion. (play creepy music in the background - do do doodoo, do do doodoo)

Now your mission, if you choose to accept it, is discover the magic code word that reapplies the hypnotic suggestion that you were banded....

This message will self-destruct...

Originally posted by DeLarla

I really wanted to be able to give it up. .

Believe me, IF you do have a band, you will definitely learn to give pizza up.. lol.

Enjoy it (a little bit) while you can, cause once they start tweaking your band, pizza will be one of the first to go.

Don, honey... I'm not smart enough for that post. Do I, or do I not have a real band? Did you just hypnotize me without me even knowing it? Am I really here?

Anyone that can be at my house at 5pm tonight gets $50 to babysit me. Last night, after freaking over eating pizza, I decided to have too much fruit. It went down with no problem, so then I ate my first late-night-junk-food snack since pre-band dates - ut oh (lunchsize bags of Cheetos.) I had that bad habit cracked so far, and I NEVER want to do it again.

This next line may disgust you... so please stop reading or scroll down for the gross part:

shh, but I know I done wrong last night with my eating cuz I had my 1st diareah since surgery this morn. I've been really regular in the BM dept lately, so the pizza had the last word after all, but from the other end.

That'll learn ya, durn ya.. lol.

Thanks for sharing, DeLarla.

btw, you remind me of my sister who's name is Darla.

When we go out for pizza, usually buffet. I scrape all the toppins (meat & cheese) off and then eat that instead of all that bread. I can ususally eat quite a bit. But, kit's a lot of protein in cheese and meet, then a small salad...

The problem, Newlapper, is that's exactly what I planned to do. The bread just fell into the ol' piehole! It jumped in without my permission! I actually ate the topping first, with every intention of tossing the bread, but something went wrong. Very wrong.