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In addition to other posts above, you may also want to look for water retention as a cause for weight gain. If so, review the sodium levels in you food choices. You are eating a fair amount of food for your time out from surgery. I remember only eating shakes for a month after surgery (2-3 ounces every hour). Once I got solids, it was tough to get more than an ounce of protein like pork, chicken or beef. Salmon was easier. I ended up only having 300-600 calories a day until month 3.

I went because of my 20 lb weight gain. I really hurts to get on here and see that ppl have lost any weight. I'm 7 weeks out and I weight more now then I did the day of my surgery. We went over my eat habits and my exercise routine. Then they sent me to the hospital across the street and 2 hours later they called me and told me what they found. But I really don't see how. I honestly don't think they took enough at surgery but I have no way of finding out. So now I am looking for a second opinion and a way to get this fixed

Here you go thanks for posting this! Slider Foods Spell Weight Regain For Weight Loss Surgery Patients Soft processed carbohydrates, slider foods, are the bane of good intentions and ignorance often causing dumping syndrome, weight loss plateaus, and eventually weight gain for gastric bypass, gastric band (lap-band), and gastric sleeve bariatric patients. Learn what slider foods are and why they cause weight regain for weight loss surgery patients. 5 Day Pouch Test Store By Kaye Bailey For most people eating sliders is a good thing. Popularized by the American food chain, White Castle, a slider (originally slyder) is a miniature grilled hamburger or cheeseburger on a steamed bun often served with onions and dill pickle and other condiments. They originally sold for a nickel a piece in the 1940s making it affordable to add a side of fries for just pennies. By all accounts this is a good kind of "slider" food. To the weight loss surgery patient slider foods are the bane of good intentions and ignorance often causing dumping syndrome, weight loss plateaus, and eventually weight gain. Slider foods, to weight loss surgery patients, are soft simple processed carbohydrates of little or no nutritional value that slide right through the surgical stomach pouch without providing nutrition or satiation. The most innocent of slider foods are saltine crackers, often eaten with warm tea or other beverages, to soothe the stomach in illness or while recovering from surgery. Understanding Slider Foods The most commonly consumed slider foods include pretzels, crackers (saltines, graham, Ritz, etc.) filled cracker Snacks such as Ritz Bits, popcorn, cheese snacks (Cheetos) or cheese crackers, tortilla chips with salsa, potato chips, sugar-free Cookies, cakes, and candy. You will notice these slider foods are often salty and cause dry mouth so they must be ingested with liquid to be palatable. This is how they become slider foods. They are also, most often, void of nutritional value. For weight loss surgery patients the process of digestion is different than those who have not undergone gastric surgery. When slider foods are consumed they go into the stomach pouch and exit directly into the jejunum where the simple carbohydrate slurry is quickly absorbed and stored by the body. There is little thermic effect in the digestion of simple carbohydrates like there is in the digestion of Protein so little metabolic energy is expended. In most cases patients in the phase of weight loss who eat slider foods will experience a weight loss plateau and possibly the setback of weight gain. And sadly, they will begin to believe their surgical stomach pouch is not functioning properly because they never feel fullness or restriction like they experience when eating protein. The very nature of the surgical gastric pouch is to cause feelings of tightness or restriction when one has eaten enough food. However, when soft simple carbohydrates are eaten this tightness or restriction does not result and one can continue to eat, unmeasured, copious amounts of non-nutritional food without ever feeling uncomfortable. Many patients turn to slider foods for this very reason. They do not like the discomfort that results when the pouch is full from eating a measured portion of lean animal or dairy protein without liquids. Yet it is this very restriction that is the desired result of the surgery. The discomfort is intended to signal the cessation of eating. Remembering the "Protein First" rule is crucial to weight management with bariatric surgery. Gastric bypass, gastric banding (lap-band) and gastric sleeve patients are instructed to follow a high protein diet to facilitate healing and promote weight loss. Bariatric centers advise what is commonly known among weight loss surgery patients as the "Four Rules" the most important of which is "Protein First." That means of all nutrients (protein, carbohydrates, fat and alcohol) the patient is required to eat protein first. Protein is not always the most comfortable food choice for weight loss surgery patients who feel restriction after eating a very small amount of food. However, for the surgical tool to work correctly a diet rich in protein and low in simple carbohydrate slider foods must be observed. The high protein diet must be followed even after healthy body weight has been achieved in order to maintain a healthy weight and avoid weight regain.

