MiltonMommy

dlucia - I totally know where you are coming from. I chewed Tums constantly for at least a year, even in the middle of the night because the heartburn was so bad. I then started waking up choking and coughing up tiny bits of food that I later found out were sitting undigested in my pouch. That's when I finally told the nurses what was going on and they sent me for a barium swallow where the slip was discovered. I was basically bulimic for a long time. I would eat whatever I wanted knowing that I would throw it all up. I became a pro at vomiting and did it daily. I didn't care as long as I was skinny. I know it is mortifying when your friends, family and colleagues start noticing that you are gaining weight again. I get that. But don't feel embarrassed to go see your doctor. He/she has seen it all before. You have worked damn hard to get where you are and they are there to help you. Just bite the bullet and force yourself to go. Don't wait until it's too late and you lose your band completely. You can still get back on track...you have done amazing and are a long way from where you started from! I have taken 2muchfun's advice and started an alternate fasting regimen today. I watched a bunch of videos, read some books and watched the documentary Eat, Fast and Live Longer and I'm feeling a renewed sense of hope. I truly believe that this makes sense and feel that it may be the answer I was searching for - thanks guys!

Thank you so much for your replies. JustWatchMe - If I'm being completely honest, I hid my reflux, vomitting and coughing from the nurses because I was willing to suffer in order to keep losing weight. I was scared that if I had a defill I would stop losing which was stupid because I ended up in a much worse situation. You are smarter than I was. 2muchfun - Thank you for the info on the 5:2 fast diet. It's funny because I was just at the bookstore yesterday looking at Varady's book The Every Other Day Diet. Are you following the alternate day fasting or the 5:2? I think I might go back tonight and pick up one of the books. That sounds like just the type of kickstart I am looking for to get back on track.

I was banded 3 years ago and had great success...started at 246 and got down to 140 at my lowest. Over months of being too tight and throwing up all the time, I developed a large pouch and had to have a complete defill and repositioning surgery back in March. Now they are slowly filling me back up, but in the meantime I have gained back 32 pounds! Although I have more fluid in my band now than ever before, I can eat everything (bread, pasta, rice) and I still get hungry every couple of hours. I wonder if I'll ever find my "sweet spot" again? I've fallen back into all my pre-band bad habits and feel like I have lost all willpower. I need some strict rules or a very defined eating plan to get me back on track. Anyone have any ideas to help me build an action plan?

I was banded yesterday April 13th and it's still sinking in that I went through with it. It was pretty cool because when I arrived I was a little nervous but the waiting room turned into a mini-support group...there were 4 people there waiting for fills and when I told them I was going in for surgery they were so excited for me and full of good advice. One lady had lost 92 lbs and another one lost 125 lbs. They were definitely encouraging and calmed my nerves. If you ladies are out there, thank you! I was excited to learn that I was down 16 lbs from my consultation weight after 2 weeks on the pre-op diet. The surgery itself went smoothly...didn't quite know what to expect because I have never had an operation before. I woke up a little nauseous but they injected something in my IV which took that away...then I became really drowsy. The nurses brought up a huge bouquet of yellow roses from my hubby who was waiting downstairs which was so sweet. As for the recovery, I'm doing pretty good....a little tender in the stomach area and a little bit of gas but not as bad as I'd expected. The hardest part now is not being able to pick up my 8 month old who just cries for me all the time

Has there been any studies demonstrating that some brand of gastric bands are superior to others? I will be banded with Slimband which uses the Cousin Bioring and I'm worried that it will be inferior to the LAP-BAND. Do they all get about the same results?

I'm scheduled for surgery with Slimband on April 7th and I'm wondering what people think of their post-op program. Has it been positive? Are they proactive, helpful, easy to get a hold of? Do you feel well supported in your weight loss journey? I was originally going with the Surgical Weight Loss Centre in Mississauga but I switched to Slimband and I'm really nervous that I will regret my decision. Any feedback on Slimband (good or bad) would be much appreciated.

Hey! I'm scheduled for April 7th at Slimband in Toronto also! What time is your surgery at? Mine's scheduled for 11:00 am.

Mine's April 7th with Slimband in Toronto!

I'm scheduled for April 7th with Slimband in Toronto. I'm going through a whole range of emotions right now...nervous, scared of the unknown, sad to be saying goodbye to my old lifestyle, hopeful and excited for the future. Whatever may come, I'm sure it will be one hell of a journey!