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My weight fluctuates 3-5 lbs a day also, and has always done that. I have to force myself not to weigh in everyday. I can understand why you are right now with worries about the weigh in for surgery. My doctor is known for canceling surgery due to a weight gain.. My last appointment with my regular dietician I had gained 3 lbs and was devastated. Hang in there and watch your sodium intake,, I went back to salt sense and can already see a difference,,, (and it tastes good)

Hello everyone, I had my surgery in mid-august. I was 271 at surgery. I am 213 now (well, 215 truly because of weight gain since Christmas -but it isgoing back down...). I am worried because I met with my nutrionist this week and she mentioned that I should only be eating 2 oz. of food at a meal. I can eat much more than that. My surgeon said I should be at 200lbs by New years. I am not. What do you think? I am trying to stay below 30 carbs and above 80 Proteins a day... i wonder why I am not losing faster. I am down 90 pounds since 2010. So, I am not totally unhappy. Please send me your advice. Thank you.

i have been placed on Lyica for fibromyalgia pain and it helps tremendously. However, I have gained a significant amount of weight on the medication as weight gain is a side effect.I have tried to go off the medication and it didn't even last one day. I asked my surgeon about this and he said it is definitely a problem me having to be on the medication after surgery but didn't offer any alternative (gabapentin doesn't work). He told me he gained weight on the medication as well. I have researched it and any medication that causes weight gain is a concern after surgery. Am I going to have to go through all of this for nothing???????? I have diabetes, hypertension and sleep apnea.

Since being sleeved on the 21st of October, I've been weighing myself daily. In the last 3 days I haven't lost and in fact I think I went up a pound or two. Is this normal? I'm feeling a little discouraged. I can now have mushy foods and creamy soups and I have been. Did I move too fast to the next stage of food?

You may have seen my posts about my..what I felt to be lagging weight loss. I think your surgery was within a day or 2 of mine on 7/25? After being a bit depressed about that my husband asked me to go to a Dillard's Outlet to help him find some pants at a good price. My first thought is oh my Lord..it is hot...I don't want to go anywhere NEAR a mall...(but as well all know Dillard's is usually an anchor store so I didn't literally have to go into 'said mall'). Against all my hesitancy I went. There were some dicey moments...I had been up so much and taken so many steps outside of long loops at the hospital which were finished off immediately by sitting in the chair in my hospital room or getting back into uncomfortable hospital bed. I learned some important things even though I have NOT been able to walk much at all with my torn up knee, I actually seemed to have lost enough weight (from the START of my journey 15 months ago, not in POST OP loss)...that my knees were NOT in excruciating pain. I did have moments where are standing so still looking through hundreds of pairs of pants that I had to grasp the 'end caps' as I had several dizzy spells but they passed. I had some clear Premier Protein with me that I nursed off of. I got back and I felt better for having gently pushed my boundaries. The next day, I dropped a bit more weight. We shake our body up and it starts letting us lose. Then it plays 'survival mode' and gives us a stall....it will be a cat and mouse game but sometimes I've seen people who lose a lot of weight in the first 2 or 3 weeks having to contend with some rough stalls..and I wonder if the ppl who lose weight a bit more slowly...do they seem to have less stall..stalls of smaller durations, or ?? My Dr's office emailed a reply when I asked them to look at what my intake was as I was concerned about slow weight loss..and honestly...I have never heard this before but I will post what they said (they do hundreds of these WLS's each month): You are in what we call "survival mode" right now, everything you take in your body is storing to properly heal you. We do not begin to see the rapid weight loss until you are fully healed at 6 weeks. The weight gain is from fluid retention due to the amount of iv fluids you received in the hospital this typically takes 2 weeks to go away. Just continue to focus on sipping hydrating fluids and alternating protein shakes in between. Not sure about the 'rapid loss not occuring until I'm fully healed at 6 weeks but if it picks up the pace, then great!

