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Well, it sounds like we're all keepin' on keepin' on! I realized that the Carhartt jacket I wore tonight was as loose as it was when I bought it in 1999. Funny feeling. Although, somehow, that seems like it can't be true! I didn't really achieve extremely impressive weight gain until after 9/11. I'll weigh myself next Friday, and then we'll see wht's what! Friday is 1/1/09, isn't it? In other - sad - news: well, my thing with the online person evaporated. I'm still not 100% sure why: we'd already bonded seriously emotionally over email and phone, and I'd assumed she might have problems with my size. In the end, though, she clearly (CLEARLY!) had no problems with being attracted to me, but she felt we didn't click emotionally in person the same way we had on the phone etc. It was the opposite of what I'd expected. And I felt like she was a bit quick to judge - I'd not been home from France for 24 hours when we met, was jet-lagged out of my mind, on the end of a cold and nervous as all get-out about meeting her. But facts is facts: we met, and for her, it didn't work. So I'm very sad about that, but there's also a useful kernel of anger in there - how could she accept my body but reject ME??? So I'm looking forward to getting back into calorie counting, and Protein gram counting, and soluble fiber-ingesting tomorrow. But tonight? I wallow! Leftover double-cooked Sichuan pork, and then (close your eyes!) some Christmas pudding ("figgy pudding", I think you call it) with butter pecan ice cream... I am sad, but also, strangely, I feel kinda good. I feel like I'm back to Me, ready to do what I have to. Besides, there were long periods of intense pleasure in her visit - it certainly wasn't ALL a disaster! I think I'm beginning to get used to this time zone. Yay!

Robin, FANTASTIC on the weight loss! You've done a really great job - time to update your signature stats! And I'm sorry that stuff with your man isn't as easy as you might have hoped. Relationship stuff is hard - there are so many different factors that go into making something feel good or bad at any given moment. Are you SURE that he's not being as loving as he was? Could it just be that you're disappointed that he hasn't become MORE loving as you've lost weight? Could it be that he's feeling competitive with you, and feeling like he's losing because you've done well while he has struggled? I think the whole weight loss thing is a tricky business. We got overweight for a reason - obvs because we ate too much, but we ate too much for a reason, and we ignored our weight gain for a reason, and we probably found some benefits from being at our high weights. The thing is, when the weight goes, the reasons we got that way in the first piece don't really disappear along with the weight, and we're left a bit dazed and confused at some level. This isn't to say losing weight isn't a great and exhilarating hting, just that it's... complicated. So you lose weight, and perhaps your drives come back more vigorous than they were before, and your husband, struggling with his weight still, hasn't caught up to you at that level. Perhaps your husband is worried you'll lose weight and leave him for someone cuter. Perhaps he feels judged by you, judged as a failure because you've lost and he hasn't. Perhaps he's frustrated by his lack of loss right now, and blames you for putting him through an ordeal which hasn't yet yielded any results for him. And then there are all the reasons why all couples sometimes have difficulties - money worries, work stress, exhaustion etc etc. There are so many things it could be - assuming it's even a real change, rather than something you're imagining - but I think the first step in dealing with all of them is to open up a dialogue. Which will probably be hard to do, at least at first. Most guys don't like to talk about their feelings, and if you make him feel pressured, imply that he's not performing, he'll likely clam up. You know him best, know how to talk to him, know how to get him to relax before you introduce your concerns, know how to keep him comfortable and get him to talk. I think that has to be your first step - if he's not giving you the love you need, he'll likely become defensive, so just encourage him to talk, remind him how you care etc etc. It's always a tricky conversation to have - such a sensitive topic! But you know him and love him, and I'm sure you can find a way to make it OK for him... Good luck!

