(after reading the 'pissed' thread and a quite a few other threads)...

If I'm still going to have to diet...and still going to be hungry while doing so...what is the point of getting the lap band??

I *assumed* based on the research I've done for the past several years that the lap band would create a smaller 'stomach' allowing me to eat less and have a feeling of fullness and without the hunger that I get now when I eat less.

Did I get it wrong?

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It is a million dollar question. I thought the same thing before I had my band put in on May 20, 2008. I did not realize prior to my having my band placed that it would take away my cravings for food. That I would actually feel full and satisfied for the first time in my life on a small portion.

Unfortunately, my band slipped this past summer and I had to have it removed. My appetite has returned full force and so has my increased desire for food. I am in the process of requesting a new band. I really miss it. Its a powerful tool. I did not realize it until I unexpectedly lost it.

The band helped me put food in perspective and in its place. For most of my life, food ruled me. To me it was heaven to eat absolutely anything I wanted with the band but with a very small portion and to feel satisfied afterwards.

It was also amazing to me that after the band, I felt it was easy to make good food choices when you can eat only a very small portion. My taste and smell changed. Things that dazzled me, didn't any more. A Protein shake was something to look forward to.

Probably one of the best parts of all is that I saved a ton of money by not overeating. I had to get a completely new wardrobe, new shoes (my shoe size shrank), etc., which probably offset the money spent on food. All in all it changed my life to a much higher plane with losing 85 pounds.

I guess what I am trying to say is that its hard to imagine something like a belt wrapped around your stomach could help that much but for those of us who have suffered long and hard struggling with food and having it call out to us, its nice to know that there is something out there that cuts your appetite down to size and makes you enjoy your food with a smaller amount. It doesn't sound like much to someone who doesn' t have a problem with food but to me it was a tremendous gift and I want it BACK.

yes, that is exactly the way surgeons describe it....head hunger. I am here to tell you that it is not head hunger. Try going 4 weeks with barely enough nutrition to keep you alive with zero restriction from the band. (in fact, you can't even tell you have a band at all) then tell me that the throbbing headache, the inability to stay asleep at night because of the severe hunger, the times your stomach is growling so loud that you can't even sit through a church service, the irritability that just won't get any better isn't because you are starving. Believe me, i never had experienced true, ongoing severe hunger before. It is not pleasant.

This was what i was asked to do. You might try this yourself while you are still pre-op because there probably will be very little difference once you are banded. See if you can do it because you are going to have to do it post op. Okay, try to stay around 600-700 calories with 40 carbs or so. You must drink at least 2 Protein drinks. Those will run about 450-500 calories for the 2. So you now have about 100 calories to play with...maybe some chicken broth....maybe some 10 calorie sugar fee Jello....or maybe a 15 calorie sugar free popsicle. At the end of the day, are you hungry? If you are, maybe it is just head hunger.

I may sound like a real downer, but i swear i wish someone would have set me straight when i was still pre-op. I hope i would have listened. This has been one of the hardest things i have ever done.

Once again....it is not head hunger!

very true!!!!!!

The band is NOT a magic wand! It is a weight loss tool only. You will still have to work hard to lose the weight but it can be done. After the swelling goes down, you may experience hunger. It may be head hunger or it could be real hunger. It's different for each person. Once you get your fills and reach the sweet spot, it will be much better for you.

I haven't gotten to my sweet spot yet but I believe what the others have said and am looking forward to it. I refuse to give up. I want to be healthier and off all these meds I have to take.

Do what your doctor says and work hard to eat less with the right kinds of foods. You'll be okay.

The band is NOT a magic wand! It is a weight loss tool only. .

I don't think anyone here has even come close to suggesting that it is a magic wand. We *know* it's a tool but in order for it to be an effective tool, it needs to actually work and not be used as some sort of mental placebo.

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EffiePoo: Unforunately, there are posters that think just because they got the band, it will magically make them lose weight w/o all the hard work that is required. It just isn't so.

You have to use a tool of any kind in the right way for it to work properly.

EffiePoo: Unforunately, there are posters that think just because they got the band, it will magically make them lose weight w/o all the hard work that is required. It just isn't so.

You have to use a tool of any kind in the right way for it to work properly.

I absolutely agree but it also sounds like for some of these people, their doctors aren't using the tool in the right way. They're sticking a band on these people and then expecting them to lose weight sans restriction...as if the presence of the band is a magic wand.

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I absolutely agree but it also sounds like for some of these people, their doctors aren't using the tool in the right way. They're sticking a band on these people and then expecting them to lose weight sans restriction...as if the presence of the band is a magic wand.

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I agree too. Whenever I mention to anyone that I went to a Mexican Dr. I get so much flack. However after reading a number of posters here, I think there are some State side Docs who are clearly not doing their job. I got a really good one and I feel grateful.

