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low carb, yes - good and sustainable. keto? NO. do not start with that. unsustainable, unnecessary, and damaging in the long run. i know you are in ketosis now, largely bc of the sharp calorie decline and your body utilizing so much stored fat for energy. but seriously do not start with the eating 80% fat thing. not because fat is bad for you, it’s not, but because you should not begin ANY eating plan that you can’t sustain for the rest of your life. because guess what happens when you get off of it. yep, weight gain regain. i follow a generally low-carb (under 50g carbs per day), whole foods diet. kinda paleo, kinda Mediterranean, but always REAL FOOD. makes it all quite simple.

Hi, another new person here. Thanks for such a valuable site for information on this procedure! Seeing my surgeon this week; hopeful I'll get an approval for January surgery. I've read several of the different threads, and I'm curious about those complaining about weight gain. Why do you not mention returning to your doctor's offices on a regular basis for consultation - and what about fills to assist you and get you back on track? Isn't that the purpose of the "adjustable" band?? Thanks - and good luck to all of you!

I say dump the alcohol and food and go back to the Sex....It burns alot of calories and is an enjoyable gratifing exercise. Then go back to eating small portions and make sure you get your Protein first...then your fruits and veggies. But stay away from the booze as was said earlier straight sugar and that causes weight gain like non other. Make sure you get your liquids in and start making your yougurt smoothies again, the boyfriend will love them and they are good for you both! Good Luck in your continued weight loss, I know you can do it!

I have read that water weight gain from the IV after surgery is normal. But after they remove the IV and you start moving around the weight will drop off.

Great Post Jaqui! You know it may sound crazy, oh how do I say this without it coming out wrong? ... I've always felt like I would never be successful at reaching my weight goals unless I fixed all my head issues with food, exercise shoot and life in general. And every time I would start to get close to my goals I'd find myself self sabotaging it like I didn't feel I deserved to get there as I hadn't "fixed" all the other issues yet. But when people, like yourself, who I look up to as an example of Lapband success are willing to open up and share their continued struggles with food and or exercise it really helps. Not because misery loves company or that I want to feel my own failings are being validated. But because it helps to remind me that I can succeed on the scale even while I'm still struggling with the head issues. Who knows I've spent my entire life stressing and struggling with my weight. More importantly I've always assumed the "beautiful people" in life didn't have those same issues and that was why they didn't have the problems with the scale that I did. But maybe I'm wrong, maybe they aren't all that different than me and are dealing with many of the same problems with food. Maybe they have just learned to catch themselves and bring themselves back from the brink before there is any permanent weight gain. My suspicion is that the true difference between the "beatiful people" and myself is the level of guilt I associate with my slips and how that guilt tends to pull me even deeper down rather than just shaking it off and moving forward.

Hey there Cindy, I am so sorry you are going through this. I'm actually a bit worried I'm on the same trend. I was banded in Sep of 05 and like you lost nearly 100 pounds but ever since I had plastic surgery last fall I've been slowly gaining weight. Depending on if you add in the weight of the skin the doc says he removed I've gained as much as 25 pounds! I was closer to goal than you stated but am still beginning to get into a similar panic. After so many years of being banded I am starting to discover that running for a fill everytime the weight doesn't come off is not always the answer and in my case can sometimes be contributing to the cause. About a month ago when I went in for another fill to help stop this weight gain my doc actually ended up taking nearly all the fill out. I had approx 11 cc's in the lapband VG and he thinks that I had lived with a fill that was actually too tight for over a year. I hadn't been pb'ing but I've had bad heartburn and reflux almost nightly for over a year and had moved more and more away from solid Protein rich foods to softer carb heavy foods like mash potatoes (as they didn't give me heartburn as bad). I was also finding that I was slowly eating larger portions of food than I use to. The doc believes this is because I had stretched out my esophagus but that it should shrink back to normal after "resting" for a month or two with no fill. Sorry to give you a novel here and for not having any wonderful solutions to suggest. But I wanted you to know you are not alone and I'd be glad to "buddy" up and try to work on reversing our trends together.

