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:sad:Hello everyone! I got on the scale this morning because I was feeling kind of bloated in the past few days. I have gained 4 pds! I know that "my monthly Friend" will be starting soon. Does this effect my weight loss? I think I usually do gain during that time however, I don't think that its going to start until later next week. So, I don't know if that IS it or not? I have never felt this bloated before! Should I be worried or is this normal? I have been able to eat more ( I am almost 4 weeks post op) and I haven't had a problem at all with any food...IS this normal? Should I feel some sort of restriction? OH boy am I kind of depressed about this weight gain! Can you guys help! Thank you

The amount of belly fat is a factor, the thickness of the tissue inside the lining of the stomache is factor ... everybody's bodies are different. What matters most is that you have the proper restriction for weight loss. One of the symptoms of needing an unfill is weight gain. Too tight of a fill forces people to eat sliders which you can eat and eat and eat. You definately don't want that! Rest assured, the amount of fluid it takes for you to have restriction doesn't matter ... what matters is PROPER restriction when it comes to weight loss!

No. No weight gain after surgery. Thanks!

Wow I'm so torn, I'm so thrilled to finally be losing my weight that I can't stand the thought of gaining it back, but the idea of my pain being gone is a dream come true. Which is better, thin and in pain or fat without pain? I didn't realize weight gain was such a common side effect, but now that I've read this I'm wondering if my slow loss the last couple months is because of the Lyrica. Arg what to do!!!

It has been a complete miracle for me. I am taking 450 mgs each day. Each capsule has 150 mgs so I spread them out during the day. My only bad side effect has been the weight gain which lead me to this surgery. Before Lyrica, I spent a great deal of time laying in bed watching TV - I was in too much pain and too exhausted to do much of anything. I would say it cut 40 percent of the pain. I have been able to reduce my pain medicine and go on walks with my dog - sometimes two or three each day. Of course, I'm nowhere near being back to "normal" but I can function. I would love to be able to go back to work someday - that is my dream.

The sodium content in cold cuts can affect your weight gain/loss. As will the sodium content of any packaged food. Maybe try not to be obsessive with the tracking of the calories and splurge a bit, and trick your body into thinking differently and see if that helps break the plateau. Our bodies get used to and grow a tolerance to the things we do all the time. The same exercise the same food, so shake it up a bit and give your body something that you don't normally eat every day. Take a break from all the tracking for a day or a weekend and then go back to it. See if that works.

Fifty pounds lost is still fifty pounds lost! I know you're probably scared to have any fill taken out at this point but if you're having trouble swallowing and hoping that starving yourself is the answer I don't think it's the healthiest way to do it. I would really discuss this with your doctor and tell them about your frustration and ask them what they think should be your next step. Being over filled can cause weight gain. I'm not an expert on the actual losing part and I'm sure there are more people out there that can help you with that aspect but I do know that the softer foods "sliders" will not help you lose weight and that the Protein and healthy foods (low carb, high Fiber non-processed foods) are what your body needs and if you're too tight to eat them it's not doing you any good. I think it takes longer for some of us to know where the right spot is and I'm still working on it myself, brandyII.

Well I recieved a call from carters office and was told they were wrong about the sleeve, aetna believes it is dangerous and too new so they don't cover it. Sucks for me because I am not looking forward to getting the band, I mEan I will be content and do everything I can with it but really hoping for the sleeve. But like you said, it has to be a psycological thing withthe weight gain because I cannot diet nor get to the gym, every time I try i cannot stay on it and I too eat like it is my last meal. If you don't mind can you let me know the cash price for the surgery, you can send in pm if you like but I wonder because dr Carter charges 12,000 for th sleeve and I don't want to pay that much. Good luck and please keep us all informed on your surgery and be safe!

I have finished my 3 month multi discipline needed for insurance. I didn't want to quit during that because I couldn't afford the weight gain that I always get when I quit. I am starting vacation next week so I figured it would be the ideal time to quit. I am also going to give up my pepsi which is my true love in life. Wish me luck and hopefully I won't bite anyone's head off this week. Lol

I have been without a thyroid due to cancer for years- Although many medications have a potential side effect of weight gain it is not 100% guaranteed. The benefits sometimes outweigh the risks of NOT taking anything. What works for some may not work for all- If it will make you feel better physically go for it- you have the tool to work with the weight loss (your sleeve) and you ve already proven to be successful with that- Now get the rest of you healthier and who knows maybe when every bodily system is in sync more weight will come off...