Hi everyone, I’m new to the group. ffice:office" /><O:p></O:p> A little about me: I just turned 31 two weeks ago, but I don’t “feel” 31. I’m sure everyone says that! I’m not married, I live alone, no children, and I watch a lot of cartoons on Nickelodeon. It’s a clear case of arrested development. <O:p></O:p> I’m somewhere between 5’6” and 5’7”, depending on who’s doing the measuring, and I weigh at least 230 pounds, possibly more. I weighed myself in June and I was at 217 and I can tell I’ve gained some weight since then. I’m guessing my BMI is around 37. I’m afraid to weigh myself and find out for sure, because I fear it will trigger a feeling of complete hopelessness and the binge to end all binges. <O:p></O:p> I’d always shied away from any kind of medical stuff. I haven’t had a physical in over 10 years because it was always such a terrifying experience when I was a little kid. I screwed up my courage and gave blood last month and while I’m glad I did it, it was a horrifying experience and not one I’m likely to repeat. The idea of gastric bypass scares the crap out of me. And I worry about scarring because I’ve had keloids in the past. But then I started reading about the lap band and am thinking this might be an option for me. For the first time in my life, the pain of living my life in this body has overpowered my abject fear of all things medical and any concern I ever had about scarring. (It’s actually kind of funny, I temped in the surgical wing of a hospital for about 4 months. It was fascinating. They let me go in to watch many of the operations. I saw 5 or 6 gastric bypass operations, knee surgeries, even one brain surgery. And I wasn’t squeamish at all. But that’s because it wasn’t ME. The thought of ME lying on that table makes me feel ill.) <O:p></O:p> I haven’t been obese my whole life. I started out chubby – always about 10-15 pounds overweight. I remember having a 30 inch waist when I was 11 years old. But I didn’t become obese until my mid 20s. My entire adult life, my weight has always been on the way up or on the way down. I’ve never been able to maintain my weight at any level. I’ve dieted and I’ve succeeded, but I’ve always done what I swore I’d never do – I gained the weight back (and then some.) My most recent attempt was in 2002, when I joined weight watchers (again) and dieted down to 138. It didn’t last, of course. And at that weight, I was still a little chubby. That makes me think that I must have a small frame and probably my ideal weight is around 130 or so. Anyway, my point…and I’m getting to it, I promise – is that in my mind I’m about 100 pounds overweight. Like a lot of you, I’m sure, I remember certain events by what I weighed at the time. 172 when I started college. 154 when I graduated. 135 after my first semester in grad school. (That was the exercise 90 minutes a day and eat nothing but two bagels and a can of tuna for the entire day phase.) 165 a year later when I was in my friend’s wedding. 173 after a year on my first job 154 after freaking out about the above and joining weight watchers It went on and on until I joined weight watchers again at 220 pounds and lost 70. That was in 2002. Since then, it’s been a steady climb upwards. The weight gain has actually accelerated in the last year. When I finally quit the rip-off personal training place, I was at 182. That was this past January. And look at me now. I’m scared to death. Why even bother trying to lose weight if in the end, I’ll only be heavier? I don’t think I can handle failing again. Feeling like a loser again. Busting out of my clothes again. <O:p></O:p> I’ve been researching the heck out of this lap band thing. I originally thought it made you lose weight simply because you can’t eat as much. After reading up on it, I’ve learned that I will still have to change my lifestyle and eating habits. Three small meals a day. No liquids before, during, or after meals. Exercise is required. I’ll have to chew my food into mush before I swallow and I won’t be able to eat solids for a month after the surgery. Also, I learned that there are ways to cheat and get more food down the hatch. Part of me is thinking that if I were capable of making these changes, I wouldn’t need the surgery. The other part of me is thinking that the surgery would be an extremely important tool to help me get where I need to go. And surgery would give me something I haven’t had in a long time: HOPE. <O:p></O:p> I have Healthnet for my insurance and they cover the lap-band. I would only have to pay about $500. My worry is that I won’t qualify for the procedure because I’m not quite big enough, haven’t been obese long enough, and don’t have a medical history of co-morbidities. My position is that the surgery is inevitable, because if I don’t