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My Fitness Pal is another good source of support. You can down load the app. I'm (so sleeve). Well with getting protein in first, fluids and walking your weight loss will pick up. Congrats on the 3kg in 4 days! You are an inspiration to me. I hope to be sleeved by March! Keep up the good work!

CONGRAGULATIONS!!! WOW! Way to go! I've just had my surgery last Monday. And I can't wait to get to where you're at when it comes to weight loss. Please be encourage. If you feel you are doing everything right and it's come to a stand still... Then maybe you should see your doctor. Talk to him about getting a slight fill or if you believe it could be thyroid realted then ask him to prescribe some Lab work. I have a slight thyroid problem and my doctor prescribed me some medication for it today. Talk with your doctor and let him know everything you're doing to lose weight. My Lap Band Surgeon recommended that I do the South Beach diet which emphasize more protien and vegetables. Especially protien so that I'm feeding muscle and not fat. Are you lifting weights that burns calories and tones the body. All I know is that you need to keep going and not be down on yourself. The weight that you have lost is nothing to laugh at you should be very proud of yourself.:Banane37:

I just posted a similar lament elsewhere, Blessed, but you aren't alone. I'm "only" down 31 lbs. since my operation (2/13) and have essentially gone from excessively eating all the time to a four-step cycle of (1) fill, (2) starve, (3) eat like a normal human being, (4) pig out. Last month I had to be briefly hospitalized during the 'starve' cycle, having dizzy spells, blackouts and general weakness. I was told I was dehydrated, but during the 'starve' cycle I easily drink 100 ozs. a day, so that's BS. I'm as unsettled as you are; I haven't completely given up (after all, I'm still down 31 lbs.) but after looking around here and seeing where my February brethren are in their weight loss goals, it's discouraging.

CONGRATS SanDiegoPhotog! Keep up the good work. :biggrin: Don't be shy about your weight loss. We all work hard to meet our goals. I do just as JB is doing. I just say I lost or on my way to losing a......

I'm a male who currently weights 421 pounds. I'm being banded on December 5th. I'm curious about what I can look forward to on weight loss in the long run?

I have had 3 surgeries in the last 2 years, a band placement, a band revision, and now the sleeve, and they were all late in the day like yours, waiting to go in sucks, but afterward your sooo drowzy and doped up and the nurses are in and out taking blood preasures and all that stuff you'll wish someone would leave you alone. dont worry, it;ll go by fast, and you'll be home. good luck on your surgery and weight loss......vicki

I admire your handling of this but I think you are also giving her too easy of a pass. Anybody trained in medicine in the last decade must surely recognize the obesity epidemic and how few can manage it without surgery once morbidly obese. I have skinny ass friends who are Barbie doll types, not medically trained who were more understanding than this doctor in training. I do not think I need to have blocked arteries to understand the need for bypass, I don't need to be a diabetic to understand need for insulin. I don't buy the premise that only obese people can understand. Again, you did the right thing completely but don't ever think a medical person has any permission to judge you just because he/she isn't obeses Sadly in my life the least supportive people are obese. My skinny friends were over the moon for me. A very trim, polished and georgeous senior executive at my company congratulated me privately after I maintained for a year. She guessed (but no big deal) I'd had WLS. Her comment to me was she'd seen plenty of people have massive weight loss but so few maintain it. She was very very complimentary and she is a stick by my standards. I am fine if people are indifferent to my health journey but they don't get a pass just because they are skinny.

I do not have hypothyroidism, but I'm curious as to why someone with this disorder can't take medication for this to enhance weight loss with surgery?

ReadytoMaintain- I basically fit 12's & 14's depending on cut, material, and style of the garment. Sizes vary greatly, but I don't mind trying on clothes, so that's okay with me. I'm still having trouble convincing myself that this weight will not come back as soon as I'm done losing it like every other time. So far I've gotten rid of 24's through 16's. I think I might have to hold onto my 14's for a while, once I'm out of that size, until I can get my head around it or find someone in need (that always makes it easier). Congratulations on your loss so far, it won't be long before you're posting about your size 10's zipping up!

Pictures are the best for me too. I don’t think I could truly gauge my weight loss without it. It has become my best motivator.

