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No, not like I should. I'm also a HUGE coffee drinker, but have been reading on here that some doctors don't want sleevers drinking coffee because it can stimulate the appetite. I am under a tremendous amount of stress and wonder if that has a lot to do with my weight gain. I definitely need more protein and veggies and water! Have you tried that 5:2 they talk about?

I am losing slowly but the best thing has been coming home from vacation without a weight gain...now I know I'm on the right track. When I have those rare times that weight comes off quickly, I get all excited. But when it is coming off slowly, I also see results (in inches, energy, etc). I am also being forced to develop new good habits - chewing my food instead of inhaling it, small bites, etc. Yes, its been worth it and I know when I finally hit goal I will be doing a big hapy dance.

Well I went yesterday for my first appointment. BMI 36.1, so I meet that requirement (remember I have diabetes and high triglycerides). Met with the endocrinologist (for diabetes) I have to get my blood sugar down under a 8A1C, currently at 9.3, had a ton of blood work done, met with nutritionist, and a surgery coordinator. Dr told me I have a 90-95% chance of leaving the hospital without my insulin pump! How awesome that will be! The surgery coordinator, gave me a list of requirements for my insurance. One BIG problem.....I have to give a 3 year weight history, well I have that, but I having not been over a 35 BMI for 3 years. My BMI blow up after being put on insulin. And continues to raise. I have been obese for years, but not morbid obese until the past year or so. I ask if my BMI had to be at 35+ for the past 3 years to be approved, she said, "normally, however it depends whose desk it lands on and sometimes what co-morbiditys you have"! I have called my insurance (CIGNA) and searched and searched everything I can find on the web and no where does it say that being at my current BMI for 3 years is required for approval. Dr said I have MAJOR insulin resistant which means, I make insulin, I take insulin, but my body cells won't allow it in. This mean I have to take more insulin!!! OMG, which causes more weight gain, it's a vicious cycle! So now of course I'm upset! The Dr said the surgery is the best thing I can do, to put my diabetes in remission and get off all the meds I'm on. I'm going to proceed. My company's insurance is self-funded, which I've read I can appeal with my employer if Cigna denies me. I can't imagine them denying me when I lay in front of them how much they pay out every year for all my medicine and Dr visits due to my diabetes! They will save a tone of money in the long run. So now I have to track my blood sugar before every meal for 5 days and fax that back to the endocrinologist . Then he will adjust my insulin! I have to make an appoint of course for my psych visit. Then I have to have a endoscopy of my esophagus, I also have major acid reflux and Barrettes esophagus. The surgeon wants to let at the "territory" before he operates. Plus 3 month of classes/diet. I suddenly feel like my head is falling off!!! It's a lot! I'm going to try and remain positive I need to make this happen! Ren

Michelle, sounds like you are definitely too tight. The weight gain may make you even tighter. Have you not checked with your doctor in two years? I have heard of several instances like yours. Tight is good. Too tight is NOT. You can't eat properly when you are too tight, as you know. Small portions, SMALL bites with an annoying amount of chewing, should allow you to eat fairly well. I didn't lose weight for about 3 months...got two unfils, just a smidgeon at a time, and immediately dropped 5 pounds. Like you, I got hungary but ate band friendly foods, or did the Pbing. Don't risk a possible erosion from being too tight. See your doctor as soon as possible. Good Luck

I've heard about Dr. Scott a friend of mine had him, said he was very pleased and lost a lot too! I'm currently seeing Dr. Wheeler at DePaul Ssm weight loss institute I've had a good experience with him so far. I had my last appointment of the 6 month wait on 1/7/16 so I'm just waiting for submission and approval! Only problem is on my first initial appointment they recorded my weight wrong, they had me weighing about 35 lbs less then I actually did so it looks like I gained 35lbs in 6 weeks on paper! My insurance advocate said it won't be an issue but I think it will because my in my policy it says no net weight gain so now I'm just hoping and praying everything works in my favor and fast too because I'm ready to start this journey!!

