I am into my 2nd week of having the lap band...I have lost 16 lbs already & am so excited. I have a question....did anyone else out there eat any of the "mushy" stage early? I had a couple of small bites of refried beans last night & feel great & noticed I felt a lot better as I think I needed the iron in the beans. I mean eating just chicken broth & cream soups really leaves me with no energy to exercise. I know alot of this depends on the person, but would feel better knowing that there may be others like myself...thank you so much for your POSITIVE feedback.

There are so many good soups that you can buy that do not come in a can. I would try those and they are so satisfying and filling. Now mind you, I really am not a soup eater but I never really went hungry or felt weak.

You really need to try to stick with it. I read this post from a man that his band eroded into his stomach a few months ago. If that happened to me I would hate myself so much and would blame myself. His surgery and recover sounded so horrific. It took him weeks just to have all the tubes taken out of his body.

You can do it. Be strong!!! You are doing this to live a better life and not to cause harm to yourself. The days will go by fast and then you can eat anything you want.

Now I'm scared! My nutritionist told me to try and eat and introduce more foods into my diet. I could start soft foods on day 11. She wanted me to start eating meat. I've been eating fish, canned tuna and chicken, and grounded meats. Was she right? Confused!

I think you have to be comfortable with what your nutritionist says. I didn't eat meat until the third week...but that was was what my Dr. told me to do. As long as you trust your Dr. you should follow his directions.

Now I'm scared! My nutritionist told me to try and eat and introduce more foods into my diet. I could start soft foods on day 11. She wanted me to start eating meat. I've been eating fish, canned tuna and chicken, and grounded meats. Was she right? Confused!

I hope I did not scare you. Its just important to follow your Dr. orders. Then you have no regret.

Everyone is different and every doctor has different diets. On the Lap Band website (the manufacturer) they have their recommended diet. It is very conservative. You might want to see if your nutritionist and Dr have the same diet. Do they work together in the same office?

I can't say much about what your diet should be but the topic of this thread is "Did anyone else start eating mushy food earlier than the 3rd week?" It implies that the diet this person is to follow should include mushy food starting in the 3rd week.

As for me my diet was mushy food starting the 3rd week and I don't think I could have gotten mushy food down sooner than that.

I don't know what else to say. I feel bad if I scared you...I wish you well and if you have concerns ask your doctor.

I think the big point of all of this is to do what YOUR doc tells you, not what you read here, or what your aunt edna's best friend did when SHE was banded, or whatever! LOL All docs are different, they have different styles, different experiences, and most often will choose the diet that THEY find works best on their clientele!

PLUS...I believe there is a difference in how the realize and lap band are secured (not a doc). So as long as you are doing what your doc says and you have a good experienced doc who knows what s/he is doing, you will be fine! (another good case for choosing a surgeon with lots of experience).

oh boy, excellent point restless monkey. my doctor has a nutritionist that she was working with - but due to his overload of work sent the overflow of paticents including me to the hospital's nutritionist. She asked me what I thought of the hospitals since they are new to trying it (which tells me she may not know what they recommended). Now I'm a bit nervous. I think I will continue to stay on the conservative side until my first appt with her since surgery.

I was banded on 4/9 and only had to do liquids for 1 day and then I was able to have pureed foods. I can do almost anything just so it is pureed. I go back to the dr's on the 22 and then should be on the soft foods for 4 weeks. Hope then to get my first fill. Must have some swelling because 1/4 cup does fill me up.

I was banded on 4/9 and only had to do liquids for 1 day and then I was able to have pureed foods. I can do almost anything just so it is pureed. I go back to the dr's on the 22 and then should be on the soft foods for 4 weeks. Hope then to get my first fill. Must have some swelling because 1/4 cup does fill me up.

I wonder if that isn't part of the reason you do liquids for 2 weeks so that you get used to a whole new way of eating and portion control? I've been on liquids for 8 days now...another 6 to go.....my hunger pains have gone away and I have to remind myself when it's time to do a Protein shake because I could skip them and probably still not be hungry.....totally new feeling after 20 years of bad eating!

I so feel your pain. I am right there with you. I was banded 4/13/09 so I am right there with you. How long are you on liquids?

I was supposed to be on clear liquids for 2 weeks then full liquids for two weeks. I called the Dr. after 7 days and yelled help. He asked me how I felt and said I could go to full liquids like cream soups. This was wonderful!!. I am now on my 15th day. (Banded April 9th) I went for my first appointment yeasterday and I am still on full liquids but am introducing mushy foods like mashed potatoes, Chicken Salid as well as a few other things. The bottom line to all my rambling is everyone is different. The rules cover extreme cases and are on the safe side. Always talk to your Dr. but he may let you progress faster if he or she thinks you are up to it. But no matter what the answer is follow their advice.

Hey there. We are almost TWINS (ha, ha)..I was banded on the 15th. Yes, liquids for two weeks, so I am edging over a week, but my follow-up w/ doc is Mon and w/ nutritionist is Tues. Even if they don't let me begin mushies until Wed, it will almost be here by then. What about your support team? - friends, family, someone to go for a walk with you, get you away from a McDonald's eating family. Be careful not to let that sabotage you. Keep up your determination. We can do it...all of us. REMEMBER you want to be...

OP Mar 31, 2009. My doc said ok to try pureed on April 10 and then regular on Apr 17 because I was feeling so good and had had little to no pain. Went back to work on the 3rd day.

However he did say that the hospital recommendation is conservative so that some will not get in a bind. He said to experiment with the solid food and see how it goes.

The reason for taking it easy up the food chain is so that you can learn to recognize the language that your device is speaking to you. If you throw too much food bulk at it too soon, you may not learn to recognize what the band is saying to you.

The language it speaks is not the same as a full stomach sensation from previously. I am learning with regular foods slowly. By this I mean that it says different things with different foods.