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Hi Everyone! I made it through the holidays with NO weight gain. That has to be a first. I'm down 27 lbs since surgery on 10/28 and I can't be more pleased. I've had 2 fills and am just about ready for a 3rd. The second one didn't seem to last as long as the first, seems like I adjusted to it much faster. I'm so glad the holidays are over! Now I can see what I can really do with the band when I'm not constantly tempted with a bounty of treats and snacks! I'm also back to Curves as of Saturday. I'm hoping that adding a more consistent exercise plan will keep to pounds coming off!

Hi everyone! Just wishing everyone continuous success!!! As of this moment I will no longer continue to try and lose weight, since I am pregnant. I am not overweight, yeiii!! Im pretty happy, I will continue to exercise and eat healthy for my baby's health and of course for mine. Not really scared of gaining weight durigng the pregnancy but the doctor told me, I will probably have no problem keeping the weight gain at 15 pounds! So far I am still losing, I increased my calories and now I only focus on the treadmill for a brief one hour walk. Good luck!!!! FYI: My weight loss slowed down A LOT, but of course I did l ose about 80 plus pounds three months after surgery, so I was not dissapointed at all. In fact, with my height 200 pounds looks pretty damn good. I never wanted to be a skinny minnie!

Two things that are factors in my life: 1. Logging and counting calories. 2. Heavy exercise throws my body into weight loss fits. It dramatically increases my hunger, and as my body repairs and builds muscle it retains large amounts of Water and the scale goes nuts. I counter #2 with the knowledge gained from #1. A pound of fat contains 3500 calories, if I know what I am eating, and I know what I am burning, the the wild fluctuations in the scale become more bearable. For instance, I have showed a gain the last three days, yet I have maintained a calorie deficit of 1300 calories, but my spin class been kicking my butt, and i have walked out of there on legs of jelly. So, are my weight gains real? Nope, not possible and the scale will catch up with reality in a couple of days.

Nicolanz beat me to it...but I was going to bring up caffiene and tobacco. Many people are addicted to one or both of those substances, but I doubt all of those addicts steal, cheat and lie to get their fix. Some may lie to their spouses about not smoking, but who lies about coffee? If you do, you've got bigger problems than just being addicted. But the point is, addiction can certainly exist without these behaviors. I know more than one functioning alcoholic. They don't think they have a problem because they've never missed a day of work, or had a DWI, or wrecked their car. But they can't leave the house without a beer or 2. Where ever they go, they are drinking. They may never admit to "needing" it, but you won't catch them without it. Is that an addiction? I think it is but I'm no doctor. As for eating, here's what my life looked like for over 20 years. First of all, I never hid food or sneaked around eating food behind anyone's back. I never lied or cheated. But I ate all the wrong stuff. Basically, I ate fast food for every meal. I never cooked. If I bought groceries, it was cereal, cookies, chips, peanut butter and bread...not much else. The oven was for pizza box storage, not for cooking. I nearly set my apartment on fire once because I attempted to preheat the oven too cook a frozen dinner, but I forgot it was full of old pizza boxes. When I bought my meals at whatever drive thru I went to, I bought way too much. It was extremely carb heavy. My blood sugar must have been through the roof, and after a few years, I was on my way to being insulin resistant. If I tried to restrict my calories, I had massive blood sugar drops every 3 hours like clockwork. Anyone who has ever bonked knows exactly how that feels. That negative reinforcement trained me to eat before that happened...and specifically to eat carbs (sugar) because that was the surest way to avoid that awful feeling. I know now that eating those carbs caused the rise and fall of blood sugar, which caused my feelings of temporary satisfaction, followed by increased insulin production which lead to the inevitable crash...unless I ate again before it happened (which I trained myself to do). It was a self inforcing pattern that lead to massive weight gain and overall poor health. I made some poor decisions, in part because I didn't know any better...which is my fault, nobody else's. As the weight piled on, it became ever more difficult to give a crap about my health. After a while, you get to the point that you feel you're too far gone so why try? Again...I don't know if this was an addiction. It certainly fits the description of damaging behavior that I couldn't stop. Even when I made up my mind to have VSG I was still in the dark about this stuff. I thought I could have surgery and it would only allow me to eat half a whataburger per day. That 6 months with the nutritionist really paid off for me, she opened my eyes and lit a fire in me to educate myself on food and the damage certain foods caused. Now....if I could only have one....the knowledge or the sleeve, I'd take the knowledge. But there is no denying that the sleeve gave me a push over that insurmountable hump that I couldn't see around before surgery...a push that I continue to ride into a better way of living.

