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(((((((((HUGS)))))))) I am so sorry to hear of your loss, Ezma. I know your husband had been very ill; I am sure the last few months have been very stressful. Any weight gain is understandable and no one is going to comment negatively about it. The VVs are here to help, motivate, support each other. One day, one meal, one walk at a time. Keep checking in with us and we will all help each other. I missed your inspiring posts. I am glad you are back with us. Take care, my friend.

Sultana most anti depressants will cause weight gain. I was on Paxil for 1.5 years when my son and mother died andI gained 65 pounds. It is true once you stop taking prozac you will see some weight loss. Most of us overweight people take anti depressants becasue of depression due to being overwieght but I have found once I have started losing weight my issues with depression have diminished greatly. I no longer take paxil . I on occassion take an anxiety medication Xanax. Hope your fill works for you...

Sultana, some antidepressants do cause weight gain. I sure you can check with your pharmacist or the web about particular ones that you're concerned about. The web will give you extensive info. and also what other meds. it is/or is not compatible with. Best of luck!

Another pound this AM. Everybody hang in there! Can you imagine what this would be like if we were posting weight gains like this!? Name.............StartingWeight....Current......Goal.........To Go Bunkey1965........220.................196............189...........7 CQQlgirl..............200.................198............190...........8 Cadets71............239.................226.5..........219...........7.5 Dreamsize8.........216.................216............190...........26 FeliciaLevy75......286.................243............240........... 3 Gayle21..............190.......... ......190............175...........15 Jeni 85................189.................182............169...........13 Laura bough........215.................205............190...........15 Liz_hager............172.................163............150...........13 MMarg.................220.................214............199...........21 Newhope4me......163.6...............159.6..........150..........9.6 NukeChik.............227.................227............197...........30 Scrappy_friend....222.................222.............200..........22 TexGirl................202.................198............180...........18 Thininside28........271.5..............256.............245...........11 Wannabthin.........199................199.............179...........20

I am 1 year out from the vertical or gastric sleeve. I chose this for several reasons. I had gained weight due to another health issue, where I had to take medications that caused a long term(10 years) weight gain of 75 lbs. I am still on some of these meds so weight loss continues to be an issue with me. Although I do not regret the decision to have wt. loss surgery, I do think I made a mistake in the type I chose. It is permanent-which seemed a good thing at the time, It is advertised as lowering your hunger-it does not, I am extremely hungry often, but am only able to eat very small portions, while drinking next to nothing during meals. I no longer can enjoy meals or activities surrounding get-togethers involving food. I become extremely uncomfortable quickly-often having to lie down somewhere until I recover. I have adjusted by eating very little in groups & not at all at work. Yes, I have lost weight but only 40 lbs so far. I experience GI difficulties all the time. Nausea, and worst is the gas-all the time-noisy like nothing I have had or experienced other than through teen-age movie antics. I am always uncomfortable worrying I will embarrass myself in this way. I would strongly suggest to anyone thinking of this to do the lap-band instead! I know people who have had this successfully & wish that I had one. It can be removed. I am stuck with this altered stomach-an organ that cannot be replaced & I did this to myself. I have no problem with wt. loss surgery itself. My recovery was uneventful. But, if I could go back & have the choice over I certainly would! I am depressed in a way that I wasn't prior to the surgery. Does anyone have a similiar experience or know of solutions to make me more comfortable?

Has anyone gained weight when they first started eating regular foods ? And if so I would like to hear what happened......HELP!!!! Is this normal ?