AS IF SUMMONED FROM THE MISTS OF TIME - I reappear! Hey all. I'm back. I see that a few of us have had rough months, but the important thing is we're still in the game. I did really badly in March, I completely let myself go. Ate TERRIBLY, blah blah blah. It's been super high stress here, eased a bit now. And I enjoyed eating badly, or, at least, parts of it, but I've had enough of that, and want to get back up on the horse. So I'm just back from getting a fill, and now, I suspect, I'll have some real restriction. It's a good feeling, actually, getting back to what I know I should've been doing all along. And we have some great role models here - Scrappy and Andrew stand out, but I think we've all done pretty well for a year out. One thing that's hard is finding time for exercise (at least right now, when I have major time constraints). I'm working out at least twice a week with my trainer, who's great (after my last session, I told her that I felt like the town hooker after a particularly busy Fleet Week), but I've not been doing as much cardio since they re-arranged the machines - now it feels like you're getting on stage if you ever step onto a treadmill. Anyway, I'll get back to cardio. But I ain't weighing-in until next Friday! I don't think I could take the full-on hit of my weight gain tomorrow, and a week'll let me get rid of the Water weight and a little more... SO. Good to be back! Nice to see you all!

I just want to thank NGM for starting this thread, being a S-L-O-W loser can be very frustrating. It took me ten days post up just to lose my weight gain from surgery. The irony of going through the surgery and my weight being up was heartbreaking. But now the scale is starting to move and I know I've done the right thing for myself. This a life changing decision and its not so important to get there first but to get there and stay there. God bless you all and it is nice to know that I'm not alone and sharing my struggle with all of you.

I take sedating medicine, and stopped smoking around 14 years now. I believe that this has made it harder for me to move forward with my weight loss, with the Gastric Lap Band, which I've had 16 years ago now. I wont change the banding, cause I know if I get it removed, bye bye to the weight loss, bring on the weight gain. So far I've lost the ideal weight, then I stopped the smoking and it increased. I have 50 lbs to go now, I can do it. Can anyone related to this at all?

Yep, had DS in 2018 - I think a good quality one too, and gained about the same amount over 2020-early 2021. I know exactly why too. Too many simple carbs (breads/sugars, chocolate and candy), processed convenience junk foods, liquid calories (sugary coffees, lots). Also lack of exercise/activity due to staying home, as well as being placed on a prescription known to cause weight gain contributed to the regain. I simply got over-confident after a few years living with the surgery. Simple refined carbs are our surgery's achilles heel. We do not 'malabsorb' simple carbs, we absorb them 100%. Simple carbs, for me anyway, tend to be slider foods - breads, pizza, sweets/candies/donuts/pastries, and of course liquids like 800 calorie Starbucks don't spend long in the sleeve. Those two issues spell trouble for us, at least they have for me. Good news is once I eliminated the junk foods, simple carbs - and switched to a high-protein, low - carb diet, the weight has been melting off. I was concerned that losing regain would be difficult after the initial massive weight-loss after the surgery, but that has not been the case. I can accurately report that I've lost about 14 pounds in the last ~28 days. I have been calorie restricting in addition to the low-carb/high-protein diet, but the sleeve component of the surgery has made that rather painless, and I'm not starving at all. Just get back to basics and I think you'll do fine.

Shame on your Dr. My Dr. told me to EXPECT a weight gain before my first fill. He needs to be educated in more than one area!!!!!

Thanks Kim. I'm definitely going to stay between 950-1200 calories because that's what my doctor wants. I honestly wasn't beat up about the weight gain I just thought it was weird. Because I feel healed, ya know? But I realize my body is just adjusting. Plus, i got on the scale this morning and had lost the 6-7 lbs I had gained in the past week. So back to 269 I am and hopefully it's the last time I see that number :-) You guys are great! It's nice to know I'm not alone in this journey :-)

I most closely relate to the reason Jack said hewas fat. It is about control for me. I first started gaining weight consistently since 1997 when I moved in with my now husband. It is the first time I was away from home, and away from a controlling and abusive family. When I moved into my new place I had ULTIMATE control. I could eat when I want, what I wanted, and as much as I wanted. That is exactly what I did. Also, my husband is a huge eater. I would sit with him and think that he would eat everything if I didn't take it first. So, I ended up eating more than I wanted or needed. All that plus little exercise=weight gain.

I got sleeved July 7th and I get off liquids tomorrow(yay eggs!!) So far my sleeve is total steel, but I've noticed my pallet has done a 180. I used to be able to drink 500 calories of milk a day (easy) and now.. I don't like the taste. Same with all my juices. Now, the only liquid I like is water. What a huge blessing! Especially considering milk probably contributed to a majority of my weight gain.

