Search the Community

Eating out a lot for me always causes weight gain or no loss even though I am careful with my selections. Restaurants add a lot of salt, butter, oils and who knows what else to make the food taste really good and there is a tendency to eat just a little more of it then I would if eating at home. You might try checking out menus online to you know in advance what you are going to order along with the calories and nutritional value. At least you will know how much you are really consuming. If you are having problems with portion control you can try eating no more than the size of your fist and see if you are satisfied for 3 to 4 hours. If you find you are hungry still or snacking in between you might need a little tweak of a fill. Good luck!

Hi my name is Donna I am 53 yrs old I will be married for 34 yrs on sept the 8 I have three son's and 4 grandson and another Grandchild do in January. I started gaining my wait after my Mother died at the age 56 so it's been a stead climb of weight gain over the years . But over the last year I started having health issue and a 4yr. old asked me why I was so Fat ( and no it was none of my grandchildren) but anyway I knew it was time to do something I started the process in June so everything moved very quick. Not sure how I feel I know it going to be a big change for me but thank God I have a great family and friends I will keep you posted

I'm 8 months out and I've forgotten what does drinking with meals do to us. Does it cause weight gain or just flush the nutrients out? I haven't mastered not doing this.

Hello Everyone, I just joined this forum. My Doc has the same policy of waiting in between both surgeries. I think it makes a lot of sense. If you are going into someone's stomach and going to staple all this tissue into a shape of a banana , you would want it to be good tissue and not want it to come apart and have problems down the road. This is what we pay good doctors to do. So I don't mind waiting If the Job is done RIGHT. However, I do worry about the weight gain just like the rest of you. My Doctor, when dealing with the Ins company wrote them a letter and ask for approval for BOTH SURGERIES AT THE SAME TIME. So i got the approval for both surgeries already. He said he wanted me to have my band in while I was getting approval for these surgeries. Now I will have my Band removed on Oct 9th 2013 and Jan 1014 have the sleeve done. I will do my best not to gain, but I know it will be hard over Holiday time....But I want good tissue for him to work with.. and after having a band in for so long, it can only be wise to let good tissue grow... I do want to ask "what is "BCBS" THAT you speak of?? I don't think I have ever heard of that? Wishing you all well Jewel J

I just found this app and registered. My surgery was August 19. I've finally lost all my IV fluid post op weight gain. Getting tired of drinking my meals. No major issues so far just very tired and finding it hard to get in 3 protein shakes a day.

My last straw was a couple of years ago. I kept getting tired of buying new clothes (bigger sizes), taking HBP meds, being uncomforable and being disguted at my image in the mirror. I started to do something about it too, even went to a surgeon for the lapband, but shortly thereafter, I had a reoccurrence of cancer. So that was postponed, from there it was two long rounds of chemotherapy. Meanwhile, I kept getting bigger and bigger and bigger... I ate mostly from depression and self-isolation... I had lost four people very close to me to cancer within a year's time, plus I had to deal with my own cancer issues.. truth is, I had completely given up and just ate and ate and ate..like I wanted to die too.. I thought what the heck, we are all going to die anyway--then my doctor put me on an anti-depressant last Christmas and I started to feel much better..even while currently in chemotherapy. I finished chemo this past may and knew it was time to do something; to get serious and to take control of my life and my actions. I must say, I am also completely tired and fed up with wearing out the thighs of all my pants too.. I am embarrassed to be this size..this is the largest I've ever been and I'm uncomfortable, my knees hurt, my feet and back ache and I now have urinary stress incontinence attributed to my weight gain! My blood pressure stays high even w/meds (PCP added another pill today to bring it down or I won't be able to have surgery), my feet and ankles swell..ugh.. I'm just ready to get this party started... I want this weight off.. and I'm ready to tackle it...seriously. In a way glad the lapband didn't happen back then, going for the sleeve now and the process with my insurance company is much quicker than it was before, now its immediate approval with my health issues as opposed to a 6 month wait... Gotta look at the bright side... Thanks for reading...

I am having the surgery on Wednesday. I am really hoping it will help with my pain being fibro or back/hip issues. I have been off all the fibro meds for about a year now & only take pain pills. I tried everything & did not see any relief only side effects & weight gain. I am hoping my stomach heals quickly so I can get back on my supplements.

