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Please don't get discouraged! I know my first week of post op was hard and my body was recovering from surgery. I felt like I should have lost 20 lbs instead of something like 2 pounds. However, the further out from surgery, the more the weight started to come off. I was 3 months out on Oct. 28. The same day I hit my official 40 lbs+ (hey every little ounce counts...right?) weight loss. IF you are comfortable with it...you might want to order it online if you live in an area that has limited supplies and use what you have available until it arrives. Please remember that this is a journey. There will be bumps in the road. However, if you stay the course, you will eventually get to your goal. I know I have only traveled a small part of this journey but I am getting better at it as I go along!

Thanks for the advice, guys. I guess I will keep working the program and worry about the weight loss after my first fill. The initial weight loss is a nice benefit though :smile2: I'm quite enjoying clothes falling off. They were already getting lose from my pre-surgery diet. I lost over 20 pounds on that one.

After being banded 1.5 weeks, my doctor decided to move me from liquids to mushies. I was enjoying the great weight loss on the liquid diet and not getting hungry. I'm worried about gaining weight on mushies and solid foods. The doc indicated that I should be on solid foods my next appointment. Are my worries unfounded? He indicated I shouldn't worry about calorie counts, just recognizing feelings of fullness. I don't know what to think of expect.

Hello all... I was wondering if anyone has been treated with stress and anxiety while banded. I have had alot of this lately due to separating from my husband and moving out on my own and all the stresses of "starting over" and am seeing a therapist, I was also prescribed Zoloft. Taking the Zoloft has been completely AWFUL! When I take it I get the worst stomach pains I have ever had in my life, I feel like my stomach is on fire, its horrible. So my therapist suggested I post to see if anyone else is treated with stress and anxiety and what kind of medications work for you? If your more comfortable sending this in a pm I understand, but I would really appreciate any input anyone can offer. Ive been banded for over a year and have had WONDERFUL success with my weight loss, my Dr tells me I've lost 75% of my excess body weight, 105 lbs total... you would think with me getting my self back my ex would have appreciated it and he would want me...well he wanted every other woman besides me, but that's another story I suppose. Anyhow if anyone can offer me a bit of advice, thanks in advance!!

They make a Rogaine for women. Dont know if it will work for "struggling" just trying to cheer them up by pointing out that hair will grow back, after the sleeve, the fat shouldn't. It's worth a try, if nothing else is working. Also wanted her to understand that 1 week of low protein shouldn't have the hair falling out, it's anesthesia. I obsessed about low protein the 1st two weeks. As soon as I could drink smoothies, the protein became easy. Everyone has to follow their doctor and their stomach tho.

I'm sorry you are struggling with this. It's been a chronic source of embarrassment for me too. When I was in my 30's I ended up cutting my hair very short because it seemed to me that any tension on the roots of my hair seemed to make it worse. Short hair wasn't what I wanted, but it did seem to slow the loss and when it was short I could fluff it up a little and make it look a little thicker. Hopefully you will find a doctor that will be able to suggest something that will help correct the problem. There is another shampoo that is frequently recommended for people with thinning hair--it's called Nioxin. It is not the same type of shampoo as Rogaine. It is sold in many hair salons and is supposed to be very effective ast cleansing the hair follicle to allow for healthy growth. There is also some research that suggests that many people with thinning hair have a sensitivity to demodex mites that are frequently found in hair follicles. That might be another possiblity to research. Hope it gets better!

Katt, No i was not Protein deficient prior to surgery. Yes i was consuming large amounts of broccoli, but that was far from the only thing i ate. I consumed 10- yes ten- carbmaster yougurts (high protein, low carb) daily, which gave me 120 grams of protein, and i also ate almost 2000 calories in other food. Close to about 3000 calories a day and i had at least 200 grams of protein daily, so i know that i was not deficient in protein or any other nutrient. The hair loss started a few months ago i believe due to a loss of my period (gone since September), and which they could not find a cause for. I was far from nutritionally deprived, and had a BMI too high to cause absence of periods. I did see a OB-GYN and had tests performed, and they were still unable to determine the cause of it, or my hair loss. To this day it is still a mystery, and to this day i am still losing hair.

