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You will have swelling for a little bit and that will account for the weight gain or lack of weight loss. This is a time for healing and you should focus on that. Protein is an important part of healing and since you aren't able to eat the dense Proteins like meat, you will mostly get those in Protein shakes, greek yogurt etc. I know a lot of people tell you not to worry about tracking during the healing phase, but getting good proteins is vey important. It will also help you so you aren't as hungry.

3 month-down 43 lbs -stall 3 weeks - more hungry than I should be. @@emk101009 wonderful weight loss how do you know hungry you "should" be???? "it" varies for all of us some of us might never have lost their hunger issues others maybe at 3 months others at.............. stalls happen to most all of us Get Over It must be patient - it will pass (like gas ) time periods/stalls will vary from 3 weeks to.............. God Grant Me Patience, Just Hurry Up About It!!! We're all different we lose amount of weight in different time periods we lose inches at the beginning from different areas ie less boobs or less tushy!!! yogurt is not that filling but it is great, and has lots of Protein too you can never have too much protein during the day dense protein like chicken is wonderful - very filling you didn't chew thoroughly?? means you probably ate too fast too!!!! KNOCK IT OFF slow down with your eating and chew better that wouldn't cause you to stretch your sleeve after each bite, put your utensil down for a few seconds too use a baby spoon - that helps too i "think" many people at one time or another worry that they might have stretched their new little tummies as far as "stretching" your tummy eat wayyyy too much food, too fast all morning, noon, afternoon, evening & night in other words 24/7 grazing ALL day (like you/me did in the good 'ol days this will cause weight gain but as far as stretching the sleeve - don't "think" that can happen unless you "WORK" really hard to eat eat eat and then................ 24/7 for a long long time many good discussions about can/does your stomach stretch i don't have the right answer hopefully someone can explain better than i can ood luck 43 lbs down!!! kathy congrats

My doctor also prescribed seasonal allergy meds. I've taken Zyrtec and a few others and they all make me eat like crazy; so much that I now suffer through the symptoms to avoid the problems with weight gain. I have questioned several others to see if it has done them the same way and they all agree, it makes you feel like you are hungry all the time.

Not eating and drinking is a struggle for most of us, so this is what I do, I do not allow the waiter/waiteress to bring water and neither do I have it on the table while I am eating. Just out of habit we do things so don't make it so convient for yourself. You difinately needed your band to rest, you gave it to much in a day. After any PB episodes you must allow your band to rest. Take it slow, it will be alright. For me, fills are always a challenge. Usually up to 2/3 weeks after a fill I am very limited with what I can eat and then one day I wake up and I can eat things that have been a struggle. That's my sign for a fill. I usually wait 5/6 weeks in between fills. I waited over 2 months before getting my first fill so I feel like I'm behind on my weight lost but it's still been consistant and no weight gains since I was banded. That is a blessing for me all together. Stay encourage and try to follow the band rules. I know it's hard just from my own personal experience.

Hi all, I'm having the surgery done on the 10th. I've gained 5 lbs in about a week/week 1/2. I'm worried that if it's so easy for me to gain weight (I have a friend that is too thin and can't put on weight no matter how hard she tries), will it stay the same after the surgery? Does your body chemistry completely change after? I don't plan on having a feast or anything after But I am concerned I will be able to gain easily like I am now... Has anyone else had this issue too?

I was in BH for over 3 months with no weight loss and no weight gain. It's disappointing when we go into this thinking we'll immediately start losing a lot of weight only to find we didn't read the fine print. Looking back, for me, it's been a blessing to take longer for the band to begin to work. I've learned much about myself, my eating habits and how to communicate with my band. tmf

I am 4 weeks out, the first 2 weeks I lost 27 lbs, on my 4 week checkup I gained a 1.5 lbs. How did this happen I can't even get hardly any food or drink in. Anyone else have this happen or any suggestions?

