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My personality change is one of the TOP reasons I am considering lap-band. I have always been a yo-yo dieter and while doing Atkins I went from 200 to 150 (wore a size 6!!) and I was alive, full of happiness, on the go all the time, was very social and loved to be intimate with my husband. I have since gained 110 lbs in 10 years (most of it in the past 6 years) and I am gaining faster every year and in the past 2 years my personality has changed drastically. I FAKE happiness all the time...when all I think about is food and how fat I am. It consumes my every thought. If I am talking to someone about something else I am thinking about how much skinnier they are than me or what they must be thinking about me. I have a great life with a wonderful husband and 2 awesome kids. I really have nothing other than my weight to worry about it. I used to do my hair and makeup to go to the store...now I go without even looking in the mirror. I have given up on looking good because how can I possibly look good at 260lbs??? My relationship with my husband has definately changed. He tells me all the time how much he loves me, but I think he is just saying that because he took me for better or for worse...and he got the worst! We have sex MAYBE once a month and its not that enjoyable for me. I am uncomfortable and worried the whole time about hiding my body. I know the lapband wont buy me a better personality, but even getting some of this extra weight off will make a big difference on how I feel about myself.

Thanks for sharing Leslie! I am scheduled with Dr. Illan for 3/24- exactly two weeks away! So excited. I have already seen how great the team is, as I was able to skype with Omar and Dr. Illan. I can't wait to be back on here sharing my weight loss success!

That sounds like a fairly low Protein goal, for the very reason you mention - dealing with physical hunger. Have you discussed your concerns with her? Does she have any suggestions for other ways to manage physical hunger? My own and most other bariatric surgeons I've encountered recommend at least 70 grams of protein a day for women. My current surgeon recently told me that I should consume at least 90 grams of protein a day for several reasons: my physical hunger is ferocious (thanks to my sleeve), I work out a lot, and I've been experiencing unintentional weight loss (I'm 18 lbs below my goal weight). Appropriate macro-nutrient (protein, carb, fat) intake also depends on the patient's height, weight, age, gender, activity level, and health problems. I'm 5'2" tall, 114 lbs, 60 years old, female, very active, anemic (thanks to my sleeve) and diabetic. If you're still in the early stages of your weight loss journey, probably heavier than I am, and surely younger than I am, I would expect that your basal metabolic rate (the number of calories you need to consume just to stay alive) would be quite a bit higher than mine, which is another reason I think that 60 grams of protein a day is too little. But... I'm not a dietitian or any other kind of medical professional, so I hope you'll be able to discuss this further with your dietitian and/or surgeon and come up with a workable compromise. Jean P.S. - When I was first diagnosed with type 2 diabetes, several years before my band surgery, the dietitian I saw at that time told me that most Americans eat far more protein than they need, and that I should consume no more than 60 grams a day. Since then I've heard bariatric dietitians and surgeons say that the maximum 60 grams of protein recommendation is outdated and that all bariatric patients need more than that to help with healing and to maintain good health.

You can look up samples on google. I had to have one of these too. Basically its just your dr explaining to the insurance why he thinks you should have this surgery. Any medical problems, how long he has been treating you, different weight loss attempts. I have a bmi of 44 also, I'm sure your dr. would be on board.If not, do you have another dr you could go to to get it?

Hey October Sleevers! Welcome to the new YOU's!!! Your days are soon approaching and your new lives are beginning. You're going to have it going on this time next year!!! I was sleeved on 9/15/10. So my Sleeversary was just before last year's Holidays started. I'm going to be bluntly honest. The Holidays did affect me to an extent. I did allow myself little indulgences here and there and made excuses to do what I wanted. Do I regret it? Not really. I'll tell you why... I did not have surgery to become a total food "Nazi". It was the Holidays and I wanted to enjoy it with my family, doing what my family did. Funny thing, I still felt left out in a lot of ways. I was done with my Thanksgiving meal after about 6 bites. My family LOVES TO EAT! They continued eating for hours and I was still full from my few bites of Turkey with gravy, bite of mashed potatoes, bite of this and that. I barely had any room for several bites of my favorite pumpkin Pie... LOL! I also enjoyed my Christmas and New Year's meals as well. I won't lie to you, it probably did slow up my weight loss a little bit. However, here I am still having gotten to my first goal at around 7 months out. I reached my Post Goal goal at around 10 months out. So, as you can see - I still worked it and got all the weight off that I wanted. I stay mostly on track, but I'm not 100% perfect at it. Maybe I was more like 90%. That still got me to where I wanted to be in less than a year. Good luck y'all!!! Stay true, and stay YOU!!!