I have had my surgery end of June 2010 starting at 210 pounds and by June 2011 I was down to 114 pounds. From June 2011 until end of July 2012 I managed to keep my weight to 114-115 pounds. Well, starting August 2012 i started to put on weight and by September I gained 9-10 pounds( in ONE month), it is now end of January 2013 and I haven't managed to lose any weight and I have been careful about what I am eating, except the Christmas period where I had a lot of chocolates. So nothing in 4 months From surgery till August( 2 years 2 months) I could eat anything I wanted, anytime I wanted and I never been exercising except the day to day chores around the house and a bit of walking now and again. To explain better...I could have up to 3- THREE!!! ice creams in a day and I would eat crisps everyday and sometimes I could have extras plus my food. I never been too keen on butter, cheese or fast foods- actually after my surgery I found it really difficult to eat cheese bcos would make me sick some horrible green bitter stuff. Also when i would eat something too caloric( like 3 ice creams in one go- lol) my body will start shacking and I would be sweating alooooot, and I mean I could see the sweat running on my body in big lumps. Also would sometimes sweat just by doing nothing, I could watch TV and the sweat pours out. Oh since November I have been on Alli diet pills which didn't work at all, then I have tried Raspberry Ketones, again without luck, my body won't get rid of anything. Since my weight gain, I stopped sweating and I do not get shacky after I eat and what changed the most--- I'm craving foods I could not eat before, like butter, cheese, curry, lasagna, jam etc I am trying to cut down on sugar( my biggest enemy) and sticking to fruit but even so I sometimes go over my daily limit ( a small apple has 11 g of sugar in it, 10 medium strawberries has 6 g of sugar, there is sugar in milk, yoghurt, even vegetables). I did all the research I could find on the web, at my weight/ height/ age my body needs around 1300 calories just to keep me alive, If I was to exercise 1-3 times a week that will increase to over 1600 cal per day. if I want to lose weight they say to eat 1200 calories, which i did for 3 weeks( I've been mostly on 1000 cal per day) and again no weight loss, there actually been an increase for about 4-5 days but I got down to 123-124, this is where my body seems to be comfortable at. But I am not I have also took my measurements and from Dec 14 2012 to January 15 2013, I gained about 5 inches around my belly!!! But my weight its pretty much the same +/- a pound. I know this is crazy to read but its even more crazy when I see it happen, sooo frustrating. I still eat small portions of food and I weigh pretty much everything and I even started to exercise( long walks and sometimes I run also- which I never ever ever did before. HEEEEEELLLLP!!!

OMG, that woman was totally out of line. You should report her you know what as soon as you can. I had been made to feel like a failure many years ago after a small weight gain--it totaly derailed my progress. Now, looking back, older and wiser--i wish I never gave that power away. That PA is a liability to that doctor's practice and he should know about it. And i hope you are finding a way to recover from the experience. We are all unique and on unique journeys. My progress the second time around is much slower than the first--but it is happening, slowly but surely. Stay focused on how much better you feel, and how much better you will feel in the future, however long it takes to get there. Best of luck to you.

I too was a bander at one time. I worked in a hospital and there were 5 of us who got it including my husband. In the beginning we all had success, however, for me it was short lived. I only lost 24 lbs and gained almost 50 back. After a few years my restriction was getting worse and I decided to look into the revision. I found out several things...my band was placed too high (by a different surgeon), when he sutured the band to my stomach the sutures punctured my stomach in two places, and my band was ulcerated. I had to first get my band removed to allow the ulcer and my stomach heal and then three months later went back for the sleeve. My husband established care with a surgeon a few weeks ago only to find out that his band was "too tight." Which resulted in weight gain from almost two years of eating slider foods. As for the other 3 women who had the band in 2009 and 2010 when we did, NONE of them are happy with their bands and two are looking into revision now that they've seen my success. Yes, the band was the craze several years ago, however, the surgeon who did my sleeve...his practice is no longer doing them because of all the complications and failure rates. Also, the sleeve is not as "new" as some believe. Back when the bypass began 20 plus years ago, they used to do the sleeve on super obese patients as a first surgery to get their weight down to minimize the risks of the bypass surgery. A lot of these patients lost so much weight and never bothered going back for the second part of the surgery. If you look under anniversaries...a few weeks ago I seen someone celebrating her 20th year post op. It's believed that the sleeve will have better ratings than the bypass, but since it hasn't been an exclusive surgery as long as the bypass it will take several years for the statistics to show it. As for your SIL, the sleeve is very different than the band and she will be thrilled with the success compared to the lack of with the band!

