BetsyB

I know I'm in the minority, but 1500-1800 calories/day thrusts me squarely into gaining-weight territory. Even with daily vigorous & sustained exercise. It's possible that you need to cut back on your intake.

I don't log how I feel, restriction-wise, on a daily basis. I do, however, log unusual stress, my period, and what I eat and drink--and that helps me pin down what's going on when I do have some sort of confusing restriction question in my mind. Really, things tend to dawn on me as I crouch in the bathroom, coping with something stuck. I don't have consistent restriction, so when I get stuck, and it's not due to obvious user error (like swallowing a pill that is too large), I do try to make sense of it if possible. (A bit of TMI to follow...) This happened to me last night, with a food that simply should not have been a problem, in a quantity far below what should have presented a problem. I was able to determine that this last happened right before my last period. And checking dates...sure enough--I knew that was it. I woke up this morning with my period. So now I know to keep a closer eye on dates and really listen to my body carefully when the timing's right (or, really wrong!) Did that make any sense?

Me, too. And PMS and stress....it took a while to begin making connections, but the randomness is beginning to make sense now.

1. Eating as though I had restriction even when I didn't yet. (Allowed me to lose during the first months.) Journaling on Fitday to make sure I meet my nutritional needs and don't go overboard, calorie-wise. 2. EXERCISE! 3. Enough sleep. (Being tired disinhibits me, with relation to food.)

My doctor doesn't have this rule, but I know several banded people who've had to be scoped to remove gum they've accidentally swallowed and that has gotten stuck in their stomas. It tends to shape itself to the stoma and be particularly difficult to get to pass through. Ouch! ETA: pills are a HUGE problem for me. I cannot take any pressed tablets. I can take capsules or gelcaps because, if they get stuck, they eventually dissolve. But pills? They've been a no-go since before I had restriction with anything else. I get my meds prescribed as liquids now. I do chew gum--but I'm a lot more mindful about it.

I use Inspire Proteins, which dissolve without any equipment. But I do like the Magic Bullet for smoothies I make with frozen ingredients. I'm not a big gadget girl----I have food essentials, but as long as I have a Water bottle, a good skillet, measuring cups and spoons, and a reliable food scale, I'm a-okay in the kitchen.

As a medical registry, RemedyMD gathers information about to help assess effectiveness of the procedure. I think it's really important that clinical data be available for research and registries, and for that reason, would not hesitate to provide my information. Any time you're a patient, your medical record (which may also be electronic) may be used for similar purposes. The record primarily serves as communication among healthcare workers so that you receive appropriate care. But charts are often used for research purposes. Data is often entered into registries. The difference with RemedyMD is that you know that your data is being collected for that purpose. In my opinion, RemedyMD's sort of an extension of your chart. But it gives something back: patient education. Sounds like a win-win to me. I do understand your concern about privacy and confidentiality---it's always a concern with medical information. But it seems more secure than many other places our medical information is stored.

I've had 2 c-sections, too--and banding was NOTHING like them. It was much, much easier. BUT it still involves general anesthesia, manipulation of internal organs, etc---and there is NO way I would have wanted to go out for a birthday celebration the day after surgery. None whatsoever. I have a very high pain threshold. But it wasn't a pain issue as much as a general-crud issue. Anesthesia, meds, everything all together just would have made it very unpleasant for me. There's gas pain, there may be nausea, there's incisional discomfort, there's bloating....nothing overwhelming on its own (really, it's very manageable). But that's if you can just kind of hang out for a few days. A graduation that soon seems ambitious, as well. Sitting for a prolonged period, milling through a large crowd, etc.---no fun, IMO. In your shoes, I'd reluctantly try to reschedule surgery.

I'm so sorry you're having such an awful, awful time. Your experience has been horrendous--but I think your doctor is probably being honest when she says she's never seen anything like it. Complications do arise--but it sounds like yours is particularly unusual. And particularly unpleasant for you. I hope you feel better fast---what a scary situation!

Ordinarily, I'd say that it's a mistake to interpret losing after indulgence as confirmation that eating more results in loss. Our bodies are fickle, and weight loss is rarely a steady downward progression. Usually, an unexpected loss after a "cheat" (I hate thinking of eating as cheating!) is just coincidence. That said, 500 -800 calories/day is very, very low---and I do wonder whether, if you veer toward the low end, eating a bit more did "tell" your body, "It's okay to let go of that fat!" (Are you sure your doctor wants you ~500 calories?) Our bodies can get kind of stubborn and complacent, and little "jolts" now and then sometimes do seem to help get things moving. That may be what happened with you---or it may just have been coincidence. I suspect that if you were to plot your weight loss, over time, on a graph (fitday.com can do this for you), you would notice that your loss follows sort of a pattern---and that it does so regardless of indulgences such as those you've described. For example, my graph has a lose-lose-lose-lose-tiny upward bump-stall pattern. It happens over and over. When I'm stalled, I contemplate shaking things up---then look at the graph and see that, no matter what I do, the pattern just repeats. It's just a matter of riding it out. One thing I've figured out is that sometimes, it's just not something I can figure out! It should be a simple calories in/calories out thing, but sometimes the body plays tricks we don't understand.

