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My first bariatric surgeon looked about 14 months pregnant. My first consultation was in November and he was OK. My second was in December and he warned me about holiday weight gain. (DUH!!) My third was in January and I was appalled that he went from 14 months pregnant to about 19 months. I, in turn, had lost 2 pounds. He had the AUDACITY to tell me that I clearly ate crap all holiday. I told him he clearly ate an elephant. It was our last appointment.

Hi... I was banded in Oct 2010 and have gone from 275 to 140. I am 5 lbs away from my goal weight, so really really close. The problem? I started feeling unwell just before Christmas, and developed a sharp pain in my left side. Went to my family doctor who did a chest X-ray. The X-ray showed mild lingual pneumonia from a poorly emptying esophagus related to gastric banding. I then went to my lap band clinic and had an emergency defill. So here's my worry: they took out too much restriction and I will regain my weight. I have a 10cc band, which according to the clinic's records had 11.75 cc (lap band surgeon thought this was questionable, he thought the real number was in the 9's). I am now at 8.75 cc, so they took out 3 whole ccs. I'm really really worried about weight gain. I had no input into the amount of cc's removed, this was non-negotiable with the nurse who did the defill. Some history: the lapband clinic has been trying to get me to have a defill for some time and I've always resisted, because (a) the restriction didn't bother me, and ( it was working. Now they "won", and I'm very concerned that the weight I've lost will come back. I'm looking for any wisdom from the lapband "tribe". Please share your experiences. Many thanks

Issue #1 – I’m a borderline case. BMI is 37.7. I have the usual aches and pains that go along with being this size, but no co-morbidities (that I know of). Also, I have a family history of high blood pressure, high cholesterol, cancer, and obesity. Issue #2 – I’m in treatment for depression. Blah blah blah, long story, but it’s been a major contributor to my weight gain – especially in the last 6 months. Yesterday, Dr. switched my meds, hoping the new combo will be more effective. Issue #3 – I have been working with a diet coach/behavior therapist since June. Her m.o. is “Go slow. Focus on changing one bad habit at a time.” Apparantly I'm a lost cause becuase I’ve actually <i>gained</i> 13 pounds since starting with her. @#%&^!! Issue #4 - My physical is on 10/29, so I have a whole month to agonize over all this. The Dilemma: I now find myself in the bizarre position of NOT wanting to lose weight. Has the world gone mad? I feel like I have to hang onto every pound I’ve got because it may make the difference between approved and denied. Meanwhile, I’ve got coach lady encouraging me to exercise, and eat veggies, and at the same time, I’m worried that the new meds might actually work. The problem is, I could lose 10-15 pounds by myself. But the band is the only thing that’s going to help me lose the 90 or so that really need to go. On the one hand, I want to do things that are healthier for myself. On the other hand, if I can gain 10 more pounds, that puts me in a better position to be approved. Ack! What do I do?

I'm gaining weight after 3 fills. I've read the following. Has anyone been thought this terrible time? Thanks, Carol Please read below... Lap Band and weight GAIN... Is there such a thing as having the band tightened too much? Yes, the band can be over-adjusted. When the band is too tight, patients cannot eat solid foods without regurgitating the food or feeling very uncomfortable for many hours. When the band is too tight, patients tend to gain weight because they are resorting to the liquid and/or softer foods that travel through the band easily. These foods tend to be higher in fat and higher in sugar. When patients start this dysfunctional eating pattern, they are taking in more calories than if the band was looser. A band that is too tight will also cause heartburn and coughing in some patients. If after surgery, and despite following all the rules, I am at a plateau of weight loss, what should I do? Plateaus are a normal part of the weight loss process. In the first year or two after surgery, weight loss plateau usually means that you need to come in and have a little bit of Fluid put in the band to increase restriction. Occasionally, plateaus are caused by the Band being too tight. If the Band is too tight, weight loss will resume after a little fluid is taken out of the Band. If the above causes are ruled out, we will have you keep a food and exercise diary. The diary will include the times and quantities of foods eaten, drinks taken, Protein grams consumed, and an exercise log. We may have you consult with the dietician as well. What happens if 10 years from now I start to gain weight? What do I do? We see you annually in the office for a check-up, however if you are gaining weight, it is time to come in so that we can assess the problem. It could mean that you need a little adjustment in your band volume to provide a little more restriction. There may be a problem related to the types of food you are eating or there may have been a life crisis and emotional eating or depression may be taking hold.

