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Wowgurl! So far so good, almost 30 weeks pregnant and no weight gained, but the baby is growing,which is all I want! Congratulations on your pregnancy! Wishing you a happy and healthy 6 months!!!

So now that I have "officially" accepted responsibility for my weight gain over the years, now I'm trying to figure out what led to this roller coaster life I lead! My last blog, I talked about being on phen-phen and loving it... then getting married and 2 kids later - poof I'm topping 259.6 lbs! But there is a lot in between that time span that I need to reflect on! So - in my late 20's and early 30's - newly married, fabulous job, living in DC - smoozing with the politicians, climbing the work latter, away from my mom.... hmmmmm - can't think of a single reason emotionally that I should have gained weight... I think I stayed a size 10ish - wavering between an 8 and 12 probably - so not too bad. Though, again, I thought I was HUGE! But honestly, other than eating out, and enjoying an adult beverage (oh and not working out) - I'd say life was even for me during this time! Moving into my 30's - 2 kids now! Moved to Atlanta - lived in the burbs with the white picket fence (literally, a white picket fence)... hanging in the cul-de-sac in my sweater sets.... I gained about 40 - 50 lbs with each kid - though I lost "most of it" each time - but stayed in the 170s - 180's for the most part. I played tennis on the neighborhood tennis team - and in my late 30's, started running... I got down to a size 8 - 10 again and looked and felt good! Then BAM! It hit! My daughter is in kindergarten - teachers think something is "not quite right"; tests begin... nothing unusual - but still something "is off".... she enters 1st grade... and now the fun begins.... without going into the details of how we got there... we found out my daughter was dyslexic! The end of the world!!! We thought we had to brightest (her IQ by the way is 1 point below Genius), most perfect child... oh my god... what are we going to do? What did I do? I went into Mamma Bear mode.... started looking at private schools that specialize in dyslexia, started taking her to special tutoring sessions (driving an hour home from work to pick her up, then driving another 45 minutes to the tutor, waiting an hour, then driving an hour back home (rush hour). We started eating in the car - snacks on the way there, dinner from Mickey D's or Chick-fil-a on the way back... 3 x per week!!! I stopped running - who has time for that when you have a full time job, 2 kids, and this new "the world has ended" weight on my shoulders? My daughter was accepted in the top school - whew!! but that meant commuting 1.5 hours each way every day... but I was willing - because it was only supposed to be for 2 - 3 years (a transition school, where there is remediation and you go back to the "real world"). So we ate in the car...ALOT!!! My daughter isn't gaining weight because she is active (see a pattern from my mom here?)... but she is also on ADHD meds with acts as an appetite suppresent. I however, am gaining weight... not on the tennis team anymore, and definitely not exercising! Now add in my son - the pre-schools are saying he has some issues too - oh here we go again - at least we know what to look for this time - right? But we have him in a pre-school that is for advanced kids - and he is falling behind - and the teacher is bullying him - yes bullying a 4 year old. He went into a depression - 4 year old!!! He was the happiest kid - every day is a good day - and then boom - depressed! We pulled him out of that school and went to another school - he was happy, but not learning - but happy :-)! In Kindergarten - we decided to nip it in the bud - have him tested and boom - he is dyslexic too (it is hereditary and I probably had it but overcame it with my intellect and my dad is). We enter him into the same private school as my daughter - and now have $50,000 in tuition plus uniforms... plus the commute... and eating on the go! But - it was only temporary - right? So we did it... and then.. came the time for my daughter to be retested (every 3 years) and to start thinking about the next school..... I remember it clearly... I had just started a software development leg of my company... I was 30 minutes from walking into a board room filled with CEO's and CIOs from major companies (7 of them) to pitch my latest product.... and the psych called.... "Hey Krista - just wanted to let you know I'm coming up with some "weird" results for Natalie".....pause...."I'd like to run some additional tests"....pause...."I think she may be on the autism spectrum...and by the way I think she comes by it from her dad"! THUMP!!! OMG!!!! Did she just say AUTISM? OMG!!!!! So I compartmentalize that, and do my presentation... them come out and just CRY!!!! Turns out... after the initial testing and 2 second opinions... she is on the spectrum... and my husband is accepting that he may be too - but what is he going to do about it at almost 50 years of age?... Now my world is crumbling... AGAIN!!!! I have to find a new school, I have to put her in a "social skills" class (she was "shy" all this time - not autistic), I have to rearrange my life... AGAIN!! My world ended during this time - how can this be? So I started taking Lexapro to "deal" - and I probably drank way more wine than I should any given week... and I most definitely ate out every meal and did not exercise! OK - so, I found a school - only it is 2 hours from our house... my son is still at the dyslexia school - the complete other direction... so now what? Oh - sell our house and move closer! We also decided to go ahead and move our son to this school as it is a school for all types of learning differences! So - we move, move schools, and I also decide to sell my businesses.... I had to make changes - I had to do something!! But selling my business turned out to be a VERY bad idea (I'll write more on that another time)... and turns out, my son has Asperger's too - OMG - TWO KIDS on the spectrum!!!! Though actually with my son, they don't know how to diagnose him - so they just gave him that DX - he really has more working memory issues and his IQ is on the low side! So - moving from my past - I think I did very well overcoming my mother and childhood stuff... I did very well with moving up the corporate ladder, and I did well early in the childhood raising area.... My weight gains - major weight gains started when trouble hit my perfect little life! I turned to food (and alcohol - though I wouldn't call myself an alcoholic) to solve my problems - to comfort me! Food was the one staple that was there - no matter what - I could count on a drive-thru... I could count on a good sushi meal (I mean like $50 - $60 of sushi for me alone)... I could count on a bottle of wine! I can see the crisis that hit - I can see how I used food - but what I don't know yet, is how will I overcome the "next" crisis?????? More to come as I figure out this journey! Look for my scary boss story coming next - this is when I hit the top of the scales!!!

