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I was so diligent the first year of the band, and did so well. Lost 102 lbs. As soon as the anniversary date hit, it seemed as if I hit a major plateau. I kept telling myself this would pass, but now I'm 6 weeks away from my 2 year bandiversary and I'm up 18 lbs. My reason for getting the band originally was to try to get pregnant again. We met with infertility specialists and decided we'd have to go through an egg-donor and ivf in order to get pregant so we decided just to get healthy for the daughter we already have and for ourselves. In March, I found out I was pregnant. We were so happy, couldn't believe it happened on it's own. A week later, I miscarried. It was devastating but I'm getting through it with great support from my friends and husband and even my daughter. What I can't seem to do is get back on track. I can be so strong willed during the day and then at night, It's like a spiral downfall. I seem to pick on everything at night. I just want to do my what screen name says, take my life back. I'm hoping some of you have some great tips or advice as a way to break the plateau. My doctor suggested Optifast but that doesn't sound like something I could stick to or afford at this point. Thanks for listening!

Hi people! Just two weeks until I go for my sleeve...after a 4 year wait. I've found some great resources, but am wondering if anyone knows if the recipes from the Hungry Girl series are acceptable once I get to the appropriate diet phase? I ask because I really like that so many of the recipes are single serving. Thanks!

I have a recliner and sat in it when I got home, but I never slept in it. My bed is also a little high (no additional step needed). I just sorta got my buns on it and flopped down on my side. Was not difficult wiggling around to find a comfy position. I think I slept on my back for maybe two nights. That was weird since I'm a side sleeper. I didn't find it difficult at all to get up. I just rolled on my side and pushed up with my elbows. I sleep on my port side and never had any trouble. For the first few nights, I stuffed a pillow under my stomach for support. It was uncomfortable on my left side (stomach side?), but it went away after a couple of weeks. I suppose some people have more difficulty with sleeping arrangements, but I think most people don't. I wouldn't worry about it too much.

Hey I'm a March sleever and going on a cruise first week of July. My plan is gym every day. I arranged with the cruise line to bring protein shakes on board, and checked menus to plan where and what I can eat. Checkout cruisingwithgambee.com to research what's served in your ship. You will have plenty of options to do mainly proteins and veggies. Good luck and enjoy!

Wow, I really need to re-focus. Over the last 3 days I have eaten so much of the stuff that I swore off over 2 months ago. Saturday was my birthday, I turned 37. My wonderful sweet husband took me out for a date day without the kids. The day started out great, I went for a 5 mile walk and then went and had a 90 minute massage. We decided to venture to the city and we were having a great time meandering the streets. My husband decided that he was going to have some ice cream and this is where I fell off the wagon big time. I figured heck its my birthday, one little scoop of ice cream will be ok. I got a scoop of mint choc chip in a cup. About 45 minutes after eating it I started to feel nauseated and then my stomach started to cramp, yup I am thinking that I experienced my first episode of dumping. After relieving myself in the rest room I felt much better. We later went to dinner at a mexican restraunt. I had a chicken enchilada, I pulled the chicken out of the tortia. I felt that I did ok with dinner with the exception of some chips and salsa oh and lets not forget about 1/2 of a strawberry daquri. Later I spent half of the night in the rest room with horrible diarrhea. Humm so did I learn my lesson? Apparently not, because I had a few bites of candy on Easter and I ate cookies today.....not just two cookies but 4! Oh my goodness, it is like I just snapped....I have been so disciplined which has shown in my weight loss (55 pounds in 8 weeks). What in the heck am I doing? Today I just could not control my self, it was like "I have to have sugar or I'm going to die" kind of feeling. I have been doing so good without sugar for 8 weeks, I think that one scoop of ice cream started it all. I am going to try my hardest to get back into my routine tomorrow. I have to control these urges. I also haven't been getting in all of my water like I usually do, and I am certain that I have been no way near my normal amount of protein intake. I am reminding myself of a quote from Susan Maria Leach's Before and After book "Nothing tastes as good as thin feels". I am going to say it over and over again and hopefully it will sink in. At least even though I've been out of control with my eating over the last few days I am still doing my 5 mile walk 4 days a week (I work 12 hour shifts the other 3). Re-focus.....Re-focus! Thanks for listening!