It's frustrating to have problems with hair loss. My hair started thinning drastically when I was around 19 years old, and it has remained very thin. My oldest daughter (26) has hair that is so thin that her scalp is very visible. We've never had any clear explanation. It has been suggested that ours is male pattern baldness associated with PCOS. There is also a very strong family tendency toward baldness--my younger brother was completely bald by the time he was 20. I hope your doctor will be able to help you find a solution. The surgery may exacerbate the problem, but it sounds like there are other underlying causes too. Hope you get to feeling better soon!

Linling - I am so there with you. I am just over 2 weeks post op and my doc said that I could start gradually adding "regular" food back into my diet and I am worried about the choices I make, too. After all, that is what my problem was before. I too think that b/c I am eating less, it is ok...perhaps it is, but I do want to make good choices, too. Hang in there, first fills are around the corner. By the way - I bought a book from Amazon.com called Eating Well After Weight Loss Surgery: Over 140 Delicious Low-Fat High-Protein recipes to Enjoy in the Weeks, Months and Years After Surgery. I am hoping to find some good recipes to help me with food choices.

OMG Catherine! You look great! Your weight loss has totally inspried me. I am 2 days post op and feel relatively good. Thank you so much for your words of encouragement! I know I can do this! -D.

I lost alot of my weight really fast. But once I hit 213lb I quit loosing. It has taking me 6 months to loose 20lbs. HELP I am very close to my goal. I just want to loose 40 more lbs. I got another fill a month ago and I am at very good restriction but I am still loosing really slow. I am only eating about 1 cup of food a day. Any suggestions?

I used slim fast when at work and on the go while on liquids. When I could I used a mix from a weight loss program HMR700. I would just watch the calorie and Protein count closely, the calories can add up quick on the ready-to-use protein stuff sometimes. As far as tolerating it, I didn't have any problems with it. Good luck on your upcoming Lapband!!!!!!

Your weight loss is an inspiration! Congratulations and enjoy that cruise!

Hey everyone.. I'm 5 weeks post op and only lost abt 20 lbs:( I take my Vitamins, at least 60g of pro daily, I do have room for improvement with exercise & Water intake. I am just so disappointed... I expected so much more! Surg-9/11...SW=244. CW=224 I would appreciate any feedback. Anyone else experience such a slow start??

Yep! This is your time to heal. Any weight loss at this point is a bonus. However, I would closely keep track of what you're intaking and keep bad food choices (empty calories) to a minimum. It takes most people quite a few fills to get settled in. It's hard to keep from getting frustrated but it will get easier as you progress. Brad

I am using the nutritionist at my surgeons office. I called Aetna and they said that's fine as long as she documents my weight loss, exercise, and behavior modifications. But aside from the weight loss, I can really just make up the other stuff so it just seemed odd to me that they are trusting what I tell the nutritionist. She's just told me cut out carbs for the most part.

