Search the Community

I was the exact same starting weight as you. Sleeves 8/6/12. I hit 199 on Dec. 26th! My goal was Christmas.....one day off still counts for me! I hovered at 202 in a stall for 10 days, it was mentally excruciating!! Then I hate pretty badly on Christmas Eve and Day and boom... Down I went in the scale! Every time I'm in a stall, I up my calories for a couple days and the stall breaks. Everyone might not agree with that, but I discovered it on accident the first time and it continues to work for me. Now I'll drop about 10 lbs. in 2 weeks and stall for a bit again. It's been that way the whole time. Once you hit "Onederland". You'll feel like a different person and be even more motivated! Good luck and hang in there!! Let us know when you reach Onederland!!

i'm in a 10/12 now but my goal is a solid 6. i'm 5'8"

Just got back from seeing Dr. Ren in the city, and am now officially in Onederland! Actually, I hit it a couple of weeks ago, but like to see things kind of "settle in" before I spread the news. It's been 8 months since my surgery, and I am down 55 lbs. Honestly, I had hoped I would have been down a whole lot more at this point, but I'll take it! 51 lbs. to go! It's clear that I won't reach it within the first year after surgery, but I do hope it's possible within the 1.5 years...which would be 10 months from now. Has it taken anyone that long to reach goal? Is it possible to still reach goal after that one year "window of opprtunity" has passed? I sure hope so!

Head hunger as in "appetite and could eat something"? Well... my first WLS was March 6th 2001 so since 19 years, 8 months and 15 days. 😂 Head hunger is normal, everyone has it (yes, even the "skinnies"). Accept it and get used to it.

I had my VBG three years ago and put my Type II diabetes in remission, relieved my hypertension and started a new life, all with the intent to get pregnant. So after many years of trying to conceive and one failed pregnancy, we now have a baby! Pregnancy does some weird stuff to your body and places that weren't flabby after surgery now are, and places that were flabby after surgery are now even more so... So here I am 10 weeks out, back to work, and trying to figure out the best place to start back on my road to recovery. Although diabetes was in remission, the pregnancy brought it back on in the last half, so my carbs (which I was required to eat to feed the growing baby) were carefully monitored and I never gained a great deal of weight. The pounds that I did gain were lost in the first two weeks after the birth. Then, the issue of a colicky baby that had to be held 24/7 kicked in and I ended up losing all my progress. I not only gained the birth weight back, I gained more. I now have 51 lbs to lose AGAIN, just to get back to my prevous weight. Has anyone been at this point? I could use some advice.

I was 20. At work. Getting situated into my morning routine. coffee, then Logged onto yahoo news about 845 and saw a pic of a plane going into the tower. I thought hmm i knew one day those skyscrapers would get in the way. Read the report then got up to go to the copy room. That's when i found out the other plane hit. I felt something was wrong at that point and I couldn't focus. I tried calling home and all lines were busy. They sent us home by 10. It was a beautiful day. Eerie. Sent from my SM-G900P using the BariatricPal App

Guys, my nurse told me that pre-op diet would make me thankful for my band, and I want to tell you she was totally right. The 10 days before the bend were pure hell, since the band it has been a total and utter blessing. Focus on what you are working for, you CAN do it.

I'm in the same boat .Met with my surgeon and I have a 10 pound goal .Im having a hard time and it's only been day three.So let's support each other to reach goal . Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I'm still Pre-Op but this is a list of the items I am planning to take with me to the Hospital. 1. Insurance card and I.D 2. Cell Phone/Charger/Phone Cards 3. Toothbrush/Toothpaste 4.Deodorant 5.Lotion 6.Lip-gloss (non petroleum based, its flammable and if you are on oxygen its not a good idea) 7.Brush/Comb 8.Hair Clips/ rubber band/headscarf 9.Nightgown (may be difficult with Iv's)/Loose Clothing 10.Slippers 11.Robe 12. Notebook (if you document through journaling) 13.Pillow/Neck Pillow 14.Pads/Tampons (most women get their period right after surgery) 15.Baby Wipes (to help freshen up) 16.Gas-x Thin Strips/Baby Mylecon drops (ask your doctor) 17.Sleep Mask/Earplugs 18.Oasis Dry Mouth Spray 19.Sugar free sweetener/Caffeine Free Tea Bags 20.Small Extension Cord seems like alot but it will probably fit into a regular sized back pack. Hope this helps anyone that is preop!!!

