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God Morning Everyone, I just want to say thanks for being here. I have learned alot from you regarding fills and experiences from having too much of a fill, not enough of a fill and how you combat the inbetweens. With this last fill, I am more restriced. I seem to eat the same amount as before, but I'm staying full longer. And drinking of the water/liquids is really working this time. So well, that I don't get in all my water for the day. And the sweet cravings are not much. I'm still having trouble eating carbs. I don't think any amount of restricion will help that. I'm just carb sensitive. Weight lose is constant when I don't include them in my meals. Yet, when I do, I can tell. But the body needs the carbs. I just have to understand and accept the weight gain and adjust my thinking and meals according. That's the new weight lose issue I now have to deal with. Exercising is constant. Getting in 2x a week still trying for 3x. That'll come with time. I'm not worried about that part. My other issue also is loose skin. It's beginning to show and it's not so pretty. Although I've seen how it looks from photos and tv programs of others, when it's your skin your looking at it's different. And not so pretty. Exercising can only do so much for weight lose of a lot of weight. With about 60+ lbs more to lose, it's going to look horrible. And the thought of another surgery, I don't know. Then again I can avoid all mirrors and don't look down. I LOVE MY BAND. I'm glad I opt for this and not the others. Controlling my destiny for my weight is just another lesson I'm learning. This is trully a tool to use and master. When I master this, the next time to deal with will be retirement. :eek: I want this behind me when that time comes. That will be within the next two years. Maybe. Well, thanks for reading all this. Looking to read great success from everyone.

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!!

Hey all! As I write the title, I realize it's a bit cringe-worthy! Someone that has already gone through so much bodily trauma, is going to another country for elective WLS outside the safe medical guidelines placed in the States. Sounds crazy, right? Maybe this will help me connect with some people that have gone through the same experiences or maybe my story will help other ladies out there struggling with their weight after early on-set menopause. Let's hope! A brief summary of my cancer story. When I was 32 (only 11 months after my previous pap) I found out I had a 7cm tumor growing in my girly bits and ended up going through 32 radiation treatments, 7 rounds of chemo, 2 cesium implants and lastly total hysterectomy. Before cancer, my weight was 170 (BTW, I'm 5'4"), post-cancer weight I was down to 140. After recovering from my surgery, I embraced the weightloss and started exercising like a boss! But menopause hit me like a brick! I started gaining weight no matter how hard I tried. It was so disheartening and I'll admit, after trying so hard for 2 years or so. I gave up the gym. My current weight is 215lbs. I'm in the service industry in nyc and spend 9 hours a day on my feet. With this weight gain, I'm literally limping home, my feet and ankles swelling out of my shoes. My knees and back aching. Ive developed awful insomnia and need both otc and natural sleep aids to get to sleep and when I do sleep, I snore....like really loud. Most recently, I developed acid Reflux disease which my doc associated with my obesity. I've changed my diet around and it's helped with that a lot. After much research, I've decided to take the leap towards the Gastric Sleeve to help me regain my health both physically and mentally. I've only been overweight in my 30s. I was normal weight most of my life. So, i feel the weight gain has been harder for me to embrace mentally than the change I will experience post-surgery. My insurance will not cover bariatric surgery, so I've chosen dr. sergio verboonen and will be going to Cancun in January. Has anyone out there gone through bariatric surgery after cancer and how have you fared? I'm so curious and would love to share stories. Also, I'm interested in joining a support group in nyc. Any New Yorkers out there? Sent from my SM-N920T using the BariatricPal App

My doc told me they have had a couple denials based upon weight gain lately which makes me nervous. I'm on month 5 and I've gained 10 pounds [emoji51]

@@betterme38 What coverage do you have through UMR? I have UMR UHC Choice Plus. Monday is my 6th appointment for my 6-month Medically Supervised Diet. I think I may have gained weight from my first appt - which makes me nervous. Though! They did tell me there was no consequence for weight gain. So fingers crossed! I'm interested to see how long it takes for me to hear something back after I turn in the paperwork on Monday.

Hey fellow MA bandsters -- I haven't been down to this end of LBT in a while b/c there's usually no posts! Boy was I surprised to see all I've been missing! Welcome to the site all you newbies! I, too was banded at BIDMC. My doc was Schneider. I live in Medway -- (close to you Sherry!) which is just inside of 495 a little SW of Boston. I love my band and hope you all do too. If there's any questions I can answer, feel free to PM me or post here...........As far as protein shakes go, I like the Designer protein b/c it has 28 g of protein and I want to get the maximum bang per ounce since post surgery it's like every little drop counts...........It was interesting in the end, I ended up with strawberry and vanilla flavors and never found a chocolate one I liked -- totally not like me! Off to meet the school bus -- I too have twins (and two singletons). I guess my weight gain could pretty much be summed up (sort of) right there -- 4 kids in 5 years...........20lbs, 20lbs, 20lbs...........great checkin in with you guys!

