So, I was invited to a dinner party at my friend's house tonight. She was nice enough to ask me what my restrictions are and what I can eat. She told me a menu that sounded good. I told her I don't eat many carbs and that I mostly protein and veggies. So, I get there and what has she made? Lasagna and garlic bread! I thought I had prepared well for the meal, but I guess I need to be more specific and clear. At least at a restaurant there are more options for me to pick from. I guess live and learn!

I thought the point of the band was that we could eat normal food, but in smaller portions, and be ok...but of course pasta can be problematic because it can swell! Or maybe I'm just lucky that I can still eat small portions of bread and pasta! On the plus side, a very very little of that would've made me full really fast! :wink2:

Sorry she changed the menu on you, though. I think that was kind of rude of her, to make a point of asking you and then do something totally different! Do you think she did it to be mean, or just unthinking?

Glad you got through it!

Sorry to hear about what happened. Here is my story. I was banded on 12/22/08 and my mother-in-law and I decided that we would go to her house around 2pm on x-mas so we/she did not have to worry about lunch and me being only on a liquid diet. So on 12/24 she emails that noon would be better for the rest of the family. We go at noon and she has made a whole meal...tamales, beans, cheese, etc.. Then proceeds to have everyone sit at the table and eat with me watching. And to add insult to injury my husbands grandmother gives us home made Christmas chex mix as a gift!!!! Be glad it wasn't your family.

Yeah, that must have been tough! My family is definitely very helpful in the food department. I'm not sure why my friend didn't get it. I could eat the lasagna, but I really try to not eat many carbs because I'm diabetic too. Oh well!

travelinsnorkle, what i do is eat before going to someones house / dinner party. say a cup of cottage cheese, greek yogurt, some veggies - edamame....something to get me through a meal should there be not much i can eat.

i really don't have problems with bread/pasta etc...but just try to limit those as they were my downfall...., i also don't eat well in front of others. i can get stuck on something that never gave me a problem in the past - that is more my issue.

since no one really knows i'm banded - i don't give a heads up of what i can / can not eat. thankfully most of my friends are health nuts, and there is some type of fish served., however there have been a few times i was glad i had some sort of snack:)

I agree that eating a snack before you go will be the best route from now on. It stinks that the menu changed on you - sorry about that! I was banded on 12/17 and I made sure my mom & dad knew so they would not get their feelings hurt about me not eating Christmas dinner and to let them know that they did not need to change theirs plans because of me. It was hard though, even though I was not that hungry and still a bit swollen from surgery to smell the Prime Rib, mashed potatoes, greens and homemade biscuits. I had to tell my folks that I did not want to sit at the dinner table and watch them eat so I sat by the kids table and talked with my nieces and my daughters. My dad remarked that he felt bad eating in front of me and I told him not to worry about it. I chose to get banded before Christmas - it was not a requirement. Sorry to rant..... your post just reminded me of how hard it is to "want" to eat something you know tastes good but not be able to have it.:wink2:

I tend to pretty much assume when going to a friends for dinner that I will only be eating a little bit .... I have always been a slow eater to factor in the band and I take forever to eat a few mouthfuls compared with my friends.

travelinsnorkle, what i do is eat before going to someones house / dinner party. say a cup of cottage cheese, greek yogurt, some veggies - edamame....something to get me through a meal should there be not much i can eat.

i really don't have problems with bread/pasta etc...but just try to limit those as they were my downfall...., i also don't eat well in front of others. i can get stuck on something that never gave me a problem in the past - that is more my issue.

since no one really knows i'm banded - i don't give a heads up of what i can / can not eat. thankfully most of my friends are health nuts, and there is some type of fish served., however there have been a few times i was glad i had some sort of snack:)

I have heard of edamame before. What is it and how do you eat it? :confused:

I have heard of edamame before. What is it and how do you eat it? :biggrin:

they are soybeans in a pod.

i buy the frozen bags & either steam or roast the pods - then add sea salt. the pod softens and slightly comes apart - you eat the soybean inside.

great snack & is a good source of Protein.

they are soybeans in a pod.

i buy the frozen bags & either steam or roast the pods - then add sea salt. the pod softens and slightly comes apart - you eat the soybean inside.

great snack & is a good source of Protein.

Cool! What does it taste like?

Cool! What does it taste like?

i liken it to a "nutty" bean, kinda earthy - the sea salt adds to the flavor.

I was banded on Oct. 13, 2008 and for me its been hard to eat around people. I went out to lunch with a bunch of co-workers and ordered some chicken and veg. could only eat a small amount and asked for the rest to go. I got tons of nasty comments from people. They did not know that I had the surgery, but it still bothered me. My family is also still getting use to me eating small portions. One thing I cant eat is carbs even one bite of bread or pasta and I am throwing it up.

ha, try this one-

at Thanksgiving dinner, this friend of the family was like "oops, I forgot to bring the broccoli for us"

(like I asked her to bring it, riiiight)

later, she says...

"the white meat is less calories than the dark meat"

well not for me! The white meat would get stuck. Too bad I couldn't have pb'd in her purse, by accident, of course

I definately do not know how to politely tell people to f off without getting into a whole dialouge about the band!

I don't expect people to really "get" my situation with the band, which I guess is why I'm not telling anyone about it for a very long time. I've got all kinds of stories I'm going to tell when it comes to why I'm not eating a lot or eating very slowly. I'm prepared to lie my ass off. Is this totally wrong? I'm only 2 days post op and haven't had the pleasure of eating with people yet. The first time I do it will be an experience and probly not as easy as I thought it would be. But yeah since everything revolves around food I expect that a lot of people will be caught off guard but what your restrictions are.

I don't think you're wrong at all. I didn't tell anyone about the type of surgery I was having either, until after the surgery was completed. I didn't tell for a very selfish reason. I wanted to make the decision 100% on my own. If my progress afterwards doesn't go well, I did not want anyone to be able to say "I told you so" about not doing this. I did this for me. Not for my husband, not for my family, not for work, just me and my health. When I lose the weight that I plan to lose it will be because of my decision. And any problems along the way, of which i've had none except my first plateau now, they are all mine, too. So whichever way you go, telling or not telling, it's all ok if you're ok with your decision.

I was banded 11/26/08, and had our family Christmas party at our house on 12/20/08. The funniest thing was watching EVERYONE watch ME eat! LOL Talk about a comedy! it was like they were watching to see what I'd eat, and how much. I did great! Doesn't seem to bother anyone now. No one watches me eat any more.

Good luck to us all!

Just thought of one more thing, to do with the lasagna dinner: I've talked to a lot of friends at work about my surgery. They all have lots of questions since i've had it. When i've told some that I eat lot of Protein, just a few carbs, and little fat, they basically assume it's like a diet for a heavy runner or exerciser. They think I should be eating no sweets, lots of Pasta, no cheese, and little to no beef, but lots of chicken and fish. So it's possible your friend had a misconception about what 'low card' and 'high protein' is. (we have to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, right? :-) ) And if someone does serve me pasta, I ask for a salad plate, or kids plate. makes the small portion look bigger. LOL

Take care all!

Rhonda