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As I'm trying to research and learn as much about the Sleeve as possible, bouge sizes, pre and post op challenges, etc, it seems that at least from this site that there are a lot of people on here who have had the lap band and going for the sleeve or have already gone the route of the sleeve. I guess where I'm going with this is that I understand the WLS is only a tool, etc... And, so I'm curious for those that had previous WL surgeries (lap band or whatever), what was it that made you feel the surgery didn't work. Yeah, probably weight gain- but how much of maybe could it have been not following a a better lifestyle (food choices and exercise). I realize some may have had medical complications, but other than that what do you feel was the cause for your 1st surgeries failure? Second, do you worry that long term you may experience similar challenges or weight gain? I am asking this only because having had the VBG back in 1998, I think back to what led me to where I am today. To be honest, I felt I did fairly well after the surgery even though I never lost the last 40# or so. I started with a weight of around 305# and got down to about 170# in about a years time. I was not referred to a nutritionist nor were there any support groups (surgery was too new at the time here) and so while I knew I needed to make some major lifestyle changes, it just wasn't permanent. I'm now at about 240# and have bounced up and down over the years- just can't ever get it to stay off much less gain back more. It became worse with job losses/ high stress job a few years ago (triggers for me)... So, it leads me to wondering, somewhat concerned about having this happen again. Yes, it means making a commitment to a healthy lifestyle change- but it obviously wasn't permanent or I wouldn't be here considering a revision. I ask myself now that I'm a little older if I am more mature (was 26 then), and now armed with more knowledge, access to support groups, etc if that will be enough. Ultimately, it is a personal choice- I get that. Just wanted to hear from others if they had concerns going into a revision if they wondered if they might end up where they were "x" months post-op from their 1st surgery. Thanks for anyone's feedback.

I knew what you meant We didn't really set a goal weight loss for the six month diet. They actually told me at the beginning my bmi was just barely qualifying so if I lost too much weight I would be denied. I wasn't concerned with that because the way I saw it, if I was able to lose weight during the diet visits, maybe I didn't need surgery after all. So I tried. And yo-yoed like I always have. I think a big part of my struggle is that my PCP started me on Paxil for anxiety and depression about five months ago. A major side effect from that is weight gain, so I'm hoping my insurance company sees it like that.

I started my day as usual.. running like a loon cuz I cant scrape myself from the warm, cozy bed but thats besides the point... I made my 2 scambled eggs w/my hunk of mozzarella cheese on the side. Thank god for the dog.. I could NOT finish my eggs :eek:. I had my beloved protein shake at my 930 break. It hit me like a ton of bricks.. I was FULL. Lunch was half of a turkey on wheat wrap... I made it with more lettuce than anything. I also had a yogurt. can we say FULL. At my 230 break I had my other protein shake and felt... whats the word I am looking for... FULL. I came home from work and finished my salad (leftover from yesterday) and I am FULL.:biggrin2: Full is not something I have felt before. Not without a lot of food being involved. I am so flippin excited about this whole fill thing. It almost motivated me to get off my ass and use my treadmill. I said ALMOST. Instead I am being a mouse-potato and comtemplating a long hot bath since I now have clearance to take one. I do have one side effect of the fill though. :wink2: I'm burping like a mo-fo. In the fat-club meetings, they said gas and burping repeatedly but in my first 5 weeks, I had nearly none of that stuff. Today..BURP. Every few minutes... BURP. While it doesnt bother me so much, I have very stuffy coworkers that are not so amused (BURP). Hell, atleast I wasnt farting. I am FINALLY starting to feel as if this has all been worth it and my mood is obviously improving a bit. I still hate my coworkers (most of them) but now I am starting to like myself just a smidge anyway.:thumbup: I am going to take the long awaited HOT bath and I am going to stay in there til I run out of hot water and wrinkle like a prune. OOOOOO. I almost forgot to mention that I went down a size in undies. I can almost buy hanes-her-way in a color other than white. Whoo-freakin-whooo. I have been so looking forward to the day I get to buy some pink panties!!!! Hell, in a few more months, I might be back to wearing thongs. I gave up thongs years ago after my enormous weight gain. While they were still comfy.. I couldnt bear to see the fat girl in thongs. Not attractive. Walmart has/had tummy control thongs. SERIOUSLY. why bother controlling the tummy when the booty is jiggling uncontrollably???