I was on depo for over 10 years, and I attribute a lot of my weight gain to it. I have mirena now and I love it. I took the shot every 10 weeks instead of 12 for spotting issues. It made me into an eating machine.

Off weightloss topic (but still birth control topic): How long does the shot actually last? I'm on birth control pills (had to stop them a month before surgery to avoid blood clots) and I'm so sick of forgetting 1. I'm 46 and not in the mood to get pregnant and not into the IUD and condoms. Just curious about it. However, after reading about the weight gain, I'm having 2nd thoughts. But they say that with BCP's too and I've never noticed any gain myself. Just curious how long they last...

I am not a happy camper. I was sleeved on Dec. 30th 2011 and up until a couple of months ago I had lost around 110 pounds and was still losing. I then decided to start a different type of birth control and I chose the Depo shot. I had heard that weight gain was a side effect but I thought maybe 5 pounds at the most. Well, I've now gained 12 pounds and I'm freaking out! I have decided to stop the shot but I'm sure it will take awhile to get out of my system. I'm just really bummed because I was on a losing streak and now that's all messed up. I worry that losing the weight I've gained will be harder since I'm further along on my WLS journey. Anyway, I just had to vent my disappointment. Thanks for reading.

We've all tried to lose it on our own... right? I for one have lost 60lbs on my own in the past and kept it off, BUT have been down and up another 20lbs for the last several years - major plateau! The reason the surgeon wants you to lose weight before surgery is to mostly shrink your liver so that it's not too much of an issue during surgery. You have quite a bit of weight to lose, so I wouldn't worry about not being able to lose after surgery; the more you have to lose, the faster it comes off for some reason. I understand your concerns about losing your stomach, it IS a valid concern. I can honestly say that although I had the same concerns, I am SO happy that I did it!!! I believe you will be too! You have to ask yourself what you are truly afraid of... losing your stomach or having to radically change your lifestyle for the greater good...? How badly do you want to keep the next 121lbs off? Look at your weight-loss history. Were you able to keep it all off? How many years have you tried? I have hypothyroidism too, but it isn't my reason for such an insurmountable weight gain in my life, it was a small part of it. I'm thinner now than I was in 1989, and I STILL have hypothyroidism. Oh, and my diabetic symptoms - gone! My doc required me to lose 10lbs before surgery, I lost 20 as of the morning of surgery. I could have kept going, and I know I would have lost a bit more, but I know me, it would have crept back on in my moments of weakness! If you continue to replace meals with shakes, you may lose quite a bit by December. This may result in you losing it slower after surgery, but why does it matter? I know that for me, I am a slow loser anyway, but I prefer it that way, less probs with skin hanging and will be more apt to keep it off for good. Much luck to you in your journey!

Ok had to ask because i dont want to drink a protein that is for weight gain or building mass/muscle. I need to lose like 30-50 more pounds and im 8months out