Alex, I have always had an ALL-OR-NOTHING mentality throughout my life..... only where weight loss, dieting, and exercise was concerned. Thus, I had never been able to MAINTAIN a weight loss. As soon as I would lose, and hit my first plateau, I would start to gain. But, my decision to give up daily and weekly weigh-ins has changed me. I don't see the stalls or plateaus as much, so I don't throw in the towel, so to speak. It was very liberating for ME. Plateaus in the past, would put me over the edge, and in the end, always resulted in weight GAIN, because I couldn't handle them. Enjoyed your article. It made me realize again that the road to weight loss and getting fit is NOT a straight path, but a road with twists, turns, and even plateaus along the way!

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.

Darcy its good to see you, I was getting worried. Be gentle on your back okay......Hey chicken little, I know your struggling with your eating lately but hang in there, some times we just go through these awful slumps that last longer than we want but you'll make it threw. Hey I was thinking... could your depression be part of the eating culprit? I know for me 90% of my eating and weight gain is b/c of depression. I can do good during some of the summer... like a high but then poof.... the rest of the year I get depressed enough to start shoveling chit into my face and not really knowing why the hell I'm doing it. Also food is my drug of choice... no matter how I'm feeling, I run to food and don't know how not to :Banane27: Cindy I don't know if there's such a thing as reverse SAD, I mean I don't see why not. Depression affects people in so many different ways. I bet your dd is having a blast co-babysitting. I know my dd would love it ! Well its time for me to put on my PJ's I've had enuf sun today and Im pleasantly pooped lol. Y'all have a wonderful evening... I wish we could all sit together on a beautiful evening like this and share some coffee or tea and chat. Hugs and Kisses !!!

No, it doesn't have to happen. It happened to me though, and it was hard to take it off. You have to be vigilent, and not snack or think you can make a whole lot of changes in maintenance. The farther you are post op, the harder it is to take off weight gained back. Whatever you're doing now, tracking your food, counting your calories, etc, it's pretty much a life long plan. If you keep losing and you don't want to lose, you can add in a healthy snack, like avacodos, nuts, etc. You'll find your calorie range.

Morning All... Eileen... Wow... You really have had a plate full of family scares! I'm so sorry about your neice and I pray that they will decide to go ahead with her surgery sooner if for no other reason than to spare her more pain. In regards to th thyroid... they are trying to kill it off... the radioactive iodin is only absorbed by the thyroid gland and I will have to take thyroid hormone replacement for the rest of my life. THe pros... no surgery and the risks that go along with that... the cons... it is a more gradual process than surgery and I will have to be careful the first few days so that I don't kill anyone elses thyroid...lol. The nice thing will be losing that feeling of fullness/choking in my throat. Betty... I wish I did live closer to you... I think we should all pick a town and relocate there...lol. Don't worry... I am not in the mood to have a doctor cut my throat...bring on the glowing pill! Congrats on the raise! Sherry... Glad you had fun at the fair! It's amazing to see the difference in what can be shoved sown the ole gullet once you have restriction isn't it! Not sure when they will give me the trtmt... they are to call me on Monday and set it up. Cindy... Hope to see your friend here posting soon... the more the merrier! SOunds like you will busy this weekend! I colored my hair a week or so ago... got tired of the highlighted look...guess I'm ready for winter! Dianne... Hope Lucy is feeling better and LMAO on the Mushroom Head comment... hehehehehe... I wonder if they teach them to do that in beauty school???? MAybe is is because they practice on too many lil blue haired women in beauty school? Mary...Glad you are feeling better... I hope your weight gain is just due to all of the muscle being bulit from the increased exercise! I feel your frustration girl! KAt... You go girl... you are really kicking butt! I know how good it feels to really be exercising regularly! I don't know why I fight it so hard when I feel so much better doing it! I'm proud of you! Boy... you are going to have an awful lot of B-day cake to resist this month! Pat... I think you look beautiful in the picture for operation smile... so there. The wine doesn't look half bad either...hehehehe. Okay... I went to POGO... I'm not a big game player but it has been fun. My name there is DarceeLynnPlyr. Mandy... I'm sorry about your puppy... sounds like this may be why he was at the shelter. Hopefully he will stay safe and be picked up eventually! I may need to get that website addy from you... I'd love to pick some little things up for Christmas presents! Patty... Heck girl... I'm off the wagon more than I'm on. I wish it were different and I know that the band is really working for all that post to this thread... but sometimes it is hard to be the lone failure...lol. THe one good thing is that you can see that the Lapband does work for the majority of people. Hoping that all the legal efforts will make the difference for you finally getting your Band! Anne... crossing my fingers that the scale will pop up with a brand spanking new LOWER number for ya! If I missed anyone... forgive... hope the rest of the weekend is great for everyone!