Hey! First off, congratulations on even making the decision to go through with the surgery.I have aetna and I got approved in September. My surgery is scheduled for November. With aetna they required a 3 month supervised visit with the NUT & NP. I started that in June. I also had to provide my highest weights from two years ago, have a psych evaluation, which was the most boring thing ever, and a sleep study. Aetna'so policy states that you can't have a net gain...AT ALL. So when I had a weight gain of about 2-3 pounds I wanted to give up. My NUT told me they would write an explanation in my reports for that weight gain. My sleep study test came back negative...which was a bittersweet thing. My only real health issue was that I was borderline diabetic and that I had been overweight pretty much my whole life. I surprisingly got approved about two weeks after all my paperwork was sent in. So Aetna isn't always the big bad wolf lol. Good luck!

Research tell us that most weight gain happens after 3 years. I think there are both mental and physical reasons for this. Some of the reasons are unknown by medicine....they are looking into it more than ever. Lots of new research thinks that changes in the biom have something to do with why we lose, and if we start back into eating those refined foods we used to eat, the biom slowly changes back to how it was before surgery. (Some research suggests that when you eat lots of refined food, you grow more bacteria in the gut that processe that kind of food, and the bacteria has an imperative to get you to eat even more of that food FOR THEM. Creepy hugh? Our gut floura tells us what to eat. So if you stick with the right foods long enough, the gut will want you to keep eating them. Slip up for long enough and the gut will trigger chemicles that scream EAT CAKE! Not kidding. That is only part of the story, but those primitive voices that call us to eat cake are real and hard to ignore. There is thought that the surgery sets the gut biom in a new direction and gives us a boost towards a healthy reset... that combined with a smaller stomach helps the initial weight loss. I am at 41/2 years, have struggled with my goal... took 3 years to get to goal, and have bounced around a bit there... I am about 14 pounds above goal right now... and holding... always going back to maintaining consciousness about what i eat and how I move when I slip up... lots of good habits I keep up all the time...I consider myself a success (and so do my docs)... of course I would rather be at goal... but its still a work in progress. Why couldn't I just lose it and keep it off before surgery? I wonder why too, but seeing the stats about how many people can lose and keep off the weight withought surgery is reason enough for me to have gotten surgery. This is the very firt time I could get it all off or stay anywhere near goal this long in my entire life. I have achieved many things in my life, lots of travel, interesting jobs, notariety in my field.... really, the only thing that has been the bane of my life and health has been being fat and not finding success taking it off or keeping it off. Like most of us here, I spent at least half of my life trying without success. This surgery has been the tool I needed to have some success there as well.

