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I had my band 4 years and my journey ended having it removed and revised to sleeve 4 months ago. My issue was also a stretched esophagus. With my esophagus working as a 2nd stomach, I could eat more and I gradually started gaining weight was my first symptom. When my esophagus issue was discovered my band was emptied and I put on even more weight very quickly. With the weight gain I qualified on the BMI requirement for revision. In addition, I was still on medications for high blood pressure, which also helped me qualify. Getting the band removed was a very tough and sad decision for me and revision was even tougher. Four months out and my feelings have completely changed about my revision. 30 pounds down, no more stuck episodes, no more slime, no more puking, night coughs etc. and the very best is that "feeling full" is really "feeling full"! No more measuring meals, I can now do my own push aways very easily. I understand how you are feeling and the unknowns. Hang in there. If band removal is in your future, don’t let revision surgery scare you. Of course, I’m going to say that sleeve is the way to go, but, then I would be saying different had I had the by-pass done. One thing I do know is that I still need my weight loss tool! Having my band emptied a few months, I started gaining weight and started to fall back into my old habits of overeating. Much luck to you and please do keep me informed of what happens. jake

im having a revision done at the beginning of august and want to make sure this time, i ge fit right. my weight gain was mainoy do to me but partially due to the firdt surgeron mistakes. i want to make sure this sticks and im on the right path mentally. mentally i was not in the right place last time. any thoughts or advice to keep me going?? Sent from my LM-V405 using BariatricPal mobile app

This sounds rough. Losing a loved one is very hard. May I ask what kind of food choices you were making during weight gain periods? Also do you still see your surgeon or are your follow up visits only yearly?

I just had mine removed on Monday without warning as well. I also pleaded with him, Since he no longer places lap bands, I asked for a revision. He said there was too much swelling. I won't have another surgery. I am so worried about weight gain. Have you been able to keep off any weight gain in these last 5 months? Because if you have that gives me a lot of hope. i will do what I need to do even though I am still feel very sad I don't have my band.

Good morning. I am new to the forum. I have been reading quite a bit but have not found this issue. I am on the six month diet required by my surgeon. I lost some weight then my lab work showed low levels of potassium and iron. My doctor changed my blood pressure medication from a Triamterene/hyrochlorothiazide which I had been on for eight years to Amlodipine. The scale has gone up dramatically. I am worried I will be penalized for this gain though my calories have remained at 1500-1800 a day. Can someone give me some advice?

Hello all!! It's been a while since I have posted an update (that is if anyone is interested he he). I got my unfill last Friday of .5 cc's and felt immediate relief!!! But the only problem is "I CAN EAT NOW!!!" I have supposedly gained 4lbs but I also started my TOM so It may not be real weight gain just TOM gain (lets hope it's TOM gain ) I didnt go to Disneyland cuz of the rain so I was spared any fast fatty food over the weekend but didnt get to walk either cuz of the rain ...on a brighter note we have 3 days till Christmas!! I'm so excited because I am getting a Gazelle Edge Trainer!!! Wish I could post a picture for those who don't know what it is but I don't know how I can't wait for it to come then I can start working my way to a smaller me! Happy Holidays to all my LBT family :iloveuall:

I was approved with UHC on my first submit. I have the lapband and esophagus issues. I went in for a fill, took a barium test and found issues with my esophagus/swallowing. Since last summer I've slowly been gaining weight. I've been eating great, excising, active, etc. EVERYTHING the same. I'm around 170 but was 135-140 since being banded (SW:230lbs) Dec 2011. My Dr. submitted me for removal and revision in early July. I was approved 11 days later for both. My insurance for the band was BCBS but UHC covers me now. I was really expecting to go through the peer to peer review. I do have high BP and now have a hiatal hernia due to the weight gain...I'm total apple shape. Stay on them! Good luck. You're doing the right thing. The Lapband is starting to show the long term affects...I wonder why there's no class action. Insurance sure knows the failure rates are at an all time high. It's even in their best interest to approve. They'll end up spending so much more, at least on me. Isn't healthcare all about preventive care? There is no way in hell I was taking it out without revising to something else. Getting to my normal weight has changed my life in ways I never thought possible. Keep me posted. I'd like to know if you win your appeal/case.

