Search the Community

OK ladies, prepare to feel tall: I'm 4'11", so quit complaining, LOL! I used to be a tall 5 foot, but with the weight gain (to 203 lbs) came the "degenerative disc" back problems and I lost an inch in height. :frusty: BUT in Oct I get my band, things are gonna change! I can't wait to buy clothes I actually like. Imagine not having to hem everything you purchase. And high heels will be so much fun again!

I think the fact that the baby is growing is very comforting to you and the doc. However, unless you had a loss due to morning sickness in the first few months, I can see your doctor's concern. On the weight watchers and other dieting websites, they say that the guidelines/instructions for following such programs during pregnancy are really for 2 things: 1. Possible loss during the first 4 months of pregnancy 2. Maintenance during the last 5 months of pregnancy So, even most diet programs have a reasonable expectation that you should not be in a loss mode after a certain point. I think that if you're eating a large amount of fiber-rich foods, that can certainly contribute to weight loss, simply because that has always been the case for me. A little fat and fun food is what pregnancy is all about, so maybe treat yourself to a big, guilty meal once a week and try not to worry about the weight gain. Remember if the baby weighs 7 lbs and you retain roughly 3-4 lbs of amniotic Fluid and breast milk, that you will have lost 12-15 lbs by the time you leave the hospital just thru delivery! And don't worry Fairy, I'm only 11 weeks and up 9 lbs....eek! However my gains have stopped these past 2 weeks, thank goodness. Hugs.

Hello everyone. I’m so glad to see this forum. I’m planning a revision to the mini bypass as well. I was originally sleeved in 2013. As with everyone else, I’m plagued with heartburn and weight gain. I’m planning to self pay and return to my original surgeon. I’m hoping to have my surgery sometime this summer.

I found the article..here it is: John B Dixon1, Maureen E Dixon and Paul E O'Brien (1) Monash University Department of Surgery, Alfred Hospital, Melbourne, Victoria, Australia Published online: 01 February 2001 Background: Severely obese women have higher obstetric risks and poorer neonatal outcomes. Weight loss reduces obstetric risk. The introduction of a laparoscopically-placed adjustable gastric band, a safe and effective method of weight loss, has given us the ability and responsibility to adjust the band in relation to pregnancy. Objective: Our aim was to devise a safe management plan to achieve healthy maternal weight gain (Institute of Medicine 1990) during pregnancy. Methods: In a cohort group of 650 patients to have a Lap-Band® placement for severe obesity, we have reviewed the management of the band and pregnancy outcomes of all women (n=20) to complete a pregnancy (n=22) with a band in-situ. Results: All 22 pregnancies were singleton, with no primary caesarean sections (3 for recurring indications). The mean maternal weight gain was 8.3 kg compared with 15.2 kg for the 15 previous pregnancies of women in this group (p<0.05). There was no difference in birth weights. Obstetric complications were minimal, and there were no premature or low birth weight infants. 11 of 15 subjects with active management of the band achieved a maternal weight gain within the advised range compared with only 2 of 7 prior to this. Conclusion:The ability to adjust gastric restriction allows optimal control of maternal weight change in pregnancy and should help avoid the risks of excessive weight change. ( I also found an online conversion calculator that sowes the 8.3 kg meantioned in the article equals about 18 pounds. )

When it starts creeping up my butt, I know that's a sign of weight gain. Oh how I long for my young anorexic days when I had the willpower to say "NO" to food. I want that gaunt, gray, pale look again. You know, the one where skin sags and you have no color? I don't like being pink and fat. I want to be gray. I haven't been able to get back on track. Sexy underwear creeping up the butt isn't very sexy, and I don't want to go back to Granny Panties. Sipping my diet tea. Is anyone here marketing crack cocaine? Do you take credit cards?

This is the best time of year to get banded - you won't be gaining weight during the holiday season you will be losing -:clap2: Think of it that way in a more positive light instead of the negative - omg i can't eat - well - that's why you are getting the band cuz you over eat... You can have a taste of this or that the band isn't going to stop you - you can have a bite or 2 of cake - just not those hugh and more than one piece that you had before - you can have turkey - mashed potatoes - stuffing - gravey - pie etc - where does it say you can't - it's just you will be eating alot smaller portions and of course you should be making wise & healthy food choices - low fat, low sugar - this is about a lifestyle change You can learn to reprogram your mind to strip away the guilt that comes with dieting. You have to realize that it’s not that the first slice of cake that will doom your diet – it’s the second or third or whole thing that leads to weight gain. As to giving our BEST FRIEND FOOD up - is it really your best friend??? it made you (when I am saying you - I do me WE) fat and unhealthy and is robbing you of your life.... It's not your best freind - it is your drug of choice - you have been hiding behind it for most of your life - we eat to sooth our emotions - boredom - stress - cuz it taste good = sertionan increase in our brain - our high... Ya i felt all these emotions too- (i was on pre-op diet for my Sons BD) I just put on my big girl panties and deal with it - We are not weak people - we gotta stop thinking like one - we gotta quit makeing up all these reason we are going to fail before we even start - (this was always my biggest problem).. You have to listen to your body & respond smartly to your cravings and emotions but over time you will learn how to eat right and mange your craving and that’s when you’ll train your brain to stop obsessing about eating right and punishing yourself – If you stop over thinking you’ll stop over eating..

