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Hello Everyone, Was looking for some insight. I have been having weight gain and some left side pain and have found out that my lapband tubing is disconnected and there has been a slip, I'm most likely going to convert. Does anyone know what aetna requires before a conversion? Thank you!

I no longer eat bread, have a hard time with meat, (about to give that up) and as far as rice, I need to mix it up real good with something, but cannot eat it straight. There are other things I have given up. But I eat more fish than ever before, and chicken. More vegetables. I suppose I could get a slight unfill to enjoy more foods, but to the contrary I can't wait till my next appointment in Feb so I can get a slight fill because weight gain has slowed way down, plateaued.

i had a complete hysterectomy in october and having been struggling with losing, more like lack of losing, since then. more so then before to say the least. i am wondering if anyone else has experienced this. my doc says its normal, but i wanna hear experiences from other bansters. i am really freaking out about it. i am on a replacement hormone, estradial (sp?). when having the hysterectomy, i figured i would gain some, but not like this. and i didnt think it would be so hard to lose. i have gained 15 lbs since surgery. its killing me.

I am going to get banded on April 21st; however, the ENT put me on Prednisone for 10 days due to chronic sinus infection. Will I gain weight using the steroids for 10 days? Thanks,

@Mindbodyandsoul Welcome! Weight gain can happen. No judgement. I have a friend who is about 5 years out and started regaining. She returned back to basics and joined weight watchers to keep herself accountable. Seems to be working. Best of luck!

Hi everyone, I was originally banded back in Nov of 2012 only to wind up with an emergency removal & sleeve revision in Jan of 2013. I did great - lost about 105 - 110 pounds. But, as a result of a job loss, laid off 6 weeks ago, my bad habits came back. I "never" thought I would go back to munching on crappy food & over loading on carbs. The holidays are not the best time to be job hunting. The stress that comes with it is over whelming. It's hard being unemployed, spending HOURS & HOURS on my laptop applying for jobs that could be a match. I've gained about 10 pounds, and while it may not sound like a lot, that's how it starts. I "refuse" to go back to where I was (245 pds). I now weigh around 148 pds. I'm here to let everyone know that yes, you can gain weight after being sleeved. While you may not physically be able to eat as much, you can eat a little more than when you were first sleeved, and gain weight by eating all the wrong stuff. My point? It's time to refocus on why I lost the weight in the first place, and how being thinner made me feel. Time to go back to basics - 'do over.' Every day is a new opportunity to re-build my strength, and focus on what needs to be done to lose those horrible additional 10 pds that seem to be sitting on my stomach, and surely my butt :-). With this said, I'm trying to back track & remember what I did when I first started. I've become more lactose intolerant than what I originally was when I first started this journey, so I need to be careful what I eat. After giving so much support when I first started this journey, I am now looking for help & support. Trying to come up with healthy menus again. Goal is to eliminate those shitty carbs that made me do this in the first place. Appreciate any help you guys can offer! Depressed, but definitely trying to push through with positivity!! Thanks for listening!

Hi Connie - I gained 1kg/2.2lbs on the scales last week, but some how I'm fitting into some clothes that I couldn't before that. I'm wondering if it is muscle gain, as I have been walking and doing weights. Could this be your weight gain? I also find I put on about 2kgs or 4.4lbs of Fluid a few days before I'm due for my period, then it's gone the next week. Like MrsJingles said - Hang in there.. Amy

So I got down to 196 now a week later I'm 198 wth??? Anybody else go thru this? Should I b concerned? I had surgery 1/24/11 btw

Hi...glad to see I'm not the only one gaining weight. I am on maintenance and found Doritos. Delicious, cruncy, and go right thru. Gained 2 pounds this week. A body cannot gain weight unless there is too much intake. Even those w/ medical issues that causes weight gain won't gain weight if they don't eat. - not realistic; however. I am just going back to meal planning and ensuring I have plenty of food that won't cause weight gain (I slime if I eat to much) and stay away from Doritos. Yes, get a fill. Paying out of pocket is something many if not most of us do. But it's so worth it! Good luck and keep us posted.