And I hope he steps up and starts figuring some things out! I am a recent (3 month) PICC line user (November 29 2018- February 26 2019) although I was happy with lessing of my malnourishment symptoms and believe you me, YOU CAN FEEL A DIFFERENCE, I realize now the 1400+ calories it contained slowed my weight loss almost to a stand- still. About a pound or so a month. March 1, so right after -267 pounds , now I do not own a home scale, after ichucked one in the dumpster after it refused work right, long before surgery, when I was trying to lose weight with my diet pills and was getting nowhere fast, bet I am the only person in history to take 1 month of Phenteramine and GAIN 30 pounds! So I only weigh at my PCP and surgeons offices. Drum Roll Please- March 26 2019- 234.6 pounds, my Golden Honeymoon Months may NOT be over- they always you have just so many months of smoother quicker weight loss and then things slow down. This makes me feel better about ME, see I started out in October 2017 with a highest admitted weight of 365+ , I say "plus" because I was so disheartened by how my body was " back-stabbing" my best efforts to lose, I refused to climb on another scale. Figured the the next step would be the Farmers Equity where they weigh out feeds on a massive scale. Went through a bariatric Plan for the second time, quite a story there, went almost all the way , my job was terminated, lost the insurance that would paid it and surgeon's office failed to inform me I could have gone with my secondary which had less stringent requirments and I could have had my surgery, although I was one month short of finishing Plan # 1 requirments, this was August 2015 through January 6 2016. PCP sent me back to that place again after the monster weight gain, went through all their. specifications, jumped in and out of hoops they erected, tried to act righteous, followed their " Company Rules" only to be told in February 2018 their head surgeon. no longer felt any urge to do my surgery, would not permit his 2 or 3 partners to do it either. Yep kicked" right to the curb" after he had raped my insurances of all the monies He could get. I finally got mental closure on it, God says I should forgive the Stupid Sack,of Offal, but I shall never forget! So I transferred to OSU, the place I should have gone to in the first place. Would you believe my PCP sent me to place #1 because he thought it was " Christian- Based" and what a Giant Farce that was! Went through Ohio States requirements, there were a few extras I still had to do, but in consideration of me not filing an equivalent of "Breach of Promise suit" they were forced to release all my previous records with no detrimental observations. And another thing to my benefit , Ohio State actually liked me, pledged to work with me to make my weight loss journey and surgery a Good Thing. And on September 5th 2018 I received the RnY bypass I had been struggling to receive for over 3 years. It will be forever my Wonder Wednesday, my Day of Days when all my mental pain, all my sorrows and my feelings of unworthiness went away.And I am eternally grateful for the second surgeon, he was a better person as well as a more skilled and compentant surgeon than that poor excuse for a Human Being I first encountered. As you may have guessed I have not had the easiest of healings afterwards, I am now 73 and some things just don't heal as qucickly or smoothly as they might were I In my 20s or 30s, but THEY have been with me, supportive all the way! " This isn't working? Okay we will find an alternate way of doing it!"And although I could not have forecast these 7 months they have still contained joys and successes. I am still in IT to WIN IT and the rest of my life will be the BEST of my life. This is a vow, I am seeing Onderland ahead for me, where I can break the 200 pound barrier and in the distance shining like a beacon is my Finish Line, my Victory Lane and I am going to make it THERE! My Will is STRONG, my body? Well it may be only along for the ride but we are going to make it THERE!

Maybe just pick one or two things to focus on each week to get going in the right direction? I know when I try to change everything all at once I get really discouraged. A place to start could be focusing on water intake. Remember right after surgery when we were told to sip sip sip water all day? It helps keep hunger at bay, and cuts out the extra calories we take in when drinking things other than water. I swear there is some truth to artificial sweeteners causing weight gain! I switched from my diet pop addiction to Crystal light, but realized for some reason constantly drinking something that tasted sweet, even though calorie free, was having negative effects on my progress. Then maybe the following week you could focus on getting protein at each meal and eating it first. Other ideas for weekly changes could be to journal food intake, packing a healthy lunch (even when working from home, it helps to have it in the fridge and waiting), and/or taking a quick 15 minute walk 3-4 times a week. The main thing is just focusing on one new thing at a time! Good luck to you.. You got this!!

hello all! before the holidays i was a little worried as to what the holidays would be like banded. but, i am happy to say, it was great. we went to my best friend's house. but, before we went, i did my 45 minute work out. i ate on a small plate just like usual. i went in knowing that i couldn't get everything first time around. so, i fixed a small plate, chewed and savored the tastes. then, 45 minutes later, everyone got up and we went for a 45 minute walk. it was great. later that evening i ate another small plate. and was just fine. no pbs or anything. i was thankful for that! then friday my husband and i had a dessert party. that was great too. so, no weight gain. actually lost a little. i am one pound from my november goal! i hope to be there by november 29th--40 pounds lost! we will see.

That's simply not true. My weight gain was a DIRECT result of high doses of oral prednisone as well as IV decadron combined with lack of movement due to rheumatoid arthritis for 9 long years. It completely destroyed my adrenal function. I ate very healthfully with an occasional snack. But nothing in crazy excess. I simply lacked metabolism, my RMR was zilch and physically I couldn't move. The only way I could lose weight after many consultations, crying at different docs offices, was WLS. Coupled with some of the studies showing that some people with autoimmune disorders were showing signs of remission, my decision was made. And it was the best one ever! I was in some form of extreme pain almost daily for 9 years. Since surgery- one flare that lasted 2 days and was very manageable.

Done! I have hair loss, unexplained weight gain, and muscle weakness. Ready to find out if I have it or not!!! Don't want to drink that barium though!!! Yuck! Thursday is the day of the catscan! If it means that I can finish my weight loss and get my hair back I'll pretend that barium is a Sonic shake!! Chalk flavored of course!!

