hi all im china i have been lerking around here i do come here some times. well here is my problem i got bandie in 12/08 and lost great before and some afterwards. i fell off the wagon when i felt i wasnt lossing as much as my mind thought i should be lossing. i think i gave you. started eating sweets some hell more than i should. droped my excerise workout from 5days a wk to 2-3. now i got a fill and just trying to get back on track.

and for the first time im scared that i cant. its been 2 days and i feel restriction for sure as i did try and eat and got sick so im back on liquids and thats fine for now. i joined over eaters ann. and go to my first meeting tonite. i feel excited about this move i just made. but, feel funny cuz im starting over. i to have alot of weight to lose and just gotta get on the rigth track. any suggestion on how to do that.

my problem is the food part. im good with the work out part im going to start back working out 4 days a wk and walking at the park 3days a wk our park here is 3.2miles

so im good there. and i have an appointment w/ the nutricionist soon. so im getting there.

I don't know what size band you have etc...but I can tell you with 100% honesty that once you finally get restriction and hit what they call on here "the sweet spot" (my doc calls it the "green zone") it is a whole new way of life. I have lost over 1/2 of my total loss to date since 5/7 when I FINALLY hit restriction.

I won't diet and use sites like the daily plate because I become so darned obsessed with food. That's not why I got the band. I want to be FREE of thinking about it, not over concerned with it, and when I "diet" I think about food all the time. Now I truly go hours.

The first night I realized this I was up very late and around 2 am I thought "Wow something's wrong with my stomach. About then it growled and I thought OMG I"m HUNGRY" LOL sounds so silly, doesn't it? But I'd eaten my meal at 8pm and hadn't even thought about food (or a snack) since then. It had been right at 6 hours! I thought "HALLELUJAH! I'm FREE!" LOL and most days that is the way it goes. If I choose filling nutritious foods for my meals I am not hungry for hours. Makes it easy to pass up the bad stuff. Who eats thinking "I want this so I can be hungry again in an hour" ? No one.

It'll happen for you and if you are a good dieter and can diet without becoming a raving lunatic like I do, then just watch your calorie intake . Either way, restriction will most likely change things up for you in a big way.

:thumbdown: Hey Restless,

What is your "sweet spot"? And also, I don't really understand "hitting restriction" either. HELP!

Scout I'm a little confused...because I'm sure you know what restriction is...it's what makes the band work. Is it just the way I phrased it that is confusing? I don't mind explaining myself but what I think you're asking (about restriction) is really basic band knowledge...so I want to make sure I'm answering what you are asking! :thumbdown:

Scout I'm a little confused...because I'm sure you know what restriction is...it's what makes the band work. Is it just the way I phrased it that is confusing? I don't mind explaining myself but what I think you're asking (about restriction) is really basic band knowledge...so I want to make sure I'm answering what you are asking! :thumbdown:

Restless,

I think there is a whole lot of basic band knowledge that I wasn't given--no, I didn't understand when you said "5/7 when I finally hit restriction". My dr told me I would feel full like in the top of my stomach, but I have never felt that, I just get this big lump in the back of my throat and have to stop eating, sometimes it goes away and sometimes I have throw up what I've eatten. My dr said I would have a slgnal when I need to stop, but it's been one bite is fine and the next bite may turn into the big lump. Throwing up scares me that I might damage my band or make it slip. So, I appreciate your time, and going to the trouble to explain it to me.

Thanks,

Scout

Please understand then when I say this because I TRULY mean it kindly. We all have to learn! Maybe you should get a book or two on lap banding (half price books probably has some; I went on amazon.com and bought a couple that were highly rated) since your surgeon (no seminar? no education on how the band works?) has not helped you through this. It's a medical device that, for good or ill, is IN you until/unless you have it removed so a little research on your part will help fill in the gaps obvbiously left by your surgeon.

When I said "hitting restriction" I'm referring to the action of tightening the band with saline via our ports.

My band was placed with only some "primer" in it and my surgeon has slowly over the months added a little at a time until on May 7 that "fill" or adding of the saline brought my cumulative total to a point where I have restrictions on what and how much I can eat, and how long I stay full. Prior to that, although I ate LESS than preband, I could and did eat too much for sustained weight loss. Once my band was tight enough to sufficiently delay the emptying of food from my upper to my lower pouch (hitting "restriction" as I called it) my weight loss has skyrocketed, and my appetite has plummeted. I now eat a very small amount of food and am satisfied and not hungry for about 6 hours. Prior to hitting that "spot" I was hungry much earlier and ate more.

