Hi Everbody,

I have had an amazing recovery since the surgery 11 days ago and I think that lulled me in to a false sense of security.

It was explained to me today, by a lady in the intro section of this forum, that what I should be eating at the moment haS MORE TO DO WITH THE BAND SECURING IT'S PLACE, AND NOT ABOUT WHAT WE CAN TOLERATE.

i'VE BEEN EATING VERY SMALL AMOUNTS OF (whoops,just noticed the uppercase) lots of things eg: eggs, grapes, cheese, crackers, mince, cereal and a tiny piece of chocolate.

Now I'm paranoid that I've done damage.

Does anyone have first, or second, hand experience in doing what I've done? The only things I've had trouble with are chicken and bread.

Take care all,Rachel.

Does anyone know how much protein egg drop soup has?

Hi Everbody,

Thanks to all of you who had something constructive to say.

Also, the dialogue between Jasper and repliers has been really helpful.

Well, I don't think any damage has been done - and I've gone back to just mushy stuff.

Take care, Rachel.

Okay, tell me again...I'm confused. When you eat, the food travels down into the pouch, where it stays for a while depending on the thickness or consistency of the food that you eat. so if you eat "soup on hand "(love that stuff) it will pretty much go through the stoma and then into the larger part of your stomach. Now where is the digesting taking place??...in the pouch??? the stomach?? or both. Also if one eats something that they are not supposed to say...refried beans within the first week of having the band installed,(god I feel so stupid) won't the beans kind of go though the pouch or does it just sit in the pouch for a really long time? While the beans are in the pouch do they "expand"? Someone told me that if I eat starchy stuff when I'm not supposed to like noodles in chicken noodle soup... noodles will expand and not go through the pouch as easily and that may cause a lot of pain. I guess I need clarification because my logic is pretty flawed without knowing the mechanics of how digestion takes place with the band. BTW I have been tracking my calories and today I ate the most at 1100 calories. Should I be staying at a 1000? or lower? Sorry its so wordy...Thanks everyone

I am going to try this ticker thing again...

[link=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]

[image noborder]http://tickers.TickerFactory.com/ezt/d/3;10300;0;0;0/c/-7/t/-67/k/a997/weight.png[/image]

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How do I get the ticker thing below my name and make this work?? I swear I am going to lose my mind withthis thing...aaarrrggghhh

[link=http://www.TickerFactory.com/]

[image noborder]http://tickers.TickerFactory.com/ezt/d/3;10300;0;0;0/c/-7/t/-67/k/a997/weight.png[/image]

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I'm working on it, hold up............and might want to edit out all the white space...hehe you crack me up. WE WILL GET YOU A TICKER!

Hold up again, DH is expecting a call on the home line, gotta free it up and get off the 'puter. Back in a bit

Hi Tammy,

Thanks for asking all the questions I've been thinking of.

Don't feel stupid - I've found I have all these questions, since I had the surgery done, that didn't occur to me beforehand.

I'll get alot more answer in my first appointment with the Doctors.

Take care, Rachel.

Okay, tell me again...I'm confused. When you eat, the food travels down into the pouch, where it stays for a while depending on the thickness or consistency of the food that you eat. so if you eat "soup on hand "(love that stuff) it will pretty much go through the stoma and then into the larger part of your stomach. Now where is the digesting taking place??...in the pouch??? the stomach?? or both. Also if one eats something that they are not supposed to say...refried Beans within the first week of having the band installed,(god I feel so stupid) won't the beans kind of go though the pouch or does it just sit in the pouch for a really long time? While the beans are in the pouch do they "expand"? Someone told me that if I eat starchy stuff when I'm not supposed to like noodles in chicken noodle Soup... noodles will expand and not go through the pouch as easily and that may cause a lot of pain. I guess I need clarification because my logic is pretty flawed without knowing the mechanics of how digestion takes place with the band. BTW I have been tracking my calories and today I ate the most at 1100 calories. Should I be staying at a 1000? or lower? Sorry its so wordy...Thanks everyone

In a practial sense we will be doing double digestion (moo moo says the cow); but it's our little pouch that will be doing most of the work. I would stay away from refried Beans for two reasons - that stuff is so high in cholesterol it's mind boggling and the last thing you want to do during the first few weeks is eat something that promotes gas. However beans in general are goood just eat the ones you know won't blow you up. As for calories, the first four weeks are considered healing time so keeping you calories between 1000 and 1500 is fine. Remember, even though we will be forced to eat less at one sitting this doesn't guarantee weight loss; the band is a "tool" that you can use to help lose weight. If you eat high calorie food several times a day you are not going to see a lot of results.

