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@@robisfubar I'm sorry for youre stuggles. Ok...I'm no expert. Just some things to think about. Track food! love my fitness pal for tracking its makes things so simple.. How many carbs and fats are you eating? Some people are carb sensitive. Once you add them it triggers hunger and weight gain. How many calories Vs How many calories burned? How much exercise is required on your drs plan? Mine is 6 days a week at a hour minimum. Starvation not an option for me. Besides messing up your metabolism it triggers more hunger and sets me up for failure. You are lossing weight! woohoo go you. Never stop never give up. You have invested the money into this. Invest the time into yourself. you are so worth it. Wishing you the best, Jenn

I'm hoping to get some advice/insight. I was sleeved on 5/30/13 and since then have lost almost 100 lbs. My husband and I are wanting to try for another baby. Today I actually got my Mirena IUD taken out (which hurt like a mofo lol) so now the real thing is to start trying within the next few months. Sooooo..... to those who have gotten pregnant after having the surgery. . How long did you wait? Any complications health or delivery wise? food intake? Weight gain/loss? I'm just trying to get as much info as possible so anything will help

Is maladaptive eating slowing or sabotaging your weight loss? Let's take a look at how that happens and what we can do to change it. WHAT IS MALADAPTIVE BEHAVIOR? The term “adaptation” brings Charles Darwin to my mind. His theory of evolution is considered heresy where I live, but whatever your personal belief about the origin of the human species, you’ve probably observed many times that humans and other living things have an amazing ability to adapt their behavior, and even their forms, to better survive and thrive in its environment, and that as the environment changes, so do the creatures living in it. Here in Tennessee, the weather is getting hot enough to send us into our closets to bring out the shorts and sandals and bathing suits we need to comfortably survive the summer. At the same time, our dogs and cats are shedding the extra fur they’d acquired to keep them warm during the winter. The humans are adapting their dressing behavior and the cats are adapting their forms to adjust to hot weather. This is adaptation in its positive sense, but adaptation also has a dark side. Defining “maladaptation” requires us to assume that certain behaviors are normal, while others are abnormal. That does not necessarily mean that normal is healthy and abnormal is unhealthy. Someone (or something) is considered “normal” if they conform to a widely accepted standard or practice, and abnormal if they deviate from the norm. A behavior can be identified as maladaptive or abnormal only in the context of an environment. It is not intrinsically wrong or evil, and its degree of deviance or abnormality depends on things like cultural and social rules and norms (cannibalism may be a normal behavior in one society, but not in another), systems of psychological and medical thought (a mentally ill person may be “abnormal”, but able to function despite that); as well as political beliefs and ideals (in a democracy, the practice of communist principles is considered “wrong”). I’m going to try to bypass all those interesting but knotty aspects and give you definitions and examples that don’t require a PhD in sociology or psychology to decipher them. Some maladaptive behavior is disruptive to society because it interferes with group functioning. A child “acting out” at school in reaction to the stresses he experiences at home is an example of this. His frustration with his home life turns into anger that fuels temper tantrums in the classroom. His behavior is maladaptive because it doesn’t eliminate the stresses at home and creates a whole new spectrum of stresses and problems at school as his teachers and fellow students react to his aggression. He can’t learn lessons in school that he needs to learn because his “bad” behavior gets in the way. Other maladaptive behavior is expressed in an inward fashion. A shy, anxious art student is horrified when her painting teacher publically critiques her painting and tells her and the rest of the students that her artwork is exactly what they should not be doing. The art student loses confidence in her talent and changes her major to another subject. Her behavior is maladaptive because it makes it much harder for her to achieve her original goal of becoming an art teacher. My own definition of maladaptive behavior is this. It’s a nonproductive behavior that prevents you from adapting to situations, or changes in yourself or your environment, in a healthy way. It can begin as an attempt to deal with or avoid an unpleasant experience but it does not solve the original problem and eventually becomes dysfunctional. You adjust to a situation in a way that makes sense at the time but that eventually misdirects your energy and focus, and interferes with your personal and interpersonal functioning, your health, and your ability to achieve your goals. At the start, the behavior feels like a helpful, even positive response to abnormal, difficult, or negative circumstances. As a bandster, I used both old and new maladaptive eating behaviors. My decades-old behaviors, like eating to deal with stress, did not disappear on the morning of my band surgery, and 5 years later, I’m still working on changing that. I also developed new behaviors in response to the experience of having an adjustable gastric band. The long-term result of these maladaptive behaviors is unintended and undesirable. The maladaptive eating tactic may seem to solve a current problem while it's actually creating future problems: slowed or stopped weight loss, weight gain, band slippage, band erosion, and so on. SOFT CALORIE SYNDROME & OTHER DANGERS A classic example of bandster maladaptive eating behavior is known as Soft Calorie Syndrome. I discovered the perils of this syndrome for myself when I traveled to New York City to attend a trade show when I was about 8 months post-op. I had gotten a fill the day before I left, and by the time I got to New York I had realized that my band was too tight for me to tolerate. I couldn’t eat any solid food, so I spent the next 3 days eating soft, high-calorie, low-satiety foods like soup, milkshakes, and ice cream. I was just trying to survive long enough to go home and get an unfill. My eating behavior achieved a temporary goal (comfortable survival) while sabotaging my long term goal of losing weight. In fact, I gained weight during that trip and ended up feeling disappointed in myself. A frustrating aspect of maladaptive behavior is that it’s often easier to see in others than it is in yourself, but even someone who’s fully aware that her or his behavior is counterproductive may feel helpless to change it. If I had a dollar for every time a bandster