Hi: I was banded in June 2001 and have gone through two pregnancies with the band. (I also started Pregnant Bandsters on Yahoo Groups.) I was unfilled for both pregnancies for a variety of reasons. 1) I wasn't eating enough with a fill to support a healthy pregnancy. The minimum calories recommended for a pregnant woman are in the 1800-2000 kcal range. 2) My surgeon, Dr. Rumbaut, who has banded well over 3000 patients (last time I checked, probably a much bigger number these days) recommended it. 3) It was the reason I chose the band. So I could be unfilled and then refilled after pregnancy. If you are suffering from nausea, I would definitely recommend unfilling as well as excessive vomiting can cause band slippage. Anyway, even though I was unfilled, I maintained a good % of my original weight loss through two pregnancies. I don't regret being unfilled at all and am thrilled that now that both of my boys have been born, and breastfed extensively (each exclusively for 6 months, and then breastfed with additional food for 1 year after that (2nd guy is still nursing), I'm ready to be refilled.

Here is one that has been posted before. Not sure if it work. Good luck. Dr. Fox's Plateau Busting Diet This is the plan that Dr. Fox gives to his RNY and AGB patients in order to get through a plateau in weight loss. #1 Do for 10 days to break plateau #2 Drink 2 quarts of Water a day #3 You must have 45 grams of Protein supplement and all your Vitamin & mineral supplements each day. #4 You may consume up to 3 oz. of the following high-protein foods, 5 times a day: a.. beef, b.. pork, c.. chicken, d.. turkey, e.. lamb, f.. fish, g.. eggs, h.. low-fat cheese, i.. cottage cheese, j.. plain yogurt (or artificially sweetened), k.. Peanut Butter, l.. beans/legumes. #5 You may also have: a.. sugar-free popsicles (avoid juice popsicles), b.. tea or coffee, c.. sugar-free sodas, d.. sugar-free Jello, e.. broths & bouillons, f.. Crystal Lite drinks. #6 IF IT IS NOT ON THE LIST YOU MAY NOT HAVE IT! #7 Keep a food diary and try to get 30 minutes of exercise daily

Was there a time in your weight loss journey that it all seemed to "click"? I mean, I am 5 months out and I still watch what I eat, log calories, etc. Granted, I have no fill at this time. But, do you eventually get used to the band, the portions, the foods to avoid, or is it a constant thought? I am hoping to stop obsessing over food and weight, but that has yet to happen or even decrease for that matter!:help:

How long was the longest weight loss stall for you. I'm entering my fifth month and stalling to 0-1 lbs which I think is water weight.

I am not even pre-op yet but I went to the office to start the iMetabolic Physician Assisted Weight Loss which is 3 two scoop shake meals, 3 1 scoop snacks and lots of water. My first shake was terrible. I hope it grows on me fast because the sooner I lose weight the sooner my surgery will be scheduled.

Welcome. I too had a band for a few years and lost around 85 pounds and then just stopped. I could not have any more water added as I was at the max fill. I was constantly vomiting due to food getting stuck due to the high fill of my band. I went to the doctor after about 6 months or no weight loss and talked to him. I still had another 100 pounds to go. He said that due to the amount of weight that I had to lose initially that I should have probably gone for the sleeve in the beginning and not had the band. Well it is a little late now. At the time I had the band insurance was only paying for the band or the bypass and I knew that I did not want the bypass. My insurance denied my request for the band removal or the sleeve and they wanted over $40,000 here in the US and it would have had to been done in 2 surgeries about 3 months apart. There was no way that I could afford this so I started to check into other options and found surgery in Mexico. After doing much research and talking to several people on the phone I decided that this was my only option at last winter. I called and scheduled surgery with Dr F Garcia in Tijuana, Mexico. I bought my ticket and on Dec 10, 2011 I left for San Diego. They picked me up and took me to Mexico. I can not say enough wonderful things about Dr Garcia, his team and the staff at Mi Hospital. I would do it again in a heart beat. They took out my band and did the sleeve in the same operation. I hope that you have good luck with your insurance. Keep pushing ahead.

I understand about the stalls. I was in a three week stall 4 weeks post op and I am happy to report that over the last two days the scale is finally moving down again! I had been off my blood pressure meds since the surgery and it had been normal. Then all of a sudden my blood pressure went up again. I took my BP meds two days in a row and that seemed to have kick started the weight loss. I am sure I was retaining fluids of some sort. My BP is back to normal again and the scale is moving. I also upped my Protein and exercise; that probably had a lot to do with it too. Hang in there. I understand about the frustration. I had convinced myself that I was doing something wrong and that I was going to fail at this too. It's all a head game. Your body is adjusting and will move when it's time. Good luck and stay positive.

