I_Said_NO

I have been treated for the PCOS but it gave me some strange side effects like electrical shock like feelings up my arms and legs. Once medication was stopped, it disappeared. I do expect to lose slow, but the 9 pounds was lost in about 2 1/2 months... then I stayed on for about 2 more months just plateauing. I have not gained back the weight. I think you are right about the PCOS... low carb is definately better. Sadly right now I am craving carbs like no tomorrow... white knuckling it but boy it is not easy! ty ty ty for your responses.. it means a lot to this stranger... :sneaky:

Joanie... I see a couple of you have mentioned that you switched doctors for support. Are we allowed to do this? I read a letter to the editor recently in our area of a women who has been refused service by any other Lap Band doctor in our area. She said that was frustrated and did not think her doctor was very supportive. (I couldn't help but wonder if she had my doctor) What did you do to switch? thanks

I'm still at my plateau since May, have not lost or gained but remained about the same weight. Actually I think I'm down 2 pounds in 5 months. woo woo (no sarcasm there) I've worked out until the 'jiggle' in my arms is gone. ... but the weight just hangs on me. I've seen the inches go down, but the weight is haunting me. I even bought a new scale thinking this one was broken. :thumbup: I enjoy working out and never miss unless I'm sick ... like right now. I notice that my appetite goes down when I'm not exercising, so again I am at that plateau. If I could do the rigorous workout and eat like I do when I'm not working out I'd be losing I'm sure of that. But I get so incredibly hungry. Anywho, I'm making a short story long... I'm thinking about joining weight watchers to make myself accountable. I thought I could adapt it to my high Protein low carb lapband diet but make myself accountable with someone else weighing... maybe just through the holidays... Any thoughts on this?

I am wondering if anyone else has noticed the many different diets lapband patients are told to follow after surgery. My doctor took the gastric bypass approach and gave me the exact same plan to follow. (You know, high Protein through shakes, bars, etc) I know this because my best friend and I went to the same doctor (she got her GP about 7 months after me) ... she got the GP, and I got the LB. (She is down almost 140 pounds) ... Our diets are identical. Of course it is easier for her to stick to this ridged plan because when she has too many bad carbs she gets very ill. She has admitted this too. For me some of those carbs just slide down so easy (i.e. candy, popcorn, ect). And anytime I eat anything that isn't 'plan' I feel so guilty. IT FEELS JUST LIKE A REALLY BAD DIET. Now my brother, a physician, got the LB in July of this year. His doctor told him to eat whatever he wanted. The idea behind this was to let the LB do the work, as it was intended. And it was to take the food obsession out of the picture ...( btw, He lost 50 pounds in the first 2 months.) And lets face it we didn't get this heavy without food issues. I think by making my plan so strict, I have done nothing BUT obsess over food.:thumbup: From the mouth of my brother, "if I thought this was just another diet, I wouldn't have gotten the LB. I could not follow your strict plan." Thoughts?

{{{{{{ hugs }}}}}}}} Thanks BETH!

It seems like you all have had very sensible doctor advice. I think my doctor just can't get away from his GP success and he is big on his statistics. So if I 'fail' in his words, that makes him look bad. Screw him. This is my body and my life. I joined WW to get on a normal sort of eating pattern and get the guilt of eating real food out of my head. I'm having success so I'll stay there for now. I picked this surgeon because he was this best surgeon in the area. I had 13 previous operations on my abdomen and I had to pick an experienced doctor. Never thought the after care would be such a big deal. Thanks for your help... you have no idea how much it means to get this sort of feed back.

Ok, I've got an update to this thread. I did join WW. I am doing the flex points so that I can eat some things I want and some core things. I may switch to core if it slows or stops. I LOST 7 LBS MY FIRST WEEK!! I told the gal that the scale was wrong and that I needed to step off and back on. She laughed ... but I WAS SERIOUS. I almost cried right there on the spot. I have been on a plateau for over 5 months. Watching that :thumbup: scale go up a pound, then down a pound then up a pound then down a pound. I switched things up, I increased my exercise. I did lots of stuff. The difference? 1) I am in a positive environment... unlike my doctors office, very negative "you're going to fail if this..." blah blah blah ... Here they are excited when I lose and when I had a gain, she said, "Hey it happens, over all you are still down! :thumbup:" 2) I'm accountable. I am weighed by someone else. This would not work if I were at home. I find myself really making GREAT efforts that I was not doing when I only had to face myself on the scale. 3) The meetings, the sharing. Being with others and sharing recipes, strategies, etc, is very refreshing. I'll keep ya posted if things change... but I broke my plateau and it has given me renewed hope, and energy!!! Just in time for the Holidays too.

