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I was just switched to a 3-11:30pm shift for three months. I am an animal control officer and drive around all night. I take my lunch and snacks with me, but find myself eating all night long it seems. When I was on days I ate about every 2 hours and i would stop eating around 8-9pm. Now I feel like I want to eat something every hour. I eat breakfast, lunch, and dinner and then snacks. When I get home at midnight I eat something to make sure there is something in my stomach to take meds. I am wondering if there are others out there that are on the evening shifts and when do you eat. I am a year post op and have met my weight loss goals. At this point I am trying to maintain.

I am in the process of sorting through some things in my life. My weight is something that I have dealt with for the past 13 years. Yo Yo diets -- no longer-- I am done with them.. I am thinking about doing the Lap Band. Tomorrow is my first consultation. I am pretty excited yet nervous. I hope that the Lap Band will finally "assist" me at putting an end to my weight loss battles. I need a lot of support right now because this is something that I have never considered. I always said I would never get a weight loss surgery! BOY! I am eating my words big time… My current weight is 247 and I also have recently been told that my cartilage in my knees has deteriorated --- I am told I have osteoarthritis. Well - the funny thing is I have also been told NO EXERCISE! Well with that being said I am not quite sure how I will get the weight off to help relieve the pressure on my knees.. SO---- Lap Band here I come! For those who know the power of prayer please keep me lifted Mz Dacia~

For mushy ideas, I ate lots of homemade lentil Soup and refried Beans blended with chicken broth and a little melted cheese. It was high in Protein and very good. I have been banded going on six months at the end of this month. If I have learned anything it is that you need to stick to your doctors suggested diet and follow bandster rules to find weight loss success. Dont start eating solid food and skip stages. At one week out, eating solid food already and skipping stages, you are at risk of damage to your band down the road. It doesnt matter that you can do it without being too uncomfortable. It is a matter that your stomach needs to heal completely before you start making it work. Not everyone loses weight at this stage. The focus has to be healing right now, and believe me, the weight loss will come if you follow your bandster rules and doctors orders. Yes, you need to go back to mushies as prescribed. Please don't put your health at risk. It is not worth it when you only have a couple of weeks when you can start eating again with little risk. The band won't do you any good if you have a complication and lose it altogether down the road.

To try and minimise loose skin as much as possible you need to make sure your majority of weight loss is fat and not muscle. Two ways to ensure this eat enough calories each day and eat lots of protein.

That can be a dangerous path of thought. Your weight loss and success or failure are effected by your actions. If you feel helpless to effect the out come your own your way to making excuses for less than desirable results. What you do or do not do will effect your loss and stalls!

I wouldn't say I'm losing less, not at all. I've dropped about 100 pounds since late October. That's about 25 pounds a month. I don't feel deprived and I don't feel hungry. I would have been physically unable to achieve this in a sustainable way without the sleeve. Now that I've been at this a few months, I've noticed my body's own peculiarities when it comes to weight loss. I'll lose 2-3 pounds, then I'll not lose for a couple days, then lose a little more, then not lose. Two days ago, I dropped 3 pounds. This morning, only .4 pounds. I'd probably see better weight loss if I was able to exercise, but a string of injury and sickness has kept me unable to do so since November. Still, I can't complain. Ultimately, if I'm doing what I am supposed to, I know the weight will come off. Not as quickly as I'd like, and maybe not all the weight my surgeon wants (I think he's slightly nutty to want me to be 150), but honestly, even if I get down to 200, I'll be happy because I will have lost almost half my highest body weight.

Hi Sam! Sounds like you should qualify based on your BMI. The main thing you need to verify with Aetna (or any insurance co) is that wt loss surgery is a covered benefit through your employer, also check the certificate of coverage to see what the qualifying steps are for the surgery if it is covered. Aetna made me have 6 months of supervised diet and exercise visits with my PCP (make sure you dr. notes that he discussed "behavior modification, diet plan, and exercise" on every visit! Mine didn't put behavior modification and I had to do a whole new 3 months in addition to the 6 I already did! Also- YOu can do only 3 months of dr supervised visits if it is pre surgery! I also had to have the usual- nutrition evaluation and Psych visit. Make sure your nutrition visit is about your diet before the surgery , not a lapband consult. ... Aetna got me on that too! Oy! Good luck at your visit! Let me know if you need anything at all! Kim

