lorena st

Congrats on your success. I am 54 and I still have about 60 pounds to lose (I was banded in October 2011). I am sure those last 20 pounds are going to be difficult for me to lose as well. You look great and good luck on those last few pounds. I have had to give up bread, as it is one of the foods that I get stuck with (no matter how much I chew it). Luckily, I can still have toast occasionally and only if I am very careful.

I agree with all the other posters. I had been obese for 25 years and had lost the weight several times over that time period. Unfortunately, I gained it all back (plus some extras). I am one of the lucky ones, where I am just not that hungry anymore...but it is still work. I still have to make good food choices. I always ate a good diet, just too much of it. The band has put a stop to the volume of food I used to eat. I am also a stress eater, and that is when I used to get into the high calorie food. Actually now when I get stressed, the band seems to tighten up on it's own (which effectively puts a stop to stress eating). So would I do it again...You bet I would!

Glad to hear that you are back on the program! Everyone falls off the wagon at some point (and plateaus or gains some weight back), and you just have to get back on the diet and lose the weight! Good luck.

Agreed, a large part of this process is being open and honest with yourself and your doctors. You need to listen what they have to say to you and take their recommendations seriously. The lapband is not an easy way out, it takes a lot of work and effort and a sincere desire to make serious changes to your lifestyle. Good luck with your next visit.

I have the opposite problem...I now avoid the plus size section. I always hated having to shop there, but I didn't have any choice. It's really nice to be able to find clothes in my size in the "regular" side of the stores. My biggest issue is that I don't really know what size I am (as I still avoid the changing rooms with all those mirrors) and I end up at home with clothes that are too big or too small. I need to get over my changing room issues or take a tape measure with me when I shop!

This isn't a race and you are losing weight...just slowly. If you want to lose weight more quickly then you have to exercise more or reduce your calories (you choose!). I walk everyday, but haven't taken up vigorous exercise yet. I lose about 1 to 2 pounds a week, but I only eat 1000 to 1100 calories a day. As I lose more weight, I will have to start exercising to maintain this rate of weight loss (lower body weight=lower daily calorie requirements). I just came off a 3 week plateau, but if I am honest with myself, I was consuming 1300 to 1500 calories a day during that time (so this was my fault). I keep a food diary, so I know what I am eating. The interesting thing about the band, is it is adjustable and you almost can choose your rate of weight loss (within limits), if you are prepared to carefully monitor your calorie intake. Good luck!

You are young and have a lot on your plate...but the support of your spouse is important. Have you talked to him about getting banded? Have you shown him this site? He knows that you struggle with your weight and until you talk to him you won't know what he thinks or feels. Information is power and the more informed both of you are, the better decisions you can both make. I am twice your age (but the same height and starting weight as you) and have been overweight since I was 25 years old. Trust me, you don't want to spend the next 25 years of your life like this. I wish this procedure had been available to me, 25 years ago. Fortunately, my husband is very supportive of my decision, although he wonders who all my new online friends are! In the end, you have to do what is best for your health.

Interesting topic...and how different everyones signal is. When I am full...first, I feel like I have to burp (and I usually burp a few minutes later). If I don't stop eating, I get a dull pain in my pouch as it fills up. If I don't stop eating then, I assume sliming and vomiting would follow (I haven't gone this far and I don't really want to test this theory). I have had two sliming episodes (not related to overeating, but eating the wrong food), both peanut butter related and that was more stuck. In those cases had taken two, obviously too big bites of a peanut butter sandwich, and got mildly stuck. I haven't repeated that experience (but it took me two tries to learn the lesson) and now avoid peanut butter. I guess the key is to listen to your body and learn from your mistakes.

I too weigh myself daily, in the morning with no clothes on...and unfortunately it can affect my mood for the rest of the day. Probably I will cut back on the weighing as time goes on, but I also don't want to get back to that denial phase, that let me gain all that weight in the first place (I stayed away from scales for years on end). There has to be a happy medium, but I haven't found it yet. I just finished a 3 week plateau and that was incredibly frustrating, but I was also eating around 1300 to 1500 calories a day for that time period, so it is my own fault (I like the maintainence plan, but I am about 70 pounds to early for it). I'm back to 1000 to 1100 calories a day and the weight loss has now started again. Good luck with that evil scale!

