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I can eat about 6 to 8 oz. of protein in a sitting and don't feel satisfied sometimes. I have also been snacking in between meals which might be the reason for the weight gain. Sometimes at lunch I have a protein drink which is 11 oz and I can drink it all.

Hi Sharowna, My surgery was almost 4 years ago. I started out around 250. After surgery got down to 185 but have gained around 15 lbs gradually. I have slipped into eating whatever I want whenever I want- in other words like I did before surgery. How are you going to start reversing your weight gain? I need to make a plan. Thanks, Luciessa

For those that say they can eat what they want when they want (with bypass) is it without getting sick? I ask because I'm trying to decide on which surgery and the my reason for leaning toward bypass is because I don't want to worry about regain in the future. I want to not be able to eat anything HOWEVER I do not want to feel sick or weak all the time. I would also like to eat certain foods from time to time in very small portion if I choose to. Do you feel your weight gain is from no reaction to certain foods when you eat or have you just learned to eat through the "pain"?

Help! I need some input ?? I have been having major, disgusting heartburn, and throwin up for the last year, its been really gross. I havent lost any weight for the good year, my mom passed away and have been in another "world". I just figured it was stress. So feeling a bit better, I went in for a very small fill after this time. But the nurse suggested I have a fluro too. I went and thank god I did ! Dr. Yau was awesome ! He said I was way too tight. He said I have been pouch packing and that is why the heartburn and throwing up. He ALSO said that my esophagus was almost three times what it should be !!!! NOrmally, it should only be a finger wide, but mine was almost three fingers wide !@!@! :redface: I couldnt believe it !! He let me see it and I actually took a pic of the screen with my phone !! Becuase I was too tight, the food wasnt going down and hence the heart burn and throwin up. He told me he had to defill me 3 cc's :wink2: which now puts me down to 5cc's. I told him I was very sad :cursing: with that because I was afraid I would gain some weight. But he said he prefers I graze all day and eat often but very little. I have to do this for a month and go for another fluro and then very slowly start up the fills. My question is: Have other people gone thru this and regained alot of weight? Will I be able to lose faster now? Slower? OPinions? experiences? I would really appreciate your input on kinda what to expect. I know everyone is different. I have another 42 pounds to lose. Help? :thumbup:

Hi my name is Donna I am 53 yrs old I will be married for 34 yrs on sept the 8 I have three son's and 4 grandson and another Grandchild do in January. I started gaining my wait after my Mother died at the age 56 so it's been a stead climb of weight gain over the years . But over the last year I started having health issue and a 4yr. old asked me why I was so Fat ( and no it was none of my grandchildren) but anyway I knew it was time to do something I started the process in June so everything moved very quick. Not sure how I feel I know it going to be a big change for me but thank God I have a great family and friends I will keep you posted

So I just got back from my Dr. visit. Leave it to me to pick a PCM that doesn't recommend the lap band surgery. My weight today was 210, which is good in terms of being closer to having insurance approve my surgery. I go back in the morning for all of my lab work to make sure there isn't an underlying issue with my health for the weight gain (i know there isn't) and he recommends that I try medication such as amphetamines for weight loss before I go the surgery route, but said when I return to him in two weeks, If I still don't want the medication and would like to be referred to the surgeon that he would do so for me. Medication..amphetamines..for what? So I can be addicted to those instead of food? No thanks! My father is an addict and I am not taking any chances! So when I go back in two weeks, I will get a referral to a surgeon and hopefully be approved for this! In a way (i know its a horrible way to think) I kinda hope that when my labs come back, I have some kind of co-morbidy that will make me eligible for the surgery right off hand without the hassle. My entire family is obese, with a few members that are morbidly obese.. I NEED this surgery. I don't want to be morbidly obese as well