For those following the pregnancy, super quick update. Tatum is perfect, I've gained a solid 18-20lbs, and the ob told me today that I needed to hide the scale, focus on getting my Protein only because I told him I was having mad cravings for red velvet cake, and then told me to indulge in as much red velvet cake as I could get my hands on. I still struggle with the physical changes, and to some degree weight gain, but it's getting better every month. I also get a lot of questions about my skin after losing 140-145lbs so I decided to be brave today, and share some fully sleeveless pics. Personally, it doesn't bother me. I have an aversion to armpits so I don't wear sleeveless shirts. I think armpits are repulsive, and I have zero desire to show mine off. Plus, I suffer from Brandilynn's razor line of random underarm hair that I miss occasionally. My home glucose monitoring was perfect, textbook numbers, zero chance of gestational diabetes WOOT WOOT ! ! ! I go back in 3 weeks, a growth scan will be done, and we'll get new pics of Tater Tot then, she's stubborn, and is not cooperating at this point for pictures. As you can see, I have flabby arms, but considering the amount of weight I lost, they could have been worse. Also, remember I've gained back over 10% of my weight lost, and some of that has gone back to my arms, my arms are normally thinner at the top. If you notice, my ass is still flat, my hips have widened, but I'm still wearing a size small maternity pants, or a size 4/6 in maternity pants. I have one pair of 8's that are "skinny" maternity crop pants, but I'm having trouble finding a good fit in maternity pants since I'm carrying so much of the weight in my stomach, but I'm still narrow in the butt and thighs. Cheers everyone. . . 3 more months, 3 more months, 3 more months ! ! !

Weight loss surgery success takes a lot of work and it’s nearly a full-time job, especially in the beginning. However, you can soon see the results of your efforts as you lose weight, gain energy, and watch the scale drop. What do you find most freeing about WLS and weight loss? Is it getting to shop at regular-sized clothing stores? Is it feeling free to say “No, thank you” to foods that you used to feel compelled to eat? Is it being small and energetic enough to go on airplanes, to movie theaters and restaurants, and on amusement park rides with your family without giving it a second thought? Is it being able to spend less time managing your medications, doctor’s appointments, and CPAP machine? Share what you find most freeing about WLS surgery success!

I know they say not to weigh the first week out because you will be upset with the weight gain from the iv,s I woke up and weighed in this morning at 342.4 and I was 344.9 when I went in on Tuesday for surgery. I pray That I keep loosing like this. Having a hard time with the protein shakes right now it soup. So peppermint tea and G2 again till tomorrow.

I'm one of the lucky ones too. I never saw any weight gain after surgery. It's just stead losses each day. Whether it's a few ounces to a pound or more. I'm 8 days post op and down 7.5 pounds from the morning of surgery. I'm bad because I weigh like 3 times a day. I'm trying to tell myself to stop and only weigh in once every week or even bi-weekly. Sent from my XT1635-01 using BariatricPal mobile app

Good questions! How long did I wait? About 3-4 weeks. Wanted to make sure I was getting my full 64 oz of liquids first before any alcohol. For fear of dehydration! Any complications? I'm a big wine drinker and most of the time the acidity gives me major reflux or heart burn. Liquor I haven't noticed a problem. Don't mix with sugary stuff, high sugar can cause some "dumping" effects. Still can't handle carbonation, champagne, or beer, one sip can be painful. Weight gain? None, still loosing and I'm 6 months out. Drink much less than prior to surgery. Sip much slower. Addiction? I can stop whenever. It doesn't go down as fast and easy as it use too.

