Search the Community

Julie: Thanks for letting us hear from you. I have been on antidepressants off and on through the years and when you need them you need. My internists actually recommend them at my last visit because I have so much anxiety right now. I think it's temporary due to my upcoming PS and DD's wedding in May. It really scares me to think about going back on anti-depressants because of weight gain. How has your experience been with this aspect of it? Take care!

Yeah-I heard you are very sullen after-and should wait a week. I was just sleeved on the 14th discharged on the 16th. For the entire time I was there they had LR running at 125 ml/hr. That is 6 liters if fluids in a very short amount if time. That will add to the weight gain post surgery along with being swollen. I too weighed 4 pounds more then when I went in. I started at 360 was 335 at the start of my 2 week preop diet. Surgery day 314... Couldn't help myself but weighed myself when I got home and was 319, but just now I weighed myself and I was 309. I have been walking and drinking fluids but everything tastes yucky. Although today I ate some strained cream soup and sf chocolate pudding with protein added. Eating some "regular foods" has made things taste a little better.

I had my operation on 12/17 and stalled this past week where I would lose a pound one day, then gain a half pound the next etc. I got on the scale yesterday and it dropped 2 pounds and today I lost another 1.5 pounds. Go figure??? Weight loss has never been linear for anyone (neither has weight gain). It's all about trends and, for once, it's finally "trending" in the right direction. Today is my first day back to work since the surgery and it's been very strange. It seems like everyone in my office knows, but they have been very supportive (at least as far as I can tell). Still, I am suffering from a little brain fog that I didn't notice since my brain power wasn't an issue when I wasn't in the office. It was nice being home and being able to focus 100% on recovery. Now, I am back in the real world and it's not all about me and my weight loss efforts anymore. Anyone else struggling to adjust to getting back to work and the "real world"?

Well I am three years out 178lbs and I still feel fat. If my stomach would vanish mysteriously I would be happier. I think we will always feel we are fat. I dont agree you need therapy because really if we let go of the band the result would be weight gain again. I feel I am in control but I think I will always feel fat.

what is smartlipo?? ive had some problems with my arms getting saggy. ive never had big arms before my weight gain and now they are looking pretty awful. i dont want them looking this bad when i go on the cruise with my grand daughter... i want to swim a lot. so... what is smartlipo please

Thanks guys, so helpful... Not worried about slight weight gain from Water retention. I am going to try out the AST micronized creatine for 30 days and see what impact it has on my lifting. I have already noticed catalyst making a huge difference in speed, weight and reps in my cross fit sessions. Almost 2 x improvement for my WOD from 1 session to the next where I added catalyst in between. My goal is to transform into a good athletic build in 6 weeks. I am already noticing improvements from waist up. My PT says it can be done.

I had a revision front band to gastric sleeve.......I never "ate around my band" and it was highly effective for 8 years until I began having reflux during the night and aspirating. Aspiration pneumonia can kill you!! I was unable to have enough fill in my band for it to be effective, so without my "tool"......my weight began creeping back up. I developed pre-diabetes at end began having joint problems due to the weight gain. So glad you surgeon recommended the sleeve. He said it was a restrictive procedure like the band, and since I did so well with the band that it should work for me. Band failure can be completely unrelated to the direct actions of an individual. Sent from my SM-G930V using the BariatricPal App

I have a couple of reasons for being fat. As a child I was very scrawny. When puberty hit so did the weight. I didn't know at the time, but my eating as a response to hormonal changes was due to sexual abuse when I was very young. Then at 13 I also developed PCOS which didn't cause the weight gain, but did keep on what I was putting on and made it almost impossible to lose it again. Also at 13 I developed Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) which again didn't cause me to be fat but made it so hard to eat sensibly or exercise in winter. I had a lot of emotional pain and rage that I felt I had to stuff down my throat with food because my own home wasn't a safe place to express them. Later on, what added to the weight problem was all the crash dieting I did. My first diet attempt was starvation. I was borderline anorexic at 15 (before they had a name for it) but brought myself out of it before it became an issue. After that I tried just about every crazy diet going.