Thats not to bad, my doc is 200 just to walk thru the door ... I am soo sick of the pain, getting sick and the heartburn I can hardly deal anymore. I have Poly cystic ovarian disease to and I was reading some posts that explain or have the same symptoms I do ( weight gain, major hair loss, acne and abnormal hair growth). Does anyone know if there is special meds other than birth control or diet for this?

Thats not to bad, my doc is 200 just to walk thru the door ... I am soo sick of the pain, getting sick and the heartburn I can hardly deal anymore. I have Poly cystic ovarian disease to and I was reading some posts that explain or have the same symptoms I do ( weight gain, major hair loss, acne and abnormal hair growth). Does anyone know if there is special meds other than birth control or diet for this?

Hi guys so I had my gastric bypass in August of 2005. I was at 280 pounds and list over 150 pounds in a matter of 8 months. I had a baby and lost the 13 pounds I gained in a matter of a 3 weeks. I got pregnant again a year and a half later and lost the 20 pounds I gained in 2 months. But after my second pregnancy I went into a deep depression and have gained weight weight again. I am 210 pounds. I still eat very little but I don't know what is going on. Can anyone help or give any advice please!

If you are having port pain, gallbladder pain, and a band too tight your first priority needs to be seeing your surgeon immediately. I'm not trying to scare you, but walking around with a band too tight for 4 years is just begging for a major slip. I guarantee the cost of having your band removed entirely because of neglect would be far more expensive than the cost of an office visit and a slight unfill. Bands too tight can also cause weight gain, btw. Yet another reason to get into your surgeon. Best wishes.

I begin my liquid diet on Tuesday and my surgery is scheduled for 2/5/13. I am excited yet nervous. I wish it hadn't come to this but I believe with all of my heart that after years of yo-yo dieting, a 92# weight gain, diabetes and high blood pressure that I must have this physical restraint device to make a permanent change. I am 41 years old with a 9 year old son and I want to be around for a long time to watch him grow up!. I am scared to have anesthesia. I feel like I let my son down because I now have to have surgery to help me get my life back. I am tired of my body getting in the way of itself and being sore all of the time. I am scared that I won't have the willpower to do liquids. If I could do that I wouldn't so over weight! What are some helpful tips that got you through this first hurdle?