Well, I'll start with my name. It's Craig, I was 29yrs old and 500lbs when I had my Roux en-y. I'm from Dayton OH and there were a lot of things leading up to my surgery. I was born with a hip disease called leg perthissess. My parents & Dr. caught that at around the second grade. That is probably where I had my biggest weight gain. I was pretty much forced to strict bed rest by my Dr. & my parents... So while all my friends were outside playing I was inside watching reruns of Mr. Belvedere & eating comfort food. I was in a exercise restrictive leg brace until the 6th grade. After I finally got my hip back to 100% or as close to that as possible for me. Then life seemed to be getting back on track for me. I started playing hockey competitively and was very good at it but not good enough in Dayton OH, to get paid for it. Had I lived in more of hockey town, who knows. At any rate I started a real job. At 19 years old I started working in a factory, 3rd shift and making decent money. At this time in my life most of my friends were out partying & trying to get laid, maybe working part-time job. I was busy paying on a brand new truck I had bought before I realized that the insurance was gonna cost me as much I was paying on the truck! Working 3rd shift really messed with my eating schedule. I started gaining a big amount of weight. I would eat with my parents through out the day & then eat again. at night with my friends. I worked at the factory for a few years and then began a career as a professional Body Piercer. Now, the factory was hot, and it was physically demanding. Being a Body Piercer was not! My body was still out of wack due to a extreme lack of exercise and sleep depravation. I am a firm believer that you never get to catch up on lost sleep. That being said I also believe that your eating schedule and sleep schedule should kind of be balanced. Mine were no where near balanced. At around the age of 21 I started dating a girl that I got very serious with. I thought I was around 300lbs. Later that year I got sick with phenomena... I eventually had to have lung surgery. I was put in ICU and weighted to find out that I actually was about 380lbs. At this point I started looking into Gastrick Bypass Surgery. I had no health insurance at this time(still don't by the way lol). So I figured I'd just diet. I had a very hard break-up and moved to Columbus for a year. When I moved back to Dayton I had no choice but to live with my parents for while. This is when they really saw how out of control my health had become. I talked with my mom about the procedure and she offered to pay out of pocket for it. I went to Dayton Bariatric and saw Dr. David Bruce who in my opinion saved my life on 1-7-09. On the day of pre-surgery testing I weighed 498lbs I couldn't believe that I weighed that much. The first day I could walk afterwards they weighed me and I had already lost close to 30lbs. From that point I started losing weight rapidly. In 3 years now I have lost a total of 260lbs. It was after my weight loss seemed to be on-track that my "other problems" , started! I began to replace comfort food with other comfort coping tools. I start popping Vicodon like candy. At one point up to 20 a day. Keep in mind up to this point in my life I had never done a drug let alone start to abuse them. I did Vicodone regularity for about 2.5 years. For the last 6 months I have struggled with staying strong to keep away from Vicodone and any other pain meds. It's been hard on me and life partner. I feel like I gave up my food addiction for a pain pill addiction. I know I never did these things before when I was 500lbs. I am trying but everyday is a struggle. I would really appreciate some feedback. I'd love to hear some of your experiences other than my own. I can't be the only 1 out here that this has happened to. Thanks for reading I know I'm long winded sorry again and remember that there is answer you just have to ask the right question. Craigs Story Thank you Katie for your support through all of this I love u and U are my everything!!!

This is something that is best discussed with your doctor. If you are really concerned about weight gain, then talk with the doctor about a different medication. They have a medication called buspar which is really good for anxiety. However, if you have some depression going on that needs to be treated then your doctor will determine this. Again I am not a doctor and I am just recommending that you talk with your doctor that prescribed the medication. There is a reason that he prescribed it for, so it's time for a consultation.

Hi Everyone, I was given a prescription for paxil today for my anxiety and when I got home I read the side effects and one of the main side effect was weight gain. I couldn't find a thread with this on it here so I'm curious is anyone on it after surgery and notice weight gain from it??? I'm considering not even taking it after reading that.

