A bit of realism!

I love my band BUT....

The band is an awesome tool. But that is all it is! Here are some of my thoughts.

1. We don't lose any faster than if we were following a diet like Weigh****chers.
2. We can still eat fattening foods, many of them slide down so very easily.
3. Because we absorb all we eat, our loss depends entirely on the food choices we make.
4. If we eat until we feel pain, we are abusing our bands and storing up potential later problems.
5. If we eat in a way which makes us PB too often - as #4
6. If our band is too tight for too long - as #4
7. Head hunger cannot be eliminated by any surgery! (Except brain surgery!). We need to differentiate between physical and head hunger then we can feed the former and control the latter.

People who do not realise all these things are in for an unhappy ride! More IMO than with any other wls, we have to take responsibilty for our own bodies. Me, I like that! The band is a bit like a Jiminy Cricket conscience for me; sitting on my shoulder whispering in my ear when I get it wrong or am about to get it wrong.

Work with your band and your band will help you lose weight. But most of the effort is yours!

Note:- I am well aware that some people follow all band rules and things still go wrong! I do not always blame the bandster and not the band!! The band is not for everyone!

Kate

You are so right!!  It took me a long time to get a hang of this thing.  For me it was trial and error (and self defeating behavior).  I was under the misconception that the band was a magical thing that would do everything for me.  When I finally stopped relying on my band to do the work...surprise I started to lose weight very fast...I still am.  I lost 13 lbs this month!!!  I do have to say one great thing about the band is after almost 2 years I am losing weight at a rate of 3-4lbs a week...because I exercise my butt off and eat very healthy.  If I had any other surgery my slow learning curve (I'm hard headed) would have came too late and after the "honeymoon" period. 

Well said Kate!  Excellent summary.

I especially like #3.  I know I wouldn't have done as well as I did early on if I hadn't made changes to WHAT I was eating as well as how much.

Just becuase you CAN eat mac and cheese when you're on the soft food phase doesn't mean you should, etc.

For me, moving from packaged, frozen, and fast foods to real, fresh, simple foods made a HUGE difference, not only in how much weight I lost but how much healthier I feel!  Now I'm so used to eating a healthier diet, (most of the time), when I do have something packaged with all the preservatives, sodium, etc. I can really tell a difference.  I feel puffy and sluggish and tired.  I have no science to back it up, but I also think that giving up diet coke and other sodas made a big difference in how I feel and what foods I crave.  When I think about all the chemicals I was ingesting through "diet" soda and other packaged foods?  Ugh!  I've even given up Equal and moved to Stevia, (Truvia brand in the U.S.), which is supposidly natural and better for you.

Taking a little more time to prepare my meals has been totaly worth the extra effort.  I know it made a big difference in my WL journey as well as my health over-all.

Best~
Lisa O.

I agree with you on the natural organic whole foods.  I make my food now rather than pop in a frozen dinner and I can taste and feel the difference.  The chemicals and preservatives in these foods are not really good for you.  Did you know they spray frozen dinners with silicone to help preserve the food!!!   I also stay away from fast food restaurants...they use terrible ingredients in their foods too.  Example is that story this week about Taco Bells meat only being 36% actual meat!!!  That is gross to me,

 I know a lot of people say they don't have time to cook dinner...what I do is throw things in a crock pot and it's done when I get home. 

 Yes, I've decreased the amount of processed food I eat as well and have noticed a huge difference.  
But I appreciate the fact I can still have a slice of homemade cake..and enjoy it once in awhile

Kate you are right :o)

Head  hunger and physical hunger I didnt realize how hard that would be . Oh of course my doc and nutrition girl talked about it , but till you experience it and start dealing with it , it's a whole new ball game lol.

I had to really work on the head hunger part and I think that is why I have went two months post op not getting a fill.   It's not physical hunger I'm feeling but the nasty head hunger .

There is a huge difference between the two.

I know my body can cope with one cup of food now,   I have trained my mind okay this is my one cup of food I am not going to starve and I can have a snack later if I get hungry and most of the time I dont except at nights I do love my night time snack lol and I havent given it up I jus****ch how much and what I eat :o)

My doc has always stated as long as the band keeps you full for three hrs a time then you dont need a fill and that is exactly what the band does for me I can go three to four hrs without being hungry and because Im measuring my food, eating the right choices boom the weight is coming off .  that is why I havent had a fill yet .