Hi future friends! I don’t have my surgery date scheduled yet, but I’ve got most of my ducks in a row, and just waiting to hear back from insurance on when my sleeve date will be! I’ve read so many inspiring stories and seen so many of you share your before and after pictures, that I must say I am blessed to have found such an authentic and supportive group to go through this journey with! My story is pretty common as far as up and down weight gain since childhood, post-baby weight gain, etc. Then, 3 years ago, PLOT TWIST! One day I couldn’t walk or use my legs. We thought it was Lymes Disease, and it took over a year to figure out it was Fibromyalgia. Then, it took another year to get the right medications to bring the pain levels down. I’ve come very far, but still have to use a powered wheelchair for any walking or standing longer than 10-15 minutes and tire extremely easily. Of course being immobile and on MANY weight gaining medications pushed me right into the MO category super fast! My hope after sleeve surgery is to be able to be more mobile and finally feel like myself again. I would love any stories of anyone else’s journey! Remember my friend, Your weight may fluctuate... But your worth never will! <3, Sarah

Hey All, Mrs. Husker, you are one of my many mentors here. We all know we have our ups and downs and at times don't want to post. But then we get the courage and come and post. My reason this time was when I last posted I was losing and excerising and taking fitness classes and yoga. Since that time I had gain back 10lbs, taking fewer classes and less yoga. We at times find a reason to blame our weight gain on something. Mines is my frig needed repair and I was relying on my freezer to temp as the frig. Being it could only hold buy so much, I found myself eating take out often. Lending to my weight gain. I can't fit any of my new clothes and can't seem to find anything I like this summer. So, I decided to come back and just post my results thus far. And it's not good. So, I going to take a stand and get back on track. 1st I need to get to back to going to the gym in the mornings. To work on time to get to leave early to get to my exercise/yoga classes on time. And once I get into that habit, I'm back on track. But, we all know starting it is the hard part. So, thanks for being here and encouraging each other. Atleast this is the one place where we know, there are others that can relate to our problems. Love to you All. Thanks for being here and coming back...

I was banded a month ago. I hate breakfast so in March at my highest weight I started having shakes for breakfast and still do. They fill me. Since March I am down 44 lbs. I don't see it much but my clothes tell me! Today I put on shorts that are very big and they didn't fit in June.I never took measurements. I don't cheat, I feel I didn't do all this to cheat. I am allowed crab meat and love lump crab, it's very good and at BJ's priced right for a one pound can. Good luck and just think it took longer than a few months to get chubby. I didn't lose much weight this week but a few pounds is always better than a weight gain. Keep up the good work.

I, too, have breast cancer. I was diagnosed with stage 1 (9mm tumor) N0, M0, T1 in 2002. I had a lumpectomy and a sentinel node biopsy. The nodes were clear. I had radiation (no chemo) and started on tamoxifen until my hysterectomy in 2003 when I was switched to femara. I have been on it since and my yearly mammograms have been fine so far. But being a glass half empty kind of person, I am always waiting for the other shoe to drop. I am so sorry that you have to go through with this all over again. Although we don't wish this on anyone, don't you feel like saying. Not me again - isn't it someone else's turn? What was the stage of your original breast cancer? Was it ER+/PR+? Were you on tamoxifen, arimidex or femara? Do you have a family history of breast cancer? I was not tested for BRC1 or BRC2. I do not have a family history of it. I was treated at a leading women's hospital and state of the art cancer treatment center. They weren't doing genetic testing on a routine basis then. I believe my 100+ lb. weight gain in adulthood contributed to my breast cancer. No one who hasn't gone through this process can know how enormously stressful it all is - starting with the yearly mammograms and waiting for all the subsequent test results - not to mention all the pain of surgery and the side effects of radiation and chemo. Just know that there are others out here who have been through it and I wish you the best in terms of diagnosis, surgery, recovery and the rest of your life. Good luck to you.