do something, I will continue to gain weight. But I doubt my saying so will get me approved for the surgery. <O:p></O:p> Healthnet told me the first thing I need to do is get a physical, so I scheduled an appointment. The bad news is – the Dr. can’t see me until Dec. 12. I was really hoping to get moving on this. I belong to the UCLA Santa Monica medical group and they have a ton of residents there. I could probably get in to see one of them in the next couple of weeks. But I’ve researched my PCP. I don’t know anything about any of the residents and since this is the first time I’m seeing a doctor in over a decade and I’m going to ask this person to refer me to bariatrics, I want someone who knows what she is doing. I’m sure first and second year doctors are fine, but…no. Am I being crazy? Should I just see one of the residents and get this show on the road? <O:p></O:p> But back to qualifying…I did some research and the rule is you have to have a BMI of 40 or a BMI of 35 plus co-morbidities. I don’t know if the co-morbidity thing will fly. First off, I have nothing documented, and secondly, I’m pretty sure I don’t have any of the biggies: diabetes, sleep apnea, etc. I read somewhere that depression counts, and I’ve been battling that with different doctors over the past 8 or so years. I’ve also got pain in my back and knees. I’ve started getting dizzy sometimes. I start perspiring at the drop of a hat and I’m get out of breath easily. I get really bad chafing and welts on my inner thighs. I have a welt right now that hurts so bad, it’s hard to walk. <O:p></O:p> Since the age of 18, I’ve seen two nutritionists, joined weight watchers 3 times (or was it four?), tried the lemonade fast, tried Trim-Spa (with and without ephedra) seen a therapist, been on anti-depressants, tried the “eat sensibly” thing which, if I could do that, I wouldn’t have this problem in the first place. I’ve had a gym membership for 10 years and have actually used it. I’ve done the 90 minutes of exercise every day thing. I even tried to make myself vomit, but I just couldn’t seem to make it happen. (And believe me I’ve tried.) Last year, I got ripped off for $5000 by a personal training company, and I’m still recovering from that financially. Right now, I’m working with a diet coach who is trying to help me by having me take very small baby steps that focus on changing my habits and my lifestyle rather than just losing weight. I’ve been working with her for about three months now. I’m now drinking 70+ oz of Water every day and I’ve given up fast food, but I just eat other crap so it hasn’t affected my weight. <O:p></O:p> Overweight and obesity run in my family (no one looks morbidly obese to me, but a lot of us are fat in my family.) My father has high blood pressure and had prostate cancer. My mother has high cholesterol. I never knew any of my grandparents, but I know two of them had cancer. Is that enough, do you think? I feel horrible asking that question, but I’m trying to figure out what I need to say to the doctor. The other thing I’m worried about is I don’t have a support system at all. I’m not close to my family at all, and they all live thousands of miles away. I moved here to ffice:smarttags" /><?xml:namespace prefix = st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com<ST1:place w:st="on">Los Angeles</ST1:place></st1:City> in 2002 and haven’t made any friends. I’ve been too busy hiding away in my apartment, feeling ashamed. The only social interactions I have are with the people at work. Yes it’s lonely and it sucks, but I’m pretty used to it. I wonder if my lack of a support network will factor into the decision to approve my application for the surgery. <O:p></O:p> I guess it would help if anyone could maybe tell me about your journey – what your experience was and how you got through it. And maybe you guys will have some advice to pass on. Be brutally honest. Should I just forget this whole thing until I clearly qualify for it? Was it hard for you to change your eating habits? Has anyone gained the weight back? Is it possible to lose weight and be “normal” sized, or will the formerly obese always be a little chubby? Anyone have a problem with excess skin? Do you know of anyone the lap band did NOT work for? Is there anything I should say to the doctor when I see her? <O:p></O:p> I don’t know what to do. I just know that I’m extremely unhappy, I’m nervous as all get out, I don’t have anyone to talk to about this, and I don’t know what to do or which way to go… <O:p></O:p> Ugh. This is so depressing. What I wouldn’t give for one day – 24 solid hours – when I don’t have to think about food or my weight. I just want to get on with my life. <O:p></O:p> <O:p></O:p>Thanks, all. I know this was super long. <O:p></O:p> SJ

