If you have recently been banded please read this. I'm hoping to save many of you grief and stop you from driving yourself crazy with unanswered questions. This thread is not directed towards one person and I'm hoping to help some of you out. I've read about a dozen threads lately, and responded to a few, about the following:

There are a few stages you will be going through in the next couple of weeks. liquids - they suck, Mushies - they suck too, Soft Foods - Ah, life is getting better and finally Normal Foods. Somewhere in there is Bandhell. I want to cover the sucky stages; Liquids and Mushies as well as Bandhell.

Liquids - this is the stage you will most likely lose the most weight.

1st and most importantly of all - follow your doctors instructions. If he tells you stay on a week - do that, if you're told liquids for three weeks - please follow his orders. You didn't have major abdominal surgery to cheat and put yourself at risk. It's not a picnic - it's also not forever. Hang in there.

Mushies - you may have to wait a couple of weeks before you can enjoy the pallet of a one year old. Truly - the first time you get some "flavor" other than chicken broth, popcicles and Jello - is wonderful. It's also deceptive. After weight falling off of you at an amazing speed - you may actually gain weight. It is OK - this is normal. Don't freak out! There is nothing wrong with you and you've done nothing wrong. You may think it is okay to start adding back "normal foods". You think your body is ready, after all everything seems to go down fine. Don't do it unless you call your doctor and he says it is okay. Now is also when you have to start learning how to deal with head hunger.

The first six weeks following surgery is for healing. Let me say that again, HEALING. Don't push yourself and cheat just because you are missing chewing or eating your favorite foods. Everyone that has been banded has been in your shoes. We all know how you feel and it is no fun. Remember this is only temporary. You will eventually get to eat as normally as possible for a bandster. I say that because after banding your life will never be as it was before. It is something that takes adjusting and time.

BANDSTER HELL - After six weeks (or so), the doc finally approves you to move on to normal eating. You are so hungry by now you feel like you could eat a horse. About this same time you should get your first fill. This should help some of your hunger. Don't expect it to though. It often takes more than one fill to get you to your sweet spot (the perfect adjustment level for your band). More than likely you'll be in Bandster Hell. You have a band, but it really isn't going like you thought it was. You can still eat more than you want and you have another month (or more sometimes) before your next fill. You may be going off of willpower alone. Here's some things that may help:

• Start Logging Your Foods - keep track of your Protein, calories and daily intake. Use paper if you want. There are great websites out there that have online programs just for that.
  
• Start An Exercise Program - Muscle weighs more than fat. If you are exercising regularly you may be putting on muscle - thus you weigh more
  
• Measure Yourself - You often lose inches when the pounds aren't coming off
  
• Weigh Yourself, but don't become obsessive. I weigh once a week - at first it was daily, sometimes more than that. Every ounce would drive me insane when I did that. The scale makes me accountable
  
• Measure your food. Know how much of something is going into your body
  

My last word of advice - Don't compare your weight loss to anyone elses. You are only setting yourself up for heartbreak. We all lose weight very differently. Some people are put on different pre-op programs, every doctor is different on their post-op diets as well. Someone that has been on liquids for three to four weeks will have a larger weight loss than someone that hasn't. Our metabolisms are different. We should be losing 1-2 pounds a week with the band. You should lose slowly - so don't get discouraged or angry if you aren't down 50 pounds in two months.

I'm finally near my sweet spot and it took four months to get there. Being banded isn't easy - it is hard work. It is only a tool and a tool is only as good as its user.

In ending I must say there have been ups and downs for me since April, but every struggle was and is worth it. I would do it over again in a heartbeat. I have learned so much about myself in the past few months. I've learned how to deal with addictions and demons I refused to face in the past. I've also learned to love me again and know I am worth the battle.

That was a great post and I second everything said . . . now that I have been banded for some time and have lived to tell the tale.

Thanks, Leslie :0)

Heather - I agree, we lived. Sometimes I had days I wondered? - lol

If anyone else has an input, please contribute. I was lucky and have some fellow bandsters that clued me in early on what to expect. However, not everyone is that lucky.

