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Please help, need help fast! Started taking new meds for Pain two weeks ago gained 10 pounds how can that be! Im eatting around 1000 calories, can this be Water weight? Ive been eating the same food and water intake for almost two years now! Doe,s any body have a clue?

I love beer myself but have not had one since my birthday (08.12.06). I knew going in that I couldn't drink beer and it was almost a deal breaker for me. I'd be lying if I said I didn't miss it but have actually started drinking wine or frozen drinks instead. It wasn't easy giving it up but I was drinking way too much (hense the weight gain) so it probably isn't all bad. I guess you have to ask yourself which is more important . . . beer or getting healthy! I am happy to say I can even watch friends having beers without crying or craving a cold one. As long as I have something in my hand, I'm good. : ) PatU

I'd had some belly burning and abdominal aches, discomfort when lying on my left side, aches in my esophagus that would migrate up to under my jaw, sudden loss of restriction, and rebound weight gain. All of the aches and pains were fairly mild to moderated discomforts that were off and on, but becoming more frequent. For as seriously eroded as I am, I am surprised that it didn't hurt much worse. I'm sad, but ok so far, as a nurse, I know my life could be so much worse. I'm sure if my weight continues to rebound I won't be so accepting, but for now, I'm hanging in there & I'm always greatful for the support of my LBT family. This fight isn't over yet!

I'm sorry for your friend's misfortune. Many patients fail to report PB'ing and vomiting to their MDs for fear of receiving an unfill. A PA at my surgeon's office told me that several patients ASK to be overfilled so that they can lose weight quicker and "toss" the extra food if they overeat. An overfill not only leads to inflammation of the esophagus, but also can result in weight gain as people go back to mushy foods which are often higher in calories than solid proteins.

Mrs. P, I hope your friend is all right!! It is, or should be, common knowledge in the banding community that ongoing and persistent reflux can lead to significant esophageal problems. This is why everyone recommends that reflux be cured, not just treated with medications. Loosening the band is something that a lot of patients don't want to face, since they assume it will lead to stalled weight loss or even weight gain, but if reflux is a persistent problem it must be done. And if that doesn't address the reflux, band removal is the next step. But even given that it sounds as though your friend had other issues going on. She must have been having serious symptoms if her esophagus is damaged enough to require removal! And it's possible that even pre-banding she may have had a compromised esophagus or been suffering from reflux. I'm not discounting that the band may have added to her problems, and the story dramatically points up the need to be alert to symptoms and issues post-banding. I'm just saying that for the situation to have become as serious as it sounds, medical attention may not have been sought as soon as it should have been. Once again, I hope her surgery goes well and she heals quickly!!

I become ravenous three days before my period and stay that way until my period starts. There's nothing I can do but try to eat healthy. I do eat more during that time, but so far it has not caused weight gain. I definitely don't lose during that time though!

I'm so sorry to hear about all of this happening! I ended up with a hysterectomy at age 40 from endometriosis and wacko periods, etc. so I have total sympathy for you. I always heard Depo was bad for weight gain - so yea that is gone! Hang in there - it will get better. I, too, have found I get excellent support from female gynes - just been the case - so glad you seem to have found a good one! Hope you get back on track soon!

Karey yes. I was told that depending on my mindset, situation on child bearing (if I was done) then I should consider waiting 6 months from reaching goal weight or 20lbs above goal weight to have plastic surgery. Would make no sense to have a tt when you haven't given your skin time to bounce back, however....for me... I have always had a small flap, even before my son. I was ..oh gosh 120lbs - 140lbs and still had a pouch. I knew I'd get it right away because I knew the flap would never go away. The doctors that I consulted with did not disagree with me when I told them about my history with my pouch. They seemed to not be against the surgery. My surgeon was the only one to question every aspect of my weight loss and my plastic surgery goals and expectations. He factored in the weight I was before the sudden weight gain. My weight gain was due to pregnancy in 2001. I was 145lbs before my pregnancy with my daughter, then shot up to 240lbs. He asked me how active I was before the gain..which I was always very active. I swam alot, took aerobics classes 4 times per week and some light weight training. He then asked me how long ago I was banded and how much have i lost with the band. Asked me about my new eating habits, etc. Alot of probing and finally ...an "OK, I think you're ready".

