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Your story sounds so much like mine. Was even born a big baby, and overweight as a child, but not obese until I got into college (which also happens to be when they finally tested me for hypothyroidism and reluctantly started to treat me for it). I was really active in high school - lettered in two sports - and as much as I walked in college, the cafeteria food did me no favors! Bad eating, a decrease in intense physical activity, the alcohol that frequently accompanies college days, and hypothyroidism led to a 50 lbs weight gain in less than two years. I just had my endoscopy today, no abnormalities found, so I'm excited for my sleeve date of May 12. I, too, had some initial good results with the Band, but slowly gained back a bit over time and then it just seemed to be rejected by my body.

i WENT to my Primary Care Doctor on Tuesday, and he was disappointed that i gained the seven pounds I lost at the previous appointment. He asked me what I want to do about this weight gain since my weight keeps going up and the health problems keep going up (headaches, sleep apnea,etc) This is not the recent time he has been upset about the weight gain. I always been a big girl, I tried hiding it behind clothes, and of course humor. So now at 41 and to avoid having my life end early like my dad (he died of heart disease at 58)and having knee problems like my mom. At first I was all excited now I am scared about gastric sleeve surgery, (I never had surgery before ) Does anyone want to be friends and help be my support, I have my mom,my sister, my brother in law, told one friend) I am keeping it on the down low till I go May 18th to Weight Loss Seminar. Thank you and Good luck where ever you are in your journey of weight lost Please respond back to message of being pals Kammie

We're sleeve buddies -- I'm the 6th, too! I'm with you as well, I'm not a snacker, and I don't love junk food -- it's the quantities (I LOVE to cook) that got me where I am today, so I'm really looking forward to enjoying a healthier relationship with food in the years to come. You're a health care professional, and I'm a certified group fitness instructor and Pilates instructor (though I haven't taught in 18 months due to weight gain) -- proof that even those that know better can be fallible. Best of luck to you next week -- we're on the home stretch!!

Some fat free products have a lot of sugar to make up in taste. I'd be more concerned about sugar free vs fat free. It's sugar that leads to insulin resistance, which leads to weight gain. Aren't you able to eat real food yet? Why still on Protein Shakes?

Hi All, I am relatively new here but I had my band out recently in preparation for a sleeve in a few months. I found lap band talk very helpful when I lost 100+ lbs with my band before the trouble started (as it seems to). When I had my band surgery I was clear that there was no long term data on the durability of the band but I took that risk. I know that the sleeve hasn't been done for that many years as a stand alone procedure (not part of the DS) but as I look through the posts I don't see many posts from people who are more than a couple of years out. Do we think that this because they have moved on with their life and don't need the support of this board too much or is it because they have regained? Does anyone know sleeve patients in real life who are many years out? Like 5+? I know that obesity is a life-long problem and I will have to be constantly vigilant. I also feel confident that I can make the sleeve work and lose the weight I need to -- I am so concerned about regain and I was hoping I could have some input from you all about that. My body loves to gain weight as evidenced by the rapid weight gain every time my band was loosened and then removed.

I'm a little discouraged. I'm currently 14 days post op. I have had no issues and other than fatigue, I feel great. The weight has been falling off every day and all of the sudden on day 10 it just stops. I'm thinking ok no problem it's just a stall. It'll be over before I know it. Two days later I step on the scales and was shocked to see that it had suddenly went up 2.5lbs!! Obviously I'm still on liquids, calorie intake 400-500, since surgery I've lost 11lbs. & I was a lower bmi patient. Still how is this even possible?!

@@Swampdoggie I was that way, years ago, before all the surgeries and weight gain got the better of me. Then it kind of flip-flopped, and here I am. Not looking. Not liking what I see. But we are working on changing this (who is WE? Me, myself, and I...we're in it together, for better or worse!). Up and down the stairs I go again!