Take a deep breath! We all had some pre-surgery anxiety but are here to post about our banded lives. The neck and shoulder pain will be from gas that they pump your stomach with to get to your organs. Although the gas is uncomfortable....there are things you can do to ease the trapped gas feeling. I am sure they will go over all this at your pre-op appt. Recovery is quicker than you think. I felt worlds better after each day and pretty much 100% at Day 7. Hopefully your apnea clears up after some weight loss. I have read this a lot here on the forum with very little weight loss. Good luck!

Hey, Banders!We’re into the long, lazy days of summer – but there’s plenty going on at LapBandTalk.com! So why don’t you use this newsletter as a reminder to get on over to the boards? It’ll help you stay on track or motivate you to get back on board if you’ve gotten off track a little. Here’s what you’ll find in this newsletter. Burning question: What’s the Big Deal about Protein? Member Spotlight: Meet TanyainNY! Bander Challenge: Record Your Diet! Become a Board Expert: How to Get More Involved We hope you’re having a great summer and feeling great about meeting your weight loss and healthy lifestyle goals. Enjoy the newsletter, and of course please contact me any time with suggestions, comments or any other feedback. See you on the boards! Sincerely, Alex Brecher Founder Breakfast should be high in protein to give you a good start for the day. But why is protein so important? First, it’s an essential nutrient for your immune system and as a part of your muscles, skin, bones and other body tissues. But it’s even more important when you’re losing weight so fast, like you are after your lap-band surgery. When you lose weight, you’re losing body fat, of course. But if you’re not careful to get enough protein, you’re going to lose a noticeable amount of lean body mass, too. That means you’ll lose some muscle mass and your metabolism will slow down. Another benefit of protein is that it actually helps you stick to your low-calorie post-surgery diet so that you lose weight faster. Protein takes a longer time to digest than carbohydrates. That means that eating a high-protein meal will help you stay full for longer than a high-carbohydrate meal without much protein. So don’t forget to hit your protein at each meal! Aim for one to two servings per meal, and if you have a snack, include some protein. What are the best sources of protein? Stay tuned for the answer coming up in a future newsletter! If you have a burning question that you’d like to see answered in the newsletter, just send Alex a PM over in the forums. It can be about anything - lap-band problems, food, fitness, weight loss, health…just let us know! Member Spotlight – Meet TanyainNY! TanyainNY from Cooperstown, New York, has used the lap-band to turn herself into a wonderful success story. Tanya is a registered nurse whose weight was a poor example for her patients. Like so many others, Tanya decided to get banded after she felt ashamed of asking her 6-year-old son to move to the dining room table to play board games instead of being able to sit on the floor with her children. Tanya got banded in December of 2009. At 5 feet 5 inches, her starting weight was 270 pounds. Now, she’s down nearly 100 pounds, only 20 pounds away from her goal weight of 155 pounds. This 39-year-old mom has the energy of her 20-year-old self. She does it all, from bench-pressiing and squatting with the big boys to taking muy thai kickboxing classes. This self-described gym rat has even become a Zumba instructor, and she competes in running races. Her next venture is to master the art of riding her new motorcycle. Tanya’s diet has been transformed along with her body. She no longer depends on “white foods,” such as Pasta, chicken and cheese. Now, her diet is a variety of healthy foods, including two salads a day and plenty of fruits, vegetables and protein. Her friends now come to her for nutrition advice! She’s loving life and taking full advantage of every opportunity! Congratulations on all of your success, Tanya, and thanks for being in our Spotlight! We feature a different LapBandTalk.com member each week in our Member Spotlight section. Let us know in the member spotlight forum if there’s someone you want to learn more about or if you want to be our spotlighted member! Nominating yourself isn’t bragging. We all want to learn more about you if you’re willing to share your trials, triumphs, tricks and tips! If you’re shy, just PM Alex with the message that you want to be in the spotlight. Thanks! Bander Challenge – Record Your Diet! Each newsletter, we challenge you with another Bander Challenge. It’s a chance to push yourself a little outside of your comfort zone or get you thinking about ways to make your weight loss journey even more successful. The challenge can inspire you to try things that you’d never thought about but that can make you more successful and confident in your weight loss journey. The challenge is completely non-competitive, but we hope you’ll post your results in the Challenge Forum so that other members can be motivated by your own challenge actions. Study after study proves that the most successful losers – and maintainers – record their diets. If you don’t already do it, now’s a good time to get into the habit. This newsletter’s challenge is for you to record your diet for three days. Include what you eat, how much and what time you had each meal and snack. You can also put in details like how hungry you were before you ate and afterwards, whether you ate exactly what you’d planned, and whether you were eating with people or alone. Did you learn anything new about your diet? Is there anything you can change so that your choices are healthier? Let us know how it went in the Challenge Forum! There, you can always look back at the previous challenges and post your results. It’s never too late to try something new. Better Boarding Tips – Getting into the Swing of Things For some members, jumping right into the conversations on the board feels natural. You know exactly what to say and have no trouble asking for help and providing your own support. For the rest of us, it can be a little tougher. We may not always know what to say to someone who needs help or how to reach out for support when we need it. How can you improve your social boarding skills? Practice! The more you post, the more comfortable you’ll feel. Start by filling in your profile, if you haven’t already. Head on over to the Introductions Forum (you can get there from the front page) and welcome a few new members. Then browse the forums until you see some topics that call to you. You might be able to answer some member questions about food choices or some of the pros and cons that you’ve experienced with your weight loss surgery. You’ll soon feel like an old pro with so much practice, and the other members will sure appreciate your input! That’s about it for this week’s newsletter. You can always find the old newsletters in the newsletter forum if you ever miss one. Thanks as always for your support, and we’re looking forward to seeing you out on the boards! Take care of yourself and each other, Alex ============================================================== If you no longer wish to receive this newsletter, you may unsubscribe by going to your Control Panel and clicking on the Newsletters tab, or clicking on the following link: http://www.lapbandtalk.com/index.php?app=core&module=usercp&tab=newsletter

