I decided to give you all a gift (LOL, or you may consider this a white elephant) as my 'thanks' to you (in celebration of the Holidays), the only way I know how…with words. I so hope this will help someone. Thank you all for your support and advice!
WARNING- A thesis paper follows (if you thought the last one was long LOL), as I pulled some things from the book, and I probably won't leave this up long because of that. I'd appreciate your thoughts/questions, and I'd like those of you who have been at your Sweet Spot for awhile and have had time to start processing all this to tell me if you feel the same/different?
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Friday, November 19, 2010
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14 comments:
I am totally with you about the hunger control. I don't think that is emphasized enough- the band is only effective when the brain gets the message, I'm full.
I never thought hunger was an issue and I feared I would fail the band because of it...wrong! I just don't feel hungry or care about food when the band is nice and snug. And, yes, its kind of easy.
Great post, although thesis long!
I couldn't agree more about the trigger foods. I don't have a problem 99.9% of the time regardless of the foods I have around.
Great post!
OMG, I soooooo needed this lecture. What great words of wisdom. I sooooooo need a fill. I didn't think I needed one, in fact I canceled an appointment in November and said aw, that's OK, lets wait until January. I was so wrong and I couldn't recognize it. I think I may call my doc's office yet today. Ugh! Thanks for the slap in the face today, it was just what I needed.
Hey BG, I just wanted to say I could not agree more with you about EVERYTHING you said in your post today.
I don't know if you remember that we both started this LB journey together around the same time (April 2009). I have been following your blog since, what I have noticed in the past year and a half is that when you were losing weight and reaching your milestones, so was I. I even believe we were at our sweet spot around the same time too. Now Im in the same position of gaining weight, then I maintained- the gained 15lbs, now I am gaining again because I got an unfill 2 weeks ago (due to acid reflux)...since then I have gained another 5lbs. Now Im up a total of 20lbs from my lowest weight... this has gotten really HARD. My question is- do you think this is all about timing? that once we reached a certain period in our timeline, it all of a sudden turns?! Can we ever reach the sweet spot again? idk, but thanks so much your post has helped me not feel so alone in this, thanks, I hope we can turn this back around.
-Isabella
You are right-- at least that's what I think. Dr. Ren, who is pretty great (my surgeon) says the same: it should be EASY. Making it easy is getting to the elusive sweet spot.
I think maybe thinking of it as a 'sweet stop' is better though, implying that it is a stop and then it comes and goes-- that's why a life-long relationship with your surgeon is a really important thing!!
Thanks guys!
Isabella, Hey April Bunny, glad to hear from you! I certainly think many journey's can take the same path, but I've also learned that SO much of this is in our Doc's hands with fills/Sweet Spot. I've certainly seen a tendency for 'bounce back' after reaching goal, but I've also seen the same thing when we reach milestones (I wrote about my two longest plateaus; first after reaching Onederland, second reaching 160-a number I was never able to bust in my early years of dieting down).
I have NO intention of not reaching my sweet spot again, even if it takes 10 tiny tweaks...and I KNOW it's possible as most Banders have to keep retargeting as they go (and the fat under the Band shrinks)...so don't doubt it.
I've got lots to say about reflux, but here's where I am at the moment. I have NO reflux since the unfill/partial refill (off my med), and I'm not at my S.S. Diane has reflux again and she's at hers. Reflux, for many of us is just a trade off for proper restriction, and one I'm willing to have. As long as the reflux can be controlled and you don't have any problems with it, then I'll take Nexium forever, if that's what it takes (I still have a few questions for my PCP about long-term use, but I think it's OK). It is a PPI and stops acid production so it's not just masking the symptoms, it's solving the problem (unresolved reflux is NOT something I'm willing to trade for though as it can lead to esophageal cancer). Ask your Doc about taking something and get that S.S. back!