I met my husband in 2002, I was around 260 then. We moved in together before we got married and we both started to gain weight together. He was a very healthy weight when we met so his weight gain was about 30-40lbs over the course of 8yrs, my weight gain was 100lbs to 370 by 2013. At a yearly check up with a new PCP she looked at me astounded that all of my blood work was fine, no hyperglycemia, I was still very mobile, only a slightly high BP. She behooved us to try the DASH diet for weight loss telling me my good numbers would not last. So my husband and I did and very successfully lost weight with diet and exercise. My husband lost down to a BMI of 25 and I lost 93lbs to 277. Then last summer we planned a Caribbean getaway and fell off the wagon starting in June. It was slow, but I did start gaining back and by November had gained back 25lbs. I tried again the reset method from the DASH diet of no carbs/sugars for two weeks and only lost 4lbs... Discouraged I went to a seminar with a coworker who was loud and proud about having it done. I was always a naysayer about WLS thinking if you can eat like that after surgery why can't you do it now? I was uneducated!! My husband is very supportive of me and has loved me unconditionally at all sizes that I've been. I decided to make this change so I can travel comfortably in an airplane seat and see the world. My kids are grown and my main focus can be me for a change. My husband was scared about surgery and he, in a moment of complete honesty, said he was happy right now with the way things were which included planning a place to eat out on the days we were off together. I told him it was the simple things he takes for granted, like running into Walmart and buying a cheap Tshirt (I know Walmart has plus size, but plus size belly shirts, they're so short!), not thinking twice about a booth in a restaurant hoping the table wasn't bolted to the floor, not worrying not having your elderly dad say "sit in that chair right there, I think it will hold you"....Those things!

I was in the same boat as you when I first started, I thought I wanted the sleeve but after a little more digging and reading people's (long term) journey with the sleeve, I knew bypass would be best. I am now almost 2 weeks post op with bypass and so glad I made my choice. I've had zero complications no nausea, vomiting, heartburn, diarrhea nothing! I have NO issues with any foods I've tried so far which hasn't been much but I can tell I'll be one who can tolerate pretty much anything. I know if I had the sleeve I'd be like so many (not all) on here that have issues with weight gain, because I can see how the head hunger will get you even after surgery and if my pouch was the size of a sleever I could definitely see how most either stop losing after 5-6 months or slowly gain weight back. I would continue doing your research and ask your doctor, ALL of mine encouraged bypass. Just do what you think is best for you. You know your eating habits and patterns better than anyone. Oh and I'm a Teacher so I'm off for the summer but if I wasn't I'd need at least 2-3 weeks unless it was a desk job.

YOU ARE RIGHT, Melinda, ON EVERY POINT. And frankly, its not news to me, but ALL OF IT bears repeating - and LISTENING-TO, over and over. I am notoriously "half-empty" when it comes to ME. I have a wonderful husband (who married the "chunky me" 13 years ago), 4 awesome kids (DD24, DD21, DS12, DS8), a lovely home, a fulfilling cottage-industry business (www.kcarddesigns.biz) , friends who do not judge me because of my size 20W, nor will they love me more when I am a 12/14M. ... Its ME who can't give ME a break. I was a trim kid/teen/college student. I was 140'ish when I married in 1983...started gaining w/ my first child in 87, and its been snowballing ever since. Lots and LOTS of stressors thru the years, and some underlying "Payback" attitudes toward my first husband during our 13 year marriage (I lost him to cancer in 1996), and some "control" issues in my second marriage...I'm a head-case, to be sure. SO, there are some "issues", just like most everyone else, and lots of SHAME that had accompanied my weight-gain. I hide from the camera like a criminal, either avoiding it altogether or hiding behind someone or some thing. Sadly, my young boys will have FEW pictures of their mama...until now. Boy, do I need therapy or what?? ha. Anyway, I appreciate the nudge regarding improving the shakes. I will definitely look into it. The coconut idea sounds really great. Never thought of adding extracts!!! Duh. I wonder if I had the chocolate variety, if I could successfully (read: DELICIOUSLY) add Peppermint Extract and enjoy it?? I LOVE chocolate/mint anything....hmmmm....maybe I should consider that!? I did manage a 25 min walk last evening. Went the main-loop of our subdivision. Didn't feel overly winded when I got back, but it was stiflingly HOT & MUGGY here in Indy, so I was a sweat-ball when I got home. I cooled down, then took a cool shower. And felt VERY PROUD OF MYSELF for having DONE IT. My friend has also applauded my success and has me committed to doing something today too, as you have!! Thank Heaven it is raining in our area right now, but maybe later today I will get to the street to make another circle. I did do some deep cleaning on my kitchen this morning, working up a nice lather. That surely counts for something??? Still, walking is my best thing, so once I get over "starting" I'm usually good to go. Anyway, thank you again for your kind encouragement. I know I will likely lose some weight in this pre-op stage. I'm counting on it!!... but I also know the critical reasoning behind it, and I do want everything to go smoothly. I stepped on my scale this morning: 221.8 (I need to figure out how to add one of those meters.) It was 224 at the clinic on Tuesday...don't know what it was here, tho. Still, obviously easier for me to track on mine than theirs, so I'll go w/ that. It is empowering, because I know a month ago I was knocking on 225-226. Encouraging. Cheers! Kim