Please don't feel guilty for depriving your baby. The baby will rob mom of everything that he/she needs. That means, if you weren't consuming enough Calcium (for example) the baby will not hesitate to take it from your body (i.e. your bones). Also, it is well documented that you only need an additional 300 calories/day to grow a baby and that need exists mainly in the 3rd trimester. Finally, excess weight and too fast weight gain is stressful to both mom and baby. I think you made a good decision for yourself and your baby. IMHO

If your high blood pressure, high cholesterol, high sugar levels were caused by your weight gain & food choices (the higher your weight the higher the levels rose) then yes, if you lose weight after the surgery, change your eating habits & maintain the loss & changes, the symptoms should not return to their previous high levels or will at least maintain at a lower, healthier point. If these issues have a genetic predisposition (occur in your family & are not weight related), they will always be something you have to watch. E.g. type 1 diabetes is genetic which you can manage but can’t change but type 2 is caused by lifestyle choices like obesity which you can do something about. After my surgery my cholesterol went from borderline high to the low end of the healthy range. My blood pressure was normal before surgery & now it’s low all the time. (Didn’t have sugar issues before but I know I have further reduced my risk for diabetes greatly. But talk to your surgeon & doctor for the best information especially as your medication contributed to your weight gain.

Today I see the nutritionist. I'm nervous about it because when I last saw the surgeon, on 11/6, I was 10 lbs lighter than I am now. My insurance already approved me, and I'm scheduled for surgery on 12/29. This is my last Dr's appt before surgery, but I'm afraid the nutritionist will change all that because I've gained more weight. Of course it's my fault I've gained, because I'm eating everything I feel I can't have after surgery, but can it be delayed due to weight gain?! My Dr. doesn't require a 2 week pre-op diet, but I am putting myself on one starting Monday, exactly 2 weeks before my big day.

Congratulations Lisa ... Ha Ha Seroiously , sorry to hear you had a PB but atleast you know your band is still working right? That is a good thing! Your concerns for erosion should be at ease a little bit now, if you were eroded , anything and everything would be sliding down that hatch with no pain, no slime. I'm so glad you heard my voice..I hope you listen to it What I experienced after my major PB was NO fun at all! Just think with you doing soft foods and liquids today, you will have cushion for tomorrows goodies without any weight gain..pretty good huh?

I had my surgery 3/2 (Friday) and I was so excited getting weighed in at the hospital at 246lbs, which was 9lbs lower than my surgery goal weight. I was only required to be on a Clear liquids diet 24 hrs prior to my surgery so I figured when I got home from the hospital my weight would be the same ... WRONG One day later (Saturday), no more than 24hrs gone by and I come home from the hospital and get on my scale ... 258lbs!!! I was thinking it was just IV fluids or from the horrible gas & bloating, but idk? Now here it is 3 days later (Monday) and I'm still weighing in at 252lbs?? I want my 246lbs back, lol! Anyone have this happen and if so what was the outcome? Thanks for any replies

Welcome to BP @betterlife7. The above post is absolutely correct about GERD. However, RNY has more complications in general and is far more notorious to what we all refer to as "dumping syndrome," which is a feeling of sickness caused by eating something that cannot be digested by the pouch, most commonly sugars. I would say that unless you have a serious problem with sugar and you feel that is primarily responsible for your weight gain, I am a strong advocate for sleeve (although you need to sit down and discuss this intensively at your consultation and also see what your insurance has to say). Eventually, we can eat just about anything we want with impunity, albeit with dramatically reduced portion sizes. Even years out, we will become full just on hors d'oeuvres, but eventually, the ultra-vigilance can stop, because the volume restriction helps us lose and maintain our desired weight. And, perhaps most important to me, the hunger hormone ghrelin, which is produced by the part of your stomach that is removed during a sleeve, no longer causes the unbearable hunger sensations that occur when you lose weight with diet and exercise.

I can relate, nprcowboy. I started Wellbutrin and Paxil in May and have gained 20+ lbs. Paxil is the most notorious SSRI for causing weight gain. I am now off of it and am losing weight again, but it just feels so unfair that a medication can throw such a monkey wrench into someone's weight loss! Best of luck to you!

I would suggest you contact your OB/GYN doctor. Something may not be right. I use to have extremely heavy periods and found that the hormone that is suppose to slow down your bleeding was not kicking in. I tried birth control pills but they did not work, They then gave me a prescription that made my body think it was menapouse so I did not have periods (I was already done with having children) but that big side effect was WEIGHT GAIN. I finally had hysteretomy (this was all presurgery many years ago) and I don't miss a thing with that time of month anymore. The main thing is there may be a medical reason so you may not want to wait.