Hi Ladies, I am sorry to hear about the struggles and weight gain. I am right there with you! Mostly, I have been at the same weight for the last two months. I'll gain a few pounds and then struggle to lose it. I'm headed in for a fill soon. But I am looking at all the tickers showing all the weight loss. And I think about what that means in clothes size! I bet most everyone has lost 3 clothes sizes! And I think about where I was at last year and will take the slow progress. Hang in there. I am trying to up my exercise. i am registered for the SF half marathon in October. I'd hoped to loose more weight before then. I'll walk a lot of it but its a good goal for now! xoxo Melissa

It's out. I had a stack sitting on the porch when hubby got home last night and he took care of it. Probably took it to work. My official weight this morning was 212. Ugh. A 3 pound weight gain this week. A bit of a wake up call. It's all my eating because my exercise hasn't changed at all.

Shiny/skinny...Don't be too hard on yourself about the weight gain - our bodies fluctuate alot. It averages out over time...at least, this is the rationale I have decided to believe it! Hope your husband hears soon about the position...ideally he hears because he is successful. Keep us posted.

Yes, extreme indeed. I couldn't keep my own saliva down. I think that was the worst. If it was just or even if it was just water maybe my night wouldn't have been soooo horrible. But OMG -- you can't stop your body from producting spit. LOL, I was getting creative to make it through the night. Trying to spit out any saliva before it escaped down my throat. Of course, saliva is not only produce in your mouth so my attempts for futile and the foam just kept coming. and coming ... Yes, I'm glad that I had an unfill. I'm not worried about weight gain ... That's the least of my worries. Just happy to be healthy, pain, and foam free. Honestly, after the horrible experience -- these 3 days of liquids only have been the equivalent of eating a steak dinner to me .. I'm happy as can be and hope I never have the experience of an overfill again ....

I do the same thing, I am just happy to see the weight going down on a scale vs going up, its harmless and I am also prepared to see it stay in the same spot for awhile while I work through a stall. Hopefully by the time that hits I will be able to increase the amount that I am working out. One of my personal goals is to be able to do a 5k without having to stop, or slow down, before my weight gain I was doing a 5k in less than 27 minutes, and once I get to that point again this big boy will be doing cartwheels down the street!!!!

Hi all MA people... I will be banded 2/20/06 at Beth Israel Hosp in Boston... anyone had their band there? I am a nervous wreck!! people keep telling me I am crazy to have this done, but I know it is the right thing for me. I never feel full when I eat and eat and eat. I am 130lbs over my usual weight. I attribute my weight gain to being on antidepressants for 5 yrs. Let me know how you all did with your bandings Juju

@ - I'm not sure it is a simple as "he dumped me because I got fat." My GF and I challenge each other all the time physically. We are both 53 and we both want to be there for each other in the long haul, and that means taking care of ourselves. In many relationships the weight gain is an overt sign that something else is wrong. I know there are superficial jerks who would leave because things are not as perky as they used to be, but I also know women who quit taking care of themselves, their homes, their relationships et.al. (same could be said for guys, but we are usually the more superficial sex) so the reason for leaving is all of the above, but since everyone else can see the weight, they assume that is the cause.

Just keep your chin up think positive and put the weight gain behind you, as you are now moving forward and think positve about this new healthy lifestyle that you will soon be having:)

Im sorry but I just dont understand why people get so judgemental and holier than thou over low bmi'ers. You've ALL been there and none of you jsut ate less, exercised more or were honest with yourself back then either! As for cosmetic surgeries - well I am not ashamed in the least to say that vanity was my major reason for being banded. My BMI was 35, I wasnt sick. Nobody blinks an eye at breast enlargements or tummy tucks but have lapband surgery - a surgery which is likely to improve your health in many many ways even if you're only mildly obese - and suddenly that's wrong? Jeez, how hypocritical. I just cant believe that people who have failed to control their weight gain to the point of becoming morbidly obese can then judge someone else's unsuccessful efforts and accuse her of deluding herself or being dishonest. Do any of you REALLY think if you'd just approached it in a different way you wouldnt have needed to be banded? How many freaking times did you diet and gain it back? And yet we STILL give out this advice thinking it will work?