I am 8 weeks post op and have lost 35 lbs so far. I started exercising last Monday. I have gained 3 lbs since then. What the hell?! It was literally overnight. Anyone have this happen? I had the lapband with plication and no fills yet.

i had lap band six yrs ago and i am actually still loosing off and on ! I hqd actually lost more past my goal and people said i was looking to drawn and face sinking in !, LOL ! Anyway i had foot surgery 7 weeks ago and OMG i feel like such a blob and so worried aout weight gain ! Still on crutches just started to be able to put weight on it and tryimg to get off of the crutches . It has been hard to keep up with drinking my water as i cant keep running to the bathroom i cant wait to even use my eliptical i have gained a few but not as bad as i thought ! Cant wait to be be back to normal ! Any suggestions from anyone would be great !

Thanks for the support vlp1968. I do need to get back to working out. I just stopped because I got so discouraged with all the weight gain. Thanks for the advice and Happy Thanksgiving. All the best.

Hello everyone, here's where my story begins.... 1994 is when my weight started becoming a problem for me. I already had both of my children, one in 1990 and the other in 1991. I was about 189lbs after I had my second son and things were pretty much stable at that weight for me. I wanted to lose weight but it didn't become a serious problem until about three years later. I put on about 30lbs from 1991-1994, and it just continued to increase from there. Of course I decided to begin taking weight lost pills (phentramine/and the other phen). I both pills for about two months and quickly lost 50lbs. I thought the battle was over at that point until I gained the weight back about 6 months later (as I stopped taking the pills). I tried some of my own remedies like exercise and all types of diets. I walked and did lots of activities with my children but the weight just wouldn't go anywhere. Looking back at my weight lost journey there were a total of 11 years that I have been trying to lose weight with all types of attempts. I've taken so many diet pills and shakes that I can't even count. My husband and I attended a seminar for day one surgery in Chicago Illinois in March of 2008. In April of 2008 @ 232lbs, I decided to start working on a supervised diet plan with my doctor, I told her that I wanted to attempt a lap band procedure and she let me know that most insurance companies require that you have at least a 6 month history of a medically supervised diet. In addition to that my doctor had just started seeing a patient of hers that had the procedure done, she called her and let me speak to her to see how she felt about the surgery. I decided to go with the same doctor (Dr. Klem out of Central Dupage Hospital, in Winfield IL.) that she has since here experience was so positive. So the 6 month program began. That included Phentramine, water pill and a 1200 calorie diet plan. I lost about 10-15lbs over the 6 month time frame, which wasn't very sugnificant to me. Once I stopped taking the pills I was right back at square one.... back to 230. In September of 08' I began seeing Dr. Klem, he has been performing this type of surgery for the last 17 years, he gave me all of the pro's and con's of the procedure and told me I was a candidate for either surgery, the bypass or the lap band. My husband and I decided that the lapband was the best choice for me since I didn't have any pre-morbid conditions. The process began the next week after being catagorized as morbidly obese. By the way when I started seeing Dr. Klem I was up to 242lbs, this was barely enough to be considered for insurance (why I'm not sure...). By the time my scheduled appointment for nutritionist came I was a all time high of 247.6lbs. That was a depressing time for me, I cried when I left the office and spoke with my husband about the weight gain that I was experiencing. We decided the I should try Weight Watchers to try and work on the problem immididately, as I had developed high blood pressure by this time and my doctor decided to put me on blood preasure medicine. I began Weight Watchers which I started doing very well with and dropped about 15lbs. Unfortunately I put the procedure off because I thought maybe this would be the fix that I was truly looking for. That did not last for more than a couple of months because of the high amount of sodium that was in so many of the meals. By now it's December and I'm right back in the same visocus circle that I've been in and now my weight has really gotten out of hand. by January I was a whopping 252lbs and had a very low self esteme. I didn't want to go to any social settings and couldn't fit any of my clothes. I was up to a size 18/20...I'd never wore this size clothes even when I was 9mo pregnant with either of my children. Life seemed very glomy for me. In January I decided to get back to business with Dr. Klems office and get the show on the road. As most of you know this can be a very long process because of all of the steps you have to take to be qualified for surgery. By March of this year I was finally finished with all of the steps that I needed (so I thought). My Information was submitted to my insurance company and I thought it was complete but of course my insurance company Blue Cross Blue Shield of Illinois denied my case. They claimed that I didn't have enough previous documented diet attempts for at least 5 years. When I submitted 7 years straight of failed diet attempts with one diet (Dr. Greenspon) doctor. My case was taken on by the Attorney that handles lap band denied cases, which took almost two months to get resolved. Finally got approved (this was a very stressful time needless to say).:tongue_smilie:As I was waiting for the approval I decided to try another dietary option, Weight Watchers (This was so costly, but my husband wanted to make sure I tried absolutly everything.....) by June of 09, I was finally approved... Now to set the date...July was full for my doctor so I opted to take August 12th. I'm now scheduled....:thumbup:... Kept doing Weight Watchers for a minute until I ran out of thier food and I'm now at 239.5. My liquid diet starts July 29th, which does consist of some food. I am to have a protein shake for breakfast, a morning snack (which will be a fat free yogart without fruit), Protein shake for lunch, mid lunch snack (which will be sugar free jello), and then a dinner (I've opted to use a Smart One's meal which is approved by my nutrutionist as long as it has meat in it.) and I can have up to two sugar free popcicles or fudgecicles. This doesn't seem like a liquid diet but the doctor knows best and it's ment to be 1000 calories. My nutritionist said it was good that I've been on the Weight Watchers diet because it's comparable to what I will be doing except it's 200 calories less. I will continue to post after my procedure but I can say that I'm happy that it's all most time for me to get this part over with....It's been a long time coming.:confused: Start Weight: 252lbs Pre Op Weight: 239lbs Pre Surgery Weight: ??? Goal Weight: 145

