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@freshair Thank you for taking the time to respond to my post! Today, I am still spotting. I made an appointment to see my primary care physician on this Thursday afternoon. She said we need to do a pap smear and take a look into my hormone levels. Just like you said, she thinks with all the weight loss thus far my hormones are going crazy. I plan on taking another pregnancy test tomorrow morning. I remember the surgeon saying I would become more fertile and it's not recommended to become pregnant until at least a year after surgery. One of the reasons I had the surgery is because I do want a family. I have read so many stories about women who have had PCOS and then had the surgery, which led them to become pregnant. I was originally put on Ministrin, which is a bc pill. I do not want to have to take another pill and therefore, haven't taken it since I had the surgery. I know it's not smart AT ALL. I will be talking to the doctor on Thursday and ask about the patch or the depo. When you were on the depo did you gain weight?

if that 12 lb gain was when you left the hospital, it's from the IV fluids. It's basically salt water, so it takes a few days to work its way out of your system. a cup of bouillon shouldn't be a problem - it has hardly any calories in it, and it's a liquid.

Makes sense. Still sucks Well, the good news is the weight gain is temporary. And once you are working out regularly, even if your weight loss slows, your body composition will be changing. A scale that measures body fat percentage can be encouraging. Even if the percentage itself isn't highly accurate, it works for comparing against itself and you can still see it drop over time, even if your weight doesn't. Edit: Also be sure to take your measurements regularly!

Found this post... http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/334396-aetna-and-weight-gain-during-3-month-multi-disciplinary-program/

As @Sleeve me alone! said elevated cholesterol levels is common post surgery. Mine went up too. It’s all the cholesterol being released into your body as you lose fat & the high protein diet (especially animal proteins) & lower vegetable diet add to it. My surgeon & doctor monitored it but it started to go down when my weight loss finally slowed & I was eating a more balanced diet in maintenance. It was always about 5/5.1 before surgery (not bad but not good), went up to 5.8 (danger, danger) & is 4.1 now (gold star 😉). Try swapping in some plant proteins & rolled oats into your diet & see if that helps while you are still losing.

First off, I just want to say I have the most supportive friends a person could ask for. My best friend in the whole wide world came to hospital every day the four days I was there after my surgery. He stayed for several hours, if he didn't have work, at a time, even when I was drugged up and sleeping. He even contemplated skipping one of his classes so he could stay with me, but I told him no, especially since finals were drawing near, lol. Now that that is out of the way, onto the story. I consider myself in between the pureed and soft food stage, because while I still puree some stuff, my doctor gave me the go ahead to try some soft foods. Like I said, my friends are super supportive. I went to a Christmas party at my friend's house, and the two that were planning the food put a lot of thought and consideration into what they would have at the party based on what I could eat. One of my friend's signature dishes is homemade mac and cheese, and she made it with reduced fat cheese so I could have it since more fattening cheese makes me very sick right now. They also had some sort of chili cheese dip and crab meat dip. They know soda is my weakness, mainly coke and sprite, so my friend hid it before I got there, lol! He even bought my favorite diet juice drink just for me and gave me a saucer sized plate so I couldn't overload. Well, at the party, I probably ate more than I should. I never really felt the signals that I was eating too much at one time (ie burping, slimies, etc), but it was more like I was grazing throughout the night. I started out with about, I'm really bad at measurements, 2-3 ounces of the chili cheese dip and a few noodles of the mac and cheese and it was amazing. Drank some juice afterwards and then stopped for about an hour, before I had some of the meat from the deli tray, probably about four pepperoni sized pieces. We started playing a game so I mainly sipped Water during that time. Afterwards, I had some more of the chili cheese dip and some crab dip on a couple of crackers (I know, I know, some consider carbs evil but I couldn't resist ) and a cube of cheese from the deli tray. All in all, I probably grazed on about 8 ounces of food in a 5 hour time period. By the end of the night, I realized I probably ate way too much, and I felt a bit of heaviness in my stomach, but luckily no nausea or slimies, just a bit of burping. The next day on Wednesday, I was reluctant to go on my scale because I was certain I had gained. Turns out, I had lost 1.2 pounds! Wasn't sure if I was ever going to say this, because in the beginning I severely regretted my surgery, but I love my sleeve! I tried on my favorite jeans last week and I can fit more than a hand's width in between the waistband and my stomach! I was even more surprised when I looked at the tag and saw they were actually a size 22, when I had thought they were a size 24! I wore them a few days later and while visiting my mom, she said, "you need to stop wearing those pants, they're practically hanging off your hips." It was a great feeling. I can now comfortably wear a size 20, when before they would be digging into my stomach so much, I'd resort to unbuttoning them and hope my shirt covered it. I work in a movie theater and we are given two t-shirts for work. Well, a week before my surgery last month, we got new shirts for the holiday season. I wasn't sure what size I needed so I had my manager give me an XL and 2X and I would just trade the size I didn't need for another of the size I did. Tried on the 2X first, and it was too big, so I tried on the XL and while a bit snug, it fit better. Yes, I was definitely pear-shaped because I could wear an XL shirt but needed size 24 pants. Well, the district manager was working with me the next day and I told her I needed to trade in my shirt. After one of the supervisors went upstairs to switch them out, he couldn't find another XL, so my manager suggested I just get a 2X. I politely told her no (since I knew I would be having the surgery in a few days and it'd be a waste), and I'm glad I did because now my XL is too big! It'll probably be another month before I can comfortably wear a size large, but it feels good to physically be able to see my weight loss. The first two weeks after my surgery, even though I was throwing up the whole time, I had cravings like crazy. I wanted pizza, nachos, bread, etc. Now that I'm a little more than a month out, my cravings have gotten better, except a time or two here and there. Well, for the aforementioned Christmas party, I was supposed to make Cookies. I made sugar cookies, and before my surgery I would use a spoon to get whatever leftover batter there was, but I really didn't have the temptation to this time. Well, I bought some vanilla whipped topping and used food coloring to make it red and green, for Christmas. While stirring, naturally I got some on me. The first time I did was the only time I licked it off, out of habit mainly, but after realizing what I did, it was pretty easy to just keep a paper towel next to me to wipe it off. To me, that's a big accomplishment. Those are my NSVs (so far ) and sorry for the long post! I hope everyone has a wonderful holiday season!