I'm so sorry you're having to face this for a second time. Its such a huge emotional hurdle to get over the first time, and my fear was always living with the shadow of cancer for the rest of my life. I havent had breast cancer but last August was diagnosed with rectal cancer. It seems nuts, but my hugest fears were to do with losing control of my healthy lifestyle - my eating and my running and exercise. I thought I was going to lose all I had worked so hard for. As it turned out, my excellent fitness has made a surgery possible that the next person would not be able to have. I was able to have my entire rectum and about 1/3 of my colon removed - laparascopically if you can believe it!! - with a few teeny scars, my caesar scar was the main access and I already had that. I've got a stoma for now so there'll be a scar there when that's reversed. The surgery was easy, thorough and with good margins because I have not got a pelvis full of fat. There was absolutely NO live cells left at surgery after the chemo and radiation I had and the radiation oncologist told me again, its a much easier job to target the tumour exactly in a thin person. Because of that, I didnt have the side effects normally seen with pelvic radiation - diarrhoea and skin issues - but it did put an end to my childbearing days. As it turned out, I first went for a run a mere 10 days after a super low anterior resection, so I have pretty much maintained my fitness regime seamlessly. I've butted heads with the stoma nurse and nutrionist regarding the appropriate diet for an ostomate, I refuse point blank to eat a stodgy white carb diet liek they want me to so I pretty much live with constant diarrhoea and this may have to changhe if I want any success with the rve4rsal, something that is making me extremely anxious. I was devastated at 6the thought of wearing a bag, but you know, if this was for life, it wouldnt phase me now, I dont even think about it, until I fart loudly in public - something I cant control because it now comes out of an opening with no muscles! Chemo for me has been 5FU which does not cause weight gain, so I've got the problem of having lost a lot of weight i never needed to lose. That avatar pic of me up there, that's now a "fat" picture. I'm extremely glad I've got a band that could be unfilled, so I can eventually gain some back and truth be told, I'm having so little trouble sticking to a healthy lifestyle that I dont know that I wever WILL fill it again. Why live that resdtricted lifestyle if you dont need to? My nutrition is way better and I need that for now. I've just started chemo again, 20 weeks of it as a mop up, ust in case and this time I feel like crap. But I am still running! I knw how you feel about going back to square one, but although its taken courage an determination, and not a little willpower on my worst days, I have maintained what I worked so hard for - my healthy lifestyle. Everyone, surgeon, oncolo9gist, friends, family, tell me to take it easy but keeping up with my routines makes me feel normal andl ike this horrible disease will not get one second more of my life that it has had. I believe that whilst we cannot control cancer, we do have some say in what it does to our lives. I wish you the very best.

HI! SOrry to hear about this incident. The band can definitely be quirky..filled or not. My band can get tighter when I am sick, when I go up in altitude..though the doc and his nurse thinkI am crazy because it is a "closed pressure" system..blah blah..but yeah whatever..I know what I feel!! WHen I got unfilled, I didnt know what to expect really. I had a really bad painful experience the first weekend..felt like air pressure was releasing and it sent me to ER. Turned out to be nothing..could have just been a release of pressure or air between the two parts of my stomach and the band..who knows. It was pretty scary how quick the weight piled on. The dietician just assumed I decided to go out and binge on all the things I could not eat beore like pizza and bread and yummy carbs! NOPE! I actually craved salad because that was always hard to get down. I didn't gorge..I am sure I was able to get in more calories than before...but I was not pigging out. It just piled on no matter what I did. I think our bodies hit a set point and when it can..it will try and get back to where it was before.. It is super easy to pile in calories..even if you are careful. I switched to water only..no calorie drinks other than milk in my Meal Replacement shake in the morning. Even counting calories and eating only what I SHOULD lose on I was gaining. The weight gain has stopped with an additional 45lbs on my body. Most of that was gained in the first few months! Yeah quick!! Right now I am bouncing up and down between a few lbs. That would be GREAT if I just wanted to maintain where I was! The worse part for me during the unfill period was having a normal person appetite again. The hunger pangs..I missed my loss of appetite from the band being filled. As I got refilled that finally has gotten back down to where I can forget about food for quite awhile. I am considering doing a pure liquid diet like HMR to control the calories I am taking in and get this weight off. It is not as easy as 48 as it was in my 30's when I was first banded. I would suggest REALLY watching your calories. Eliminate ALL caloric drinks and go to water only. No diet drinks either. I never liked fake sugars anyway..but stay as "pure" as you can without adding chemical crap to your body. Go to my fitness pal and enter your daily calories. Don't go off your maintenance weight calories..go off of calories for your body that you would need to LOSE on. If you see the scale going up rapidly, cut down further! It can be tempting to eat stuff that may have been hard while filled properly but don't tempt fate!!! So not worth it! I don't even want to think about how many hundreds of dollars I have spent on having to quickly replace an entire wardrobe in a few short months including expensive motorcycle gear! Sigh.. Best of luck with the band..praying for you that it is not anything serious and you can get refilled! Hang in there!!