So glad to have helped. You made the right choice; the doctor is always ready to answer any questions, no rush. Don't pass by Natalee's office without picking up a card for your pocketbook. It's about how you should feel and when to gage if you need a fill or not. ( I got to know her my last visit out there and found her to be an exceptional resource for diet, and kind of a "go to" person). She gave me this article: Think You Need a Fill? THINK AGAIN By Nikki Johnson Do you remember that feeling you had when you first had your band placed? For a while, everything was great. You didn't experience hunger, you felt satisfied with a small portion of good food, you had more energy, and you were thrilled with your initial weight loss progress. If you are like most people, your experience changed over time, Some of those feelings of hunger returned, and you stopped losing weight. You knew you needed something, so you went to your surgeon's office and asked for a "fill" right? If so, you might be surprised to learn that it is your thinking about your band, and not the band itself, that needs adjusting. The LAP-BAND Bad Word Paul O'Brien, MD, FRACS, is a skillful, compassionate surgeon and a foremost expert on the LAP-BAND System. he was involved in its design in the early 1990's and placed the first band in Australia in 1994. Since then, he has treated thousands of patients and is recognized worldwide for his expertise. When his patients utter that worst of four-letter words, "fill," in his office, they are asked to throw a dollar in the Red Cross donation bucket--a reminder that, according to Dr. O'Brien, thinking about a "fill" is just wrong thinking. How can a concept that we hear about so constantly be so very wrong? Dr. O'Brien's answer is simple: "Any adjustment to the band is something that only takes place in the context of clinical consultation--part of a relationship of trust, honesty and communication between patient and surgeon--that is much more key to the success of the patient than the precise number of milliliters of fluid in the band. This concept of partnership is the central theme of Dr. O'Brien's new book, The Lap-Band Solution--A Partnership of Weight Loss. Patty's Note: Available on Amazon.com ISBN#9780522854121 Like many people, you might assume that weight gain or a sustained plateau means an incorrectly adjusted band; in fact, you may be right. But you may be surprised to learn that weight gain sometimes results from a band that is too tight. This is part of the reason why the "fill" concept is so misleading. If your surgeon determines that you are not losing weight as you should, then discovering why that is happening is crucial. Sometimes adding fluid to the band will only make matters worse. Life in the "GREEN ZONE" Most people who have the LAP-BAND operation will have an amazing feeling of disinterest in food for the first week after surgery, before any adjustments are even made to the fluid in the band. According to Dr. O'Brien, that lack of interest in food is referred to as satiety. A related but different feeling is satiation, or the feeling you get as you are eating, precisely at the point that you don't need any more food to eat but you do not have an uncomfortable feeling of fullness. These two feelings--satiety and satiation--are what the properly adjusted band helps you achieve, allowing you to maintain your new healthier eating habits. Your careful observation and truthful sharing of your feelings and eating behaviors, combined with the expert care and training of your surgeon and his or her staff, can make the very individual determination of whether your band is properly adjusted much more accurate. In order to help create the most effective partnership between themselves and their patients, Dr. O'Brien and his colleagues at the Australian Centre for Obesity Research and Education have developed a concept they refer to as the "Green Zone". When patients are in the green zone, they experience satiety, satiation after properly-sized small meals, and satisfactory weight loss or maintenance. However, there are also yellow and red zones, both of which indicate that the band is not optimally adjusted. If your band is too loose, you will not have the benefits the band's hunger-controlling mechanism. If your band is too tight, you will have trouble eating properly and may actually gain weight because the foods you can eat more comfortable, that tend to be liquid and calorie-rich, like ice cream and chocolate, do not provide the proper nutrition. Learning to recognize when you have the feelings and eating behaviors that signal a problem can help you give your surgeon the information he or she needs to help you keep the band optimally adjusted. Thinking Adjustment Once you have eliminated the concpet of "fills" from you Lap-Band vocabulary, you will be able to let go of much of the conventional thinking connected to it. Perhaps you have heard talk about the "ideal" amount of fluid in the Lap-Band. While it may be helpful to have some idea of how much fluid is in your band, Dr. O'Brien says there is no magic number. No perfect amount of fluid will provide the best results for everyone. He says, rather, that "whatever volume of fluid is needed to achieve the [feeling of non-hunger] is the correct volume." When you notice that you are feeling hungry or are not losing weight, your body is telling you it is time to revisit your partner in weight loss -- your surgeon. your success absolutely depends on this relationship. So rather than thinking "adjustments," adjust your thinking, and, in partnership with your surgeon, find a lifetime of health! For more information about all of the themes discussed in this article, please see Dr. O'Brien's book, The Lap-Band Solution--A Partnership for Weight Loss, which is available fro Amazon.com. We also invite you to visit LAP-BAND® System Forum - Home for more information and supportive resources. You should ADD FLUID Hungry Early Big Meals Looking for food You are OPTIMAL prolonged satiety Small meals satisfy satiety Satisfactory weight loss or maintenance You should REDUCE FLUID Difficulty swallowing Reflux - hearburn Night Cough Poor eating behavior Regurgitation