Well, since I hadn't tried to buy it for personal use yet, I didn't know it took a doctors prescription. I would suppose that your Mom could get a prescription from her doc then. Just take him some information from the web site on how good it is for skin, since she is having problems with her skin. A lot of older folkes have skin that tears easily, and the extra nutrition would be wonderful for them. It isn't high in calories, so she wouldn't have to worry about weight gain. From what I've read of the ressearch though, it can help to promote lean body mass, which a lot of older folkes need. I'll have to see about getting an order in and see if they ask for a prescription. A cs. is 24 bottles. At $1.99 a bottle, it may be considered a little expensive. She could probably just drink one a day or one every other day and get good results and stretch her use of it out. They sent us double cases, of 48, but I would imagine that they can break them in to 24 a cs. I was planning to order a cs.

@@nprcowboy Glad to hear that, and I hope this turns around for you soon! For the better! Have you spoken with your doctor regarding your weight still increasing? As far as I know, Paxil causes weight gain also, although treating major depression has to take priority! As far as I know , Effexor and Wellbutrin don't cause increased appetite and weight-gain. They may not be suitable for you though, I don't know ..... maybe you can ask your doctor about them, anyway. Try to get back to high Protein, low carb eating. Hopefully high protein will keep you satisfied for longer time. Good luck and hope all gets better for you soon.

I have had the lab band for about 10 years now. For me, it was a complete failure. Actually, I found ways to "eat more" with the band, resulting in more weight gain. A few years ago, I had all the Fluid emptied out of it, and went on with my life as if I never had the surgery. I joined Weight Watchers and started losing weight successfully. I am fully convinced that these bariatric surgeries are not worth the money, the time, and the constant discomfort. The only thing that works is a full commitment to a drastic lifestyle change. Unless your insurance pays for the surgery (which mine didn't), save your money and invest in a good treadmill or elliptical trainer.

Hey all, Well since news of my surgery date I have had dinners everynight and gained 12 pounds in 3 weeks!! YIKES! Today is day one on my pre-op shakes before surgery for 2 weeks. My question is - how much weight did you gain during Last Supper Syndrome and how much did you before surgery. I only have 2 weeks to lose this and hopefully more. Were you able to exercise? I was 255 and now 267. :cursing:

I use to dive but have avoided it for years because of the weight gain, I hate bathing suits altogether at the moment lol. I plan on recertifying next Spring though and plan to hit the water lots next year!! Its the most amazing feeling you can have - its a whole different world under water!!

I have some regrets. I was not always overweight, my weight gain happened within the past 8-10 years. I went to an information seminar, really just wanting to find out more about my options. At the end, they asked for our insurance cards. Next thing I knew, the clinic called and said I had been approved by my insurance, was scheduled for tests, and had a surgery date. 3 weeks later, I was in surgery. Besides my weight, I didn't have any health problems, no comorbidities, etc. I wish I had taken more time to make the decision, and spend time on a doctor supervised diet, like so many others on here have done. Of course, without the surgery I might never have put the time and energy in to diet and exercise that I do now. I'll just never know. I think this is a decision that should not be entered into lightly, everyone should do plenty of research and spend a lot of time on these boards before taking this step. I didn't do that and have too many "what ifs" and "maybe I should haves" to put behind me. I bowed to the pressure to move quickly when I should have put the brakes on and given it more consideration.

As we all know, how dedicated we are to CHOOSING to change our old, familiar eating and lifestyle habits and adopt new HEALTHY habits FOR LIFE during our first year after surgery dictates how much (or how little) freedom from struggles with food (and weight gain) we will have. Total freedom tastes REALLY good...