has confessed to eating to relieve stress or boredom, I’d be a wealthy woman now. Emotional eating tends to be so longstanding and deep-rooted that it takes on a life of its town, like a devil lurking inside us who seductively whispers, “Chocolate! Chocolate will make you feel soooo much better!” when you’re too vulnerable, tired, or upset to make a different or healthier choice. When I was being treated for PTSD years ago, a counselor asked me to make a list of behaviors and activities that I could choose to do instead of engaging in self-destructive ones. At first the exercise seemed contrived and silly, but eventually I realized its usefulness. I was not able to think clearly and make good choices when in severe emotional distress. All I could think of was razor blades. My index card of alternate behaviors reminded me that I could telephone a friend, go for a walk, take a bath, listen to music, pet a dog, and the like instead of playing with sharp objects. Now, I very much hope that you’re not dealing with severe emotional distress (which I would wish only on my worst enemy), but I do believe you can benefit by making your own list of alternatives to emotional eating. Carry a copy of that list with you everywhere you go and keep a copy in an easily-accessible spot at home (I tacked mine to my bulletin board). TRUTH OR CONSEQUENCES In the 1960’s and 70’s, contestants on the “Truth or Consequences” game show would try to answer ridiculously obscure trivia questions and be forced to perform silly stunts in punishment for getting the answers wrong. The host ended each episode by saying, “Bob Barker saying goodbye, and hoping all your consequences are happy ones!" The relief or pleasure or other immediate consequences of a maladaptive behavior may seem like happy ones, but they generally short-lived, so the behavior must be repeated over and over for the benefit to be felt. As with an addiction, it takes more and more of the behavior or substance to cause relief or pleasure. An anxious person, whose mother lost a leg to gangrene (death of flesh) from bacterial infection in an untreated injury, naturally fears germs. She washes her hands thoroughly and often, especially after touching anything that might harbor germs. At the start, her own home is clean and safe, but because her hand washing doesn’t remove her basic fear, eventually she must practice it all day, every day, over and over, even in her own home, until her skin is scrubbed raw. She sees the abrasions her scrubbing has caused as more vulnerable to germs and increases the hand washing. Soon the hand washing excludes all other activities and she dares not leave her home. The salutary practice of hand washing has become a maladaptive and destructive behavior. Unlike the hand washing or other compulsive, fear-based, abnormal and ritualistic behavior, maladaptive eating is rarely perceived as strange. Eating is socially acceptable as long as the meat on your plate belongs to a different species. It’s also something that’s easy to do in secret, while you’re alone in your car or your bathroom or wherever you go to escape other people. But when you do it over and over again, your repetition of the behavior cements it into a wall around you, keeping you locked inside instead venturing forth to find relief elsewhere. And should you confess to this maladaptive eating behavior, people who don’t use food in this way simply cannot fathom why you would do it. They say impatiently, “Put the fork down! Step away from the table! Just say no to chocolate!” Ah, if only it were that simple, that easy… SMALL-TIME CRIMINALS Some maladaptive behavior arises from ignorance, misconceptions or misunderstanding. Take the case of Martin. He received minimal pre-op education, so when he found himself PB’ing (regurgitating) on a daily basis after his 3rd fill, he assumed that this was simply a fact of life for bandsters. His problem is ignorance. The same thing happened to Annie, who assumed she was doing something wrong but was too shy, ashamed and embarrassed to ask her surgeon about it. Her problem is misconception. And when PB’ing intruded into Carol’s daily life, she believed it was like vomiting, caused by “a stomach bug”, so it never even occurred to her that her eating behavior might be causing it. Her problem is misunderstanding. All too often, a maladaptive behavior seems like such a small “crime” – it was just one ice cream cone – that the bandster minimizes its importance without realizing that the cumulative effect of a series of small crimes can be just as destructive as a single big one. It’s kind of like ignoring the posted speed limit when you’re driving your car. You shudder at the news of a fatal car accident when an acquaintance driving at 70 mph in a 35 mph zone loses control of his vehicle and crashes into a telephone pole. In that instance, ignoring the speed limit is clearly a bad choice. But when you’re late for work (again), run a few yellow or even red lights (again), and drive at 70 mph in a 35 mph zone (again) in your eagerness to get to work on time, and nothing bad happens, speeding doesn’t seem like such a terrible crime…until the day you can’t stop in time to avoid the car turning into your path and end up as a bleeding mess choking on dust from your car’s air bag while an ambulance carries off the person you killed because of your maladaptive behavior. IS THIS BEHAVIOR GETTING YOU WHERE YOU WANT TO GO? A bandster once confessed, “I eat pretty good all week and then I allow myself a junk food day...a bad mistake on the weekend since that usually means a junk food weekend...once I start, it’s so hard to stop and of course weight gain is the result and I end up beating myself up. I'm never going to be where I want to be if I continue this behavior.” I want to repeat that all-important last sentence: “I'm never going to be where I want to be if I continue this behavior.” That, my friends, is the take-home message of this article. Take it to heart, take it home, and take it out and study it often. Ask for help in identifying and dealing with your maladaptive eating behaviors. Take them seriously, but don’t build them into mountains right in the middle of your path to success. Sometimes the solution or treatment for a big maladaptive behavior can be a small piece of common sense. One of my favorites is: Don’t keep trigger foods in the house. If chocolate is your bête-noir (the black beast that’s the bane of your existence), you’re not going to be able to gorge yourself with it the next time you’re feeling weak if there is no chocolate in your house. Yes, I know you can hop in your car, ignore the posted speed limits, and pull up in front of the Chocoholic Market in a matter of minutes. That’s why we have to be vigilant, honest and aware. And remember this, from page 299 of Bandwagon: It takes anywhere from 18 to 254 days of daily repetition to make a new behavior automatic….so, practice, practice, practice!