Hi all, I'm Audie. I was banded May 2, 2007. I have the 10 cc band. My starting weight was 326 lbs ... my highest weight EVER. I had a series of traumatic experiences that led to emotional eating and subsequent weight gain! I am now down in the 240s and still losing. I just got my third fill ... and let me tell ya, this site kept me from panicking about it! :clap2: At the doctor's office, the Water went down without any restriction so I really thought I had dropped a lot of money on a fill just to be able to eat whatever I wanted again. WRONG! The next morning I woke up and I could feel the restriction. I have been pretty miserable. I can only get two bites and truly only sip water or else I end up throwing up. I am a very sensitive person, so I'm pretty sure my tummy is very irritated. He also withdrew all the liquid to see where I'm at. I'm over 4cc's full in my band. So after reading the forums, I decided to give it another week or so. As if I sip, I can get a glass of water and Protein shakes down. Takes a long time, but hey, that's ok! I've lost quite a few pounds, though, in the past couple days. However, there are a few issues going on that I haven't yet experienced. My acid reflux became non-existent after I was banded. Now all of the sudden, I had a case last night! Isn't that the weirdest? And I have trouble sleeping, so some nights I take a tylenol PM. It went down friday night, but not saturday night ... so it's weird my tummy fluctuates that much. I've been losing weight all along, so that isn't an issue for me, but this is the first time I've felt this much restriction. I don't want to go for an unfill because if I keep dropping weight, the restriction will lessen. How long can a person's stomach stay irritated from this activity? I went from like 3.25cc's to over 4cc's. I know everyone's bodies are different. :woot: Thanks! And this seems like a great forum. I was excited to find it last night! Audie

Whatever you do PROTECT YOUR SLEEVE!!!!! I use to think it couldn't be stretched, but now I am convinced. I use to be able to eat 1/2 egg and part if a sausage for Breakfast now I can eat two of each. The more get in the hungrier you can get the more you can gain due to I creased amounts if calories. BE CAREFUL - I LEARNED THE HARD WAY. I wish I could go back and change some if the decisions I made early on. Change your eating habits while you are still not that interested in eating. Protect the pouch to ensure limited stretching. Develop a process that will work for you longterm. DON'T TAKE THE SLEEVES CAPABILITIES FIR GRANTED!!!! I did and now I can't stop the weight gain. Be proud of how far you have come and know where you want to go and what you need to sacrifice to stay there when you arrive..........BECAUSE YOU WILL ARRIVE!! Bbn

Hi ladies! Has anyone had any experiences with getting the depo shot post-surgery? My surgery was Nov. 23rd, 2018. I'm terrified of the weight gain aspect and I was thinking of switching to the patch instead. Any advice would be much appreciated! Thank-you. [emoji3] Sent from my SM-G960U using BariatricPal mobile app

you are still on liquids aren't you? that is probably why you feel hunger! I did not worry about how many times I "drank" something at that point. It did not cause weight gain.