Hypothryoid here! The meds are for life. As for weight loss- for me the band has worked well. The little pill slips through my stoma without any problems. Although I have notice my weightloss happens in odd stages. No weight loss for 2 weeks and then whammy I put on my fresh cleaned jeans and they are loss. I hop on the scale and I am down some many pounds. Then nothing for awhile again. It can be frustrating at time- but it is a nice feeling when everything is baggy again. I have learned to put my focus on "no weight gain". Wishing you the best.

I haven’t but I would be interested in coordinating to do that. Nice to know that it would be helpful! Welcome to to the forum - I would love to discuss the intersection of sexuality and weight gain.

Hi Kristie, i think your comment is for me, please forgive my responding if not. Thank you, for your kindness; this whole thread has frankly made me quite sad tonight and your post was a ray of hope. I felt pretty misunderstood. I really appreciate you reaching out and taking the time to post; affinity groups have been very helpful to me in the past and I did hope that I would be able to discuss these intersections of experiences/backgrounds as it relates to my original weight gain, my decision to have WLS, and my plan to keep on track with weight loss and weight stability. Thanks again. Look forward to reading more posts in this forum and trust that I will learn a lot from those who are further in their health paths than I. Good night.

Did you make a LGBTQ community here?👀😍🥰  I would love to be part of it. My weight gain was partially due to challenges I faced in my sexual orientation journey in my early 20s for sure.

I am also a frequent prednisone user. The source of most of my weight gain. I am a terrible asthmatic. When I discussed this with my dr. he said that he might prescribe a short term appetite suppressant during my steroid courses if I wanted. It is definitely worth asking. I have not needed any since the band. If not, keep your head up and work really hard when you are finished with the prednisone. During the course, curb the hunger with as healthy of food as possible and exercise! Good luck to you, I hope this is short term!

Update from a previous post: I got really swollen, they actually brought me in for a problem OB expecting pre-eclampsia because of how swollen I was, and that I was going up about a pound a day. But my BP and everything else was fine so I was sent home with advice to wear support hose from the moment I get out of the shower until I go to bed (no thanks). I've now lost the fluid (and the weight, I'm back to being about 15 pounds below my conception weight, so no weight gain yet - I'm just bouncing back and forth between the same 4 pounds), and have found that I only swell when I'm sitting. I haven't done that since I lost the weight to begin with. Bad flashback. If I can remember to get up and walk every hour or so, I do fine. I've also cut way back on my sodium, just to be careful.

Would your primary care doctor be willing to help? Maybe he could document your weight gains and losses, then you could state the diet behind them? (Atkins, etc)

For me, I don't think my antidepressant (was Luvox, now Lexapro) contributed to weight gain. If anything, it helped, since I was/am an emotional eater. Back when we were trying to find a med that worked well for me, I loved Wellbutrin for the energy boost I got (works on your dopamine levels, which regular SSRIs do not). Unfortunately it did nothing for my depression, so I just cried more energetically. Weight loss has done nothing for my depression, which really does seem chemical rather than situational or related to some past trauma. I had kind of hoped that I'd be able to get off meds once I reached goal; that maybe in some miraculous way, losing weight would adjust whatever chemical imbalance is occuring, in a similar way to how my hormones are starting to balance out with the weight loss. Granted, I'm still quite a ways off from goal, but just the fact that I will probably need to up my dosage at my next re-prescription time rather than decrease it tells me this is pretty much permanent for me. In the early days, I tried several times to wean off them, but always ended up deeply mired in depression again and had to go back on. My doc pretty much told me to forget ever going off of them, that I'd likely be on them for life. It's been 12 years now. And yes, I've tried therapy. :redface: Therapy was helpful for dealing with some of my issues, but not for the depression. :grouphug: BTW, I had a friend who went on Paxil and she did have issues with weight gain. She ended up bulimic as well as obsessive about exercise. :biggrin: I think some meds do cause weight gain, or interfere with losing. Or maybe it's a combination of the med and how certain people respond to it?