I am 3 years post-op RNY gastric bypass. I strictly avoid processed sugars. I have a sweet tooth and that is one of the major causes that contributed to my weight gain over my lifetime. I limit myself to artificial sweeteners (such as Splenda and sugar alcohols), to natural low calorie sweeteners (such as Stevia) and to the natural sugars found in fruits and milk. I had diabetes. That went into remission when I left the hospital two days after surgery and I have not taken any diabetic medicine ever since and my blood sugar levels are good. I test my blood sugar levels periodically. I read the labels of all food that I consume. I look at the grams of sugar per serving. If it is above 5 grams, I look at the ingredients. The ingredients are listed in order by highest percentage, and if the first 5 ingredients contain processed sugar (in any of its many forms), then I avoid this food, like a plague. This is a list of sugars I avoid: Sucrose (table sugar), Fructose (honey), Dextrose, Maltose (malt sugar), corn syrup, corn solids, high fructose corn syrup, cane sugar, evaporated cane sugar, molasses, corn sweeteners, brown sugar, barley malt, beet sugar, pure maple sugar and date sugar.

@@VSGAnn2014 @@LipstickLady many people (out of shame) don't reconnect with support after weight gain. They feel they failed. Mistakes are made. My hope is they get back on the horse. I don't want them feel that they will be beat down for mistakes on this site. @@LipstickLady I would miss your slaps to the side of my head. I got my big girl panties on. No need to block you.

