Hi

I have a few questions; I have been banded for 6 days…..

Why do some people say things get stuck? Is it because you don’t chew good enough? Do you know if the food gets struck? How do you get it unstuck? How do things get stuck?

Why can’t some people not eat nuts, seeds and noodles?

What about breads and peanut butter?

Really curious, thanks for your help!!!

I have only been banded for 3 months, and have yet to have any trouble with foods or getting anything stuck, however i will tell you what I know. I know that everyone handles different food differently. But I do think that if you eat slowly and take small bites and chew chew chew you should be able to tolerate most anything. Some/most people are tighter in the morning, therefore can tolerate more things as the day goes on and less in the morning. I have not tried bread yet, I am a little scared, but some people can tolerate it, some can't. I think that as long as you proceed with caution with anything you eat you should be ok, but everyone is different and there may be some things that you just can't tolerate. I think as long as you are aware of that and do everything on your end to make sure you are eating correctly you should be fine. I try to take the positive road and take it day by day and step by step.

Hi

I have a few questions; I have been banded for 6 days…..

Why do some people say things get stuck? Is it because you don’t chew good enough? Do you know if the food gets struck? How do you get it unstuck? How do things get stuck?

Why can’t some people not eat nuts, seeds and noodles?

What about breads and Peanut Butter?

Really curious, thanks for your help!!!

OK I cant talk for everyone because all of us are a bit different and our bands act different in us. BUT I have No problem with nuts and seads...these work really well for me. Same with Peanut butter. Noodles I can usualy do. unless I am trying to eat too many to fast. Then I fill up pretty quick till they go down. Bread...well I can have bread...IF it is really toasted. But I usualy dont have it because it takes too long to go thru the band.

As for being stuck...once again everyone is different. But I get stuck when I try to eat too fast...when I am TOO hungry...when I forget to chew completly...Or I try to eat something that I know wont go thru the band...for me that is pork chops or thick meat.

And you WILL know when your stuck...I start to produce lots of saliva and I have an achie feeling in my upper chest...like I swallowed a pill that didnt go down (pre banded) And I burp...a lot. Or I will get the hiccups...and my nose will run. lol Sounds great right? But it is a physical reminder to myself that I cant shovel anything in my mouth anymore.

Most of the time the food will pass on its own...it just takes time...if I really didnt chew or I have something that is too big to be desolved or I am creating too much saliva/slime for my body to handle then I will PB (productive Burp something like throwing up but with no stomach acids) Most of the time it will pass on its own though...I just have to be patient with it.

I hope this helps.

You won't get the stuck sensation until you have had some fills. Prefill you are normally able to eat anything.

Getting stuck can be because of eating too fast, not chewing properly, too big a bite, eating too much or some food that YOUR band doesn't like.Before being filled we practice small bites etc but I don't think we get it entirely right until after we have been stuck and experienced for ourselves!

I read about getting stuck and was convinced that i would be able to eat properly so that it would never happen to me! Of course I was wrong and have experienced it a number of times.

Thanks for all the wonderful replys and mail I have received!!!

GUESS WHAT I went for my week checkup today and have lost 17lbs!!! I didnt think I had lost any, it has been a horrible week, I am straving. I just hope the weight keeps coming off!!!

Post Restless Monkey described it well. Take a plastic bag and squeeze it up to a small opening. That's pretty much what your band does. That in turn will pull down on the area where your esophagus attaches to your stomach. As you get more fills, this effect is a bit more pronounced. If you eat too fast, take bites that are too big, or don't chew well, the food likely will not make the traverse from the esophagus into the stomach easily (or at all, occasionally). And, yes, you will know if you are stuck. It is quite uncomfortable and sometimes even painful.

You can't really make it move. DON'T take a drink of Water, because that will just sit on top of the stuck food. Move around, stand up very straight with your arms over your head and move your arms some. This works sometimes. If you start "sliming" -- producing alot of salive/mucus -- that is to smooth the way for the stuck food to move. Sometimes it will go on down into your stomach. Sometimes it comes back up. When it comes back up, that's a productive burp. That is NOT vomiting.

Bread, in particular, can be a problem. take a slice of white bread and take a chunk out of the center of the slice and squish around with your fingers. It makes a sort of doughball. Something similar can happen when you chew it up. And that ball can sit at the top of your stomach. I can eat bread, but slowly and in very small bites. Toast, crackers, croutons .... that's different because they are not soft.

I don't think I PB'd or really got stuck until somewhat recently. I'm 5 months out now. In the first few months my band was kinda loose I suppose.

Anyway- I have found that if I get stuck, I can reach my arms above my head (as mentioned in prev post), but also if I stretch really well, then touch my toes, or sometimes even do jumping jacks (just a few) as recommended by my doctor.

Lisa

If I bend over when stuck not only will I PB but it will try to come out my nose...so I am really careful to NOT bend over when stuck...that is something when you experience once you NEVER want to do again.

Really? It works very well for me, but I stretch very slowly. I guess everyone's body reacts differently. Maybe if my band were tighter, I could see how food may come up when you bend- but luckily I haven't had that happen.

Well, stretching my arms over my head helps quite a bit as welll.