Indeed, its one of the reasons I have chosen to undergo surgery, although I could work at it myself, I cant garantee I wont regain at some point, and I am undergoing surgery in 2019 after which I will have to keep my weight down perminantly to avoid problems. So WLS for me is an added support to help me keep my weight as low as possible. My disinterest in cooking is currently greater than my need to satisfy my pallet. In recent years I have avoided cooking and rather look to quicker alternatives. Bread, rice and potatoes also store longer, and I dislike crowds and shopping, so keeping stocked with fresh vegetables is difficult for me. I have become reluctant to push myself out of my comfort zone, when I do it life is better, but It gets the better of me at times. Essentaily I have social disorders that make me more inclined to behaviours what would lead to weight gain. What I call lazyness is probably anxiety and avoidence. my bmi is only 31, took me a while to climb to this weight again but here I am. If it wasnt for my future surgery |I probably wouldnt be going through with WLS.

Yes, absolutely. There are many reasons you fall off the wagon, usually falling off the wagon isnt introducing a bit more lean meat, vegetables and legumes in to your diet to ward off hunger, its going off the rails and eating high calorie and nutritionally void foods too frequently. Nobody gets obese eating comforting portions of lean meats, vegetables and legumes most of the time and treating themselves occassionaly. If you dont feel good eating filling portions of nutritionally dense food then you have a phycological issue, you arent suffering physically from this. Its difficult to gain weight by over indulging in lean protein and vegetables, but you can by over indulging in potatoes or high calorie processed foods. So I dismiss the idea that people stop eating nutritionally dense low calorie foods because? What? they're starving? What is the pressure that makes them not able to do it anymore? How is it not sustainable? Are they low on energy? If you are saying they dont feel good because they crave high calorie foods too often and want to give in to temptations often enough that it causes weight gain then that is phycological and can be changed with persistance its like an addiction. You wouldnt be saying this to an alcoholic. I felt like I wasnt getting anywhere on wholefoods after a while, but in hindsight if I kept going I would have broke the plateu eventually, even if I didnt it would be a better place than I am at now. I take full responsibility for mucking things up for me.

Hi , I agree with Vinesqueen, Alex and everyone else here who posted about unconditional love. The physical part should equate to very little in a relationship of substance. It sounds like you have been battered emotionally and I was angry when I read your post and subsequent posts (not at you, just the futility of the situation) because you really seem to believe that your husband has a right to treat you with disdain and repulsion just because of weight gain. And divorce is not the end of the world. I have been there and life goes on. Your husband does not sound like a good role model for your child. If he berates you about your weight and allows her to believe that it is OK to only commit in a relationship just based on someone's appearance, what kind of message is that sending to your daughter??? Also, the question you should ask yourself is if your husband gained 80 lbs and tried diligently to lose the weight and kept yo -yoing would you leave him? Would you support him or would you tell him that you met him thin and his present weight repulses you?? Or would you try to support him and do everything possible to help him succeed no matter how many times he failed??? food for thought..... Babs in TX 334/180ish -154 ish

Oh and If you have the means and ability to invest time in therapy I would highly recommend it. I don't have the time or maybe don't want to invest the time but can confirm that there is a huge mental aspect to weight gain and loss and the sleeve isn't brain surgery.

Hello.... Newbie here. I just found this forum and was glad to see some responses that answered some of my questions from other sleevers. My scary issue is that I don't feel full?!! I had my sleeve performed on 3/2/15. My original Weight was 249, pre op 239 and now currently at 225. I'm not complaining about my weight loss as I think this is awesome!!! My concern is that I don't feel full. I am on my 3rd week of full liquids and when I drink my fluids and can't tell when to stop. Obviously I follow the measurements but my concern is that this was the reason of my weight gain. I keep eating!!! Am I doing this wrong, how do you know when to stop?

Hi David. Have you met with your surgeon yet? They will likely have an opinion of which surgery they feel is best for you. If you are on certain medications they may trend towards sleeve IF all other things are equal but if you have GERD they typically lean towards bypass (not always though). Those are not the only factors and it’s not exactly that clear cut. It certainly doesn’t hurt to do your research but you surgeon should help considerably to make this decision. Mine said he would do sleeve or bypass (if I really wanted it) but he recommended sleeve. He thought bypass was overkill for me and the NP thought because of my medications that the conservative option was safer. I didn’t lose all the weight I hoped though and struggle to keep it off. I will always sorta wonder if I would’ve lost more with bypass. Who knows though. I am on medication that causes weight gain so I may be in the same exact boat with bypass. It’s really hard to say. They are both really good surgeries, though. Regardless of whether I can fit into my skinny jeans I am very happy I did the surgery. I was already beginning to have knee pain with exercise and I know that at the rate I was going I would be even heavier now than I was pre surgery with more knee pain so the Fact that I am maintaining anywhere below that weight and pain free is better than I could’ve done on my own. I didn’t have to decide on which surgery until my pre op appointment. Hopefully your team will give you time to make your decision too.

