Week 5 post op – Band

Congratulations – you are ending all the restricted, early stages of the diet now and beginning to get back to normal.

In most cases now you will be ready to start back onto a normal diet (if your own provider has not recommended this yet there will be a reason for this so follow their guidelines)

Diet

It’s time to start back on a normal diet. That said it’s not a good idea to have a sandwich for lunch and a well-done steak for dinner today. Take it slowly. Start with foods slightly more solid and build up to the tougher ones that might be difficult to manage. Follow our little plan:

• Make sure you are using a small plate like out BandBoozled one ( 6 inches)
• Half of the plate should be veg/ salad, a quarter should be protein and a quarter should be carbs
• Use a small 3-pronged fork
• You must follow the 20+ rule correctly now – you don’t want to get anything stuck
• Start to make your foods more textured now – that means more solid, crunchy or chewy basically not soft and sloppy anymore
• There are foods that are more likely to cause a problem with the band - we call these problem foods. These tend to be very, fresh white bread as it can be quite doughy, stringy veg like celery, rice as it can be sticky and tough meats like roast beef or well-done steak. We have all had a joint before that has been cremated in the oven and no amount of chewing is going to break it down. Try all of these foods last – after you have had no problems with any other foods going through the band. Please see our article called Problem Foods in The Basics section and our textured information in The KitchenGoing forward with the band a textured diet is what you need to be following as this is how the band works. Long term the liquids and soft foods just slip through the band so the band really isn’t doing much at all. There are nerve endings on the stomach wall where the band is positioned and as solid food passes through the band it stimulates these nerve endings on the stomach wall and this is what sends a message to your brain to say that you are full. This is how the band works so a textured diet is what you need long term

  Also around week 5 you will be getting ready for your first band adjustment. This can vary a lot between providers though so don’t be surprised if yours is earlier or later
  The Hospital Group arrange first adjustments around the 5-week mark. It is important to have tried solid foods before your first adjustment – if you are struggling to manage solid, textured foods then the adjustment may not be needed

Medical

You should be cranking up your exercise, as your easing back onto textured diet and normal life as you knew before your surgery. You will need to adjust and adapt the mechanics of eating accordingly as you progress from soft to textured diet. If you are experiencing any symptoms, take a look at how your eating and make the necessary changes to resolve this. If your trying your best and still having problems, go back to soft and speak with your provider for further support. The same if you are experiencing any medical concerns throughout your journey.

The advantages of laparoscopic surgery is that the incisions are much smaller than open procedures, minimising the pain,scarring and reducing infection risks, which helps speed up the recovery process.

Bear with the tenderness around the port site as this can linger on for a little longer, but should not stop you going about your day to day duties. If you eat too fast you may start to get trapped wind again. so remember to count your 20 seconds between forkfuls at all times.

Good luck with the slowing down and chewing, you will be into clinic before you know to start adjusting your band if required.