Does anyone have advise for me? I am considering rebanding after my band was removed April 2006. I have gained 27 lbs. ,and each week another 2 lbs. jumps on board. I stayed in the hospital ,and , according to surgeon, almost died because the band hand completly cut off the blood flow to my stomach. I can't stand what's happening to me(weight gain); but I am scared, too. My rebanding cannot be done laproscopically. Advise, anyone! DDee

Hey Guys... Just a quick hello... thinking about y'all! Just got back from working with another adorable pup at the humane society... *sigh* if only I could take them all home! Mandy... So sorry about your sweet kitty... I have three and even thought they are all a little whacky their cute little noggins... it would be very hard to lose one of them. (((Hugs))) Kat... Oh man... the coughing would having me a little freaked too... hope RIck feels better soon and that his facial hair returns soon! My hubby started to grow a mustache at one point... it looked funky so I begged him to stop the process immediately! I still love the van... but they haven't called yet with the solution for the problem... it's still driving me crazy so I hope they call soon! Eileen...How's the back girly???? Hope you are on the mend OR... enjoying pain killers and muscle relaxants. Patty... How's the hip today???? I used to get sciatic nerve pain that sounds a lot like you are describing... Advil 800 mg every 6hrs, rest and a heating pad were the only things that helped. Hope the pain has taken a hike as I know you have a very busy life to attend to! Dianne... GLad you found some reading that is helping you find a little peace. Life isn't always a picnic... but most of the time it is a pretty big gift. (((hugs))) I am always more restricted when I am stressed and find that I PB more often during stressful times... when that happens I go back to a soft diet with foods similar to the mushy liquid stage and give my esophagus a little break. Beanie... Slow and steady is the way to go but I sure understand the frustration! Keep up the fight girl... you are doing great! Betty... Girl... I really think you are going to have to consider surgery... I can't imagine that having surgery would leave you with a worse situation then you already have with your foot. I would rec. that you get a second and maybe even a third opinion. It never hurts to see what othere options another Doc my offer. I'm feeling good... wishing I had a cig to puff on about now...lol... no worries... after this long I wouldn't dare relapse! I go in to have my thyroid hormone levels checked in Nov. We'll see if then if the radioactive iodine is killing off my gland. Mary... Sorry about the fish... hope it recovered! Giving me a fish is pretty much like signing their death warrant... gauranteed flush city...lol. Chris... Glad your port site is healing up well... it's never a good feeling when one has an open draining wound. Sounds like you are taking good care of it and I'm sure it will be all healed up in no time! How's everything else going now that you are in Bandland? SHerry... I think a lot of peoples bodies respond to stress with weight gain... guess it goes back to the days when stress was generally coupled with a decrease in food availability???? I should live a stressful life because mine seems to do the opposite??? I have always been backwards...lol. I sure hope that you are able to find a way to decrease your stress load at work... and the sooner... the better! Cindy... You are doing awesome... I think 4 pounds a month is darn fabulous! I can hardly wait to put your next set of before and after pics up! Pat... Where are you???? Miss ya! Sorry if I missed anyone... gotta go! My daughter will be home any minute and then we head off to piano lessons! TTFN!

It's a proven fact that any kind of anti depressant slows down your metabolic rate. Many doctors will not tell you this. I was on Paxil and it was my demise with my weight gain. Also 1000 calories a day is not enough. Try upping it to 1200-1300 ...many people think if they do not eatthey will ose weight, you have to eat to lose weight. Eat more often throughtout th day like 6 mini meals to keep your metabolism going especially if you are taking and anti depressant. Just my 2 cents worth...good luck

Well, I am feeling a bit discouraged today. But I am right on track (according to my bandster way of losing). I haven't lost in ounce in almost 2 weeks. It seems that I will lose a couple of pounds then nothing for a couple of weeks. Go figure!! I was out of town again this past weekend and as usual happy to report no weight gain. That's a miracle in and of itself. I use to always gain weight when I went out of town. Glad to see so many of you doing great. Melissa Lea

Cam, I think taking Ray up on the offer was wise. The $1000K+ to go elsewhere is just too rich not to give Ray a go. He really isnt into yelling for weight gain and I am still shock to hear other Dr's do this. (But I know thats true). He also isnt into blaming everything on the mind until he is sure everything with the band is right. I have tried to explain hunger but until he is happy with the fills he said he wont go down that path> He believes thats too much of an easy out for him and he wont accept that yet. Last appointment I explained that my body is in conflict with itself. The bottam half is full and the top half wants flavour and food - a weird feeling when you know you are stuffed. He again said, until my adjustments are right he wont go there. Which is fair. I'd be suprised if he plays the blame game. Anywho, its worth a chat and from the board he knows you've had issues. He really does seem to take his role very seriously and is very open. All my appointments of late are in his lunch hour. Good luck

Bjean, you are not alone since my surgery 9/28/06 I have gaiend three pounds and it is very discouraging. Yes, the desire to eat will return and with a venegance. i have been also struggling with getting in the proper amounts of liquids, and I have only had two BM since the surgery. So I am also annoyed. I go back for a post op visit Thursday, and i am dreading getting on the scale. I never feel any restriction while i am eating and I find that I can pretty much eat what ever I like. I have noticed that if I eat too quick I get a very uncomfortable feeling. So I am trying to hang in there. I have been told not to worry about the weight gain but I can't help it. So you are not alone in the struggle.