Congratulations on both your new baby girl, (beautiful and I like her name!), and you small amount of weight gain. Best wishes! Karen

I would say, by definition, I was a slow loser. I had a total of 80.5 lbs that I wanted to lose to my goal after I had my surgery. In the first 6 months, I lost 55 lbs. Then, it slowed to a crawl. In the next 6 months, I lost 21.5 lbs I stalled at this point for 3 months and I actually thought I might be done losing, then I lost 3 more pounds, now at 15 months post op. Once again I stalled for about 2 months and thought I was done losing, still about 5 or so pounds from goal, but I was really that worried about those 5lbs. Then, 18 months post op, I hit my goal weight of 140lbs and 80.5 lbs lost. In the months following, I dropped a few more pounds! Now I have a 3-4 pound weight fluctuation. My cycle is a major factor in how much I weigh, so I try not to let it bother me. I can go up as much as 2 or 3 lbs during ovulation and 3-4 lbs during TOM. My weight loss near the end only really occurred in the 2 weeks in between Tom and ovulation, so I highly encourage women to really pay attention to their bodies. I also get wicked cravings and have a very hard time not wanting to eat everything in my path. How do I cope with the cravings? I do not keep anything in my house that I know I will eat. Now I am over 2 years post op and have not had many issues maintaining for the last 8 months. I am still learning as I go and I still make mistakes. But over all I would say I eat healthy 90% of the time, and 10% of the time I don't. If I am going to be truthful, I never counted anything (calories, carbs, protein), I never weighed anything, and I don't exercise by definition regularly. I did follow my post op guidelines. I rarely eat bread (but I will eat garlic bread when out for supper) and I eat very little other "white carbs" like rice, Pasta, flour, sugar (notice that I did not say never). I do not drink with my meals, I still occasionally drink Protein shakes, I eat a lot of greek yogurt sweetened with stevia, drink 2% milk, eat nuts, and enjoy veggies AND fruits. I will still have an ice cream cone once in a while, I will still eat chocolate and I will still have other treats as well. I just do not keep them in my house so they are not tempting because I do not have any more will power now than before surgery if food is sitting in front of me (hence a 4 lbs weight gain over Christmas that I am happy to report is all gone again). I wanted to make changes that I know I could live with, maintain, and be happy with for the rest of my life. I am happy with the weight I lost, and even though it was slower in the "sleeve" world, it was still faster than any other time I had tried to lose weight in my life. My new habits are firmly entrenched, and even if I stumble now (like Christmas), it is not difficult to get my head back in the game. I would not change what I did and how I did it and I love this tool that I have been given!

I would say that for nearly 20 years the numbers on the scale had the power to affect how i felt about myself each day. Now though, I think i'm so much more than the number on the scale--or the number on anything else for that matter (i'm so much more than my age, my height, my income, my shoe size, or my dress size!) For me personally, I find that obsessing about anything does not feel good to me--especially obsessing about the numbers on the scale. I try not to weigh more than once a week and I remind myself that it takes 3500 calories to gain one true pound of fat. If the scale shows a two pound weight gain from one day to the next, does that mean I ate an extra 7000 calories?! No. Water weighs a lot...those two pounds are more than likely water retention. I think bodies are tricky things to try to control...they sometimes have their own agenda/wisdom. If you're exercising and eating right, then eventually the mathematics of what you're doing right will show up on the scale or on the tape measure. Best of luck.

My surgeon is shooting for next month provided we get all the testing results back soon. I'm so excited but scared. I keep thinking its not gonna happen because I want and need it so bad. The cardio is the only thing I have doubts about tho. Over the last couple months a couple times a day I find myself gasping for air. It ably last two seconds. I have also gained an additional 20 lbs in the last two months and have been major stressed because I lost my job (also two months ago). I think it's from my weight, high Bp, etc. I was told about 10 yrs ago to stop taking diet pills because of something with my heart.... Forgot because it was soooo long ago. But I remember it was something minor. Most docs are against diet pills tho. I think if something was wrong with my heart I'd know it. I feel fine besides the weight gain, back pain, and headaches from high Bp lol.