I had WLS in December, 2014 - 4 months ago. My pre-surgical starting weight was 259 lbs. This excess weight came from eating too much (volume), rather than the wrong foods or junk foods. I'm not vegetarian however I have always incorporated a lot of raw food habits into my diet. To those who are not familiar with "eating raw" - I'm not talking about crudités or peeling a banana and eating it. I'm taking about "raw" lifestyle foods like breads, crackers, wraps and veggie burgers that have been created using nuts, seeds, flax, hemp and vegetables, often in a dehydrator. Before my surgery, I incorporated a lot of raw cuisine into my diet and used my dehydrator constantly to make delicious foods like raw falafel, flax crackers, pureed veggie wraps, kale chips, mushroom burger patties, etc. Since my December surgery, I have stayed away from raw and been stringent about adhering to a low carb, high protein diet. (Yes, this included meats). Lots of salads, raw fruits and veggies, but no "raw cuisine" per se. In the 4 months since my surgery I have dropped 45 pounds and feel terrific. Or I should say, I HAD dropped 45 pounds, until 2 weeks ago when I started eating raw cuisine again. These past 2 weeks eating mostly raw, I am sad to say that I gained almost ten pounds back. Ah, the irony. Eat well! Gain weight! I had missed my beloved VitaMix and my Excalibur dehydrator terribly, having not used them since two weeks prior to my WLS. I decided a couple of weeks ago to get back to incorporating delicious raw cuisine back into my diet. Foods I created over the past two weeks from my old favourites included nut cheeses (cashew...mmmm mmmmm!), walnut-spinach pesto, nut burgers, raw "onion rings", sesame seed/hemp seed dressings and more. As I was blending, spreading and dehydrating, I became worried about the sheer amount of fat, calories and carbs that made up the ingredients going into these dishes. Those nuts, seeds and avocados really pack a punch. The ingredients in my raw food dishes were wholesome and nutritionally dense, BUT they contained a ton of unwanted complex carbs and sugars (Mejool dates, for example). So I feasted (in small amounts as only my lap-band allows) on raw falafel, vegan hummus with garlic aioli with marinated vegetables in a flax/carrot wrap, marinated portabello mushroom caps stuffed with cashew/garlic nut cheese and walnut-spinach pesto, raw zucchini pasta with sweet marinara sauce... it was a great 2 weeks. Unfortunately it also triggered some pretty major weight gain. What I've learned: Even with smaller lap-band sized portions, and although most raw food dishes are densely nutritious, they pack a significant caloric punch - too much so to be aligned with my weight loss goals. So I am back to salads and lean meats and steamed veggies, no wheat, no white, no sugar. And, unfortunately, no raw cuisine. (Or at least very, very little). Has anyone out there managed a raw food diet (60% +) and managed to keep the surgical weight off? Would love to hear from you!

Hello everyone!! I am back on and in need of some input. I will have my band now for 6 yrs in July. When I first got the band it worked great! For the past couple years I have been at a stall then all of a sudden I began gaining weight.. Knowing that muscle weighs more then fat I am just hoping my weight gain is muscle.. My tummy is big with fat and then with all the muscle back there which I can totally feel my mid section is bigger and my jeans don't fit ;-( this makes me sad and adds to the discouragement. A couple years ago I had issues with high cholesterol and my fibromyagla got really bad. So I began hitting the gym a min of 3 days a week I really got into the gym and to my surprise really enjoyed it. Not at all a fan of cardio and to be honest I detest it!! Anyway I also began doing organic and seriously paying better attn to what I put in my mouth. I do not eat out and I am a great cook thanks to this band. I am not a huge carbs eater other then things that are natural organic carbs, fresh fruits and veggies. I have a 10cc band and it was full to 8 1/2 and it really did take a long time to eat things when I went back home to St Louis in Nov last year my surgeon took out a tiny bit of Fluid did not help ;-( He backed out some because he said it was taking way to long for me to eat things.. I love the surgeon I have here in the So Jersey area however his office staff are a ridiculous bunch of nit wits and that I simply can not deal with!! So I am looking now for a new doctor here in NJ Bottom line here is I eat healthy and I do workout again a min of 3day a week sometimes 4 or 5 days. I have muscles in places I never knew I had them and my pants will not button!! My jeans are tight, my thighs are bigger, my butt is bigger, everything is bigger even the numbers on the scale!! What on earth am I doing wrong I feel now like I am d&*(%^ if I do and if I don't!! I have gotten very discouraged and feel like giving up at this point. I would love to hear some input and thoughts. I think I need to be here again for some great support from all of us who have been there and done that! Thanks Michele