I can relate to your situation First let me say all of my weight gain was from my Paxil I was on for 1.5 yrs and gained 70 lbs. Me too! The anti depressants will slow down your metabolic rate is what I was told by my PCP to almost zero, the meds are used for depression but after time for me I was more depressed from my weight gain then from what I was being treatedfor so I quit. Secondly, my son who is 19 is Bi-Polar he was also on the lithium whicvh made him a zombie, no motivation and all he did was sleep, then he went to depakote and his blood pressurewas so high the doctor was in fear he would have a stroke, so he quit taking that, then the prozac which did not do much so he is now smoking marijuana, he has one of those cards from his doctor where he can gfet it legally, it has been the only thing that has worked for him. No bi-polar episodes but every now and then he has panic attacks so takes an occassional xanax. Every person that I know personally who has taken any kind of anti-depressant has had weight gain, you may find that just getting off of the anti depressante will be enough and wil lstill be able to take your bi-polar meds my son never had weight gain taking his bi-polar meds if anything he lost weight. Have you ever tried lexapro, that is an anti depressant that my husband takes and has had no weight gain it works well for him, my doctor told me it has the least chance of weight gain..but everyone is different.

I used to be on Paxil CR and it worked very well for my anxiety and depression. After a few months, my doc switched me to the generic Paxil that was not controlled release and I gained 20 pounds in about 3 months! Withdrawls were HELL for me getting off Paxil. Sounds like you're going through the same thing with Effexor. I have also taken Celexa, but it didn't seem to work as well as Paxil. However, I didn't have any weight gain or withdrawal symptoms on it. I hope you find somthing that works!

Well I had my follow up appointment with my dr today! After hearing my story of what all had been happening she sent me right upstairs to her favorite OB...After talking with the OB and running alot of tests she is thinking that my depo shot and the lapband are fighting eachother...Basically one stores estrogen and one makes you get rid of it so they were battling since June and I think by the looks of it the band one...She says that my depo days are deffinately over...So she also has me scheduled for an ultrasound next friday just incase its something else and I have a follow up with her on the friday after that to get all of my testing results back and to talk to her about a new birth control method...She had mentioned the mirena which I had never heard of before...I just sits right inside the uterus and you dont have to worry about birth control for 5 years at a time, no weight gain (which I had alot from the depo) and it doesnt use estrogen at all (which is exactly what I need)...She said in most cases the patient doesnt even bleed during that time of the month but maybe spots just a little...I told her that it sounded better than finding a huge diamond in my christmas stocking...She will call if anything abnormal comes up with my tests but says if she dont hear from me that everything is fine and can wait till my follow up...Of course we have to wait on the mirena until after all my tests are back cuz she dont want to add insult to injury if something else is wrong...So far the estrogen pills are working pretty good, just a little spotting right now but nothing like it was thank goodness...It can only get better from here on!!

Well I had my follow up appointment with my dr today! After hearing my story of what all had been happening she sent me right upstairs to her favorite OB...After talking with the OB and running alot of tests she is thinking that my depo shot and the lapband are fighting eachother...Basically one stores estrogen and one makes you get rid of it so they were battling since June and I think by the looks of it the band one...She says that my depo days are deffinately over...So she also has me scheduled for an ultrasound next friday just incase its something else and I have a follow up with her on the friday after that to get all of my testing results back and to talk to her about a new birth control method...She had mentioned the mirena which I had never heard of before...I just sits right inside the uterus and you dont have to worry about birth control for 5 years at a time, no weight gain (which I had alot from the depo) and it doesnt use estrogen at all (which is exactly what I need)...She said in most cases the patient doesnt even bleed during that time of the month but maybe spots just a little...I told her that it sounded better than finding a huge diamond in my christmas stocking...She will call if anything abnormal comes up with my tests but says if she dont hear from me that everything is fine and can wait till my follow up...Of course we have to wait on the mirena until after all my tests are back cuz she dont want to add insult to injury if something else is wrong...So far the estrogen pills are working pretty good, just a little spotting right now but nothing like it was thank goodness...It can only get better from here on!!

I know tons of people that have taken Paxil and not had any weight gain. I don't know about Wellbutrin though.

Lithium is known to cause weight gain but I've never tried it. When I was put on Depakote, I regained over a hundred pounds that I had lost. I switched to Lamictal and found it to be less sedating and was able to actually excercise loose some of the weight. I am not currently taking a mood stabilizer however. Throughout, I have also been on zoloft and at times zoloft and wellbutrin. I do not suspect either of the anitdepressants or the Lamictal of impairing my metabolism/energy like the depakote seemed to. Have you tried Lamictal?