Maybe I'm overreacting a bit but I understand that I may not lose everyday but at the very least I don't want to gain. Yesterday was first day back at work...I'm still on my 2 weeks post op liquid diet and consumed my normal calories. That is 1 1/2 shakes and a soup for dinner. The weight gain may have been coz I went like 6-8 hours between meals because my job doesn't allow for me to eat when I want. Maybe my body went into starvation mode and thought "better hang on to these calories, she's starving us". Thoughts anyone?

Although I'm newly banded, as with pretty much everyone here I'm very experienced with weight gain and loss. Before I was banded I lost 165 lbs. I didn't have surgery, I didn't have weight loss drugs, nor did I use a program like Weight Watchers, Atkins, etc. I won't bore you with all the details, but guess what? I had some of the same problems. I had to have my gallbladder removed. Why? Rapid weight loss. I suffered a severe Vitamin B deficiency. So severe in fact that I was sent to a neurologist initially because I had weakness on one side, slurred speech, I could not keep my balance and was falling down or tripping a lot, aphasia (Aphasia is a disorder caused by damage to the parts of the brain that control language. It can make it hard for you to read, write and say what you mean to say. It is most common in adults who have had a stroke. Brain tumors, infections, injuries and dementia can also cause it. The type of problem you have and how bad it is depends on which part of your brain is damaged and how much damage there is.), etc. At first they thought I either had a stroke or MS. Turned out it was severe Vitamin B deficiency from rapid weight loss. I had a severe Vitamin D deficiency that caused me to be in pain. The cause was due to rapid weight loss. I could have been angry and decided I was better off being fat! Was weight loss to blame for all of my problems? Not exactly. My unhealthy behavior and obsession with losing weight to be thin combined with body dysmorphic disorder among other things was to blame. I knew I wasn't eating enough, I knew I should be taking Vitamins, but I didn't do it! As you can see if you experience sudden and rapid weight loss without a doctor's supervision (as in my case) and/or do not eat enough of the right foods and take supplements you can have all of the same symptoms you did. I'm not saying your band did or did not cause your problems because I don't know you and I'm not a physician. However it is possible to have all of those things occur without being banded. I don't know what happened to you. Were you compliant with doctor's instructions? I don't know. Was your doctor competent and paying attention to your symptoms? I don't know. Was the band for you - I guess not. Like all methods and surgeries, it's not for everyone. Many of us here have chosen lap-band because we feel it is our last or only hope to get to a manageable weight. Your story simply illustrates the necessity of doing thorough research, weighing the pros and cons and determining if one is willing to follow guidelines. It is important to know your body and report and problems to one's doctor. You can't pick and choose which rules you want to follow and which ones you don't. I'm sorry things turned out so badly for you. Perhaps you would do better serving as an example of what not to do and why the band is not right for some people even though it does appear to work for many others instead of coming off so bitter. Were you fully aware of the risks of the surgery and agreeable to take them? Life is a crap shoot. Things go wrong. Deal with it.

Don't give up!! If you really want this, you'll get it! Where there's a will, there's a way! And don't beat yourself up over the weight gain, that's why we're all here- things get us down and we eat. Do you have to lose the weight again to qualify or do you think they won't really need to see you until the Pre-op appointment? If you need to lose the weight, then do what you have to- I know you can! If not the. Don't even worry about the scale. Just start mentally preparing yourself for this huge change by making small changes. Believe me- (mommy can probably attest to this too!) nothing can possibly completely prepare you for the huge change you'll go through. I'm happy for you, getting more time with your kids! It's good you find a silver lining! Keep your chin up, keep going Good luck- keep us in the loop!