I guess I will start off by telling you a little about myself. I am a mother of three beautiful children. They are aged 8, 7, & 5. My struggle with weight gain came after having my first child. With my first child I gained about 15 pounds. Not too bad. But when my second child came I got preeclampsia. U swelled up and retained a bunch of water. I gained 100 pounds during that pregnancy. Then 13 months after that pregnancy I got pregnant again. So the weight just kept piling on top of weight. My weight before my first pregnancy was a hundred and fifty pounds I am now topping the scales at 324 pound. Throughout my pregnancies and weight gain I developed a few medical conditions. I have fibromyalgia, GERD, and PCOS. The doctor has tried to put me on several medications. I was told that metformin would help with the PCOS and help me with weight loss. However taking it for a couple weeks I developed major headaches. I felt sick all the time. So I stopped taking it. I tried losing weight on my own going to the gym and eating healthy. I would lose about 20 pounds and then couldn't lose anymore. If I could do it on my own I would but I feel that I can't. No matter how hard I try I'm not going to achieve losing almost 180 pounds. Gosh it's mind-boggling just to think about how much I have to lose. I am only 27 years old. I want to get healthy and I want to lose the weight. I'm tired of feeling like I'm walking around in a fat suit. But the thing is I can't take it off at the end of the day it's always with me. I'm tired of laying around in bed all day watching TV and stuffing my face. I'm tired of not getting out and enjoying my kids. I'm tired of feeling like I'm an embarrassment to my kids when taking them to school functions or being out in public. Now my 8 year old daughter who should weigh about 70 pounds weighs a hundred and ten pounds. I worry about her every day. I don't want her to feel the way I feel and I don't want her to be bullied or made fun of. I know I need to do the weight loss surgery but I'm so scared. What if I don't lose the weight? what if die? What if I get a serious blood clot? What if I get too skinny and unhealthy that I look sick? What if I can't enjoy the holidays and my grandmas awesome cooking because everything makes me sick? Then I'm faced with the question do I do the gastric bypass or do I do the sleeve? I've heard the pros and cons of both. I thought I was set on gastric bypass but after having a support group meeting I started to question whether or not the sleeve would be a good idea. I need help. Which one do I do? Am I going to be safe? Am I going to come out alive? Are my kids going to have a mother? Am I going to be sicker after the surgery than before the surgery? Or is god going to watch over me in every step that I take and everything will end up perfect? Will I be healthy? Will I lose the weight? Will I be able to enjoy my life again? So many questions please help. All advice is welcome.

I too suffer from clinical depression and anxiety. I do take medication for it and my psychiatrist has to watch me closely because it can increase appetite thus leading to me eating too much and as a result weight gain. Then as a result I become more depressed. My advice is for anyone who might even THINK they may be suffering from this deadly disease is to seek medical professional help immediately.

You said you completed a 'light' workout. That may be the key to your weight gain... Glycogenation is the dominant reason for weight gain when working out while consuming so few calories. Exercise boosts our muscles' energy storage capacity. Since active people need more fuel, a body that has just exercised adapts by increasing its capacity for glycogen storage. This process leads to temporary water weight gain. Also, very low-calorie diets (read: the pre-op liquid diet) can result in water retention. Therefore, you may be losing fat, but the progress you've made is masked by water weight gain. Maybe you lost a pound or two of fat the first few days but gained a few pounds of glycogen and/or water in that time. In summary, stay off the scale. Let your body sort out the changes it's experiencing. Measure your progress by the looseness of your clothing, not by an arbitrary scale number. Good luck to you.