Stalls are a normal part of weight loss that just about everyone experiences (search this site for “three week stall” and you’ll see thousands of results). This won’t be the last time you stop seeing your scale move for a little while before starting up again. in your case, though, I’m not sure I’d even call it a stall. This soon after WLS, you shouldn’t even be looking at the scale. Your body went through a lot during surgery and it has to adjust to the changes. While you were in the hospital, I’m sure they pumped you full of IV fluids, and that alone can cause weight gain. I actually weighed more at my one-week follow-up than I did right before surgery (my surgeon didn’t care — at that point, he was more interested in how I was healing from the surgery). You should also be aware that since you’re starting at a relatively low BMI, your weight loss is likely to be slower than someone starting out 100 pounds higher than you, so don’t get discouraged by comparing your weight loss with anyone else’s. A lot of people only weigh themselves once a week so they don’t get freaked out by normal fluctuations or stalls, and you might want to consider that.

I had surgery after I'd already gone through menopause, so I have no experience with this - or at least post-surgical experience, but I'd be careful with things like implants and Depo-Provera (the shot). Both are notorious for weight gain. I don't know if that's true after surgery, too, but...

I am trying not to freak out. I am about 8 weeks post op, everything has been going well. I eat about 700-800 calories a day, get 80-100 grams of protein a day. Yesterday the only thing I did different was eat a little popcorn which I know put me up in carbs more than any days so far. But really? 2 lbs?! I am berating myself over the two handfuls of popcorn. I feel awful now