Why would we think you are crazy. Stretch marks can be caused by rapid weight gain or rapid weight loss.

You can always get more in by eating more often. Heck, any bigger, and you will have trouble with weight gain, and if you eat too often, you will still be capable of gain. Just nothing like you are capable of now.

You've done pretty well considering. Dig in your heels and really try to keep on top of the weight gain and hopefully this will be fixed for you in no time. I've got everythign crossed for you that its your port rather than the band so that it can be easily accessed and fixed.

Meliwriter you make some really good points! Thank you! I'm not banded yet, but I AM starting to eat less, and already I've noticed that some people seem upset if I don't have seconds and thirds... they actually argue with me if I say "no thank you." and this really is all about a choice I've made for me and my health, and sticking up for that is something that folks that know me definitely are NOT used to. I can see already this will be an interesting ride, but I am positive that it's gonna be better than the slow suicide of weight gain I've put myself through. thanks for your comments! Stan

Hi Ann, I am 58 years old, had my lap band surgery on 12-18-08 and have lost 45 lbs without any weight gained back. I have lost very slowly, I am sure because of my age and that I have learned how to work around my band but I can sincerely tell you that I would have the surgery many times over because of Dr. Francis, Orange Coast Memorial Hospital and Staff and the results I have had with the band. Most people lose faster than me but that is because they follow the diet and exercise plan exactly and I admittedly do not.:tt1:

I am sure Tiffykins will weigh in here (pun intended) as she just has a baby last week! She really wrestled with the weight gain too. Don't worry! Trust your body and DON'T diet! 15-25 pounds is not enough- trust your doctor and go with his/her guidelines. CONGRATULATIONS!