I think EVERY society has ALWAYS been obsessed with food. There are numerous evolutionary reasons behind this, and I don't see any society changing it anytime soon. That's just a hard fact. However, it does annoy me that there aren't a lot of alternative things to do when it comes to socializing these days. American society in particular has become very sedentary. We like our video games, tablets, smartphones, streaming channels, and Internet. Rare is it anymore that people ask each other to hangout in the park to go walking, or after a date, to go dancing to burn off your dinner. People don't even go bowling that much anymore. Personally, I think it's sad and the more I think about it, it's pretty clear this societal change played a major role in my weight gain (I wasn't always heavy). I remember back in my middle/high school-college days, friends and I loved being active. We hiked, camped, putt-putted, and swam in public pools in the summer then ice skated and bowled in the winter. We even glow in the dark putt-putted! Places like the library or art museum would offer free or nominal fee day camps/ classes to everyone from kids to adults. We learned how to paint, sew, make pottery, and do other brain-stimulating things that didn't require staring at a screen. Yes, there's no question about it. There was always some non-food related activity we could partake in if we wanted to socialize. But things changed. A lot. Most of those places, sadly, closed or became associated with criminal activity and were no longer deemed safe. The libraries and museum stopped offering classes and day camps. A personal tragedy scared my friends and I from camping and hiking. What was funny was that some of the places that closed were actually bought out by fast food or local restaurant chains (such as our glow in the dark putt putting place and bowling alley), subconsciously implanting in our minds that guzzling down 700-calorie blended coffee drinks was the new way people socialized. I'm not trying to blame all my problems on societal changes, but it does frustrate the hell out of me. People wonder why obesity has risen to astronomical rates and I can't help but think about stuff like this.

I was going to post this on mfp but I thought I’d post this here. I drink a bunch of water almost everyday. I know I drink a lot more then the recommended amount. I usually try to watch how much I eat and also exercise. Sometimes from day to day my weight fluctuates. Could this be due to too much water?

Hi Micki. Your honesty will serve you well on the next leg of your journey. So many of us get stuck, and digging out of old behaviors we thought we had conquered can be disheartening. They say with alcoholics, one of the goals is to fall off the wagon for shorter periods of time each time. For us, when old behaviors crop back up, we shouldn't be surprised. We spent a lot of years cementing them into our brains. The nice thing about the band is that it will essentially allow you to be a laggard for awhile without that rapid weight gain we USED to get when we screwed up. Catch your breath for however long you need to, and when you are ready, get back to work. List the basics of living with the band, and figure out what you want to tackle first. Keep a log of your calories for a few days and see what bad stuff has snuck back in. This is all about how we learn to live permanently with new behaviors, and sometimes it's hard work. Don't kick yourself. It's just all part of it for some of us. I had a stretched pouch. I went in for a fill and was already full, but she could see from the fluoroscope pics that my pouch was bigger. She says it happens from things we do wrong, or even from doing nothing wrong. I'm very restricted in the morning, so even liquids in the morning could take too long to go through and stretch the pouch as they sit there. Many people then get a complete unfill or a partial unfill and let the stoma rest. With mine, I went back on liquids for 3 days and I was good as new. I also started sipping rather than guzzling my Breakfast. I guess the big deal with stretching is that if you try to live with too tight a restriction for a long time and with the subsequent stretching, you can get into a more chronic problem. I know when she told me I had a stretched pouch, I thought the world as I knew it had ended, and it turned out to be an easy fix and a cautionary tale. I keep a list of the rules of living as a bandster taped on my refrigerator, and I'm always finding something I need to do better, or that I just didn't do for awhile. Congratulations on your journey so far! Oh, and I also found out that for me, I am the worlds best at talking myself out of going to the gym. But I put Tony Horton's 30 minute routines on my portable CD, turn the sound off and turn the TV on, and I watch 1/2 hour of TV while I do his worout routine, and it's over before I know it. I find that I'm not going to be a major athlete in my life, so I need to have lots of different strategies for getting in exercise. I also found that sitting and watching TV is my worst emeny, so exercising in order to give myself permission to watch seems to work.... I hope you get lots of responses to this thread. I'll be interested to see what others are doing.