@@Bluesea71 Thank you for understanding. You are very nice. My husband was the same way. Husband are protectors. They just want us to be safe. I was one of those special cases. I inherited my mom's thin Irish skin, plus I stretched it several times from the weight gain and pregnancies. My skin is so super paper thin. There were several things he could not do to me and had to use alternative methods. For example, he could not pull my skin super tight, otherwise my skin would have ripped apart. I went back a year later and was pulled tighter durning my thigh lift surgery just as he promised. For me he explained in great detail this was the best way specifically for me. I can not recall all the exact reasons. My body is not straight, so he had to do things a bit differently on me so that I could get the best results possible. Like I said, I was one of those special cases. (I got a little light headed durning my markup, so I do not remember everything.) I am glad I had someone who cared enough about all those little things, which added up perfectly in my favor. I healed healthy and happy, without complications. I grew up sewing with my mom. (Smile) I hemmed a lot of clothes by hand. If you are familiar with the 'blind stitch,' then you will have some general idea how he does it. Hard to explain, but all layers of sutures are internal.

Congratulations @@feelinggood! Your not alone, I so cried when my surgeon was speaking to me right before they wheeled me into the or. I have been speaking to numerous people who've gone thru either sleeve or bypass and the concensus is this: initially we are making these crazy drastic changes. Doing so much good for our body. Getting it healthy so we can correct our initial mistakes of more than likely overindulgence. When we reach our points of what makes us feel great, energetic, beautiful or handsome we can then introduce in extreme modification those little thimgs we once enjoyed. I've began to understand carbonation will absolutely ruin your ability to completely maintain as it is a main trigger for weight gain bc it slowly allows you to stretch your pouch and not allow you to feel the restriction of maybe one or two Hershey's kisses and suddenly you've had twelve... I love sprite. It's absolutely delish to me, but when I began this journey I said if I want this bad enough this is what will ruin me and set me up to fail so I can give you up! I'm glad your doing well. Three weeks out is great. I imagine you still on your moist, soft proteins, you can't go eat everything right?

Well this does make me even more worried about the weight gain during those three waiting months till I get the sleeve. Removal May 11 and Sleeve August 3rd. I already feel like a house since I gained 30 lbs after removing Fluid from the band in hopes of not throwing up...alas I still vomit multiple times a day. I just want august to be here already.

The first week went great. Lost 13 pounds. Went from 311 to 299. Then the second week started and I was up a pound. I thought no big deal, probably Water retention or something. Then the next day I was up another. And the next, another. I am on day 12 and am at 303. Making it look like I've only lost 8 pounds. What in the world is going on? I have stuck to plan. 2 meals of 1-2 slimfast shakes, 1 meal of lean Protein and non starchy vegetables. I also get "free foods" of cucumber, pickle, sf Popsicles. I have been meeting goal of 64 oz of Fluid a day. I don't know what is wrong and it's making me sad and frustrated.

Hi Jamie I would suggest focusing more on the way you look or the size clothing you want to wear versus the weight on the scale. You know all to well the struggles I've been having with weight GAIN now that I'm training hard for an upcoming event. I have put on 4 pounds the last few weeks and the only thing that's keeping me from jumping off a bridge is my size 8 jeans are getting baggy on me! Still, I will take the the lean muscle thats developing over the skinny fat I was before any day. I stood side by side next to a client last week and we look the same size. We are both 5'7" She weighs 123 and she was shocked when I told her I weighed 154. That's a 31 pound difference and we wear the same size clothes! I'm technically in maintenance now and it's really not any different than what I was doing before. Except I've decided to lay off the butterfingers this week to see if I can do it. Ha ha. That's for another post ????.