Well, if you go to OH which is a anti-lap band website you will hear nothing but negativity about the band. Anyone who post there nowadays are seeking revisions and are very bitter about their band experience. Also, you have to take into perspective the type of complications that occur with the band, most are simple things, like vomiting, reflux, heartburn, port leaks and tubing leaks, these are the majority of issues that occur with the band. Frequent reflux/vomiting is a symptom of lap band problems, such as slippage or dilation. Some people live with a slipped band for years, who don't have good aftercare, and end up needing emergency surgery to remove the band. Port and tubing leaks are not dangerous, but annoying and can get costly if someone is self pay and don't have money to fix or replace the band, this is why many people who are self pay should have a rainy day fund for any unforeseen lap band issues. However, these things can get severe if not treated promptly, like food obstruction can get life threatening and cause repeating vomiting and dehydration if someone does not seek medical attention by a lap band surgeon immediately. There are many people that do not have aftercare with their bands, many went to Mexico and don't have a surgeon to see them regularly in the US, some people have very poor aftercare with the surgeon that sees them in the US also, some lose their insurance, and no longer can afford the aftercare with their bands, so if you dig deep in how most people suffer complications, they are usually not really caused by the lap band. Also things like food obstruction which usually can be easily treated easily, can turn into a horrible complication if the patient does not see their lap band surgeon immediately to remove saline from the band. Also, everyone's body reacts differently with the band, some people have a weak or short esophagus and are not good candidates for the band, and they can't stand the pressure of a tight band and sometimes this will cause esophageal motility issues long term, but from all the studies I've read even people with a weak esophagus and motility issues return to normal after the band is removed. , Also I agree with the above poster Lellow, Australia have better lap band stats than the US because they have better aftercare surgeons, many surgeons in the US do not like offering aftercare and filling the lap band-- many surgeon view aftercare with the lap band to be annoying, many in the past have pushed them to Primary Care Physicians for fills, and other fill givers that do not fill the band properly, who know nothing about the band. Many of these surgeons were Bypass surgeons and only did the band as a "side project" because MOST people WANT the lap band and the bypass surgeons would do a bait and switch on patients, not fill the band properly and many people never get to the green zone, either too tight or not enough and patients would get so frustrated and remove the band, and the Bypass surgeon would gladly remove the band and revise them to the bypass, and that happens WAY too much in the US. I've had a lap band for almost 8 years and I would not change to any other procedure, I could have revised to the Bypass or Sleeve last year when I got my band replaced due to a hiatal hernia, but I see too many Bypassers and Sleevers struggling with weight gain long term, and dealing with other long term health issues such as reflux, Vitamin deficiency and hypoglycemia. I will risk lap band complications any day before I would risk Sleeve, or Bypass complications. Also check out the revision forum on OH, many people are desperate and seeking help from weight gain with the Sleeve and Bypass, many long term Bypassers are NOW seeking bands over their bypass, my surgeons also says many Sleevers are asking for bands too, but they can't because they don't have enough stomach left, but their small stomach has stretched too much to be effective without serious deiting, but some surgeons are putting some type of mesh bands over Sleeves, never let negative people fool you some have other motives for band bashing. Good luck.

Hello everyone I wanted to share my story with you so that I may help someone that is discouraged with what they are going through. I am 43 years old, I have been obese for several years now. I developed gestational diabetes 8 years ago with my youngest child and had kidney problems in my pregnancy and was on bed rest for the last 4 months. My son was born 7 weeks early and after a weeks stay in the NICU he was able to be in a regular room until he could go home. I suffered irreversible damage to my organs and I was diagnosed with Cushings Disease and type 2 diabetes. So over the years I have been battling with health issues and weight gain. I have been seeing a surgeon preparing for lap band surgery since January and was so excited on Friday, August 23rd, 2013 to finally go for my surgery. I was prepped, put to sleep, woke up after surgery with the nurse telling me everything went great and I was immediately so happy and praising God for this wonderful blessing. It was shortly after they moved me into recovery and then they let my husband come in to see me. I was so happy to see him but I could tell that he was apprehensive about something, he proceeded to tell me that I didn't get to have the band placed, I thought he was joking but he wasn't. I was just devastated, crushed, defeated and anything else that could describe major disappointment. He felt awful when I started to cry uncontrollably and couldn't stop. The Dr. Came in with pictures and was trying to explain that my liver is fatty and so enlarged that it just was not safe to do it. I stuck to the 10 day pre op liquid diet but it seems to have made no difference. He said to call and make an appointment for a week to discuss my options. I only have two inch long incisions to heal so I'm doing ok physically from the surgery but it's really so discouraging that I will have to go through more to see if I can do it again. I won't give up but I am disappointed in my surgeon for not telling me that I might have a problem, as he took out my gallbladder 3 months ago, why couldn't he have noticed that there could be problems with my lap band. I have an idea that I will be put on the 30-45 day liquid pre-op diet and it's so expensive for the special foods that we have to have. I paid $150.00 for just the 10 day diet. I am sorry to sound like Debbie downer here but I'm two days post op and have to heal from the surgery that didn't happen