We all know exactly what weight gain is; the scale goes up in numbers, our clothes start to get tight, it takes more effort to get out of a chair, the seat belt is tighter and we just don’t feel as well. We all know what weight loss is; the scale shows us a lower number, our clothes hang funny and fall off of us, people start complimenting us about the way we look, we feel better, and we need less medicine. But weight maintenance is something that we all have failed to understand. We have gone up and down in our weight our entire lives, struggling to keep the weight off, gaining weight over and over again. Gaining it has always been easy, I just look at brownies and I would gain two pounds. I never understood my neighbor who was always a perfect size 8 and ate everything in sight. We all know people like that. What has always been missing, is weight maintenance – it was something that I had never achieved. It was elusive to me. I was a constant yo yo. I would lose the weight and thought I could maintain my weight loss but those old habits would sneak back in and sabotage me one more time. The frustration grew every time that I would go down and then back up again and many times with a bonus extra pounds. Each time getting more and more frustrated. When you buy a new car you shop around to get the best deal and then you pick the one that best suits you and your lifestyle. When you pick it up, it comes with a manual, a set instructions and guidelines. You need to put gas into the gas tank to make the car move and every 3, 0000 mile change the oil. Then every once in a while you need to take it in to the dealer who opens it up and looks inside. They make some adjustments and then they give you a bill. You pay the bill and then you are on your way. You need to wash and wax your car so it always looks good. Well, if you think about this is the same as having Bariatric Surgery. The new car is the same as your new pouch. You decide what kind of surgery that is best for you and your lifestyle. You shop around for the best surgeon. You are given a set of instructions from your surgeon, just like you received with your car. You need to feed yourself protein and water to keep you going. Every few months you need to see the surgeon, to check under your hood to take sure your blood levels are good to keep you going in the best condition. You doctor will give you some suggestions to keep you running well and keep you on the right road to weight loss. You exercise and continually add more fuel. But then one day you stop checking the oil and washing the car. A rattle appears out of nowhere and you get used to the new noise coming from the right front of the car. A door ding shows up and you do not even notice the second or third one. You forget to check under the hood. For the bariatric patient this is the time that they start to stray from their doctors program, they start to gain a little weight, we go back to some of our old habits without even thinking about it. This is where we all start to get into trouble. We think we do not need support group anymore, after all we have lost a lot of weight and we think that we are doing just fine. Then all of a sudden we have a wreck, we got on the scale and it is up by 20 or 25 pounds. It is time to call the Auto club tow truck. We need to get towed back to the right road. The Maintenance Road. We all have heard the new Weight Watchers ad campaign, that diets do not work, every one of us know that diets do not work. We have tried them all and look where we ended up; heavier and more frustrated. The only thing that will have lasting effects on us is when we are ready to make lifestyle changes. These changes will make us not only lose the weight but to keep it off for life. To lose weight and keep it off, the best approach is to focus on lifestyle changes and develop an eating plan that's enjoyable, yet healthy and low in calories. This approach will result in weight loss that you can live with - that is, that you can maintain over a long period of time. We need to attend support groups and get a constant stream of positive motivation to keep us on the Maintenance Road. It is easy to get lost and to end up in a dead end; your support group can direct you back at anytime. We are here to help you achieve the goals that are important to you. We each need to learn to make it a Lifestyle that you can live with and enjoy day in and day out to continue to maintain your weight loss. Successful Make it a Lifestyle weight-maintenance strategies Now that you have lost the weight, you can't stop your hard work. Weight maintenance requires daily exercise, healthy eating, a long-term commitment and constant attention. The following habits are essential for you to develop to achieve long term weight maintenance: Healthy snacks and meals - Focus on low-calorie, nutrient-dense foods, such as fruits, vegetables and whole grains. Keep saturated fat low and limit sweets and alcohol. Remember that no one food offers all the nutrients you need. Choose a variety of foods throughout the day. Remember to eat two bites of dense protein to one bite of anything else. Exercise program - One of the most important things you can do for weight maintenance is to continue a aggressive exercise program. Studies suggest that it only takes 30 to 60 minutes of moderately intense physical activity daily to maintain weight loss. Moderately intense physical activities include swimming, fast walking, biking, and hiking. Know and avoid your food traps - Know which situations can trigger you’re out-of-control eating. The best way to identify these food traps and emotional eating is to keep a food journal. For as long as you find it helpful, write down what you eat, how much you eat, when you eat, how you're feeling and how hungry you are. This will help you understand and stay in control of your eating behaviors. Regularly monitor your weight - People who weigh themselves at least once a week are more successful in keeping off the pounds. Monitoring your weight can tell you whether your efforts are working and can help you become aware of small weight gains before they become larger. Be consistent - Sticking to your new lifestyle plan during the week, on the weekends, and amidst vacation and holidays increases your chances of long-term maintenance. Attend Support Group - Getting support is critical, whether through a friend, family member, trained professional or support group, can ultimately mean the difference between your success and failure.