What type of weight loss surgery did you have? If you had bypass you might try the pouch test which allows you to understand if you have stretched the pouch. You can google "Pouch test" or 5 Day pouch test. It basically has you begin the first week as if you just had your surgery. I would start by totally going back to the basics. Liquid diet. And then introduce high Protein, low carb meals back into your diet. Are you exercising? if not, you have to get back on that horse right away, it will help boost your metabolism. Also make sure you are getting 64 oz. of Water per day. All of those things will help you get back on track. Good luck!

It's so funny that so much of us think that we could stay with the pre-op diet and just skip the surgery. We wouldn't even be here if we could...so many diets...so much time and money. I tried everything...almost two years ago I started the program for gastric bypass...I did so well on the pre-op diet and because my support group didn't want me to do the bypass...I just stayed on the diet and skipped the surgery. I was so sure I would keep losing weight...I lost 28 lbs and then,like always..the weight started coming back on. When I started on the gastric sleeve program last Nov. I had gained 15 lbs. Now that I'm almost 2 months out from my sleeve and getting close to 75 lbs down I KNOW I could not have done this with out the surgery. I'm never hungry...I can eat what I need to...and I have no cravings...I am strong and I am back to hiking which has been years since I could handle hillsides. My life has been handed back to me...it's actually a miracle!! And I know without a doubt if I hadn't done the surgery I would be gaining weight already and miserable...thank you Jesus that my support group got on board and I'll never look back and think I could have done this on my own.

I'll tell you the truth: yes, you could certainly lose the weight without surgery. For many of us, losing it wasn't the problem. In fact, I've revealed previously that I've lost 200+ pounds over the years prior to resorting to bariatric surgery. Yep...I'd lose 30, regain 50, lose 50, regain 60, lose 60, regain 100, then rinse and repeat the miserable yo-yo process. Keeping the weight off is the problematic issue here. Personally, bariatric surgery has been my last hope for keeping the weight off. So far, since entering maintenance a year ago, my weight has been the most stable it's been in my entire adult life. A clever physician who specializes in obesity medicine stated, "If you disliked what you did to lose the weight, you'll dislike what you've gotta do to maintain the weight. Therefore, you'll regain the weight." The pre-op diet is good for short-term weight loss, but it ain't sustainable in the long run. If we are true to ourselves, we'd know deep down that we really wouldn't adhere to two shakes a day and a 'sensible' protein dinner for the rest of our lives. Good luck to you.

