Ok, I must confess.... I had surgery on 11/12 and have been following my doctors orders pretty well (until now). My post op diet was supposed to be clear liquids the day of surgery, then the next day move straight to full liquids and pureed foods--for THREE weeks! Well, I have been doing that (mostly) but for the past couple of days was really tired of all the soupy stuff so I guess I've sort of moved on to the more mushy stage (I even ate an entire lemon earlier today). I know my doctor would not agree to this and I'm not sure if it would be for a fear of slippage or healing or what. I guess I need to hear from you experienced folks, do you think I've messed anything up? I find myself "testing" the band to see exactly what I can tolerate. I'm not craving like cheeseburgers or anything but can't wait for the day that I can have chicken salad with a couple of wheat crackers or a garden salad, or even a scrambled egg with a whole wheat slice of toast. Is this bad? Have I lost the momentum? I think I"m loosing my mind. Please give me your input! :faint:

I was just banded 11/09. I have been really successful so far, but today I did lose it a little. I ate a handful of SunChips. Each one I chewed 30 times before swallowing. It was complete mush by the time I swallowed it. I waited to see if something would happen and it didn't. I REALLY to stick with it and not cheat because I don't want to check my stomach or cause a slippage of the band that I know is healing, but not necessarily healed yet.

Send up prayers that we can stay on this diet right now because I think the long term health of our band depends on it.

Your post caught my eye, because I am pre-op for the band with Dr. Singh at St. Agnes, just waiting to finish my 6 month documented diet requirement for insurance. Hoping to get banded in January. I am a food inhaler, so chewing everything 30 times is going to be my big challenge. I don't know if the Sun chips will cause problems. You might want to confess to Arlene Swantko, the dietician, and see what she can tell you. It is easy to preach to someone other than yourself (my issue is portion control) and I love salty Snacks like chips and pretezels, so I totally understand the temptation. My concern, even if it causes no problems with the band, will it lead to more surrendering to temptation. That is the enemy. I eat heathily some of the time, and other times I am embarrassed to admit what I eat and how much. Maybe we can hook up at the group support meeting and talk. I am going to them now, and learning a lot. Hope to see you there.:ranger:

Sades,

So am I. It is because we don't have a fill yet. I do try to eat the protein first.

Sades,

So am I. It is because we don't have a fill yet. I do try to eat the Protein first.

I usually mush the protein in with the other food and eat 1/2 cup at a time. I sometimes eat a little more than 1/2 cup because it's there. That's only been in the last few days (probably because the swelling has gone down). I'm seeing the nurse on Tues & was told the dr may give me a fill that day as well.

My dr's advice was liquid first day out and then before I left hospital thicker liquid like jelly, broth, yoghurt. Part of their advice said these are the guidelines go with how you feel. For one week after it was thick liquids, then mush, then start trying out more foods a bit at a time and if I felt I wasn't tolerating it then to take a step back. I do find it interesting that all drs seem to have differing opinions. So I would say that just talk to your dr - when I told my dr that by week 3 I was on normal solids again and felt fine he was okay with it (as someone else said people obviously heal at different rate) and he did say that most of the post op guidelines that were given are given as over precaution and shortening a step by one or two days even up to the week isn't go to do any major damage (just make sure you definately are ready), because if that was the case there would be a heap of banders out there with slipped bands and huge problems. Also he said depends on the band placed - I have the new AP band and that has less healing time and patients are usually allowed to move through the stages a bit quicker.

If you are really concerned go and have a chat to your dr, you will probably find it more reassuring - and I am sure you will find you are definately not the first or the last )

I completely understand all sides of this discussion, but I must ask- who has actually had a problem with slippage due to progressing sooner than they were supposed to? There are thousands of people on this site, so if this really was a valid problem, I think we would've heard about it happening more. I'm not trying to start an argument or anything, I'm just curious to hear if it's actually happened.

PJ80

you may want to check out the complications page. however I really dont think many will actually come out and say "yup, I'm a dumb@$$ and ate steak on my 4th day post op, I've slipped"

you do not have any restriction YET!!!!! Didn't you research this at all before you did it????? Your poor little tummy is swollen, may have stitches, ect....follow your doctor's instructions, and if you want to know when you are restricted..its after your first FILL!!! gEEEEEEEZ

Hi MollyBrown. I would really like to connect with you. I have a ton of questions. I am also a patient of Dr. Singh's at St. Agnes, although I have not been banded yet. I just received my dietician report, which I have to have approved by my primary care physician. I sooo hope he does, or does his own!! I would like to know what your surgery experience was like, how you are fairing and any info you can can share. Please respond.

Follow Your Surgeons Instructions!!!!!!!!!!!

You're going to catch hell from some bandsters on here if they see this thread. You'll get lectures about how important the healing stage is, and how if your stomach is digesting food, which allegedly causes movement, the band will not gel into place as it's supposed to. And if the band (and the resulting scar tissue) doesn't adhere in a groove around your stomach as it's supposed to, you'll end up with a slipped band down the road. I'm going catch hell for saying this, but I think that's a bunch of hooey. If there was any evidence that this was true, then there would be a standardize post-op diet that everyone would have to follow. Each doctor has his own post-op diet, so they are obviously prescribing it based on what they, as individuals, think is best, not scientific evidence. My doc requires 48 hours of liquids and then soft food for 4 weeks. This is extremely liberal compared to other doctors' post-op diets. If weeks of liquids after surgery was really necessary to prevent slippage, then my doc should have loads of slipped bands to deal with. I remember asking him about his percentage of slips during the seminar, and it was so negligible that I dismissed it.