I have one on my lower back right above my rear. It is fared really well with my weight loss so far. But when I got it, I was careful to have it positioned in a place that wouldnt change too drastically with weight gain or loss.

I wouldn't worry about the weight gain; obviously your body is trying to heal right now. I'm sorry you're going through this, it sounds awful. Just from what you're describing (and of course I'm no expert or doctor) you aren't drinking enough and it seems like you may need to stay with the clear liquids (water, broth) for longer than usual. Keep in touch with your doctors as they will be the best to help you!

Agreed, <3 my nuvaring! I don't trust pills post RNY, WAY too many about to be new mommas around here!!! The shot can cause significant ant weight gain. I had a Mirena and didn't like the hormonal side effects.

I am 2 months out......down 36 lbs and about 3 to 4 pants sizes. I am getting the compliments and people notice my loss, however........I have not taken any post op pics! I look in the mirror ( with clothes off) and don't see that big of a difference, and I know that I am overly critical of myself and I still feel as though the camera is going to tell a story that I don't want to hear! LOL. When were you all able to look in the mirror and see the changes for yourself? I notice some of our fellow sleevers are in love with the camera. Due to my weight gain I have resulted to saying I am not photogenic! I have been with my husband for six years, we have four children and have never taken family photos.....This is crazy and my weight has controlled so many aspects of my life! I am taking a stand!!!!! My 29th birthday is in August and since I no longer face going into my 30's fat, my family will take pics this August! YAY. I have a goal in mind of where I would like to be but hey I am just thankful that I am almost 40 lbs lighter than I was just 2 months ago........this post was random, but you guy's before and after photos inspire me and I realized I have none. Going to start tracking my journey.....and actually posting pics. Now the larger challenge........finding a BEFORE pic..LOL

I have used 40%/30%/30%, protein/fat/carbs since my surgery and up to the present. I check the percentages daily to give me an idea of anything I need to increase or decrease the following day. I also check it weekly which I think is the more important information. Seems like you never hit it right on the button but I'm usually pretty close. Last weeks numbers for example were 37%/35%/28%. My starting weight was 285 and my weight stabilized thirteen months later at 155. It's been steady at 155 plus or minus a couple of pounds for the last eight months. I have MFP configured with a daily calorie goal of 1620. I've had 2000 calorie days and 1000 calorie days and both are fine as long as I maintain the 1620 average. I don't know if you're familiar with set-points but at 1000 calories a day, I suspect that the reason you haven't started losing yet is because your body is doing everything it can to maintain your current weight. Set-points usually have a range of about 10% of body weight. So at 157, the range of your set-points would be about 15 pounds. You may be at the lower end of the current set-point that you are in. Which is a long-winded way of saying that your body is defending the set-point. It's trying to maintain your current weight by reducing metabolism and heart rate, increasing hunger, and using a complex set of hormones and chemicals - all working to maintain your current weight. Your body's negative response to weight loss (and reducing the existing set-point) is quite strong, to weight gain (and increasing the current set-point) comparatively weak. Set-points are the underlying basis for what is often referred to as your body going into "famine" or "starvation" mode. So the key is to be patient. There is absolutely no doubt that maintaining a daily calorie intake of 1000 calories will, over time, result in weight loss. You might jump start your weight loss by increasing your calorie intake to say 1200 for a few days. Or you can just stay the course with the 1000 calories knowing that sooner or later, you will start losing weight. The good news is that once you start losing, it will likely drop fairly quickly until you reach the next set point which should be pretty close to your goal. The bad news is that you will need to maintain that goal weight for about six months in order to establish the new, lower set point. Hope this helps and please keep us posted on your progress!!