Red Robin List (copy and past) Going to be there: Dynamo (Michelle) Tied2BFit (Dee) Mal Marilyn (I HOPE) Well I can't seem to beat this bug. between the chest cold and tummy upset, I am worn out and cranky. I have been staying home from work I feel so weak. I know it will get better, but I am ready. Water and food still taste funny. everything beside liquids pb's. So since I am such a mess and did I mention CRANKY, I haven't posted. However, Dee, You can do IT!!!!!!! I thought the waiting would never end and now you have had to do it several times. I am really impressed with you girl. Hope I can come to RR and give you encouragement. You are so sweet, awesome, pretty and such a great all around person. So kick that depression right back where it belongs. "This too will pass" You go girl!!! Dyna - where did you put those good things to eat, I want them and you only live a couple of miles, i will eat them for you and save you from temptation. that is what good band buddies do for each other, RIGHT!!!! So bring it on, nothing much stays down so I should be able to eat and return with no weight gain. I think I am loopy, maybe aother protein shake, then bed.

Hi Everyone. I'm so excited because yesterday when I weighed in at Dr K's office I finally made it to the 100's. I went from 204 to 194 in the last 4 weeks which is the best I have done since having the band. I actually even gained weight between my surgery date and my first fill. We decided that I was at a good place with my fill and so I will check in again in 4 more weeks and we will determine if I need more fill at that time. I do give a lot of credit to my Body Bugg. It is awesome and totally keeps me accountable and motivated. It's like a game I try and win everyday so its fun!:biggrin: So the other thing that I wanted to share is that I'm going out on a date tonight....for the first time since my x and I broke it off a little over a year ago. It's scary but I know I really need to get back out there.... :thumbup: And....I was offered two great jobs in the last few weeks and after sitting on the fence (and getting a very sore hiney because of it) for way too long I finally made a decision and I am now officially a software product manager at my company. I have been traveling for work almost weekly for the last couple years (thus the weight gain and the end of a relationship) and I have had enough. This job will offer me the opportunity to have much more of a stable home life and lots of opportunity for growth. Anyway...thanks for reading guys. I just wanted to share. I hope to meet a lot of you Banditos on Wednesday night at Red Robin. :biggrin2:

Hi girls. Well, looks like I'm probably gonna lose my band :hurt: . I'm still in a lot of pain, only now it is 2 very distinct types of pain. One is what I have had all along... the crushing, spreading pressure/gas-like pain, the other is what I call the "ball of pain" that is the feeling that someone punched me in the right boob and left their fist in there. This occurs when I eat or drink anything and lasts for hours. I ended up going to the ER 2 weeks ago for this new pain. They told me my stomach was still distended (like I didn't already know that). They also called Dr Metz about this. He called me back about 4 days later (nothing like customer service, huh?) And told me that he thinks the band is pressing on the vagus nerve and is probably is going to have to come out. This scares the HELL out of me!!! I still have at least 50 pounds (my goal) to 90 pounds to go (where the BMI charts say I should be). I am so afraid I will put all this weight back on. We just started with Kaiser, evidently so did Dr Metz, so he recommended I call the head of the bariatric program at KP and ask for a referral to see him. I did this and she told me she had no problem referring me, but she wanted to talk to him first to see what his plan of action was. I am still waiting to hear back from her, too. I finally got into a gastroenterologist, it took me 3 weeks to get an appointment, while I was steadily geting worse each day. I have gotten to the point that I am barely eating/drinking for the pain. Now I am so weak I can barely stand for more that a minute or two at a time. I figured they were going to jerk me around... "Here, try this med and come back in a month" type of thing. But she was like "I can get you in tomorrow for an endoscopy" This would have been at St Joe's but admitting was already closed for the day, so we made an appointment for tomorrow at 11 AM at the Kaiser office downtown. She will be looking for an ulcer or stricture, though she told me she doubts it is either of these things. I told her of my weight gain fears without a band and asked her if I truly have gastroparesis (basically your stomach muscles aren't working to push the food through... it just sits there and rots) if a bypass would fix it (that seems to be one of the few things that works for people). She told me that if she doesnt find anything tomorrow she is going to call Natalie (the head of bariatrics) and suggest she refers me to Dr Metz for exploratory surgery <Yikes> and a bypass. She said she feels that this is being caused by something structural, and I will definetely have to have exploratory surgery, so they "might as well do a bypass while they are in there". I am reallly freaked out about needing X surgery. And if I can't have a band I will take the bypass. Now I'm stressing thinking that Kaiser will not want to pay for the bypass, since they tend to have a lot of hoops to jump through before they will pay for bariatrics. I am hoping that they will not deny this since: 1). This would be done to alleviate a very real, dangerous stomach condition. And, 2). I have "proven" myself and my commitment already by losing 113 pounds with the band. Of course, now (for the first time in probably 20 years) I am under a 40 BMI. This may come into play also. I didn't elect for bypass in the first place because of the risks and more danger associated with it.... but I guess the risks of ballooning up to over 350 pounds are pretty high too. Figures..... I decided on who I was going to go to for my PS, and to have my boobs done too. Now this is most likely going to be put on the back burner for quite awhile. Best case scenario: She finds an ulcer, and I am all better after 6 weeks of meds. I can get my band refilled and have my lower body lift. Second best case scenario: Kaiser pays for a bypass, I quickly lose even more weight, and look even better after my LBL. The last scenario: Kaiser refuses to authorize the bypass. Dr Metz removes the band and I see how much it would cost for me to pay cash for a sleeve while he's in there. There goes my plastics money..... OR ..... I go to Mexico for a sleeve or the new sleeve plication. Again, bye bye plastic surgery. :broken_heart: Sorry for the long post, and I'll post back tomorrow after my test.