I'm fat because I eat too much and don't exercise enough. There are a lot of other things that contributed to it- enlarged thyroid medication (that I stopped taking because I was misdiagnosed), puberty, depression, antidepressant medication, college weight gain (stress), yo-yo dieting, eating out WAY too much, genetic predisposition to obesity. I could blame everything in the world, but it's my fault when it comes down to it. The other things certainly didn't help, though.

wow. It took me almost two hours to read this thread. No, I am not a slow reader but, I did want to take everything in. I can relate to so many of you. There are a lot of things you all said that have stuck with me. I would like to share a few with you. "I pretty much dislike myself and don't think I am worth the time and energy it takes to eat right and exercise." "I feel like everyone is looking at me and judging me by my weight." "I hate my body with a frightening intensity and food is the method of destruction that I chose. I don't smoke or do drugs or drink to dull the pain so food is the weapon of choice." "I don't love myself as I am. I could blame my weight on instances of sexual abuse." "Being fat helps me to be invisible." "My weight is linked to my happiness/quality of life." "Over eating is the socially accepted vice." "I am fat because I can't fill up something inside." "I posess a desire to use food as something other than what it was meant for." "...parents/ grandparents feeling embarassment and disappointment in me and my lack of control over food." "They eat and eat and don't taste anything." "I was raised in a home with an abusive, alcoholic (step , in my case) father who made life resemble walking on egg shells." "...became extremely passive/aggresive due to daily spankings, incest..." "I have come to realize that because of the abuse in my childhood, I have been looking for love in all the wrong places, because my daddy didn't want me." "I want to understand what self-esteem truely means." "...realizing the difference from feeling hungry and realizing that i am just thirsty." (paraphrased) Do I eat to try to create a warm loving feeling that I felt I never had? "I will be healthy and strong and safe in my real body that has been hiding for years because of fear and not having enough faith in myself or in God to walk through the hard times." I am not quoting all these things to make it easier to explain away my being overweight; I chose them because I can so closely relate to them all. They all struck a chord in my heart and my mind when I read them. For me, my weight gain is attributed to a combination of all the following: a crummy childhood, an abusive relationship with my step father, lack of self confidence due to others in my family constantly nagging me to lose weight(my grand parents tried to bribe me to loose weight. They offered to pay me for each pound I lost. I was motivated until the check never came to reward me). My weight allowed me that safe zone so that men would find me unattractive and leave me alone. My family is for the most part small framed, despite the fact that I have German/ Dutch/Klammoth Indian in me( all known for thier HUSKY statures). My father is 6'4" and wieghs about 150 soaking wet. My mother is 4'11" and sometimes yo yoed with her weight. The clothes in her closet range frm size 4 to size 16. (What i wouldn't give to wear a 16 right now). My extened family are all small. I ,too was diagnosed with PCOS after gaining 80 pounds in a year. What it all comes down to is I made bad choices and now I have to do whatever it takes to correct them as best I can. I appreciate all the support I receive here. I look forward to the new year with much anticipation and enthusiam. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL MY BANDSTER FRIENDS and to those awaiting their BANDS.

These are the reasons I am fat: 1-I am Italian...anyone else that is Italian knows the emphasis we place on food, and that all family gatherings are centered around the dinner table. I grew up loving food and not understanding the importace of nutrition and exercise. 2-when i finally did learn the importance of fitness at age 13...always the fat girl, of course, i joined the swim team. I toned up quite a bit. Swimming 11 times a week will do that! After i graduated high school, i was so burned out from swimming that i just stopped, but continued to eat like i was swimming 11 times a week...this is where my first big weight gain happened. 3-I hovered around upper onederland for quite a few years. My biggest weight gain started about 3 months after I got married. I had a pretty severe back injury that prevented me from doing most activities. The combination of the injury, adjusting to married life, plus going back to school full time and working full time led to a lot of really, really bad choices. The day of my surgery, I weighed a whopping 286 pounds (yuck). I am struggling with a major plateau right now, but I am NEVER letting myself get to that point again.