Subject: One year and 85 lbs later The time has come for me to post my long awaited 1st year bandversary entry. What has my band meant to me? I have asked myself this question many times over the last 12 months. I’ve come up with a laundry list of ramblings. Preband – it represented HOPE, Anxiety, and the What if’s of life after WLS Early Post Band – the what the heck did I do? And WHERE THE HELL IS MY RESTRICTION? 1st Fill anticipation – I AM HUNGRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Where the hell is my restriction???? 2nd Fill anticipation – I am hungry but not AS MUCH or as often 3rd Fill anticipation – Restriction lasts for about 3 weeks 4th Fill anticipation – OK lets clamp this puppy down!!!!!!! 5th Fill anticipation – HOLY CRAP .3 cc’s was too much fill! I am only able to smell foods and sip soup 1’st UNFILL – removal of the .3cc’s was the difference between soup and FOOD……. And is where I’m maintaining at since January 2008. Also…. Getting an unfill and eating real food is what started the scale moving again. Things that have amazed me: I have POWER over my hunger. I have actually FORGOTTEN to eat. I CAN eat without drinking I CAN be full on very little food. Things that I have realized about myself: Restriction Wise I swell (get tighter) when I’m on my period or when I’m stressed I am tighter in the mornings and more open in the evenings. Foods that worked last week, might not work so well this week. I can raise my hands and do a little shimmy to pop up a stuck item of food Things that I have realized about myself: Non band I am a stress and emotional eater. I crave sweets around my cycle I am pretty happy and comfy in a size 12 It scares me to HOPE for a size 8 or 10 (because it is unknown to me) If I COULD eat pizza…….. I WOULD, so keeping a decent amount of fill is what is needed for ME not to be able to. Dairy Queen has become my go to place for stress eating (and this is NOT a good thing) Things that I had to overcome once banded: Realizing that you don’t HAVE to eat multiple plates of food at a buffet in order to “get your money’s worth” Realizing that people REALLY aren’t LOOKING at how much or how little you eat! Realizing that you CAN keep your band a secret if you want! Realizing that fast food joints don’t really offer much choice, Its cheaper to order an appetizer or alacarte, or split a meal with my 4 year old. Being banded is NOT rocket science, and for me it has worked well because I knew going in that FOR ME and MY GOALS I needed to be in diet mode, and truth be told the scale moves when I am IN MOTIVATED DIET MODE. It stalls when I Go to dairy queen for a small blizzard… but I don’t gain I chose the band for its adjustability and the hopes that I will for once in my life MAINTAIN a loss! Would I do it again? In a heartbeat Will I be rebanded if needed in the future? In HALF a heartbeat! My band has really given me the power over my appetite and that is priceless. Journey with me as I enter YEAR TWO of my Banding Experience

I'm a week and a half out, and asked the nurse about this pain when drinking yesterday. She confirmed that it comes from "gulping" instead of sipping, because I take in too much air. So I'm trying to be more mindful about sipping.

Once I am healed up how much Protein do you think I will need each day to keep muscle and not lose too much weight? I like to work out and will the rest of my life and don't want to get frail looking. I was told to get a minimum of 60g of protein and to shoot for 70g. It took me 5 weeks post op to be able to get in more than 60g. Second question: My daughter works for a company who makes protein drinks. Looks like pretty good stuff. Only 1 gram of sugar but 21 grams of carbs. Does that sound right? That sounds pretty high in carbs to me. I would look for something lower in carbs because many of us are told to keep the carbs low during weight loss. Last question, for today, I have read a lot of stories about bad gas pain right after surgery lasting for quite awhile. From my research it looks like that type of bad situation is rare and most people walk off mild gas shortly after surgery. Is this true for most of you? Gas pain was horrible for me right after surgery. Walking did seem to help it but the pain was pretty strong for a few days. After that, I still had some gas pains off and on, but it was manageable. Good luck to you!

Does anyone else have a problem with swallowing a lot of air when drinking/eating? I'm about 3 weeks post-op and still on full liquids, but I swallow so much air that I'm constantly burping or having gas pains. It's really uncomfortable. Any hints?

North Suburban Medical Center Center for Weight Loss Surgery Monthly Bariatric Support Group 2012 Meetings held monthly 6pm – 7:30 pm in NSMC Basement Classroom: Aspen, on the 3rd Wednesday All patients who have had or are preparing for weight loss surgery are invited to attend. Significant others, family, and support persons are welcome too. All meetings are free of charge and do not require registration. January 18th February 15th March 21st April 18th May 16th June 20th July 18th August 15th September 19th October 17th November 14th (moved up one week due to Thanksgiving the usual week) December 19th Questions? Call bariatric coordinator, Nora, at 303-453-2201.

I only took a week off. I arranged my schedule to be at my desk doing documentation and such the week I was coming back and although I did manage it, my tummy was pretty sore from sitting, I felt tired, and to be honest, I wished I would have stayed home a few more days. You might also.

I went on a college visit with my daughter on Friday, and I was able to wear a shirt from my closet that was a smaller size! And my jeans were loose! Only 3 weeks post sleeve. It felt great!

I was told to wait 6 weeks before lifting anything. You probably pulled on the muscles your port is settled in, which also strained the stitches. You are probably fine, but you might consider taking it easy for an extra couple weeks.

Same surgery date as you! I'm on day 10 of the pre op. Ready for next week.