Hey everyone, there's an awesome $500 giveaway contest being drawn, by Carnie Wilson, at the WLSFA event on Saturday night. Everyone can enter. The info's below in case you want to take part! There's only 5 more hours to enter, before the contest closes! RealSelf.com $500 WLSFA Giveaway On Saturday, 18th May, 2013 RealSelf.com will be giving away a $500 prize, to one lucky person who has entered the RealSelf/WLSFA giveaway. RealSelf will also match this amount, by donating $500 to the WLSFA. In order to enter, you simply have to write a review of your WLS journey, which will then be shared on RealSelf.com. You can do this by using this link: http://www.realself.com/review/create If you're entering from a mobile device, please use the instructions below: Send an email, with your full name, to wlsfa@realself.com An automatic reply will be sent with a link to create a review on RealSelf.com: http://www.realself.com/review/create The participant must then create and submit a review of their WLS (Weight Loss Surgery) procedure Once this has occurred the participant will receive an email of confirmation, which also confirms their entry into the contest All entries must be receieved by 5pm PST, Saturday, 18th May, 2103. Terms and conditions apply. To see the Terms and Conditions, please go to: http://www.realself.com/forum/realself-and-wlsfa-1000-giveaway-contest-terms-and-conditions

Congrats I am glad that you doing well now congrats on your weight loss and keep up the good work.

I was banded on 15th October but I have never been on liquids. I had consomme the afternoon of the operation and a yoghurt the next morning. I can eat oatmeal/weetabix, meat and veg etc as long as it is liquidised to a yoghurt consistency. I was advised to eat 3 meals and 2 snacks a day. hope this helps and good luck with your weight loss.

I didn't really have any health issues, but I'm also a "senior" - there are lots of us on here who've had surgery in our 50s, 60s, and even a few in their 70s. not being able to exercise much shouldn't be an issue. Weight loss is 90% diet and 10% exercise (exercise has a greater effect during maintenance, though (once you reach your goal weight) - but then, you can only do what you can do. But for losing weight, no - it doesn't play a major role). I've "known" several people on bariatric forums who rarely if ever exercised, and they still lost a ton of weight.

I am working on an upcoming article about the psychology of obesity, for a popular magazine. If you are interested in being quoted, please private message me. Specifically, I am interested in: the psychological impact of being obese (personally, professionally, socially) the psychological impact of losing weight (the good, and the bad - has the weight loss improved things psychologically or has it actually made some things worse?) the psychological impact of having bariatric surgery (have people accused you of "taking a shortcut"?) I am looking to incorporate several "stories" into this article. Please send any information to me within the next week. I will contact anyone whose information will be used. If you want to send pictures too, please do. I appreciate the help - I know there will be some great stories from everyone here.

Sounds pretty normal. I have days where I have no hunger and other days where I could eat more. Maybe increase your water on those days. You are not saying the average amount of calories you are getting but you may need to increase them if you are doing a lot of physical exercise, your body cannot go like that without fuel. Drink an extra protein shake, that will fill you up and give you the protein boost. Also congratulations on your weight loss.

Im just starting out with my WLS journey and figure I'll post some info in case it's helpful to anyone else, since everyone else's stories and posts have been very helpful to me. I just left my first appointment with the surgeon. When I was first considering WLS I wanted the sleeve since it's less "severe" than the bypass, but once I started doing more research I didn't think I would be a good candidate due to my heartburn and reflux. After speaking with my doctor today he said that my reflux isn't bad enough to rule out the sleeve (it's well controlled with medication and diet changes and I never suffered with it until I gained all this weight) but that he would be fine doing either procedure. He wanted me to pick a procedure today (I can change my mind later) so I went with the sleeve. The difference in projected weight loss between the two comes out to be about 15 pounds for me (175 with RNY and 190 with sleeve). Both of those numbers are kind of disappointing to me, as I would like to be closer to 130-140, but I am confident that once I get going with the weight loss that I'll be able to increase my activity to help me lose even more. I'm not sure if that's realistic or not. Does anyone regret going with the sleeve instead of the bypass? A little background on me: I'm 33, 5'2.5", and currently weigh 281.3 pounds with a BMI of 50.6 (just high enough to get out of the 6 month supervised diet required by BCBS of MI). My highest weight that I know of was 288 the other day. Not sure where the 7 pounds went because I didn't change anything yet. The surgeon wants me to lose 15 pounds before surgery which seems very doable. I also have to get medical clearance and a letter of necessity from my PCP, psych evaluation, exercise evaluation, and (TMI) see my gyno since I haven't had a period since new years eve (not pregnant, just good old PCOS). I met with the NUT today and then made all of my appointments in my car before I left the office. I hope to have everything completed by the 31st, which is the date of my exercise evaluation. The surgeon said that I could possibly have surgery at the end of June, which would be awesome.