Warning this is a bit rambly. Wow. My insurer just announced they are finally covering the band. I have researched and tried to get it for the past 8 years, but gave up hope after being denied twice. So for the past year or two, I've just been drifting along, not overly paying attention to new info on the band, or thinking much about what life would be like being banded. So, now that I have the opportunity, I need to decide if this is still the best option for me (yes!), and if the timing is right (I hope so! I've been praying for a while that the Lord would help me to reach a healthy weight and live a healthy lifestyle, so I would like to believe this is the answer to those prayers), and remember everything that I've forgotten (like everything about being banded, how to deal with food) Here are the things that have popped into my head since yesterday when I heard I had a chance to get the band. Timing - I'm just making a breakthrough with my Mary Kay business, doing everything right, taking it seriously, moving towards a leadership role, so I'm a little worried that having to devote a lot of energy towards get surgery, and dealing with any challenges will distract me from my goals. Some little stuff - Vitamins - I've been taking a fairly good amount of vitamins/supplements each day. I take a multi-Vitamin, 2 flax oil capsills, 2 osteo-flex caps, 2 Vitamin D pills, a chewable vit C, a baby asprin, 2 Calcium chews, a green tea cap, a zinc, and 2 magnesium tablets. Yeah I know it seems like a lot, but it really does make me feel better when I take them. But I take them all at once, usually with a big glass of Water. I was taking them today and realized this was probably a habit I'd need to change/adjust after getting the band. I could probably take the smaller pills (D, Mag, Zinc, baby asprin, BCP) with just a couple of sips of water, but I doubt I'd be able to take those bigger horse pill types with out gulping down water.... So my question would be, what do you take vitamin/nutritional supplement wise? and how do you take them? On the fitness front, I've been walking regularly on my treadmill since January. I just started walking for 30 minutes on my treadmill at whatever pace I could manage. At first I was only walking about 0.7 or 0.8 miles. I've been fairly consistant about exercising 3-4 times a week, and I'm now up to 1.5 miles in about 40 minutes. My goal is to add a quarter mile a week until I'm walking 3 miles and then get the time under 45 minutes. Then maybe I'll add in 1 more mile, and shoot for an hour. I've always wanted to be as fit as possible before I had the surgery in the hopes it would help my recovery. Back 3-4 years or so ago, when I was trying to get banded the first time, I tried out a bunch of Protein drinks, and found several I liked. I wouldn't have any problem having one or two a day. I know protein is a big issue, but I have always worried that I wouldn't eat a balanced enough diet if I had to focus so much on protein....how do I get enough Fiber? I really like veggies, salads, and granolas! In fact, I enjoy having a bowl of vanilla yogurt and granola (BareNaked brand Fruit and Nuts with extra dried fruits mixed in - whatever I have around - cranberries, dried cherries, raisens, apicots, you get the picture!) for Breakfast a few times a week. And if I have any, I'll top the bowl with fresh raspberries. I think I'd miss having that bowl of crunchy, chewy delishousness! Does anyone here eat something like granola for breakfast? I don't have a problem with reducing the portion, but worry I'd have to give it up entirely. I'm a little worried about how well my family is going to support me on this. DH and DD14 will go along with me (DS19 is off to college so not really a concern), but they may whine a lot about the changes in dinners etc - I do all the shopping and cooking, and I know they aren't ready to give up a lot of the "goodies" that make losing weight harder. And I'm the primary cook in the family - and tend to cook large amounts - so not only will I need to rethink WHAT I'm serving, but how much I'm making since there will technically be one less adult at the dinner table. I guess that means my foodsaver will get more of a workout and I'll just put things in the freezer for other meals. Mental Health/Head Games (Deep thoughts alert!) . I've always been overweight, from maybe 20--25lbs over when a young girl, being around 170ish in high school, picked up around 40-50lbs with each kid, to now being MO at 5'7"/300lbs but am quite healthy. The best weight I've ever been is about 145 when I was in college/about the time I got married, and I thought I was still fat even though I can see now that I wasn't. So I'm going to have to work on retraining my brain a little. More importantly, I'm not sure how well DH is going to handle me losing a lot of weight. He's over 400lbs, and while he professes to want to lose weight, he feels helpless to do so. I'm hoping that I will lead with a good example and he'll opt to get the band himself, or choose another way to lose weight. He was relatively fit until he left the Air Force in 2000, and then he gained weight at an alarming rate - 150-200lbs in probably 2 years. He's developed all sorts of health problems related to being MO. What I'm worried about is that DH will subconsciously sabotage me and feel threatened by my weight loss. Big stuff to think about! Would it stop me from getting the band? No, but I recognise that it's not out of the realm of possibilities that I'd end up divorced. I'm also worried about me - how I treat, or would treat him when I lose weight. We've known each other since high school and he was always the fit one, the high school athelete, the one who biked 15 miles to work. He struggled with the AF weight standards since he's only 5-6, but he always managed to get back into standards (often using poor dieting habits - working out like crazy while nearly starving himself) until he got out of the AF. He got out and went on what can only be described serious binge streak. I was horrified. He gained and gained and gained, and while he'd give some lip service to wanting to lose weight, he made no real efforts. I've always just had a little creeping weight gain - a little here, a little there. No major gains at once. Over time, I realized that a lot of my weight gain/problem eating habits stemed from trying to "Keep up" with him. We'd order a ****a, he'd eat half so I'd eat half, otherwise he might eat the leftovers. Not rational but it was the thought process. He also eats "by the clock" and would pressure me to join him, even when I wasn't really hungry. Now that I've realized a lot of these poor habits and pressures, I'm able to work around them, but he still feels somewhat rejected if I don't want ice cream, or if I declare I'm not hungry just because it's 5pm. His health problems are also causing challenges. He can barely walk a few feet without being winded, and is in a lot of pain in his joints. He isn't able to do many of the things we used to do for fun or that were his tasks/household chores in the past. I have to work at being patient. We realized a few years ago that he was both too busy with work and not physically fit enough to go on big vacations like going to Disney World where we would often walk 10 miles a day. So now DD and I go on those sorts of trips without him. So you could say that we now vacation separately because of the weight problems. I'm pretty sure that my frustration over that has made be act unkindly towards him at times. (I do however really enjoy taking the just-the-girls trips!) So I am worried about the larger ramifications of losing weight. and the pressures it may put on my marriage, but at the same time, I know I deserve to fit and healthy, and I WANT to be healthy. So, we'll just have to deal with the challenges as they come. Ready to get healthy! Hunzi Think Pink! www.marykay.com/jfloyd

I know what you mean about wanting to be thin and healthy. I dont have any kids, that's the main reason I decided to do this because I have a disorder called PCOS and it led to my weight gain and infertility issues. This surgery is supposed to help if not correct it. So I hope in a few years I will be running around chasing my kiddos. You will do great I'm sure, you already know mostly what to expect, about won't be a total shock. How long before you know about insurance approval?