hello everyone, my name is jil. gosh i havent been posting on forums since 2011! i have been doing amazingly well!! my surgeon has a poster of me on his door! tears of joy! tears of change! but after almost 2 1/2 yrs it hasnt been easy. im just here because ...i recently havent been feeling well....blood work, mri, xray...NO answers?? .i started doing reseaching...reading....reading....ive heard so many stories! so many warnings on meds our doctors arent picking up on! i have also heard alot of your questions that no person..or no doctor has the answer for.if you ask me, there NEEDS to be more pysicians and more therapists that have actually HAD the surgery or with a current bariatric backround!! there isnt alot of data as far as absorbtion (Vitamins,medications,etc) so i feel likw there are no answers. i am active in support groups, i coach 8 sleevers pre and post op. i am very successful as far as my surgery goes.but i need more info! i neeeed to put some data together, or at least get that ONE nurse or doctor to hear us. in all aspects....our feelings...our questions, good and bad! I would love if you could email me your "story". let me try to put some stats together to potentially help pre ops and each other. im not trying to change the world...but if some of you have questions, or are frustrated...pain, weight gain, do you have questions that cant be answerd? Even if you have the BEST outcome, a truely inspiring story...i want to hear it i read them all the time..but i cant legally use your stories without your permission. im putting together a short survey too... i just think it would be nice to say to my surgeon, my doctor, my nutritionist, "hey look, here are 50 people 1 year+ post op, 20 of them feel this way...5 of them feel this", yada yada...lol i promise to make it more professional than that email me j.lucidi@yahoo.com

Hi I'm ArtistNic and I am new to this site and had the Gastric Sleeve surgery 4 days ago. I have sleep Apnea, High Bloodpressure, and was diagnosed Diabetic two years ago, but only stayed in the diabetic range for 3 months because I had started Medifast. I had lost 90 lbs in 5 months on MF and was feeling great. I was about half way to my goal and got complacent. I maintained it for a year and a half and was having trouble refocusing because I never felt good... I had been struggling with pain in my bladder. I had been to all sorts of doctors and I had a hard time describing what was wrong with me. I had pain, frequency issues, and difficulty emptying. After about 6 different doctors and lots of painful tests I was diagnosed by a Urogynocologist with IC-Interstitial Cystitis. The problem is there is no cure. You can control the pain with diet and a medicine that causes weight gain. The diet it total crap!! I couldn't eat MF food anymore because of the soy and the artificial sweetner. I had stuck to the diet for the first 3 months and got the pain under control but I put on 40 lbs in 3 months. That caused me to spiral into a deep depression and feeling of futility. All my dr's then started telling me to get weight loss surgery. That had never been an option for me because I knew my insurance wouldn't pay for it. Well I am two weeks away from my 40th birthday and had the sleeve done last week. So I am getting a new body for my birthday. I figure I have eaten virtually everything I wanted these first 40 years and have felt miserable and unhealthy, now for the next forty I want to not consern myself with food but enjoy my health and live life. When I approached my husband about having the surgery I knew he wasn't going to be crazy about the idea, so I told him. The surgery is like buying a nice used car. Well I want to live longer than a used car and I want you to be able to ride me longer too. LOL The surgery went well, the only thing that was really difficult was the gas that had gotten trapped in my shoulder. That was the worst pain I can remember. It was very difficult to walk that first day. And that night i kept raising the bed up more and more cuz being reclined made the shoulder hurt worse. I remember from 1-3 am praying with each breath that the next breath would be less painful. I tried to breathe deep because I knew it could help release the gas but gosh did it hurt. When I sat up to go to the restroom the next morning it shifted and the pain was gone. All that was left was a slight ache for 2 days. That morning by noon I had walked the four times around the floor and was released by noon. So day 4 of Clear liquids and am up to 40 oz of Protein so far. Hoping to get 60 in today. Using the unjury powder in decaf coffee and broths. I like it better in hot liquid. I am ready for this journey.

What is your weight loss 3 wks out? With preop and 2 day postop am 14 lbs gone. With some of my weight gaining meds this will be a slow go if all else goes well. Good to hear u are feeling good physically. Having any reservations? Or problems? Hope it goes every bit as well. If people only knew....well like the old saying...walk a mile in my shoes. No one will understand unless they have experienced it.

My weight struggles also began with Prednisone. Prior to a very bad posin ivy episode I had been a vegetarian 17 years and did a lot of juice fasting, etc. was always worried about my weight but I really wasn't fat. I think I set my system up for storage big time and when I was given IV prednisone in an ER I gained about 50 pounds very quickly. Then the panic dieting, the up and down yo yo series of diets always resulting in more weight gain. That initial 50 got a companion 50 over time and I've never been able to lose it. Instead I have about another 20 on top of that that fluctuates. I'll never get down to where I was but I'd like to be about 100 pounds thinner. Bring on the band! To the women above who experienced abuse, I am so sorry for your painful histories -- you both have a lot of courage. Thanks for sharing!