Lack toast & told her aunt - hilarious @vikingbeast. You’re suffering withdrawals from caffeine, sugar, carbs, … @Vicks1990. It will get better when you’re over the hump (usually about 5 +/- days). It’s called hell week for a reason! There are several different pre surgery diet plans but just like your post surgical plan it’s best to stick to the one you were given. My surgeon gives different plans to different patients based upon things like starting weight, eating habits, weight loss history, etc. The pre surgical diet is in place for a number of reasons including to shrink your liver so the surgical field can be visualised more easily, lose weight before the surgery (so you’re healthier) & break some of those food addictions & eating habits. (Better to have the withdrawals now then immediately after your surgery when you’ll have other things to manage.) Between the calories you’re eating & your fat stores you have plenty of energy available for your body function as it needs. It’s only two weeks - you’ll get through it.

Thanks for responding and congrats on your weight loss - 114lbs OMG!! I think gaining with proper restriction scares me the most. I have a sweet tooth that is out of control and learning new eating habits will be the hardest for me. I guess I was hoping that having some sweets every now and then would still fill me up (provided they are solid). I was also hoping that if I slip and make a bad choice that getting "stuck" would be so uncomfortable it would be a future deterrent.

I'm new to this, haven't even had my first fill yet. But I do know everyones weight loss is different. And on average with the band you are to loose 1-2 pounds a week, so if you do the math 20 pounds is right there. I would suggest you discuss with your nutrionist what you are eating to make sure you are getting in the right amounts of protein, calories, etc. Good luck.

I am a single again women, two adult children and two wonderful granddaughters. My family is my world and enjoy them beyond measure. My adult life has been a rollercoaster on the weight control spectrum. Over the years I have tried a large variety of methods to regain control. Some of them were successful, short term most frequently. Hitting 321 lbs, being in the 50's and learning my heart is that of a 70 year old made me realize, I had to do something to make permanent changes for a healthier and longer life. I began the one month pre-op process June 15 and lost 25 lbs prior to my sleeve procedure. My surgery was July 13, after week one of clear liquids my loss total was 35 lbs. Started pureed foods week 2 after surgery. Was excited for that, the excitement was not long lived, but manageable. Very little movement on the scale at this time but notice my clothes getting looser. Still a few more weeks before the soft food transition. My strength is in knowing I am making these changes in my life to be here with my family longer. Everyone in my life has been supportive and encouraging. With them and God in my life, I can embrace and concur this journey. Sent from my XT1585 using BariatricPal mobile app

I had RNY on Feb 5, 2019. My hair loss started mid May and ended about mid July. I already had thin, fine hair to begin with so the loss was very noticeable (to me at least). Now here I am in October, 80 pounds down, and my hair is growing back! The pictures are of my bangs because it’s so noticeable there, but I have inch long hair all over my head. It makes my cowlick more obvious so I’ve been wearing a lot of ponytails to try to control it. My hair looks pretty awful with the little hairs standing straight up all over, but I’m thrilled it’s growing!

i dont see why you couldnt. its not (cheating) but understand that liquids does help (with the weight loss) via Water weight....as good as you are doing, why buck progress? eating food to lose weight is how to do it.....(to me, diet pills, liquids only is diet mentality)...we are not on a diet..and remember you are doing fabulous. you will get that challenge.

Hi Nina, You are 100% normal! Most people have fears before any major operation, and before any major change in their lives. That is what this surgery will be for you if you choose to go forward with it. Lapband or any other Weight Loss Surgery (WLS) requires 100% commitment from you. It's not an easy fix, it is a tool to help you better guide yourself into a healthy weight and more importantly to a healthy life style. There are some who are unfortunate and experience complications from surgery at no fault of their own. This can happen with any surgery, for any number of reasons. It is the risk we take when we need to have any surgical procedure. That said there are also some that do not comply with their doctors orders and do not follow the protocols as outlined for them by their healthcare and surgical teams and there for fail and create further complications that did not necessarily have to happen. Often these are the very people you will hear from and who will post comments about how this surgery failed them. Keep an open mind when you read comments as you never can tell where someone is coming from. My best advice to you is to go back to your bariatric surgeon or surgical group and have a one to one talk with them about your concerns. They will be able to tell you what their success rate is of compliant patients who have done well with the band and/or other WLS as well as the rate of complications they have seen in their patients who had complications and what type of complications they had. If you are confidant in your Dr. and you feel that you are ready to make this life change and be 100% compliant with your surgery and your Dr nothing anyone has to say especially if they have not had surgery will enough to cause you any irrational fear. I wish you all the best, as you get closer to your date.