THIS! one thousand percent. There are antidepressants that DON'T cause weight gain, but some doctors don't know/care enough about side effects to off those to patients struggling with their weight. If you don't think the prescriber is thinking of this, try talking to your surgeon to see if she thinks this could be an issue. There are so many meds that you could be taking that could be adding to weight gain (but... even the cravings to eat caused by the weight gain can be minimized). Also, there are medications you can take to reduce hunger, like metformin and phentermine, along with newer drugs like Ozempic

Steph you look terrific. I think the weight gain is all those things, just remember it is likely more fluid and hormone related than actual fat. Your body wants to hold onto everything it can - after all you traumatized it by having major surgery and now it is fighting back! One day soon it will forgive you again :thumbup:

Hello Diana, I'm not sure if you plan on having anymore kids but if you are FYI the average weight gain during pregnancy is 25 pounds. You gained almost 50 pounds more then what is recommended by doctors. So my guess is you know how "us guys got so big". You are stupid, insensitive, & cruel. You probably shouldn't post anything else. We wouldn't want your bony butt to get sat on.

It's been six months since surgery and I've lost 100 pounds so far, but I've gained six pounds in a week! I need to watch my gatorade and carb intake and refocus. I'm feeling discouraged! Has this rapid weight gain happen to anyone else?

I’m lucky, I mostly work from home so haven’t had to deal so much. Or, with the few I had told and have spoken to since, they gathered it was a done deal, good choice and (ultimately) none of their motherforking business...in a nice way [emoji846] Most have just been fascinated by what it was all about in practice and throw in the metabolic, hunger hormone, and microbiome headlines that highlight there’s more to this than calories in and out and this particular path out of the weight gain/regain jungle was mine. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I feel bad for everyone who wants to get rid of their band. I had problems with acid reflux and the band slipped - when they tried to fix it, I ended up having a reaction and they had to remove it. I miss my band. I liked having control over my eating. I liked the fact that food did not control my life. I am 50 days out of surgery and have gained 25 pounds. I really don't think I am eating more than when I had the band but the weight keeps coming on. I continue to exercise 60-90 minutes a day. I measure my food. I track my diet and exercise. But it just doesn't seem to work. And this weight gain is real. I can hardly sit in pants that I could take off without unzipping 2 months ago. Sorry to complain but I am hoping someone who has lost their band will have some tips for me. And living in Baghdad doesn't give me alot of people to whine to...

Research is always good. Have you considered the sleeve ! You loose weight a little faster, you can eventually eat what you like "BUT A LIMITED AMOUNT OF FOOD" , you are no longer hungry "That's my thing" I had my knees replaced do to weight gain, I lost 120lbs. by myself in order to get those knees replaced. Then Banded. Lost 28lbs., and the band blew on a fill. 4cc band blew on 2cc's "defective" I now have insurance again and will be going in this month to see what they want to do or change to. Just remember it is like a tire, it can go bad at any time. Then gl with getting it fixed especially if you have it done in Mexico. You have to go back to your original surgeon to fix there mistakes. "THAT'S THE WAY THE SURGEONS THREWOUT THIS STATE EXPLAINED IT TO ME ! So I'm letting you know that somewhere you will need follow up work. Check this with your surgeon.. Shirley.

I'm married (2nd marriage) but no kids yet. It hasn't really been my weight stopping me, but my life...career, my first marriage ending, meeting my hubby at the time that I did in relation to my career. Now I have to finish anesthesia school before I can try to be a mom. By then, I should be at my goal weight and able to keep pregnancy weight gain to the recommended level...provided I can get pregnant by then. We'll see! Balancing career and wanting to have a family has been tough.

Hello I wanted to respond to you mostly to validate what you are saying. I have worked for over 20 years with juveniles with mental health issues. I have seen first hand the weight gain with the psych meds. I really commend you for staying on your meds to deal with your bi polar. I know this must be very difficult for a young lady such as yourself. I think if your doctor believes it will be ok then why not? I would just make sure your meds come in liquid form or can be dissolved. I know many of those meds are very large and time released. Great job on your journey to wellness.