Thank you so much, I am a new bander July 31st and i appreciate all that you have said, and the way in which you said it.

:tt2:

Hi Leslie, Great post, I agree with everything you said. There are so many variables--doctors, pre and post operation diets, amount of weight to lose and countless metabolic factors that it is impossible to compare your weight loss to anyone else. I read post after post on forum after forum before the surgery (i am a teacher so I did my homework) so I felt pretty informed about the stages, frustrations, pain and success of the proceedure. I also had a mentor who had wsl who helped me with protein drinks, recovery tips and all kinds of other stuff. I strongly urge all newbies to read and research everything you can it helps so much to know what to expect.

Hi Leslie!

We should stay in touch, I am also an April Avenger, and our weights are close, although you have lost much more than I have!

I just had a fill yesterday, and am finally feeling some restriction (5cc in a 10cc band). After the past two months hoping each fill would be the one, I have had no restriction at all. We just got back from a two week vacation, and I've put on a couple of pounds. I really want this to work, and I need to use some mental muscle.

I have found that talking with other bandsters has been incredibly helpful!!

Jayme

Excellent post! Explained everything perfectly. I wish I would have had this info when I was newly banded!

Leslie2Lose - Thanks so much for the information. Many of us newbies really do rely on the veterns to guide us throught the tough times.

Thank you so much! I just started mushies yesterday. I started feeling hunger pains only 5 days after surgery. . . and I told myself to suck it up!!! Thanks again!

Good post! I am currently in "Bandster Hell" and getting through on only willpower. My cravings have been bad for soda and chocolate, but I'm making it through without either. I know this stage will past and it's nice to know everyone else experiences it also!

:thumbs_up:Leslie: What a great post. I am only a week out and every day have to think about what stage I am at what I can have, also thinking about preparing for the next stage. Thanks for the advice. The liquids are very simple to manage, making a puree of a meal or eating baby food sounds kind of yucky and time consuming. I am thankful for the Magic Bullet!

Thanks again. Kim

WOW!!! I am not yet banded but THANKS SO MUCH for all the info!!! I have been doing a lot of reading on here and getting prepared and all this info sounds harsh and the truth. I think it is important to know that it is not a cake walk and that we still have to do a lot of the work. So again thanks for the post and am looking forward to hopefully being banded in the future.

My paper work was submitted to the insurance yesterday morning so I am playing the waiting game.

Again Thanks!!!

Good luck with your approval Crystal. I really do love my band. It wasn't meant to be harsh - just truthful and prepare everyone that's been banded or will be banded for the next couple of months. I think harsh depends on what you do with the information. If you ignor it and decide to do what you want regardless of other's experiences - yes it is harsh. Learn from all of us and what we have been through. I'm still learning myself. Read and research. Be prepared. That's what I love about this site - there's so much information both good and bad. Doctors are very informative and education, however unless they have a band they themselves they don't always get it. If you go into this surgery and think it's a quick fix - it will not work for you. I wish you the best.

I really did mean harsh in a good way. I have read some posts on the forum of people not really understanding the beginning. There are a lot of hard things to go through in the beginning. I think it is important to know what you have to go through good or bad. I feel I am prepared for the harder parts in your post and again thanks for posting them.

Thanks for the well wishes.

Leslie2Lose - I second Crystal's comments. Thanks so much for this post. I'm in month 1 of the 6 month medically supervised diet phase of my journey.

Even in month 1, I feel the challenges of changing my eating patterns. It's hard, but it's worth it...and I believe that the 6 months of practice will help me manage through "Bandster Hell":thumbup:

Does anything make it easier? Also the liquid and full liquid thing...how soon after surgery are you usually hungry? Leslie or anyone else is there anything you can look back on and say if you had done it different it would have been easier in any way? I am nont being banded until October, but want to be as prepared as possible. I love this site it has answered all of my questions and even motivated me to go to one of my Dr.'s siminars which in the begining I was not going to do.