Hey everyone! I'm 9 months post op VSG and have lost about 105 pounds so far (including pre-op liquid diet). Everything in general has been good so far, except for the past two weeks I've been experiencing a lot of abdominal and side pain after eating, and also some really terrible bloating, gas, nausea, and constipation. Did an ultrasound a few days ago and it turns out I have a contracted gallbladder full of stones. I know that the only way to get rid of gallbladder problems is to do gallbladder removal surgery, but I've been doing a lot of research and I've been finding that A LOT of people have been complaining that they experience uncontrolled weight gain after gallbladder removal. Despite eating healthy, exercising, and limiting the consumption of fats, people seem to rapidly gain huge amounts of weight, especially in the abdomen, and find it impossible to lose it. As a bariatric patient this of course scares the heck out of me! I don't want to do this surgery and ruin what I've worked so hard to achieve with my weight loss, and I still have so much more weight I want to lose until I hit my goal. What should I do? Has anyone else had gallbladder removal after wls? Did it impact your weight loss or give you any unwanted side affects after surgery? I'm so scared of having to do this surgery. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

I started gaining weight in my late teens early twenties, just a little bit at a time. As an early mid teen I did some modelling, and wanted to become a model. At 5'9" I was just 135lbs. The modelling agency I wanted to sign with wanted me to drop 10lbs and 3 inches off my 37" hips. I decided I didn't want to model, since I felt Ideally I actually needed to gain 5-10 pounds at that time, and definitely didn't think I could lose and still be healthy. I was a loner, I was shy, I was unpopular. Kids, particularly other girls used to tease me a lot, they used to call me a lot of names, stuck up, slut, whore, - I didn't know what I had done 'wrong' - my family constantly reassured me saying they were just jealous, they told me I was beautiful and smart. I got good grades, and modelling offers didn't I? and a lot of attention from boys and men, which when I ignored the cat calls and 'attention' - I got those remarks again - stuck up, bitch... the reaction from guys who don't have their attentions returned. Hell, I was a kid, I was shy. I wanted to be liked. I was smart... I decided to try being less smart, less pretty. I started gaining weight, the less smart I seemed, and the more weight I gained, the more I seemed to be accepted. In college the girls were less catty, I didn't seem to stand out so much, I started to feel a little more normal somehow. I still wasn't obese, I was plump, I still felt pretty. I don't think any of it was a super conscious decision, at least with the weight gain, I did 'dumb myself down' intentionally on occasion. I was torn in two directions all the time, I wanted to be smart and pretty, and I didn't. I was torn between wanting to please people, and wanting to strive for perfection, I was pretty mucked up. I got into a relationship with a not so nice guy, he didn't treat me very well, my self esteem took a turn for the worse, and I gained a little more weight, I had crept up to about 175, It's funny, because I felt fat then, now I would be unbelievably thrilled to be 175!. I broke up with him, plateaued for a while, got together with an unbelievably wonderful man, who I've been together with now for 13 years. After a couple of years in that relationship my first episode of depression hit me, I gained during that, and found myself around 200 or so pounds. My weight stabilized when I came out of that depression, and then fluctuated up and down around 30-40 pounds at a time. I got involved in martial arts, kickboxing, worked my way up to a high blue belt, just two belts away from a black belt, I was teaching lower belt levels and working at that dojo, and training with my hubby all the time, I was down to a lean muscular 190lbs for a lot of that time. I had a number of crises happen in my life then, some deaths of very close loved ones, a lot of loss. I spiraled into depression again, this one extrememly severe. I was suicidal, made several attempts over the course of a year and a half, and spend weeks, sometimes months at a time hospitalized. I went on disability from work, and we entered into bankruptcy because of it, it kept the cycle of depression kicking for a while, it took a long time for them to find a chemical cocktail of anti-depressants that worked for me. Having spend months at a time doing nothing but laying in a hospital bed curled up in a little ball, basically bedrest, no activity, completely unable to do anything at my worst times, my metabolic rate and my cardio and my physical health deteriorated rapidly along with my mental/emotional health. All the medications I take are ones linked to weight gain, they lower your metabolism, they cause you to feel hungry all the time, crave carbs, overheat easily making excersize difficult, they make you tired and lethargic, still 100 times better than me without medication though. I've tried many many meds and med combinations, the one I'm on now is the best. I'm still unable to work, I still am depressed, but I feel functional, I get some enjoyment out of life, I'm able to do somethings, it seems it's about as good as it gets for now. Most people on the type of meds I take, according to my psychiatrist, gain 50-150lbs... I topped out at 295. I went from teaching kickboxing, to not being able to walk a block without struggling. My blood pressure skyrocketed, I'm on meds for that, and my cholesterol creeping higher all the time. I felt so physically ill from carrying this weight, pains in my joints, my knees and back, tired all the time, and feeling like I'm dying bit by bit. I consulted with my family doctor, my psychiatrist, and the lap-band surgeon, and got the opinion of a second psychiatrist as well, the consensus, the lap band is a good choice for me. It may take me a little more work to contend with given my medications and things, but it has given me something that is the most valuable gift to any depressive person... hope. I'm just two weeks past surgery now, and I feel healthier and more energized than I have in years. Thank you everyone for sharing such personal stories about yourselves, it's helpful to read. XO Leila