Hi all: On May 20th, I had an abdominalplasty and brachoplasty. So far so good, except that I have gained about 10lbs! I am scared of my mind. Has this happned to any of you? Any suggestions as to what I should do? I was thinking of doing my post WLS diet. Just Protein shakes and Soups. What do you guys think? Thanks!

Don't remember how much I gained in swelling but instead of my usual 00-2 i was wearing size 4 for many months!! Keep following your plan, get your protein and liquids. Also, wear compression as long as you can, the longer you do, the better the final result will be. Once I could wear my own, I bought extra firm compression garments, which I wore for about 6 months. The weight gain is very scary, but it's just swelling. Congrats and best of luck for a smooth recovery.

I have a major sugar problem. Cold turkey is the only way. I read once that if you are craving carbs/sugar then you are eating to much. For me this is soooo true. I have had two stalls followed by weight gain since I had surgery. Both times were when I went on vacation and had sugar when I got home I couldn't stop. It takes we a week of trying before I can get a grip on the situation. I think the most important thing is to acknowledge when the sugar monster has you and don't let it go on, kick the problem ASAP. As soon as I stop the sugar/carb intake I start losing again but I can't help but think of the 3-4 weeks I wasted.

@@chellede Your doing well. Don't stress it, you are going to lose and you are not that far out from the surgery date. TOM and sodium and 101 other things can cause weight gain on a scale. You could go the gym and have some lactic acid in your muscles and see a bit of gain so don't weigh ever single day. Once a week maybe hide the scale all the other days. Try to stick with what your doc told you so that your compliant and keeping your pouch at the right size. Take your time to eat what ever it is and enjoy the aroma, texture and flavor of the food. Keep up the good work!

@@Cognorati001, I was always a "normal" size. I didn't gain my weight until I had my daughter & was diagnosed with thyroid disease (which also contributed to my weight gain)-I was 30. I managed to lose weight again but it only last for a couple years. I spent almost 12 years overweight before I decided on the surgery. I thought since I spent half of my life with no weight issues, it would be easy to return back, especially since I'm married. I do struggle with it some days-especially when I get attention from men. I would encourage you to speak to a therapist. Life doesn't miraculously get better with weight loss. It can definitely help. I am over the moon excited & wouldn't change a thing but...... It is a new normal and you have to learn how to live in your new skin. Best wishes.

I lost 33 lbs total from Preop diet to Sunday. I am 10 days post op. I have gained 4 lbs. I haven't had but one BM and was told today this may be the reason.....any experience with weight gain immediately after surgery? Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I have been on prenisone since August 28th having had the gastric sleeve surgery on July 12th. I was diagnosed with temporal arteritis prednisone dosge from 60 mg. a day to 55 mg.a day for a month and now reducing weekly. The last two weeks is when my weight gain began and my moon face....eeek.....I am grateful to not be blind or infirmd but I went through this surgery to lose weight. I just needed to vent to like minded peers.

I'm 2 years out and here recently have noticed I can eat a whole lot more, including bread. I've been good for 2 years about not eating bread and rice, then one day recently I tried a breadstick and it was like a gateway drug for me. I had gotten down to 160 from 330 but I think the last 20 was from the gallbladder surgery I had to have due to rapid weightloss, for the last 7 months I have struggled with 16 pounds weight gain and even went back to weight watchers to try to lose and hit goal. I understand that eventually your body catches up to the weight loss and I found out by joining weight watchers that even though I was eating small meals I was still eating pretty bad. I feel that it happened over night and I never pushed it to stretch out my stomach but I can eat so much more now and it scares me because I don't want to put the weight back on. Has anyone had this problem? Any suggestions or tips to get it back off? Obviously working out and stop eating the carbs would help, I know this.

I know this is something I want to do, but I'm nervous about the long term weight gain I have heard about. Is there information to read up on? I eat pretty intuitively/healthy now after a lifetime of yoyo dieting, but I don't want to undergo major surgery just to keep yoyo'ing. How is weight set point factored in with this surgery? Are their consequences to bariatric restriction like there are with dieting?