Hello fellow weight loss friends! I have decided to capture a little bit about what I have been through, and my progress through through the sleeve process. I also thought it might be helpful for those of you transitioning between band and sleeve to have some info about what feels the same and what feels different. I am also, selfishly, wanting to capture some of the feelings and emotions I have had around the success and subsequent failure of my band while it is so fresh in my head. This is not meant as a complain session, but a reminder of all the reasons I NEVER want to weigh 360 pounds ever again! In April 2009, I had a successful Lap Band surgery, and was able to lose 120 pounds over the course of two years. I was so incredibly happy with the results, and often said it was the best decision I have ever made. To this day, despite the complication that came up for me, I am still not at all sorry I had surgery. I knew I wanted to have another baby, and the idea that I could adjust the band if I did get pregnant was very appealing. At the time, the notion that the band could be removed was also enticing, though it has become clear it was a tool that I really needed to be successful. In 2012, I did get pregnant again, and unlike my first pregnancy, everything was incredibly smooth. I had started kickboxing in 2010 and was able to keep that up through almost all of my gestation. At the end, I was just too big and my balance was off, so it wan't safe to try and be quite so intense in my exercise. The gestational diabetes that I dealt with during my first pregnancy did NOT return, my blood pressure was normal throughout, and I gained very little weight. It was amazing. I have birth to a big, healthy baby boy in Feb. 2013. Things took a dramatic turn for me in November 2013, however. I contracted a terrible stomach bug and threw up violently. Of course, I had the anti-nausea pills, and tried to take them, but just kept throwing them right back up over and over again. Unfortunately, I ended up with a perforated stomach and contracted severe peritonitis (as my stomach contents leaked into my peritoneal cavity.) Without going into great detail, I will just say that I was very sick and feel grateful to still be here today. I spent 6 nights in the hospital recovering and had to have the lap band removed at that time. It was the beginning of an unfortunate spiral for me. I tried very hard to continue to eat the same way without the band that I had been eating with it for the past five years. As my voracious hunger returned, that became harder and harder to do, and as each month slipped by, weight was returning. I had gone back to kickboxing, but had to quit again because of the surgery. I fell into a pretty deep depression about the whole situation and knew early on that I wanted to consider getting the sleeve surgery ASAP. All of the reasons I needed the Lap Band as a tool were still in me, and I knew having another Lap Band installed would be a foolish choice. My surgeon agreed, and approved me for sleeve surgery in April 2014. Then, my insurance denied the surgery. I was totally devastated. That was when the weight really started piling on. I felt to totally defeated. I know my behavior was just stupid and fueled by self-pity, but nevertheless, I ended up just shy of my original weight prior to lap band surgery. I appealed the decision, and ultimately won! (If anyone would like to see the letter to use as a template for your own appeal, I would be happy to share - just let me know). So, fast forward to yesterday at 5:00 a.m. I arrived at the hospital so excited to get my life back! I was nervous too, of course, but I am happy to report that despite some significant scar tissue and damage from the band, my Dr. was very happy with how the procedure went. I write this at the beginning of day two, and so far, I am feeling great. I have been up and walking several times yesterday and today. I will start liquids this morning and will likely get off the IV fluids shortly. I will spend one more night here at the hospital, and then will get to go home. I plan to take a week off of work and return a week from tomorrow. I know that is a little on the short side, but fortunately my job is not physically demanding, so I think I will be ok. My pain is totally manageable, I have had a little bit of nausea off and on, but the Dr. gave me some medicine that helped a great deal with that. No throwing up, which is good! My back is a little sore from spending so much time in bed, but really, I feel fantastic overall! I really do want to take a minute to capture all of the things that had resolved for me when I had lost the 120 pounds that came creeping back as I got heavy again. I never was skinny, but compared to 370 lbs., 244 felt like a dream! I wasn't sleeping well at night - I am sure my sleep apnea returned and I never woke up feeling rested. This resulted in tremendous fatigue that would last all the time, day in and day out. I was so uncomfortably hot all the time. Going to the grocery store was such a big ordeal. I would get so embarrassed about how sweaty I would get by the time I reached the check out line. My lower back hurt ALL THE TIME and my poor feet would just ache if I had to stand or walk for any longer than 10 to 15 minutes at a time. Getting up off the floor when I was playing with my children practically took 20 minutes. I had to be so very careful or my knees would suffer for days. The same was true for getting up the stairs. If I didn't take one step at a time, my left knee would give out, and I would be in tremendous pain. I have had headaches, it seems, everyday. Although I don't know this for sure, I suspect my type 2 diabetes has returned. I will know when I get my pre-op blood work back. When I try to walk, my hips hurt so bad. I can't cross my legs anymore and self-care has become really awkward. ALL of these things had become a normal part of my life prior to the Lap Band surgery 5 years ago. Gaining the weight back so quickly really made these issues feel especially awful - they were NOT normal to me anymore and as each new symptom came up, my depression worsened. I turned to the drug I knew and loved - food - to make myself feel better. I am committed to using the sleeve as a tool in the same way I used the Lap Band. My hunger will be under control, which is an enormous key to success for me. I also said that the band was like a leash for my portions - I just could not eat very much, and that was ideal! I know that the sleeve will give me that same boundary. However, I think it is critical to say, neither the band nor the sleeve are an "easy way out." Quite the opposite. Nothing about starting over here is going to be easy. I have to make the decision every time I put food in my mouth - is this a good choice? Have I had enough Protein today? What SHOULD I be eating? Without strict adherence to my diet, I know I won't really be successful. However, after having such good luck with the band, I am truly confident I can have equally good and maybe even better results with my sleeve. I will try to keep a record of my progress and hope to be able to compare what I experience with the sleeve to what things were like with the band. So far, recovery as felt very similar. I guess I am more confident this time because some of this isn't completely "new." I always had some port pain, from the very beginning, with the Lap Band, and I have to say, I don't really have any pain at all right now. So I guess that means one mark in the win column for sleeve. Thanks for reading this, thanks for the support, and good luck to all of us on this journey. You are brave and amazing. I really do think it takes a great deal of courage to envision a different life for yourself, and even more courage to take the steps to make it happen. We can do this!!!!!!!

