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@@Comfy_Blue I also got all those comments, and more. How I responded depended on who was asking. I worked at the same place for 30 years, since I was a teen. They saw me go from a cute young thing to an old, fat woman. They never commented to my face negatively about my weight gain, and I think the comments and questions were born out of two reasons: 1)Genuine happiness for me, and/or 2) They wanted to know what my magic bullet was. Even my non work friends, who mostly are thin or at least not very overweight (but work at not getting huge), wanted to know what I was doing. I told the people I was closest to that I had WLS, and the not the others. In both cases, I was forthcoming about my diet and exercise. I think it's funny, because there was always a little disappointment when they learned (in both cases) that it was still just diet and exercise, lol. It is not socially acceptable for people to ask why we are so fat, but it seems once we start losing, all bets are off. It's just the way society is, and I think it's probably because losing weight is "better", ergo, a compliment to mention it. Right or wrong, I think it's a cultural thing.

Congratulations on your loss (that sounds weird)! I too am at one year post and maitaining a 100 lb loss. Since you got a clean bill of health from your doctor, I can only hazard a guess about the weight gain. If you are sure it is Fluid, then you need to look at your new eating habits to see if something has changed recently. Have you cut back on the Water you are drinking? I know that sounds counter intuitive, but if you are dehydrated I believe your body may try to hang on to the water. Or are you drinking more caffeinated beverages. At group recently the dietician said they can dehydrate you and to make sure you are aiming for that 64 oz water goal each day. I would suggest a call to the dietician on the bariatric team, or the surgeon, if you are not due for a follow up appt. One of them might be able to suggest a reason for the retention and have some professional advice on what to do. I am just an amateur, trying to maintain my success like you.

Hello, I would like to have weight loss surgery, maybe lap band, but not sure exactly. I have completed a six month of supervised weight loss treatment with my family doctor per Medicaid insurance request in 2009. I was a BMI of 39 ½. I have asthma, insomnia, Gastro reflex disease, and chronic cough, usually occurs after meals. I have sent six month records to Winston Salem, I have not received a direct answer from them for two month. I contacted them one last time to check on the status, the nurse told me I was rejected, I wondered why and spoke with director. And found out my records were not read. Now in 2010, Even though my weight loss and weight gain is instable, I had been trying to lose weight to better cope with hyper ventilations. I went down to a BMI of 36. In the same time, I had pursued Duke Hospital around the month of April 2010, I have received a respond from them on August 27, 2010 that I am rejected because I don't have sleep Apnea. In the six month program I had to do I was a BMI of 39 1/2, a weight that I had since 13 years old, all records states that as well, I feel a bit cheated, but What do you guys think?

Hello- I was wondering what the average weight loss has been for anyone else that was banded in September '06? I was banded September 15, 2006 and was my Dr's first lap-band. Because of that, I have not had much support from his practice, as there are no previous patients to compare me to. I feel like my weight gain is too slow. :think I started at 282 pre-op and am now down to 235 and it has been 10 months. I now have 8.5 in a VG band. I had my most recent fill about 2 weeks ago. I had Thyroid Cancer 10 years ago and had my thyroid removed totally, so I am on synthroid replacement to help keep my metabolism working. Here is my daily meal schedule: I have coffee in the morning, and then I NEVER eat anything until at least Noon. then I have a small bowl of Cereal, a piece of cheese, or a couple bites of salad, until I feel like I am going to choke or I start sliming and I stop. Then I usually have small bites of things every hour or so, like a half a piece of string cheese, a couple chips, etc. I drink a lot of SoBe 0 calorie drinks to keep my fluids up. The thing that concerns me is I can eat like a half a bag of potato chips and am not restricted at all by the band. But if I eat regular sit-down-at-dinner food, I can only eat a few bites. Also, the only person who knows is my husband. Our children don't know, nor do any of my friends or family. They consider any type of weight loss surgery to be cheating. Sometimes when I visit my Dr he says I am supposed to be losing slowly, 1 - 2 pounds per week. But this last time I went and had lost only 10 pounds in 2 months, he criticized me and said I should have been well beyond the 50 pound mark by now. I am at 47 so far. I am confused as I had wanted a fill the visit before and he said no at that time. I think I need some encouragement. How are the rest of you September 2006 bandsters doing? Christine:help:

I am 2 weeks post op and while things seem to be going ok...I have gained 5 pounds back this week! HOW does one gain weight when they are on an all liquid diet of less than 800 calories a day? The only thing NEW is that my General Dr. cut out my heart pill which is a diuretic, and lowered my insulin in half and cut my BP meds down 75%. Not sure why the weight gain, but it is ticking me off to no end! It is not like I am cheating and EATING something... Very discouraged at this point!