AWESOME~ That's how I feel. Thanks for sharing that. Made my day.

I feel like the 50 times I started WW and the 1,000,000 other diets that I have tried and failed at were training for my LAP-BAND®. I know how to eat right and what to do to lose weight, I just needed that final tool...the one that would put me over the edge. I still have to eat right and exercise, but now it isn't taking every ounce of my willpower to get through another day. I just eat what I should eat and that's good until my next meal. I truly feel like my LAP-BAND® has not only made me lose more weight than in the previous 35 years I have been on a diet, but I am beginning to think I am a better person in general. Needless to say, after I reached reasonable restriction with my LAP-BAND®, I love it unconditionally.

Congratulations! I wonder how unique your situation is as I have never heard anyone else say that it took away their cravings and hunger.

Hope you have more success.

For me the band has been awesome! It's not about being on a "diet",for me it's about eating better, healthier and less food. It's all about using the band to help you make those choices. When I first had my surgery I wondered what I'd done to myself. But I was over that by the 4th week. When I went to the store and actually found a pair of jeans and could wear them--I was so excited. Has it been easy? No of course not. You have to want to do this and want to be a better, healthier person. You have to be willing to work hard for it and yes you may be a little hungry (not many times like that for me) sometimes but it hasn't been so bad for me. I know everyone is different but this has really truly worked for me and I couldn't be happier with my band. I follow what I'm supossed to eat to the letter except I do drink orange juice (I get the not from concentrate kind) it still has sugar but I have to have it! It hasn't seemed to bother me any. I believe we have to allow ourselves something and that's my one thing. I also have a strawberry milk sometimes. This works for me.

The only thing I would say to you is to realize that it's work and be willing to commit to that before the surgery. My friend had this surgery a month before I did, complained the whole time she was recouperating and ate really bad things while recovering. She still does and has only lost 6 pounds. That's her choice but mine is to use this band to help me and so far I have. Good luck with your decision and your surgery if you choose to have it.

For me the band has been awesome! It's not about being on a "diet",for me it's about eating better, healthier and less food. It's all about using the band to help you make those choices.

The only thing I would say to you is to realize that it's work and be willing to commit to that before the surgery. My friend had this surgery a month before I did, complained the whole time she was recouperating and ate really bad things while recovering.

Thank you, Missy. That is what I expect the band to do and what I expected I would have to do. I know it may seem like I'm looking at the negative, but I want to make sure I go into this eyes wide open.

Admittedly, I just went through "Bandster Hell" and had I read that post, I would have seen it coming haha.

Today is a much better today though, my blog post last night (blog link below) was pretty horrible!

Protein is definitely the key to my success too. I'm 2 wks post-surgery and the day when I don't drink my 3rd shake, I get a little frustrated with life in general. I'm definitely going to be sticking to the 3 shakes daily. :thumbup: At least until I can get my protein elsewhere.

Tomorrow I start my pureed foods - yay! I don't think I have restriction, as I never feel "full", but I say that and I can't quite say I've been starving or hungry either. Just maybe once? It's interesting, but so far, I love my band.

Good luck!

Thank you, Missy. That is what I expect the band to do and what I expected I would have to do. I know it may seem like I'm looking at the negative, but I want to make sure I go into this eyes wide open.

Then you have to do just what you're doing now....ask the right questions.

Will the band help you to feel more satisfied on smaller portions? Yes. But where people get confused is the line between physical hunger and head hunger. Few, if any, of us got to be obese by stopping eating when our stomachs were physically full. Over a period of time, we "reset" our hunger level. What the band has helped me to see is that there is a big difference between "full" and "not hungry". Eating until you are full implies that you can't hold any more, that you've stuffed enough food in the belly to the point that there is no more room. Eating until you're not hungry is just that.

IMO, most (but not all) people that have problems w/ the band use their band in a way not intended. They expect the band to physically make them stop eating, and they are constantly challenging their band to see how much they can eat without feeling out of sorts. Successful bandsters take the opposite approach....they see how little they can eat and not feel hungry for 4-5 hours. To the poster that was complaining about hunger waking her up and causing her physical pain, I'd say "If you're hungry, then eat".

Another big part of banded life is eating healthy foods and exercise. But then again, that's a big part of ANY weightloss surgery or diet plan. The bottom line of losing weight, no matter what method chosen is you have to burn more calories than you take in. Are there bandsters that lose weight without exercise? I have no doubt there are. But attacking the problem on ALL fronts is a much more efficient way to go.

Ok, I've written so much that I feel like I'm rambling, and that would be counter-productive, so I'm quitting before everybody nods off, lol.

Yeah! What Plain said.