We are 8 days into the sweetest month of the year. I thought we could start a thread for encouragement and advise.

So, I will start. I was banded on 2/3. So far no problems.

I have been reading for a couple of days and I love the fact that everyone is so supportive. My husband tries, but he just doesn't get it. :thumbdown:

So, who wants to join me on this life changing adventure.

Well Riley....I would hate to go against what your doctor or "Kaiser" says but I had my surgery on the 25th and I was told ok for protein shakes. I don't know how we would be able to get enough protein right now without it.

If nothing else they do have clear liquid protein. I made some in Jello and you couldn't even taste the nasty stuff ) I was told that was ok too as long as it was clear...

Good Luck and good job on your loss so far!

~A

I was banded on 2/19. I fell really well except I have started to have back pains again. Could I be having gas pains this late? Also, my doctor has me on liquid until Thursday but with 40 to 60 grams of protein. I'm actually kind of getting used to it but I have also stopped losing weight like I was at the beginning. That's a bit frustrating since I am following the orders as best I can. I don't have a knot where the port is, I have an indention. REally weird.

Hey my fellow bandsters. Well I am thoroughly frustrated and completly annoyed with this band process. as most of you may remeber i was banded on 2/4/09. i have since started eating regular foods. I have no restriction and i am so hungry..i have been getting hungrier by the day. i have been eating my jenny craig foods in order to help me keep track of the calories, and to eat little portions. at first it was good, but now a week later i am really hungry, and i want to eat more. i even went to mcdonalds yesterday and had a fish small fries and 2 apple pies and later a raspberry iced tea ate it all then felt horribly guilty, but it all went down, no problem...then the worst part of it all was i felt so guilty. but this is the first time that i ahve indulged like that, but i was so so hungry. Now with that bieng said and now off my chest. until that day i have been doing well. not consuming more that 1000 calories a day, and guess what to be rewarded for that i am gaining weight. I have gained a total of 6 pounds since i started eating food that i can tolerate. has this happened to anyone else? i have not been cleared yet to excercise. i want to so badly, i actually enjoy it. i know i need a fill i have no restriction. i am just so frustrated because shouldnt i be losing weight and not gaining no matter what if i am not consumning a lot calories. i am not drinking as much water as i should maybe 4 glasses a day. i dont know...can anyone offer me advice or insight??

Argh! My nutritionist just called, and I DON'T get to go to purees this weekend! I don't get to go until Tuesday the 10th! Oh my gosh how am I ever going to get the energy I need to do the 2 hikes I have planned this weekend?!?!?! I am a Kaiser patient and we are not "allowed" to do protein shakes, but I'm going to have to do SOMEthing to be able to excercise like I want and need to!!

Does anyone else have a big lump where their port is?? I feel like he sewed a baseball in there. . . . . .

Riley

no lump..before the surgery i inquired about a low profile port and i got it..its wonderful.it is right on top of my belly button. although i cant see it i can feel it if i push hard on my stomach..good luck

Hey my fellow bandsters. Well I am thoroughly frustrated and completly annoyed with this band process. as most of you may remeber i was banded on 2/4/09. i have since started eating regular foods. I have no restriction and i am so hungry..i have been getting hungrier by the day. i have been eating my jenny craig foods in order to help me keep track of the calories, and to eat little portions. at first it was good, but now a week later i am really hungry, and i want to eat more. i even went to mcdonalds yesterday and had a fish small fries and 2 apple pies and later a raspberry iced tea ate it all then felt horribly guilty, but it all went down, no problem...then the worst part of it all was i felt so guilty. but this is the first time that i ahve indulged like that, but i was so so hungry. Now with that bieng said and now off my chest. until that day i have been doing well. not consuming more that 1000 calories a day, and guess what to be rewarded for that i am gaining weight. I have gained a total of 6 pounds since i started eating food that i can tolerate. has this happened to anyone else? i have not been cleared yet to excercise. i want to so badly, i actually enjoy it. i know i need a fill i have no restriction. i am just so frustrated because shouldnt i be losing weight and not gaining no matter what if i am not consumning a lot calories. i am not drinking as much Water as i should maybe 4 glasses a day. i dont know...can anyone offer me advice or insight??

hedostar, this totally sucks! it sounds like you're in bandster hell. i should be joining you there pretty soon since i'm starting solids in a day or two. from what i understand, it's not likely that we'll lose much weight till after our first fill since there's no restriction yet. i attend a support group for fellow bandsters and what i've learned is that (a) make sure you're getting in enough Protein right now (about 50 to 60g a day); (b)get in at 1200 to 1500 calories daily; and © drink you water. the added protein helps with hunger pangs and energy. the higher calorie intake is important because otherwise you body goes into starvation mode and starts conserving whatever calories you have instead of allowing them to burn off. and we all know why you should drink more water. the people in my group who followed this managed to avoid gaining anything during bandster hell (some even continued to lose) and avoided being hungry all the time.

we'll survive this!!!

hedostar, this totally sucks! it sounds like you're in bandster hell. i should be joining you there pretty soon since i'm starting solids in a day or two. from what i understand, it's not likely that we'll lose much weight till after our first fill since there's no restriction yet. i attend a support group for fellow bandsters and what i've learned is that (a) make sure you're getting in enough Protein right now (about 50 to 60g a day); (b)get in at 1200 to 1500 calories daily; and © drink you Water. the added protein helps with hunger pangs and energy. the higher calorie intake is important because otherwise you body goes into starvation mode and starts conserving whatever calories you have instead of allowing them to burn off. and we all know why you should drink more water. the people in my group who followed this managed to avoid gaining anything during bandster hell (some even continued to lose) and avoided being hungry all the time.

we'll survive this!!!