Has anyone gained weight from depo while on supervised diet?? I follow a strict nutrition plan, ecercise etc but keep gaining a lb or two a month. The nutritionist and dr both agree its from the depo. Im no longer going to get the depo shot. Im just scared ive gone through everything to get denied because of this.

Been there, done that, and didn't even get a tee-shirt. Like you, I found that my experience of restriction was different after a complete unfill, and a lot of people find the last 20 or so pounds hard to lose. IMO, the most important thing to address is not your weight gain but the reflux. I recently learned how severely reflux can damage the esophagus and wouldn't want you to lose your band because of tolerating reflux for an extended period of time. Have you tried taking omeprazole for it? Do you avoid eating a few hours before bedtime? As for the weight loss puzzle - I just wrote an article about breaking a weight loss plateau. Check it out here: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/page/index.html/_/plateaus-and-regain/breaking-a-weight-loss-plateau-r67

Very very good post. Laura-ven, I always appreciate the insight that you share with the rest of us. It has been very helpful to me personally. I am still pre-op and haven't yet scheduled my appointment because I realize that all of the above statements are true. It will not be easy. It is not a lifetime guarantee against weight gain. It is ultimately up to me making good choices regardless of the size of my stomach. I have been kicking this idea around for more than two years, and very very seriously for the past eight or so months. I am slowly working through each of my mental stumbling blocks wanting to make 100% sure that this is the right decision/time for me. I am currently at about 98% sure....there are just two remaining little nagging worries I am dealing with. One thing that strikes me as....silly, I guess...is the newbie posts around here about how they are disregarding their surgeons recommendations in favor of their own "common sense" version. I mean, if their personal version of healthy living was accurate they wouldn't have had to resort to WLS, right? I am actually thankful to those people's arrogance opinions because it reminds me of the importance of the MENTAL changes that I need to make in order to have lifelong success with my sleeve.

Laura, Butter, Rj and Riberty I took all your words of wisdom and copied them down for my kick in the butt printout of "Truth" Which I have on my miror now. As a professional dieter I too have done every diet and even have been the poster child for the successful one of said diet with a docotr an dwith out. After the lapband failure and weight gain it took a while to get the courage to fight again for Me to look at another surgery tool. I am so glad I did and have also found this site to keep it real. Thanks for the words of wisdom. My revision surgery is in a few weeks and I hope to be Walking and living WL success story too.

I am hoping the band helps and so far so good. I physically cannot over eat like I did in the past. I have been diagnosed bi-polar but haven't touched my medication in a long time. I have too many health related prescriptions that are hard enough to keep track of. Depression makes it that much worse. It's like I have an excuse to say screw it. I refuse to let even the smallest weight gain get me depressed because that may trigger reverting back to emotional eating.

Hi all Looking for a little support... I was banded on Monday 4/2 and I KNOW I was not suppose to get on the scale when I got home but you guessed it ..I did it! I knew to expect weight gain but I wasn't expecting 10 lbs! But that was what I got. Tried not to be discouraged but here I am 5 days post op and I still am up 3 lbs. I've been on all liquids and will be for the next week as well before going to 3 weeks of mushies. I still have the horrible gas pains too which I know doesn't help. I've been reading and reading and all I find is how much people have lost their first week. l lost 34 lbs before surgery and I'm not expecting to see tons come off in the first few weeks but the gain really hurts. I'm doing what I was told for liquid meals, walking and then walking some more but I just can't get back to pre-surgery weight...I also got a small fill when banded (3cc) Has anyone else had this issue or has everyone lost the first week? Would appreciate any imput

Went for my first Doc appointment since my surgery. He said I was doing great and I will be ready for my first fill on the 17th which just so happens to be my Birthday so that will be a nice present to myself. He also said to be prepared to gain some weight between now and my fill date and to not worry about it and focus on finishing the healing process. He said the weight gain is totally normal and once I had the fill those pounds plus more would vanish quickly. So excited to get the fill.