Hi, I suggest opening up to your family and tell them how they are making you feel. It's your life and you are the one who has to live it. You are old enough to make your own decisions. If they cannot be happy for you and only bring negativity into your life you then you should pull away and do what's best for YOU and your family. I'm sorry you are going through this. I truly hope they realize how negative they are being.at the end of the day, your life is your business. 5'4" Starting weight 297 VSG on 7/31/19 Surgery wt: 266 CW 233 GW 135 Sent from my [samsung Galaxy] using BariatricPal mobile app

The club here is about 15 minutes from work and 25 minutes from home. There aren't many clubs in a real close vicinity to me. There are a couple w/in 10 miles and I don't like one and have already tried the other in the past. There are a lot of Curves, but that's not really my thing. There is a YMCA downtown and that's about 15 minutes from here. It's the nicest gym in this area, but no where as nice as Lifetime. It's $50 to join and the young adult rate is $29.50/monthly. When I turn 29 next year it will go up to $33.75. When I tried it out, I did like it, but I did have to wait for equipment. The one thing they have that Lifetime doesn't is an indoor track. The hours aren't that great at the Y either. I still haven't completely decided yet....Most likely I will go ahead and join next week. My main concerns are still distance w/the price of gas. I didn't really like the lady that gave us the tour. She was kind of annoying and I really didn't trust her. She said that most of the people there had PHDs and they had people that would be familiar w/lap band. One thing I read online was that you can't bring any kids other than your own. I am going to ask about that for sure. I have no kids, but occasionally I watch my younger cousins. My uncles daughter stays with us about 2 weeks during the summer and she's 15. I would like her to be to use the facility. Thanks for your responses....Since Lifetime is so new here it's hard to get any opinions. I few people spoke to us during the tour and they were saying how great it was and that we wouldn't regret it.

Congrats on choosing to get a better you! !! I was like you. I heard about about the procedure. I found out my coverage covers it and went to my doc and said how can I do this asap lol I spent spent the majority of my days at doctors offices and was ready in 3 months. Just needed one more month of check in in for my primary and I was able to submit the paperwork for clearance and a date. If you really want this, it is possible to get their as soon as u want to get there. I didn't wanna wait any longer in my old body. And I'm 10 days out and don't regret it at all. The hardest part for me is the not drinking while I eat. Good luck and if you need any help at all you are in the right place!!!

I hear you on the deductibles! Milk that free healthcare as much as possible. Yoga is fantastic. At least, it should be. Not tremendously easy to do when you are larger (despite what those "Plus Size Yoga!" books claim. I want to pursue that after surgery, it's supposed to be great for your mind and body. I also plan to get a personal trainer, dependent upon whether I can find one that doesn't charge a small fortune. I don't think I will need them too long, just a few months to tell me how to do things, which exercises to focus certain areas etc. I haven't seriously worked out in over a decade, and I highly doubt the exercises I did then as an athlete would be the best idea now. I also have a nice expensive elliptical I hope to actually be able to use. I purchased it at my highest weight, then swiftly realized that if I used it for me than 10/15 minutes my knee would swell to the point I couldn't walk. Yeah... my knees haven't taken this whole being 280+lbs thing very well. The thing that I am looking forward to exercise wise is to be able to go for a run. I used to love it. Hopefully, I'll get back to doing morning runs every day.

@@Seagull - Yes. Lost a bunch pre-op (you quit drinking alcohol and work to shrink your liver, good things will happen). I actually gained 10 at the hospital thanks to all the IV Fluid they pumped in me. But after 10 days of healing, everything started "moving" inside again, the weight really came off fast.