Sorry, to the success stories in this forum, In my defense I did search for the topic post sleeve “weight gain” & I was hoping for possible stories I could relate to, y’all all sound so successful so I’ll bounce out of this forum. but Much continued success to you all!

I was started on zoloft prior to surgery, I didn't notice any weight gain then. I've continued on it since surgery and to my knowledge it has not had any effect on that aspect of things.

No, BFL, I used my Weber gas grill outside in my driveway. I used to use that thing at least twice a week pre VSG days! I would be out there cooking a 24 Oz Ribeye steak drinking a Margarita (my true source of weight gain) when it was 10 below zero here in Chicago. I'm NOT kidding.

Wow I've been reading this posts for awhile now and I realized that alot of what other ppl are saying is my problem as well with food. I LOVE FOOD SO MUCH!! It's always been there to comfort me when I was down or like someone said on here when you grow up poor the pay days you remember because that's when you got to eat out some where or get an extra treat. :cry I have been fat most of my life and I do believe it has to do with my biological father and his second wife...I was only 4 yrs old and I remember that if I was eating too slow for them or not eating everything on my plate I would get punished and sent to my room. My father actually called my mama one day and said "if she isnt done by the time we're all done then she doesnt get anymore". My mother screamed at him saying "she is only 4 yrs old and you are a huge man, OF COURSE she isnt going to eat as quickly as you you a**hole!!" So I believe that is where most of my problems started, at a very very young age it was either shovel it all in or go without or get punished. :faint:Then when I hit teenager and I was still gaining weight a little here a little there...my younger brothers made sure to let me know I was a fat a**, and then I had almost everyone at school making fun of me because I was fat. I did have a boyfriend in junior high, but he wanted our relationship kept a secret :angry after that I didnt have any other boyfriends in high school. I was big chested and size 18 at 17 yrs old. Oh yeah forgot to mention my Ex-aunt also had no problems telling me that I had to lose weight. Well both her daughters were in size ZERO clothes so compared to them I was HUGE and she didnt "LIKE" that...so basically I guess you can say the only positive support I got growing up was from my mother and stepdad even though they did give me the nickname Pudgelet! Had to have a breast reduction at the age of 20 because the weight from my breasts was endangering my upper back and shoulders. I also blame my weight for jumping into a marriage with the first guy after high school that showed interest in me, he was emotionally, verbally, physically and sexually abusive to me and I put up with it because I believed that there was no one else that would want me and I was evidently BLIND AS A BAT FOR 2 1/2 FLIPPING YRS OF MY LIFE. :angry Anyway I finally woke up and kicked him out after he cheated on me with a woman from New York that he met online in a slingo chat! I still say to this day if it wasnt for that woman having sex with my ex that I would probably still be with him. So in a way it was a good thing he cheated it woke me up and I wasnt blind anymore. I met a wonderful man that I'm still with to this very day that actually loves me for me NO MATTER WHAT I LOOK LIKE!! 8 yrs on Thanksgiving day this yr and still going strong:whoo: Found out about 2 yrs ago that I have PCOS and INSULING RESISTANCE :angry and I'm infertile. Fertility pills also added to my weight gain also. To this day he still says that I'm hot and I dont need to change anything, he said he loves me for me..what's on the inside and the out. Sometimes I sit and think why in the hell is he with me. I mean I look in a mirror and I hate what I see and say to myself I wouldnt have sex with me, why would he want to....My hubby is a little reluctant for me to have this surgery, but I've had to explain to him several times that I'm not doing it to hurt him and that I'm doing it to get sick I'm doing it because I want to get HEALTHY and to be happy with the person I see in pictures and in the mirror instead of this huge blob in photos that makes me sick to my stomach that I LET MYSELF get this damn big. So I'm pretty sure I'm going to get the surgery, I know my hubby's insurance covers it. I'm just scared about the after...I've tried so many things and nothing has worked and I'm just wondering because I've seen all these posts of how long it takes to lose this weight and I'M EXTREMELY IMPATIENT!!! I want it gone like NOWWWWWWWWWWWWW!!! :help: Well there is my story boys and girls!! Happy Holidays to all and to all a good morning!!! :ranger:

