Hi there. I was banded exactly two weeks ago tomorrow. I was on three Protein shakes and two small meals a day (2 cups salad and 4 ounces meat) for two weeks before, then liquids for two weeks after. I just got my pureed and soft foods diet on Friday, so I am new at eating real food. I have had salmon and about three teaspoons of mashed potato, Soup, and I had a few grilled shrimp for lunch today with a little baked potato. All of those are on my list, and I used very small bites, my knife more than I ever have, and felt fine.

I am wondering about the people that say they have no restriction. How do they know? When I ate my salmon, I ate only about 4 ounces. It was so good. I did not try and get full, I just ate until it started to feel like I might get full. I did the same way with the shrimp. Isn't everyone afraid to try and eat like they usually did? I had the rest of my salmon for Breakfast this morning, and even heated up it was heavenly. I would be terrified to try and eat breads and things like I used to. I know that the doctor put in a small fill already, but I have no idea how much. I don't go back to see him until the 24th....

One other question....when you eat soup, should you eat it really slow or limit the amount to a small amount? I am having cream of chicken soup for dinner tonight, and I don't have to strain it because I can now have the small peices. Will that stretch my pouch? I am still not sure about how to eat and when and where....help. I have been stopping drinking fifteen minutes before and for 30 minutes after, which is what I am supposed to do on this stage. But isn't soup drinking? Please, answer the questions oh wise experienced bandsters! :0) Thanks so much! :tongue2:

I am wondering about the people that say they have no restriction. How do they know? When I ate my salmon, I ate only about 4 ounces. It was so good. I did not try and get full, I just ate until it started to feel like I might get full. I did the same way with the shrimp. Isn't everyone afraid to try and eat like they usually did? I had the rest of my salmon for breakfast this morning, and even heated up it was heavenly. I would be terrified to try and eat breads and things like I used to. I know that the doctor put in a small fill already, but I have no idea how much. I don't go back to see him until the 24th....

One other question....when you eat soup, should you eat it really slow or limit the amount to a small amount? I am having cream of chicken soup for dinner tonight, and I don't have to strain it because I can now have the small peices. Will that stretch my pouch? I am still not sure about how to eat and when and where....help. I have been stopping drinking fifteen minutes before and for 30 minutes after, which is what I am supposed to do on this stage. But isn't soup drinking? Please, answer the questions oh wise experienced bandsters! :0) Thanks so much!

1. Especially at this stage, when you learning to eat much smaller meals and when your band may not be holding your food for any significant time, it's very smart to measure, imo. The biggest indicator at this stage - if you're measuring -that you have little restriction is the quick return of hunger after a meal. So, often, it's not so much people are overeating or choosing foods that are not on their approved list that lets them know they have very little or no restriction, it's the quick return of hunger after eating that they're battling at this stage. That's not to say that some people aren't overeating, but it's not always the case.

About two weeks before I had my first fill, I began getting hungry between meals. My doctor wanted me to be sure I kept my meals smaller than one cup and that my snack was more of a heavy Protein rather than something snackish like a SF Popsicle.

2, Unless it's a very thick soup, I would consider it a liquid with calories. Depending on how tight your band is at this point, if it's not a real thick soup, it's going to go through like any other liquid. A broth based soup would be more like a liquid, but the soup you're eating sounds like a soft food to me. Hopefully, you have instructions from your doctor, but I was supposed to have 1/2 cup meals, even during the soft food stage.

*You're doing a great job and being very careful about you meals. It'll pay off in the long run.

It's good that you have the mindset about being afraid of doing something wrong! I felt the same way, and it helped me to stay on the straight & narrow.

At some point, I did figure out that I had no restriction. I think that happened after I was on solid foods. I was hungry (. . and it was around Thanksgiving. . ) and I could pretty much eat anything. BUT, I controlled myself to large extent. Still, I did put on about 5 pounds during "bandster hell." And, then I lost those 5 and many more!

On the soup front, I made a few Soups from scratch so that I could tell what I was eating (and had band-friendly food to bring to work for lunch). I put individual portions in those Ziplock containers and froze them. So, I controlled portion size that way, and it worked out well.

BTW, if you are interested I have 3 or 4 soup recipes (with photos) posted on my blog that I really liked. If you try any of them out, let me know how it goes!

Catherine

Thanks so much. I can't wait to try the spicy soup. I am very inspired by your blog. You've come a long way, and I know it has changed your life. Way to go!