Weight loss often happens in steps down, rather than a continual slope. If I'm constipated that also slows down the weight loss, so keep up your fluids and moving around. It's very common to hit a plateaus around this time. It will pass. I didn't lose anything from 3 to 7 weeks post surgery but now I'm losing 10 lb per month pretty steadily.

Good afternoon all, I am entering into day 3 post-op, and I'm feeling really good. The soreness is still there, but it is really tolerable. I'm just so excited to begin this new weight loss journey! It feels good to know that I will finally be able to see the benefits of my workouts and eating right! My best friend and I entered into this journey together, and I have echoed to him how this was the best investment we could have ever made for our life and we'll-being! Just thinking that this time next year, I could be 100 lbs lighter is invigorating. Good-bye expensive Big and Tall section, and hello to affordable widespread shopping! Let the journey begin!!

Hey, BariatricPal Members!We’re turning the corner from winter into spring, and it’s about time! How did the winter go for you? Did you make progress toward becoming the healthy person you want to be? Just before you look ahead to spring, take a look at this month’s BariatricPal newsletter, and spend some time on the boards for further motivation and ideas. Here is what you’ll find in the newsletter. Member Poll: Governor Chris Christie and the Lap-Band Member Spotlight: Meet cindymg! New Jersey Governor Chris Christie: Bariatric Success or Disappointment? Come Chat on BariatricPal We hope you enjoy the newsletter and then you log into BariatricPal to talk about it and everything else related to weight loss surgery. Get tips, share stories, and find inspiration on the boards, and don’t forget to tell your surgeon and support group members about BariatricPal. Thanks for your membership! Sincerely, Alex Brecher Founder, BariatricPal Member Poll: Governor Chris Christie and the Lap-Band New Jersey Governor Chris Christie quietly had lap-band surgery in February of 2013. As you can read in this month’s BariatricPal newsletter, recent political events have made the topic resurface, highlighting his 100-pound loss and his current weight of 320 pounds. What do you think about the issue? He failed because his BMI of 45 keeps him in the morbidly obese category. He is doing great because of his 100-pound weight loss in a year. It’s too soon to tell. He’ll fail if he doesn’t lose any more weight or gains it back, but the surgery will be a success if he keeps losing weight. I really can’t give an opinion – I do not know anything about him or his diet, and I would not want people to judge me if they didn’t know me. Other – Read my answer in the discussion! Click here so you can mark your answer and let us know what you think in the discussion on BariatricPal! Our Latest Newsletter Sponsor: Insure Nutrition! We are always thrilled to welcome a new newsletter sponsor into the BariatricPal family, and this month, Insure Nutrition is giving us the pleasure of doing just that. Our latest sponsor, Insure Nutrition, is an online company that specializes in getting health insurance coverage for nutritional supplements. Its Post-Bariatric Surgery Nutrition products includes Premier Protein shakes in chocolate, vanilla, and strawberry flavors and OptiSource High Protein drinks in caramel and strawberry flavors. Checking if you are eligible is easy. Insure Nutrition encourages you to use its online form to find out if you qualify. Our sponsors help make BariatricPal newsletters and other services possible. We encourage you show your thanks by considering them first for your bariatric needs. Member Spotlight: Meet Cindymg! This month’s spotlight is on cindymg from Chicago. She is a 59-year-old computer consultant who says she has been dieting since high school. In those 40 years, she tried every diet program and calculates that she has probably gained and lost 2,000 pounds in yo-yo dieting. The diets seriously harmed her health as she developed diabetes, high blood pressure, and coronary artery disease. When she started to lose the feeling in her feet, she knew that she would lose her feet soon if she didn’t do something drastic. After some serious investigation, cindymg chose the vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) because she felt it would be effective without having the side effects of gastric bypass. Cindymg’s surgery was in May of 2013. Her starting weight was 258 pounds, and she is just under the 200-pound barrier en route to her goal weight of 175 pounds. She had no complications from surgery, and her family has been largely supportive. Her main challenges now are her excess skin and her hesitation getting rid of her oversized clothes! Since getting surgery, cindymg says that she has been able to cut her medications to one-quarter of what they were. She exercises now and feels much better “without lugging around that extra weight.” She does not get hungry, so she is saving money on food in addition to losing weight! She also notices a change in attitude. Cindymg says she now “eats to live, rather than lives to eat,” and does not feel guilty over food. The gastric sleeve feels like a permanent solution, not a temporary fix. Cindymg says BariatricPal keeps her mindful, and she enjoys reading members’ stories. She hope to provide them with advice and humor. Her advice for members struggling with weight loss is to avoid beating yourself up. Just get up and try again, and “keep coming back to the forum!” Thank you, cindymg, for being in our member spotlight! We are excited to be a part of your journey to mental and physical health, and are proud to be part of that journey. Do you have any members whom you want to see in the BariatricPal newsletter? Do you want to be featured? Let us know in the Member Spotlight Forum or by sending Alex Brecher a private message. Thank you! New Jersey Governor Chris Christie: Bariatric Success or Disappointment? A year ago, New Jersey governor Chris Christie got the lap-band. At the time of his surgery in February of 2013, Governor Christie, who stands at 5’11,” weighed over 400 pounds. Since then, NBC News reports that he has lost 90 to 100 pounds and now weighs in at 320 pounds. The speculation surrounding Governor Christie’s weight loss journey has led to opinions as divided as the political views of those who follow New Jersey politics. Critics maintain that he has failed in this weight loss effort. They point to his current BMI of 45, which places him in the morbidly obese category, and claim that he will be unable to run for president in 2016 because of his weight. Supporters point out that he appears to have lost 40 to 45 percent of his excess body weight, which is right on target for most lap-band patients in the first year after surgery. Governor Christie himself has kept relatively quiet about the issue from the beginning. He did not reveal his surgery until months had passed, and provided few details. In September, he said that he is more than halfway toward his goal, although he did not specify his current or goal weight. What do you think? Is Governor Christie’s surgery a failure? Will his weight prevent him from making a serious run for the presidency in 2016? Is he on the right track? Or, maybe it is too tough to judge because it is too soon to tell or because we, as outsiders, do not know the whole story. Let us know what you think on this thread! Come Chat on BariatricPal Where do you go when you need a pep talk, information about your weight loss surgery diet, or a celebratory high-five? The BariatricPal chatrooms, of course! In-person support groups might only be once a week or month, you need an appointment to see a doctor, and nurses are only available by phone. Family and friends are encouraging, but they might not understand what you are going through. The BariatricPal chatrooms are open 24/7, so there’s always a chance that you can find people to talk to. When you chat with BariatricPal members, there’s a good chance you can find someone who is sympathetic to productive burping, or who can suggest a WLS-compatible snack to satisfy your munchies. The chatrooms have been updated to better serve members’ needs, so come check them out! That’s it for this month’s newsletter. We hope it brightened your day after these long months of winter and gave you some inspiration to look forward to a healthy spring. Thanks for reading it, and we’ll see you on the boards!

