Beware the Conference Lunch

I am an idiot! I had a very nasty experience today while sharing conference lunch with a whole room full of clients we had been trying to impress all morning. Let me set the scene - it is almost 4 weeks since my last fill and for the last week or so I have been able to eat pretty much anything, have not lost any weight and have been hungry as well, so perhaps in my head I thought I could eat as I had in my pre-band life. The conference lunch menu was bread rolls, french bread with ham, tortellini or stir fry chicken and noodles. I decided to avoid the bread but had a couple of mouthfuls of tortellini and dished some stir fry as well. I thought I had chewed the tortellini well but I now know that it still ends up in a gluey plug blocking the band. 3 mouthfuls in, I had a nasty stuck pain and could not even swallow my saliva. To make matters worse, while eating I was cornered by the course facilitator who was giving me an animated speech on something - no idea what as I could not concentrate! I was desperately trying to get away while wondering if I was going to make it to the bathroom. I was waiting for a break in his speech but eventually just had to blurt out that I had to go... and made a run for it. Just in time I got to the Ladies - my first PB (Productive Burp) - a horrible experience and one I hope doesn't happen again anytime soon - especially not in a hotel toilet cubicle with other people listening to my retching! The stuck pain was a bit better after that but still lasted another half hour or so and I felt very uncomfortable.

So to all you new bandsters out there.. think very carefully about what passes those lips even if you think you are not very restricted. Fresh white bread and fresh pasta ALWAYS turn into a gloopy lump which just does not want to go through the band. I was warned about this, and I already knew this from a minor stuck episode in the early weeks with some white bread but I still thought I would be OK. What an idiot! I have learned my lesson... and hopefully I will be more sensible from now on.