Do I post? Do I continue to keep to myself on this subject? what the hell.. I'll post...... I can't remember the last time I had sex with dbf, and we've only been together for a little over two years.... the person who says we have bills and kids in common.. I second that.. a lot of bills and a lot of kids.. same morale ethics, same family goals..... but no sex and the most physical contact is a simple peck on the lips at night and in the morning before work..... things started slowing down immediately in the sex department literally a few months into our relationship he started pushing my hands away and it has gone downhill since (and I was in a size 10/12 at the time) God love my mother but she once teased me that he wasn't interested because I had once again REGAINED all my weight.... geesh thanks mom.... anyway my issues go way back with sex.... I was "devirginized" by my exhusband who was also my highschool sweetheart.. we were together for 17 years.. I'd never even SEEN another mans privates until I got divorced LOL... (he cheated on me and left me via note one new years eve) I had no clue, and was devestated.. I though our lack of sex for the 3 months prior was because of his depression over a friends near fatal accident... ANYWAY I swore that I would never go that long without sex again... because had I given him more maybe he wouldn't of cheated... never really liked sex that much.. wasn't adventurous and it was always quick.. (happens a lot I think when two kids grow up together and never learn anything new) OK.. so got divorced immediately hooked up with the rebound psyco loser that immediately cheated on me and got this formerly infertile girl preggers.......... a baby later I finally booted his abusive loser ass to the curb and THEN I WAS REBORN!!!!!!!!! at 34 I was free to date and have fun... I lost 80 lbs and looking good, feeling great, and anxious grandma's to babysit on weekends the miracle baby... I discovered that indeed I did LIKE sex..... I bought books on learning to give myself an orgasm... (because I've never had one) to this day I have no idea what its really like, or if I've had fleeting moments of one and don't know it... I'm almost 40 and don't know what all the talk is about....... sad but true.... yeah I've faked it.. yeah when guys found out they wanted to be the first.... so I let them think it....... but I honestly don't know if I have or not..... OK.. so I had a year of dating around and having fun... and then I met DBF and at first we had sex every day........ and then it was every week, then it was was a couple times a month........ and now I don't know... I do know that I quit buying my BC Ring in december because it was a waste of money...... it hurts my feelings to be denied so I just quit asking or initiating... I've tried to talk to him about it and he just gets pissed off....... I kind of blew up after my band was put in, I lifted my shirt and asked him to feel for my port.. he said NO it kind of grossed him out.. I said WHAT???? He laughed and said that the thought of a port freaked him out and it was gross to him...... TEARS, followed by exclaimination....... "GREAT! NOW MY BAND GROSSES YOU OUT.. WE ARE NEVER HAVING SEX AGAIN ARE WE???" he replied... "JESUS TRACY! Not this AGAIN!" and stomped off to the living room to watch TV. I was left in the kitchen crying and the subject has not been broached again........ (btw his ex wife cheated on him and that is why they are divorced.. I'm guessing he has always had a low libido and yes he wakes up every morning with impressive wood, which I have literally tried to take advantage of and was jokingly swatted away) I have increasingly put on weight since the rejection started happening.. About October of 2005.. he also cooks and would get upset if I didn't eat what he fixed.. the women in his family are heavy.... I know he is deeply insecure about stuff, but extremely macho to the world and even to himself. The problem is that he is a great guy, we don't have kids together but our blended family includes 4 boys that love each other.. he is my sons dad in every way but biology and the same with his boys. We are all about raising kids and doing things as a family and growing old together and yes getting married......... but in my minds eye.. do I go ahead and get married knowing that I will most likely NEVER have intercourse again. I guess my self esteem. I was suprised when he supported my decision to have the band.. he said that he loved me no matter what but he knew that the weight gain had been depressing me...... he did however want to know how it would affect him, and for me to know that I shouldn't expect him to change the way he eats..... he has been pretty good about it.... as he is with most things.. except sex....... and I do miss it... I feel that at 37 I am too young to give it up, especially when there is a very avaible WORKING piece of equipment hooked to the man I love... its not fair that he doesn't want to spend the energy to use it. I do have toys, and I swear some time I'm going to take a day off work to be alone with myself! LOL

A friend of mine that is rather robust in the bust department has a winnie-the-pooh on the top of her left breast..........over the years pooh has gotten taller and thinner It just sort of happens even without weight gain/loss. Mine are on the back of my neck and my foot so I don't anticipate any problems.......will wait to get my next one after I reach goal, maintain it for a year, and pay for my new boobs

Its just a stall .... you are doing everything right. I think increasing your calories was a good move considering how active you are. At my 3 months I gained 4lbs overnight .... took a deep breath stayed off the scale for a week and dropped that gain a week later and got the momentum going to lose another 5lbs the week after! If you are really concerned get the tape measurer out - you will lose inches while the scale may not reflect this. Also round TOM you may see a water weight gain - goodluck and keep it up!

My twins were natural and a blessing. I read that many woman that are in their prime stages 28-35 are the ones having the sleeve done get pregnant fast. Most that are in their early-late 30s have a higher chance of conceiving twins. I read something like that lol 5 mos today and ill be told their genders next Friday. No weight gain yet either so in Super Excited!!

Surely this must be the 9th circle of bandster hell!! I was banded a little over 3 months ago (13 weeks) and had my first SMALL fill 6 weeks ago. I have pretty much NO restriction and have 2 more weeks to go until my second fill. This day cannot come fast enough! I feel that overall, I am doing well. I've been working out 3-5 times a week, going to Weight Watchers religiously, and making good food choices, most of the time. But, inevitably, I have those days when I just want to eat everything. This week, I have had 3 of them, including today. Good times! I have had a ridiculous amount of food and am thinking about the next thing I am going to put in my mouth as we speak. Tomorrow, I will be disgusted with myself and go back to the gym and get on track, but it will probably take 2-3 days of working out just to offset today's munchfest. These are the days that have facilitated my colossal weight gain and these are the days I really need a working band!! I don't want to be able to eat this much and I don't want to feel hungry. I feel guilty because I know I am supposed to be eating small portions, and somedays, I'm just not. Deliberatley disobeying doctor's orders and maybe even putting my health at risk!! I assume that because everything goes down and I feel normal, I am okay. Could I be setting myself up for future problems by overeating?? I just want some restriction and I want this day to be over so I can start damage control tomorrow. Who still overeats after going through all the trouble of weight loss surgery?? Apparently, I do. :redface:

Okay the latest. I called my doctor and a medical tech called me back. I can't eat hardly anything. She said that it was okay to eat soft foods. From what I know this can cause weight gain cause you start eating your unhealthy foods again because they go down easy. She said that eating chocolate Malto Meal was fine to eat in the morning. Yesterday I ate Chipotle and barely had anything. I did notice though you could only eat a couple Beans at a time or a tiny piece of chicken. Is this normal. That is so small! Last night I had just shrimp and it came up. So then I wanted the rest of a chocolate sundae that I have had a couple of times. Stopped eating that and forced myself to eat some turkey from a frozen meal. That went down fine. People who have gastric lose weight so fast. How is that when I see that we talk a lot about not eating enough then not losing any weight or hitting a plateu? So is my band too tight or I am just not eating the right foods and size. I had some pancakes and an egg on Friday. First time trying that with this fill (#8) and it all came up.

OMG... Weight gain So I'm 3 months post op and was told by my Dr to increase my calories from 500 to 700-800 per day... And within 4 days I've gained almost 3 pds I track my food... Drink 5 16oz water bottles daily and aim for 50-80g of protein... Oh and I walk or do Zumba at least 5 days a week. What's up???!!!???!!!

For me- my immediate family and a friend who had GB as a support system. My weight gain (mostly) was due to having rheumatoid arthritis. The high doses of daily prednisone along with IV decadron monthly as well as many other meds, the lack of mobility due to the pain caused me to 1) blow up and 2) created iatrogenic adrenal insufficiency ( no adrenal function- no metabolism). Friends and neighbors watched me grow over the course of 5 years. Then it was simply status quo- I was fat. But trying to explain that I was having GB to lose the weight and take the pressure off of my joints just sounds like an excuse. ( even to me) Therefore when asked about why I was having surgery, my response is simply- my stomach suffered horrid side effects from all my RA meds so they had to operate. Kind of the truth!!

I have insulin resistance and take 30mg of Actos. They are really small, so no problem there....possible side effect is weight gain however. I asked my doctor for Metformin, but he wants me on the Actos because it helps chlosterol. I agree on just crushing them, it is only bad tasting for a minute!

Hang in there. I had a weight gain, too, and worried about my sleeve being too big. In fact, that was my initial post. In my case, it turned out to be the type foods I was eating. I've seen the term "Sliders" used for foods that can leak around the sleeve, allowing more than the usual capacity to be eaten. If you are eating that sort of food - liquids or soupy, soft foods - you may defeat the size of your new stomach. I could eat a ton of yogurt and frozen berries, for example, without feeling filled up. Also, if you are eating foods high in fat (cream, especially), starch (like potatoes) or sugar (Fruit drinks, for example), you can defeat your new stomach. You can't go back to french fries and expect the weight loss to continue. But if you stick with low fat Proteins (eggs are not low fat - about 75% of the calories in an egg is from fat) - try for things like chicken breast without skin, white fish, egg whites, whey Protein isolate, etc. and lots of low starch vegetables, you may find that you fill up on much less food. I've heard that you can stretch your stomach if you keep drinking soft drinks. The air will expand the stomach (not to mention the sugar in the drink). Lastly, and this isn't scientific, I've read and suspect it's true that if you wash your food down with drinks, it may also allow you to eat more. Exercise is something that I've found is key. Housework isn't enough (and housework won't help calm your nerves, as walking will). I used to think walking was boring, but that was before I got a Kindle and could read while I worked out on the elliptical or treadmill. Now it's just part of my routine to do 45 minutes a day, every day, while reading a book. Good luck. Don't give up on yourself!