Week 19 Last week’s weight – 201.2 This week’s weight – 201.6 Total weight gained () this week – .4 Beginning weight – 246 lbs Total weight loss since surgery – 44.4 lbs Average weekly weight loss since surgery – 2.2 lbs I gained .4 this week which is not too surprising. I went out of town on Friday and ate out a lot and didn’t exercise Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday, or Monday. I have started back at school (doing professional development) so my mornings are a bit messed up now and I need to get an exercise routine in place that will work with my new back-to-school schedule. I did my Walk Away the Pounds DVD this morning (just one mile – the DVD is broke up into five mile segments) and I am hoping to walk outside this afternoon after my class (if it is not raining). I have been noticing my hair coming out recently. I have to clear the drain in the bath tub of my hair every morning. The bar of soap has my hair on it and around the sink in the bathroom has my hair. Luckily I have very thick hair so it is by no means disastrous. It is, however, making me think about getting more protein into my day (and the need to clean the bathroom more ). My challenge this week is establishing (getting back into) an exercise routine that will work for me when school officially starts back for teachers this coming Monday. I also need to drink more water (which by the way I like ice cold since my sleeve…weird). Until next week!

Okay, this has been on my mind big time lately, as I'm sure it was on many others pre-op. I've been trying to decide if I want to do this. I've been fat ALL my life, always. I never knew anything else except for a brief period of time in high school when I was biking all the time and hardly ate anything. Otherwise, yeah, I was the fat gal everywhere I went. My weight is currently 250 and I'm 44 years old. Sooo, tired of it. When I read about people on here really struggling with keeping weight off a couple of years out and more, I keep wondering, what was the point, then? If you have to watch your food like a hawk, get on the scale a great deal, fuss and worry about weight gain...why not just do all those same things with all of your stomach intact? If you're willing to do it now that you've had the surgery, why don't we just do all those things NOW and keep our stomachs? So what I'm not hearing in the posts is WHY having had the sleeve done was beneficial for you. Do you feel you are living the same way afterwards as you did before it? Does it help you keep your weight in line, even years later? People keep calling it a "tool", how is it assisting you later on when the weight gain becomes a worry? Before I do something this drastic, I would want to know that even when weight gain became an issue a few years out, the sleeve was still helping me in some way while I exercised and ate right. If you start to gain some weight, is it easier to get back off because of the sleeve? Because if all I'm looking at is this dramatic weight loss for the first couple of years and then I'm back to white-knuckling my existence with food, then what were the expense, pain, and possible risks for? I hope this makes sense. I'm tired of being tired, being the fat lady in the group, losing and regaining, and watching my weight issues get worse over time. I don't want to waddle my way through the rest of my life. I want to feel good and look good and avoid diabetes and other issues. I'm a nurse and know what I'm looking at if I stay at this weight. Sigh! Thanks! Cara

I agree, we are all different, and we all gain or lose weight different. I don't have the chatter in my head, I don't wake up in the middle of the night to get something to eat. And I don't agree that I am sick because of my weight. When I was five years old, we were on our way to a Sunday outing, my Dad, Mom, and my three brothers. A car crossed the line and came over and hit us head on. My father broke one leg into 50 pieces. He was in a cast from his chest to his toes for over a year. My mother broke her kneecap and hit her mouth and lost all her teeth. One of my brothers hit his mouth, knocked out his teeth, and two of his teeth went down in his lungs. He also hurt his knee and broke his jaw, and had pins in it. One of the other brothers lost his front teeth, and my other brother and I was just bruised up. We had no money coming in our house at all for a very long time. My Mother was a great cook, but everything she cooks was southern and very fattening. We lived on pots of Beans, stews, and every Sunday we had fried chicken. Most of all, almost every meal we had was based around what kind of potatoes we were having. Potatoes was the base of all our meals, and most were fried or mashed with gravy. food was hard to come by since money was so scarce, so we had to finish our plates of food, and couldn't waste any. I learned to cook exactly like my Mother, and once I got married and had children, I started gaining weight. I didn't lose the weight between my children, which started me off on a huge weight gain. I didn't exercise like I should have, or eat the right foods. The only way I knew to cook was how my Mother taught me. Just like the old saying "You can't teach old dogs new tricks" I just didn't realize the way I was cooking was causing me to gain so much weight. Losing weight has been extremely hard for me because of the way I cook, and because of lack of exercise. I am learning I can fix meals without the potatoes or the other starches. I am learning just because I fix my DH those things, that I don't have to eat them. I am learning I can fix some veggies and fill up just as good on them as the starches. I am learning I have to exercise to get this weight off. I am learning that no one except me can do this, and I am also learning that I have to want it bad enough to do all of that. Do I think I am sick because I have gained this weight and have problems getting it off? NO! I just think I have to learn the right foods to eat and the right way to cook without all the grease/oils. My dear Mother, bless her heart, didn't even realize that cooking with lard was bad for her. She cooked with it right up until a couple of years before she died at the age of 83, and she was in such bad health I finally told her it would be best if she didn't use it anymore. She grew up eating lard sandwiches because of the depression, so using lard to cook with was a natural thing for her. I followed her footsteps using lard and cooking just like she had, so now I have habits to break too. I think almost everyone on these boards has a reason why they gained weight if they go back and really think about it. And yes, I do believe it can be a sickness for some people, but not everyone. It took me a long time to realize it's my problem, and I am the one that has to work at getting the weight off. If I sit on my lazy butt and don't do anything about it, then it's my fault. I have chosen to get this band to use as a tool, to move my butt and to eat the right foods, and guess what? It's working, and I feel great! I am lovin life again for the first time in a long time.