Congratulations to you all for taking the New Year "by the horns". You all have taken the 1st steps to controlling your weight gains. We are here for you, welcome back and best wishes to you all. Food is an addiction, we can't go "cold turkey" and be completely off, that is probably the hardest part of this addiction. We need to control our addiction with the help of great lapband tool. Karen

Just like most people, I have been plagued with weight issues my whole life - starting at a very early age, I swear I could look at food and gain weight!!! Starting with childhood, my mother was very "on top" of this "issue", and did things like making dinner for the whole family, and then serving me a "lean cuisine". I remember spending my summers with my grandparents in Florida (wonderful memories), and coming back to my parents with my mom FURIOUS at my grandmother for the weight I put on (usually between 7 and 10 lbs). I was active the whole summer (swimming, tennis, water skiing), but I also got to have ice cream EVERY NIGHT as a treat :-)! When I was in high school, I weighed a whopping 105 lbs... I was thin... but I thought I was fat because of my lifelong (so far) drama with food (and my mother). But.... I was only thin because I was active... my mother made sure of that! I was on the tennis team, I was on the dance team (despite my "Elaine" like abilities), and my mother put me through multiple "boot camps" every summer... yes I was thin... but at 16, my cholesterol was 220+.... why? Because I ate crap when away from my mother's watchful eye... I ate candy (even hid it under my bed), I ate anything that wasn't green (no salads - ever!)... we had off-campus lunch in high school - so I had Sonic, pizza, sub sandwiches, and I did dabble in drinking on the weekends with my buddies (shhh... don't tell my mother). My mom - super skinny (even when she was pregnant with me, she only gained 15 lbs), would get up at 4:30 am to run - she was a marathon runner, aerobics dance guru, tennis player, etc etc... she had soooo much energy (still does - ugh)... she would wake me up at 6:30 (even on weekends) to "start my day". I had to mow the lawn, clean my room - basically anything but sit or sleep! Note - by little brother NEVER mowed the lawn - not once (he is super skinny - always has been - and they didn't want to make him tired for his baseball games - WHATEVER)!! So, it is no wonder, that when I left for college (left the state no doubt), I had NO skills for eating correctly... AND I was out of my mother's watchful eye.. I didn't have to exercise.... I didn't have to be accountable for what was on the scale! As I grew, so did my friends, so there were plenty of "hand me downs" to grow into - clothes weren't an issue! Bring on the Freshman 15 (or 20)!! So, there it started - age 17 (I was very young going to college) - my downhill spiral to weight gain! Enter early 20's - so I was "sort of thin" - I was around 140ish - size 10ish (I'm 5'3" by the way).... I had boyfriends, I entered into the job market (working for a top company) in a size 6... and BIG bows in my hair (I grew up in Dallas, what can I say?)....I went up and down in my 20's - until I was about 26.... I went on PHEN-PHEN!!! I was about 140ish and got down to 110!!! I looked HOT!!! I loved phen-phen meds - I didn't want to eat - food was disgusting to me, and I was full all the time. I ate 600 calories a day, lost alot of hair (I have really thick hair thankfully - but still!!!)... and I had more boyfriends then I knew what to do with... So I know what you are saying... phen-phen at 140? really? Well - it worked for me - and remember - I was "fat" at 105 to my mother - and now as a young adult - to me too!! 140 - 150 - OMG - FATTTTTTTTTT!!!!!!! (funny to me now - I dream of 140)! Move on to age 28 - getting married at 130 lbs - size 8ish - looked good for wedding.... then started the weight train gain!!! Fast forward 2 kids later...and in Jan 2012 - I weighed in at my highest 259.6 lbs!!!!!! Here begins the journey.... the real journey!!! So - was my mother right to restrict my foods? Was she right to get me moving all the time? Was she right in making me feel fat (even at a size 0 - 2)? I don't know!! REALLY!!! I have gone back and forth with this question... sometimes I like to BLAME her for my weight issues - I mean it is soooo easy to, right?.... but then again, she was trying to set boundaries and keep me from being the kid people picked on, keep me from the fat kid issues, keep me healthy ... she was trying!! and I am the one that CHOSE to break the rules - right? See, it isn't so easy to decide who is to blame now is it? I think as I write this - I am going to have to start accepting my own actions - hold myself accountable - even for what I did wayyyyy back then (I'm 43 now).... I am going to have to grow up and realize - it is all ME - and it is ME that got ME into this... and it is ME that will get me out of it!! My blog is intended for me to self-reflect, document how I feel now that I have been sleeved, and understand who and what I am. I hope you too will find some inspiration in my documentation - but I honestly am doing this for ME (for a change)! For the first time ever, I am putting ME first (though some of my friends would laugh at that statement "It's all about me" has been a "motto" thrown around about me sometimes)... but I mean putting ME and my love/hate relationship with food, weight, and even my mother at rest - understanding my triggers, understanding who I am and want to be the rest of my life (now that I'm a grown up)!