All I can say is WOW after reading pages of this amazing thread! I hope the people who originated this thread back in '05 still come back to read our stories. Ok, I have kinda hesitated about putting my story out there, but here goes. I'm the youngest of 3 daughters, and in high school, both of my sister's had various but undocumented eating disorders. I thought of myself as lucky because I never had a chubby phase like my older sisters, and I was always lazy, but surprisingly athletic. I don't think I would go so far to call me a high school "mean girl", but I was definately headed in that direction. I was HOT, lol, and I loved it. I continued to live in a perfect size 8 world at around 125 pounds until I was about 25ish, I'm 37 years old now. Up until I was 25 I had my fair share of family issues, un-documented depression, sexual harassment, anxiety, etc, and I remember where is standing at the time I said these words to my husband "I honestly feel like my body wants me to be at this (125) pound weight....I think I would have put on a bunch of weight by now due to all those struggles, but I guess not." OMG how wrong was I! Next thing I know, I am working at a crappy job where I was being sexually harassed, living in a state that I detested, and falling deeper into depression. I honestly think I put on like 30 or 40 pounds in a matter of a couple months! I'm still upset that my then doctor never took that severe weight gain as a sign of depression, but at least I'm medicated now As you can probably tell, I have never had much of an issues with self esteem, lol. I knew I was gaining weight rapidly, but didn't really think I had been eating all that much more then in stressful times before, but I was putting on weight.....How dare that happen to me, lol! I finally began treatment for depression once I finally moved to California, and was incredibly happy, but could just not lose the weight. Over time, I eventually gained 20 pounds here, and 20 pounds there, but my body hides it surprisingly well (If you click on my picture and check out my photo album, you will be able to see for yourself). It was also during this time (around 2000) that I flatly refused to be weighed at any doctor's appointment. I figured that there was never a way I would ever weight over 200, so I was fine with not knowing. I just could not deal with hearing the number, and was "blissfully unaware" of how much I weighed for many years. My friends and family were concerned because they never really saw me eat huge amounts of food. I do love my chocolate, and I don't think that will ever change, but there never seemed like I had one clear issue as to why the weight kept adding up. Also, each time I visited my family I would be overcome with anxiety at seeing my older sisters. Although they both had their issues as teens, their weight finally stabilized. My middle sister is about 5 feet tall and weighs less then 90 pounds after having 3 kids, and my oldest sister is about 5'2 and weighs around 120. I remember them thinking I was huge when I was younger since I'm the tallest at 5'4, but if they thought I was huge at 125, what the hell must they have thought of me once I gained all that weight!!! This past may, I began working out in earnest and really watching my food intake. You guys, I serioulsy almost fainted when I stepped on the gym scale and it read 223!!!! I always thought that I could be relatively healthy and happy if I stayed under 200 pounds. Afterall, that is a full 75 pounds heavier then I have ever been. I went to a fat doctor, who tried every weight pill out there on me, and none of them worked. There was also nothing wrong with my bloodwork to indicate I had a thyroid or other metabolic issue....I was just a fat fatty! So I worked out almost every day, eventually biking up to 60 miles a week, but my weight predictibly stayed between 208 and 216. I finally broke down on my birthday, and decided that I had to surrender myself to the fact that this issue is bigger then something I can do on my own. Gaining the weight hasn't been the absolute worst thing in the world for me. It has managed to take a "mean girl" and turn me into a sympathetic and less judgmental adult. Whew, that's alot to write so I'll end it here.