Topomax is used to treat BP its a mood stabalizer and a size effect is weight loss. Altho it comes with about a million other side effects they only last about 2 weeks until you are on the drugs regularly. Paxil Is used to treat the drepression part of BP and can be used with the Topomax if you do well on this antidepressant maybe ask your doc about putting these 2 together. I gained about a billion pounds being on and off the anti-depressant drugs myself and when I went on the BP combos I asked for one specifically designed to make me not gain anymore weight or I wouldnt be taking them lol. I also take Lorazepan but I just started that because I still have panic attacks which I have always had bad. But with increased stress in my life over some work situations and other stuff they are back with avengance and I am not sure if they have any weight gain or loss with those or not I should look that up after i post this actually hehe. Anyway hope that helps. -Gummie

Hi, I decided to add to my last thread Water. Still I have only dropped 15 lbs now (just gained back 5 despite everything I'm doing right) since surgery on June 26th. My question to any of you in the know is: What anti-anxiety, depression meds will NOT cause weight gain? What meds that treat mania / manic episodes, will NOT cause weight gain? Please do not write to me and tell me 'as long as your mentally healthy, who cares if weight loss is slow?' Being fat makes you depressed and triggerse depression and mania as well - so, even if I'm not having mild swings, I am totally down and hate myself because I'm fat. I want to treat both diseases - obesity AND bi-polar. I've been recommended Abilify, what else is out there that anyone here has tried?

I think everyone is right. It may be the Effexor. I've went down from 150 mg to 75 mg and my doctor just now prescribed me 37.5 mg pills. I'm going to slowly get off of it. A very kind LBT'er here PM'd me and told me to try Abilify for my mania since it's currently not being treated. She has a friend that did it and when all other meds caused weight gain, on Abilify her friend started to LOSE weight....

My 2 cents worth -- I don't think that it is the Effexor (venlafaxine). The effexor does 1 or the other: decrease your appetite/decrease your weight OR increase your appetite/increase your weight. With the banding, you appetite is under control therfore we should not see the weight increase. However on a metabolic level it may cause edema. The +/- 3 lbs on the scale you may be seeing might be fluid fluctuations. You may not be getting enough calories each day. You may want to try and aim for 1200 calories and maybe even up to 1300 to 1400 calories for 2 days to get your metabolism going. If you stay in nutrient deprevation too long that will decrease your metabolism and halt weight loss, may even promote weight gain at lower calorie levels for an extended amount of time. Unfortunately, weight loss is not a perfect science and we have to work and tweak until we find the right calorie fit for our body type. I know it's Frustrating. Hang in there! Melissa Lea

I can understand you getting food obsessed with a diet like that! You are being denied all the delight of texture in your mouth. That does make quite a difference. I know it's probably not proven science but the need to chew is just as important as drinking. Wouldn't it be even cheaper to go on slimfast? I know there vanilla and chocolate are scrum-diddly-umptious now. I had tried them a good few years ago and they were vile! Although I guess you are paying ot have that extra bit of support to help you through, still seems like a heck of a lot of money. Which made me thunk! If you figure on how much you spend in a month on these excellent diets which start to fail after you've finished them, you would probably be able to pay for the op with no problem lol. I am no mathematician but here I go and try to work it out! 32.50 x 4 = 130.00 66.00 x 4 = 264.00 right thanks to my handy calculator that is how much you will be spending a month. Now I had to get a loan for my op, well dad did as my credit rating is dreadful lol but I have to pay 135.40 a month, so a little more than the cambridge and a lot lesss than the lighterlife! Plus the advantage (if things don't go wrong, touch wood!) Is that the result with the lapband is permanent! It really is true though isn't it, there is no such thing as a quick fix diet. I have been a yo yo dieter for years, really ever since the birth of my son 9 years ago and for the past two years I had been eating like a saint only to gain and gain and gain! Finally discovered that I had a underactive thyroid. Having been put on the medication, I may have my halted weight gain but it hasn't started weight loss. It was in deseration that I first looked at lapband surgery. I did the sensible thing and spoke to my doc about it and she agreed it would be a good move for me, as I am unable to do huge amounts of exercise especially with the extra weight on my joints. At least I know my doc will be there as support afterwards, although she did moan about how many people they have had to look after, that have had surgery in europe and it's gone wrong. I could understand her point of view but I was not willing to risk the chance of doing permanent damage to my already weakened joints waiting 3/4 years for NHS gastric banding. So if Ia m able to jump the queue then I am all for it OK did I just completely drift off the point of this email lol?