I would find it problematic, too, if I believed it to be the case. However, when my BMI was 33, I already had years of experience with diet failure. I would bet the woman you've decided didn't deserve banding also has a bit of experience under her belt. Do you have reason to conclude that the doctor you're speaking of did not thoroughly assess his patient's readiness for surgery and understanding of it as a commitment to lifelong lifestyle change rather than "easy fix?" If your complaint is against doctors who don't prepare their patients for the reality of the surgery, then BMI is a distractor; if you read enough posts here, you'll learn that there are scores of very-high-BMI bandsters who were very ill-prepared for postoperative realities. And I agree, that's wrong.

If you have to rely on high-calorie, high-fat slider foods in order to eat, then an unfill won't result in gain--it will protect the loss you've had and prevent additional gain. What a frustrating situation!

I didn't get an approval letter from my insurer until I was practically in the OR ---weeks after my surgeon's office called and notified me--then scheduled me. If you've gotten your letter, I'd give the doctor's office a call. You may have received the letter before they did OR they may be having a busy week. It's okay to inject yourself into that week to get a date :thumbup:

How frustrating! I hope, by now, you've gotten good news. My surgeon won't schedule surgery until clearance is given---otherwise, it would be a scheduling nightmare! I'm always surprised when doctors' offices do schedule in advance of approval. Talk about unnecessarily increasing patient anxiety!

I made the decision before I attended my first seminar! I'd long thought about it---watched the procedure evolve over the years---and was comfortable with it. I knew I'd done everything that I could do, short of surgery----I just was ready.

I wish to God I'd had it done at a BMI of 33---all the time (and weight gain despite perpetual ---correct, supervised---dieting) didn't change the fact that I require a level of intake so low that it was impossible to maintain, long-term, without the band. My doctor jokingly called me "only a little morbidly obese" when I had my first consult. But I view obesity kind of like pregnancy---you are, or you aren't. Why should people spend years working their way into ill health before intervention? Wouldn't you have preferred to have YOUR surgical intervention before you became 150 pounds overweight? It defies logic. The idea is to PREVENT the health problems associated with obesity! Ah, well this is where your thinking goes a bit astray. The 35-40 BMI isn't driven by doctors (or "medical engineers") who think it's best to wait. It's driven by insurers who don't want to pay for surgery.

Close! I'm in Plainfield :thumbup:

IMO, the best unflavored option is PURE Unflavored Whey Protein Isolate from bariatriceating.com

I wouldn't feel even the slightest guilty for having a skinny vanilla latte---it's good calcium. Alas, I can no longer tolerate caffeine OR the acids in coffee!

Yep, sounds like your port :thumbup:

25 times? Really?! Yikes.

What are you eating? Until you achieve restriction (and really, even after!) you do have to modify your eating behavior considerably. Once you hit restriction, the band puts brakes on how much you eat (and even, to a degree, what you eat). But it's important to make the right choices---the band can't do that for you, no matter what the fill status. Get those habits in place now. Even with restriction, you will be able to eat around the band, so you really, really need to focus on making choices that give your body what it needs.

It's too bad that, during the preop phase,you didn't get good instruction telling you what to expect. Your fantasies may yet come true---but the band isn't a quick fix. It takes a while to get things adjusted for restriction----and until you reach that point, it is just like being on another diet. There's a difference, though: it's time-limited. IT WILL PASS. It's very, very likely that your first fill will NOT give you appreciable restriction. It may take several months for you to feel as though the band is doing its job. But I promise, if you work with your doctor (and vice versa!), you'll get there. I'm sorry you're feeling discouraged---I think most of us know how it feels. But if you try to reframe what's going on to a more positive, "I'm working hard now, but it will be worth it!" it may be easier for you to withstand bandster hell.

I'm already researching plastic surgeons for all the work I am likely to need when I hit goal. Boobs top the list---they needed to be put back where they belong even before I started losing--big breasts + pregnancies + nursing + weight gain & loss = dire need of attention!

I journal at Fitday.com. It counts calories, protein, carb, fat, and various micronutrients.