It is a lot of weight too lose in such a short period of time. Probably a lot of it due to water. You may experience some weight gain. (Maybe as much as 10 pounds or as little as 1) Your body sometimes goes into starvation mode after a dramatic loss and will plateau. Don't get discouraged, even if you do gain back, it will come off in due time. I know, if you're like me once you start losing you get energized to check the scale often. Once you go to solids and before your first fill. Stay off the scales more often. Just concentrate on chewing thoroughly and drinking your 64 oz

Well, something life changing will happen for me on June 25. I have always had weight issues and, after a spate of horrible events (lived with the thought of kidney cancer for several months, then had a healthy kidney removed; had a particularly nasty breakup; challenged the principal at my first teaching job on advice from union reps and, as a result, had to negotiate a package that involved "quitting" in exchange for a letter of recommendation), I spiraled into a sharp toothed depression. I didn't have the energy to do much of anything, let alone prepare healthy meals. pizza & a pint of ice cream was the daily fare. After a while, I just didn't care. I am now at the point where my health in becoming compromised and, dammit, I want my old life back. I have done a ton of research on the whys and wherefores of weight gain & loss and know that a restricted calorie diet isn't going to cut it for me. I have tried that route more times than I can say. On June 25, I'm going to join the thousands of folks who have had surgery for weight loss. I am very excited and a little nervous. Mostly, I am looking forward to a new beginning. Yippee skippy! Can't wait! I am a little worried about Protein and my one kidney status, though my surgeon says he's done other folks with one kidney. I am 280 pounds right now. I teach 4th grade at a small private school. I love my Scottish terrier, Moxie, and my Glen of Imaal terrier, Simon. I,m glad to have found this forum and look forward to chatting with all.

That's correct, Pregnant not even 2 months after surgery. I see some threads but I'd just like an update of anyone that is going through this or went through it already... I was 300 pounds at my highest weight, now down to 240. I'm not even concerned as much about the weight gain as I am for my baby. I know this wasn't planned, but I'm already in love with my little pumpkin. The doctor that I saw at my nuchal screening told me that my weight and the fact that I became pregnant so soon after surgery makes me high risk, emphasizing preeclampsia, gestational diabetes and internal herniation. It's just all so much. I'm 25 and this is my first baby so anyone that can weigh in at all is appreciated. I've had terrible all day sickness and scared about nutrition and everything...

So much to touch on here and it may ramble but it all has a point so stick with me. 😂🤞. The first day I met my new doc 6 months ago, the last thing he said was, “I can tell who will be successful after surgery by the amount they lose before surgery”. Talk about pressure! Lol. Anyway, fast forward 6 months and the surgery scheduler calls to say I’ve been approved for surgery. I was nervous initially because I ended my 6 months 3 pounds heavier than I began so I was stoked that I was approved so quickly. SS said if I was able to take the next day off work (9/27), I could have surgery on 10/8! Oh boy! First person I call is my husband, who immediately starts in on me about how I need to wait until AT LEAST November because we can’t afford surgery now! Never congratulated me or anything. I actually hung up on him. Then I tell my bosses/receptionist. Bosses and nearby co workers all start in on what an inconvenience it will be with me out. God forbid they call their own patients or check their patients auth. No congrats there. Receptionist is like I don’t care what you do, I just want to go to Vegas for Halloween. 😒. I finally call my mother in law, who is loaning us money for this surgery and she immediately screams, “YAHOO!!!! CONGRATS!!! IM SO PROUD OF YOU!!”. Tells me to absolutely do the 8th. Don’t wait! Go for it! I get to my desk and after 30 seconds of pause just cry because only one person of the 6 I just told was happy for me. I let my old insecurities set in and figure, if more people are against sx so soon then maybe I should wait. So I scheduled it for 10/22. Fast forward to today. I’ve been incredibly agitated the last two weeks. Everyone at work is worried about how my sx will inconvenience them. I went from two weeks off work to one week and two weeks half days to maybe I can work from the hospital since I’m not doing anything. I’ve been binging on food left in the pantry (pasta, brownie mix, coffee) because I tell myself my hubs will be more relaxed if I eat shit and save money these last two weeks. In the back of my mind though I have the doc...”I know who will be successful after surgery based on how much weight they lose before surgery”. I KNOW I’ve gained weight the past two weeks. Wouldn’t be surprised if it was 10 pounds. 🤷‍♀️. So the self loathing begins. “The doc thinks I’m a shit patient for gaining weight and he’s wasting his time working on me because he knows I won’t be successful”. “I’m worthless”. “Why can’t you just make people happy and lose weight?!”. Tonight I told hubs I was going to bed early because I was “agitated” and when I laid down I stared at the ceiling sobbing my eyes out. I couldn’t cry harder if I tried. Then it hit me: why am I letting these people control my life?! So I text my husband to come to the bedroom to talk (I’m a millennial. It’s what we do). I proceed to tell him how angry I am. I’m angry that he was so concerned about money that he never congratulated me for a year of hard work. I’m angry that I let my co workers dictate my pre and post op care. I’m angry that I let my husband choose my surgery date. Most importantly, I’m angry at myself. Angry for letting them take away my initial happiness. Angry for being concerned about my co workers feelings over my own. Angry that something my doc probably meant as encouraging was twisted by my mind to negate everything I’ve done in the last year because I gained weight. As if the weight gain negated all the physical therapy, the personal training, psychology work, food logging, nutrition appointments, weekly classes for united healthcare, monthly support groups and $8000 in money to better my health for this surgery and life change. Angry that I let my emotions get the best of me and ate shit instead of grabbing my mother in laws credit card like she offered and getting the proper food I need pre op. He listened and apologized. We chatted a bit over his fears/concerns, my concerns (I’m not afraid of surgery) and my need to work on my people pleasing. It was cathartic. It was also humbling that I thought I had this mental aspect under control when clearly I did not if I let all of these people live rent free in my mind. Friday I’m going to for my pre op appointment and I’m going to be open, honest and an advocate for myself. I’ll probably stumble at some point in the future but I’m taking a screenshot of this post to remind myself that it’s ok to advocate for yourself and then pick myself back up.