Now call me bad but I havent given up my fast food places I do love   But, before I would eat fast food out 5 or 6 times a week pizza 3-4 times a week .  Now I eat fast food out about once every two weeks sometimes once a week because I bowl on a league Tuesday nights and it's my treat night but I watch what I get now.  Instead of eating a Big Mac and large fries I get the grilled chicken without the bread and about 10 fries .  To me that is a treat and its heck alot better then what I was eating before .

Pizza , I love my pizza and I will not give that up but like I said instead of eating it 3-4 times  a week I eat it once every month now .

The band isn't about depriving yourself of foods that you love, the band teaches you , how much to eat of your favorite foods.    I would not enjoy WLS if I had to give up every thing I loved to me that is on a diet and I hate that word because I have always failed at them .

With the band in me I can enjoy my pizza but instead of eating 4-6 slices as I did before I can eat one slice and toppings off another and now 1.5 slices of pizza can keep me full for a good 5-6 hrs :o)

It's all about moderation and that is how I have done it the last two months and I am down 34 pounds losing about 2 pounds per week :o)

Maybe that is why it has been an issue for some people who had to have a revision to another WLS?  I am leaning more towards this one because I feel like all i need is that reminder that I need to stop.  I watched my mom get so sick from eating cheese or ice cream or a tiny piece of cake or a cookie (RNY) and I dont want that.  I don't need to be punished for eating it, just reminded to eat less of it.  I am also going to be seeing a dietician and a psychologist in hopes that they will help me see why I eat when Im probably not hungry so I can work on that and the dietician so that I can learn how to eat properly.  I know there is more to it than slap on the band and the weight will fall off, and I plan to put up a good fight to make sure that I lose the weight and keep it off....with lapbands help    Thank you 

Confusedturtle - I am writing this carefully because i do not want to offend those who genuinely believe they gave the band their all and it just gave them no help. And I am not talking about those who had actual physical problems like slips etc..

I have no doubt whatsoever that some people go into this with unrealistic expectations. They do not understand that this will be hard work.

They post things like "I can still eat everything". Well, yes! So can I! The band does nothing to stop us eating ice cream, drinking alcohol, eating creamy desserts. We can still graze and in that way over-eat. If we take long slow meals, we can just eat, pause, eat, pause and carry on.

An example, my birthday meal last month (over almost 3 hours)
Started with a gin and tonic
I helped my food down by sipping various wines throughout the meal.
Ended with a large port.
Food:-
canapes
lobster and scallops in cream and wine sauce with croutons
medallions of pork in rich jus with buttered veg
grapefruit sorbet palate cleanser
creme brulee with raspberry compote and shortbread
cheeses and crackers
home made petits fours

Calories - about a week's worth!! And I was able because of the way I ate to eat almost all of it!

And sometimes, people say the band hasn't helped them but it must have done something because they tell us that they have never ever been able to lseo weight before but now ahve doen so but despite the band not becuase of it. That doesn't really add up  - why have they been able to do it now?

We are in control. The band helps us to be that way. But we have to make sure we stay in control!

No worries. I did not take anything you (or anyone else) has said out of context.  I am still far from actually having my lap band surgery, so far I am waiting for my appt to get my referral.  I know that I have alot to learn about lap band; how it works, how to work it, how to stay on the right track, things that happen and how to fix them (see a doc LoL).  I know there are complications that are beyond my (or anyones) control and also some complications that I can create either by not following the rules or by not going to the doc when I think there is a problem.  Now that I have made a decision on which WLS I would feel comfortable with, I plan to read and learn as much as I can from everyone in here so that I can do everything in my power to make sure my WLS is a success.  I have plenty of time to learn what to expect and how to deal with it and how to start adjusting my life & eating now so that I will not have a horrible transition into bandlife.  I look forward to learning all I can from you and the many others on this board who have had the WLS and are kicking fats butt and being successful with their band  

Jean's book is worth getting!