Hello Everyone, I am a year out of surgery and I am planning on getting pregnant. I wanted to hear from others as I am scared of the high risk pregnancy and malnutrition. I am also very terrified of the weight gain as I am addicted to the scale now (I literally had to have my husband hide the scale from me). Has anyone had a baby after weight loss? How did you handle putting on weight? How did you not gain a lot of weight? I have a doctors appointment tomorrow and will talk to them about being on a strict diet. Before surgery I was diabetic and I am fearful that will come back with the pregnancy as well. Any advice or if anyone can share their story and please tell me straight forward. I know everyone is different but I just want to hear the good and the bad. HW 303 SW 296 CW 170

BlueSea, Isnt it amazing when your on the path to WLS that you notice the small things in life. Especailly how others eat their food. I agree with your decision to continue to be private about your upcoming surgery. And even with the knowledge of your friends possible WLS you had the respect to allow her to continue her journey for a healthier life style. No matter what that is something you should be proud of! When I started WLS journey I knew it is something I feel I want to guard with all my heart. Not because I feel I am weak as a person because all of us have face the unsettling judgement of others during weight gain moments of our life. I just want to protect myself and my journey and not be derailed by others comments. I am doing this for me and my family to have a long and healthy life. I lost my father to obesity plan and simple he was very young. So for me I have been on this journey to get healthy and happy with the wonderful tool of VSG also I didnt want my daughter to go through the same pain in her young life. And I have a little cheerleader on my side!! So Happy I did this!! Wishing you the very best!

Hello! My name is Jason and I am new to this site. I am 33 with a BMI of 37. My Co's are sleep apnea, and unfortunatly, documented depression. I have been on ssri's for about 7 years. Unfortunalty as some of you may know, the major side affect is weight gain. Stopping my medication is not an option right now.....but thats another thread I guess. My insurance co is United health care choice plus. My wife told me a few months ago that the lap band procedure was covered, so last week I set the ball in motion. I had an appointment with my PCP and he is very supportive. He said whatever I need, he will provide to help get it done. I have my physc consult next week, and another meeting with the surgeon on the 30th. I am so strung out right now with questions and concerns!! My wife had a gastric bypass 5 years ago and she has done very well. I am hoping that I can do as well as she. So if you know any pointers or tips in dealing with the insurance company, let me know please!! Thanks all. Looking forward to loseing!

Glad to hear your are doing so well! I did not weigh myself for almost a week after surgery, so I can't comment on the weight gain. I had a leak that needed to be repaired, so I didn't feel great for the first few days. After that, however, I was pleasantly surprised at how little pain I felt and how relatively easy the recovery was!

Hi Sky - thank you for sharing. My weight has been steady around 200 lbs and it seems after the first year or two of being on Zoloft, the gain has slowed a lot and I hover around this weight that I'm at right now for quite some time now. Regardless, I feel like crap with the BMI being 30 and the weight I'm at w/my height... I feel WLS (gastric sleeve, which is what I'm going for) is drastic enough to hopefully reset my weight downward enough to pre-zoloft levels at this age, which in my view, "buys" me healthy years even if I have to continue with the SSRI regimen... The only thing I am curious about is if dropping the weight as a result of WLS will relieve my symptoms, as I've read that people develop depression as a result of being overweight too... I don't know which came first, the gain or the depression or perhaps in parallel... All I can say with certainty is I felt the depression in spades and I also felt great relief while on Zoloft. I tried stopping once, it backfired... so I learned my lesson, sucked it up and took the weight gain rather than counter productivity and misery as a result of MDD.... Quite frankly, I have no idea how it will all pan out.. I'm glad this forum is here so I can share or update on what will happen, but this is certainly a venture into the unknown for me, hoping God steers me in the right direction, whatever that direction may be.... could be good, could be bad, or could be ugly... I have an intention of losing weight - how it pans out and what the ultimate price might be and what it looks like, I have yet to see - though I have optimism based on other people's experiences so far. Thanks for responding.

Hello, just wanted to share my recent success. Yesterday was my 3 month anniversary and total weight loss is 57.4 lbs!!! YAY!!! I am so excited. I don't know about the rest of you but I am counting my weight loss from what I weighed before the pre-op diet. If I count from date of surgery (10/17/11) I am down 48.4 lbs. Last week I experience my first weight gain of 1.3 lbs and I was a little upset....but between last week and this week/yesterday, I was down 4.9 lbs. Someone told me it is just my body adjusting itself, which does make sense. I am doing fantastic, tons of energy and working out. Is there anyone else 3 months out? How are you doing? Any Chicago sleevers?