Yes, it happens to me about every 2 weeks. I think it is dependent on how many carbs I consume. The body stores more Water when it converts carbs to glycogen for energy. I have gained as much as 4lbs over a weekend - without changing the amount of calories I eat, just by eating more carbs. And then I lose it over the course of the week and drop an additional pound or two. You didn't mention if your weight was measured on your home scales or the doctors - when you noted the weight gain. I know that my home scales do not measure my weight the same as the doctor's. So I go by my home scales, since I don't see the doc but once a month.

I too see a weight gain when I eat too many carbs. Thanks for the explanation joatsaint!

Many of us will agree that recent advancements in technology are a double-edged sword: on the one hand, they’ve made our lives so much easier, making tasks that are already simple even more convenient; on the other, these added conveniences have made it so the amount of physical exercise we do is dramatically lessened, making it that much easier to put on a few extra pounds. But with global obesity rates continuing to climb higher, developers of smartphones and smart technology have finally begun developing features that not just help, but encourage weight loss in their users – and users haven’t been ones to be left behind. Kantar Media’s MARS OTC/DTC 2014 study showed that 34% of smartphone owners look for health-related information online using their phones, and 32% of smartphone owners have also used a health- or fitness-related app. More than just using apps, however, there are other ways use smart technology for fitness. The Hype of Google Glass for Fitness Last January, PCMag’s Jill Duffy talked about “The Internet of Fitness Things” – one of the biggest trends seen in fitness technology today. She wrote about how today’s fitness devices now need to be tightly integrated with an interface that lets users monitor their fitness and workout levels. This is where Google Glass comes in. When fitness devices are integrated with Google Glass, workouts become more interactive and streamlined – not to mention tailor-fit for the user’s fitness goals. This is seen in Race Yourself, a Glass app that tracks your time, distance, and calories while running. Unlike other fitness apps, however, this Google Glass-integrated app comes with different games such as Zombie Chase and Giant Boulder, for high-intensity workouts. Google’s partnership with Technogym also means that Google Glass can now control treadmills through voice prompts. The device can even scan barcodes on treadmills to determine the kind of workouts and settings that are optimal for the machine. Smartphones with Built-In Health Tracking Apps Jill Duffy also mentioned that another apparent trend in fitness devices was seen in how developers seemed to be closing in on one detail of fitness: heart health. This is apparent not just in the number of heart rate monitoring devices out in the market now, but also in how even smartphone developers have begun integrating health and heart-tracking apps into their latest models. • Samsung Galaxy S5 The revamped features of the S Health app include a Heart Rate Sensor, which is tasked to check the status of your heart at any time of the day. Samsung’s Exercise Mate was also enhanced with the addition of a Hiking option, allowing users to track their progress while walking, cycling, and running. Android and Me has also reported that Samsung’s update of the app allows the Heart Rate Sensor to monitor stress levels. • HTC One M8 Pocket-Lint reported that HTC had partnered with FitBit to provide the One M8 with fitness tracking software, and the results were rather impressive. With BlinkFeed, you can track information such as fitness goals, achievements, and calories burned. There’s even a Smart Alarm that can wake you up at the most optimal time. O2 reports that the HTC One has also been equipped with HTC Boomsound, which the Smart Alarm makes use of quite extensively. Video Games Making People More Active Most people will agree that video games may have been a factor in their weight gain, as playing these games meant sitting in front a TV or computer for hours at a time, munching on junk food. Today’s video games, however, can be a far cry from games of old. Ace Fitness cites a study by Primack in 2012 that showed that active video games can be used to increase a person’s energy levels. Players interact with images on their screen using body movements, playing games like tennis, gold, boxing, and football. Developers like Nintendo have been hard at work creating games that not only set the benchmark for interactive games, but also meet the industry guidelines for cardiorespiratory fitness – meaning playing their games is a sure-fire way to get some aerobic exercise in. Healthcare from the Perspective of Medical Professionals While there are tons of services to track your health on your own, there are also significant developments intended to enhance how medical professionals provide care services. Ellen Lee of Forbes reported that this year, the revenues of venture capitalists in healthcare IT have tripled to $955, from the $343 million invested three years ago. Here are ways Lee believes medical professionals will leverage technology: • “Watson” Lee said IBM is developing “Watson,” a supercomputer tasked to assist physicians in recommending treatments and making accurate diagnoses. It also tracks patient history, analyze treatment methods, and assists medical research. • Doximity Social media is also a product of technology, allowing doctors to connect together to provide better care to patients. The importance of Doximity, a social networking site exclusive to physicians, is that the platform allows physicians in the US to collaborate online. With these significant improvements, the notion that technology induces more harm to our health is put to rest. As it improves in a heartbeat, we transition to an era where securing our health becomes a walk in the park.