I get a new doctor and he does not treats me fair. He agrees to give me ultram for back pain, I dont have to lose weight. And pretty much I dont. He checks me for diabeties and I have it. HUMMM I wonder why that witch never checked it.??? With this doctor, I have a new phobia called NEVEr tell the doctor your in pain. Hide it at all costs. There would be days at the doctors where I would get this pain in my back and sit and hold it forever and if the nurse asked if I was ok I would say "oh my back is hurting alittle" no big deal" and when alone I would go crazy and then i would walk as normally to my car as possible and then collapse and cry my head off and go home and be bedridden for two days.. I said enough to keep the untram, but no more. I was scared to death of being dismissed and ridiculed and NOT cared for again. This was very stupid. I fell alot and I got hurt alot and I hid it all. I become more and more crippled and gained weight. I end up unable to work and sent to the jobs program in the welfare system. I am scared. I am trying to hide the fact that I am in excrusiating pain. It was like the most important thing to be.. to hide my pain and problems. I couldnt stand anyone seeing me as a loser, a fat cripple, a broken women. I rather suffer than show it. (now I show it, I dont care) Well they noticed. They sent me to the voc doctor again and she told them I was disabled and not to make me do anything. They made me apply for SSI This day was the worst day of my life. I didnt want to apply for disabilty. I didny know what it was and I didnt want to. All I knew is that I SURE AND THE HELL WASNT to be one to get disabilty. I was completely bent, couldnt think of a single job i could do. At this point even sitting in chairs wasnt possible for very long. I was disabled. I was. But to apply for disability is admitting your the ultimate failer... My fat brought me to this point and it was too hard to admit that. This was the most depressed I have ever been. No one made me do anything..I was 'awainting disabilty" I became 400 pounds in this meaningless existance THEN.. ANOTHER Lesson.. The DISABILY thing became My chance at life and weight loss again.. I had to get the dissability, to get the back pay, to pay for the gastric bypass.. TO GET OFF OF disabilty. It was a plan.. BUT it took a long long time. About 5 years. In the meantime my doctor left and I got assigned Dr. MOORE and he was so cruel to me that his nurse turned him in, people called me, I testified on the phone and then i was notified that he had been reprimanded. Becasue of this I got a special doctor at a fancy clinic. He checked my back right away and I was herniated and had sciatica and he said it was like that a long time. YEAH, ever since I QUIT school and began to complain to my doctors. WHY DID NO ONE EVER CHECK MY BACK?? Sheesh So yeah.. 5 years, cuz I had shabby doctors.. I rememebr times when I wished the SSi would NOT go through, so I would get MORE money when it went through the next time... I needed at leaste 15,000 Well i found out that medicare would cover my gastric bypass and all I had to do was wait. Find doctors and go to all the pre stuff.. so I did

My surgery was March 11th. I have kept this surgery very private - no one knows except the girls I met in Mexico the day of my surgery. On March 11th I weighed 222... today 20 weeks later I weigh 207. I thought the weight loss would be faster.... On April 20th I had my first fill - 3.5cc.... no restriction. On May 3rd my second fill - 3.5 more... but I had to go back on the 4th to have 2cc removed.... I couldnt swallow my own spit. I keep hearing people talk about the soft food stage - but I only ate soft foods for the 1st 3 weeks. I can eat anything pre-op - except for bread. I have no support system because of my secret - and feel that I need help changing my mind set.... I desparately want to loose the weight. Start: 222 May 23: 207 Final Goal: 160

Well here is I was told.... 1)No Protein drinks don't shrink your liver they keep you full so you don't eat. It's the weight loss that shrinks your liver. 2) I was able to eat.. I was told 800 - 900 calories a day and 70 - 80 grams of protein. I would do the drinks durning the day and then at night have like a pouch of tuna or a pc of baked fish. (I got sick just thinking about all those Protein shakes so I called dietcian and that is what she told me.) 3) High fat food is bad because you want loss wieght. Your liver is very fatty and that is why it's easy to shrink if you a lowfat low cal diet. 4)Don't know this one...sorry 5)I don't think there is a need to puree your food during this time. I would call you dietcian and see what they say. Every Dr is so different there are several doctors who don't even require the pre-op diet. Mine was one. I think it also helped get me mentally ready for the band also. Good Luck...you will make it no matter how you get through it.