Post-op weight gain is very common. Congratulations on your surgery!:clap2:

Hey ya'll. I have a question. First, some background... My whole life I was very small. 115 lbs was my heaviest (I'm 5' 3.5") and I always thought I was too small. But that's who I was. When I was 19 I was diagnosed with Bipolar II disorder, and put on Seroquel. Anyone who knows that drug knows that it's known for weight gain. WELL, I gained 100 lbs in just over a year. At first I was excited at the weight gain because I finally had some curves. But then it got out of control. I ate healthy and weight just poured on. I didn't (and still don't) recognize myself in the mirror. I guess my question is, do you think when I go down I'll recognize myself again? Or will the body dysmorphia stay the same and I won't feel like my old self. I'm not planning on going down that far... I'd like to be around 145 or whatever I think looks good. Any insight would be appreciated.

Some random thoughts... I desperately want to go to the gym. I was always athletic until injury and weight gain sidelined me. I'm soooo ready! I have several brands/flavors of Protein powder and ready made shakes I no longer like. They are downright disgusting now even though I loved them before. Going to try layering them for new flavors. I was a little down today over liquid Protein only though it was better in the afternoon. Working out would help that but that's still a no no. It snowed here today on the first full day of spring. Couldn't even go for a walk. This hellish winter needs to end NOW! I'm more than bored with the shakes although they are filling. The satiety just isn't there and I miss texture and chewing. My husband has been great but he keeps saying he doesn't understand why people feel I'm fat. He never thought I needed the sleeve but supports me. I love this and hate it at the same time. Why do both the pre-op and post-op diets for docs differ so much? I'm all about letting my sleeve heal and will follow the post-op diet to a t but some are allowed a lot of diversity after one week. I haven't had a full nights sleep since two nights before surgery. Going to try lukewarm chamomile tea tonight. Ok that's it. Just needed to get these thoughts down somewhere. Hope you all have had good days. Tomorrow is the start of a new week and I plan to make the most of it!

