Hot, Halfway, Honest, Happy and Homeward Bound

-Bandpal's Periodic Update-

Hi Nymphs,

Hot

It's 40 degrees celsius with a hot desert wind howling down the valley and kicking up clouds of sand. My three year-old and I are riding out the weather inside while the big kids are out with DW bowling and ice skating down in the city by the sea. He just scored a thumping victory over the old man at Candyland, thanks to a little clever card manipulation on my part, and after celebrating with a round of drinks (pink grapefruit juice for him, chicken broth for me), he's settled down on the couch for the latest adventures of Sammy the Fireman on TV. Meanwhile, I'd like to share a little bit of what's going on with this old bandster dad.

Halfway

I've lost 61.5 pounds since being banded on 21.11.07, putting me at 224.5 pounds, or 102 kilo. I haven't been under 100 kilo since you could take in the view of Manhattan from the observation deck of the World Trade Center, so that'll be a pretty significant milestone (kilometerstone?) for me. I'm more or less at the halfway point of the weight I want to lose. Meanwhile, it's Passover now, prime eating season for us Jews, yet I've actually lost weight during the holiday. Now, that's definitely a first.

Honest

My second fill, two weeks ago, is keeping me honest. Unless I eat or drink very slowly and in exceedingly small quantities, I can expect to see whatever I've eaten or drunk again, often in vivid projectile displays that would not embarrass the special effects crew of The Exorcist. Only yesterday, in fact, I narrowly missed covering my 14 year-old son, sitting across from me in one of our premier local seafood establisments, in a mighty stream of masticated scallops in cream sauce (leaving him, for once, entirely speechless).

Finding the point at which I am full, before the food starts to back up, has been very challenging for me. I'm usually hungry when I sit down to eat, and it's hard to remember how important it is to eat slowly. Any tips would be appreciated - how do you know when you've had enough? This evening I managed to keep down two slices of steamed zucchini, each about an inch thick and two inches in diameter, each slice cut into 16 sections, four across and four down (I know this sounds really anal retentive, but I need to describe where I'm at). I ate the sections one at a time with a toothpick over 45 minutes. Besides that, the only thing that stays down are liquids, mostly clear and some full, and only if I drink them slowly.

Happy

Don't get me wrong – for all of this I am grateful. My appetite is much, much smaller, my stomach is shrinking, I am literally being forced to learn new and healthier eating habits, I am learning how to navigate various social and emotional situations without overeating... "je ne regrette rien", as they say in French. I can't believe what's happening to me. I have broken a pattern that was totally out of control, that was making me miserable, ruining my life and which I was convinced was going to kill me.I'm so glad that I was willing to take the risk, and that I had people around to support me. In the space of five months – hey, I just realized, five month banding anniversary was the day before yesterday, congratulations on month number 5, everyone – my life has changed. That's what I tried to tell my surgeon in the space of the two minutes it took to give me my fill, and he just nodded his head and smiled. He probably hears the same thing twenty times a day.

Homeward Bound

Next up for me is a three week trip back to the States for a family wedding. I'll be with my parents and siblings in the greater New York area for most of the time, and then we'll all travel down to San Antonio, Texas to watch my cousin tie the knot. Accompanying me will be my six year-old daughter, and I am looking forward to visits to the ballet, the zoo, toy stores and the rowboat lake in Central Park. I am hoping for a binge-free visit, one in which the people I am with and the things I am doing won't be overshadowed by my relationship with food.

Wishing you all sure steps forward on the road we are all walking together,

Bandpal

P.S. Next day's breakfast: 1/2 hard boiled egg, 1 cherry tomato and two depitted olives, eaten slowly with toothpick. Am now sipping fruit juice through a straw. I have to be aware enough to see what I need, and resourceful enough in order to get it.

Sounds excellent, Bandpal - I always look forward to reading your posts. The visit to New York sounds especially fun! I'm sure you'll do fantastic.

Eating with a toothpick...now THERE'S a trick I hadn't thought of, yet. LOL It would probably benefit me, though. I know that if I don't set the fork/spoon down between bites, that I just keep shoveling, then I get the very painful reminder from my band to chill. It's the only thing that keeps me eating slowly - setting the fork down. It also affords me time to sit and talk with people I'm with. Anybody else frustrated that you can't hurry and swallow when somebody asks you a question? I have to push the food off to one cheek or the other. It's really gross. haha It's either that, or be writhing on the floor in pain.

As for deciding when I'm full...I try to pick out reasonable portions and go with that. When I'm getting close to the end of the portion, I start to eat even slower. Might be a full minute or two between bites at that point - I'm waiting to see what my body says. And when it no longer says, "hungry," I stop. That is REALLY odd for me because I NEVER used to be that way. I'd eat until FULL. Can't do that anymore. Rather than thinking of how much more you could possibly put in there (my old way of thinking and one I still struggle with), I find that it helps to think if I have satisfied my body enough.

It's great to read about your journey, BP. Excellent job on the 61.5 lbs!! Happy 5th month anniversary to you, too!

Bandpal!

You are doing fantastic. Isn't it amazing that all us November Nymphs are going through the same struggle with having to ensure that we eat smaller bites and chew chew chew! I am sitting here eating my Breakfast and concentrating on typing and chewing very difficult I might add.

I love reading your posts because you are an awesome writer. I like you agree that this is the best thing to ever happen to me and try to tell my doctor during a 2 min fill the same thing and he just smiles and nods his head like you weren't the first one I've heard that from.