I need to remember sugar free Popsicles more. I know that I'm not getting enough food in and what I'm putting in my body isn't the right food so I think you're dead on about the starvation mode. I need to get on track and today is a new day! I'm focusing today and going forward on putting the right things in my body. I'm getting nervous about my month follow-up surgery visit on the 22nd and having weight gain. I can't let that happen because of my poor decisions.

Fear of weight gain should not get in the way of your surgeons’ instructions. Follow them to stay healthy during this process. All dieticians’ plans are different. Do I understand this correctly? Your plan says to eat 600-800 for your entire weight loss phase? Most plans are 1000 to 1200 in weight loss mode. Try upping your calories if that is what your dietician suggests. I would not stress about maintenance phase until you reach your goal.

“Melissa, Why do you work with bariatric surgery patients?” I’m often asked this. Clients and readers are often curious because I’m not a weight loss surgery patient myself and because I don’t have a “weight loss story.” Except that I do. My story has emerged from the stories of others. The truth is, I founded Enduring Change Coaching after years of practicing as a Clinical Psychologist. As a Clinical Psychologist, one area of expertise has been helping people with food and weight issues. Since 1995, I have worked with just about every kind of eating disorder, weight issue, and food issue an adult can have. I’ve witnessed peoples’ pain, struggles and desperation, and I’ve had the honor of sharing in their experiences of transformation (and I’m not just talking about weight)—as they found their own paths to making peace with food, resolving weight issues, putting eating and food in a much smaller place in their lives, and moving on to focusing on more enjoyable and empowering things. I developed the Emotional Eating Toolbox™ Program and run the bariatric surgery coaching programs at Enduring Change because I saw people struggling with their weight and feeling hopeless and I knew the tools and strategies that I have developed with my clients can make a profound difference. I’ve met too many people who believe that taking control of their weight and their relationship with food isn’t possible and who believe that they must resign themselves to fighting—and losing—battles with weight forever. I’ve known and worked with too many bariatric surgery patients who are stuck in a mode of self-blame. They believe they should be able to succeed with weight loss and with weight loss surgery without help or support and they blame themselves when they struggle. I’ve known other weight loss surgery patients who were never told that there are other essential tools they need to acquire and use with weight loss surgery. (Thankfully, I’m seeing less of this.) They too feel like failures when they find themselves struggling with emotional eating, overeating and weight gain after surgery. And I’ve worked with plenty of people who have had weight loss surgery, who know darned well that the procedure they had is only one tool. They know that they have other challenging work ahead of them, and other tools they will need to acquire to get where they want to go. The problem is, they aren’t sure where to get those tools. There are (in many areas) too few support groups (especially for individuals who are 12 months or more post-surgery) and not enough information about good resources. There is not enough information about overeating and emotional eating. People are quick to tell you not to overeat, not to use food to fill an “emotional hole,” and not to eat to cope with stress or boredom or loneliness. But there is not enough quality information and help out there about what to do instead. That’s been my experience. And that’s why I coach individuals and hold special coaching programs and conferences for people who have had bariatric surgery—by telephone—so anyone can attend. It’s why I periodically offer free teleclasses. Most importantly, it was one of my motivations for creating the Emotional Eating Toolbox™ Self-guided Program. Because there is too much shame and self-blame out there. And because we all are a lot more likely to succeed when we have the right tools. Melissa McCreery, Ph.D. is a Psychologist and the founder of Enduring Change Coaching. She helps her clients create and live the life they crave. She is also the creator of the Emotional Eating Toolbox 28-day Program for Taking Control and Moving Beyond Dieting. Sign up for a free 5 part Self-care Package Audio Course, learn about upcoming WLS seminars and other programs or contact her www.enduringchange.com.