This story has a beginning, but the end is still nowhere in sight. I am the oldest of three kids. My mother is one of those breathtaking, exotic beauties that you just can't help but admire. My father was a handsome man—full of life. We were adorable children—happy and content. I looked like my Dad, but was starting to look like Mom every day. The happiness didn't last. When Dad left, depression took over and I had no one to talk to besides my siblings, who were too young to confide in. That's when my brother and sister and I discovered how comforting food was. Through the years my body grew out as well as up, and I noticed something. My brother and sister where growing up to be beautiful, slender people, and I got fat. Really fat. To this day I still don't understand how genetics can bless two siblings and curse the other, but that is my lot in life. I hated my body and as the years extended into adolescence and adulthood, the hatred toward my excess fat turned into self-loathing, which led to more weight gain and more fat, more tears, and more heartbreak. I couldn't stand the person I had become, but through years of dieting and killing myself trying to do extreme workouts and diets, I decided to just accept the perceived fact that I would always be fat, sad, and alone. It seemed the only person who truly understood my heartache was my cousin, sister, and EC (Eternal Companion,) MexicanGirl. She was going through the same thing. We loved each other, supported each other, confided in each other, and yes, ate together and got fatter together. Then it came. The worst day of my life.The day Dad died, my heart failed. The wind was taken out of my lungs and with it, my will to live. I sunk into the deepest, blackest despair. I cried every night and prayed to God that he would take me home to be with my Dad before I woke up in the morning. If it weren't for MexicanGirl, I don't think I would be alive right now writing this. When I woke up, I was bursting out of all of my clothes and I didn't recognize myself in pictures. I thought back to when I lost Dad. More than anything, I want to be a wife and a mother. I didn't see myself getting there, and even if that miracle did happen, I couldn't bear the thought of my own daughter holding my hand as I die too young and not having the heart to let go until rigor mortis set in and she has to pry her hand out of mine like I did with Dad. I knew I needed to break the cycle. I knew that if I kept going down this path, I would become a diabetic like Dad and die too early. I had to stop it. I researched more diets and exercise programs. Nothing felt right. I knew I would fail them all. Then one day at church, I heard this new girl in the pew in front of me talking to my other cousin about her upcoming marriage. I didn't know here, but I felt very strongly that I needed to introduce myself and offer to design her wedding invitations. Her name is Katie, and we quickly became friends. She told me that she was getting weight loss surgery in a few days. I was intrigued. I stewed over this new thought for a while—even did a little research and dreamed about someday being able to afford something like that. I was impressed with how quickly she was losing weight. One night, MexicanGirl and I were at Walmart and Katie called wanting to hang out. She came to Walmart. They where introduced and we stood right there in the plus-size clothing section talking about her experiences with the Gastric Sleeve. I felt something. I didn't know what, but now I know it was a glimmer of hope. I thought about it over and over. I was a woman obsesed. Finally I turned to my EC about my feelings and to my pleasant surprise, she felt the same way. We decided we were going to take serious measures to research the sleeve to see if it was right for us. We spent hours reading and watching other people's stories on YouTube. We invited Katie out for Breakfast. She brought us her Kaiser Bariatric Surgery program binder and ansered all our questions. That day, we knew. We had to do this! MexicanGirl called her doctor that day and scheduled her intro class. I was still waiting to get approved for medical insurance, but I went with her to her intro class. She was referred into the Kaiser South Sacramento Bariatric program and we went to her orientation together. We decided not to undergo the sleeve and opted for the RNY Gastric Bypass instead. Shortly after I was able to get into Kaiser and on March 26th, 2014, We met our Surgeons! MexicanGirl got Dr. Neuhouse and I got Dr. Grinberg. At my orientation, I clocked in at my highest weight ever, 287! I lost 5 pounds right away which gave me a start weight of 283. Dr. Grinberg congratulated me on my loss and told me I needed to lose 15 more pounds and get down to 268 before I could schedule a surgery date. We were given a 1200 calorie diet to follow and that day we went to Ihop for a meal of pancakes and got started. The first ten pounds came off pretty easily. We ate right, we walked, we did Turbo Jam, we attempted yoga (owie!) and tried Zumba. I moved in with MexicanGirl so we could support each other, as neither of our families understood our struggles. MexicanGirl's weight melted right off and before we knew it, she was below her pre-op goal weight. The last five pounds were murder for me. It was going so slow! One day, I gained .8 pounds on the doctor scale. I was so upset! I cried and felt like a failure, but MexicanGirl gave me the kick in the pants I needed. I called my nutritionist who told me that I was doing e everything right and to stop kicking myself over less than a pound. Two days later I was 267! As MexicanGirl was already below her goal weight, we were both able to get our surgery dates. One June 16th, 2014, we are BOTH getting the Gastric Bypass surgeries that we so desperately need! For the first time in my life, my future looks bright. I am looking forward to getting healthy. I want to run, jump, and dance. I want to go on hikes without feeling like I'm going to drop dead. I am going to meet my future husband and my body won't make me feel unworthy of him. I will have children, and grandchildren and great-grandchildren. When i am old, and wise, I will greet death like and old friend, because it will be my time. My children will not bury me prematurely. I am grateful to my Heavenly Father for making this available to us. I know my Daddy is looking down and me and is rooting me on! June 16th, here I come!

Hi @1AnnieOkie, have you tried a "reset diet" yet for your sleeve, or focusing on high protein foods? Diet pills like phentermine to curb hunger are likely very off-limits for you if you just had pneumonia. I am hopeful that someone more knowledgeable chimes in with their experience, as I have not had the surgery yet. In the past, steroids caused a lot of water weight gain for me, which I was able to lose after a while. At least you are catching it early, and not letting this get out of hand. Although I don't have VSG experience yet, I would say stay positive right now and don't assume the worst about your metabolism being permanently damaged by the medication. Your body has been through a lot recently, and may need some time to heal. Good luck to you