Well for me, being fat has been a life long struggle. From childhood to age 17 I was VERY active, on soccer teams, dance, tap, cheerleading, gymnastics, then when I was in 7th grade my school started a swim team. I always loved to swim and I thought I was pretty good, so I tried out, and I made it, from 7th grade until when I dropped out in 11th, I was a competitive swimmer. I worked out 6x a week 2-3 hours a day. And guess what? I was the second biggest girl on the team! I wasn't consuming huge amounts of food besides the night before a meet when we carb loaded. After I dropped out, that's when things went downhill. I started realizing that there was something wrong, like why couldn't I be a normal size when I was working out so much. Well then came college a few months later, and being such a shy person, I didn't ever want to go to the gym alone, so I rarely went. Then I left that school, got a job, had no means of working out really. Then I was back in school, but still didn't work out, and basically I haven't really worked out since I left high school. I did discover that the constant weight gain was due to PCOS, and that I was almost fighting a losing battle. Finding out about the PCOS was such a breakthrough it explained a lot, like dark black facial hair, yeah, how embarrassing. Late 2008 I finally decided to look into weight loss surgery. Now I'm STILL trying to get surgery, having difficulty due to stupid doctors who are big babies, or assholes. But I'm close.

I know what you mean regarding control. I think that was a significant factor in my weight gain. When I got married at age 23, I was slim and fit - @125lb, 38-23-34. I made the mistake of marrying a man I didn't know as well as I thought I did and he turned out to be an incredible control freak as well as a violent drunk (he's now an EX ). Our lifestyle changed drastically after the wedding (no more going out dancing all night, full meals every night, etc) and I started to gain a little weight. He used to berate and belittle me every time I ate, so of course I rebelled by eating more and even sneaking food when he wasn't watching. Within a few years, I had gained about 20-30lb and his favourite refrain when slapping me about was "You FAT UGLY PIG!!" (This was at about 140lb!) With my self-esteem crushed, I turned to food for comfort (yeah I know, lots of other issues there, but that was significant). By the time I got out of the marriage 8 years later, I was about 160lb - overweight but not huge. I can clearly remember the first four years of being single again, when I did things like hang out in the refrigerator at night saying things like "Haha! Watch me eat this!! You can't stop me now!!" I deliberately put on the fat suit, partly because of that "defiance" aspect and partly because I wanted to keep men away - both were desperate attempts at taking a measure of control in my life. By the end of 4 years of single life, I had put on another 60lb and was around 220lb. At that stage, I sought therapy for my issues with self-esteem, the marriage and how I had managed to get myself into that situation. The therapy helped a lot and I really came to terms with who I was and how I had arrived there, but unfortunately the fat suit wasn't as easy to take off as it was to put on. Since then, I went through various stages of dieting and failure, and thinking I had accepted the weight and settled for being a "fat person" forever. I slowly yo-yoed my way up another 55lb until I hit my all time high of 275lb last year (15 years post-marriage). Now that I have made the change and been banded, I realise that I had never really accepted it and I am now finding comfort in having the control to be able to take the weight off. I'm looking forward to finding the "real me" under this fat suit.