Way to go, great before and after. I have been giving the fat clothes away on Craigslist, from 3xl to 2 xl. Got to be honest, my reaction to your post is that when the 18 months honeymoon is over, and your body clicks into normal weight gain, you are one who, according to my surgeon and my nutritionists, and my daughter's father in law (bariatric surgeon) is at very high risk of gaining your weight back. The honeymoon of easy weight loss is when we cement our better food habits. Beer, lots of Desserts, no vitamins/calcium (you are young enough you might get away with that but it may effect your bone strength in your 40's) means that you have not changed enough habits to maintain post honeymoon. No criticism intended, I have 100 pounds to go, but every week my core food habits are better, I am Never going to be fat again.

tnks2ph, wish I knew what to tell you. I don't. I don't have any clue about your mental health issues, so I sure as hell would not advise you to drop your meds. Frankly, I think anyone who would say that to a stranger on the internet after reading one post...really needs to do some thinking about how dangerously unwise that is. I know that SSRI meds are infamous for causing weight gain. Some of the other ones are even worse. And shockingly...none of them is anything like pred....which sucks, too....but can't be compared. Best advice I can see that you've been given: "do not stop your meds without medical supervision if you have to choose between mental stability and being thin choose metal stability. i dont think you have to choose but if it comes down to just those 2 options choose mental health. you will take longer to get there but you have the rest of your life to finish this race." For your safety, you need some professional medical expertise on this topic. You won't find it here. Maybe try to get a referral consult with a psychiatric group who works with eating disorders? They might have more advanced knowledge on how different psychiatric meds effect diet and weight outcomes...and have strategies for overcoming the difficulties you're experiencing. There are a lot of people in your shoes. Someone reputable has good answers. Just have to find them. Wishing you the best.

Know how you feel! I woke up this morning with Bags the size of suitcases under my eyes! But spent the weekend in Vegas and had fun - ate small amounts but did drink a little. I know that and the FRIED chicken tenders probably had something to do with my 3 pound weight gain! Anyway - it's Monday now and time to be good and drink more WATER!!!! Hey - at least I won a little money and found that I can stay up till 3AM without turning into a pumpkin!

I confess all i wanted was carbs this weekend, and I ate chocolate and waffles. But in general, I confess that I'm wickedly pleased that by the time I see one of my best friends (in another part of the country) again, I'll likely wear a size smaller than she does. She means well, but is from a very judgemental family and has always been disapproving of my weight gain - but super supportive of my loss attempts too. I feel a little shallow-competitive, but, it's I confess time!

Correction everyone, my BMI is 29. Just got back from my OBGYN and she let me know that I've gained 10 lbs since I last saw her 6 months ago. She is concerned with my cholesterol levels as well as my weight gain over the last 5 years. However, she wants me to try Weight Watchers before I go through with WLS. I've tried weight watchers before and it didn't work for me. I just seem to struggle with my weight and can't lose it. I'm worried about becoming a diabetic like my other family members. Anyone have a jump start diet they know of that would possibly work? I think I will try and see what I can do once again on my own for the next several months and if I can't do it, then I will opt back to the sleeve. I was just hoping to be a little smaller for swimsuit weather coming up. ????