REMEMBER TO FOLLOW THE LAP BAND RULES

Still struggling with pacing my food intake. I find myself quite often making several mistakes. I sometimes I forget to pay attention to the lab band eating rules, and this always ends up causing me distress. I sometimes eat to much, or too fast, not waiting 60 seconds between each bite, or failing to chew my food 30 - 40 times before swallowing.

Sometimes I do not wait 30 - 60 minutes after eating before I drink liquids. When I do not follow these rules, I end up in distress - I feel tightness in my chest, I start belching and sometimes I have to throw up.

I am lucky - my husband and family are my biggest supporters. I must say my husband is a gem - he has made a point of knowing the rules, and tries to diplomatically (LOL) let me know when I am eating too fast or breaking any of the other rules. When he brings this to my attention, It helps me pay attention to what I should be doing.

I went out yesterday to a family event, where there was tons of food. I began nibbling on the appetizers, and I got excited about the fact I was able to eat, and that is when I should have stopped. But I did not stop eating, and that's when I began to experience that tightness in the chest, and I ended up running to the ladies room to throw up.

So, although I have been doing very well for the past seven months since the surgery (I have lost 80 pounds so far), it has been a challenge for me to change the eating habits of a lifetime. They say it takes about a year to develop the new eating habits, and I am continuing to work on this very important aspect.

So let's all work on remembering to follow the lap band rules!