My Story. Well, if that isn't a loaded title I don't know what is. I have so many stories. I guess since this is a weight loss forum, I should start with the story of my weight. That tale shakes out more like a timeline, really. Childhood: Chubby kid. Recall dieting with my mom as early as the third grade. High School: Got down to about a size 8-10. Used Jenny Craig or Nutri Systems. . . Can't even remember which one. Most of College: Gained it all back and then some. Darn those Provolone grilled bagels at the Coates Center and Queso and Tortillas from TC's. Senior Year: Jenny Craig again. Modest weight loss, but this time it seemed to stick. And then there was Law School (i.e. the best diet ever for a Type A student who suddenly found herself in over her head academically for the first time): Nothing will send a metabolism into overdrive like pure fear of failure. Combine that with living in a remote town with only 1 fast food restaurant and no more student dining and waaalaa (really not sure how you spell that) the weight just sort of started falling off. I was a solid size 8, sometimes even a 6, by the time I graduated. The Wedding: You'll no doubt have noticed that I never really mentioned exercise up to this point. I never really did any, either, until the year of my judicial clerkship, which actually coincided with my engagement. That year I spent in an even more remote town where the only local that I had anything at all in common with happened to be a former CPA who decided to open a gym after her own weight loss journey. So I started working out. . . a lot. I had a 9-5 job and a long distance relationship. What else was there to do? I used a food and exercise journal (maybe a little too religiously) and by the wedding, I was 124 pound, hiking up my size 4 Vera Wang, which I really should have had altered one more time, and loving it. Its a good typing I got pictures, but my kids barely recognize me in them. My 30s: Big city private law practice with its 12 hour days spent mostly behind my desk and its ready access to a constant stream of icy cold diet dr. peppers, we not kind to me on a number of fronts, one of which was my figure. After 10 years of relatively steady weightless or maintenance, 30 found me up a few pounds and pregnant with my first child. Every pound made me want to cry, and believe me there were many to cry over. Its like my body craves weight during pregnancy. I can gain 10 pound before that second line will even think about appearing on that stick. My boy was born, and I went back to Jenny Craig. Third times the charm? Well, not so much in my case. I think I got back down to 180 or so, but then there was the next pregnancy, and the next. I miscarried those babies at about 13 weeks, but I still found, and kept, a few pounds with each. Then there was the adoption weight. . . . who knew the stress of adopting would pack on the pounds like that. Then, when my beautiful daughter was only 6 weeks old, I discovered I was carrying her baby brother. At that point I was 208 which, miraculously, I managed to get back down to by the time I left the hospital with him. They call my OB the Weight Nazi for good reason. Then, just as I had hired a trainer and was headed for a healthier lifestyle, my mom was diagnosed with ovarian cancer, my dad with MS. As an only chid and a mother of a then 5 year old, one year old and a 6 month old baby, I switched into crisis mode, quit my job and became the worlds most over-educated chauffeur. My babies spent their first couple of years strapped into car seats as we drove NaNa and Pops from one doctors appointment to another. Her chemo therapy sessions were long 12 hour days and she was hospitalized more than once. He spent 6 weeks in a rehab hospital and ultimately lost the use of his legs. You can't believe how many prescriptions they had between them. And I managed it all. I also gained about 40 more pounds in the process. Please do not get me wrong. It was worth it. My mom is enjoying full remission from a disease that everyone said would kill her, and my dad is stable in an assisted living facility if not enjoying the retirement we had hoped for him. My kids are smart and beautiful at 3, 4 and 8, and it is time that I turn this weight issue around once and for all. So, I have decided to get the gastric sleeve procedure. A colleague of my husband had it a few years back and has enjoyed amazing results. I know it is not a quick fix, merely a tool, but I have decided that I owe myself that jump start after all I have been through over the past 3 years. I know that I can stick to a program once I get good and into it. I just need to make sure that, this time, I am not derailed by life's unexpected tragedies. I have enlisted the help and support of my dear friend who has found her second career as a dance fitness instructor, and I am looking towards a brighter future where I can keep up with my kids, at least a little better, and shop for clothes in regular stores. My surgery date is August 7.