Hi Peeper, up in snowy Scotland myself and have friends go via the One Stop clinic. If I remember right they had a psych evaluation, blood work, ECG, drugs test, endoscopy, colonoscopy if needed. 5 week liver shrink diet and classes to attend. Now that's up here and his insurance via his work was strict for tests but all fine. Were you notified of any tests needing done? Fridge Pickers Wear Bigger Knickers [emoji200]

I go up about 3-4 lbs the week prior to my period....so I normally don't worry about anything under 5 lbs as long as I haven't been way crazy with my eating. I do think sodium can definately affect it - make sure you are drinking plenty of Water, too, and getting LOTS of Protein in....you will be fine! Don't let the scale dictate how you feel about yourself - a few lbs isn't anything to fret over. Kim

nothing to worry about, its not as bad as it may seem at first. I had all the same worries. Myself being a fat man that craves sweets, its wierd because I dont get the same cravings for sugar like I used to. Dont get me wrong, I still do a little but I save that for saturdays. I still watch my calories but I have one dessert scheduled for every saturday so I will have something to look forward to, something I can work hard for all week and reward myself. Yes its only a weight watchers desert, but still. I do have an appetite still but its useless when you can only eat a few bites and get full so quick. Kind of wierd for me and Im still learning but ive had to change my whole mindset. I used to worry about not getting enough food when I ate out. Now I have to worry about buying too much because of how little I eat. Picture the whole thing like this, when you get on semi solid foods, you will probably only be able to eat as much as a 2 year old at one time. Its a trade off, yeah you cant eat finish a full meal anymore, but the compliments I get outweigh that issue any day of the week. You'll do fine. Stay on this site and you will recieve nothing but support. This site is a Godsend for us losers lol!!!!!

I had surgery on 4/15 and lost 10 the first week, 5 the second, 2 the third and ZERO last week. I know that a lot of people stall around this point so I am not letting it get to me. Or at least trying not to! I only weigh in once/week and am hoping the scale moves even one pound next week. I know I am doing everything right and I'm sure you are too so we just have to be patient. It's hard because I would like to see ridiculously huge numbers every week.

All of my hunger went away right after surgery but it doesn't happen for everyone. Some have to wait a few weeks and some never lose it. For me, there is a kind of disconnect between wanting food (head hunger) and eating food. If I gave into the head hunger, I would be eating candy and ice cream at every meal, but I just don't keep them in the house anymore and so far I have been able to stop myself from eating them when I am out. On the few occasions I have had cake, I took one bite and I was done--it doesn't taste good anymore, dry and kind of grainy in my mouth. I weigh or measure all my food and yes, you will be satisfied on so much less. The first time I tried an egg and couldn't eat the whole thing I was amazed. I used to think about food all the time--at Breakfast I would be thinking about what to eat a lunch and dinner and what Snacks were on hand. Now I eat by the clock, because if I am out and about I will just keep going through mealtimes. It is wonderful but I still haven't really gotten used to it--it's unreal how little food means to me now when before it meant everything. Good luck with your surgery!

Congrats Kimba!! That is just around the corner. how exciting. Can't wait to see your progress. @@busybeebug, I didn't need a referral to go to the info session for wls but I do need one to get my first consult with the surgeon and to start the program. I went to the info session last Tuesday. Now I am just waiting to start the whole program and get on with the weigh-ins . 6 Months just feels like forever. So, I just called my doctors office again today and they had yet to work on my authorization to send it to my insurance for a referral. It's been over a week. So angry! The guy said that he will work on it today or tomorrow and send it in to my insurance company. I sure hope so!

Karen, I'm happy you have found your sweet spot, I'm still struggling with this tight fill. As little as I've eaten, I feel like I should have lost 10 lbs in the last 3 weeks, LOL.

I just had my lap band surgery on April 16th and, like you, have had no complications and am feeling great. Getting a little tired of the liquid diet. My surgeon keeps his patients on liquids for 4 weeks. How is the pureed phase going? I have lost 19 lbs. and looking forward to finally losing weight and keeping it off. Good Luck!!

Hi all, I know my band is working because, according to my home scale I've lost two more pounds. I'm learning to recognize when I'm full; had Cereal about three hours ago, and still am not hungry. I'm exercising and drinking water--I probably could drink a little more, but I'm doing all right. The problem is when I'm lying in certain positions the scar on my left hurts. I guess it's more like a sting. Sometimes I'm afraid that it's a pulling sensation. It's hard when I touch it, so maybe that's keloids? It's above my port, and that's not giving me any trouble. I'm scheduled for another fill on April 23, but I'm wondering if anyone else has experienced anything like this. I've been thinking of just calling my doctor's office, but I've been doing ok. I've read posts where it's suggested that, even if that's true, it doesn't hurt to call, and I probably will, now that I'm writing this. Still, I'd like to hear any experiences, or suggestions anyone has to offer. Encouragement is good, too. :welldoneclap: Thanks in advance. Debbie

I am only three week post-op and have luckily been ok. On Sunday, though, I felt really hungry. I had a hot cup of tea and the feeling subsided. Hope today was better than yesterday!

I have my two week follow up Tuesday and I will definitely mention it to my dr, but many people on a forum had the incision discomfort/pain for a few weeks and then it went away. Better to be safe than sorry tho!