I copied and pasted, below, some of my early posts from the first few months after band surgery. I was so enthusiastic and on board with my new lifestyle. I was fully committed to learning everything I needed to know in order to succeed. I did not want to hear anything from anyone who was saying their band didn't work out. There were people who posted that they followed band rules and lost their band due to slips, erosion or esophageal dilation. I countered that very few complications are band caused. I suggested that perhaps they over ate, ate too fast...you get the picture. I was wrong to do that. It's true that early in our band journey we NEED to hear positive reinforcement that we made the "right" decision. That's why you won't see me post negative information on a post from someone who is doing well, newly banded or had decided to band and isn't asking for help deciding. If I posted in a way that seemed insensitive or overtly negative anywhere but on the complications forum, I apologize. I try to avoid that, but I'm human. I believed, as many of you do, that if I did all the right things, I'd keep my band for the rest of my life. I cannot convey the disappointment and even grief I'm feeling over the impending loss of my band. I'm also feeling a lot of anxiety about post removal. That might be bleeding thru in my posts. I'm in constant discomfort, unable to eat much of anything and generally not feeling very well at the moment. My point in this post is to encourage everyone who has WLS to listen, sympathize and file away posts about band complications. As I've stated in more than one post, the information might help you save your band one day. I don't want to scare anyone. I just want to share my experience within a community that might benefit from it one day. Don't be afraid to read my message. It can't hurt you. This was 2 months post op: Tonight I am going to a play with friends...I subscribe and we go out about every two months Nov-July. Yesterday I figured I should try on some of my smaller (size 24) clothes to see what I should wear. NONE OF THEM FIT! THEY ARE ALL TOO BIG! I am between a 20-22 so all the 24-26 and 3x are going to the donation pile or to my ebay collection. I went to the Talbot's outlet and bought two pairs of 22 WP shorts, very nice for $27 including tax. I now have one pair of jeans, a pair of capris and two shorts that I can wear. We always go to Maui in October and was trying on my dresses that I take with me and got into some of my Blue Ginger dresses I haven't been able to wear for a long time...some of the others are way too big.... Any way enough rambling on! Happy day for me! My first fill: I got my first fill today and it went very well...no pain and so far so good with water. I lost 5 lb in almost 5 weeks and due to travel plans in September and October opted to go ahead and get it now. My surgeon's office does them under flouro and it took about 10 min to do...port was flat on the abdominal wall and very easy to access. It did feel weird as she was numbing me up, but other than that couldn't feel it. I am hoping to up my loss to about 1.75 lb per week or 7-8 lbs per month with this fill... whew...glad to have that under my belt! A post on accountability: This morning it occurred to me that I have not lost any weight since the 30th of August. My first impulse was to post something on the forum regarding a stall, frustrated, etc, but then I got to thinking about it HONESTLY. I have not logged my food since the middle of July! I looked back and I remember thinking that this is so easy, I don't have to log every bite! WRONG! I lost consistently (even without a fill) 1-1.5 lbs per week while logging. Since I stopped logging I have lost a total of 6 lbs in 6 weeks, but nothing for the last two weeks. I don't think I am eating as much as I am burning, but how do I know??? This could be the 20% stall, but without documentation of my intake, I cannot really tell. My highest weight was 290 about 2 years ago. 20% of 290 is 58 and I am down 51 lbs from that weight so it is close enough to be called that, but most likely it is what I am eating, rather than how much. I have been eating more carbs... There have been numerous social events, so I have been drinking a bit of wine... And I have had some dessert... here and there... So now I recommit to journalling my food intake so I can assess why I am stalled and what to do to change it WITH SOME CERTAINTY.... I have lost an inch or so since the stall started, so it isn't really a stall, but a great opportunity to refocus my efforts towards meeting my goal of 1.5 lbs per week on average. I do have restriction and I need to do a better job of utilizing it to my advantage. Me, defending the band: Many folks who are anti-band will use a study that was published in 2003 and followed lap-band patients from 1997-2002...that would be like car and driver only reviewing cars made from 1920-1970 and holding them to today's standards of road-worthiness... The bands in use today are much more "user-friendly" and the surgeons who "install" them know a lot more about the causes of complications like those cited in the early study and MOST complications are caused by overstuffing the pouch and eating around the band (grazing, sliders etc) as well as over zealous docs who overfill bands. Go to the WLS failure forum, complications forum or regrets forum and read about the issues the people who have chosen many different surgeries experience, then you can be satisfied with your decision, whatever it may be. I also question why certain individuals feel the need to hang out here and tout their surgery. If they were as knowledgeable as they claim, they would be publishing a book on their surgery, pointing out the benefits vs the risks, and it would speak for itself. Here is an example of a study on VSG and it's failure rate...I found this doing a quick search and now it is out there and will be quoted by the VSG haters to support their position.... The exact failure rate of sleeve gastrectomy is unknown. Using the Spanish National Registry for bariatric surgery, Sanchez-Santos et al[7] reviewed 540 patients who had undergone SG either as a primary or staged procedure over a six-year period. The authors reported excellent overall outcomes; however, 15 percent of the subjects were considered failures based on weight recidivism in the first three years, with 3.3 percent of patients submitting to a second bariatric procedure. Younger age, lower body mass index (BMI), and thinner bougie size were attributed to improved sustainable outcomes. Similarly, Himpens, in an article by Deitel et al,[8] presented his early five-year results after sleeve gastrectomy at the First International Consensus Summit for Sleeve Gastrectomy in 2007. In 46 such patients, he reported a disappointing 37 and 23 percent inadequate weight loss and second procedure rates, respectively. More recent unpublished presentations by Himpens indicate failure rates as high as 30 percent in five years.[9] Studying the Austrian experience with SG as a stand-alone operation, Felberbauer et al[10] reported a seven-percent failure rate at three years based on a cutoff of 25 percent excess weight loss (EWL). Applying the traditional 50-percent EWL criteria, the failure rate increased to 25 percent.[10] Me supporting a struggling poster: Good for you Tanya....that is why the forums are here, to share and hopefully keep us from getting too complacent and not utilizing our chosen tool. The side note that I have been meaning to post since the day after I wrote this is that though I haven't lost pounds, I have lost a full size, so it isn't about just the weight. Perhaps it is time for a fill or a talk with your nutritionist to help you to get back on track... Congratulations on your recommittal and I will look for you to post your success!! This was me the first year. I was afraid to hear what might go wrong, just like many others. This is a support site for ALL banded people, not just those who don't have complications. Seeing the words can't hurt you, but ignoring signs of trouble can. Just an FYI to those who keep calling me a "basher", "full of bs as usual", "100% incorrect"...every time you call me a name, I will respond politely. I will also continue to post. I don't back down when attacked, but I refuse to attack back.