I have Aetna, my BMI was just 40 and I had no co-morbities. I did the entire process with the bariatric surgeon's office and his insurance coordinator. They are very knowledgeable of the process. I had to complete a patient history form documented all previous weight loss attempts. I had to have 3 months of consecutive visits with my bariatric surgeon with my weight documented, a nutritionist visit and a psych evaluation. I did not have to show any proof of current weight loss attempts or exercise. I was told not to lose weight because I just squeaked by the required BMI. Each plan is different even within the same insurancs company, it depends on what your employer chooses. Get a copy of your particular plan's requirements in writing.

Here I thought for sure I had a leak in my band, it was out of position or something was terribly wrong. I'd had 3 fills was supposedly up to 4.3cc, had the band for 3 1/2 months and NO WT loss. I went to my appt for a fluro evaluation as my other fills were without fluro. The band is in proper position and no leak that could be detected. This practioner indicated I was more likely at 3.4cc in the band but with the volume in the tubing needed to prime the port that the total was probably near 4.3 cc ( and the other physician hadn't broke out the different volumes). Sooo, she bumped me up another .5cc and I'm a total of 3.9cc IN THE BAND. AND I can definately tell the difference. I'm on liquids for a couple days and even with liquids I notice a difference. Really I'm not hungry either. What a RELIEF, I think I can finally start to benefit from the band as it was designed. It's costly having all those fills and just now getting this to work. Even though the fluro fills is 3X the money, in the long run maybe that would have been the way to go to begin with? Hind sight. Anyway, I feel so much better not fretting that some MAJOR intervention was going to be needed to get things working. OK, here I go my weight loss now will officially begin and I'm excited once more. :clap2:

When I worked in Foster Care in Detroit. I new the staff in the Burn Unit at Childrens Hospital in Detroit. I also new the Chief Surgeon. We talked about weight loss, and he told me that skin is a Organ, and if I would donate all that he could take, he would perform the surgery for FREE ! I asked if he was serious, and he said when your ready, just give me a call Shirley. I asked about the Hospital stay, and he said nothing to worry about, it would be taken care of. I hope he's still there when i loose more of this weight. Because I think I will give him a call. I just have to hope that he is still there, and that he remembers me. Throwing that thought your way if you want to enquire at a Burn Unit as a Donor... God knows that they need it.

Thanks for the info in this thread. It's good to know there are a few options in the Austin area. Finding a fill doctor in a new area sounds like a real pain in the a$$! We're hoping to move there once we can sell our house. (without taking a loss - stupid real estate market!) Feel free to tell me wonderful things about your area as well - lol

I am 15 weeks out too (sleeve surgery Oct 3rd) and I am down 44 pounds. I would say you are right on target. At least I think I am on target. 40 pounds in 15 weeks is approximately 2.66 pounds per week. That is normal, healthy weight loss. I have always been a slow loser too, but I don't worry about the amount of weight loss everyweek, just that I am losing and not gaining. I have never been a binge eater; however, I used to take in the largest majority of my calories in the evening and I (like you) find myself eating all day now (stoking the metabolism fire). Good Luck to you! Keep us all posted on your progress.

I had a super easy recovery, and I was concerned because I never had restriction with liquids after like week 2. Solids proved that the restriction was there! One of my coworkers had this surgery 8 years ago and she told me that it was simply the easiest thing ever for her, the surgery, losing weight, and maintaining the weight loss. I’m hoping that it goes that way for me too, and here’s hoping it for you as well.

Biosil drops for hair loss.

wow oh wow oh wow I'm so glad I found this site...I have been putting off going to a 'weight loss seminar' knowing that I 'want' to do the banding but continiously missing the dates of the seminars and continuing to eat more and more food since the holidays and wondering...'what's wrong with me...what is WRONG with me??' As I read on I am recognizing the fear of letting go of the food and how I have dealt with stress, emotions, happy, glad, or sad for most of my life is the biggest roadblock I'll have to overcome. So tonight with that realization I will walk into that seminar (with the help of a friend) and begin the next journey of my life...it all starts with one step huh? Betty