I am 48 days out. *(maybe I should start counting weeks) and I'm recently down from 3 to 1-1.5 a day just to make sure I get in my 75g a day. I like them. They are very convenient and I have to be in class 3 nights a week.... I use GNC Lean 25 pre-made and they are very tasty. Funny, this topic should come up. I just met with my nutritionist this past Saturday and she explained why we should wean off Protein shakes. Basically, we have to learn how to eat enough to get our protein from food so we can keep ourselves feeling full longer. That will help avoid cravings for bad stuff. Protein from shakes is protein received, but in liquid form doesn't help to keep our tiny tummies full. Therefore, we can end up eating bigger portions than we should as time progresses. Our portions will eventually get bigger as the months pass from surgery. Our goal is to eat 3 distinct meals with small Snacks, but if we use fluids instead of meals we leave room for more bad stuff. Also she warned that patients will think "oh I've made my protein quota, I can eat this and this..." and they can bc there is room. Too much protein with bad stuff will cause weight gain. She gave me a scheduled ratio for protein to carbs to ensure continued weight loss. BC if you eat too many carbs (good or bad) with protein you will gain weight back. I don't have to worry about sugar or calories or fat - yet. She said focus on protein and carbs ratio and if you plateau we will examine the food log and see if sugar or calories or fat comes into play. I can't eat that much yet anyway- and still rely on at least 1 shake a day to meet.

I've been reading again for the same reason. I joined when I was banded back in 2007 long story short I lost some weight down to 224 band was too tight for a long time I gained to 246 and then had an unfill due to dilation so I gained up to 276 and now from there I'm sitting at 320. I had Fluid added back in last year, but all it has done is stop the weight gain. I visited another surgeon hoping to have a revision to sleeve. My insurance right now is UnitedHealthcare Plus Choice (something like that) my RN told me that if it was approached as a revision surgery I would have to show some kind of complication with the band which my doctor said would be slippage, erosion, or the band somehow failing mechanically, otherwise it would be treated as a new surgery and I would have to go through the 6 month supervised diet, psych evaluation, and would have to show a 5 year history of heights and weights from a doctor to prove a history of being morbidly obese. Because I haven't had complications my surgeon believes that it is likely my insurance will deny the request for revision and possible deny it as a new surgery because I don't have the 5 year weight history I need so right now I'm looking into self pay options. I hope your insurance will approve you and you can get the sleeve. I've also struggled with feeling like I failed so I understand that. If I had just found the money to go back and get the band unfilled instead of living with it being too tight I might've kept losing weight. I just try to learn from it.

Also May 5th for me - I'm still meant to be on weight loss rather than weight gain, and I won't know until Wednesday if I'm on a pre-op liquid diet, though I've been doing the liver shrinking thing since October, and it's pretty far reduced from what it was, but still bigger than the doctor would like it. For pre-op, I've been doing Optimum Nutrition, and the flavor isn't bad, but it's kind of heavy. I discovered Premiere Protein, and it's probably my favorite shake out of the ones I've tried (a few), and I'm going to be sticking with it post-surgery if I can. I've seen a lot of different brands recommended, both around the internet and on this forum. Body Fortress, nectar, Any whey, Syntha-6, Premiere, Click, Chike, Celebrate ENS, Isopure, and a lot of posters on forum have seemed to swear by unjury. Good luck to everyone going in on May 5th!

I'm a 34yr male. 6'1 and currently weighing 225 pounds. I had succesful lap band surgery in march 2007 and lost 80 pounds. From 265 went down to 185. I had maintained overall weight loss success until sometime last year in january 2014 when i started to notice the GERD getting worse and also some weight gain. For the first time in 5 years when i hit the scale i saw numbers over the 200 range. I started to worry because i knew something was not right. Got an upper GI series done and all it showed was mild pouch dilation. Doctor left band as is and never suggested any course of treatment for the dilation and for the GERD. Fast forward now to 2015 and I seeked a second opinion from another surgeon. Surgeon performed an EGD and it shows that there is band slippage, gastritis and presence of GERD. Surgeon suggested a revision for the lap band and to convert it to either a gastric sleeve or gastric bypass. Insurance has approved the revision but need guidance or help in deciding which one is better for me. I see soo many mix responses from people suggesting or prefering one over the other. I will say that yes the band did work for me and do its job. It improved my health alot but now is the GERD that is just kicking me in the rear end very bad. Like stated before I weight 225 now and for the long term success and achivement I'm undecided as to what procedure is more suited for me at this point of my life. I do need the surgery to aliviate the discomfort plus without any bariatric procedure on me I would go back to how i was prior to the lapband. I tried it all before deciding doing bariatric surgery in 2007. Thank you.