Ok so here is my admission. I'm not on the program as well as I should be. Popped up about 6-8 lbs since my lowest drop, never met goal (160 lbs, which is still overweight), Fell off the exercise wagon (just jumped back on about 3 weeks ago), eating too much crap, going on 2 yrs out. Now that I've confessed...I'm trying desparately to get back in the saddle. I'm not unhappy with where I am, but I could be sooooo much happier (I think). So here is my question I currently do very well during the week, packing my lunch and two Snacks of 1 oz cheese and some flat pretzel chips. Not as much structure on the weekends and after dinner snacking is killing me! I think I'm grazing my way back to the dark side slowly. Do I try to break the snacking plan, just do 3 meals a day??? That is hard for me. I have been eating the small meals frequently for > 10 years. Any advice or flat out butt kicking would be appreciated. thanks so much, stacie

Hi, I had band surgery 10-24-07, and had no issues until 8 weeks post op when I developed an infection in the port area. My symptoms started out just like yours, and they got worse. I was on antibiotics by mouth for a few days, and the swelling/pain increased, and the red circle around my port area grew larger. After three days on antibiotics my fever spiked to 103.4. I was admitted to the hospital for a week on IV antibiotics, and then they eventually had to remove my port. My port was removed Dec. 17th, and the plan is to have it replaced in March. Do not panic will be ok....just get attention quickly. Like with any surgery infections can occur. Please let us know how are you doing.