Why am I so fat... okay.... I'm the youngest of 7 children. Mom & Dad (poorly educated) always working. Dad was a happy lovabe drunk, always worked but had no time for us kids. Mom (who can't read, write or drive) struggled with two jobs just to keep us fed. My Mom know's what starvation is and never wanted her kids to ever know that feeling. Our dinner table was always full of breads, potatoes, Pasta, rice, starches, anything that stuck to 9 hungry bellies. Never abused physically as a kid but emotionally negelected, okay, totally ignored. Never encouraged, never complemented. If I was noticed I was mocked for being fat. I wouldn't dare open my mouth because no matter what I said I was shot down and called stupid. food became my best friend, my love. It never put me down and it was always there by my side, It was my way out and it felt so good, still does. Lived with alot of people but grew up very lonely. Still to this day, I can be in a room with 100 people and still feel alone. My Weight Chart: Age 0 - 7: Skinny kid. Age 7: moved to a new town, very shy, no friends, started gaining weight. Age 7 - 20: Highest weight was 300+ Age 20: My Father died of Cancer. Shortly after I met the love of my life (so I thought), he dumped me and I was so heart broken I couldn't eat for months, I mean this man loved me, all 300 lbs of ME. So the depression and starvation process began. Age 22: I weighed 150 lbs (starvation). Age 23 - 25: Met new boyfriend, fell in love, got married - weighed 160 lbs Age 25 - 33: Kept weight between 175 - 185 lbs (but notice it rising). Age 33: Sister died unexpected. Rapid weight gaining started 100 + lbs. Major depression starts. Age 36: Weighed 226 lbs (got pregnant and swore I wouldn't get any bigger). Age 37: Had DD and at the end of the pregnancy weighed 260 lbs, lost 38 lbs and gained it back same year (postpartum depression is why I lost the 38). Age 38: Weighed 250 lbs. Age 39: Lost 30 lbs with Atkins Diet Age 40: Gained back 30+ lbs lost on Atkins Diet Age 40: Diagnosed with ADHD Age 40: I weigh approximately 254 lbs. Age 40: Tired of losing the battle, tired of the struggle, TIRED! Age 40: Seeking Lapband I have arthritis in my knees since I'm 12 (and in my back). Bone spurs and DDDisease in my spine. I have gone to psy doctors for therapy time and time again...sigh. My entire life I have been on every stinkin diet there is, tried all diet pills. Last diet pill tried was this year, May, 2005, Merida (still some left in my purse). July, 2005 - Researching Lap Band Surgery August 2, 2005 - Going to Doctor for medical lap band referal. August 9, 2005 - Going to Surgeons Seminar on lap band. This is me..... Eileen

Lifestyle more than anything else has been my problem. I had a wonderful childhood, great mother and family. Up until the last few years I have been very active, played lots of golf and worked 100 hour weeks for 30 years. I was able to do so because I required little sleep and in general was in very good health considering my weight. . I strongly feel that my problem was that I was on the road a lot and relied mostly on fast food (about 2/3 of all meals). I graduated from high school weghing 180 pounds From 1965 to 1988 I gained about 250 pounds. Since 1988 I am down about 30 pounds from a high of about 475. In retrospect I was gaining about 1 pound a month, that's a little over 100 calories a day. I have a wife who also is heavy and loves to snack at night, an additional problem since seeing her eat triggered my appetite. Looking back it seems that it would have taken so little to avoid my tremendous weight gain, eliminating a piece of bread, soda etc daily would have made a huge difference. Since 1988 I have needed to change eating habits to keep from gaining and aditional weight. At first it was eliminating the soda, then late night snacking etc. Now I eat a very heathy diet with very few refined carbs and that is what is required simply to stay even. I am due for lapband surgery soon and hopefully I can drop enough weight to start exercising so I can increase my metabolism. As you would expect I have constant back pain and joint problems. Moving from the midwest to the Northwest has been an eye opener. There is no question that there is more emphasis here on a healthy life style. People are far more active and make better eating choices. I also now have many neighbors from their 40's to mid 80's who are extremely fit. My friends back in the midwest were all heavy, ate lots of unhealthy food and exercised little. For years I passed the buck and simply blamed genetics and thought that poeple who were thin were simply born with "skinny genes". I am sure that helps, but my neighbors are all very disiplined about exercising and they eat very healthy diets, that more than anything else accounts for difference between us. So friends, in my case lifestyle and lack of self disipline has been my downfall.