Welcome! Its interesting that you say there may be a corallation between TBI and weight gain. My son in law was always slim until he fell and had a severe head injury. He gained a huge amount of weight and developed diabetes because of it. We just thought it was because he wasnt able to be as active and because he sleep eats in the middle of the night. He is also looking into WLS. Good luck to you. I hope you get to have your surgery soon. I am also just waiting for my Echo and my EGD and hopefully will have a date too.

I have been lurking for a couple of weeks and finally joined today. I have gotten a tentative approval for VSG. Final approval is dependent on heart health clearance via results of echocardiogram, which is scheduled mid-February. Hopefully, I can set up my surgery in March. I view Gastric Sleeve and all bariatric procedures, as tools to help, not as a sure fix....it is not the easy way out as some would claim! I have been severely hypothyroid since I was 20 years old after having most of my thyroid removed because of Graves' Disease (autoimmune hyperthyroid). Although, I take thyroid replacement, synthetic drugs do not work as well as your own natural hormones. For the past 40 years, my weight issues have been cyclical "hills and valleys". I would normally stay slim about 12 years and then would go into a gaining pattern but never topping more than 163, lasting 6 to 7 years before dropping the excess weight again. In 2012, I suffered a head injury and my weight exploded. I went from 117 to 212 in 8 months! The medical community is now starting to study the relationship of TBI's (traumatic brain injury) and weight gain. I can relate a definitive change in my food cravings and appetite. This time, I couldn't get the weight off even though I had a history of successful dieting. My resolve was as strong as ever but something had changed with the head injury. What this proves is the path to losing weight and maintaining a healthy weight is rockier and steeper for some than others through no fault of their own. The adverse changes to my health was the catalyst that motivated me to look into VSG. I recently had to start on HBP meds and have a been experiencing knee issues. I have always enjoyed an active lifestyle but the extra weight has elevated my fears of a stroke or heart attack due to heart palpitations and shortness of breath with even the slightest exertion. I am certain I will be asking lots of questions and am grateful for such a knowledgeable and supportive group.

OK, someone please tell me what a "positive burp" (aka PB) is! A burp itself is positive, as you are getting rid of gas(es) in your stomach, which might otherwise give you a tummy ache. Or is this another thing that can't be explained until I experience it myself? So far I have experienced only diarriea (sp?) and since that was a normal condition for me before I had the lapband, I am assuming it is never going away. Which has always amazed me. How can someone have diarriea after every time they eat and not lose weight? Ahhh, the unexplained mysteries of weight gain and loss. Thanks :)Laura

Hi I am just full of questions since getting my surgery date for June 5th. I am wondering what if feel like when first waking up from surgery and what it feel like later the same day ? Also what do the fills feel like ? It seems like it is such a tender spot, my surgen said they no longer numb the area because several people said the numbing needle hurt more than the fill needle, just curious . I am so excited I hope and pray that everything goes well, I have three miracles here that I want to be healthy for and hopefully a 4th. Since I am a proud mommy I have to tell you all that I have three beautiful adopted children all adopted the day after birth. Our youngest just turned 1 in April. We have sent our adoption profile to the agency again for one more Hispanic baby girl. I realized that I needed help when I thought of how much I love my children and how much they deserve a healthy mom and I still could not do it on my own. I felt ashamed , once I got passed that feeling I looked at the positive that maybe now next winter when we go sledding I can pull the little one up the hill and be able to breathe. My knees are really bad from my weight so I am so limited to playing on the floor with them. I weigh 240 now and want to get to 150. I cant imagine living my life more comfortable and not having my weight hold me back from every social event I am invited to . I am always so worried of seeing someone from highschool or my past and have them think wow look at her weight gain, so I opt not to go places like that. Anyway sorry to ramble on , just getting it off my chest everyone is gone to bed and this is my relaxing time. I am from Maine, anyone else near me ? Thanks so much for listening