It sounds to me as if you may be going into a manic episode. When I start to lose wieght it is easier for me to have them too. Just make an appointment with your doc and see if he can give you something to ease your irratability. I would also mention to him any other symptoms you have been having and the fact that you are banded and trying to lose weight as several of the mood stabilizer meds can cause weight gain.

My latest moment was at my grandma birthday celebration this past summer 2014..... Our family had identical shirts made and mine was a 2X, when I put it on the day of, it was too tight along with my too tight stretch pants! The kicker was when the photographer posted and tagged me AND everyone that was in the same pictures with me on facebook! I was horrified! My rear end looked like a wide load truck! I looked uncomfortably stuffed and you could see EVERY roll even what I didn't know that I had! Since my substantial weight gain, no one on FB had seen a full body shot of me! The only thing that I could do was untag myself:( I'm scheduled to have my life changing experience (VSG) September 26, 2014

Hi, If you're reading this, you're probably considering sleeve surgery. I will share a shorten version of "my long story." I am 51 yrs old. and have not been obese all my life. Three years ago i quit smoking (30 yr bad habit) and my small 5'2" frame went from 120 lbs. to 195 lbs. I know, it was bad. But that's not the worse part - apparently the rapid weight gain had decided to reek havoc on my liver. Having some routine blood work done was showing my liver enzymes beginning to sky rocket. I was trying weight watchers, Atkins, starving myself, etc. and like everyone else, I would gain everything back again. I used to be semi-active but with the added pounds on my small frame, my knees, back and joints were killing me. There was no way I could exercise - Not to mention, I was out of breath soo quickly. I was so depressed. My extremely high liver enzymes forced me to see a specialist. I went to Temple University in Philadelphia, PA and he told me that if I did not lose this excess weight rapidly, I would be needed a liver transplant in the future. Please note my liver enzymes were over 10X the normal high. On the way home from Philadelphia that day, I called a friend who went to Lehigh Valley Hospital in Allentown, PA for lapband surgery. She told me that she had Dr. Harrison and for me.... this was the beginning of changing my life. My insurance company required me to go thru a 3 month program which included weight loss meetings, meeting a psychiatrist for an evaluation, dietitian counseling, nutrition counseling, group meetings, etc. I was traveilng down to Allentown almost once a week for 3 months. After I completed the entire program, I had a problem with my insurance company. They initially denied my claim and my original January 2012 surgery date had to be cancelled. I was "crushed" but my surgeon appealed their denial and I was back on the schedule for April 24th. : ) I did not have a pre-surgical diet to follow, except to do High Protein or Atkins Diet to help to "firm up" and shrink the size of the liver for surgery. The surgeon must actually lift up the liver to move it out of the way for the surgery. I did Atkins for 2 weeks prior to surgery and then 3 days before surgery, I did a Atkins shake Fast - no food and lost 8 lbs in 3 days. Current weight was 188 lbs. on day of surgery. As far as the sleeve surgery is concerned, well... it was bad for me. They also removed my gall bladder. I never imagined to be in such pain since I am usually a quick healer. One of the hardest parts for me was getting out of bed after surgery. I was not able to use my stomach muscles without a lot of pain. Probably the fact that my stomach was sooo out of shape at that point, there was no muscles. I was lucky enough to borrow a reclining lift chair from a friend and I actually slept in this chair for probably 2-3 weeks. Eating the first 6 weeks was just to survive - I did not enjoy eating at all and I never got physically hungry but there is a mental hunger. I accidently ate a little too much and TRUST ME - you won't let that happen very often. You feel like you must throw up to get this excess out of your stomach. It's not a fun feeling and it lasts about 2 hrs for me. I am now 2 1/2 months post op and I feel great. I am down to 150 lbs. which is a loss of 38 lbs. since surgery. I was wearing a sz. 18 pants and am wearing between 12 and 14 now. I feel like my self confidence is finally coming back and I look forward to a future. And by the way... I went to get my bloodwork done a few days ago and my liver enzymes have almost gotten back to a normal range. This was the whole purpose of my surgery - to SAVE MY LIVER - the other benefits are an extra perk. : ) If you have any questions, Or I can help you with anything, please let me know. And lastly, GOOD LUCK to you. PJones

