Mariasha

Your fine. You don't stretch your pouch by overeating one time. The pouch can stretch over time if you continue to abuse it and force yourself to eat more than you should. If your band had slipped you would be in pain and know about it.

You write that you are 15 pounds from your goal. Keep in mind that the excess skin also weighs a lot. It is not uncommon for people who have a lot of extra skin after significant weight loss to have anywhere between 10 and 20 pounds of skin removed during a tummy tuck.

Not at goal yet, but my surgeon recommends an annual checkup.

No need to shrink your pouch if you haven't stretched it. If you're doing everything you should be doing I see no reason for this 5 day pouch test.

I've had two fills so far and have had similar results to you. Good restriction for the first couple of weeks and then it wears off a little. Its perfectly normal. You just need to be on guard when the restriction is not as strong and be extra careful about what you are eating.

Try logging everything you eat using a site like the daily plate or something similar. That way you can get an accurate number of how many calories you are consuming. Using that information, tweak your diet and increase exercise to achieve the results you are looking for.

Just tell your surgeon what happened. The purpose of the two week pre-op diet is to shrink the size of your liver and make the surgery easier. As long as you were careful with the pre-op diet immediately before the surgery I see no reason why it should be a problem. If you were able to diet and lose weight for the last six months by yourself, then you wouldn't need this surgery, would you?

There is no definite guide to where the sweet spot is. Everyone has their own definition. To my mind it is feeling full and not getting hungry between meals. I think you will find that almost everyone experiences this to some degree.

+1 to this. Just because your not throwing up and sliming all day, doesn't mean you haven't hit your sweet spot. In fact, it probably means you are past your sweet spot. My understanding of the sweet spot is that you feel satiated after eating. If you have managed to lose 60 pounds through changing your eating habits then it seems to me the band has been effective for you. OP, let me ask you this. Were you ever able to lose this much weight without the band? If not, then why are you not attributing your weight loss to the band?

I second this. Food will keep you feeling full. Protein shakes will not. Why are you still on them??

Does it work? That depends on what its supposed to do... Why do you need it??

I know I'll probably get flamed for being to harsh, but what in the world were you expecting??? I'm sick of all the people that come here on LBT with unrealistic expectations. All you do is discourage others who don't know better. The numbers you are reporting are perfectly normal, in fact probably better than average. The lapband is not some kind of instant fix. It is a tool that you need to work with in order to achieve the results you are looking for. The only way I can think of to lose weight faster than the rate you are would be to amputate a limb or two...

You most likely still have swelling from the surgery which is why you feel so full and unable to drink 64oz. This will go away soon and you will be able to drink again. Hang in there!

Yes, its normal. That's why you need to keep getting fills. That's how the band works. Click here for a good explanation of how this works

Welcome to America, the greatest helthcare system in the world....

I was told for my initial post-op diet to only drink liquids that are thin enough to drink through a straw, but not to use an actual straw to drink them as that would cause increased burping and gas.

There is a thread somewhere here about people who have forced themselves to gain weight in order to be eligible for surgery. Sad, but true. Messed up health care system we have in this country...

Wow! Good for you!!! I am 25 pounds away from that magic 100 and counting down every day...

I am a patient of Doctor Fielding and can not recommend him highly enough. I know tens of people that have had their bands by either him or his wife and they are all extremely happy. There are also many of us here on the forum who have been banded by the Fieldings. I remember when that article was published (in the NY post, I believe?) and it seemed clear to me that those patients did not follow the instructions they were given. Dr Fielding is one of the pioneers of lap band surgery and even has a band himself. Their mortality rate for complications from the band is excellent, less than 1 in a thousand. If you live in NYC, they have an information session every two weeks at NYU for prospective lap band patients. The session is given by one of the Fielding doctors and will answer most of the questions you may have. Additionally, they stick around after the session to answer any questions. Click here for the webpage to register for one of these free sessions. If you have any specific questions about the Fielding's or the NYU practice, feel free to post it here or send me a PM.

Try the couch to 5K running program. Click here for all the details. It gets you up and running gradually over about two months. Thousands of people have used it successfully, and there are a few threads about it here. Good luck!

From what I understand from this forum, insurance will never cover a full tummy tuck. What they will cover is a panniculectomy. In order to have them cover this it will probably be an uphill battle. You should ask your doctor for a prescription for creams because of your rashes and make sure to have them filled. Take pictures also. I believe the skin needs to hang down a certain amount but I can't remember of hand how much that is. Read the past threads in this forum. There is a lot of great information here.

I lost so much in the beginning because I was over 400 pounds when I started. The more you have to lose the faster it goes initially. It's slowing down now though.

Find a new psychiatrist fast. Highly unprofessional. The psychiatrists job in this process is to evaluate if you have any emotional issues that are contributing to your weight problem, not to tell you which procedure you should have done. If you want to discuss which surgery to do, you can discuss that with your surgeon. Good luck with your surgery!

Guy here. Had my surgery 3.5 months ago. Down 75 pounds. I think we men tend to lose a little faster than the women-folk. Good luck to all of you. If you have any specific questions feel free to post or shoot me a pm.

Perfectly normal. Most people don't lose much at this stage. The real weight loss kicks in once you have had a few fills, and even then you should only expect to lose one to two pounds a week.