I usually asked to replace the 7oz for a 5oz and the vegetables for Mashed potatoes, since veggies are not friends of my band. I ask also for the Sauce to help food go down. I bet what happened to you was because of the veggies. Use a juicer to get your veggies in. The weight gain is gases ... I can easily get 5 pounds and loose it in hours because I get so bloated that I guess i retain liquids. I didn't start enjoying my green zone until I relaxed about what I ate and when I stop counting, for me counting calories and ozs was a trigger to my anxiety then I ate more.

I am miserable! My band slipped about 7 or 8 months ago and Dr Billy took all the fill out. I have MINOR restriction and the weight is returning with record speed!!!! I am so depressed about the weight gain. I had gotten to the point where I felt so good about my body. I wore a bikini and looked good. Dr Lopez did my original surgery (I know this comes as no surprise to anyone) and when I tried to contact him.....guess what???? He won't return my calls. I finally got an email from his assistant saying that they could revise my surgery for an additional $4,000.00. So here I am.... 1. No insurance. 2. NO MONEY! 3. Dr Lopez won't fix his mistake (although I realized this going into it) 4. A non working band 5. A fat body that depresses me. If it weren't for the amazing Dr. billy....I would have jumped off the Ventura Pier long ago. Dr Billy wants to help me but without insurance, what's a girl to do? P.S I was an excellent bandster and I followed all the rules. I would take it extremely personally if someone tried to blame my silp on me. Christine

I just had the bypass surgery on Monday was discharged yesterday while walking today I stopped at the scale bc I was curious obviously, but I am 5 lbs more than when they weighed me before taking me in to surgery! Has this happened to anyone else? Should I be worried? I also have a low grade fever the nurses didn't think it was anything to worry about. Looking for feedback from anyone who has had the surgery. I wish the nurses were more knowledgeable where I was, my dr was great but they just started doing the gastric bypass at this particular hospital and the nurses did not know much about the proceedure, one even tried giving me a can of ginger ale to help calm my belly. I told her it's a good thing I did alot of research before hand or her giving me that could of caused big problems. I told her the dr had an order in for meds for nausea she was like "oh ok I'll get that from the pharmacy but in the meantime the ginger ale should help" I kept my cool but my husband was furious and let them all know it.. anyway off topic, weight gain after surgery anyone?[emoji36]

I havent had my banding done but I recently started BC for the first time ever. I was so worried about all the side effects. I am using the Nuvaring and it is great. Alittle difficult to get in (hope that goes away with the smaller me to come) but otherwise no weight gain, no sex drive loss (actually its more!) and the only thing I have noticed has been some mood swings.

I'm ashamed to admit that I cheated. I was supposed to eat 1400 calories or less daily for the two week time period before surgery. I struggled terribly for a few days and went over my calorie limit with healthy foods. I did a lot of extra exercise then and with that considered, I was likely under my calorie limit, but I still felt guilty. I ended up telling the nurse who called me a few days before surgery. She told me not to mention it unless it came up. However, I felt the need to be honest, so I told my surgeon the day of surgery. I could tell by his body language that he was not pleased. Prior to this, during our small group pre-op meeting, his NP had warned us about gaining weight before surgery, saying that our surgeon had cancelled surgeries that week due to weight gain. According to my scales, I had lost 40+ pounds since I last saw my surgeon in January, so I pointed out to him that I had been working really hard to lose weight since I last saw him and explained that I didn't know what had happened to me on those days of the pre-op diet. He listened to everything I said, then asked how much weight I had lost. (The nurse who prepared me for surgery that morning had told me that my weight was not required on the day of surgery, so he truly didn't know.) I answered him while he wrote notes in my file. He is a man of few words, so that was the extent of our conversation. The next thing I knew, he told me we would be headed to surgery as soon as they had me ready. Right then, I felt like a horrible failure; he didn't say or do anything to make me feel that way but rather I chose not to follow his instructions and felt ashamed. Try your hardest not to cheat so that you can be proud of your pre-op diet efforts.