Hi All ive tried to think about when i became fat. what was it linked to? what caused it? well i didnt have a great childhood. had an very abusive relationship with father of my kids (who i dumped years ago) and have a kid with adhd which is very stressful...am i stress eater? After giving it a lot of thought i have to be honest and say..... The reason i am fat is because i ate too much and didnt exercise enough..... cant blame anything other than myself for loving food so much and in big portions.... However even though i am brutally honest about my own obesity i do understand that for many people there is a trigger to their weight gain and this post is in no way meant to upset anyone who have a very real trigger i just trutfully cant blame anyone for the size of my hips other than myself.. love tracey

Big baby (over 10lbs at birth), but was never fat as a child. I was however positively HUGE compared to my skeletal sister and brother. So although I wasn't fat, I thought I was; an earlier poster stated it - a self-fulfilling prophecy. By the twenties, after university the weight gain started. Slowly at first but then more and more. I would diet, lose some, gain more - most of us know the result. It took my 50th birthday for me to grow up or something and say 'enough is enough'. My skeletal brother and sister still are, and not by intent or diet. They just are. But most times I forgive them this sin.

I think this is the toughest time for me. I too have gained about 20 pounds back. But I made up my mind no more sliders and no more sugar until it all comes off. Then if I can do maintenance with a little sweets I will, but if I start gaining again I will will not be able to eat sugar again. Because for the last 6 months I have just been going crazy eating junk. I'm one of those people who just can't have a bit. Is that what is behind your weight gain? Maybe we can encourage each other like we did in the beginning.

My lil love, Jordan just turned 3 last mth and is potty trained too....that's awesome!......but, diapers, are hopefully, in our near future again.............. I hear ya on the tough years and weight gain. Clayton was born Oct 21, 2006... Got pg w/Jordan in Dec 2006...... Lots of nerve-wracking stuff going on. Am glad I have the band to help me stay on track thru the pregnancy, but even more excited to use it as planned next year!

@@jackersducky It's very hard to offer any constructive advice with so little information. Do you want to tell us more about what's going on with you / your eating / your lifestyle / your environmental factors affecting your weight gain?

I've made a decision that when the surgeon's office calls to set up my surgery date in the next few days or weeks, I am going to push for February. Preferrably the 11th, because where I work that would give me two Holidays off, plus one of my Friday's off. I have the 9/8/80 schedule if anyone out there knows what that is, or has it. I plan to take full two weeks off. Why not? I have plenty of time on my books, and I want to be sure I stick to my liquid diet 100%! That can be hard to do if you're stuck at work and end up not bringing enough to keep you satisfied during the day. So, anyone else out there with a date that month or trying to push for it? I'd love to hear from you and see how it's going. Here is my journey, I hope your up to a long read... I began looking into the lap-band surgery about three years ago when I first heard about the surgery. Not very intently at first of course, and I always said I'd never even consider bypass. Not long after hearing about it my PCP told me I had chronic hypertension. Well, I was only 30 years old at that time! I was blown away. I was a chubby child (not bad), but at about 12/13 I lost the weight and was able to keep it off until about 19. It was about 2 years later I met my husband and we married shortly afterward, and it was at that time I made the most of my weight gain. It was like I was sleeping all though it and I never realized it happened. My eyes were really opened that day my doctor informed me of my disease. Well, needless to say I hadn't even stepped on the scale in many, many years. I was wearing a size 28 at the time of my diagnosis. I made a conscious effort to lose some weight on my own, still not fully supporting the idea of surgery. I did pretty good. I did it through good old better eating and exercise. I lost about a pant size before making that ultimate step onto the scale. It said 315!!! OMG! :faint: You know, I knew I was pretty bad off, but still - even then - I didn't imagine it to be that bad. Keep in mind I'd already lost some weight. I've come to terms with it now, and can easily say I was probably at my max upwards into the 330's. Well, I continued to lose a little more weight in the same way - but somewhere betwee 270 and 280 I'd stopped. I've been yo-yo'ing the last ten pounds ever since. I've been this weight for probably the better of two years now. It was at the beginning of this year I realized I needed more help. I figured I needed a little something to keep my portions in control, as I noticed by journaling my intake I tend to "overeat" especially during dinner hour. Breakfast and lunch are perfect, as always. I do great when my mind is busy at work. It took a lot of courage to ask my PCP about bariatrics. It was almost as if I was admitting to myself especially that yes, I'm fat, and yes - I can't lose it alone. My travels from there have been long and arduous. But one moment of it, I do not regret. I am so thankful for the six month dietician appointments, as it prepared me a great deal and in so many ways. I don't think I will be as successful had I not done them. I am so close now, I can see the Bandland gates from here! So, anyone still going through the toughest part, HANG IN THERE!! It is, and it will be SO worth it. I simply can hardly wait!