OMG...I just thought of another one...from my dad. He is not skinny though. He had always tried to express his concerns to me about losing weight as best he could. Lose weight for your health, please lose weight so that you do not have to be like me, I love you and I want you to be healthy, etc. But one day out of the blue...I guess I had been on a weight gain or something and my dad pulls me over to him. "You know i love ya right?" "yes", I reply...then he says "well I know that you like boys but as your father, I do have to tell you that guys don't like fat girls...I know this because I AM a guy...baby, you have got to lose weight!" I was like "no he did not just go there"!

Thanks for sharing your story, congratulations on your success. I know many of us have lost only to regain prior to getting surgery. I think you offer some good advice, to get to the underlying issues and the "why" of weight gain. I'm sorry you are struggling, but happy that you are seeking help and thankful that you are reaching out to help all of us.

Same here! Dry, brittle, awful. My guess, in my case anyway, is the (drastically) reduced fat intake, about ready to work a few slices of avocado back in. Holding me back is avocado is def a trigger food for me....love, love that stuff. Argan oil treatments would likely cause less weight gain.🙄

I remeber seeing a bumper sticker that said "I may be fat but your Ugly and I can Diet", think I was around 16 at the time. I always broached the subject of my weight gain before someone else had the chance too - always in a humorous way, I was the thin one until I got married. So, in becoming the "Fat" one - I could not let someone else feel uncomfortable with having to mention what I already knew since I do own mirrors, so I would quash the topic fast, have a laugh and move on. I gladly take any and all compliments that come my way, I try not to be sensitive with the imperfections that accompanied the weight gain...rather work to be a healthy person - Who, can get PS and fix the "fat" issue rather than the "ugly".

Hi Karen! I am a grandma (of 4 - oldest is 23, youngest grandson just turned 1 year old yesterday) and a great-grandma of a 15 month old girl. We all have the same incentive - being active and able to enjoy these wonderful children! I also love to quilt and enjoy cooking. I think so many of us on the 60+ forum have a lot in common, and good shared experiences. I, too, began the serious weight gain because of severe arthritis and knee surgeries which restricted my ability to exercise. I'm back in that situation with the other knee now. Doc recommended injections in that knee to help stave off replacement. The injections seem to be working and I have begun to exercise. The lapband and subsequent weight loss will make all the difference. I am determined to make this work. I am still in the researching stage, just trying to find the right facility that accepts medicare assignment for hospital charges AND the doctor's charges - AND does not have a 2 year waiting list for medicare patients (as one of the nearby facilities has). I am attending a seminar on April 12th that I believe will open that door for me. I am READY! I love your parents already! What a wonderful gift for you - please accept their gift with love and appreciation, and begin to plan how you can pass their love on through you to your children and grandchildren. I believe that's what we are all here for... Good luck to you Joann

Yes, the pre op diet is terrible and it was the worst part of the process for me . Due to weight gains when close to surgery my Dr made me do a 3-week pre op diet, which was horrific. Just follow their instructions and it will be worth it in the end. The doctors know what they're doing and this is great way to begin the process of losing lots of weight.

I'm the oddball. Mine have managed to get a little perkier- they are still huge (36G). I still need a lift, but I will have implants done at that same time. I really think this is one of those genetics things- it depends on how your family is and if the girls are a side effect of weight gain or just a matter of genes. Every single woman on both sides of my family (my mom excluded because she had a double mastectomy)- is at least a DDD. It doesn't matter if you're a size 0 or 26 in my family.