Before I had this surgery I was worried about loose skin and not having any muscle tone after the surgery. Well I am proud to say that I am a year out of surgery and I don’t have any loose skin. I have always lifted weights and wanted continue after I had my surgery. I am going to be honest when I got back in the gym after surgery I was extremely weak, in college I could bench about 475 lbs., when I got back in the gym I could barely bench 145 lbs. I stuck to it and now I am up to 375 lbs., I work out 4 days a week and I swim 3 say a week. I don’t run or walk because of the stress on my knees, I think once I get to my target weight I will start to run. Just recently I have noticed that I have gained 15 lbs. but my waist and my shirt size has reduced by 3 sizes. At first I was frustrated about the weight gain but I was told that I am gaining muscle mass and it is much heavier than fat. I think I am going to add more cardio to my routine so I can get to my target weight then I will continue my weight regimen. I am so glad I decided to have this surgery..it has really changed my life!!!

And if it takes off we can sticky it as another quick reference. So I'll start, then you add. 1. Starvation mode. If our bodies could really just "stop" breaking down & metabolizing fat and muscle when it is not getting adequate nourishment (aka starvation mode), then no one would ever starve to death. This one doesn't even make sense to me. Even if there was some way by which our bodies could do this, we'd have to be down to such a ridiculously low percentage of body fat that we wouldn't have the energy, state of mind, or - hell - enough eyesight or musclular control to post a question about it. So in other words, if you're here, you're not in starvation mode! 2. You have to remove carbs from your diet to lose weight. You can remove any singular nutritional component from your diet and lose weight. It doesn't have to be carbs. Remove fat from your diet, you'll lose weight. Remove Protein from your diet, you'll lose weight. But come on, are you really going to eat 2gm fat a day for the rest of your life? You're much better off finding an all-around approach that you can really live with. Most of the time, this is a caloric reduction. Then if you want to reduce something else, do it to supplement, but not as its own means of weightloss. No one here is interested in temporarily losing weight, and then gaining it back as soon as old habits are resumed. 3. Eating late at night causes weight gain. If you're eating more than your body requires to function during the day, you will gain weight. It doesn't matter if you're eating in the morning or at night. If you eat a 10,000 calorie Breakfast, and have a sedintary lifestyle, you will gain weight. If you eat nothing throughout an extremely active day, and then have a 4000 calorie dinner, you will not automatically gain weight just because you ate the calories at night. 4. The scale shows how much fat you have, or fat and weight are the same thing The scale shows nothing more than how much you weigh at any given point in time. Think about your weight for a second. There's a lot more to it than fat. There's your hair, your clothes, your body, and everything in or on your body. Weighing 200 lbs Monday night and 205 lbs Tuesday morning DOES NOT mean you gained fat overnight, just that you weigh 5 lbs more. I see people freaking out -- "omg I ate chocolate lastnight and now I weight 10 pounds more I'm never eating chocolate again!" Yeah, maybe you weigh 10 pounds more, but it's physically impossible for a chocolate bar (one you can carry, anyway!) to convert to 10 pounds of fat. For that matter, assuming you're (a normal) human, it's pretty much impossible. You'd have to eat about 35,000 calories on top of your BMR. That's like eating 50 sticks of butter on top of whatever number of calories you needed to function that day. Not gonna happen! If you see a quick change to the scale, it's most likely a function of Fluid retention. This is why the scale should not be looked at daily. Some people can see upwards of 20 lbs daily fluctuation. And this is why the scale should not be used, at all, if you want an accurate way to see how your body is changing.