I am a vet lol. Never thought I'd be happy about that. I am so happy we have this post. Thanks Susan. I agree on no complaining about stalls and the earlier process of our weight loss. I really do like hearing from others about how their doing when in maintenance and about whether they have weight gain etc. right now I'm doing food. I do look kinda baggy too. Noticed how skinny I look in the mirror and went wowZa. I do love my body. /)

I had a band twice and agree with others that I should have chosen the RNY. I was worried about the malabsorption, but have since learned that the is minimal malabsorption depending on your surgeons technique. I have a good friend that had the sleeve done she did well 6 months out and now I only see weight gain on her. you can stretch out your sleeve just as easy and your RNY stomach in time. The biggest difference the way the food is routed and digested with the RNY. I was offered the sleeve but told that the only difference between my band and sleeve is a foreign object (band). The gold standard for successful weight loss is the RNY you have to t ready to change the way you look at food and if you are a sugar addict you will suffer the consequences and I doubt you will every want sugar again if you have a dumping syndrome moment. I have a sister in-law with RNY same time I banded and she lost 90 lbs in the first 6 months, but now has gained back half. He surgeon won't even see her after a year post op! If you have a good surgeon/bariatric group you will be a lifer with followups which is the way it should be. Anyway sorry I ran on and on. I will be band to bypass on Feb 6 and I am excited and nervous at the same time. I have a lot of scar tissue and adhesions that my surgeon has to contend with but I have the utmost faith in him as he has repaired many botched bariatric cases. This blog is great I have had many good conversations with people and hope to have more and learn more as my journey progresses. I am sure you will make a well informed decision and it will be right for you:-)

I know there is so much more to weight gains than just food addiction. I wonder sometimes if I've gained weight to "test" relationships that I have, Push people away...

Don't beat yourself up. It was one day, one slide. The weight gain was likely just due to sodium. Even if we eat according to plan, sometimes, the scale goes up (can't help myself I weigh every day). 50 lbs is fantastic! You will be fine, and if the time comes you have another 'oops', it's OK. As long as they are not every meal every day - you will be good. :-)

Sara-You can start walking right away! the strength training they want you to wait 6 weeks, but I started just doing light stuff at 4 weeks and I was fine. I did squats, lunges, 5lbs curls/flies/chest press, and I tried to walk a mile a day. I would have to go back and look at my old posts and see what I really did! LOL but that is what I remember. At 4 weeks I hired a private trainer and it was the best decision I ever made! So everyone else who is struggling with the eating and the ups and downs of weight, I have a suggestions. Counseling! I started this journey with bimonthly counseling sessions and during really tough times I increased it to weekly. September was a very emotional month for me as some of you can remember and she helped me stay sane and maintain my weight for the month and get back on track. I don't think I could have done it without her. I know I am an emotional eater and will always be an emotional eater, but having that person to help me sort out my emotions so when I do eat I don't over eat have been really important. We all have baggage that has caused our weight gain and until we work on it and deal with it we will always struggle with eating. I originally thought I could just get the band see my doctors monthly and therapist every few weeks and be fine. but I quickly learned that was not enough. Here is what I have in place now: 1. Personal trainer once a month and a semi-private circuit training with him 4 days a week, once a month nutrition check in 2. counseling 2 times a month 3. My fitness pal daily 4. Lapbandtalk weekly or more if needed 5. Dr. visit monthly 6. Hospital support group monthly (I can't always make it) that is a lot of support and I needed every one of them to get where I am today. Well of to meet with my trainer for my 1 year anniversary with him! I am going to have full measurements and a weigh in!! I will report back as to how many inches I have lost. Oh and he is going to look at myfitnesspal diary and help me with better choices, since they have not been so great lately!! TTYL

I am almost two years out( July) I can not loose anymore weight. I went from 273 to 188 and now back to 199. I need help. I am getting married in July and want to look amazing. I am only 26 and this is starting to depress me. Hence the weight gain from depression meds.

Good luck!!!! I'm a former runner looking to get back to a pre weight gain and pre ankle injury running status I understand where you are. Please be careful and don't push yourself too hard. You'll get there. I'll be cheering you on. Be sure to keep us posted on your progress.

They told us to actually expect some weight GAIN post op until several days out because of all the fluids they give you and the swelling etc going on.

just want to remind you that one of the pitfalls i have heard about is drinking your calories. drinking things high in calories will not promote the weight loss and can even bring about weight gain. I know how you feel about missing something you loved. I loved icecream and it is one of the few things that still tugs at me saying "eat me".. i haven't given in and i hope not to.. not yet anyways.. still have lots of lbs to lose! good luck!