As for the stopping when full...I am struggling with that issue myself. I am learning that I must just measure out the food and put it on my plate and stop after that. I have yet to really know when I am full until after I have eaten. Take last night for example, DH and I had no children last night and went out for dinner. I got baked scallops, with baked potato and butternut squash. I ate about half of everything and a roll but didn't feel totally full to the gills until I was driving home. I believe the hardest part of this journey is dealing with the head issues that you have lived with for so long. Everyday is a new day with a new obstacle but I am loving how my body is emerging from its cocoon.

keep up the great work...you are inspiring.

Cindy

Great job Bandpal!!! I love reading your posts also. I really have to work on eating slower, it never fails I will be eating and talking to DH and then I just swallow and take another bite and then Oops, I get that stuck feeling, the eyes Water, and the DH backs up, out of PB range. I am supposed to get a fill next week, but think I am going to reschedule as I dont want to be TOO tight and I am still losing 1-1/2 lbs a week.

Keep up the great job everyone.

Hey Bandpal, Great to hear your news. 61.5 pounds is a big accomplishiment. Congratulations!

I know you say it's two weeks since your last fill. It sounds like you have a lot of restriction, I hope you will see your surgeon if you start to think it's too tight. I've heard that can lead to band slippage,so i worry for you.

I'm amazed at how many of you have good restriction, seems Sades and I are still searching for that. I think I'm close, maybe next fill. I can still eat too much, don't have to chew, chew, chew, much.

How nice you'll be visiting the states and weddings are a happy, fun, family event. Funny how we notice things differently when the focus is not just on the food at events now, like you're experiencing during Passover.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

I can't believe what's happening to me. I have broken a pattern that was totally out of control, that was making me miserable, ruining my life and which I was convinced was going to kill me.I'm so glad that I was willing to take the risk, and that I had people around to support me. In the space of five months – hey, I just realized, five month banding anniversary was the day before yesterday, congratulations on month number 5, everyone – my life has changed.

Amen to that! I believe food would have eventually killed me too. I was heading straight for a heart attack. Thank goodness for the band and good friends!

Shortgal - I'm still looking for the right amount of restriction too. Some days I can eat and not have to chew much. Then I'll have a day where I'm used to that, then realize I'm more restricted that day, and I start sliming what I ate. It's quite frustrating. I never know how I'm going to react. And when I get hungry, I just eat and don't stop to think about taking small bites.

I also over-order when I'm hungry. Instead of ordering one small thing, I order two, then rush to eat the first bite, start sliming, then can't finish ANY of my order. urgh!

But I never, ever, ever would have lost this weight without the band. I know that for a fact. I'm so thankful that I've got it.

Anybody else notice that Hollyberries has lost almost 100 POUNDS!!!! OMG HOLLYBERRIES!! YOU ROCK!

I never really have a day where I'm tight. I know the band is there when I eat certain foods like some fruits, then I have to go slow, but most food I eat ALMOST normally and almost all the time. I find the first few bites are the important ones, remembering to start off easy is important, then for me things go down fairly easily, too easily. I tihnk another .5 cc's total and I'll be good.

Linda, I would NEVER have lost this weight without the band , either!

Oh yeah, I've noticed Cindy's weight loss, she does rock!

Good one Bandpal you are doing fabulously. I still don't have that kind of restriction. Shortgal I am definitely like you, another .5cc might do it. The difference between you and me though is that you are working much harder than me with your food intake. :rolleyes2:

Sades: It's hard some days, but getting to be a habit now with writing down the calories.

I think I need .5 cc's more but I might try .25 first. I have a big fear of being too tight. I can always get another .25 after that.

Maybe I'll decide that AFTER vacation, where there will be lots of temptation and I know I won't be tracking on vacation.

when's your next fill?

14 May but I need to get some lbs off before then. I have bought some diet dinners to help me stay honest at night which is the main time I go off track. I feel like a broken record at the moment.

Well, I'm definately not losing as fast as many of you fabulous Nymphs, but I'm not nearly as tight either (only 3ccs in a 10cc band). I can eat anything IF I chew it well enough. My surgeon recommends not being as tight as many people like to be, which suits me fine.

I too am working on stopping when satisfied rather than when the plate is empty. That is REALLY hard, as I am fighting almost 50 years of training to "clean my plate." I definately think that eating slowly is the way to give my brain a chance to communicate with my stomach. My two favorite things for slowing down are putting the utensil down between bites and eating with my left hand (I'm right handed). Neither thing is really noticed by others when I am out in a crowd, but both seem to be very effective.

Also, I was just on a 10-day business trip where we ate out THREE TIMES A DAY (kill me). Many of the restaurants offered "half portions", which I took whenever possible. Then, I still tried to leave something on my plate. It worked. I lost almost 2 pounds on the trip with no exercise.

It's a journey. Happily, alhtough I am a slow loser, I have no fear of gaining it back. That's a first for me. Best wishes to you all!

My two favorite things for slowing down are putting the utensil down between bites and eating with my left hand (I'm right handed).

Yeah Foofy! Thumbs up big time on that tip about eating with the left hand - I'm definitely trying that out today...

Edited April 27, 200818 yr by bandpal

Bandpal, you are doing great. Are you sure you're not too tight though? You should be able to eat more of a variety of foods. It did take me 2 weeks after my last fill to eat normal foods. I still have to make sure everything is moist and I can't handle solids in the morning. If you can hadle the tightness, then great! Have fun in the states. Sounds like a great trip!

Yeah Foofy! Thumbs up big time on that tip about eating with the left hand - I'm definitely trying that out today...

Heehee. I hope it works for you! As an added benefit for us 40+ folk, using your non-dominant hand for fine motor skill tasks is supposed to help your brain by making it learn new things. So, you get skinny and smart at the same time! What could be wrong with that?