I was just approved last Friday!! I did have the Lindstrom Obesity advocates (Kelley and Walter Lindstrom) fight my appeal after my first appeal denial. They submitted it to Aetna (I continued going for NUT visits and weigh in and showed a steady loss) and was APPROVED!!!! Just waiting on a date now! U can fight it if u get denied. I had a weight gain and no weight for 2013. Still got approved. It's all in the way the appeal is written! Please keep us posted on how u make out!!! If YA need any info from me feel free to contact me!!! Fingers crossed for you!!!!!

I think they denied you because you hadn't done the 6 months of nutritional meeting alone, I don't think it had nothing to do with gaining 2 lbs. That would make no sense, maybe once you've completed the 6 months of meetings it will be a different outcome. I mean people gain weight all the time I hardly doubt the 2lb weight gain played a factor in their decision

Yes that's right. I had been working on weight loss for a while and was in the process of getting approved for the sleeve when my pcp said to take out my IUD birth control as she contributed my sudden weight gain to the hormones in it as one last thing to try before WLS. Yeah well within a month I was pregnant. I had completed practically all the requirements before getting pregnant so the doctor said if everything went well with delivery I was OK to get it at 2 months post birth. I'm so glad I had a smooth natural delivery. I'm still on maternity leave from work so I'll get another month to recover from the sleeve. I don't have to come back to work them take off again in a few months so it worked out really well. Sent from my SM-N920T using the BariatricPal App

Update on revision. Temporarily postponed. After discussion with PA and surgeon and what they were planning on doing, (and also surgeon was having to postpone due to death in the family), we've decided to refill and slowly bring it back up, assuming no problems. All he was going to do was either put in another stitch or undo the flap of stomach that the pull over the band to hold it in place...undo that and possibly change the location of the flap. They believe everything is still in tact. So PA put in 4ccs today and I will see how it goes and if all goes well, in a month I will go back and have them do an X-ray and if band looks llike it's where it should be, they will slowly over the next few months bring it back up to restriction level. But I have a strong feeling that I may have just been overfilled. and then with the throwing up, forced the band into a position it didn't need to be. I had the option to go with the other surgeon, but I think I want to try this first and use revision as my last option. But I am going to stick with only the PA doing the fills, so that at least there's consistency with who is doing them. I don't think the surgeon does as many and the PA says that he usually is able to pull more out than the surgeons. Because if I count all the ccs that were in there, I thought I should have only had 7 inserted...well somehow or another I ended up with 10cc, unless my body is mysteriously producing fill all on its own..:) Right now feeling okay. Staying on a soft food diet for a few days to get it a rest after getting the fill. Neither one lectured me on the 8 lb weight gain. I've read some users on here that just by removing the fill and letting everything rest and get back to it's proper location that it can fix the issue and PA even said they're had some patients that that has done the job. So we'll see. I'm just glad to have at least part of my buddy back :) I know it's probably all mental but just knowing that there's fill in there, my food grazing/craving cycle is non-existent right now. So onward I go...whoo-hoo :) trisha pennreporter:thumbup::confused::thumbup::thumbup:

I'm pretty good support system-wise. Literally five people in my family have gotten the same exact surgery (including my mother) so I can probably go to one of them for help. It's just that I'm horrible with keeping secrets and how do you hide eating habits when your two closest friends love to eat? It's just frustrating because I KNOW my two closest friends won't understand. Not because they're skinny, but because I've never mentioned a thing about my weight loss or weight gain to them. Yet at the same time, they're probably the ones that deserve to know. I can tell I'm getting nowhere with this. Thanks for all the suggestions though.

It's a valid question. I posted man of my reasons in my introductory post in the other forum. I have had many friends and family members who have taken advantage of weight loss surgery...both lap-band and bypass. Through my experience with them and a work project I was exposed to a great deal of research on the subject. I also love reading about the success stories of people who have lost weight and changed their lives. We live in a society where many people are consumed by weight...and while we can debate the validity of that all night long, it is what it is. In my experience, few achievements improve self-esteem and make people happier than losing weight and becoming healthier and more comfortable with their appearance. I decided to sign up to read such stories, offer my congratulations, and share whatever knowledge I could from the research I conducted. If nothing else, it helps me to justify all the time I spent reading and writing about the subject! And I have battled slight weight issues and have a family history of heart disease and a propensity for above average weight gain during middle age. So during the course of my experience with weight loss surgery, it is something I have kept in the back of my mind perhaps even as a preventative measure (and is some trending towards lower-BMI individuals using the surgery as a preventative therapy) considering how successful today's techniques have proven to be. Hopefully I can effectively manage my weight as I age and it will not be an issue. Either way, lapbandtalk.com seems like a great place to read uplifting stories and help pass along support to be who have made a wise and brave decision. :tt1:

Hello all! Short Story... I went to my families house for Christmas & I was discussing with my Aunt & Sister how I was getting the Sleeve in 2017. They were both against it, saying i should try naturally & I need to get physically in the gym.. I was letting all of that go in one ear & out the other, until my Aunt said 3 of her friends gotten gastric surgeries done & all have gained their weight back plus more.. now if she would have said at least 1 gained their weight back, okay cool. But she said all 3. Is it possible to just gain the weight back like that after losing that tremendous amount? Im curious after that conversation..

Here is a great piece of info directly from the Inamed Handbook I got from surgery that may help you Kansascitygal Page 7 Q- How would I know if my band is"too tight or "overfilled" A- If the adjustment results in too tiht of a stomach opening, you could have a hard time eating most foods. Sometimes this causes people to avoid solid food. They may drink liquid meals. This may result in weight gain especially if the liquid used is high in calories. A band that is too tight can cause reflux symptoms particularly at night.It can aslo cause frequent vomiting. The opening to the stomach can become completely blocked. This would result in not being able to keep any food or liquids down. Should you develop these symptoms, please notify your surgeon at once. I hope today you have called your Dr. for the sake of your health and the longevity of your band

And what a puzzle it is. It's so overwhelming that I'm still trying to put it all together in a way that makes sense to me, much less to my peers who I'm asking for opinions! First of all, BMI is a ratio. Had I achieved the rather unambitious goal weight set for me (variously 18#-20# from my current weight) then I wouldn't have been obese anymore by BMI standards. That part is simple. {As for the Tummy Tuck or Abdominoplasty -To those who have not have yet had cosmetic surgery: I did have an Abdominoplasty. This surgery is very different from weight loss surgery or lipo. The traditional abdominoplasty is not a weight loss procedure - it does do not ultimately affect your scale weight either way. In fact after a Tummy Tuck, there is often an initial weight gain, due to Fluid retention and swelling. (I already factored that in with my latest weight issues.) I was told I was close enough to goal to be within range to have a this done and I knew with some effort, I could have it covered at 100%. So I was happy to seize that opportunity for a much needed procedure. I sought 4 different plastic surgery consultations and my WLS surgeon's advice before I had it and it was definitely the right move. But never ever think a Tummy Tuck makes will mean significant weight loss. It's a wonderfully complex procedure but it changes how your body contours, but although it might change your posture or even how your clothes fit, it may not change your weight. If you see Fatty meat on a butchers scale (ewwww ), you may see that the marbled fat doesn't weigh as much as the meat's muscle and bone, and Abdominoplasty surgery primarily removes skin and it's associated flab and repairs muscles if needed. Just an FYI! :straight } I'm trying to clarify all the parts of the story because it seems a bit disjointed with the way I outlined it. Chalk that up to emotion. But I have to wait until my medical records are in my possession to put ALL the missing pieces together. There is much more to this for me to work through and the more information I have, the clearer I will be on what's really going on here. So as I really do appreciate everyone's comments, I will take some of this very much appreciated and very much solicited advice under counsel. I posted here first because I needed to hear what other Bandster patients thought about how I should proceed next. I've been very grateful especially to those who contacted me privately and attempted to help me work through it. Yes, I had a very visceral, heartfelt emotional response to the letter (which just seeing a certified letter, much less one from a surgeon, nearly scared me silly :cry ) and I think my post reflected that. I was upset (still am) overwrought (no longer that) and shocked. Now I'm justifiably upset but I am trying to look at my options. So, for now, I should remove my post before I make a bad situation even worse. It's bad now, so I should try to have enough presence of mind to not inflame things further or seem unclear, especially when I lack all the true details here. I am crafting a measured written response to the office, but of course I have accepted his decision. I do accept that this is as much as I could have done (to whoever said that, I do realize they have no idea what I've gone through - hopefully I can expand on that later also) so such hold on to your hats. Once I get my medical records released I think I'll have a very relevant and thought provoking story to tell my Banded (and de-Banded) Bandster peers. No one likes to admit they made a mistake. I am no different. I fully believed the Band could take me to an acceptable level of weight loss. Maybe it still can but it's a bit discouraging to hear your medical professional say you've come to the end of your road. (Again, those were his words.) If he thinks I should be satisfied to have come from where I was to where I am now, then he really didn't ever clearly hear my goals, aims, and wishes. And if it sounds like belly-aching to say I did NOT undertake the time, money, effort and blood, sweat, and tears just to end up still obese - then a belly-acher I am. My goal was to get to a healthy, and satisfactory weight. This isn't it. Again as I promised, I will first attempt to get the records released, get them analyzed by another professional and then know how to proceed next. Then hopefully I'll be in a position to put ALL the pieces together and then more clearly outline the details on why my journey with this surgeon, is being cut short. No matter what my (former) surgeon thinks, I am not definitely through trying to succeed at this. Again thanks.