Four weeks post-op you are probably only just getting onto solid food. This means that your body has more fuel to burn for you to lose weight. If you are up to it, kick up your exercise a bit. Stalled loss and even slight weight gain is normal at this stage of your journey.

About 8 1/2 years ago, I finally got to the point where I was tired of being fat and started looking into having bariatric surgery. I researched everything I could find, and I thought that the Lap-Band was the best fit for me. At the time, the only options available to me were Lap-Band and RNY bypass. VSG was not very common in the United States at the time, and was not covered by most insurance plans. As a comparative light-weight (I was in the high 30s BMI, and just barely had a BMI of 40 the day of surgery), I thought that the lap-band was the perfect solution. At the time, it was being heavily advertised as "the next big thing" in bariatrics, with a projected success rate that rivaled or exceeded the RNY bypass at 5 years out, and was "fully reversible." So, I got approved by insurance. Everything started out well. Even though I was a "light-weight," once I had decent restriction, I was losing weight at a steady pace. And the restriction? Well, the common practice then was to make the band so tight that you were physically limited in the amounts and types of foods you could eat. We were encouraged to only be able to eat 1/4-1/2 cup of food at a time. The downside to this restriction? Severe acid reflux. My surgeon didn't think anything of it, and gave me the option of taking proton pump inhibitors or coming in to reduce the amount of Fluid. But when you've been fat your entire life, and you FINALLY have the dream of being thin within reach, what's a little acid reflux? Obviously, I chose the proton pump inhibitor. Eventually, that didn't even control the acid. I couldn't eat or drink within 4-5 hours of bed. I was sleeping propped up on a steep foam wedge with another pillow or two on top of it. And I was still waking up choking on stomach acid. Eventually, what broke the camel's back was that my chest was constantly hurting throughout the day, I had a nagging cough, and my voice was noticeably hoarse. I drove the 7 hours to see the doctor to have an emergency unfill. My acid reflux improved, but I was still having severe shoulder pain periodically and athough I'd reached my goal weight and lost 100% of my excess weight, I slowly began to gain weight. A few months after being unfilled, I received a job offer and moved across the country. My new job was in a tiny town several hours from the closest bariatric surgeon. Of course, even though I was gaining weight, I was much smaller than I started out. The weight gain continued, though. Eventually, I decided to find a new surgeon and get back on track for fills. At the first appointment, he looked at the band under fluoroscopy and said that it needed to be removed or replaced/repositioned, as I'd apparently been living for quite some time with a MASSIVE slip. He was surprised that I hadn't needed emergency intervention, since he said that even with most of the fill gone, I only had a space the size of a pencil eraser for food to pass from the upper chamber to the lower. At that point, I was interested in revising to the sleeve, but unfortunately, I was told that my insurance at the time probably wouldn't cover it. So, I got a new band. And the only thing that improved was that I didn't have reflux or shoulder pain. I couldn't obtain good restriction, and I was afraid to even attempt it because I was 7 hours from my surgeon. My weight just kept climbing and climbing. At the beginning of this year, I had a major issue. I made the mistake of trying to eat a raw carrot. I'd eaten them regulary. I chewed well. It still got stuck, and I suffered through a severe episode of PBing and sliming while at work. After that, my reflux came back with a vengeance, to the point where I had to have all of the fluid removed from my band. The Upper GI Series showed no slippage, so apparently I just can't tolerate the restriction anymore (even though I didn't have much in the first place). Eight years after my original surgery and 4 years after my replacement surgery, here I am. I'm only 10 pounds from my original pre-surgery weight. I finally decided that I'd had enough. It was time for either revision to another surgery or just yanking the damned thing out entirely. What's the point of having it if it isn't doing me any good? Without restriction, it's useless, and my body simply won't tolerate restriction from the band anymore. So, after 7 months of jumping through hoops, insurance denials, appeals, and finally resorting to a peer-to-peer appeal, I am approved for a revision. I'm getting this damned thing removed! I don't have my surgery date yet, but the end is in sight! I'd originally been interested in the sleeve, but after consulting with my new surgeon and doing a lot of research, I decided the best route would be RNY bypass, due to my metabolism issues and lack of long-term data for the VSG as a stand-alone surgery. I am so sick of this journey and I want it to be over. I'm sick of trying to do things "the hard way." We're so conditioned to think that something has to be difficult in order for it to be worthwhile. I've tried doing it the difficult way, and sure, I lost weight temporarily. I also got tooth and vocal chord damage, issues with my vagus nerve, vigilance about knowing where all the bathrooms are in a building, and my metabolism got shot to hell (even more than it already was with PCOS). So here's to me finally getting back on the loser's bench and getting on with my life. All I can say is that this has been a long, hard, embarrassing journey, and I'm glad it's finally coming to an end. For those of you who've had long-term success with the band, my hat is off to you, and I hope that you never get put in my position. For those of you who are just looking into the band as an option, all I can ask is that you consider my story and really put some thought into what you are doing. As much as it's reversibility is advertised, this isn't a simple surgery where you can just have it removed if it doesn't work and everything is just like you never had it. If you're in a position where it has to be removed, you're likely to have lasting damage to your stomach, damage to your esophagus or vocal chords, adhesions, scar tissue around your stomach or where the port was located, etc. So please, research, talk to people, network, and KNOW WHAT YOU'RE GETTING INTO. There is no "good as new" after this surgery.