This is actually v. good advice. A friend of mine just had the surgery and was told the same thing. I think it is one reason I have stopped losing. I'm so obsessed over what I eat, how much, etc etc etc. Who the @!%# wants that!

LuLu or Crazycat, where do you read food diaries? I would love to see how I compare... thanx

I don't need a fill. I can't eat solids in the a.m. When I do eat I can only eat a small amount at one sitting, very slowly. I am at the 'sweet spot.' But I am not losing. I overeat in the evenings now because I seem to be very hungry then. I say overeat... but still it is restricted thanks to my band. I'm certain that w/o this band I would have gained some during these past 5 months. I'm hoping with some accountability I'll do better, but we'll see. Now as to regard to my doctor. well well well... He is never happy it seems. That has been a huge drag for me. He is nice but is critcle at the same time. When I was on target (his target mind you) he had doubts I'd be able to maintain it. I was losing 'slow' and he was not happy. He would scrutinize my diet and never finding anything wrong would not believe me. For example, I was too tight after one of my fills but went 5 days hoping things would settle. I was freaking losing my mind though. Unable to eat ANYTHING. And taking an hour to get 6 ounces of Water down. I finally went back in. He said, "lost only 3 pounds?" ... "Most of my patients lose a lot more if they are really this tight." :smile: I felt so alone. Here was my support treating me like that. I could not believe it. I of course had to drink in front of him so he could see the restriction and could see that the liquid was sitting in my pouch and not moving, but still he doubted what I ate. I never went over 500 calories a day all week. OK coffee working overtime here... Sorry but I have to see him next week for a one year check up and I'm freaking out. Mainly because I'm the same weight, but also because I'm going to get a lecture, when HE should be getting one for not helping me lose. sigh.

I feel your pain sweetie! I've been the same weight for 5 months. I do have restriction. I'm at the 'sweet spot' that they describe. Yet I've not lost what I thought I would or what the surgeon sez I should have lost!!! I have HAD it. However, I don't think I would have lost what I have lost w/o the band. Period. I think they need to add an additional survey/form whatever you want to call it to your registration pre-surgery stuff. The questionnaire should point blank ask you "Can you lose weight on a diet?" If the answer is NO. Then this should be investigated further. Because people know if they can or can't lose on a diet. I'm one of those who can not. They should then ask what your pre-surgery diet was like. They can tell if you are eating a lot or little. Because in my year of lap band I've developed some theories. And I feel if you are a junk-food, high calorie eating person then you are going to lose big with the lap band. If you are a moderate eater with occasional junk-food then you will lose moderately. And if you eat small meals, rare junk-food, overall good healthy eating, then you will not do well with the lap band. I was somewhere between moderate to healthy eater. So I lost little to moderately. You will find little support for your troubles here. Some want to study your diet. Some want to kick your arse into high gear. All of which I have done here, there and everywhere. None has moved the scale AT ALL. Those that are successful are in disbelief of what you tell them. Heck I'm in disbelief, I BELIEVED I was going to succeed where other things I'd tried had failed. Now I have just joined Weight Watchers, literally today, and I will use it if I lose but if after a month the scale is not moving, I'll go on to something else. I WILL LOSE THIS WEIGHT. One way or another. I'm hoping to do this for a few months, then go back to the 'lap band' way... maybe shake up my routine, fool my body, but I can't just keep doing the same thing. The up side is that after 5 months of a plateau, I have not gained. Praise the lord. The downside is that my daydreams of one year out of lapband to be 100 pounds thinner are up in smoke. I hope this helps... because you are not alone. Most of 'us' are in the closet because others failing do not want to admit it and are still struggling, and newbies or those who have not had the surgery are usually the ones to answer you first. Then the rare birds who have lost quickly (probably big eaters pre-surgery) will try to help you but become stunned when you don't lose with their ideas. And when you go from feeling in need of help, to being angry (as I am) no one wants to touch you. Hand in there, keep coming here and finding people like me, and don't give up. Just move on to plan B. {{{{{{{{{{{ HUGS }}}}}}}}}}}}}:smile:

I have done without the scale and I tend to gain ... not sure why, but oddly enough I'm able to bring the weight right back to where I am today. Then it stays there. And with regard to the WW not liking WLS, I'm not going to go in there and tell them... I'm going to toy this around in my head for a bit... but 5 months is a LONG time on a plateau. It is scary to me and sometimes makes me regret the LB, but I know that I am healthier since having it. Just v. frustrated.