Stay in touch (my email on the bar here if you want to talk)! -BG
"trust me, gnawing hunger doesn't disappear when you're using a hot glue gun…"
THANK YOU for saying that! I was discussing the possibility of LB surgery with my PCP the other day (I'm in month 4 of my 6 month "diet") and she said a lot of things that offended me.
I told her I was hungry all the time, despite eating the right things (fiber, protein, whole grains) and that, despite losing 20 pounds in the last 4 months, I feel like I'm white-knuckling it and barely hanging on due to this EVER PRESENT hunger. She suggested that perhaps I was bored and should find a hobby. Like I'm too dumb to know the difference between real hunger and "head hunger." It's so frustrating. I am really hungry. Why is that so hard for skinny health professionals to understand?
Yes, I'm guilty of eating out of boredom on occasion but in the last 4 months I'm focused on discerning the difference and I honestly believe I'm truly H-U-N-G-R-Y.
She said she would support me if I really wanted to get LB surgery (I take that to mean she'll sign the paper when I hand it to her in a few months, lol) but that she had lots of patients who "gained it right back." Her words were not encouraging at all.
The timing of your post was great, I really needed to hear that LB can tame that gnawing ever-present hunger monster. :)
Wow -- so much great info in one place. Can't wait until your book comes out!
The farther out we get from surgery and the more used to the band we become the easier it is to forget the one huge big thing: hunger management. Before surgery, I considered hunger control a dream come true. Now sometimes I don't really even think of it and when I reach for an unplanned snack a couple of hours after eating, if I were to ask myself if I was hungery, the answer would be a "no" 99% of the time. Having our hunger under control is so fabulous it is hard to describe -- it's good for us to be reminded of this.
When I'm not ravenously hungery, it is so much easier to choose better foods and to eat less.
Have a great Thanksgiving!
Sooooo happy to find your blog. I am in the beginning stages of my journey. My first surgeon consult is the Monday after Thanksgiving. I wish your book was out now, I'd buy it in a heartbeat! ;) Off to read more of your blog!
I agree with you entirely about the weight-loss should be easy part when you find your sweet spot. I've written about that on my blog too. On the other hand, I disagree with you about the snacking. If you're eating LOTS less, as you are apt to do with the band, then you should be MORE inclined to snack and be hungry sooner. I snack all the time, but only teeny tiny little bits. That's been my experience though, and I understand that every bander is different. Congrats on finding your sweet spot!!
Christine
www.phoenixrevolution.net
BG, you are the BEST! I am so grateful you are in my life today I read your blog everyday. If it is not a new blog I re-read the post again and again. Thank you for all of the help along my LB journey.
Easy for some is not so easy for others! It really does come down to the Timing and FOOD choices we all make.
EASY
E- Eat a Little
A- Always
S- Say
Y- YES to Veggies
At the beginning eating PROTEIN is so key and now that I have been at this forever and a day I eat more veggies as they keep me full longer. My body needs to work to processes them. I eat anywhere from 40 to 60 grams of protein still, but the complex vegetables (Carbohydrates) is what my body needs. Not Bread, starches and sugars these are the SIMPLE Carbohydrates we do not need so much of.
This is when it is or becomes EASY for me and all band rules apply.
When I make a poor choice in food selection then eat it my body retaliates and I have gas, feel sluggish, have acid reflux and other LB issues we all read about.
When I eat foods like chocolate or high in fat and sugar foods my body reacts negatively to what I ate.
I think I have been at my sweet spot for sometime now. I can tell because my weight has stayed the same, I do go up as much as five pounds but that is because I choose the wrong foods. I have been experimenting with my body and eating habits for about five months now. I feel I have been extremely successful. The pounds drop off when I make better choices.
Head Hunger is a monster within.
I must stay on a time routine for meals and I must stick to it or my body will react in ways I choose to forget. If I eat too late at night I have problems sleeping. If I do not get enough water I have elimination issues. l am experimenting with my LB tool and using this tool is better than any other tool out there.
Best wishes, imaluckydog
Kathy, WELL said, and thanks for the good info. GF! Love you!
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