I'm so sorry about your family's challenges and about this frustration. Your body sounds very metabolically efficient like mine is. So many people say that increasing calories works for them, and I have tried it, but my body rebels with immediate and sustained weight gain if I go over 800 calories or so. I am hypothyroid, but I think it's also bc of years of very low calorie diets and also just how my body is made (my mom says if there were a famine, we would be stepping over the dead bodies). Your weight loss does give me hope. It sounds like you have done very well, though I know it must be incredibly frustrating to be in the home stretch and to be having so many issues with slow loss and easy regain. I am 12 weeks out and have lost about 50 pounds--30 lbs since surgery and about 20 lbs during a 6-month pre-op diet. Have a long way to go so it's helpful to see what others who are farther out are doing. I'm sorry that there don't seem to be any easy answers. Wishing you the best.

Well....where to begin.... I'll start by saying I'm a positive person. I hate negativity! However, I'm finding my thoughts to be NEGATIVE lately. I was banded on 9/21/11. The following week my weight was down 25lbs. About 2 weeks after surgery I began to get hungry and I seemingly lost any restriction I may have had. I didn't sweat it because I was scheduled for my first adjustment on 10/25, thinking I would surely have a successful fill w/ restriction. SURPRISE!!! I had a 3cc fill with absolutely no restriction. I haven't had a weight gain...on a positive note I have actually maintained my current loss at 25lbs. But, I can eat as much as I did before the band. I had this surgery so I would no longer have to fight the "diet" mentality but, instead could have the smaller portion meals, slim and healthy life-style everlasting. I hope I'm not one of those whom I've read about who wake up one year later still fighting to reach a sweet spot with the adjustments. My greatest fear is to put on the pounds verses losing them. How many licks does it take to get to the center of a tootsie pop? How many adjustments does it take to get to your happy home? I'm scheduled to have my 2nd adjustment on Tuesday the 21st. I really don't know how I'll handle it if this adjustment doesn't give me some restriction. I don't care that Turkey Day is 2 days later, I'll forfeit all of it for the success of restriction. I hope I have exchanged a thousands of dollars for this worry . Glenda045

Hi everyone. I’m new to the site and have just received confirmation that my band will be going ahead in September! I am so happy I just can't put the excitement into words!! I was diagnosed with POCS 9 years ago. At the time all I suffered from was irregular periods and very erratic moods. I managed to have 2 sons which I am very grateful for. As the years have past though my weight has increased considerably. This weight gain has caused other side effects like Hirsutism and Acne (the acne is mainly just my back) but the hair is on my face, neck, chest, breasts, stomach, arms, back, shoulders ect ect. I have fair hair and blue eyes but this hair is dark and coarse. Unfortunately the excess hair/acne combined with the weight gain and an unsympathetic husband meant my confidence and self esteem hit rock bottom. I became a shadow of my former self and avoided people and social situations. However, I'm pleased to say that things are looking up! I got rid of the unsympathetic husband a few years ago; I have a new career and my two wonderful sons. And I’m hoping that with the help of the band I will be able to lose some of these stubborn pounds and gain some of my confidence back. I was wondering though if anyone could tell me if the excessive hair does improve with significant weight loss?? Sally xx