Just want to check in with Sleevers that are more than a year out. How is it going? have you gained weight back? How is your restriction? How is your skin? I am feeling like all the Sleevers that were active on this site have disappeared .. and I am hoping just because there is a lot of repeat info for the newbies... which is totally fine! Personally I am 19 months out, and within 6-7 pounds of my lowest weight.... gained the 6-7 back from Halloween until new years. I am taking care of those pounds now. I can still feel restriction, some days more than others but I definitely can eat a lot more than a year ago! I admit I have not been working out and I am finally back at the gym starting today. Really excited to lose the 6 pounds and 4 more if I am lucky! I love this site it keeps me accountable. How is everyone else?

Ughh. I've gained three pounds from the Prednisone I'm on right now. And I've got about 6-7 days left on this medicine. Please let this just be because of the medicine and not let me gain that much more. Hopefully will lose it once the medicine is done, but I'd been doing so good, so it's disappointing for the time being.

I gained 50 pounds after banding. Has anyone else been unsuccessful in losing weight after banding?

Huh? I'm not sure if this is tongue in cheek or what ... Uh ... you're pregnant. Did you really want to NOT gain weight? Did you really expect to not gain when you are pregnant? IMO, people leave the site because they get tired of the high school, petty misunderstandings. I used to be the target of many attacks, if you may remember. There is so much drama on here. I know I have to take breaks from time to time. I have learned how to navigate the land-mines here. But I am a member of a 12 step program that teaches me to carry my experience, strength and hope to others struggling. In the process, it causes me to struggle at times, for sure. Congrats on your pregnancy AND congrats on your weight gain. Seriously ... you're pregnant ...

Good morning all. I just had my second fill this past Tuesday. I have a realize band and now am up to 7ccs. After my first fill, 3.5, I had no restriction and could eat everything, although I didn't and did not gain nor lose weight. Now, after the 2nd fill, I definitely have pretty good restriction and am eating about half as much but have gained about 5 lbs. My guess is my body thinks it is being starved and is hanging onto eveything it has and will readjust in another few days and start burning the food again. Anyone else go through this or am I just crazy. Thanks, Tom