It looks like I'm due around the end of December. Yea I was scared to death to call my surgeon because I thought they would lecture me. The nurse was actually really supportive and said the main thing to worry about it Nutrition and dehydration. Wow you have lost 100 lbs in 6 months!!! That's amazing. I am down 48 lbs in 2 months. Are you worried about the weight gain and not being able to get it off? I am!

So, TMI question, but is it your time of the month? That can often lead to not only additional Fluid, but also fluid retention. Also I find that if I eat Soup, popcorn, or something extra salty, it has a lot of sodium which inevitably causes me to gain at least a pound or two the day after. Also, if I do a heavy lifting session, my muscles are swollen and I gain weight the next day purely from Water, as opposed to having actually gained any muscle weight. This is why I weigh myself every single day because I know exactly where my weight should be and if for some reason I gain, I can immediately start on the path to fixing it. I also can look back (I have written my weight down everyday) and I can see that, ok I gained 3 pounds one day, but it was gone a few days later, or ooh that was a long stall but not nearly as long as I thought. Don't freak out over a weight gain if it only lasts a day or two- sometimes our bodies inexplicably retain water and naturally process it out.

I am 4 months out and down 75 pounds. I am very happy with my progress. I weigh myself every morning (even though I probably shouldn't) and I have had a few stalls but not bad. I weighed myself Monday and skipped Tuesday. On Wednesday I was up 4 pounds when I weighed myself! I'm so confused! I am eating 700-900 calories a day. Is this normal or am I doing something wrong? I usually go to the gym 3 times a week sometimes less though depending on work.

He was injured a year ago in Iraq from another rollover accident prior to this one. He has some nerve damage and shrank 2 inches of his 6'7 frame due to back compression of his vertebra. He has since retired medically from the Army and receives full veteran benefits. He is now finishing his degree in Emergency Medicine. On his really bad pain days, he walks with a cane and limps a little bit. He is quite my inspiration to lose the weight (100+) pounds gained within 3 years after marriage. I want to be able to push him to be able to work out and get healthier too. He is unable to do traditional army fitness exercises or run anymore due to his injuries. I want both of us to get healthier before we start our family. PCOS is no fun at all!!! This is our engagement picture, before weight gain and accident in 2010.

@@PinkPolkadot619 So sorry about your weight gain. I had quite a few of those this month. Absolutely floored with the realization. It's the worst feeling and I so understand. Today I was up .6 and I have no clue why because I was very good and moved around all day yesterday. This past month has been very slow for me and there were days I was down right depressed at my lack of weight loss progress. But we'll get there. Patience is always challenging. Sending a big hug

I'm still here (guess I need to get a life). I've stabilized and been in the same 5 pound bounce range for 8 months. What I found was I have to nip any weight gain in the very beginning, because I know if I start creeping up my moral will deflate and I'll say f...k it, I might as well just eat anything. For example, if I get even 1 pound above my bounce range, I immediately go back to basics of Protein and veggies until I'm back to the bottom of the range. I usually only weigh 1-2 times a month, but if I notice I'm up I'll monitor a little closer till I'm back down. I pigged out over Christmas and it took 2 weeks to get back down. There are plenty of weekends that I may indulge on crap but then I'm right back on plan on Monday. I don't count calories or carbs or anything, but I know what's going in my mouth. I can actually feel the difference in my cravings by going cold turkey on carbs at those times. The best thing is to not buy the stuff you shouldn't eat in the first place. It's easier to resist once in the store than it is to resist 20 times/day once it's in the house. Unfortunately I'm facing my first real test right now. My best friend killed himself on Sunday. My method of coping in the past has been food and alcohol. I gained almost 50 pounds after my brother died and I can feel myself going to that "dark place" again. My PCP brought me some anti anxiety meds as soon as he heard the news. I finally took some last night instead of reaching for the bottle of whiskey, which for me is no small victory. And have you ever noticed people never bring food containing protein after a death. It's all about baked goods and Pasta salads. Hang in there, try and find the motivation you had in the beginning. Look at old photos. Compare your new clothes to old ones, if you kept any. You've come this far, so you do have it in you to succeed.