Hello All! This is my first post - scary...:lunch:

I live in the UK and I have a BMI of 41.5, with about 85lbs to lose. I had a consultation with a very nice surgeon yesterday for lapband surgery. He is happy to do the operation for me if I want it (self-pay). Now I have to make the decision to go for it or not.

The surgeon said that 92% of his patients were very satisfied and making a success of losing weight with their bands. Sounds good!:wub:. However, apart from patients who were unhappy because things went wrong during surgery, or afterwards with the band (leaks, slippage, port flipping etc.), he said the other unhappy patients were those who weren't successful in losing weight because they weren't able to stop their bad eating behaviours - eating chocolate especially.

Now I have a huge chocolate and sweet food problem. I would love to think that I will have the willpower to curb this bad habit after I have been banded. But I know that a band won't make it hard for me to eat chocolate. If I want to lose my weight i'm going to have to kick the habit one way or another.

I would love to hear from anyone who was a chocolate addict like me before they were banded. Please tell me if you've been successful with banding or not. How long have you been banded? Has being banded helped you to beat sugar cravings? Has the band made any difference to your desire for chocolate? How hard has it been? Have you got a strategy that allows you to have a little bit of chocolate without going too far? I want to know it all!

Thank you in advance to anyone who is reading this and replies.:w00t:

xxx

I do enjoy chocolate/sweets now and then. I've experimented with different Protein drinks, SF pudding, and recently I've found Zone Perfect and Balance Protein Bars. They have alot of carbs but the taste is way better than any Protein Bar I've had in the past.

They can sit heavy in your pouch so slowly enjoying 1/2 bar way before a meal or at the end of the evening might feed that sweet tooth. Plus you get a good amount of protein in.

Also using SF syrups and sauces helps.

It is hard to explain but you will feel and crave different things once you are banded. It isn't like a light switch turning on but you just will eat and crave different things.

Stick with the basics... Protein first, 64 oz + Water, low carb and low fat. Stay away from snack type foods (chips etc). Know and be comfortable with your limitations. Be ok saying "No I can't eat that, etc.

I worried so much over the different things I was eating (pre band) and what I would be struggling with (post band).

Things have a way of working out. You are doing the absolute right thing by asking questions and learning everything you can.

Good Luck!

I always preferred vanilla to chocolate pre-band. Now, I am a true chocoholic. I made one deal with myself. Every morning, when I wake up, I have one piece of chocolate. A truffle, a square from a chocolate bar, something like that. I eat REAL chocolate, no high fructose corm syrup chocolate, no sugar free Chocolate. My current favorite is Lindt chili chocolate. One square is perfect...

My eating throughout the day is 'normal' and I have very small portions. I don't deny myself anything, but I make sure NOT to eat sliders all of the time. So far, it has worked pretty well for me. :sneaky:

Hi Early!

Just wondering how you were doing...are you banded yet? If so how's it going for you?

I too, am a sweet addict. I was banded in January, and have lost over 30# now, and feel great. My thrill is buying secondhand clothes and looking so good.

I kind of give myself permission to eat sweets, but rarely indulge. I do not keep them in the house, with the exception of prepackaged gummy bears that are only 80 calories a package. I eat one package a day. I also keep gum in my car console. It's like a little treat while I am driving.

I haven't lost the urge to eat sweets, but it truly is a controllable urge, because my hunger is under control now. I do steal a little cup of ice cream at work now and then, but when I do, I count the calories and move on, and of course, ice cream is at least full of Calcium, so that makes me feel a little better about the indulgence.

Sandra

What I didn't see in the above posts so far is what those of us who still like chocolate do for substitutes and so I'll start off and maybe others will join in to give you ideas.

1. SF Hot Chocolate

2. SF Jello Chocolate Pudding

3. Low Carb Chocolate Protein Drinks

4. Slim-Fast has a chocolate Peanut Butter Crunch snack bar with protein that reminds me of a candy bar - about 110 calories or so.

5. Zone Perfect Protein Bars - they have some real chocolately flavored ones that hit my chocolate hot spot.

6. SF Chocolate fudge bars