Hi there, I 've been sincerely enjoying your messages so much. So I thought tonight I would stop lurking and introduce myself. I am now at day 4 post-op and day 18 into my liquid diet. So far I am doing perfect plus I have lost 15lbs. I am so excited to be back into bandland after a year without a functioning band. I pray all here will have a great exsperence and all of us will far exceed our goals to loss weight and run from our food bondage. I look forward to getting to know more of you and gaining your support as well. Sincerely,:clap2:

Are you taking anything for gas and acid? I take 2 zantac a day and if I start feeling gross I take some Gas-x. Have you tried anything like that? Have you had a bowel movement? I had my first one today and I feel so much better. That was my first since like 5 days before surgery and I'm 10 days out now! Yeah. Miralax and a stool softener might help also. Don't be afraid to medicine up.

Iron deficiency is the number one Vitamin deficiency in VSG patients. Studies show up to 90% of female weight loss patients develop iron deficiency within 10 years. Have you been taking the recommended iron supplements since your surgery? I was told 60-200mg taken with 500mg Vitamin C. And you shouldn't take it with Calcium, Multivitamins or meals as this can interfere with absorption. What I actually take is Vitamin Code Healthy Blood that has just 28mg iron, B Vitamins, Folate, vitamin C and a raw veggie/mineral/probiotic/enzyme blend that is super gentle and very readily absorbable. Have you had the recommended bloodwork done at 3 and 6 months and then annually? Were your iron levels normal or dropping at those times? What about your B12 levels? Low B12 can cause anemia, too and we should be taking sublingual or injectable B12 since we can't absorb oral B12 as well after VSG. My 3 month numbers were normal and my 6 month iron and calcium were actually high. I dropped both supplements to only a couple times /week and of course I will recheck values at least annually. There was another post on here recently about low iron and ferritin 3 years out. You may do a search for that thread.

Tammy dont let me frighten you! Ive been banded 10 months and wouldnt change a thing. This is the first time I ever got stuck this bad. Usally it will go down in a couple of minutes. My problem is I didnt chew enough with the potato salad cause it was kinda wet. @spoil mom what did you eat through your 2 weeks? I find im pretty gassy right now. I went and had gall bladder tests and some type of ultrasound yesterday but because I dont have a fever or stomach pain they feel it was from being stuck. The fluoroscope shows im pretty swollen. Im already doing gasx and the generic version of beano before i eat!

The average weight loss post weight loss surgery at five years is around 65% of the weight to be lost to be in the healthy BMI range. I think that is the 75% your surgeon is probably referring to - the difference could be based upon your specific surgery, the stats of his patients & possibly you & your situation vs another patient. As with all averages some lose more & can maintain it, some lose less & happily maintain at that weight. In years 2-3, it’s not uncommon for people to put on 10+/-lbs from their lowest weight as they settle into their new eating style. Some lose some of that weight others are happy to stay there because it’s an easier weight to maintain. As you’re losing you likely will experience stalls or (plateaus) almost everyone experiences at least one. It’s part of losing weight. Think of it as your body taking a break to try & catch up with the weight loss you’ve had so far. They break & you will start losing again if you stick to your plan. The goal is to reach a weight you are happy with, can enjoy your life at & can maintain with out gaining or losing (not including our natural weight fluctuations of course). Congrats on your weight loss so far.

You've been smart enough to realize what I didn't. I had my surgery a year ago and am down about 10 lbs. You have to make smart food choices and eat less - so why would you spend all the money, risk your life in surgery - exactly! I expected more from the band - you have to do it yourself anyway so save the money for a really great trip when you lost the weight! good luck.