I am almost 5 weeks post op. I lost A LOT right after surgery. I really didn't eat the first week, and barely the second week. After week three, I am not losing, sometimes gaining. This is freaking me out. I know it can be sodium, the fact that I am soooooo not regular, but, shouldn't I be losing?! I find it impossible to drink protein shake, water, and get all the protein in. All I had was a few ounces of chicken for dinner last night and couldn't drink a drop after. I am definitely dehydrated. I am coming up with ways to force me to drink, like alarms on my phone, but I would need to set an alarm every few minutes! Most days, I get one protein shake in, 20 onces of water, & one actual meal that is small. Ugh.

The first few days are rough. Diarrhea is likely due to the fact that you are taking in only liquids. Liquids in = liquids out pretty much. With COPD, you have an extra hurdle to cope with now, but once you start with consistent weight loss, your body won't be making COPD worse, which is great. Weight gain....the day after surgery, I was up 10 pounds. It all went away as soon as I started moving around some whenever I could. And I think a lot of people here will tell you a similar tale on the weight. When do you move to mushy food? Are you on "full liquids" yet? By that, I mean stuff like cream soup, yogurt, pudding, etc.

I would agree with the others in that eating more does not result in weight loss, especially if you are taking a vacation from the scale. The times in life I have gained are the times I stopped weighing myself. If we're being honest, are you sick of dieting and sick of not seeing the number change so you want a little vacation from the entire process and convincing yourself eating more and not getting on the scale is the way to feel better, if not physically, then emotionally? I can understand that, but a spade is a spade. If you want to lose weight, my experience has been to keep at it every single day, otherwise it is very easy to slip back into old habits. It looks like you've already lost a lot of weight, so you're doing well. If you feel like you need more calories, it doesn't hurt to try that, but weigh yourself everyday so you can see if it's causing weight gain. This way in 2 weeks you'll either know you can eat more food and be fine or you'll know you can't, but you won't get on the scale and hate life because suddenly you gained 10 pounds that now you need to lose all over again.

Welcome! I haven't been banded yet so can't speak for that. But as far as the Depo shot... I hated it! I took it a few years back. It was one of the major reasons I began to gain weight! I sincerely hope it hasn't had the same affect on you. But if you've noticed more weight gain while on it, I would consider changing my birth control. Good luck! =)

PSJ , I just recently went through a psych eval and like others stated it's to check your self esteem levels, see if you are suicidal. My test had a whole sheet on eating habits and the psych Dr. said it was to see if I had self controll and to see how I would react in diffrent environments with picinic, buffets or eating with other people who ate lots of food... Could I control myself. That part was extreamly interesting. I was really honest with my Dr. they ask us these questions for a reason and depression does result in weight gain for some people. Maybe the right combination of Medication can help my breast Friend calls it her " Happy Cocktail". I myself suffered from Pregnancy Purging. When I was pregnant with both of my children food made me ill so i ate and the purged. With the love and support from my family I no longer feel the need to do these things. So be honest and open and you may be suprised.:thumbup:

I am now 17 days post op and when I noticed my weight loss slowing down about a week ago, I decided I was not going to step on the scale again until I was 1 month post-op. I know that a weight gain or a stall would feel like crushing defeat, so I'd rather not know. I packed it away and put it on a tall shelf where it would be too much of an effort for me to get down. Don't let the stupid scale tell you how to feel!

Out of curiosity, was Dr. H who did your surgery? I have the exact same issue... literally, EXACTLY. I was banded in 2006, got down to 140 lbs, had what you're going through now, had my band un-filled and promptly went back up to 230 -- much of the weight gain happened within the first few months of the unfill as my body went from starvation mode into normal eating as I couldn't even keep my own saliva down. Who did you see for your follow-up? I was seeing a doctor out in Joliet who was SO wonderful, but it's much too far for me as I live in Chicago. It's been 2 years, and I'm ready to tackle this again...

You are new to the process, just remember the scale is not your friend, the measuring tape is lol. I gain weight periodically throughout the month for instance is it close to your "TOM" if so the weight gain could be water retention. Don't panic if you are eating right and exercising the weight will come off.... the key is to stop watching the numbers Follow me on Twittwer @myworldalc

From what I understand, weight gain will happen. Its important though to see what the cause is and correct it.