Hi sarahjp, My surgeon is Stephen Blamey. He took my band out (it was put in by Tny Kiereth in Perth though). I'll be at Cabrini Malvern. Which Cabrini were you at? Lila certainly has come a long way, from a very touch n go long hospital stint to now being one of the most inspirational posters on here. Of course, everyone is inspirational, as everyone is on tier own journey. I too value each piece of info shared. swift Kate, I did beat myself up for a bit....but it didn't last that long. I actually got a bit pissed off at Dr Blamey over it because I begged for the band to be taken out and me get sleeved at the same time (had no issues with the band ther than I just couldn't work it to my benefit) but nothing doing; I just HAD to wait many many weeks in between. And of course after the band was out, I had no complications from that, I had no restriction, and my stomach was no longer folded over and secure to the band so it was bigger. After the initial 10 day period where I wanted nothing to do with food (as is usually the case when someone has had surgery on their guts) my hunger came back with a vengeance and I was hungry ALL THE TIME, and I had this craving, this desperate craving for things I hadn't been able to ingest for over 4 years: chicken breast....steak....pork.....salad with chunky cut veggies instead of everything slivered.........milk.......cheese...... Am I the only one who notices a theme here (that most of these are dense proteins)? While I have had some sweet treats since being dis-banded (LOL) I have to say they are not my weakness. My weakness is all the things I was deprived of for a substantial amount of time. That craving? I think was my bodies way of saying, hey we haven't had this good stuff for a long time - better stock up! But I can't blame Dr Blamey (eh, irony much? Hahaha) for the frequency or quantity I partook of these things. I am mostly sure that his making me wait between surgeries was out of medical concern......but a part of me wonders if he didn't look at the situation as a cash cow - I mean after all he told me point blank that the combination band removal/VSG was never done and that EVERYone had to wait. Which I know from here, blogs, ObesityHelp, YouTube and other sources is not exactly the truth. Perhaps he didn't mean to blanket the VSG world wide with an everyone does this comment, maybe he only meant HIS patients. Regardless my fears of weight gain, that I expressed plainly and without pause fell on deaf ears, and while I hold myself fully accountable for my 10kg gain, having a gigantic stretched out stomach and an appetite that just would not be appeased for very long certainly didn't help. End rant, moving on and moving forward. I hope the scale reflects my efforts this past 2 weeks. I still haven't shifted the Water retention from my feet and ankles, but I notice that I don't seem to have that ungodly soreness in the heels, and I'm not as stiff upon waking or after sitting for so long. Also I don't feel QUITE as bloated in the face. I am taking this a sign that something's are changing in the positive. Sorry for my long winded posts everyone. I don't post often but when I do I go for gold! Sorry x 2! - does anyone on here do vlogs on YouTube? I love watching them,8 find them so inspiring and motivational, not to mention educational. And it's good to see and hear someone talk about their experiences. Feels more connected. I am going to look into doing them as well. I need the "face to face" accountability! Hahaha Ok everyone have a great week. Go out and make it happen!

Dang Mamacita!!! How did I miss this post?!!! Amazing transformation in 1 year and so far out. What an inspiration and you give me hope that weight gain is NOT inevitable and if we encounter it, then we just TCB, like you did this year. CONGRATS!!!!

Denise is a move to Portland out of the question? I know you started to exercise again is everything all OK with your back now and did the op fix everything? Weight gain is a pig - no take that back I'm being the pig which is causing the gain. I wish Kim would post as I want to know all about her Scotland trip.

So I ended up not having the sardines or salad, instead I had about 2 ounces of curried chicken salad around 2pm, then a serving of cashews and a serving of jack cheese for dinner. I was preoccupied with a new painting I'm working on so before I knew it it was 8:30pm and too late to make a real meal. Today will be same tea and milk, same protein shake, same curried chicken, and definitely the salad tonight - I won't let myself start painting until I've made the salad! I switched mood meds, per my Drs advice, from Zoloft to velafaxine and upon doing so I discovered that one of the side effects of Zoloft is weight gain! WTF!!! I never knew that!!! I'm not going to blame all of my gain in the Zoloft but hell, that couldn't have helped!!

