ELoo

I know what its like to be a slow user. I used a body bugg for a while and when my numbers showed a calorie deficit to lose 2 pounds per week, I would actually lose 0.5 lbs. I am a slow loser.... but I have PCOS which I think contributes to that. Try to cut out refined & processed foods. Switch to whole grains and add more fruits and vegetables. Since you don't eat much meat you probably aren't getting enough protein so you may want to try adding a flavorless protein powder to your food or a fruit smoothie. I like Unjury flavorless protein. It has a weird smell but you can't taste it.... in fact I am so used to it that I don't smell it anymore. The other thing that stands out to me is that you can eat 2 cups of spaghetti. You aren't tight enough. There is no way I could eat that much pasta in one sitting anymore. I am lucky to get 1/4 cup down. And actually I am more successful with whole wheat pasta than the white stuff. I am far from perfect with my diet and I know change is hard but these are the things I am working on for myself. Be careful, this is a tough time of year with sweets everywhere and they go down VERY EASY! Hope this helps.

PCOS shows different symptoms in different people. On ultrasound you will often find several small fluid filled follicles or cysts. Most women only have a couple of these on each ovary and each month one cyst will become dominant and grow to be very large, thats because it is holding a maturing egg. Then at time of ovulation the cyst releases the egg and goes back down. In PCOS there are several tiny cysts which produce androgens, a type of hormone, that causes all kinds of chaos in the body (like male pattern hair growth, insulin resistance, acne, obesity, and moodiness to name a few) and it prevents any eggs from maturing, so ovulation does not occur... and that is why periods are irregular or non existant. If you don't ovulate, then you usually won't have a period. Sometimes the uterus lining builds up so much, from lack of a period, that it will shed some of its lining... this however does not mean you ovulated. Now, some women can have "polycystic" appearing ovaries on ultrasound and not have PCOS... that's because they have no other symptoms and continue to ovulate. One single cyst doesn't mean PCOS by itself... there must be other symptoms involved. Sometimes blood work will show abnormal hormone levels and sometimes it won't. My own blood work for example is always normal, however I have the "apple shape" which is typical in PCOS and insulin resistance. I never have a spontaneous period, so I never ovulate on my own. I have no facial hair but have a heck of a time losing weight. I have one 3 year old daughter who was conceived after my 3rd IVF. I was banded in hopes of getting my periods back... aka ovulating. It's been a pretty tough road for me so far. Haven't lost much weight but I'm not giving up yet. Hopefully all this I've written makes sense and brings better understanding to someone out there.

I definately assumed it would be easier than it is. I knew there would be work involved but I didn't realize it would be this hard. I thought that I would just forget about food... if anyone has ever taken Phentermine or fen-phen then you know how it feels to care less about food... I thought that the band would make me feel like that, it doesn't. I am still very obsessed with food. In fact, before the band I thought that I just liked to eat and really had a true enjoyment for the way food tastes... I now know that I am totally an emotional eater and that food is a major way of coping for me... being banded doesn't make that part any easier. I thought I'd be skinny by now... I look the same. I thought I would have figured it out by now... I haven't. But, I realize I have issues and I am trying to work through them... just don't really know how yet. I thought I would eat small amounts and be full. I usually experience pain instead of satiety. I also didn't expect the band to be tempermental... loose one day, tight the next. I thought I'd be able to eat healthy foods like lean meats and vegetables, which I can but only in micro amounts and then I usually experience pain... but wow does junk go down with ease. I thought I would love my band... I don't. But on a positive note I don't hate it and I'm not quite sure if I regret it or not? I never understood head hunger.... I do now. I need the band moved to my brain.

Same exact thing happened to me. The reddness became about the size of a tangerine and was very warm to touch. I also was worried but was given an Rx for anitbiotics right away and by the 2nd day on them it started to get better. So whatever it is, take care of it asap.

hmm, that's interesting, thanks for sharing.

Ya, I am following the rules at least 90% of the time, but it seems like I always have room for ice-cream, unless I am painfully full. Thats why I can't keep that crap in my house. I'm afraid of giving into head hunger. I honestly don't know why I haven't lost more weight than I have, now I don't expect to be skinny at this point, but only 10 pounds? I'm not eating near as much as I did pre band. I feel like I have lost more weight than the scale says but not many people notice anything, so maybe its all in my head. I do believe that I will get this all figured out and the weight will come off.... even if it is at a snails pace! :guess