Roller, if you want this surgery FOR YOU. Then do it... Please don't do it because some a*****e knew the right thing to say to hurt your feelings. It has to be about you and only about you... Not some b***h on a plane... I know what it feels like to be judged.. I live in a very well to do area where most women don't even look human anymore because of the amount if plastic surgery they've had... Yes being fat is a sin here, I've had people judge and treat me less than because of my weight, I had one woman ask me how my husband felt about me since my weight gain, I told her "he loves me" and she was like "oh what a saint he is not to care and still love you" 0_o What the what??? Am I a leper ( no offense to lepers) but that man is LUCKY to have me and he knows it! I had this for me! Not for the assholes that judged me. Please make sure you are doing the same for yourself.. because at the end of the day you will be the only one that matters.

I wonder if having this type of surgery also affects the thyroid gland. One of the symptoms (major symptom for me before I was diagnosed with hypothyroidism in 1995) of hypothyroidism is hair loss, and for me it was by the clumps! Other symptoms include being cold, weight gain, and lethargy. I had all of those, as well. Apparently there are many people out there who have hypothyroidism who don't know they have it, as the symptoms creep up slowly, and sometimes there are no symptoms at all. A simple blood test at your doctor's office will tell you if you have it. I take a tiny pill every morning that takes care of my symptoms. Worth looking into if you think you may have it. I wonder if having hypothyroidism and having the sleeve surgery may enhance hair loss. I will be asking my GP when I see her in February. I'll also ask my surgeon (if I ever see him again!). Good luck all!

Recent Events-I was 217 at my initial appointment in February, I did some celebration eating...As I learned more about the process and filled out the 5 million psychiatric questionnaires at my last appointment I realized I needed to get my stuff together or this surgery isn't going to help me. I work at a school and lost 20lbs over the summer with a personal trainer twice a week. I gained it all back plus some after school started. When the weight gain started getting serious is when my husband got COPD (along with many other desert storm vets). I quit smoking before him to encourage him to quit. He also has a tumor on his adrenal gland and has to eat a lot to maintain his weight (the only time I saw him thinner is when he returned from desert storm). Then my Mom died. My daughter went off to college, my oldest son got commissioned after college ROTC (he stayed at home and went to school while serving in the Texas Guard). He is a 1LT serving in Iraq right now. He is stationed at Fort Hood which is close to our home so he should be back in a couple of months. My youngest son is in his JR year of high school, but got ahead by earning lots of high school credits in middle school. He plans on completing his remaining 2.5 credits at an online high school so he can start college in the fall (community college at first so he will still be at home). One advantage of paying out of pocket is that I don't have to have insurance approval, so I am confident the surgery will happen. Since I work for a non-profit they only cover half of the insurance cost for employees and the VA costs me $0 per month. I already pay close to $300 per month for my youngest son to have the worst *** insurance available (there was a cheaper option, but no providers in my area accept the insurance). I won't lose the house if he has to go to the hospital, but he is only covered to go to the Dr. twice a year with a $40 co-pay. Then it is out of pocket until we reach the $7000 deductible. I think I would save money just having catastrophic and paying for individual appointments. I say that to say, yes I complain about the VA a bit, but the available health plans in my area suck even worse and you have to pay for the privilege of waiting for the "health plan" to approve treatments instead of just doing what you and your Doctor think is right.