First of all..Having surery at 450lbs was a major risk in itself. It is indead sad and painfull that she passed away, but I am sure it was more that having the gastric bypass itself that caused her death. Having worked on a gastric bypass wing as a RN I can tell you. I have seen sadness and miracles with this surgery. The largest woman we ever operated on was 800lbs and I was truely terrified for her because I ddin't know if i was going to see her after surgery or not. Needless to say, she survived and to this day is doing well. The surgery saved her life, but it could have turned for the worse..A close firend of mine had gastric bypass, lost 200 lbs, and needless to say gained it back and has now also passed on from complications FROM WEIGHT GAIN.... so you,,,it can go either way.... I am glad you had your surgery. You are onestep closer to being healthier. As for telling your family, it is up to you to make the decision. I believe in the end, they will be happy for you because you have chosen to take control of your health... Peace and may you have a happy and healthy 2011... Onenuttynurse

Similarly qualified Psychs here.... I have seen no one mention meds they may be taking for other conditions that can cause all kind of munchy & weight gaining effects to the brain. Is that a possibility?

Have you talked to your doctor? It could be hormonal too, so I would clear out any physical reason for your rapid weight gain.

I also weigh every day, mostly so I can track my water weight gain. I only take the weight I am on Saturdays as the "this is what I weigh" number. The other 6 days, I'm keeping an eye on the effects of salt on my water retention...that way, I can adjust my salt intake.

In the battle to lose weight, stop overeating, or break free from emotional eating, it’s important to pay attention to the things that trigger your eating to go awry. Learn about the 5 most common triggers now! In the battle to lose weight, stop overeating, or break free from emotional eating, it’s important to pay attention to the things that trigger your eating to go awry. Simply focusing on what to eat misses an essential point–Your eating choices may be strongly affected by your emotions and your environment. And your food plan is useless if something is preventing you from following it. Here are five common overeating triggers that you can take control of by taking some smart, proactive action before they sabotage your weight loss efforts. 1. Getting too hungry Do you stick to your plan through breakfast and lunch only to find yourself irritable, craving carbs, and ready to eat everything in sight by the time late afternoon or evening rolls around? The end of the day tends to be stressful for many. The transition between work and home, mealtime decisions, and other peoples’ hunger or tiredness can push a busy woman over the edge. When I start coaching a new private client, it’s not unusual to hear that this is THE most difficult time of day. The key here: take control of what you can. This means doing what you can so that you don’t arrive at the end of the day feeling exhausted and starved. Too many women who are trying to lose weight, eat too little in the middle of the day and, as a result, lose control and overeat before, during, or after dinner (or all three). Make sure you are eating a balanced lunch (with protein) and then calculate the hours you are expecting yourself to last before eating again. Most women do well with a small snack midafternoon. Again, adding in protein can make all the difference. 2. Evening eating Evening (and late night) is a strong overeating trigger time for many busy women. If you are working hard all day long, it’s easy to come to see the quiet of evening as your reward. And if you are too tired and depleted to really enjoy it, food and emotional eating can become a big part of the evening ritual. “I eat in the evening because I want to treat myself.” “It’s my me-time.” “It’s the only time of the day where no one expects anything of me.” Women also overeat in the evening because they are tired (but don’t want to go to bed because this is the only alone time they have). Breaking free of the evening overeating triggers can be challenging, but it’s essential. Start by creating a policy for yourself about eating after dinner. Be realistic but be firm. Now, identify the bedtime you need to honor so that you are getting a minimum of 7.5 hours of sleep a night. This alone can make a huge difference in your overeating. Trust me. Create a new wind-down ritual that includes some nice things for you but that doesn’t include food. Finally, start carving out some me-time (even ten minutes) on the front-end of your day. You might need to get up earlier, but you’ll be focusing on you when you have the energy to do it. 3. Snacking on treats at work Are you overeating or grazing at work on the sugary treats that your coworkers leave all over the office or the break room? Make it easy on yourself by making one decision instead of hundreds. Set a policy with yourself about your eating at work. Make sure it’s a policy you can stick with. Sometimes something as simple as “I’ll only eat homemade food that is truly a treat that I can’t easily have any time” will do the trick. Spend a bit of time strategizing how you will avoid temptation and how you will reward yourself for doing so. And don’t forget to enlist support. If you are putting on pounds at the office, I guarantee that you aren’t the only one being haunted by the food. 4. Stress eating and overeating Emotional eating—using food to cope with feelings—is one of the biggest causes of overeating and weight gain. Smart women take this one seriously! Take the time to check in with yourself before you eat. Try to identify how you are feeling. Become aware of patterns. Are you a stress eater? Comfort eater? Boredom eater? The key to taking control of emotional eating is to create better strategies—ones that really address the emotions you are having. Start creating ways of addressing your feelings that you can use INSTEAD of turning to food. 5. Too much on your plate When you are too busy, stressed, and overloaded, overeating can seem like an easy way to sneak in a reward, some comfort, or a much-needed energy boost. The problem is that any benefits tend to be short-lived and the costs and negative consequences aren’t. If you want to take control of your weight, your eating, and your relationship with food, you MUST take control of your life. Learn to say no, cut back your schedule, carve out time that’s just for you and start practicing the art of asking for help. The best part of addressing overeating triggers is that when you take charge of what drives your overeating and emotional eating, you are almost always fixing a problem that’s bigger than food. When you get to the root cause of your overeating and address it head on, the triggers often lose their power. When you find strategies for dealing with stress, overeating, and overload, you are also creating strategies for living a better life.