I can't see how you can blame a product (i.e. evil contraption) when it sounds like it was medical malpractice on your doctor's part. You can have a IUD put in wrong or any product and if the doctor makes error, you can't blame the product. P.S. If you really did your research like you said, um.... you would have known that the lapband doesn't work with liquids. lol That's pretty basic stuff that you didn't know from your research. (Your quote "Third major problem: (was not told this ahead of time either) weight gain is guaranteed if you DRINK liquids with your meals")

I beleive it is truly an evil contraption and I expect to see it pulled from the market in a few years. I think the number of patients with problems from it is higher than the 40 something %, base on the forums on the web where people talk about it. On to my story...I was banded 3 years ago. I won't bore you with all the medical probs it has caused, but during my research to find out what some of medical issues were, I came across the following shocking information-- Sometimes during the lapband surgery the vagus nerve gets damaged OR even worse some drs actually go on and wrap the Vagus nerve around the lapband in order to help curb hunger. This fact was NOT disclosed to me ahead of time. The Vagus nerve is a main nerve that runs down through your ears, thru your heart, your stomach and other major parts of the body. I was having all these symptoms in those areas and more, loss of hearing, AFIB (which I wound up having some major heart surgery for), extreme stomach pain and so forth. A very LARGE number of lapband patients develop AFIB. Also had to have my gall bladder removed after banding, again, another high percent of banded patients have this prob. Fast forward 3 years, so much pain, so many problems, yet all tests show my lapband is perfectly in place, not twisted, not eroded, etc etc. THEREFORE, insurance won't pay for its removal as of now! There is no test to prove the Vagus nerve is damaged. So there is nothing on paper to prove my theory that the Vagus nerve is damaged, and thus causing all my probs. Next major problem with the lapband: I didnt go with gastric bypass because I didnt want to be on b12 shots the rest of my life ( a known prob with gastic bypass). But now, guess what? I am Vit b12 deficient. (also not told that this was a possible side effect with the band) 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! And yes, I DID do my pre-surgery research for over a year, and used a highly reccomended surgeon in my area, but without ALL the info fo what all can go wrong, as well as all the failures and removals of the lapband after banding, how was I to make a REALLY informed decision? I would NOT reccomend this procedure to anyone.

TGIF!!! Well good news, I am down 4lbs since my weight gain. You were right, I guess my body just needed to adjust. Tomorrow is girls night out and Sunday is family dinner. I plan to eat a little of everything (even a piece of cake) but not get out of control. Won't be able to exercise tomorrow but I am going to on Sunday morning. Have upped my Protein from 70g to about 80g a day, cals are at 1050ish. I feel like i have more energy. Breakfast - 6oz yogurt, 6 almonds, a few banana slices lunch - 1/2 pita with 2 tbsp Peanut Butter, 3 strawberries Dinner - 1/2c braised beef, 1/2c mashed yam snack - 5oz vanilla yogurt, 1/2 Protein Bar liquids - Water, 10oz skim milk Exercise - 20 min bollywood dance dvd, 15 min pilates