Most of what happens will depend on insurance requirements. For me, at my first appt, I was weighed, we went over diet history, I talked to the NUT and had to give a rough accounting of my daily eating habits-don't worry, a crappy diet is a good thing because it shows that you need help. Then after that, we talked about weight loss goals and which surgeries would be a good choice. When I left, they pulled my insurance info and told me I would be doing the 90 day program(which scares the crap out of me because I had already wrapped myself up in the idea of a 6 month supervised diet). It was all pretty straight forward for me. 90 days, 4 NUT visits, 1 psych eval, no weight gain and we worked on little changes to make to my diet and exercise at each NUT visit, and then there was a class on life post surgery as far as eating and vitamins etc and that was it! I had my surgery 11/9 and so far so good!

I use Myfitnesspal to track and report my food journal to my doctor. When I went for my 7 week check-up yesterday I was told that I am having too many carbs, not enough Protein and I shouldn't indulge in sugar free treats such as pudding and popsicles. She said that the taste of sweet items will keep my sugar addiction going and could eventually cause weight gain. She even offered putting me on Contrave to stop the addiction feeling. It is strange though because all my Protein shakes are sweet so what is the difference? I am eating for better health. not pleasure. so I need to break that habit. I am having a hard time with protein because post-op the taste of Protein drinks gag me. I have 7 different powder flavors and brands and they were all good prior to surgery. I am going to try to do a protein mug brownie to see if that will help. I have tried the clear liquid Protein drinks and they are also gross. I go to a local nutrition store and do tastings to see what I can switch, but that hasn’t helped either. Things sometimes taste good at first but then goes back to gross after a few times. I have updated my goals to match as close as I can to her recommendations. She suggested 600-800 calories, and 100-120 grams of protein. She was happy I lost fat, gained muscle and my hydration was up, but she just wasn't satisfied with what I am eating. The item she did point out was a baked potato. I know it is full of carbs but my husband stopped at Wendy's and that was the only thing I could have on the menu and I didn't think that would blow my month. I could only eat half of it, and ate the other half the next day. I'm not throwing in the towel by no means but I am aggravated because I don't think I am doing what I should be doing but I'm not sure how to correct it without just drinking protein shakes or eating Protein Bars. I may be putting too much thought and stress on myself to make this work. Sorry I feel like I am just blabbering and making no sense. For anyone that says having weight loss surgery is the easy way out, they have no clue. It takes dedication, determination, control, and much more to become a new healthy you. This is today's log and I already ate dinner and I am already hungry. Jimmy Dean - Ham & cheese Frozen Omelets, 1 omelet Cream - Half and half, 2 tsp(s) coffee - Brewed from grounds, 1 cup (8 fl oz) lunch Atkins Snack/light Meal - Carmel chocolate Peanut Nougat Bar, 1.6 oz Publix - 2% American Cheese, 0.5 slice Publix - Ground Sirloin Beef, 4 oz Dinner Publix Lean Pork - Boneless Pork Loin Chops, 4 oz (112g) Bush's - Original Bake Beans, 0.5 g (1/2 cup) Calories 831 Carbs 27 Fat 53 Protein 71 Sodium 1235 Sugar 5 Any suggestions? My current goals. Calories 850 Carbohydrates 32 g 15 % Fat 38 g 40 % Protein 96 g 45 %