Ok thanks, u made me feel a lot better and please let's keep in touch. i will make sure i am have at least 1200 calories per day and i will drink much more water, i have too. this is bandster hell and i want out:cursing:...its the worst and disappointing.

I am really hungry too, I fill up fast but I am hungry again in a very short time. I get a fill in two weeks, well almost one week now. i have been told we are hungry because the swelling has gone down and we have very little restriction with just the band. My doctor said the back ache was from irriatation of the diaphram. I am trying to hold off on eating everything in sight.

Hi everyone!

I was banded on 2/4/09 and I am doing pretty good.

Riley - I also have a lump sewn in! I think it is a combination of port and scar tissue. Hopefully, it will settle into our bodies as we lose more weight.

Hedostar - We were banded the same day. I know what you are going through. I have to consciously force myself to be aware of Protein. I was getting soooo hungry for a while but if I eat as much protein as possible at each mini-meal I've noticed I feel much more satisfied.

Great news! I've lost 25 pounds total now! I could just squeal with delight. That is so amazing for me.

I just figured out why I was having so much back pain. I was wearing a pair of sweat pants. The elastic band went right over the port and incision. When I moved the waist band down, away from the incision, the pain pretty much went away. I didn't connect that the incision on the front would cause pain in the back between the shoulder blades. Duh! I am still following the liquid diet. Conventional wisdom says I should be losing weight but I seem to be stuck. I see the doctor on Thursday so maybe getting to mushies, I will at least feel as though I'm eating.

My doctor said the back ache was from irriatation of the diaphram. I am trying to hold off on eating everything in sight.

My left shoulder/back pain still comes and goes. I notice it gets really bad when I am hungery. Once I eat even just a spoonful or two of Protein it goes away for an hour or two. When it comes back again, I have to eat to relieve it. Having my stomach empy must irritate my diaphram. Wondering if anyone else has this phenomenon.

Hi, So this thread is for Fabulous February Bandsters eh? Well I guess I qualify. I was banded on February 24th. My surgeon put me on clear fluids for the first 2 days, then on full fluid up to day 14- which is tomorrow. Tonight I am soooooo hungry. This is the first time I have been hungry. I can't wait for Tuesday. I want real food! I have been told by new bandsters that they are full so easily and that they can only drink a small amount. I have not experienced that at all. I could chug my drinks.From the first time I had full fluids, I drank the entire meal replacement (250ml or 1 cup). I was told to slowly build up to 3/4 cup. I drank the first one and was surprised when I finished it. I expected it to feel full and know when to stop. What has been your experience?

Hey yayatrudy, we have the same baniversary! that almost makes us sisters!!!

Its been 12 days since i've been banded. I'm in no pain from the incisions but I am still having diarreha and one side of my main incision is still leaking. Anyone having those issues?

The doctor says its normal but my bandage is pretty soaked by the end of the day. My doctor let me go to soft foods. I had turkey burger boiled all day in the crock pot and putting mashed potatoes with it. Tasted delicious and went down fine. I cooked a chicken breast in the broth all day and mashed that also but didn't go down so good. Kind of got stuck for a minute, didn't like the chest pain. Won't be eating that again.

Where my port is there is lump as well. I asked my doctor and it will go down. I'm hungry every hour or so but I will eat just a bite of yogurt, pudding or popcycle, i also will drink a cup of decaf tea. You can mix it up a little with a vanilla Protein shake made with skim milk or Water, add ice and a little bannana and sugar free chocolate syrup. Taste pretty good. You can also use canned fruit in its own juice. Hope everyone has a good week. I"m going back to work tomorrow, hope I can get through the day without having to run to the bathroom, which is across the building from my desk! Wish me luck. Thank you for sharing and helping me through this!

Hi, So this thread is for Fabulous February Bandsters eh? Well I guess I qualify. I was banded on February 24th. My surgeon put me on clear fluids for the first 2 days, then on full Fluid up to day 14- which is tomorrow. Tonight I am soooooo hungry. This is the first time I have been hungry. I can't wait for Tuesday. I want real food! I have been told by new bandsters that they are full so easily and that they can only drink a small amount. I have not experienced that at all. I could chug my drinks.From the first time I had full fluids, I drank the entire meal replacement (250ml or 1 cup). I was told to slowly build up to 3/4 cup. I drank the first one and was surprised when I finished it. I expected it to feel full and know when to stop. What has been your experience?[/quot'

I was banded on the 5th and have never felt any restriction whatsoever. However, I caught a really bad bug from my grandson, which made me cough 24/7, so I wasn't very hungry. I am now awaiting my first fill - and trying to abide by the bandster guidelines, but I am STARVING. So I would say you are fairly normal. I can still drink the Protein drinks or whatever, in one gulp.

Penny

Hi, I was banded on the 30th of Jan. (Realize band) I had my first fill on March 3rd. I had 4CC put in. I was so excited because I was hungry and had no resriction at all. My big question is how many cc's can the Realize band hold because I can't even believe this but I am wondering is there something wrong with me did I stretch something, because I do not really feel any restriction. I feel as though I am doing this on my own using will power instead of feeling full. I am eating a lot less, I don't know what I am expecting but when I hear of someone getting full on their coffee, I sure wish I was closer to that. If anyone can let me know how many cc's the Realize Band can hold as I would like to know how much room I have to get tightened. I am scared that I am not loseing like I was when I was on liquids. Help! I am suppose to go back in a month, do you think I should try to go back sooner!