Your story echoes many of ours, just different names and places. Puberty is not an uncommon trigger for weight gain, many of us where rail thin till the big P and then BAM! It hits us, middle age widens us even more and before you know it we are morbidly obese. Most all of us here have a success story that we can share, there are a very few who have failures. You have to weigh the risk VS reward. We all wish you the very best as you start your new adventure in weight loss.

I don't have any post surgery experience, but do have weight gain experience. I have a tattoo on my abdomen that I got before I put on 150 pounds. It has stretched a lot, almost to being unrecognizable. I imagine that shrinking would make the objects smaller, possibly less detail apparent but still recognizable. Let me know how it goes.

Hello, all. I was "sleeved" on Nov 18. I lost a lot of weight preceding the surgery (40 lbs) thanks to Phentermine. Then I lost another 15 pounds in the week around the surgery because those Protein drinks (isopure) are only 160 calories each. But once I started in on Soups in phase 2, I just stopped losing and haven't lost a pound in the last two weeks. In fact, I gained 3 pounds. I feel hungry a lot and can eat nearly 2 cups before my body says "stop" (hiccups are the warning). Is that normal? I don't want to overstress my stomach but also expect the surgery to help out in the portion control. Since I lost so much before, I'm not too worried, but I'll be concerned if I don't start losing again soon. I suspect that the problem is that liquids aren't constrained by the size of the new stomach, so I can eat more before feeling "full." I also suspect that the weight gain is just recovery from the surgery, not a gain in body fat. But I don't know what to expect. Anyone else able to eat more than they thought a 60ml stomach should hold? Any advice about portions and hunger management? Anyone else gain weight after surgery? How long did it take until you started losing again? Thanks for your comments.

I've got to disagree. And I can only speak for myself. It's all about accountability, it's all about ownership, it's all about acknowledging that I am creating my own destiny, whether it be to lose weight, gain or maintain. I have no doubt it's semantics for some, but for me, it's empowerment.

Insulin Resistance is on my list. I am not sure about the PCOS, although I have cysts on my ovaries (and fibriods, yea) I have never actually been diagnosed. I suspect I have it, I have other symptoms. I have never been clear on whether the fat you gain causes IR or does developing IR make it easier to make fat? My doctor has me on Actos since it is beneficial in helping high cholestorel, which I also have. Sadly, Actos usually causes weight gain.... although I have halfed my dose since banding and my BS numbers have looked good. I can lose weight when I try but it sure seems to be at a slower rate and I really have to work at it.

Okay, so here's a thread for us. My story to start us off. Was overweight/obese my whole life. When I look back at pictures of myself as a young kid (7-8), I am surprised that I didn't look as fat as I thought back then. But by adolescence I definitely was. Had some hard life stuff (Mom got cancer when I was 8, friend in high shool died sophomore year, dad had stroke sophomore year of college, got diagnosed with PCOS, lost a few important friendships) - each contributed significantly to my weight gain. Then I just got so big, I felt like there was nothing I could do. I just ate worse and worse, because I felt so trapped. I was banded about 5 weeks ago. I have lost a good part of my weight, still have a ways to go. I now find myself constantly looking at my body, trying to figure out what it is going to look like. Unlike lots of bandsters I see on boards who are 30+, I am not married. I worry about my body, about whether I will need plastic surgery, about if I will feel comfortable. About dating after losing weight but before PS. About doing this forever, even though I feel confident. About keeping this weight off forever. About what happens if I lose my band. About the fact that at 22, I'm really going to jump in and start my life, and whether or not I'm sorely behind. So anyway, there's my story. Here's my stats: 9/28/05 (1st consult): 333 4/17/06 (2nd consult): 318 5/2/06 (Surgery day): 315 6/9/06 (today) : 278 Goal (I think) :170