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simego

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  1. Some foods are more difficult to eat than others. A lot of people need to be more careful with the "real" foods like meat, chicken, hamburger. I know when I am eating those foods, or trying to eat a sandwich, what helps a lot, even more than a lot of chewing, is taking much smaller bites. Because the bite size really determines how fast you are eating, and you probably are eating a bit faster than you realize, which means not chewing as much as you should. So take small bites, and then put down the burger until well chewed and swallowed. Then pick it up and another small bite. Corn on the cob you're probably not chewing that much, which is ok if it's just a little, but enough of that bunched together and you could get stuck. I've had this. The warning pain (unpleasant feeling) is your time to STOP eating, put the food down until the pain is gone. The salivating is your body's way of trying to digest the food. It happens even before and with the food getting stuck. If you have to eat so slowly that you really never get full, you may be too tight. Good luck.
  2. Thanks Jann, I really liked your post where you said you want to feel the band so that you could make the adjustment. Me too. You look great and also no smoking. WOW! Take care.
  3. Hi BeBe, I know that my response is days after you have posted, but I bet you're still interested in as many answers as you can get. I know EXACTLY what you are experiencing. Except for the part where you have pain the moment you eat. I think that could be a spasm because your body knows what is coming or anticipating the pain. But in terms of your other statements, I would get the horrible "stuck" pain often, several times a day. And I have had four separate episodes of severe stuck pain, that was just beyond terrible. On a scale of 1 to 10, about a 1000. I was emailing people, trying to find out if they had this too. If it's normal. This is what I learned. Most people, if they eat too much, too fast, not well chewed etc. etc., will get episodes of PB or sliming. Some of us, but definitely not most people, get this awful, awful pain. I don't even think it's 10% of people, but there are others. I know in my case, I kept thinking "I ate too fast" or "I didn't chew well." But in retrospect, it was relatively random. I mean it wasn't totally random, I did have to eat a troubling food like chicken for it to happen. But I wasn't chewing less or eating more than many other times when I didn't go through these horrible episodes. I finally went back to OCC last week for a partial unfill. I know it's too soon to say, but what a relief. There is now some correlation between what I am eating and if I have a problem. First I get a warning, like a tightness, or having swallowed a golf ball. So I wait. And after I wait until it passes, as long as I chew well and eat slowly, I know I will be ok. It is a relief I cannot even describe to know that I won't be having a severe problem. Also, in retrospect, and I know this doesn't sound like it makes sense, but here it is. I was favoring soft foods. I know everyone said that was a warning sign to being too tight. But living it, in the moment, it didn't really occur to me. It was my first fill, I figured this is "normal" and this is the way the band works. The fact that my painful episodes seemed pretty random also made me think that it was me not chewing well, not the band too tight. But in retrospect, I was favoring soft foods, almost unconsciously. Also, I was, in anything, gaining weight, because I was getting no satisfaction or full feeling ever from food. Both no physical full feeling and no psychological full feeling. So I literally ate ice cream every single night because I knew it wouldn't hurt and because I was so upset that I couldn't eat any real food and because I was hungry. Finally when I realized that, I thought it was so stupid I should have the band removed. Instead, last week, I had an unfill. And it's much, much better. Now I feel like Jann who said I want to have some control. I want to just feel the band a bit, be aware and make proper adjustments. So to try to answer you exactly, having now been on both sides, NO eating should not hurt. You should be able to eat real food, yes even a small sandwich, with small bites, one at a time, chewing a lot. At most, you should get like a warning, a full uncomfortableness in the middle of your chest which means: STOP and wait. In a few minutes it should subside letting you continue with small bites, well chewed. At times like this I will take a sip, just a sip of water (I AM NOT YOUR DOCTOR!! but this works for me) to wet my mouth, like a lubricant. Like you, I began to think that the way the band was supposed to work was that the pain would cause you never to want to eat, and wow, you would lose weight. But then it backfires because you're so frustrated about food all the time. Turns out that's NOT how it's supposed to work. It's supposed to feel like I just wrote, because I've been on both sides. Good luck.
  4. MamaMichelle, When I went for my first fill at the OCC, Dr. Acosta said my port was tilted. I was banded by Dr. Ortiz, and this was only six weeks post-op and I definitely didn't do anything to exert myself or move the port. Also, the port is still pretty sensitive. I don't know if that is b/c it is tilted, or same for everyone. Anyway, I thought you might want to know that at least one Dr. Ortiz patient has a tilted port, definitely from the surgery, not from any exertion.