The day after my surgery, I was extremely nauseous and just the smell of a Protein drink made me heave. When I called my doctor's office about the nausea (and diarrhea, too), I was instructed to eat dry toast to settle my stomach. I later discussed on this board that I had moved on to food earlier than anticipated, and one bandster in particular tore into me, told me my band was going to slip, and admonished me for "doing what I wanted." So the next day I called my doctor's office and asked about the importance of the liquid and soft food stages in promoting healing and proper band adhesion. The response I received was: No, that's not why we prescribe liquids and soft foods. It's to ease you into living with the band and preventing food from getting stuck and causing pain when you're already in discomfort from the surgery itself.

Let the flaming begin.

that's interesting because we have the same surgeon and when I asked about the post op diet I was told it was to allow the scar to form completely where the band was sutured into place so the band wouldn't slip. I wouldn't dare risk screwing with the post op diet myself. It's only a month to 6 weeks and I lost 30 lbs.

I completely understand all sides of this discussion, but I must ask- who has actually had a problem with slippage due to progressing sooner than they were supposed to? There are thousands of people on this site, so if this really was a valid problem, I think we would've heard about it happening more. I'm not trying to start an argument or anything, I'm just curious to hear if it's actually happened.

I don't think its an early problem- I think a better poll would be to go to the complication section and say for those who developed a slip at ANY time, how many "cheated" on the post op diet? I do think that letting the stomach rest and forming tight scars is essential to keep the band from slipping later on.

Follow Your Surgeons Instructions!!!!!!!!!!!

You mean I should actually listen to the medical professional I paid to tell me what I have to do in order to be healthy and successful after lap-band surgery? Really?

I completely understand all sides of this discussion, but I must ask- who has actually had a problem with slippage due to progressing sooner than they were supposed to?

The overall slippage rate among those with lapbands has increased. The failure to educate oneself prior to surgery and a refusal to adhere to the post-op diet and the "rules" of being a life-long bandster all contribute to this change. As with anything else in life, if you do what you’re supposed to, you stay out of trouble. If people insist on doing whatever they want and rationalizing it away as unimportant, they shouldn’t be shocked at the negative consequences that occur down the road.

I, for one, am choosing to abide by the rules as closely as possible so I can hopefully avoid a totally unnecessary second surgery to fix a slipped or eroded band. I am too busy trying to improve my health to "test" my band to see what god-awful foods I can stuff down my throat successfully. I also don't have time to figure out how to "trick" my band. I know I'm a total "square," but I intend to play by the rules and continue to succeed! That's what being banded is all about IMHO!

At my last appointment at the bariatric practice that I go to, I asked the nurse practitioner whether I should follow the post-op diet that they had prescribed or the one that was laid out by the dietitian that I had to see during the consult stage (the amount of time for each phase differed). She informed me that I should follow what the surgeon's, of course. The reason to follow his was so that if any problems arise during these stages, they know exactly where I am. The only allowances that she gave as far as straying from the time line are for what my body isn't tolerating. For instance, if I am phasing into mushies, but not tolerating them, I should remain on full liquids and CALL them. She said that it is OK to prolong a phase, but it is not alright by any means to jump ahead before the time laid out in the pre-op diet.

Moral of the story: not only is the post-op diet designed in a way to let your body heal, it is also a way for the surgeon to keep tabs on your progress. Why question or attempt to theorize the reasons the trained professional that you entrusted your life with has for a diet that you only have to follow for four to six weeks out of the rest of your life?

PATCHELTON

PATCHELTON & ENOYLIFE,

Send me a private email (click on my name and you should see the option to send a private message).

PATCHELTON, Thanks for the support. I would like to connect during one of the support meetings, when are they? I went to the St. Agnes website and did not find the schedule.

ENJOYLIFE, I would be very happy to talk with you about my experience. By no means am I an authority, I am figure this thing out as I go, and I have cheated with the SunChips, but I have no problem sharing with you my experience with Dr. Singh.

Look forward to hearing from you both.

And, for all of those loyal bandsters on this website, thank you for keeping us newbies on track (or getting us back on track). Without you all, this would be a much harder journey... Blasted food....

I am four weeks Post Op and on soft foods since 11-15. It is so amazing how every surgeon/Nutritionist etc is different.

I was on Clear liquids, vanilla yogurt and vanilla pudding for 8 days and then graduated to pureed foods for two weeks! I also had my surgery at a center of excellence.

I have had no complications with the surgery or during the post op. I was also told no coffee ever again, and come to find out half of the people I have talked to started drinking their coffee again at about one week post op! :rolleyes

I am thinking that the first two weeks post op are critical as far as diet, however, after that they just want to make sure you do not gain weight back before your first fill, and introduce the "bad" food again. So they encourage you to stay on pureed, and soft foods as long as possible before that first fill.

This just confirms that every surgeon and nutritionist can be different, and I have no problem venting or calling them to ask questions!