i am scheduled for surgery end of December and inam zoo mad at myself because during the past 3 months I have put on 15 pounds and am at my heaviest. It's like I was trying to eat everything before I "couldn't". Well I start my 2 week pre op on Dec 14th and am hoping to drop some of this weight I put on.... Anyone else been in the same scenario?

I am looking for revision due to GERD and a little weight gain back from sleeve. My GERD is so bad I have been waking up choking on it. I called BCBS to ask them their requirements and the woman referenced me to a page in the book that clearly states NOTHING about revision requirements. I’m miserable. The dr office won’t even look at me u til I find out if revision is covered by my insurance and they simply just won’t give me a yes or no answer.

Hi all! I have been been banded now just over 12 years and lost 130lbs and last 5-6 years have been at the same weight..pretty much at what I would call a "goal" weight..not what BMI charts say. My last fill was at least 5 years ago..don't even remember. The last fills were not done under flouro as I did not go back to my surgeon in Tijuana. Found a "local" dr willing to fill me..but he does "blind" fills..so we never saw my restriction level. The last fills I felt like I finally had restriction enough to get off the last 40 or so lbs I needed to still lose. I was never a really compliant bandster, so it took me awhile to get the weight off. I have been happy at the same size for years. I learned to live with the quirks of the band..I was careful about eating foods that I know would get me stuck. I probably compensated for too tight of a band by drinking liquids alot. I did PB daily, but thought this was just because I was not careful enough. I avoided eating or drinking too close to bed so I would not reflux up..though sometimes still did. This all was just the way it was for a bandster. I was happy to be keeping this weight off. I only even went up and down by 5-7 lbs but knew what I was doing to gain and stopped. So..here is where I am now. Since my band had not really been checked by flouro since my last fill in Mexico at least 7-8 years ago, I figured I should at least have a look at it to make sure all was okay. Figured it was since band seemed to be doing its job. I figured a slip or erosion would make it self know. I didn't need a fill..so just plugged along. I finally made appt with Kaiser here in Nor Cal to just do a routine Flouro this past August. The flouro showed that the barium would barely drain down. They had me practically dance around the room to try and move it down..nope. What this restriction caused was for me to pack my esophagus and it was double its size. The band was perfectly in tact, upper pouch was there..but now my esophagus was dilated. The bariatric surgeon saw the results and told me to get an appt to get an unfill. So a week later, the doctor drained my band. I have a 4cc band and had 2cc in it. For at least a week, I had horrible pain off an on..lots of air and gas..that subsided and the weight started piling on. I was unfilled Sept 19th and as of today, December 17th, I am up by 40lbs! Doesn't matter what I eat or don't eat for that matter, how much I work out at the gym..the weight just piled on. Most of that was right away..at least 1/2 but I continue to go up. This has been an expensive lesson as I have had to buy new work clothes, casual clothes. All my clothes have been size 8 and 10 for years. I quickly went through 10s to 12s and now to 14s. I ache in joints I haven't ached in for years. Dramatically gaining 40lbs in 3 months has been difficult. What I miss the most is the lack of hunger..not necessarily the restriction. This is what I fear the most..that I won't get to that "green zone" where I don't have an appetite. I always told people to not wait on me to be hungry because they would starve. I could go most of the day and not care about food. I want that back!! I worry that getting to that spot again won't happen. So I had a follow up flouro done a month ago and my esophagus had improved enough where my doctor is willing to start refills. He wanted to give it another month at that point, so I am scheduled for a first refill in two days. I have no idea how much we will start with. I am sure he will increment me back up again. I know we won't be going back to a total of 2cc's again since that was obviously too tight...but all I want is that hunger to go away! Has anyone else had to go through this and get back to where they were. I just need to stop this weight gain. I am trying so hard to stop it and nothing works. I watch calories, I am excercizing..even on weeks where i had walked thousands of steps around the city for a conference and ate very well as far as calories and food types, drank tons of Water and managed to pack on 5lbs that week anyway!! I should have at minimum maintained if not dropped a 1lb! I really do think our bodies are thrown into some long term low calorie survival mode when banded and restricted properly. If the vagus nerve controls our appetite and is effected by band restriction against it..perhaps not feeling like you are starving helps us survive on less calorie intake. When that pressure against the nerve is reduced due to unfill, your body is sending signals to get back to where you can store it up again for possible times of "starvation" again..who knows..everyone has a theory..SOMETHING happens. This is not normal to gain this much weight in short amount of time when your calorie intake is at a level where any normal person would at least maintain or lose the avg 1-2lbs per week. I could eat celery sticks or a box of chocolates and still gain weight right now!! I am tired of people telling me I just need to reduce my calories and get in some excercise! I AM I AM I AM!! Doesn't matter!! I am sure I have ONLY gained 40lbs because I have been trying hard not to. If I decided to just fully let loose every day, I am sure 100lbs would have already been packed on! OKay...enough of my rant...I am praying that in 2 days,I get a starter fill that will get me back to wherever it was to help me keep the weight off so I can now get off this excess 40lbs. I am sure it will take work, but right now I feel like I am swimming against a riptide with a wide open band. Maintaining on extremely low calories is impossible right now, never mind weight loss..Uggh!! If anyone else has gone through similar with unfills to refills, would love to hear how it went!!