I find it interesting how we were all so excited- and now we are all having such a time. I had lost 26 pounds in between pre-op and post op- now I have gained back 3 1/2 pounds. I am so mad that I don't even want to change my ticker- I cannot believe I have gained. I know we are just in healing stage and our body is trying to hold on to some calories now we are eating more substantial food- but for people that have fought our weight, gaining is so upsetting! I like many of you are getting hungry- but I know some of it is just head hunger. I need to start exercising and try to kick the weight loss in gear again. I am having a hard time getting in the Protein. So many things in the mushie stage are carbs. On Thursday I can start soft regular food and hopefully then I can increase the protein and drop most of the carbs. Ugh!!!!! :help:

Quote: Originally Posted by vegasgirl44 Ok, if you get offended by that time of the month talk, I apologize, and please read no further. HOWEVER, if you are intrigued, please continue. I am on day 9 of my preop diet of Protein shakes. I am supposed to stay under 1200 calories per day and have actually been hovering around 600-700 per day. Saturday night I ate a package of turkey bacon. Sunday morning, I gained 1 lb and today, I woke up and gained another half lb. I simply cannot tell you how discouraging this is. I'm supposed to get my period next Monday (I think this diet has thrown me off schedule) but I'm already bloated and cramping. Maybe I'm starting sooner, but I'm still pissed off that my scale is not going in the right direction. I have not had anything except that damn bacon, and I still came in under 1200 calories that day. I think I just need encouragement and a similar story...yeah, that would help. My scale is going to go down a lot after my period comes, right? I'm 47 years old. I should know this by now, but I need a hug. :thumbdown: Or just some cheese with the wine. :cursing: Hey Vegas...I'm probably a bit late on my reply, but I just read your post and wanted to offer my opinion, and past experience on this. I do think that your period will affect your weight loss, and once it is over you should notice a drop (as long as you haven't cheated). However, I also think that the Turkey Bacon may be the culprit to your bloated weight gain. Even if that package of turkey bacon was in your calorie allowance, it still mostlikely had way over the recommended sodium intake for the day; which, probably retained Fluid in your body, making you bloated and more weight. I say this only from personal (bloaty) experience. Cutting some of the sodium should help with the bloating, as well as adding lots of Water to flush out the sodium. Although, my Dr. told me NOT to take any diuretics to take away the water. So just do it the natural way, and celery and cucumbers help too! I hope this helps somewhat. Good luck!:thumbup:

This reminds me of that episode of "King Of Queens", where Doug lost weight. Suddenly the whole dynamic of the relationship shifted and Carries was NOT happy. She had always been "the hot one" and Doug had always been grateful that she stayed with him - what with his having a weight problem. Now, women were flirting with him and he was getting attention from everyone, commenting on his achievement and buff new bod. Carrie tried to sabotage his diet by tempting him with high calorie food that, previously, Doug had enjoyed and which had contributed to his weight gain. Though the comedy of the situation was highlighted, I actually found the way Carrie acted very nasty and passive aggressive. Yea I know it is just a show, but this goes on all the time in real life, with partners showing their insecurities when the other partner loses weight. Not with everyone, but some partners display this behaviour, as witnessed by this thread.

My 15 year old neighbor had sleeve surgery after years of therapy, "fat camps" and depression. Three months after surgery and a pretty significant weight loss, I actually saw her smile for the first time! She began walking, working out and would actually engage in lengthy conversations. Fast forward 5 years...…she's in college, enjoys hiking, is in a serious relationships and looks wonderful. Her parents had to go through a lot of family counseling and do a lot of research to find a surgeon who performed bariatric procedures on children. But they knew it was in the best interest of their child to set her up for a healthy adult life. So in answer to your question, you should have the surgery when you are mentally ready to commit to a healthy future. Sleeve surgery only works in the long term if you make the necessary life style changes in that first year after surgery. If not, the weight gain will put you right back where you are now. So I would suggest that age isn't as important as attitude. Good luck with whatever decision you make!

Have you ever taken it? I was put on that in my teens, when I was barely 6kg overweight! It is awful stuff, I was climbing the walls, vacuuming my bedroom at 3 am, I was aggressive, had insomnia and yes, no interest in food whatsoever, lost weight easily and regained it in a matter of 2 or 3 weeks when I stopped. It is dangerous stuff that can cause heart problems. However, when you feel desperate enough, you do what you have to do, and if you're under medical supervision, its your choise. It will probably make it very easy for you to eat hardly anything, but even with a lapband, if yours isnt providing the restriction you need, then rebound weight gain is going to be a problem when you stop taking it - and you cant take it forever, its too dangerous. No doctor will let you do that. What sort of exercise are you doing - really an hour of cardio a day is going to be necessary when you've already lost a lot of weight - it gets harder and harder and harder to lose it. My weight now, my daily intake needs to be about 1800 calories (WITH an hour of exercise a day) to maintain it, so I wouldnt lose much on 1200 either - you cant eat nothing sot he answer is you've got to burn more. And the exercise may need to be really vigorous - running or interval training etc. Otherwise weight loss does just peter out and may stop at a point you're unhappy with. But duromine is not a long term answer for you, although it will most likely work short term. Good luck and I agree, if it gives you a renewed control and gets you motivated again, then short term it may be worthwhile.