Not everyone that has a low BMI gets WLS because of the laziness of putting a "little effort" I had wls at a BMI of 32, this was because i completely screwed up my metabolism from having the band. I was a BMI of 23 and jumped to 32 in less than 12 months since having the band removed. Basically i can not eat above 800 calories without gaining. My exercise and diet remained the same, i did NOT gain from lack of effort. Please do not generalise without knowing peoples history or story, a blanket statement like that isn't useful to anyone. And as you say, being 200lbs, you lose with very little effort, this may be the case for you, but you will find that weight loss is slower the lower BMI one is. Better to do something about it sooner than later right? That's like us (low BMI'ers) saying "we don't understand how you can gain so much weight & take so long to do something about it". To be honest there's no reason for anyone to be 600pds... Sorry. Heavier people lose weight faster than we do actually that why there's drastic weight loss for them, the weight moves slower for low BMI's so we actually HAVE to work super hard. I don't understand why anyone on this site would be harsh toward anyone. We are all here because we made bad choices & want to be healthier. I don't see a purpose for dissension on a "support group". Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App 600 lbs is a little excessive and i feel you were being mean spirited. Im not trying to be harsh im trying to understand. I understand if you have a health issue or rapid weight gain for no reason. But i do have an idea of the struggle because i have been that size most women in my family are that size and dont have trouble losing if and when they want to. I see that this is not the case for everyone and my apologies for generalizing. My concern is that surgery is becoming a go to option instead of a last option. But who am i?? This is just my opinion on an open forum you dont have to agree with me.And also ive been "doing something about it" since i was 13 im 30 now. I exhausted EVERY other option before i ended up hear. Every diet known to man trainers, nutritionist, tons of time in the gym. so it took so long because i busted my ass first landed on my face too many times. And here we are.

Ok, you have me laughing. I just had the boob conversation with my best friend. I don't want to lose my boobs! I have big boobs and I want to keep big boobs. Ok, all joking aside, here is what I am looking forward to in no particular order: Not being embarassed of my body anymore. Getting of my diabetes meds Resolving my adrenal gland issues Reducing my PCOS symptoms Wearing clothes that I like and not wearing clothes just because they fit. I can't wait to see my face again... The face I always had before the weight gain. CONFIDENCE a good role model for my children HEALTH Energy sharing the journey with people on this message board. not having to wear the sexy CPAP mask. wearing a nice nightgown if you know what I mean. helping others buying new clothes everytime I drop a size.

Prezo & wallflower, Great to hear good results. I am only 5-ish days post op and I have not had to take my Lantus at all or my Humalog. Sugars are holding stable. Once my food intake & food types increases I expect to start the Lantus at 5 units & step up as needed. I've been in a lot of pain but I am thrilled not to have to inject 115 units every morning. Since my pancrease was damaged from other health issues I was wondering how I would do post op. so far I am thrilled. Oh and to the main question of this thread. Yes, loosing weight is more difficult for diabetics. That is one of many fundamental parts of diabetes. Even with well controlled sugars it's still difficult. Often folks with diabetis also have other health problems that will contribute to the difficulties in loosing weight. One of My problems is I am unable to work out at the levels I use to loose weight because of herniated disks (back surgery soon). That lack of exercise & eating too much = weight gain. I had lost 70lbs before my back injury & gained that and then some back. I have had a very healthy diet for the last 10 years. Room for improvement...absolutely. Eating too much is my other problem. No matter how healthy we eat too much of a good thing is bad. Wow...I think I have babbled on enough waiting for the pain mess to kick in Night ~Manda

Emotional eating is one of the biggest causes of overeating, weight gain, and weight re-gain. April is Emotional Overeating Awareness month and to commemorate this, I'm offering a free teleclass to answer your questions about how to take control of emotional eating and struggles with food, weight and healthy lifestyle. The teleseminar will take place on Wednesday, April 22, 2009 at noon Pacific and 3pm Eastern. Creating change isn’t automatic and it isn’t always easy. However, it DOESN’T need to be a struggle. Join me for this free teleseminar where I'll answer your questions about how to end emotional eating battles and make peace with food—once and for all. Just go here to register and submit your question.

Sharon your story is all our story. You just hit it before some of us have. We will all find ourself at the crossroads of old eating behaviors, and I don't feel like exercising today. We all got overweight by doing that behavior for years. Your cautionary tale will help me. Thank you for your brave words and for taking hold of your weight gain, before you lose control completely. You just need to get back on the right way of eating and take a little walk from time to time.Find a place outside your home you like to be, go out and take in the beautiful sites, even if it is a mall.100 pounds amazing. Congratulations.