I truly feel your pain. My hair was/is also falling out and a couple of weeks ago, I too saw scalp and panicked. I went to the nutritionist and she said indeed, I was not getting enough Protein so I now take a packet of unjury Protein powder daily along with the Biotin and Iron as well. Things seem to have stabilized in that the hair is not coming out like it was...I'm not picking up clumps of it in the shower like I used to and I'm hoping the hair will start to grow back soon. The nutritionist assured me I wouldn't look like a chemo patient...which of course is what I feared. I'm also scheduled for major surgery in October and I surely don't want to be dealing with hair loss on top of everything else. Good luck and keep us posted.

The 5,000 mcg of Biotin was what I was advised to take for hair loss post op. I was advised that my hair loss was likely due to the multiple surgeries I had over the course of the year that my band was placed (4 surgeries within 12 months). I do track my Protein intake, and remained within range the entire time. My hair loss continued for around 3 months, and now continues to grow back. It is not to the same thickness as prior to surgery, but this thinning could also be a factor of age in my case. Your hair will grow back...take your Biotin, and get enough protein!

Protein, you need more protein! Add a protein shake to your day it just might put you up there. You need your weight times .3 to get the daily protein required and I go the extra mile and try and go 5-10 grams over that. And don't forget you do need some fat in your diet. We tend to cut way back on fat, but there are healthy fats and it keeps your skin and hair healthier. Also lots of Omega 3's, fish and eggs are a good source, they are very good for your hair. My old nursing days coming back! LOL Good luck!

You will do fine... just take it one day at a time. Tom, Toronto Banded July 6 06 Wt. Loss; 156 lbs

Breaking Red: Thank you so much for your post. And like Bufflehead said, it could have been written by hundreds+ of us here. I too decided at the start of this process that I was going to throw out everything I knew, or thought I knew, about weight loss, exercise, nutrition, etc… and actually seek out the best team I could and listen to them for a change. I'm early in the process, but I am continuing to work hard at seeking out positive, like-minded people to support me. Be well, everyone…

Perfectly normal. Weight loss is unfortunately not a linear process. There will be ups, down, stops & stalls.

I'm 2 months post op, and down 102lbs total since I started my weight loss journey (last August). Yesterday, I got contact lenses. I've been wearing glasses for 20 years. Of course I dolled myself up extra today, more eye make up, my hair all sexy. I can't tell you how many compliments I got today at work saying how beautiful I am, how great I look, and a few people said I have a new confidence about myself, that i seem much happier lately. It's so true. I can't wait to get up on the mornings and do my hair and makeup all nice. I used to just throw it back in a ponytail. Bit I always wore makeup. Those comments from people are the most motivation I could ever receive!!!!! Keep on keeping' on..........