At the beginning of COVID, I got sick with a respiratory/shortness of breath/fatigue/fever problem. Thought for sure it was COVID, but two antibody tests have been negative. Anyway, it knocked the socks off me for a couple of months, actually, and I dropped off my exercise. Until then I was doing a lot of things, including 60 flights of stair a day, weights, walking, biking, and swimming. Needless to say, I gained about 7 pounds. But I am happy to report that today I got back to my goal weight and I am sooooo happy about that. I have been increasing my exercise a bit, now with cooler weather (still 95, but feels heavenly after 115!) , and have monitored my carbs and nuts a bit closer. I am still doing IF, which I think is a great tool. And I have found that exercising in a fasting state not only makes me feel better DURING the exercise, but great afterwards, too. I did a 20 mile bike ride the other day in a fasting state and it was one of the best rides I have ever had. Maybe it's ketosis euphoria, but it sure felt good and like I could have gone another 20. The longer I get out from surgery, the more "normal" my eating becomes, and I am gradually learning what I have to do to feel strong, maintain the weight, and not get stressed out over it. The key with weight gain is to nip it in the bud. Don't let it get to 10 pounds - drop it dead in its tracks before it gets that far down the road. Regain does not happen overnight. It actually comes on gradually unless you just stop weighing yourself, start pigging out on unhealthy food, and just go into denial about the whole thing. I used to have nightmares about waking up and finding myself having regained all my weight. AAGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!! But it doesn't happen that way. Weighing daily, and jumping back on track when only a few pounds up is the way to keep it off for good, I am convinced. I don't stress about it any more, because I know this is actually do-able! I will have to keep watching carefully as I move toward the 2 and 3 year marks. Hang in there, everyone. Knock it out of the park! Keep with your plans, get your exercise in, and enjoy your new lives!!!!!

I also have Anthem BCBS and had to go through 6 months of doctor visits, 1 psych evaluation, a nutritionist visit, etc. I began my journey in May and met the surgeon yesterday as the final step and sign off. The Bariatric Coordinator submitted my paperwork for approval today and it came back approved today!! So it was an immediate turn around. As for the weight gain, I lost about 8lbs and regained a few. I was still approved.

Are you living my life? Are my relatives talking to you? I totally relate. I get the "do it naturally, you've done it before." "You aren't that big that you need to resort to surgery." REALLY? I think that if my family new my weight they would be shocked and YES, i"ve done it "naturally" before...heck I've done it quite a few times but here I am. If I could keep it off, then I wouldn't be here. I am frustrated with family as well and as my surgery date is getting closer, honestly, I'm scared to death of this change BUT, I know I have to do it before it is too late and I develop diabetes or some other condition. So far the only thing I've dealt with is some high blood pressure. I have a 3 year old son that I want to be here for and at this point in my life, this is MY decision so I can be healthy and live a good, fun life with my son. I've shut other people out who won't listen or be supportive. My family is sort of coming around because they know I'm not turning back....they can either help me succeed or step out of the situation. I even looked into getting a taxi or taking the bus to my hospital the day of surgery so I didn't have to bother any of my non-supporters...funny how they want to be there now. You do this for you. If you are like me, yes, you can lose it on your own, but you can't keep it off or we wouldn't be resorting to this surgery. No, I don't want to have to do this but after 20+ years of up and down and fad diets and more weight gained back than lost...I'm tired of it. I admit I need the help and I think I have my mind in a good place where I can lose it and the band will help me keep it off. I'm scared, excited, nervous and have really, really cold feet but I know it is what I have to do. I have warned my husband that the first month he is going to hear a lot of whining and "what did I do to myself" moments but I know in the end when I purchase my first outfit that is not in the chubby chic section and my blood pressure is normal and I'm not longer exhausted and tired, it will totally be worth it. Keep heading down your journey...you only have one you and you need to take care of it. If this is what you need to do, do it and don't look back. Good Luck and we are all here to support you....we've been there, or are there or are heading there :thumbsup:

Almost 2 weeks post op. Surgery weight-262 Yesterday-248 This AM-251 Yesterday- Protein shake, fat free cream of chick lunch, and last night puréed chicken with fat free sour cream, not counting my water! What the hell?!