I ate healthy and under 1500 calories a lot of the time and never lost weight. Some of the time I would go through periods of eating a lot more and most of it was junk, and strangely that didn't seem to cause any more weight gain. I will clearly state that I ate more than I burned. It's not a total mystery how I got to 300+ pounds, though I never ate as much or as bad as one would think to get to that weight. The sleeve allowed me to get my calories under 600 per day for the first several months, and then I kept it around 800 for the rest of the first year. I now know that I have to eat under 900 calories a day or I will not lose weight. That was a shocking revelation to me. I maintain at around 1400 calories, and gain at any more than that. I would like to lose that last 10 pounds, but can't seem to keep my calories low enough, long enough to achieve that. I look and feel pretty good, so I'm not too worried about it any more.

I went for an upper GI barium swallow this am as I have been having trouble with my band the past month and having almost everything come back up and feeling unusually tight. The upper GI was aborted after the first swallow as there appeared to be near complete obstruction and on the report the radiologist recommended urgent referral to a barbaric surgeon. I live two airplane rides away from my original surgeon, so he had set me up with a general surgeon who worked under him to do my adjustments. I see him first thing tomorrow morning to have fluid taken out. How much, I don't know yet (already freaking out about that and the possible weight gain and how long until I can get the fluid back in). I am also waiting on an emergency CT scan to check for band placement, position and possible slippage. My general doctor is putting this in place, so I am just waiting on that. For those who have had this happen before..... How much fluid comes out? Does it resolve on its own? How long until fluid can go back in? I need some reassuring answers please. I have been banded since 2008. Always been on the tighter side of restriction. Had some fluid taken out last fall and things were good. But a month ago, it got so tight that I can barely get liquids down some moments. But then in that same day, I can manage some food. Not without a lot of it coming back up though. Which leads my original surgeons office to believe there is a slip.

Pre surgery I had a BMI of around 36. This week marks 6 months post surgery for me. It has been a truly wonderful experience. I have lost 53 lbs so far. My whole life until surgery I felt like I was battling against weight gain. I fought to stay at the weight I was at...I'd hate to think where I would be had I given up the fight. The surgery was just part of my journey to be healthy. Best of luck to you!!

Hi All, My name is Amy. I am new to the forum and I look forward to reading all of your posts. I have finally decided to seek gastric sleeve surgery and I am in the beginning stages. I have received a refarral from my PCP, have gone to the first info. session, and am approved by my insurance company for surgery. Seeking health has been a life-long journey for me. I exercise regularly, and eat a balanced diet. Unforunately, my body has many auto-immune conditions, including Type I diabetes, chronic hives, hashimotos thyroid, and celiac diease. Worsening blood pressure, asthma, sleep apnea and cholesterol levels are complicated by weight gain. I have worked with a nutrionist for 11 yrs, and I am ready to see the results of my efforts. I hope the gastric sleeve will be a helpful tool for me! I have a 35 BMI, and would love to know the expereinces of others with a lower BMI. Thanks! Amy

The beauty of the band is it is there waiting on you to work with it. Now that your ready to get back on track, maybe a small fill would be beneficial, or maybe the boost of exercise is just what you need. I'm impressed that you are getting back on track with a 20 lb weight gain, instead of it being 50. Your doing good and have the right mind set. I have read that everyone should have a set point of how much they allow themselves to gain, the expert say 5lbs, once you get up 5 lbs, start back tweaking your diet etc. So 20 lb is not that bad, and it won't take you that long to loose it with exercise. I've made exercise a part of my life now and am on my 4th week of the Body For Life challenge,(working out 6 days a week) I honestly am seeing some muscles come out in my stomach area. And - I am getting collar bones. So, I am a firm believer in Exercise!

This is my first challenge, I am new to this board and I am trying to get back on track after a year of steady weight gain. Name, real or screen~ Maggie Goal weight for March 31st~ 175 Weight on March 1st~ 184 Age~ 38 Dietary goal for March~ NO DRINKING while I eat Exercise goal for March~ 60 min 3X a week Personal goal for March~ don't give up Date banded~ 3/12/10 Total weight loss since banding/pre op diet~ Lost 80, then Gained 40 = Net loss about 40 What is your good luck charm? mys hubby