I don't know what I want to do!? I really thought I made the decision to do this, (made seminar date...Jan 19, 2010). Am unsure and scared about the surgery and complications...I know they are about as much as say my knee surgery...which was laproscopic too...but when you sit and read all the complications its so intimidating. Has anyone else has 2nd thoughts? Or completely changed their minds? I want to change, and have done pills, diets, exercise etc and all have ended in weight gain or loss and gain back. :ohmy: I want help in making a decision, hubby is concerned about restrictions and basically leading a normal life, because I said you have no avoid this n that and he is concerned about the restricted living, ideas, thoughts, comments??! Help! I don't want to lose hope, am thinking about trying to do the preop liquid diet and then go on a 1000 cal diet alone before all this and see what happens???

You are fortunate you were diagnosed very early - at least you know why you are the way you are....I was diagnosed with PCOS at the ripe old age of 42. I have lived with excess hair (feeling like a freak), irregular and very heavy periods (even though I told every doctor I came across), problems getting pregnant, unexplained weight gain, etc. It wasn't suggested by my PCP, but once I told her what I was doing she was so happy. She said, "You have worked so hard to lose weight and I believe you will not be successful on your own. You need this and I think it's the best thing you can do." (My only wish was that we would have talked about this years ago - I've wasted a lot of time!) I'm 10 weeks post op now - I'm off Metformin now (I stopped taking it the week before surgery - doc approved). I feel so much better - I have more energy. I said before surgery that I hope that my only regret is that I didn't do this sooner - it is. Best of luck to you - you will know if and when this is the right decision for you. You will feel it.

I hope that in a year I look at this post and laugh at nervousness and say to myself, "that was the smartest thing I have ever done." I am a few days out. Have not lost weight on the pre-op diet, though there is the issue of scale discrepancy and possible monthly water weight gain. Reading the messages from everyone else that far out, I have started to tell myself I don't want the words "I need to work on my protein" or "I should be exercising more" happen. I'm 35, work full time. Just had a big breakup (he didn't want kids -- thanks for telling me now!), financially trying to get it together for the last 15 years, and I am ready for a change. Yikes!