Hello Ladies! Well, I'm getting excited for my garage sale. We have things ready (mostly, lol) and planning on selling cinnamon rolls and lemonade (like Melissa suggested, I think it's a cute idea). I hope to sell the rolls, because I don't want them in the house, lol! My sweet tooth demon will surely attack them. If there's any left, I'll just have hubby take them to work. And Tap, I made my signs HUGE, lol . . . I agree with you, some people make such small signs, they are impossible to read. Anyway, hoping to make some money this weekend - the weather is supposed to be really nice, so that will help. I hope it all goes well. :tt2: Thanks all for the kind words about my kitty. I still have two cats around the house, so it helps. I think they may be sensing a difference too. Just gonna keep the positive thoughts flowing, and remember the good times we shared. Well I saw my surgeon yesterday, and he is just the nicest guy. He didn't give me any lecture regarding my weight gain at all, he was just concerned that he couldn't give my lap-band even a small fill without giving me heart burn or reflux. So I have to go and get an Upper GI and then he can evaluate the band further. I hope it's not slipped or something. Ezma, if you conquer that cookie demon, will you let me know how please? The seems to be my big problem, I'm just craving sweets lately. I went to the whole foods store after my doctor visit, and stocked up on some fresh fruits in season - plums, nectarines, and some great looking kiwi fruits. I also bought a bought some new things to spruce up salads - sprouts, sun-dried tomatoes (not sure the calorie count on those) and some butter lettuce. Butter lettuce makes good sandwich wraps too! So I'm still trying . . . I gotta beat that sweet tooth demon in the butt. :thumbup: Melissa, I hope you have a great time with your family in Utah! You'll have to share it all with us when you get back. Isn't it great not to have to worry about fitting into seats and other things! :wub: Struggling with you on the exercise Tap - with all the work we've been doing on the sale (plus other family gatherings that have been going on), I just haven't had the energy to do as much as I should. I've been out on my bike, and still working around the yard, but it's not enough to keep up with what I've been eating! I did drop two pounds rather quickly. Maybe it was Water weight? I can hope, lol! Thanks so much for this post Irene - it really gave me lots of inspiration! You are right, we do need to keep doing 90% on our own (although right now I wish my band was giving me a LITTLE help) . . . I loved where you said "there is no limit on how many times we can try again." AMEN to that! :thumbup: Just keep swimming all, and have a great weekend! I'll probably be back on Monday :tt1: ((((Warm Hugs))))

Hi Ladies. I'm all moved in. It was hard and exhausting, but I'm liking the new house. Okay, all moved in makes it sound like all the boxes are put away and that's certainly not the case, but we're doing pretty well. My heartburn has been better with the Nexium I'm taking. I am still going to see my doctor on December 2 and I think I'll go ahead and get my fluid out at that point. I hurt most times when I'm eating and I'm frankly tired of it. I am still getting food in, but it takes me forever and is sometimes painful. I just hope I can still keep my pregnancy weight gain to a reasonable amount. I haven't weighed myself in more than a week. I'm afraid to. I know I'm going to be over 200 again and that's just rough. I haven't been exercising much, but I did go the other day to the gym and run on the treadmill. I was glad I could still do it!

AGREED!!! I had it many years, along with my pregnancies too!! It came and went - never big issue - then little before surgery I was getting it - put on PPI's and kept on them till after surgery - I'm still on them all these years and it just never goes away - so now I'm up to 2 RX pills per day - protonix as well as Prevacid at night time until surgery - just to try and keep it at bay.. I've tried ACV too - seemed to help a little, as a natural thing - I've tried all different things and end up back on PPIs and I just turned 52, I do not want to take 2 pills per day for another 30-40 years, God willing.. It's horrendous being on vacation and having to not go anywhere, cause my chest is killing me... I've had so many work ups and it comes back to the belly/sleeve issue - I also need a umbilical hernia repaired and they won't do it right now, but possibly do it within the revision surgery, surgeon said. They don't want to do it and repair it if I'm not getting the revision, due to weight gain, etc... so I think they're thinking to do it at one time and then I have a better chance of the hernia not coming back .... One can hope!