Hi ladies! I agree that the refreshed mindset is important - I found myself stymied at my wight gain over the past few months...well I put the sleeve to the test and sure enough, just like everyone tells you - you will gain your weight back if you don't eat within the nutrition guidelines set out. Last year was ridiculous with the stress - and I think I let the hopelessness over issues I could not control at work spill over into my personal life in terms of identity and taking good care of myself. I am one that tends to isolate, hibernate, and eat to soothe - and that is just what I did. At least now, I seem to be able to get back on the horse much more quickly. Much of what has helped is the accounting taken along the way - journaling daily food intake and exercise, more personal journaling about the journey and happiness that had come from shedding so much weight, the pride that came from success. I am still working on reaching out and being part of a community - like with this group here. I mentioned it before on this board - I felt and still feel a lot of shame over back-sliding and gaining weight back. But the reality is that it looks like most of us who have the surgery have the same experience - I am not sure if I have read updates from any member who has not had a little or large weight gain bounce up after that first year or two. I saw 190 on the scale for a moment in December - like my lowest ticker weight I also saw only once - so I am calling those numbers the non-stickers lol. The weight on the scale this morning was 183.6 - and I have set a very doable goal of 4 lbs a month for the entire year until I hit that damned healthy BMI that for me lives at and under 140 lbs. Gonna do my best to stay positive and keep at it! I was really inspired by the 5:2 thread about hunger that I think it was Kim who posted - it looks like a lot of the ladies on that thread did 4:3 to lose and 5:2 to maintain - I was thinking of trying the same thing. I was having a great fast day on monday until late I was under 500 and then hubby shared a low carb tortilla with turkey with me - I suppose it could be worse - I will take being 7 down of the 27 bounce up I seem to be able to do okay with around 600 cals - 500 and under can be rough - how do you guys do it and what do you eat? Florinda - I looked at a lot of Amazon gigs as well went I resigned from my last gig. Decided against it after reading a few of the job descriptions - a few of which seemed to rival my masters thesis in wordiness lol. Want simple and happy and kind the older I get. Peace to all who are struggling. Keep up the good fight.

Yesterday was suppose to be fast day for me and I crashed and burned. I was doing good until I went to meet with my daughter's new daycare to drop off my schedule. She asked me if I wanted anything to drink, and I said no, but they ended up bringing me a glass of orange Tang, I think anyways. I didn't want to be rude, so I drank it, and it all went down hill. I have been feeling very overwhelmed lately. My husband has be gone for 2 weeks out of the last 3 (which I am not used to at all, watching my children by myself) and I am going back to work in just over a week after being at home for almost 7 years with my kiddos. I just feel very down and feel like crying. I have struggled with depression in the past (this weight gain that I am dealing with was from switching medications). I have been doing well not being on anything, its just been as of late. I started taking St. John's Wort, but only recently. And my eating habits are still very tied to my emotions. So as of late, I have not been doing well. I have been sticking to the fasting twice a week, but on days when I don't, I feel out of control. I know I have to get my head back in the game, but I am really struggling. I was happy where I was maintaining and I am frustrated that I feel like I have to diet to get these pounds back off. Ugh Sorry for my rambling. I am just feeling lonely and frustrated and, and, and. I am going to try and fast today to make up for the day yesterday. But right now it is only 8:20am, so I have a long day ahead of me!

Hello everyone! It's been quite some time. This thread is pretty much dead. But if any of you are still around, I thought I'd share... My second LapBand placed in Feb 2009 became disconnected!! I mean really?? How many LapBands should one girl have to mess with? LOL....so, I started gaining weight pretty fast and had to bicker quite a bit with the insurance company. But ultimately I was approved to have the Band removed and get the Vertical Sleeve. I had surgery almost 2 weeks ago and so glad it's over. I am so frustrated with the weight gain, but so glad that there won't be any more fills/unfills or getting stuck!! I'm on the mend and tired of mushies....for the third time! hahaha I hope all is going well for the rest of you!!! Best to all, Carol

I'm just going to do two more months so that it shows 0 weight gain the entire 6 months. I don't want them to have any reason to deny me again. At this point I've been jumping through hoops for 7-8 months there is no way I'm stopping now. Over 2000$ in and down 22 lbs as of this morning. Not happening. I'm determined to get this approval!!!!

Congrats girlie!!!! Wooohoooooo!!! I think you look so healthy and vital and agreed! Weight gain after cancer is not so good for us! (psst-he's adorbs!)