You are 100% right it's scientifically proven ....please click on the link incase any one have any doubts For years, studies of obesity have found that soon after fat people lost weight, their metabolism slowed and they experienced hormonal changes that increased their appetites. Scientists hypothesized that these biological changes could explain why most obese dieters quickly gained back much of what they had so painfully lost. But now a group of Australian researchers have taken those investigations a step further to see if the changes persist over a longer time frame. They recruited healthy people who were either overweight or obese and put them on a highly restricted diet that led them to lose at least 10 percent of their body weight. They then kept them on a diet to maintain that weight loss. A year later, the researchers found that the participants’ metabolism and hormone levels had not returned to the levels before the study started. The study, being published Thursday in The New England Journal of Medicine, is small and far from perfect, but confirms their convictions about why it is so hard to lose weight and keep it off, say obesity researchers who were not involved the study. They cautioned that the study had only 50 subjects, and 16 of them quit or did not lose the required 10 percent of body weight. And while the hormones studied have a logical connection with weight gain, the researchers did not show that the hormones were causing the subjects to gain back their weight. Nonetheless, said Dr. Rudolph Leibel, an obesity researcher at Columbia, while it is no surprise that hormone levels changed shortly after the participants lost weight, “what is impressive is that these changes don’t go away.” Dr. Stephen Bloom, an obesity researcher at Hammersmith Hospital in London, said the study needed to be repeated under more rigorous conditions, but added, “It is showing something I believe in deeply — it is very hard to lose weight.” And the reason, he said, is that “your hormones work against you.” In the study, Joseph Proietto and his colleagues at the University of Melbourne recruited people who weighed an average of 209 pounds. At the start of the study, his team measured the participants’ hormone levels and assessed their hunger and appetites after they ate a boiled egg, toast, margarine, orange juice and crackers for Breakfast. The dieters then spent 10 weeks on a very low calorie regimen of 500 to 550 calories a day intended to makes them lose 10 percent of their body weight. In fact, their weight loss averaged 14 percent, or 29 pounds. As expected, their hormone levels changed in a way that increased their appetites, and indeed they were hungrier than when they started the study. They were then given diets intended to maintain their weight loss. A year after the subjects had lost the weight, the researchers repeated their measurements. The subjects were gaining the weight back despite the maintenance diet — on average, gaining back half of what they had lost — and the hormone levels offered a possible explanation. One hormone, leptin, which tells the brain how much body fat is present, fell by two-thirds immediately after the subjects lost weight. When leptin falls, appetite increases and metabolism slows. A year after the weight loss diet, leptin levels were still one-third lower than they were at the start of the study, and leptin levels increased as subjects regained their weight. Other hormones that stimulate hunger, in particular ghrelin, whose levels increased, and peptide YY, whose levels decreased, were also changed a year later in a way that made the subjects’ appetites stronger than at the start of the study. The results show, once again, Dr. Leibel said, that losing weight “is not a neutral event,” and that it is no accident that more than 90 percent of people who lose a lot of weight gain it back. “You are putting your body into a circumstance it will resist,” he said. “You are, in a sense, more metabolically normal when you are at a higher body weight.” A solution might be to restore hormones to normal levels by giving drugs after dieters lose weight. But it is also possible, said Dr. Jules Hirsch of Rockefeller University, that researchers just do not know enough about obesity to prescribe solutions. One thing is clear, he said: “A vast effort to persuade the public to change its habits just hasn’t prevented or cured obesity.” “We need more knowledge,” Dr. Hirsch said. “Condemning the public for their uncontrollable hedonism and the food industry for its inequities just doesn’t seem to be turning the tide.” http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/27/health/biological-changes-thwart-weight-loss-efforts-study-finds.html?_r=1& Sent from my iPhone 5 using VST

I love your statement "To accept that I am worth this." I am brand new lapband. My surgery is February 11th. I've read a couple of your blogs. Please keep going. I'm so concerned about the menu part and feeding my family at the same time as I restrict what I eat. When members like you post their menus, it gives me ideas. I can't really give advice on the 2 pound weight gain, but congratulations on the overall 30 pound loss! Cindy

I am post op and feel your confusion/concern. We sure can put on 7 lbs in a weekend but cut our caloric intake by less than half and our body hangs onto the pounds....at first. Don't cheat and your body will finally catch up. What they failed to tell me was you gain weight immediately following surgery. You are pumped full of IV fluids and I found out later the weight gain is normal. I put back on 12 lbs! Go through the surgery and come out holding the weight I had lost pre surgery. After 2 days that dropped off a pound a day. 6 weeks later I am down almost 30 lbs and 2 sizes almost 3 from my highest. Feels great to feel in control of my health. Followed the pre op rules to a T. Had no nausea or vomiting post op. Up walking a couple hrs after surgery. No gas pressure in my back or shoulders. My only post op cheat is reg coffee. Keep it down to 2 mugs before work and drink lots of water all day. Good luck. You are going to love your new body!