I know, right? I even have friends that need/want to lose weight but don't know how to get started. They know I have had surgery but they are against the idea. I brought it up once and won't do it again. They weren't offended but made it clear that they won't do it. But it's hard to not say anything! I know that it took me quite a while to get there to accept that this was an option that I would consider. My b-i-l had the surgery and I thought it was ridiculous! But he looks great and feels great. It wasn't until my sister decided to get the surgery that my sibling rivalry kicked in and I decided to do it, too! lol. So childish but I'm so glad!!! But, I don't know what else would have convinced me this was the approach I wanted to take to lose weight. I guess from all the shows on TV (Biggest Loser, Dr. Oz, etc.) where the doctors on there are saying not to do this surgery. I bought into it. As far as the younger girls, you are right. There was always 1 or 2 people that were heavier back then but now a lot of them are. The food in their cafeterias have gotten worse and promote weight gain. I don't know how to make change but I'm sure it can happen somehow.

Having a glass of wine that her surgeon approved doesn't require a kick in the butt by someone else. I found the multiple posts to be over the top and they had no value at all. I stopped reading the ranting - so if there was something educational for us to get out of it - it didn't come through. Not everyone has the same issues that caused weight gain and we all don't have to follow the same path. If someone enjoyed a glass of wine - good for them! I don't think it will derail her weight loss! We don't need to be yelled and treated like a child for admitting to having a SURGEON approved drink. :-(

I agree with therapy. It has also happened to me and it resorted to a huge weight gain, this was prior to WLS. I had lost in on my own but gained it all back. I understand that you say you have no time, but if you do not have time for yourself … who else will? You have to always take care of #1 because that is how you are able to be there for others in the long run. Remember you did this for you, take the appropriate steps to take care of yourself precious one. You do not realize how much self damage you inflict when you are in pain.

Well today was my "Bari Boot Camp" and they were okay with the 14lb weight gain. They told me that I was weighed in on October 28th and since I have been dealing with denials for over 3 months they would let it go. Woot Woot, I actually dropped 4lbs since Sunday from dieting so I was happy. Sooo surgery is Monday!!!