Good afternoon, Usually as long as your bmi doesn't lower, the insurance company wants to see that loss of weight. Losing weight shows that you are trying. As the gentlemen stated above, you still may want to speak to your bariatric team or nurse just to make sure. Sent from my SM-G360P using the BariatricPal App

That's a horrible way to start on what should be the most life-changing experience you will ever have. It does get better. As you continue to lose weight, your quality of life will improve, not to mention your range of motion and overall health. If you get a survey from the hospital, fill it out and tell the truth. Hospital administrators read those things and take corrective actions - especially if it is a Press-Ganey survey that ranks them among other hospitals across the country. Geeze-o-Pete, it sounds like you got your surgery at Walmart with Goofy as your anesthesiologist and Donald Duck (quack) as your surgeon. Not all medical staff has IV skills, even at the best hospitals. If you are among the unfortunate few who have hidden veins, the task is even more challenging. The worst is over now. You've done well to have a 74 pound weight loss already. You will feel better as soon as you graduate to soft foods. With the improvement that is coming with your nutrition, your body systems will rejoice and reward you with better health than you probably have ever had. Just be patient, dear. We get in such a hurry to undo a lifetime of dietary error, and it just takes some time to reverse that process. Buyer's remorse and the emotional roller coaster are common at the stage you are at......what you are feeling is perfectly normal. Be kind to yourself. Rest. Keep hydrated. Follow doctor's instructions as best you can. Visit us often. This is a great support group here. I tell newbies that opinions and tact will vary, but we mean well.

Good luck, Vikki - I hope it works as well for you as it has been for me. I read some reviews about Wen online - some were raves and some were slams. I suppose it has to do with your hair type, etc. But mine seems to be responding well. I thought about ordering Fig or Lavender next time, but I know the Sweet Almond Mint works for me; it's supposed to be a universal cleanser that works for most types of hair. The others are for course, dry hair (which I have certainly had!), but I think I'll just stick with what I know. I'm not wild about the smell of Sweet Almond Mint, but it's not too bad, so I'll deal with it in order to have descent hair again! ~Sue

Thanks for the tip! My hair issues are not band-related, but this line sounds like just what my dry damaged over-treated hair needs. Just ordered some online.

Hi.. What kink of hair problem... Did you have this problem before the surgery?

clg- For me it was the decision to have surgery that was a turning point in my attitude about weight loss. Well, actually having the surgery, was the turning point. Somehow I needed that level of commitment. It's no longer a diet, or a program. I made this decision for life and so that is why this is so different from a diet program. Also, it is easier when you get full on smaller amounts of food. But like you will read all too often, it's not magic, and people can eat around it and still not have weight loss success. You have to try and try hard, but having the band, for me at least, has put me in a place where my trying hard is paying off for once. To the original poster, Keep reading and look for the positive. Before I decided to have my surgery, I looked through the complications forums, etc. I wanted to know what the potential risks and complications are. I decided it was worth the risk of having problems to try to be one of the successful ones--and there are a lot of successful stories out there. But once I had made my decision, I stayed away from the negative threads as much as possible. There's no reason to work myself up about something that probably won't happen to me. If it does I'll deal with it, but I can't live in fear of the possibility. The process of getting the band and all the changes I've made has really changed my whole life. I feel like I've found a long-lost friend because my personality has emerged again. Hadn't even realized it was missing! But all those years of being lost inside all that fat, really took a toll on my self-perception. Yes, there are complications sometimes. But in a lot of cases (not all, but a lot) there are things you can do to avoid getting in that situation. For example, not having your band overfilled. And if you do have a problem, seeking immediate medical attention. The people who post about these things often admit that themselves, that they should have gone to the doctor sooner, or gotten an unfill, etc. I do read complication posts from time to time now in order to learn from them, what went wrong and how can I avoid this? For me, in just under 8 months, I've lost 89 pounds, gone from a 26/28 to a size 18. I have started exercising very regularly (6 days a week), and made huge changes in my diet. This will be for life. I love this new life.

Called my insurance (UnitedHealth Care) and was told that though I have 2 more months I'm guaranteed surgery. I would be lying if I said I didn't break down crying! I had been freaking out about weight loss (or lack there of) and was told that it does not matter. Of course I don't want to gain more. It's just great to know that now I can breathe a little easier! Hoping these next few months fly by!!! I'm hoping to be bypassed by my bday Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Discovered I'm now seriously lactose intollerant along with artificial sugar and sugar alcohol. My whole plan for weight loss is out the window. The final straw is my Dr said I should be losing more than one lb per week. Anyone have similar symptoms? Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G900A using BariatricPal mobile app

Congrats!! Go get that hair done!!