Pcos is poly cystic ovarian syndrome. It is a hormonal/metabolic issue women have. The signs are no period, hair loss, facial hair growth,weight gain and other wonderful things. One of the issues is it is really hard to lose weight even with weight loss surgery. They recommend a very low carb diet with this because the way we break down sugar is like that of a diabetic. Metformin is a medication that we take to help with the symptoms. The dr says that as we lose weight the symptoms improve but nothing has changed here for me. I have not had my period since my daughter was born in October of 2010! Almost 2 1/2 years. If you have any of these symptoms it might behoove you to get it checked out! GREEN- I am on 1000 mg right now. My surgeon said Ido t have to take it but my obgyn told me to continue taking it. Who do I listen to??

SW: 259 Last Week: 227.6 Current Weight: 228.5 1lb weight gain ( could be water retention, constipation...) Goal Weight: 160

Escape_Pod thank you so much for responding! It is nice to know I am not alone in this. Only a fellow sleever can understand. Fortunately, I caught myself before I got to out of control. Those two extra pounds were my wake up call. If I am honest with myself, I know I did not follow my program, since Thanksgiving, all the way through the new year. My only saving grace was that I worked out like a fiend and that kept my weight gain at a minimum. I do think one of my biggest issues is the ability to eat more. I definitely need to up my solid protein, more chicken etc. It's been hard since I allowed myself to start eating more carbs. I am doing my best now to limit them but then I find myself in a situation because I run. I was told I wasn't getting enough carbs so it's a balancing act. But hey I did go overboard. So now I begin the journey again. I am going to remotivate myself. I will do this. I will personally be happy to get down to 145 as opposed to the goal the doctor set for me. I think the other set back is the fact that my body image is shot. I can see the muscles I have built but they are blanketed by loose skin...:/ Seriously not a happy sight. I have lost my breasts and my butt sags like nobodys business. It's awful. However, I had a long talk with my best supporter, my dear hubby. Between his pep talk and your response, I am feeling so much better. Thank you so much and I am definitely going to check out that link

Judy, people have band to sleeve revisions all the time who have not yet regained all their weight. But the band becomes a problem and they need to remove it...and they know that if they simply remove that and do nothing else the weight will come back on in a hurry due to the change in metabolism. In those cases I'm all for it. On the other hand, you've got a young 20 something who is 15 pounds overweight and doesn't want to have to fight weight problems in the future so she has WLS...I'm not sure I support that. Because as you say, she still will have to do the same things to keep the weight off in the future regardless of whether or not she has the surgery. I think the surgery is great for people who already have the weight and are having trouble getting it off. The sleeve gives you a chance to lose it but you have to do the work to keep it off. For people who simply see the weight gain as inevitable, and want to prevent obsesity related problems in the future....I truly believe those people can prevent those issues with the same attention to health and nutrition without having surgery if they commit before the weight gain has gotten out of control.... UNLESS...there are diagnosed, underlying medical conditions which will lead to obesity regardless.....like disorders of the thyroid. Ought these people have WLS as a preventative measure when they know obesity is coming regardless of what they do? I don't know enough about thyroid disorders to know how likely that scenario is, but I'm willing to at least consider the possibility in these cirucumstances.

Definitely round down the height. I was self pay when I did the band and would have made the insurance requirement but I thought I was a bit taller than i was! I still would have needed to gain a couple of pounds, but heck, I'm really really good at gaining weight It is really stupid what they make you do. Especially as while I've been working toward my revision the doctor said that recent weight gain is bad because that fat nearly always goes right to the liver and makes this surgery more dangerous. So if you do gain it, try to lose it again!

Do you know... my husband who has always been pretty normal weight gained 15 lbs the first year I was banded. He was complaining about it...and I told him its because I was still cooking normal and he was eating his plus what I couldnt finish! He started to realize there was truth in that and stopped and lost his weight. It just goes to show you what eating too much of even healthy food can do....