Claire if you are trying to be a normal BMI you have to start eating like a normal person. 5 bowls of potato Soup tastes good and on occasion is not a big deal, however, it has almost no nutrients. Your on the right track with exercise, you need to start building muscle to burn the last few pounds that you are needing to lose but you are going to need to feed the machine if you are going to exercise. My .2 unfill was almost a month ago and I have actually lost another pound or 2. Plus you might want to read some of the posts for people who have had to have their bands removed, a lot of them start the story with " I was too tight, for too long, acid reflux, etc." Acid=erosion. I'm not trying to be mean, but I feel the need to speak plainly. Fills do not always equal weight loss, and unfills do not have to equal weight gain.

Hi everybody I was wondering if any of you had a weight gain shortly after surgery? My sleeve surgery was Monday of this week. Now its Thursday and Im up 10 pounds from the weight on Monday. Isnt that a kick in the pants?

I personally am the queen of yo yo weight gain/loss. Although it is more weight than I have lost in the past, it is not unusual for me to lose and then balloon. I have kept a weight log since 2004 and I have quantifiably yoyo'ed 30 or more lbs every 18 to 24 months for the last 10 years. They just might question when I don't gain this time. dde0b. That is so me! Always up and down, I didn't tell anyone at work, and they haven't said anything yet about my weightloss I'm pretty sure it's because of my yoyo dieting in the past, and that's fine with me. I'm only 5 weeks out.

Hello Everyone, I had surgery on 11/22 and I've had nothing but problems. Long story short, the surgeon put my sleeve too tight which they saw with the GI test the morning after surgery. I lost about 17 pounds between 11/22 and 11/30. Now I am up almost 3 pounds since 11/30. I'm getting down with the pain and the headache that I've dealt with because of the complication. Now that I am drastically better and the complications have lowered, I just can't get on track. I went from eating basically nothing between 11/22-11/30 to "cheating" and eating real food right now. I am still supposed to be on a liquid diet but I'm eating eating solids. I've eaten a pancake, Soup, a cookie, and I'm getting so frustrated! I know that it's my own fault but I just don't know what to eat! Protein shakes taste disgusting to me and I have hunger pains! What can I do? Help . I do not want to fail at this and cannot fail!

I have heard many people on this board getting so upset about weight gain and lack of weight loss. And don't get me wrong, I completely understand. I have gotten on the scale myself and had that sinking feeling in my stomach when I saw the number. I have wanted to scream and cry when I saw the number go up. Trust me, I understand. But there is something that I was missing, and that was Godly love. I accepted Jesus into my heart when I was four years old. I don't remember if I even understood what that meant at the time, but it was what the grown-ups wanted from me, so I did it. I went to church with my mom until my pre-teen years. But then things started to fall apart in our family and we all lost our way. I don't want to get into it all right now, but there were many things that happened that were emotionally painful, and I felt like God had turned his back on me. I felt lost and abandoned. So I gave into the world's way of living, doing basically whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted. I still felt like I was a good person, and I believed in God, but felt like he didn't want much to do with me. After years of living this way, I noticed that He was showing up in my life more and more. Little things that would happen, little comments that people would make. I felt the need to go back to Him, but I didn't. I thought that after all of the bad things I had done, all the commandments I had broken, that there would never be a church that would accept me. After all, you can't be a Christian without going to church, right? But God kept insisting, kept calling me. Eventually I went out and bought myself a Bible and started to read. It took me a while, but it finally dawned on me that I didn't have to go to church to be a Christian again. I didn't need other people to accept me to be a Christian. I didn't have to be perfect. I didn't have to have a perfect past. Jesus did most of His work among the people who the church considered "undesirable," like prostitutes and tax collectors. If Jesus could accept them and love them, maybe He could love me too. Several months later, I was watching a television show on Daystar network, a Christian station. The woman who was speaking was talking about God's love. She said something that changed the way I looked at myself forever. "God loves you just the way you are," she said (paraphrasing.) "You don't have to lose ten pounds, you don't have to do anything different for him to love you." The woman was Joyce Meyer, and I have watched her regularly ever since. But that message really opened my eyes. It's really true. God loves you exactly the way you are right at this very moment. He loves you just as much as he loves anyone else. You are His child, and he made you knowing that you would be just who you are right now. He knew you would do everything you have ever done, good and bad, and he loved you just the same. When you feel the most unloveable, He still loves you just as much as He ever did. Even if you don't believe in Him, He still loves you! How wonderful! If you take anything at all from this blog, I want you to know that you are loved. You are loved more than you know, more than you could ever believe possible. And this love is not dependent on how much weight you lose, what kind of clothes you wear, or even how you act. You are loved simply because you exist, and you are important simply because you were born. God does not do things by mistake, and He would not waste time creating something that He was not proud of. It is important to take care of your body and make sure that you stay healthy, because our bodies are our home until we are done with our journey on the earth, but your weight is not everything. It is part of you, but not the thing that defines you. Even if you never reach your goal weight, God sees you for the beautiful creation that you are. And I hope that you do too.