Thanks for that Freckles, I've been quoted £175 for an X-Ray, I've made an appointment with my NHS Doctor for 25th to ask his advice, he referred me for fills when my package expired with THG so I'm hopeful he'll help but I don't want to wait months either so we'll see what he says, I've had no restriction for months and struggling to maintain my 3 stone loss since I was banded a year ago , the thought of gaining it all back horrifies me but I'm not going with THG again, I don't trust them.

i had to do one before i got banded and it just helps you have some ideas on how you can stay more active also as the consultant said excerising before the surgery and losing weight gives you a better chance things will go more smoothly in the er and also healing time. pretty much saying gives you a stronger heart. please dont take this the wrong way but the band is not a miracle tool. if you want to see good results truthfully you have to excerise and get your fills. i really believe that excerise is one of the major keys in losing weight and changing our lives in a good way.

I am waiting till June 3rd to see the surgeon, but I know tricare can be very picky about the weight and such. I am 5'4" 239 lbs I have 1 co morbity Hypertention. And I have been over weight for my whole teen and adult life. I have found many different hight and weight charts and everyone seems to be different. If anyone has any info just let me know. Thanks Jennifer

Hi.. I think we see so many discouraging post here because a lot of us are just starting our journey with our bands...and the first few months can be the toughest.. I guess a lot of us expected it to be a little different.. I really didn't expect to have to wait months before I saw some kind of restriction and some real weight loss.. I am on fill #4 and still waiting for some real restriction.. it does get a bit frustrating.. TTFN

I really was discouraged at the beginning!!! My mother in law and I were banded at the same time. SHe did absoulutely nothing and the weight was falling off- I did the pre op diet for 14 days (little loss) I lost only 20 lbs from surgery till first fill she was loosing tons- but to top it all off she never exercised, ate everything you shouldn't had two to three glasses of wine a day and still drinks juice a lot after banding. Ice cream and popcorn every nighjt and more salad dressing than I can count (almost 4 table spoons) I cried and cried- ash she was down thirty five an I was closer to 20- well somewhere around novemebr last year I was steadily loosing- she stopped. Now if she looses 3 pounds a month - it is great but usually 2. I still am close to 8. I know you are not supposed to compare- but we live in the same house- so we are horrible. I wa sso afraid I wasted our money and Eric would be mad if it didn't work and it was just more wasted time and money- and so depressed (I think I need more light in the winter!) Well now it is just the opposite as my centure mary is looming ever closer (ok not till the oms thing comes and goes this week)- I keep thinking of the slow and steady turtle- I will get there- eventually- I have a lot of hangin empty skin and mor muscle in my legs and arms than ever- I can run and walk without getting winded and I love to cook and don't feel bad when I do! I can acutally eat part of apice of cheese cake no the whole thing and I am enjoying clothes shopping!. All kind of other things are better and lots of things haven't changed. My kids still think I am the world and the sun shines out of my &&&&, DH is still the greatest and we still fight about the car and money- but making up is a lot more fun, and I do love it when he compliments an outfit!

I can honestly say I am very pleased with my band. I know there is no way in hell I could have lost 36 pounds in less than 3 months. The only thing I have problems with is when I hit a plateu( I am on my second) I fear that I will never get below that weight. So yesterday I did a search on pleateus and found this cool pleateu busting diet and am going so if it works!

Yes, it can happen prior to hitting the sweet spot with fills. If you did a liquid pre-op diet, that was sort of a crash diet, and now you are eating solids again. Often when people go off a crash diet they gain weight. My surgeon told me not to be surprised if I gained. Don't beat yourself up. Any losses you have during this time will be a good thing, yes, but will be due to willpower alone, not with any help from the band. That assistance will come with fills. Denise

I had my first fii 4cc Jan 5. Felt tight in doc office but the day couldn't tell I had fill. stay hungry very discouraged. go Feb. 3rd for second fill. I feel like I have gained. stay hungry.

Congrats beautiful lady! I am one month out today and feel great as well! I will be watching you as an inspiration. I have felt the same as you all the way. Feels great. I'm a bit scared of the 4 week plateau but I know that's when our weight is shifting just to prepare for more weight loss. So i think I'll get through it. Just love to see weight loss everyday Patients is a virtue lol.