I feel your pain! I just finished a 3 week plateau and that was very frustrating. I tend to not lose weight if I am stressed, so that is the explanation for my plateau. Exercising, especially if you are new to it or doing a lot of it, is also stress inducing at first. It may take a few weeks for your body to get used to a new routine. So keep up the exercise, watch your calories and try not to be too disappointed. The weight will come off, but it just takes time. It is amazing how our bodies try to hang on to those excess pounds!

I totally get what you are saying. Only two people have noticed my weight loss, my banker and my doctor. Everyone else (my kids, co-workers, family) see/say nothing. My brother-in-law said I look tired and how's that for feedback! It is discouraging when I don't see anything and no one else does either. By the way, I have plateaued at 210 for the last two weeks, which adds to the discouragement. Oh well, enough of the pity party...back to losing weight!

Yes, call your doctor. Red and swollen usually means an infection...but it can mean other things too. Get this checked out and don't ignore it or wait until you are in serious pain.

The band has worked for me, because there is only so much I can eat at any one meal. I too used to consume large volumes of generally healthy food (I don't eat junk food or fast food) but I never really felt full. After I was banded, the physical hunger diminished considerably (to almost non-existant) and I eat about 5 very small meals a day, but the stress eating is still around (this last week has proven that to me). I have to deal with that, but at least I now know what it is and why I am doing it. Again, the band prevents me from going overboard during those times, but I still have a ways to go to find healthier ways of dealing with stress. The band also makes it relatively easy to go back to eating healthy again, so I am back on the plan today and doing well.

Thanks for the post...you made my day! It's amazing how this site can help me, when I am feeling a bit down. PS...What is a Chick-fil-A (never heard of this in Canada)?

Hey I'm going through the same thing. I have gained and lost the same 1 pound for the last two weeks, after losing 50 pounds since surgery (not easy, but I followed the rules). I am still following the rules, but a couple of business lunches have taken their toll this week. At least with the band, it is relatively easy to go back on the diet. Now if I could just quit being so hard on myself...that is the difficult part. Try to be kind to yourself, you are only human and you are so very close to your goal weight (lucky you!).

For me, being banded has been great. The band helps me stick to a weight loss diet, but I am still on a diet. I don't think that this is a normal way to live, long term (~1000 calories a day), Hopefully maintainance will be a little less difficult. I'll let you know when I get there. My issue was not the quality of food I was eating (I don't eat junk food) but the quantity and the band has certainly dealt with that.

I go shopping for new clothes, but only stuff on sale, as I won't be wearing it for long (hopefully). Each 20 pounds I lose is about 1 size, so every couple of months I pick up new jeans and tops. It is nice going to regular stores again and going through the sale racks. I like the charm idea...that is a great way to remind yourself of what you are doing.

I have been stuck a couple of times (peanut butter is evil!) and it usually lasted for less than an hour. Tons of slime. I didn't throw up, but I wanted to. I now listen to my body and if it hurts, even a little, to eat food...STOP EATING! After the sliming incidents, I went back to normal eating the next day (normal for a banded person) and didn't have any additional problems. I am grateful that this didn't last longer like some of the other posters, so maybe I just had "minor" stuck episodes.

Gotta love them! Mine keeps bringing chocolate bars and chips and licorice up from the pantry (in the basement and I avoid it like the plague) and then proceeds to watch golf of television (most boring thing ever) and offering me bits of whatever he is munching on. He's thin, so this isn't a problem for him and I think he must forget that, that stuff is one of the reasons I am fat. He doesn't cook often, so I haven't run into the full meal bad deal, yet!

Sorry, this is going to be a bit of a lecture....Actually, you need to worry about your weight and your goals and not spend your time obsessing about other peoples issues. I have a hard time understanding why you would be angry at anyone who wants to lose weight and the methods they use to do it. Surgery is ususally a last ditch effort for most people on this site, having failed at most other diets (and doesn't really matter what their starting weight was as long as their surgeon feels that this procedure is warranted). So I would hope you would be understanding, not condemn someone for being at a starting weight you have a problem with. And the band is not the easy way out, the process is long, difficult and time consuming and has risks associated with it. The lapband is not for someone who is unmotivated, lazy or weak. Try to remember that and maybe your attitude will change.