When I was a teenager I was in a relationship with a boyfriend, we were together nearly two years, and I hate to admit idiocy, but we were not as careful with birth control as we should've been. But because of this, it piqued my attention and realization that even though I had a regular cycle back then, that something was off. I never got pregnant, even though there were times where I should have gotten pregnant due to our negligence. I worried even back then that something was causing infertility, and I spoke about it with my mom and sister and they told me not to worry, it'd happen when it was meant to (obviously not as a teenager). It wasn't until age 19 that I started gaining the weight. I was always between 130 and 150lbs in high school, and for my height was normal, and I felt good. Then when I was 19, the pounds kept coming and wouldn't stop. I had a pretty physical job, so it wasn't like I was lazy. We didn't eat healthy 24/7, but we didn't eat horribly all the time. I never understood it. And then my periods would be few and far between. It worried me and stressed me, and just added to everything. So finally at the age of 21 when it only got worse and I decided to goolge symptoms, I learned about PCOS. I ticked nearly every single box, and was absolutely terrified. Sure enough, I got diagnosed. It explained the weight gain, and the infertility. At this point I'd been with my current boyfriend for 4 years. While we weren't trying to conceive, we weren't stopping it from happening either. Yet I never got pregnant, and this all explained it. I was told that to see any relief from the symptoms that I'd need to lose the weight, but then on the flip side, to lose weight having balanced hormones is important. I felt stuck and it wasn't fun. I even tried phentermine. I lost about 40lbs on my own, but then got severely sick and wound up gaining it all back once I was taken off the phentermine. Many other diets, regular exercise, etc. And I just couldn't seem to do it. Fast forward to now. I'm 26 years old, almost 2 weeks post-op, and I can already feel changes in my body. Ones that I'm hoping continue and will help me see positive results with regaining my menstruation, and ovulation, which can hopefully lead to pregnancy down the road. At this point I'd be entirely grateful just for one child. Reading along with this, I just kept nodding, because it all fits together and makes sense. It sucks, but I'm willing to work my butt off (literally) if it means regaining my period and someday having a child of my own.