I certainly can not... :cool2: I'm still at my plateau since May, have not lost or gained but remained about the same weight. Actually I think I'm down 2 pounds in 5 months. woo woo (no sarcasm there) I've worked out until the 'jiggle' in my arms is gone. ... but the weight just hangs on me. I've seen the inches go down, but the weight is haunting me. I even bought a new scale thinking this one was broken. :thumbup: Maybe joining weight watchers for a short spell will help... I'm not a former WW-junkie... so this is new to me... any thoughts?

I think you did great!!! You are $40 bucks thinner for it too... This thread caught my eye because I was invited out to a chinese buffet yesterday for lunch. I really wanted to go for the outing more than anything and I was able to find some things that I could eat at the buffet. However they must use a ton of MSG in their cooking because as little as I ate I was a swollen mess today.

Hello! I am going to do my 'wake-up' walk 5-7 days per week (I tease that this is my Prozac). Then do Water aerobics, tread water and swim laps. I'm limited on what I can do because of knee injury, I'm in physical therapy right now and it is helping but both knees need to heal before I can do more.

I had an epiphany. I have a girlfriend who got the gastric bypass about 3 months ago. She has lost 70+ pounds. She has mostly done it with drinking shakes and having one real meal a day. She will mostly likely reach her goal before me. We are very close, and I'm thrilled because she her health was very bad just 3 months ago. She is doing v. well. Off all kinds of meds, and hopefully her liver is fully functioning again. I have to say that sometimes I get a twinge of "I wish I'd done bypass too" and anyone who knows me on this board, knows I've said it a couple of times. But because of prior surgery complications, bowel surgery, it was not an option. So this is where my path led me and where I'm meant to be.:wink2: However, like I said, I've had an epiphany. Even though she will reach goal first, and started 3 months after me, she is going to one day have to start eating 'normal' foods. I don't know the statistics on all this but I've read that some bypass people gain back because they never learned how to eat properly. If this starts to happen I'll be able to help her. But at least with this epiphany, I can accept this slow loss better now. I have renewed hope, especially with help from salsa, and indigogirl. Thanks all. I think you guys are great. Glad to have found the slowlosers.

Any of you with PCOS have had lapband success?

What about a mentoring group? Maybe there is one in place right now. I am rather frustrated that the band is not working but maybe I'm not doing all I could do. Perhaps speaking with a mentor, sharing foods eaten, exercise done, etc, maybe would help any of us stuck in a rut. Thanks! Looking for help at all angles... feeling rather like the lap band is the biggest con ever pulled off ... :confused_smile:

Froggi, that does not sound good. What does your doctor say?

This is a tough one for me. I do buy those things. I live with 7 other people, who are yes, ALL skinny. I'm the fattie in the group. I have a lot of healthy foods on hand, easy to get. The bad stuff is kept in a pantry in the carport. I just don't want my kids to have issues either. I was raised in a house with diet drinks and diet foods. I was thin, but when I got on my own I ordered all the bad foods I could. I gained. But I wanted my kids raised in a house that had both, and left it to them to choose. I'm really frustrated with this topic. HELP!@!:sad: I argue with myself about this. I think that 'hey' your dh wants an apple pie for dessert, let him have it!!! My dh would skip it completely if he thought it was tempting for me. So it is not my family, it is me. I feel like I'm setting them up to sneak foods and become like I was.

I've had 14+ operations and this is the FIRST time I did not get my period back. I mean I was already irregular, but this is a first for me. My doctor did say that since our hormones are stored in our fat it is possible that by body is adjusting to the changes. Crazy... 5 months with no cycle?!

:sad: ty ty ty... you have no idea how much that means to me.

Thanks Georgia. It is nice to share with others who have PCOS.

{{{{{{{{{{ MINDY }}}}}}}}}}}}} thanks for your honest post. You are definately a success, not just because of hte weight you have lost but because of your attitude. I'm amazed at how, you a caring stranger, can boost me up like this. ty ty ty