THAT "hitting restriction" as I called it is also called "The sweet spot" by some. My doc's office has a poster that calls it "the green zone". If I may quote directly from that poster "Not hungry. Good weight loss. Portion Control. Patient satisfaction". I didn't have that prior to this last fill. I was still in the "yellow zone"..."hungry between meals, eating large portions, not losing weight".

Since your doc won't educate you, while we will certainly help you here, you are safest to do some independent research (like going to the lap band web site if that is the type of band you have, and maybe reading some books...even a library should have some) so you'll be informed and able to use your tool (and watch for problems!) for years to come.

AND...the throwing up you are doing is referred to on here as "PBing" (P B for productive burp) which happens usually when we don't chew well, or take too large a bite, or overfill our pouches by overeating. The bite of food can't go through the band (either because it isn't chewed, is too large, or your pouch is already full) and it has to go somewhere. Most of us spit it back up, or "PB". Usually that is accompanied by a bit of mucous (called "slime" on this board) which is our body's way of trying to lubricate the offending food to move it OUT of there.

While PB isn't like vomiting (no stomach acid or bile is involved) it isn't good to do it a lot because it can mess with your band over time. Check to make sure you are chewing very very well and taking small bites of food.

For many of us, drinking while we eat can also cause that "too full" sensation and a PB, so either for that reason or because of some body of data that indicates drinking while eating can wash food through (and negate the band) most of us are told to refrain from drinking for up to 1 hour (time varies) or MORE after meals.

If I were you I really would use the guide lines on the official lap band web site.

Restless Monkey,

Thank you so much for that information :thumbdown:. I will certainly do some more research. I had wondered about all that slime! I have a newly developed band and I think my dr said it holds 10cc (is that possible). I had no fill until 3 wks after surgery, then he filled it 3.6 cc, this made me unable to keep my meds (or anything but liquids) down--I take 35 perscription meds--a big reason for being banded was to get off some of these meds and stop my 4 insulin shots a day. So at my 6 wk visit, his assistant took .6cc out and I did much better. At my 9 wk visit she decided to not do another fill, but his assistant said she thought it was too loose, I agree. She also wanted me to see my dr for the next fill. The earliest appt I could get with him is July 7th and I will be glad to get another fill--presently I can eat way too many things that I shouldn't and I still have head hunger. Yes, my dr told me I should not drink until 1-1 1/2 hours after I eat, and I have been following that rule religiously. My blood sugar has also been a big problem--when I eat right it bottoms out and then I have to eat carbs to bring it back up. Anyway, I know I do not chew enough and I am really working on that. Starting today I plan to do the 5 Day Pouch Test--that plan is specifically to get you back on track. You all might want to check it out at www.5daypouchtest.com I discovered it from reading the Chat on this forum. I have gotten a lot of new info (new for me) from that site. Again, Thanks!

Scout

hey jeff thought i would come and update you went to my dr today for a check up and i lost 6lbs according to there scale. it feels good to see the scale moving again. so i guess the fill was needed and doing its part so now im gonna work hard and do mine. just wanted to say thanks for the support.

I'm so HAPPY! for you! I'll do a happy dance! :redface:

So glad it worked out and 6 more pounds is awesome!

Hang in there and stay in touch, ok? :biggrin:

thanks and i will keep in tough an you do the same.

I'm so HAPPY! for you! I'll do a happy dance! :tongue2:

So glad it worked out and 6 more pounds is awesome!

Hang in there and stay in touch, ok?

thought i would update you i went to the wlc on tuesday and i have lost 10lbs in 2wks and 3days. i feel happy about that.

China, glad to hear you are doing so well. Keep up the good work! Work it ....work it.... goes along with your dancing happy things in your post!!

thanks so much specialk and yes it does go with it. and i am workin it out honey.:thumbup::drool:

China, glad to hear you are doing so well. Keep up the good work! Work it ....work it.... goes along with your dancing happy things in your post!!