Hello All, It has been a really long time since I have been on the message boards. The last time I posted I got some what negative or no feedback but I am desperate and going to try again. First of all I got banded in May of 2012 and since then I have lost about 50lbs. I was so excited when I hit the 299 mark! Well the holidays threw me off track and I did not get a fill since like October. When I finally went for my fill 2 weeks ago I had only gained 5lbs since my last visit so I was dissappointed about the gaining weight...but psyched that I didn't gain way more because I basically ate whatever I wanted over the holidays. So since getting the fill in January I feel so very uncomfortable. It feels like Water trickles...every meal hurts and I am resorting to soft foods just so I can get things down because it takes forever to eat anything. I really feel like I am in the red zone. I called the doctor about getting an unfill but was basically told "no chew slower". I know my body and my weightloss has been pretty good but this just doesn't feel right. Prior to my fill I actually lost 2lbs. But since then...only been gaining! I am back above 300....306 to be exact and not pleased!!! Now on to my second "problem". I have recently found out I am pregnant!!!!!!! Needless to say it was not planned. I am sad and happy at the same time. I was in a relationship for almost 10 years and could not get pregnant. After all that time he tells me he is now too old to have kids (43yrs). We broke up almost a year ago. I since then had found a "special friend" and low and behold...when I gave up on every being pregnant here I am 37, banded and 6 weeks pregnant! I can only assume the weightloss led to an increase in fertility...I knew that could happen but assumed after all that time I just couldn't get pregnant. So now I am freaking out because I don't want to tell my Band Dr that I'm pregnant because he might remove all the Fluid in my band. I want to go in and tell them to take some fluid out due to the "red zone" feelings....but definitely not all...and most important...I don't want to gain all of my weight back because I am now pregnant. At this point my mind is spinning and I'm scared to gain back weight when I was so close to being under 300lbs! I don't want to gain any weight during my pregnancy but I also want to do whats best for the baby. Not even sure if weight gain is baby related, band related or what....definitely think its too early to be baby related. So that is my novel!!! Help me with Red Zone thoughts, help with dieting while preggers, and help with worries about gaining...just help!

The research is mixed on this. I wrote a white paper on this very issue a few years ago. I was addressing a hospital that banned all sugar sweetened beverages from being sold on its campus. I wanted to see if there was a link in the research between artifically sweetened beverages and obesity. There is emerging evidence on this but the physical link is not very strong. I found several studies on animals and only a few of them seemed to indicate that there was a metabolic effect and it was not replicated by peers, which means it's somewhat questionable. However, the mental link between consuming artifical sweeteners and weight gain in observational studies is more compelling. (essentially meaning, that those who drink diet sodas are more likey to engage in food craving behaviors) If you want to send me a private message with an email address, I would be happy to send it to you. It has a lot of good literature referenced in it that you could look at. As an aside, I consume splenda. I count my carbs, Protein, fat and calories everyday.

I just did mine yesterday and mostly they want to know that you have researched the procedure that you are aware of the risks and complications. Unless you are very unstable you are going to do fine. I have anxiety and depression and she just said that i need to change my med to one without weight gaining possibility and that most people that have had the worst life changes (deaths, child abuse etc) tend to do the best with this surgery. Basically we survived worst things..

''Third major problem: (was not told this ahead of time either) weight gain is guaranteed if you DRINK liquids with your meals, had I been told this I would have never gotten it because I know I drink with nearly every bite I eat. I knew there would be diet changes, etc, but not this! '' In my opinion thats just not normal whether u are banded or not !

I have figured out that a lot of the reason I use to eat had nothing to do with hunger. see something- eat it. Smell something- eat it. Board- eat Worried- eat Meal time - eat I ate my way to almost 250 and I knew it had to stop. Now I am much more selective about what and when I eat. I now eat 3 meals a day and sometime one snack. I still eat things I love, but I eat less or them. Today I walked into the breakroom at work, there was a smorgasborg or treats: grapes, cheese, crackers, pimento cheese, rolls, celery. While these foods aren't bad foods, I didn't eat them, I wasn't hungry. In times past I would have fixed a nice rounded plate and gone back to my corner office and ate up. While my mouth and mind were saying yummy, just one bite, my tummy was saying, but hey yo I don't want any, not hungry please don't. My eyes, mouth and mind get me in a lot of trouble when it comes to food. My husband in blind, but very strong resourcful, brillant wonderful man; but he can't see the foods laying around. He never picks and taste at things, he doesn't graze. He eats his 3 meals and about 2 snacks a day and that is it. He isn't tempted by the stuff laying around because he can't see it. Now at meals he eats well, but that is a different story. But, I think I need to become more like him; blind to the food just laying around. When I make a concious effort not to indulge I am fine, but when I uncounsiously peck I will pay with weight gain. In my wieght loss journey I need to get my mind, mouth and tummy all on the same page.

Has anyone had any serious weight gain? I haven't had weight gain I was just wondering in fact totally the opposite for me, I'm at a stage where I'm trying to stop the weight loss!! My mate had the procedure fond on the same day & he's started regaining weight.