Thank you Tomo for your response. I also had lap band in 2008 and had it removed in August 2022 following horrible reflux and weight gain. I understand your experience about the lap band restriction, it was quite unbearable at times and maybe I have to go back and think how I managed to overcome that! I think I need to stop overanalysing this and stop reading the horror stories and what can go wrong. thank you

You and me both have something in common. A Leak for starts, that;s why the weight gain, and your surgeon can keep filling you, and it's gone. I have the same problem..... But you describe extreme pain. That's usually associated with Band Slippage. "BUT I AM NO DOCTOR !" talk to your Dr. about fluoroscopy, and replacement. They can see the leak with fluoroscopy, and they can then tell if the band slid down around the stomach "very painful." As far as a different surgeon?? you won't find to many that will touch someone else's work. I know this because I am still trying to find one. We moved, and we are a long way away from him, but if i have to,,, then i guess I'll go back, or have it taken out. I was banded 10/31/06 with a 4cc band, It blew with 2cc's in it????? How is that possible??? Had to be defective. I lost over 120lbs. only to put it all back on. You don't want to even go there.. When your Dr. puts the needle in the Port, take a look and see whats in it if anything. Ask him if you have to, to find out. Let him know that the fills aren't working at all, and whats next? This is a serious situation. If that band stays deflated, and food gets hung up on it, you could choke. If you have to go to the E.R. where he works, and tell them you are in pain. When they know you are his patient, they will find out whats wrong. If not the next day go to a different E.R. until someone tells you what's wrong. Like me I'm thinking total replacement. Don't let them repair it ! "it's like a flat tire, only gonna go again." Tell them to replace it. I wish you Luck, Shirley

I'd like to add that on my 50th birthday October 8th I weighed 181 pounds bringing my total weight loss to 50 pounds. It was the next two months that brought me along the roller-coaster of weight gain. I had my band opened in November and filled in January. It was during the time my band was opened when the gas went away. January 12th I had the new fill and 4 weeks later I had all the Fluid taken out. It was this time I realized that I was not belching all those months. I just hadn't thought about it until the fluid was taken out this last time. Now i was belching and passing gas normally. My advice to anyone having problems, don't be afraid to have the fluid taken out of your band, even if it backs you up a few months. It's worth it to rule out any issues you may be having with the band. If your problems go away when the band is open and they come back when you are tight then it has to be the band....

Well, just touching base, I finally lost a full 100 pounds, My band still isn't tight, due to weather I haven't made it back to the Dr. Since Feb 8 I think, I'm doing fairly well, but I'm a little bummed mostly because without the band being tight enough I feel like I have been on a DIET for 10 months, and today I broke down and ate some of my sons Jango bars (blondies basically) Now this is the first really bad cheat I've done since November I am just getting a bit frustrated and since I am low carbing it, any time I indulge in something a little carbier (he he is that a word?) than usual there will be a weight gain sometimes as much as 4 lbs for one little cheat. I see my Dr. on the 23rd and because he reacted badly to my last cheat I don't know how honest I can be whenever it happens.

Carol Brower, I totally get what you're saying, your opinions and feeling are very valid. Im not a therapist, and we can't "fix" you either, but may we can help you a bit. Yes, im older, happily married, together many years, but it's totally normal to want to be desired by men, to have them want to talk, flirt, engage, converse, whatever. I like it ! No lie ! And yes, before my weight gain I was slim and attractive too. After marriage and a child, the weight came on, and the men stopped engaging etc. Now im slim again, and think I look better now than before, and yes, the men want to talk, flirt, engage, converse, whatever. Human nature . It's cute, but even if I was single, I would be selective. Why? Because I'm worth it !! So are you !! And a key to a stable relationship is to have a stable relationship with yourself first . The men will follow, because that's human nature. But it's up to you how you want/allow those men to treat you. Totally. Up. To. You. I wish you well.

Hi! I am being banded on 1/15 and have been getting very nervous about the surgery. Reading these posts is giving me something new to worry about. I am bipolar and finally have relief with 225 mg effexor and 400 mg seroquel. I have not cycled for at least 9 months. Nothing else was effective before effexor. I have an appointment with my psychiatrist on the 20th. She has been very supportive in my decision to get the band. I guess I will talk to her about whether she thinks that another drug could be as effective without weight gain. (I have gained about 60 pounds in the last year. Maybe it was the effexor and not all me?)