Hi everyone! I am getting banded March 4 and I am looking forward to joining your ranks and am very excited about the process. I've been trying to space my water intake before and after eating and haven't been doing so well. It seems that when it's time to eat I often don't have the time or the will power to wait the half hour before eating. Also, I find it very difficult not to drink water with my meals and while I'm at it, I'm also pretty slack at not waiting the sixty to ninety minutes after a meal to drink. Does anyone have any suggestions? Have any of you experienced banders noticed any differences in your appetite if you don't follow this rule? I would appreciate any suggestions, encouragement or thoughts on this subject. Thanks.

ssdown...its easier to follow those rules when you're banded. I found that I can drink liquids before my meal just not during or right after. The liquid for me flows right down prior so it's not sitting there hogging room where the food needs to be. If liquid sits there...the food you eat will expand when absorbing the food so you'll eat less but, more than likely not enough so that's why they suggest don't drink for 30 min before.

Drinking while you eat will do the same thing and take up precious space in your upper stomach portion that belongs to Protein. With the band in place the upper portion of your stomach is about the size of an egg for most so if you hog up that space with liquid and try to eat you're not going to get in enough protein for the day.

Not drinking for 30-60 after (depends on your doc) reason for this.....the liquid could 1 expand the food still there or 2, wash the food down and you're hungry again much sooner than if you had waited. So you're either hurting because the food expanded depending on what you ate or your hungry and will eat more than you should because you washed it down.

Hope that helped.

I was terrified of this before being banded. I was a 2-3 glass of something with my meals. I could not imagine not drinking.

Let me honestly say that it has not been a huge issue for me. I follow the rules and I monitor it closely I like to wait 45 minute to an hour after my meals before I drink, and I do believe this is one reason I am not hungry. The food will stay in your pouch longer if you do not push it out with liquid therefore causing you to remain fuller longer.

I looked at this way......if they were saying this was highly important.....in our classes before surgery.....it was not to torture but to bring success in the process.

I was able to adjust to it just fine. As long as you drink,drink,drink before and after and keep well hydrated you will not need the drink with the food.

It has truly amazed me that I do not even try to drink with meals.

Hope this helps, and great luck with your upcoming Surgery!!

For some reason it is easier to follow when you are banded. Pre-op, I thought this would be the HARDEST rule to follow. I have always drank about 2-3 glasses of diet coke or tea with my meals.

However after I was banded, it came easily to not drink with meals. At restaurants, I started ordering Water and might sip it bf my meal arrives. However, most times I don't even touch it.

I have only felt the need to drink once during a meal and that is when I was eating some spicy chili, I needed some water relief! I took a few sips and I was ok. My dr said that if you have to drink while eating you should sip only (bc of something spicy or to cleanse palate). however he doesn't recommend it.

I think it will be easier than you think. Good luck!

Thanks everyone! I am glad to hear that it is much easier after banding to stick to the water protocol. SS

It's good that you are already practicing before being banded, that really helps you get into the mindset of what you need to do. But you are going to have times where you goof up - that's what practicing is for! The whole lap band thing has a real learning curve to it. None of us succeed at all of it immediately, but we keep practicing and eventually get better at it. With practice you are going to figure it all out. The drinking thing can be tricky - especially at first, I felt like my whole day was spent figuring out when I should drink, when I should stop, when I could eat, when I could drink again- very time consuming! I thought "How am I ever going to be able to get on with my life if all I can do all day is keep track of my water intake and the minutes on the clock???!!!" But like anything else, it becomes old hat after repeating and repeating. You'll do fine, you'll mess up, then you'll do fine again. And luckily if you mess up, nobody dies!!!

Hi everyone! I am getting banded March 4 and I am looking forward to joining your ranks and am very excited about the process. I've been trying to space my water intake before and after eating and haven't been doing so well. It seems that when it's time to eat I often don't have the time or the will power to wait the half hour before eating. Also, I find it very difficult not to drink water with my meals and while I'm at it, I'm also pretty slack at not waiting the sixty to ninety minutes after a meal to drink. Does anyone have any suggestions? Have any of you experienced banders noticed any differences in your appetite if you don't follow this rule? I would appreciate any suggestions, encouragement or thoughts on this subject. Thanks.

I have the same problem. I have not found a good solution. I often become very thirsty while eating. I realize I am drinking out of habit but it is difficult to wait that 60 minutes after eating.