Hi Karen. 2.4cc would be a lot in a 4cc band, but I am inclined to think with that size fill, you would have either a 10cc VG band or the (I think) 14cc AP band. In which case, it isn't a huge fill. It will take time to get to your "sweet spot". Just make sure, that in the mean time you do as you are doing, eating healthy and exercising. Don't stress over the 2lb gain. It's likely just re-hydration or some PMS type "Water weight" gain. Welcome to LBT!

I'm a 67 year old female who underwent gastric bypass surgery in September, 2017. I have a very complicated medical history and was considered a high risk candidate. I have diabetes for over 40 years and end stage kidney disease. (stage 5) I have neuropathy of my extremities as well as in my large bowel, (colonic inertia), bladder, and heart. I have a disease called Charcot joint disease in my feet. This makes me lose my balance and fall so I have to walk with a walker. I have congestive heart failure and high blood pressure and high cholesterol. I also have asthma. I am on the kidney transplant list. In order to get a kidney the BMI has to be below 38. My BMI is 40. My max weight gain was 264 pounds and height of 5'3 in. At time of surgery I weighed 248 pounds. I was unable to do the pre - op fast because on day 8 of the two weeks to decrease my liver I ended up in the hospital and nearly died because my potassium had dropped to 1.9 and my sodium 22. I couldn't walk or think . Was admitted to stabilize my electrolytes. (3days) finally after 2 months they scheduled me! (September 11,2017) Instead of going home the next day, I was admitted for 5 days because my heart started racing . I forgot to mention that I have rapid heart beats called Supra ventricular tachycardia. And my blood pressure shot up so I had to stay until I was stable. Because I am sensitive to narcotics ( causes confusion and disorientation) I could only take Tylenol for pain! I m glad that's all behind me now because I really suffered from pain about 15 days) . Now I'm in week 12 and doing great. I used to take 22 pills twice daily. Now I take 3 pills twice daily. Of course I take all of my vitamins as well. My weight is 192 ( my max weight was 264) My BMI is now 34.0. I will see my nephrologist this month ( December) for my status on the transplant list. I'm happy to say that I feel so ALIVE! Before my surgery I was told that I had a 20% chance to live. And I felt like death was imminent. I have a NEW zest for life! Sent from my SM-J700T using BariatricPal mobile app