Do you expect weight loss surgery to pull 100 pounds out of a magician’s hat? Our expectations of surgery can have a greater influence on our success or failure than you might think. Recently an acquaintance told me about seeing an obese man on TV who claimed that bariatric surgery hadn’t worked for him. “How can it NOT work?!” Patsy exclaimed. There’s no simple answer to that question. In the past I’ve written about why weight loss surgery fails (read the article here: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/page/index.html/_/support/why-does-weight-loss-surgery-fail-r88). Today I’d like to revisit the topic and focus on how our expectations affect the perception of as well as the ultimate success or failure of WLS. BARIATRIC MYTHOLOGY Some powerful myths influence our beliefs about and expectations of WLS. An especially insidious one that affects both bariatric patients and the general public is that WLS is essentially magic, requiring little or no effort on the patient’s part to achieve the desired weight loss. Hence the infamous and heinous phrase: “Weight loss surgery is taking the easy way out.” This magic myth has a corollary one that purports that the weight lost as a result of bariatric surgery is weight lost forever, again without any effort on the part of the patient. Sorry, but that’s not true either. While the whole point of bariatric surgery is to make weight loss easier, it does not eliminate the need for hard work by the patient. No bariatric surgery can cure obesity, which is a chronic, recurring disease. That doesn’t mean that succeeding with WLS means you’re sentenced to a lifetime of hard labor, dragging heavy chains and digging ditches, but it does mean that in the long term a successful patient is one who takes responsibility for his or her eating behavior, weight management, and general health. Reading the paragraph above may serve to shatter some illusions that you held dear, but when would you rather face the truth: early in your journey, or later? Although I was once a bandster like you, I lost my beloved band and recently converted to vertical sleeve gastrectomy. I have to tell you that despite all my advance research and preparation, the reality of living with a sleeved stomach is giving me a bad case of buyer’s remorse, but there’s no going back now. Seventy-five percent of my stomach is gone forever, but living with what’s left and finding a way to eat and to manage my weight now is an ongoing challenge. And I’ve heard countless stories from all kinds of bariatric patients about the challenges they face after surgery. Anyone who promises you a completely sunny picture of the future is either mistaken or trying to avoid bursting your bubble. BAND MYTHS There are a number of myths related to the adjustable gastric band. One of them is that slower weight loss with the band will prevent sagging or excess skin, and that just ain’t so. A more dangerous myth, peculiar to bandsters, is that fills cause weight loss and unfills cause weight gain. While fluid adjustments are an important part of how the AGB works,the fluid is NOT what causes weight loss. In fact, there is absolutely nothing in any part of the band system (the band, the tubing, and the port) that causes weight loss. The band does not directly affect the way nutrients from food are ingested or metabolized. It releases no weight loss instructions into the patient’s bloodstream, nervous system, or endocrine system. It doesn’t directly affect the patient’s eating behavior or exercise habits. It doesn’t compel the patient to make good food choices, limit portion sizes, eat slowly, or resist the urge to graze or binge because of boredom, stress, cravings, etc. Weight loss results from eating fewer calories than you burn, and the band helps with that by reducing your appetite and causing early and prolonged satiety. Those features are related to the pressure of the band against the stomach and the consumption of solid food whose mechanical digestion triggers the vagus nerves in the upper stomach to send satiety signals to the brain. If the patient ignores those signals, the calories taken in may exceed the calories burned, slowing or preventing weight loss. And since weight is affected by many other factors entirely unrelated to the band (like medications, hormone imbalance, etc. etc.), all we can do is to concentrate on the ones that are within our control and understand that it’s a fallacy to attribute weight loss to the band or to fills. One harmful consequence of the fills=weight loss myth is that the patient seeks more and more fills in the quest for “perfect restriction” (also a myth) or the legendary (but also mythical) “sweet spot.” This patient tends to tolerate side effects and eating problems that can cause serious damage to them and their band because they’re so focused on finding that perfect but elusive fill level and believes (erroneously) that the more fluid in their band, the better. When you suggest to this person that they may actually need less, not more fluid in their band (so that they can eat healthy, solid food instead of not-so-healthy slider foods), they react with panic, so aren’t able to make a good decision and may not even be willing to tell their surgeon about the eating problems they experience. Please don’t read this article thinking that my purpose is to discourage you. I’m the eternal optimist who believes in self-fulfilling prophecies. If you’re determined to lose weight and work hard at it, you can indeed use your band to reach your weight goal. The key phrase in that sentence is “work hard at”. There’s just no getting around that, so if your expectation is that you’ll lose weight effortlessly, you’re probably going to be disappointed in your band, yourself, or both. Your band can assist your weight loss efforts by providing early and prolonged satiety, but it’s not going to make good food choices, control portion sizes, make you exercise, be vigilant with aftercare, win you cash and prizes, or turn you into America’s next top model. On the other hand, believing that you will succeed and working hard to learn and change what you need to in order to lose weight will greatly increase your chances of becoming a bariatric superstar. And when stardom comes from hard work, it is much, much sweeter and longer lasting than stardom that falls at random out of the sky!

Most of my family are depressives and I am one, too. I ran into weight gain issues when I was under the care of a shrink who decided that I was bi-polar. This is when I was placed on drugs which fall into the class of anti-psychotics. These drugs will cause a grrl to gain weight and they are often prescribed for folks who suffer from anxiety. My slim husband was placed on one of these drugs because of his anxiety issues. He ended up gaining a lot of weight which he quickly shed once he stopped taking his meds. I also have a friend who was blessed with one of those little skinny gymnast-type bodies. She gained 60 lbs in one year after being placed on an anti-psychotic drug for reason of her anxiety problems.

Like you said, this isn't a diet...so in the scheme of this new 'lifestyle change' where NOTHING is off limits we just have to make good choices most of the time. I've been trying hard not to think of these moments of poor choices as 'cheating' as we've all been in that diet/cheat cycle for so long and beating yourself up leads to stress, which leads to weight gain. You made some poor choices this weekend, so did I, don't beat yourself up. Just try to make better choices this week...one day at a time. That's the great thing about the band...it will be with you for life.