I have only been banded for 4 months and have only lost about 10 pounds. I knew it wasn't going to make losing weight easy but I thought it would at least be a little easier than it has been. I was hoping that I would be full faster, no matter what I ate. This is not the case. I can eat just as much ice-cream, cookies, chips, popcorn, and other junk food now with a band than I could before without it. So you still have to "diet", make good choices, or you won't lose. Another thing that is dissapointing is that sometimes after a few bites I just can't eat anymore and it's not because I am full but because it feels too painful or uncomfortable to continue eating. I know you've heard it a million times but I cannot express enough that this is only a tool. You still have to make choices and fight your food demons on a constant basis. I will say it does prevent bingeing because I physically cannot do that anymore but the drive to binge is still there. It hasn't been all that long for me so I am still learning and fighting my 30 years of bad habits. I never realized I was so much of an emotional eater until being banded. Sometimes I hate the band and a lot of time I am dissapointed that I haven't lost more but I would still do it all over again because I know that at some point I will figure it out and learn to control my emotional eating and the weight will come off. I believe you have to choose to make it work for you and I am trying to choose that everyday. As far as the flu goes, I know you want to control the vomitting but how often do you vomit? I know that is a rare thing for me so I'm not worried about that. Hopefully that helps a little...

Thanks for your input. I am exercising. I have exercised regularly for about 4 years now, but I did step up my routine recently and have been working harder. I'll admit my food choices are sometimes far from perfect but I am still eating a lot less than before and exercising harder, so thats what dumbfounds me. I guess I'm just going to keep trying to improve and see what happens. I am a little scared to get a fill because I don't want to be miserable or have to PB when eating out with friends.

I was looking through this thread to see if anyone on here is like me... but no, even you other slow losers aren't as slow as me. I was banded on 3/12/07, almost 3 months ago and have only lost 4 pounds! Talk about discouraging. I am in search of my sweet spot, whatever the hell that is supposed to feel like. It seems like "good restriction" comes with extreme discomfort. My first fill was 1.8cc which was too tight, couldn't even keep water down. So I was unfilled to 0.6cc, then filled to 1.0 and again to 1.4cc. The last fill was about 3 weeks ago and I thought that this might be "it" for me. I've only been able to eat about 1/3 the volume I ate before and no bingeing has taken place and even thought I still haven't lost any weight since that fill, I was hopeful.... until today. All the sudden its not uncomfortable after a few bites. I find myself eating faster and more. What the heck is that about? Will I ever get this right? Does anyone have good restriction without discomfort? Should I already consider another fill? Can anyone relate?:cry

In short, my story is the following... I was banded 3/12/07, lost 10 pounds first 3 weeks, gained 6 back during weeks 3-6. First fill was on 4/23/07 of 1.8cc. That became too tight by the 2nd day so I was unfilled down to 0.6cc on 4/25/07. Initially after the unfill I felt like my restriction was great but with each meal I could eat more and more... so now here I am with little restriction and am scheduled for another fill on Tuesday. I am afraid of getting too little of a fill and having to go back again and again. However, I don't ever want to be too tight again because that was horrible. My first fill was done in Mexico under fluoro and look what happened... I wasn't initially too tight but bacame that way. Now I am having this next fill done here in my city but it isn't done under fluoro. I guess what I really want to know from you experienced bandsters who have found that sweet spot is.... what does that feel like? There are times that I feel full after few bites, especially if bread or pasta is involved but then it passes within minutes and I feel hungry again. Is that always going to happen? Before when I was too tight eating was so painful but the food was staying in the upper pouch longer... isn't that the way it is supposed to be? But yet I know it's not supposed to be painful. How is it supposed to be? I guess I just imagined that I would be comfortable and full after eating a small amount and that I wouldn't feel hunger 5-10 minutes later once the food has passed into the lower part of my stomach. Any advice, suggestions, or explanations would be greatly appreciated. Thanks :ohwell:

You need to get some of that fluid taken out ASAP. I just had this happen to me with my first fill and my doctor said it doesn't usually get better, just worse and can lead to a bigger problem... like having to have it all removed to let your stomach rest. So don't let you stomach get too irritated. If you cannot swallow fluid now then you are too tight. Plus that seems like a huge fill! I just got my fill reduced by half today and am doing much better. Instant relief. Good luck.

I was wondering if you still feel tight? I am in the exact situation today that you were. This is day 3 for me and I got sick for the first time after lunch today. I stood over the sink and spit and burped up foam and slime for an hour. I am hoping I'm just swollen and it will go down so I can tolerate more. Let me know how you are doing.:phanvan

First of all I want to say thank you guys for the support and telling me I need to redirect my thinking. I know that the band is a tool and not magic but for some reason it's like I've been testing all my limits, seeing just how far I can go and what I can and can't eat anymore. My drive to eat is higher now than before being banded. I admit, I am having some anxiety about having my first fill. My mentality has gone back to "eat everything now while I still can get it down." I desperately want to change me way of thinking but for some reason I am having a hard time. I have good moments through out the day where I want to eat right and I do, then its like the fat chick in me comes out after a while and wants to be a pig. Writing all of this to you guys, a bunch of people I don't even know, is really hard for me. I don't like to ask for help from anyone, I'm usually the one helping others. Admitting that I need support isn't easy.....but I admit it, I need it. :rolleyes