I had gastric bypass in June 2005 I lost a total of 120 pounds and kept it of for 3-4 yrs. I gained 65pounds back and opted to get the band on Jan 4 2013, have lost 20 pounds so far.. I have 9.2 cc in a 14cc band.. I saw a question above about why would someone need B.O.B if they had gastric bypass... Well in my case I thought the surgery was a quick fix and yes the weight came off quick but I didn't have all the knowledge I have now.. I mean yes I was told it was a life style change but if at first when u get the surgery u can't eat bad things if u tried or u will throw up and feel awful and then over time those symptoms start to diminish and u start to get back to those old habits u will then start to gain weight.. For me am like there was no way I would be 303 pounds again even if I ate to much I still could hold that much in my pouch.. But what got me is bc I started to drink fluids with my meals and what that does is washes what I just ate out of my pouch and then in 1 hr or so am hungry again. There by taken in more and more calories.. and that equals weight gain... So after researching this lapband for 2 yrs plus getting educated and trying to live and eat right I feel like am better prepared for this journey. Yes it's totally different from my previous surgery bc in this u have time to learn how to work with the band and not against it. Nt to mention u can get adjustments as u go along. Good Luck all

Try the 5 day restart. It works great. DO NOT get discoraged. Do try to keep a food journel, the my fitness pal has a great one. When I was 3 months in I was still having problems drinking. Your insulin might be slowing you down as well as other meds. A lot of meds have a weight gain in the fine print. But infortunitly, (excuse my spelling) fruits are OUT. My Dr. won't let me hve them cause they have to much sugar. Also, no salads cause they take up to much room in your new pouch. Give the 5 day restart a try, try the myfitnesspal. Keep up with updates for more support. GOOD LUCK!

Hi all, I'm a newbie to this site, looking for some help and advice and hopefully some answers. I had a lap band put in 7 years ago, I then had several complications and three revision surgeries and multiple infections. I recovered from all my infections and surgeries, started eating better and exercising. The weight was coming over but very slowly, I managed to lose 45 kilos and was feeling better, but disappointed with the slow weight loss (45 kilos over 3 years is not what I was expecting) (I have a lot of weight to lose - more than 100kgs) So after my annual consultation with my surgeon, he suggested a gastric sleeve. I was so excited, a good friend of mine had recently been sleeved and her results were phenomenal! Bring it on!! Band was removed after 4 years. 2 months of very careful eating and I was sleeved. I did everything right. Fluids for 2 weeks, mushies for 2 weeks, then small meals, gradually building up to solids. Here is where my problems begin. After I started eating, I never felt the restriction I did when I had the band. Over time my portions increased, I have never felt any type of restriction, at my 3 month post op review a temporary surgeon. (My surgeon after performing 6 surgeries on my poor tummy is no longer practicing) I was told the sleeve had failed and I wasn't losing the weight they expected me too. Instant Soul crush! I soldiered on and saw dieticians and doctors and no one to this day can explain what has happened. Fast forward to now,7 years after my band and small loss and 2.5 years after my sleeve and I'm back to my pre. Band weight. I have absolutely nil restriction. I can eat a full size meal and have gained back every thing I ever lost. I have been back to see 2 separate surgeons who have both said the sleeve looks to be fine, and have no answers as to why I'm gaining weight. (Have done 2 barium swallows) Both of them have recommended a gastric bypass as the only way I will lose weight. My head is really messed up. I don't know what to do, over the past 7 years I have had 7 operations 5 of them weight loss related (band in, port removed, port replaced band out and sleeved) Ive spent well over $30k on surgeries, Appointments hospital visits etc. and I'm really not wanting more surgery (I was told due to the difficulty with scar tissue, infections etc I will need two bariatric surgeons to operate on me doubling the cost of further surgery) Herein lies my issue. Do I risk it all, spend a small fortune (that I don't really wish to spend) in the hope that this may be the surgery to help me lose weight. Do I dare to pretend I can lose weight on my own (I'm 42 and the past 42 years have proven I can't) Do I try to be happy and live my life as a super morbid obese adult? I'll admit I'm scared, scared ill do it and fail, scared I won't do it and will be unhappy for the rest of my life, scared if I don't do it, my co morbidites will finally get the better of me I wa so sure the band was the way to go. It took me a very long time to come to the realisation I needed surgery to help me lose weight. It worked but I never had the success others did. Then , I was convinced the sleeve would help, and now I'm back to where I began all those years ago. My head is a mess, my body is a mess and I don't know which way to go...... Sorry for the mega long post, wanted to get it all out in the hope someone has had similar experiences and come through the other side ???? Ps. If anyone is reading this that is considering surgery, please don't let my post put you off. I'm a one in a million type person and no one else I know has issues like this. Ive made several great friends who have had differing weightless surgeries and they have all had great sucess. You will never look back ????