I would never recommend depo to anyone. I would say birth control is a good idea, you can get low hormone ones and honestly if you are keeping yourself in check you should be fine. My antidepressant has a high weight gain probability, I've been on it 3-4 months and lost weight. I also keep myself in check.

I'm new here tonight Cowgirljane, This was a great story, i'm so nervous about this, and now I feel great. I go Oct 9th to remove my Band and the Doc will do the Sleeve in Jan. He said it is better to have good tissue to work with. We did get approval for both surgeries already. He wrote them about both and wanted approval on both. I am nervous about weight gain when the band comes out after reading all these, but i'm so glad their are so many of you here to talk to. This is great. Thanks to all of you. :wub:JewelJ :wub:

Sheril can only imagine how you must be feeling problems with ovaries, possible cyst, cancer must be scary i hope you have a support system - DH, mom, siblings et al having the hysterectomy will hopefully help/solve your possible problems i had a hysterectomy yearsssssssssss ago - don't remember any effect between weight gain and the surgery but............maybe meds you get for a bit, might cause weight gain first things first.............. have the surgery, get all fixed up - you must eat, drink and keep yourself strong don't worry about the POSSIBLE weight gain - take care of yourself with surgery first later, get back on the horse, you know what to do - I have confidence in you you lost 125 lbss i'm sure you will be able to continue your great weight loss, and feel terrific congrats on losing 125 lbs good luck with your surgery healing thoughts being sent your way hugggggs kathy

Ok so my pregnancy is going great, baby caught back up to what he/she is suppose to be. So my due date its moved back tool Feb 28th, morning sickness is just at night. I'm super disgustingly gassy. My appetite has increased, my pouch isn't not as tight. I'm craving jolly ranchers of all things. Gummy Vitamins 2xs a day once at night once in the morning. I drink a cup of coffee every other day. I'm 13 weeks I did my quad screen everything came back great. Very healthy baby I've been very lucky and ill off and on. My total weight gain for 13 weeks is 3lbs, so far so good. My next doc appt is September 3rd. I'm grateful for this pregnancy. God is good. [ATTACH]17417[/ATTACH] Sent from my EVO using VST

sheabh huh, what, oh your done??? oh no you made me so tired i nodded off!! so happy you had a wonderful experience in tiajuana i will be honest and say i would be weary about the travel out of country but so many OP tell of their wonderful experience in Mexico - so it sounds like you did great too!!! great pre-op weight loss weight gain after WLS? yep i've heard that but everything settled out, and you lost more glad your sister came along for the ride support is so helpful/important glad she enjoyed the food - and you enjoyed the aroma see, i can be long winded too!! did you nod off?? you are on your way towards health, happiness and a longer life continued best towards your great recovery - and all your future successes good luck kathy

I would recommend using a calorie tracking program such as Myfitnesspal, or whatever you find easiest to use. It will give you a better picture of your calorie consumption. Using McDonald's medium carmel frappe as an example: 550 cal, 9g Protein, 23g fat, 79g carb (71g is sugar, and you can divide that by 12 to get the equivalent tablespoons), and no Fiber. So, I'm guessing getting diarrhea was more likely due to the 23g of fat and roughly 6 tablespoons of sugar you consumed than drinking through the straw. My guidance is to aim for 25-30g protein in each meal, and 9g just isn't enough. I would highly recommend you find a healthier alternative for these drinks if you are going to have something like this with any regularity. I'm not one to recommend cutting fat and sugar too far, but you are really not doing yourself any favors here. WIth your described weight gain and diet, I would think that your sodium consumption would be an unlikely culprit, you are probably not exceeding the sodium recommendations. Best of luck and congratulations on your weight loss so far!

Yeah but the flip side of that is...they will pay more down the line due to a lot of serious health issues that comes along with being morbidly obese. That was one of the reasons Medicare started covering bariatric surgery. Yeah they mighy shell out (or more like the tax payers will shell out) a big chunk off the bat, but if that lowers BP, cholesterol, DM and so on, then its worth it for them. Its a win win for both parties. But I agree with them finding canidates who are serious about it. I was never denied, but I called Cigna and was active with them and my PCP and the bariatric doctors office. Plus I'd had them back when I was thinner, so they watched all the weight pile on and all the comorbidities that went with the weight gain so maybe that's why they immediately approved me...