I'm 6 months out and don't see a problem with an occasional glass of wine. Daily isn't a good idea for weight loss or liver health (the liver works overtime processing our fat).

I have not posted in a few weeks and have been reading many of the posts regarding the same questions and the tone of some of the answers. I work in the medical field and researched the band for 2 years and went to all of my preop classes etc... I was fully aware before surgery that the band is only a tool. The best way of thinking about it for me is the band holds me accountable to myself and what I eat!!! It is a tool only ,I have done the work so far. My loss has been very slow but I feel 100% better. I feel the first mistake some make is thinking the band is a cure and an easy way out. I have been stuck for 3 weeks now but will not let that stop me. I was banded 11-8-12 have had 2 fills. At my last fill the NP told me "you get it, you really get it"!!! Its only a tool, they cure for obesity comes from within and the desire to for once in my life do something for me and to become more healthy and active. I don't need to lose as much as some but the battle is the same. For those of you that have met your goal, you are an inspiration to me and gives me hope that I can do this with the HELP of my band. I do no rely on the band but always know its there. I have lost 21 pounds with 30 to go and its any every day decision but the band always reminds me how much and what I can and cannot eat. Looking forward to the green zone and until then I just keep doing the best I can. Not sure why I felt the need to write this but hope this help someone the way others on this post has helped me the last few months. By the way I am a 51 yr old grandmother raising grandkids the works full time so believe me I know the stress of everyday life and how I turn to food for comfort. No more thanks to my lap band, accountablity tool

Frequently Asked Questions - What was the last straw the made you choose weight loss surgery? I was at my lowest point physically and mentally in July 2012. I knew that my health would continue to deteriorate and I'd only become more and more depressed if I didn't make a change. Some people claim that weight loss surgery is the easy way out, but I needed the extra help from WLS to dig myself out of the hole I was in. It's kinda funny that society ridicules you for being overweight and then ridicules you again if you don't lose the weight "the right way." If you like/dislike my videos, please thumb up or down, and leave a comment about how I could improve the content. Your input helps me become a better Youtuber. :-) Keep Pimpin' that Sleeve! Google Plus https://plus.google.com/u/0/b/102076899634252886094/102076899634252886094/posts/p/pub Facebook https://www.facebook.com/pages/Frankensleeve-Vertical-Sleeve-Gastrectomy-VSG-Community/289332951205311 Twitter https://twitter.com/frankensleeve

I know the scary feeling of "hitting the diet wall" does not leave you during this journey. I assume when you say slump you mean the scale not moving. I would say go back to the basics. The only way to examine what is going on is to journal your intake each day. I use to use a spreadsheet, but got my information from caloriecount.about.com website which gives you all the food brands and easy to calculate your intake and then I paste the information in the spreadsheet. Last week, I started using myfitnesspal.com and that does the same, but has more foods and restaurant information. It also has a phone app so you can scan or just enter your food intake. Myfitnesspal prints each day, so I will start doing that because it has all the information I need to show my nutritionist. Everyone is doing this, and it is a way to make changes. You will have to weight your food and measure. If it is a Protein, I weigh and if it is not a solid i measure. I loss 6.5 since Aug 31 at my last doctor's visit eating 1 cup per meal not eating between meal, have no saline in my band, will get my first fill on the 19th, relying on high protein, high Fiber, Water, tea and coffee with sugar free coffeemate. Since surgery, on Aug 6th which is about 7 weeks, I've loss 12.9 pounds. Protein has gotten me this far, but in the last week, I have been needing to snack, but I only snack on salad, spicy cabbage,babybel cheese pieces, greek yogurt etc. only high fiber and high protein Snacks. I drink at least 12 glasses of water to keep myself from being hungry mostly crystal light peach tea and I sometimes heat that up for a tea to add more water. Example of what I eat in a day, Breakfast-1 egg, 1 6oz greek yogurt (non fat), with fruit that is about 1cup, that gives me 21 grams of protein. I start my day with high protein even if it means doing a shake and a yogurt. lunch, 1 cup turkey chilli home made, dinner, 5-6oz of steak and 2 oz of spicy cabbage (high fiber) or salad with low fat dressing. It is great you are working out, but if you are doing weight s you will lose inches which is great. I only walk about 30 mins per day. My nutri said the least amount you should exercise is 152 mins per week of exercise which equal about 20 mins per day. I do not eat any carbs unless it is in my daily fruit, dairy, Beans etc. Other carbs make me hungry. I hope this helped and if you want to continue a buddy system write me a private message and we can do a private chat or chat in the chatroom. Hope this helps