When you look in the mirror, what do you see and how do you feel about yourself (before and after surgery)? Last night I got a bit of a wake up call. I was at a party where there were lots of picture being taken. I saw some photos of myself, and was like "holy crap, is that really me??" Was not feeling too happy because I look really large in pictures, yet I never felt like I had gained so much weight back, and didn't see myself as being so overweight. Reality check, bigtime. I'm way larger than what I perceived. In the mirror, In my eyes I still saw that person that I was 10 years ago, but on paper (and on screen) the fact is that I am so NOT that person I was 10 years ago... and not perceiving the true reflection of the person I am in reality helped lend itself to the big weight gain (again) I now think. "But I don't FEEL that large, so I can't possibly look so fat in pictures..." Contrarily, I have a friend who had a full bypass a few years ago. She's dropped almost 200 pounds, yet she tells me she still "feels fat". She is far from that and looks good. I know I'm overweight, but don't feel it sometimes. Well what I mean is that I do feel it physically (because I'm uncomfortable) but I don't feel that people see me that way or that I look that way, it's very strange. I suppose I need to keep looking at pictures of myself to reinforce my reality and the fact that I really need this surgery to happen. And when it does, I don't want to fail at it.

Here's my story: I was right at 170 to 180 pounds back in 1995 a few years after my Army days. I had no problem with getting a Woman or a date for that matter. Then I met my children's Mom right after I had started to experience back problems. I had explained to her--how the military service had caused it. She insisted she was a bit phased. We soon was pregnant with child. My son was born in June of 1996. I went back to work without a problem mid 1995. within 3 years--I have major problems. I started to m7y weight go up to, due me always missing work for back pain. In July 1998 I had to have surgery. All of a sudden at the end of 1998 I was totally unappealing. I found out my thyroid was almost asleep. I started on thyroid meds. Soon I got the cold shoulder. During this time--a second child was born. Speeding up a bit--she walked out, complaining hot big and fat I had got--how I was just 1/2 a Man. I went through the up and down weight slide. Down to 250, back up to 300. Tried this diet and that diet. Nothing worked, When I kicked butt with a serious weight loss in 2003--My knee was gone. A full knee replacement, then a second neck surgery. Yes I am disabled, But I pride myself on bouncing back. Now I am 270 and holding. My ex-wife saw me in 2005 and claimed I was l0ooking good. No way I could go back. The mral of the story is, with all of my surgeries, weight gain, weight loss and medical issues. I can't blame my ex-wife. The best thing that came out of it--winning hild custody of my 2 sons--now soon to be and 11 years old. Now I am not even attempting to get a new wife nor girlfriend. I am totally focused on my weight loss--getting the "Lap Band"--even as the medicare policy has changed with the new cuts. I can't blame the ex because--Many years ago before my Marriage. I was really feeling good about this Woman I knew. We attempted dating--but she said --No, No, No. She was like a fit size 8 to 10. But all of sudden she started to gain weight. She had developed Hyperthyroidism--where you lose weight. So her Dr has to place her the meds to gain weight back. Since that is not a clear cut science--she went from that 1o to a large 20 as I would guess. I saw her--I was trying to get away from her. So would I expect someone to date me due to my weight loss and not date me now--again my answer is maybe. I know how folks feel since I have gone from skinny to fat and back.....