I started my weight gain and life at 18 when I graduated highschool and met my husband. We dropped school (college), got a apartment, it didnt work out (no good food) and money, so we went back to our parents, and then he went into the navy, we got married and I followed him. At 18 I graduated from High School as a varsity cheerleader, 5'10" and 185 pounds. When I got married at 21, I was 250 pounds, felt pretty good with my life, but went through birth control changes and 1 abortion and 4 miscarriages. From 21-24 I stayed at 250 pounds. Then I got pregnant in January 2009, I was 276 and only gained 14 pounds of baby. At time of birth I was healthy for the most part and 300 pounds. I dropped 50 pounds the first month, from breast feeding and then gained it all back because I couldn't anymore. So I have been bouncing from 298 to 310, I have continued to have 3 more miscarriages, and am now at my highest at 315. I do not snack during the day, mostly at night, and mostly during my frequent acid reflex/heartburn episodes. I had a hard time dieting because of heartburn. Exercise is hard since I have high level of asthma, a heel spur, allergies, knee arthritis, and a bad back. So where I am at now is very up in the air. I have my consultation in 2 days. I want another child, but tricare (military insurance) will not approve testing to find out why I am miscarrying until I have lost weight. So I am doing lapband, which is not my first choice...I would rather have a child then lap band, then (military approved tummy tuck). But my husband also wants me to wait, so his choice is lap band, child, tummy tuck. I am confused. I just turned 26, and I want another child before 30. I may just end of with just one child. Any advice is wanted.

I feel your pain. I was banded in March of '06 and have recently put on 10lbs and am exercising like CRAZY!!! My band was deflated entirely for three months and I recently got 2ccs added back into it but am still gaining weight. I work out 6 X a week and don't feel like I look any heavier but am going nuts mentally from the weight gain. I am completely and utterly lost on why I am gaining weight because I am not eating very much and exercise constantly. Any advice on how to get back on track? ~Liz~ 03/10/06 241/165/160 :help: 5'8''

Hi: I am a post Hystorectomy (Total). 210 pounds, 5 ft 7 inches, BMI around 31-32 moderate activity Insurance won't cover. I will have to self-pay and if I do should I look at sleeves instead of the band? I'm looking for a long term permanent solution. My weight gain is related to the removal of my ovaries with a dramatic body change in 5 years from 120 pounds to now. My doctors say I would have to gain more weight to get approved for surgery. I can't imagine doing that. So hey: 1. If you had to choose and were paying for it out of pocket anyways band or sleeve? 2. If you had it done over-seas what doctor did you use, and are you happy with the results? I can't afford in country options. Thank you so much for any help this topic is eating me up.

But we can help by not worshiping thinness or youth. Going back to aging gracefully like our grandmothers did and didn't have to be thin once they hit menopause or get botox or plastic surgery or have larger breasts. I feel bad for the next generation. I know this topic is way too volatile for a WLS forum so I will leave before I start a war, lol! Anyone wonder how much yo yo dieting attributed to our weight gains and if we had only ate normally and not had to try every diet out there we may be much thinner and healthier than we are now and possibly WLS would never have entered into the picture? Doing my part tomorrow by removing the collar and leash and going back to being a normal human being who doesn't spend 100% of her time worrying about how she looks or how many points are in that and getting her life back!:tongue:

Hi I am new to this website. I was banded 11/15/10, I love it! I always had a weight problem but if I put my mind to it and followed a diet and exercised I was able to lose weight. Right before I got married I was doing just that watching what I ate and exercising like crazy and not gaining weight but not losing at all. I went for a physical and found out I have hypothyroid. For eight years I had gradual weight gain, surprisingly was able to lose pregnancy weight twice (I attribute that to breastfeeding) but after losing that the gradual weight gain continued. So in complete frustration I talked to my PCP about weight loss and he said his wife who is in practice with him has been working with a bariatric surgeon and he recommended I see them about lapband. He is a pretty conservative guy so for him to reccomend that I took it pretty seriously. I started seeing the surgeon in July 2010 since then I have lost almost 60 lbs, 20 lbs pre-surgury and the rest since. I had my first fill a week ago (2/1/11) and I remembered how being on liquids was like torture, hungry all the time. Back on regular diet now and doing ok. The holidays were difficult because I discovered there wasn't much I couldn't eat. I am having a difficult time getting back to the diet I was doing so well before the holidays but I have started exercising. My hardest times are the weekends when we socialize with others, I need to figure out something to help me eat what and how much I am supposed to. My biggest concern is not causing my band to slip. I realize when I do eat a lot it is nowhere near what I used to eat without the band but still I have the moments. I am looking forward to checking out chat areas on here and learning more and getting and giving support when possible.