Probably everyone of us is starting of with either one or combination of high blood pressure, cholesterol, tryglycerides, etc. There is a ton of healthy food you can eat during the mooshie stage and it's great preperation fo what you should be eating afterwards.

I've read on this board that an occasional doctor WILL fill a band during surgery, although most doctors don't. I think there's a current thread where somebody didn't have any fat around her stomach, so the doctor filled the Band during the original surgery. If you do some searches, you might be able to find more info.

Thanks , that was my thread...Are there any good websites about the lap band and some facts?

This is true. Your doctor knows best, and should have given you a post of diet to follow. This board is helpful-but you should follow your doctor's instructions closely, before anyone elses.

Joan

Hi Sharon every doc is different I am finding. My doc it was clear fluids for the first 4 days, now Protein shakes for 2 weeks, then mushies for 2 weeks..

My instructions were

week one

clear broth

gatorade or pedyalite ( must have 1 and a half cups a day)

juice, (must have one and a half cups a day)

jell-0

popcycles

Water

Tea

no caffein,

NO carbinated drinks EVER again

Only half a cup at a time of anything

week two-three

implement 30 grams of liquid Protein shakes a day.

start childrens chewable Vitamins

yogart (no peices of fruit)

Week 4

Solid meals

Eat protein first, then vegtable, fruit and carb last.

Each meal should have a protein, green veggie, fruit and carb.

No more protein shakes!!

Chew at leaste 30 times

NEVER drink while eating, wait one hour prior, one hour after a meal.

Avoid Pbing

Hi Jack,

When I said normally I was referring to the types of food, definitely NOT the amount.

Anyway, I've realised the errors of my ways and gone back to mostly mashed stuff.

What does PB stand for?

Haven't you done well - you're abviously feeling great. Congrats.

Take care, Rachel.

PB is shorthand for "productive burping" which is what happens when you eat more than your pouch can handle. What can't go down has to come up, which can be anywhere from mildly inconvenient to painful and prolonged. It's almost a given that every bandster will experience this at least a couple of times as we learn how truly little food makes a meal, and how to handle a new level of restriction. Even 18 months out I had a PB yesterday with some chicken soup that had stringy pieces of meat in it (and yes, that's how I know I'm too tight).

Tammy, I'm no expert on the mechanics of digestion but in general food doesn't stay in the pouch all that long. It will pass through in at most a couple of hours and move on its merry way. The pouch is just a smaller part of your stomach so whatever digesting happens in the stomach will, I guess, start happening in the pouch.

I've never heard of Beans expanding but if you eat anything that is prone to do that you will be very uncomfortable indeed. Someone reported a misadventure with a Fiber drink that thickens (Metamucil?) which did exactly that in the pouch. Blech.

Things like bread and Pasta may not expand in your pouch but you will discover that they take up a lot of room anyway and you'll be too full to eat the real food. For example, if I take a bite of a sandwich with the bread it will take literally only two bites to fill me up. But if I eat only the insides of the sandwich I can eat maybe 3/4 of it. That's much better nutrition and gives me the Protein I need. Most bandsters wave bye-bye to most bread and pasta after a while.

Before you get a fill you might not have any restriction and so none of what I've said will be true for you. (I don't know what to say about the bands being filled to 2.5 cc in surgery--I asked my doctor about that and he said it sounded unusual and even risky to him.) If you do have restriction you'll know it, and you'll be avoiding foods that make you too full too fast before long. And that's when you'll start losing weight!

I get little tiny burps alot since the band.

They dont hurt at all. Sometimes they are tiny gurgles...

This happens if I drink a dixie cup of grape juice (3 ounce cup with ice)

I am assuming these are not PBing.

The times when I felt my chest was being stampeded by horses and it felt like I had to belch/ heartburn but it wouldnt come and my chest hurt so bad and all that...

(When I was still in the hospital trying to get down ice chips)

I assume THOSE things were PBing..

Am I right??