Hello everyone! I know I need o get on some kind of BC for after my surgery but I'm unsure on which to get. The dietitian recommended getting an IUD because sometimes after surgery your body will absorb medications differently than before. I don't know much about an IUD but my main concern is weight gain or stalling postop. Does anyone have any experience they'd be willing to share? Also, if I do get the IUD, should I get it before my surgery or shortly after?

The first few weeks can be challenging for many - physically and psychologically. Your stomach and your mind have to acclimate to profound changes. It's also common for your weight to fluctuate more then. I didn't even weigh myself for the first couple of weeks because I anticipated having gained weight from the anesthesia pumped into me for the surgery, and then a roller coaster of gain and loss as my body healed. I anticipated the infamous "three week stall" so many others experienced. I hadn't wanted to be discouraged, so I had my husband put the scale on a shelf that requires dragging out the step ladder to reach until things were more stabilized. I wouldn't really quantify the three pounds you gained as actual weight gain, considering that it came on the heels of a 17 pound rapid weight loss. Anytime you lose weight too fast it's common to gain some of it back. It's why the trendy juice cleanses and detox quackery usually cause people to drop weight fast, and then gain a portion of it back even faster. To me the positive to focus on is that you lost 17 pounds, but only gained back three of it. Meaning you've already lost 14 pounds since surgery just a few weeks ago. If you had a child who was recovering from a surgery and prescribed a diet specifically designed to help her heal, would you permit her to defy it and eat things that could jeopardize that process? I doubt you would. Love yourself as much as you'd love someone whose care is your responsibility. It's not a diet like ones you've probably followed in the past that is to help you to lose weight, though that's a side benefit. It's a medical diet, not unlike other ones people follow prior to or after a surgery or medical / dental procedure. As an example, one of my colleagues just had her teeth whitened and has to only eat white or clear foods for a couple of days to avoid discoloration, and another has been open about having to only eat certain foods in preparation for a colonoscopy. You might not have gotten sick yet, but you're chancing it by eating things your stomach isn't ready for yet. I didn't eat solids until the one-month mark, and got sick that day, so I then reverted to liquids and soft foods for another two weeks until I felt more steady. Have you ever checked out the blog "The World According to Eggface"? It has some recipes for each of the phases following WLS. Pinterest also has a lot of ideas. I enjoyed getting a little freshly ground peanut or almond butter from Whole Foods and adding that to chocolate protein (unjury was my favorite brand) and Fair Life (higher protein) milk and ice in my Nutribullet and having a dessert-like shake. I also still make a lot of smoothies using high protein yogurt like Fage, and lower carb fruit and some frozen kale (berries will mask the taste of it, and it being frozen helps with the texture) rather than having Protein powder. Tasty Soups, like the red pepper one by Trader Joe's, also helped me to have some variety. My nutritionist had suggested egg puddings for the soft food phase, and I found a low-carb, low-sugar but tasty recipe that uses SF Torani syrup. Persevere through this challenge. It's worthwhile.