  5. I literally had to re-read the name to be sure that (somehow) this wasn't an old posting of mine that was misplaced. I had the same questions. I was banded mid July, so it's only been two months, but for me, the band has been extremely helpful with the head hunger. I felt exactly as you do, I know it's a tool and it's a physical implant and not for the brain. And this is only my experience, but eating has being much less appealing to me. That fact has helped the addiction part. I compare it to a meth addiction. I was literally: where's the needle, just shoot me up, when it came to food, especially sweets. After the band, food is not nearly so pleasant. I would say people don't talk about that part of it so much (maybe it's just taken for granted?) but eating is so much more of an ordeal. It is not pure pleasure. You don't even realize it before you get the band, but even though you eat for emotional reasons, actually, eating is really fun physically. Well, after the band, it's not really that much fun to eat. (sorry, but it's true.) Not to scare you. For me at least, it was totally worth it to give up an addiction that felt out of control. But eating is now 1000% slower, chewing a lot, don't have as much etc. etc. Pain with certain food makes eating that food just not interesting. But in exchange, the addiction feeling is much, much less. For example, last night, we were at a picnic, and I ate a tiny brownie. Like three bites. Not only did I not want more, after I ate it, I realized I didn't even want it in the first place. The band didn't stop me physically, and I'm very, very far from perfect. But the head hunger is quite a bit less. It's like this thing that only felt great before (eating) is now this thing that doesn't feel so good (eating.) For me it's been worth it, but it is an adjustment in that (cliche) your relationship with food will change.
  6. I agree with both of you. It WOULD be appealing if I could eat more, but it's such a hassle, it's so much less appealing. I don't want to eat more b/c of the pain, but I remember wanting to eat more, just that it's not for me.
  7. Thank you so much for taking the time to write and post this. Many of us appreciate it! Do you know if I park next to the border, is it obvious how to walk across the border and catch a cab? Lori posted the location of a parking garage right near the border and I thought I would park there and walk over. Have you seen folks do that? Thanks, simego.
  8. Why is it so important to wait as long as possible for first fill?
  9. Do you remember how it felt post-op? I am five days out and most of the time, or at least a lot of the time, I feel this tightness in the middle of my chest. It's not really related to drinking anything, it's just mostly there or randomly comes back. It's pretty painful; maybe a 5/10 on a pain scale. Did you have this? Is this just how the band feels? Does this sound normal to you? I'm not worried about any other medical issues or anything, it's clearly from the procedure/band, but it's more than I expected. I guess I thought the band was more or less painless if you don't overeat. I am not overeating or anything. Today I just had water and three protein shakes all day. Probably only 500 calories total. I this #1) normal post-op #2) temporary #3) how long does it last. I guess I'm mostly scared that this is how the band feels all the time. From all my reading on the lapbandforum I really didn't pick up having this much (and fairly continuous) post-op pain. Thanks,
  10. Thank you Phoenix. Although even Vicoden is not really helping. It's just kind of scary (in addition to hurting.) It is reassuring to hear that it is the band/surgery, and just the way it is supposed to be now. In your case, how long did this pain last? And is that what it will feel like when we get a fill? Thanks.
  11. Julie, do you remember about your post op pain? Do you remember if you felt this tightness a lot of the time in the middle of your chest? Is that the band? It's not related to anything I'm drinking, it's just there or just randomly comes and goes. Thanks for your help.
  12. Thank you for your answer. I know you were banded back in 2006, but do you remember if you felt this tightness a lot of the time in the middle of your chest? Is that the band? It's not related to anything I'm drinking, it's just there or just randomly comes and goes. Thanks for your help. Also, I've already been really active.
  13. I was banded five days ago. May I ask you a question about the gas pain? I have this sharp, intermittent pain around my left collarbone. It just comes on randomly, lasts only ?few seconds/half a minute and goes away. Keeps happening. It's fairly severe. Is this the gas pain?
  14. I was banded five days ago. May I ask you a question about the gas pain? I have this sharp, intermittent pain around my left collarbone. It just comes on randomly, lasts only ?few seconds/half a minute and goes away. Keeps happening. It's fairly severe. Is this the gas pain?
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