My endocrinologist is the one who recommended the VSG to me specifically because it has benefitted other patients with PCOS. I read through promising medical studies when making the decision to pursue the surgery. I had the VSG in August of 2015, and I do consider the outcome to be successful because I exceeded both the goal my surgeon had set and my own "dream" goal. Depending on the brand, I'm wearing between a size zero and a four, which I would have found impossible to believe a few years ago. I did start off with a lower than typical BMI for the surgery (32), but was literally busting out of size 14, so this is a dramatic change. I've sustained that weight loss fairly easily. My diet this year has been more focused on PCOS than weight loss; I've read a few books about dietary guidelines for women with PCOS, and try to follow them. Having the VSG abated some issues with PCOS, but unfortunately not all of them. I've reduced risk from obesity-related health problems, and that is important. I still struggle with acne and hirsutism, and fertility problems. I actually didn't start taking Metformin until after I'd lost the majority of weight, and have lowered the dosage because of side effects. I plan to discontinue it altogether soon, after gradually tapering off. I'm taking 100 MG of Spiro now, and I use Vaniqa to help with the facial hair. It's obscenely expensive, but it's been effective for me, so worth the cost. I'd been on a lower dose of Spiro for nearly two years post-op, and have only recently upped it from 50 to 100 because of acne and cycle irregularities. My cycle had been fine for a while, but I had several international trips over the summer, and it's believed that the travel contributed to throwing things off. One thing I experience with Spiro is an increased appetite. Though some people lose weight and have a reduced appetite while taking it, others have the opposite experience. I don't know if this is a medicine you've ever taken, but wanted to discuss it since it's often prescribed for PCOS. For years endocrinologists insisted weight gain was not a side effect, but it's now listed as one on Mayo Clinic's website. There are many accounts online of women, both with PCOS and not, who've gained considerable weight while on it. Since I'm now two years out, carbonated drinks don't have as much of an effect on me as they did the first few months post-op when I was still healing. I find that drinking carbonated water gives me the sensation of fullness when I've felt an increase in appetite from Spiro, without consuming calories and carbs, and it also quenches the increased thirst I feel. I also am careful to keep healthy snacks around so that if that's not sufficient and I'm so ravenous I need more, I'll have better options within reach. I definitely think the VSG is worthwhile. I'd be optimistic that it could help you with PCOS, but braced for the possibility that some issues will continue. It absolutely improved my life and I'm grateful every day for it, even though it didn't help as much as I would have liked with PCOS. I wish you all the best!

:biggrin: When I was deciding what I was going to do to get ride is 85 pounds, (an entire person) I was carrying around never left my side. I was first saying okay I can have plastic surgery, But then that wouldnt correct the entire weight gain issue, so then I decided to do the Lap Band. My issue is that I dont look like I need to lose 85 pounds (to most people) just like I dont look disabled ( to people) so I had it hard to get approved. My spouse constanly reminds me he loves me Jst like I am (Thank God) but I have to remind him and others it is NOT about him , this is for me. I said that 2008 was going to be My year. I was going to lose the unwanted weight, grow hair ( that is normally shaved) due to the heat in La. and start back focusing on me, I love me so why not? I use to take for granted that I COULD LOSE WEIGHT just like that, I was a runner, 6 miles daily, attend a workout class three times a week, now since I was injured and cannot now, I can relate to those who cannot workout physically ( not being lazy) but they cannot if they wanted to ( oh and we do) belieive me we do. I use to see over weight people and say" why dont they just put the fork down, or jst say No more, or workout or thought they were lazy. I am sorry now I thought like that. My breaking point was weighing 200 pounds.I had to end my addiction and relationship with food, and to see it in another form What was your breaking point? Good luck to you all and with Gods help we all can acheive our Goals.:tt2: Kourtney

*raises hand* My first period after surgery was VERY heavy (compared to pre-wls) and very LONG (it lasted over a week!). It continued (and still does - I'm two years out) to be comparatively heavier than before surgery, but the duration has gone back down to "normal" (for me, that's about 3-4 days). Another thing of note is that it comes like clockwork. I used to be very regular before I became obese, but then it became very irregular after the weight gain. The 1-2 years before surgery I would go months without it. I thought I was going through menopause or something, but I guess it was just being fat? Edited to add: I'm 49

Okay. First off. Congrats on losing 14 pounds in a week! WOW! As for gaining weight (1 lb!), it might be your body's way of keeping itself in check. You lost 14 pounds in a week - a one pound weight gain isn't bad. When I've lost a lot of weight quickly sometimes my body has to regain its composure. Maybe it's that time of the month? A little water weight gain? Just a thought. I'm still floored by a 14 pound weight loss in a week. Rock on.

Sounds like you may be getting too many calories, I aim for less than 1000 and I'm 5'6 at 177 right now. If you aren't working out as much you may be taking in more calories then you are burning which will cause weight gain. Hope that helps- good luck!!