All the information you need is here on this forum. You may not know many people in real life who have been through this surgery, but everybody here is in some stage of the process of weight loss surgery. If you haven't already, I would strongly recommend that you spend some time looking through the archives of this forum -- it's a gold mine! YouTube is also a great resource -- there are quite a few YouTubers who make videos about their WLS experience. I was pretty well prepared for surgery because I spent months reading this forum and watching YouTube videos about WLS. It seems like the most common questions that come up include: Stalls - Almost everyone has a weight loss stall within the first two months after surgery (commonly called the "three week stall" but it can happen earlier or later). Do not be alarmed. You didn't do anything wrong. The surgery didn't fail. Stick to your plan and you will start losing again. Weight gain from surgery - Many people weigh more when they come home from the hospital after surgery than they did before surgery. That's temporary and it's because they pump you full of IV fluids in the hospital. You're better off not even weighing yourself for the first couple of weeks after surgery because it is honestly meaningless. Fluid & protein goals - It's almost impossible to meet your fluid and protein goals in the first couple of weeks. Most surgeons tell you to get at least 60 ounces of fluids and 60 grams of protein per day. It sounds easy but it's not at the beginning. Do your best and don't worry if you can't quite get there. Dehydration is a serious thing that can land you back in the hospital, so you do need to sip as much as you can, but it's not the end of the world if you can't get 60 ounces. Pro tip: try warm fluids (tea, broth, protein hot cocoa) if cold drinks are difficult. Hair loss - Most people start losing hair around 3 months after surgery (it's a phenomenon called telogen effluvium), and there's not a whole lot you can do to avoid it. Protein and iron deficiencies can contribute to hair loss, and some people say that biotin can help to prevent hair loss, but you will almost certainly have some hair loss no matter what you do. It will grow back. Vitamins - Your surgeon should have given you a list of vitamins that you will need to take. This varies a bit from one surgeon to the next, but most say to take a bariatric multivitamin (or a double dose of a drugstore vitamin), iron (which can be included in the multivitamin), calcium citrate (most drugstore calcium supplements are calcium carbonate, so make sure to check the ingredients and buy calcium citrate), and B-12 (sublingual, injection, or nasal spray). You'll have to take chewable vitamins for at least the first month or two. Vitamins come in different forms (chewable, melt-in-your-mouth, capsules, liquid, patches), so if you have issues with one form, try something else. The BariatricPal store has a great selection of vitamins and they frequently have sales. I purchase most of my vitamins from there (BariatricPal brand). Constipation - Nobody likes to talk about toilet stuff, but constipation is no joke. A lot of surgeons recommend taking Miralax daily (note: Amazon has a generic brand that is much cheaper). Don't wait until you get constipated to take something. Prevention is easier than treatment. Other than that, the one thing you should do today if you haven't already is take your "before" pictures and measurements! Most of us have very few "before" pictures because we didn't like the way we looked before weight loss and avoided being in photos. You will want to have some pictures for comparison when you reach your goal weight. You will want to have your starting measurements so you can see how far you've come. Good luck! Stick around and let us know how it goes!

Congrats! You've done a wonderful job losing and now maintaining. I also enjoy reading your posts and your rave reviews of Dr. Aceves really helped me when I was trying to gather information early in the game. Keep up the great work, and thanks for being honest about weight gain and control in maintenance. I think a lot of us view the tough part as getting to goal, but I think maintenance still requires a lot of work and willpower. Plus, it lasts FOREVER. ~Cheri

Hello fellow Band Geeks! I was banded a little over a month ago and am finally on solid foods... I had my hernia repaired when he installed my band so my recovery time was a little longer but I feel great. I have lost 35 pounds so far and will find out my next weight on my first fill visit... May 6th. I am glad that I found you all on here for support. My whole family struggles with weight and food issues but most of them continue the same losing battles... I wanted to win the war so my battles needed to change. I gave up most carbs... and have so much more energy and hardly any carvings. My husband is very supportive but since he can eat anything he wants without weight gain... I love having you for support. I know this is a lifestyle change and I'm very excited to be on this journey with you. :eek:

Re: In-person Support Groups - I have only gone to support group meetings at Sky Ridge in Lone Tree...not every month, but 3-4 times this year. (I had surgery in late December 2012) This particular support group doesn't really do much for me. It seems like the main people who attend on a regular basis fit into two categories: people who HAVE NOT been sleeved/lap banded/bypassed and people who have had some sort of bariatric surgery but have had weight gain. There are almost no successful, POST OPERATIVE weight loss people to talk to. I don't find it as motivating, because it's almost like if people are not struggling post surgery (one year, two year, etc POST OP), they do not need the support group which kind of creates a vacuum. At the last meeting I went to, the only person there who had lost all her weight AND was maintaining for more than a couple of years spoke about being so regimented re: her cooking/eating, I just could not imagine that would be me. I have four kids under the age of 11...youngest is 3. This woman cooks all her food on Sunday and packs them in individual pre-portioned containers. I would need another refrigerator just to hold this much food, but more importantly, it just seemed kind of extreme...not a realistic way to live. But, I have very little to compare it to, because all the other post surgery people who are as far out from surgery as her have weight issues....Most of these weight issue people had lap bands and are struggling. If any of you have attended an in-person support group somewhere in the state, was it like this (as I describe) or did you find more successful, long timers in attendance?