Reduced capacity New Tummy is your friend - "food" items made in a factory are not. You can focus on whole natural foods. Mine (and a lot of people here) are required to eat 60+ grams of Protein a day, mine is 70 grams. Fo 60 grams, that is 20 grams per meal. By the time you eat that, you will not have much tummy room for veggies, let alone fruit, bread, noodles, Cookies, pastries, Cereal, etc. With any gastric surgery, your body needs protein to function and rebuild. You have to decide between sweets or a longer life. Nobody wants to deny themselves of all of the comfort foods we love the most. There are plenty of Paleo, Primal, Atkins, and other low carb cook books, to help you find adjustment foods. Also, cooking at home is a key for your success, because you can control the ingredients. Starch makes you hungry for more starch. I had my share of food funerals prior to my surgery. Your sleeve is a tool that you can't keep hidden in the garden shed while you cheat. You have to take advantage of your new tummy. The first time you throw up or get dumping syndrome by eating too much sugar, you will be cured of eating it. Just be prepared to empty those cabinets and start cooking from fresh. Get creative, and try to make your favorite dishes in a low carb style. You will be glad you did. Also taking chromium picolinate with magnesium will help reduce sugar cravings. Start making youradjustments now before surgery. because it will be harder to make changes post-op when your are tired and washed out. Just an after thought.....we all learned the hard way how to balance food, beverage, and exercise to help the weight loss process.