7 Months out and I've been hit with baby fever! My older 2 are 2.5 years apart, and if I were to conceive now, the middle and baby will be 2.5 years apart! I've lost 100lbs with another 50 to go till goal. Am I crazy for wanting a baby now? I was planning a tummy tuck for the beginning of 2016 so I'm not worried about stretching my tummy. A little worried about weight gain. Any insight? Also, does anyone have 3 kids? Is it bad having an odd number? I have 2, and would have my tubes tied after the third.

90 grams of protein=no weight loss, 65-70 I lose a pound! I was put on my normal diet 6weeks post op, I struggle to get in the protein.I didn't lose any weight since that day, 1 week and 3 days, I took in about 65 yesterday and lost a pound as of today. I also don't feel myself when I force that amount of protein. I am very nervous about sticking to what I was told. I am drinking lots of water (liquid, including protein shakes) about 70oz. a day! I don't want to cause trauma to my body or risk weight gain. what is the least you can do without risk?

2 pounds up this morning on the 3 week anniversary of surgery. No change in diet of course... I heard about a dreaded stall, but weight gain? And how long did your stall last?

Well, I've crossed that bridge a thousand times on previous diets. Struggle very hard to lose some weight, gain it back, over and over. Oh yes, I would get a band again anyday. We all want to lose our weight fast, like yesterday, please, BUT this is THE fastest I have ever lost this amount of weight and I have to say it's been so much easier than dieting without the band. It's still hard some days, but overall better than no band. I was told to expect one to pounds a week, so I believed that and it has been true. Do I expect the last 15 pounds to be slower than that rate? YUP? After you lose 50 to 60 pounds, it will take fewer calories to maintain that new lower weight, so it will take even fewer to continue to lose, so the rate at which we lose will slow down or we have to increase our exercise to compensate. None of that is news to me, so I won't be surprised. I think if we look at our weight loss, from week to week it seems slow, but if you look at your weight loss over the past six months, then it's impressive really. You've lost over 7 pounds every month on average! Keep it up and one day, you'll wake up, get on the scale and be at goal!

I had an identical experience to what you are describing after having an unfill, and then refills. When I asked my surgeon why we "refillers" seem to report a lack of being able to refind original sensations of fullness/lack of hunger between meals/restriction, he answered "We don't know." It's a drag, but it may be helpful to get in the mindset that your band ultimately doesn't do the bulk of the work after the initial, glorius first year (or so). Mine ran full power for the first year, making the weight drop off with little effort on my part, other than eating in a band-friendly way which was super easy due to my perfect restriction. Then I started having complications and a first unfill. I never found the original restriction once I was cleared to start refilling. As time went by, and my weight started slowly climbing, I told myself I had to throw out the fantasy that my band was going to do all the work for me. So I brought in my old tools (from my dieting years) and polished those off. The weight gain halted (I've been at the same weight for more than a year now--no losses, but no gains). I had to let go of feeling badly that I was "back to dieting" but you know what? At the end of the day, it still is easier, at least for me, to do this with a band (mine is now unfilled completely, due to other complications) than to do this as an unbanded person. In short, I understand and have lived exactly what you are experiencing. My only "tip" is to "live like you have an active band" even if you aren't feeling it. (I know, it's not as easy as when the band was indeed active.)