I'm sorry I probably can't help you to become motivated I can only tell you my experience:) I had my first appointment in June 2013 and only having my surgery next week April 2014 & it has been a hard slog to drop 60 lbs required I would say the sooner you start the easier it will become and if you have a bad week or few days the damage won't be the same, I struggled over Christmas and didn't loose weight for a few weeks so the more time you have the better Anyways good luck and I hope it works out for you

I've been stressing about the in-laws visiting for DH's birthday this weekend because they always want to go out to the stuff-yourself-silly buffets. DH said he wanted Japanese so we went to the hibachi place. I had shrimp and fried rice. I took a couple of bites of everything (salad, Soup, veggies, and rice) and ate 4 shrimp. It was delicious and I wasn't over-stuffed. It made my carbs go a little high for the day (49 grams) because I ate some of the sweet sauce with the shrimp and some of the dressing. But I took the rest home and now I've got 2-3 more meals. The in-laws never mentioned me not eating much. They also didn't remark on my weight-loss. I'm wearing the same clothes I always have they're just looser on me so they just didn't really notice. So I didn't have to get into me having the surgery with them. Yay! Next month I will probably be lighter enough that they will notice. But they are old. So maybe I'll tell them that I lost weight over a year ago and they just forgot! LOL!

I was banded Dec 2010. I suffered a slip while I was travelling abroad and had to rush home. In had the slip repaired and have gone through the fill process again. While I'm not thrilled this happened, it was a learning experience for me. There's a reason for the rules, they're not there to make our banded life difficult, they're there to help ensure we lose weight and protect the integrity of our bands. No trouble since...nut then again, I'm following the rules much more closely.

All the more reason to have a band. With additional weight you risk issues that can harm your kidney such as diabetes. They don't do anything with your kidney during surgery, just your stomach.

Hi all well guess what i knew i lost weight cause the scale says so but i haven't really noticed. But i had to get a new swimming suit. My old one that by the way last summer was almost to small now is way to big I can't even pretend to keep my breast were they are suppose to be at in there. So i thaught that was cool. I didn't think i had lost enough weight that my bathingsuit wouldn't fit so it was a nice surprise luckly my mom had a smaller one that fit.

Ok so I typed up a big long response, then hit some keyboard combo and there it all went bye-bye. I'll try again, a little shorter. To answer your question re: removal, it was a piece of cake. The worst part of it for me was the sore throat from the tubation & such... easily a few times worse than strep. And it lasted like 4 days. But that's not the surgery, that's ancillary. As for the surgery itself, a little sore where the port had been put in (they really want to make sure those things don't move around), but I expected that. I also ended up with an infected incision - but again, that's ancillary. Overall I would rate it just slightly more painful than having the band put in, which was EASY. There were no specific dietary requirements after that. My restriction stuck around for about 2 weeks, but only in terms of not feeling hungry & getting full quickly. Starting the day of, I could eat what I wanted when I wanted. And after a few years of living with a slipped band, I can't begin to describe how awesome it was to be able to drink in the morning if I was thirsty. As for 1 vs. 2 surgeries, my thoughts/experiences below. I'm not factoring in $ since I was covered under insurance, and the $ is all you. Just my thoughts... The risk of complication for a well-healed stomach going into a sleeve is just slightly higher than a "virgin" stomach. The risk of complication for a back-to-back procedure sky rockets to about 30%. I have the exact stats at home, but it's right around there. My surgeon requires 2 months between procedures. That's the timeframe at which he thinks there's the best blanace between risk mitigation and more negative things like weight gain. By "well healed" above, I mean 2 months between. Most leaks that aren't detected at the time of surgery are "hidden" by swelling. The swelling can artificially close gaps that wouldn't otherwise be closed. So as the swelling goes down, a leak can occur. The less swollen you are, the better. You're going to be swollen either way, but you're going to be more swolen if you've just had your band removed a few minutes ago. So it is directly tied to risks. Scar tissue cen truly be a factor. In back-to-back procedures, I'd think there always has to be give & take between scar tissue/adhesions, and sleeve. My sleeve was my 4th abdominal lap and I knew I had pretty major scar tissue. For one, I could see/feel it from the outside. For two, it actally caused be discomfort if I put pressure on my abdomen in the wrong way (like when I would read a book in bed and try to rest it on my stomach). My surgeon removed a _lot_ of tissue, and spent a little more than double his average surgery time doing it. All in all, I'm now glad I had to wait. My 2 months turned into more like 7 because of insurance. But although I initially wanted a back to back procedure, after reading up on the risk rates, seeing what I was like with scar tissue, etc. I'm truly very glad I had some down time in between. I had my band for about 6 years. The length of time you and I have had our bands (yours way longer than mine, but we're both well above the average band lifespan) plays a roll too. The longer it's in, the more adhesions, etc. can form. It makes sense that your surgeon is now indicating a 2nd procedure might be a good idea. All that said, there are lots of people here who had back to back procedures, and are doing just fine.

The IV fluids is the reason for the gain. Walk as much as you can and sip your liquids! By next week things will be better