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@teoboysandagirl- it is very scary don't get me wrong. Yes I am happy I will have this bundle of joy and yes I still worry about weight gain and what I will look like afterwards. I don't care what people say, you will always think about what will I look like after the baby and how much will I have to work to lose what I gain. I say just stay healthy while pregnant, if you can do activities do them, don't get lazy, etc. everyone feels different about weight gain some people worry more than others and some are terrified to go back to the way they use to look. So just know that your feelings are normal, in my book at least.

yesterday's goals 1) walk 60 minutes with weighted shoes - did 20 minutes walk with weighted shoes and 20 minute walk in regular shoes 2) not eat after 7 ---- blew the crap out of this one 3) spend my noon getting closet doors - took an hour vacation yesterday to go buy them I think I got in over my head hiring people to remodel while I go to Mexico for 2 weeks. I forgot about all the decisions I have to make in a hurry. Today's goals 1) face the music - weight gain - when I see the surgeon and nutritionist today 2) 40 minutes on the treadmill - done 3) pick out medicine cabinet, toilet topper, blind, towel racks, floor tile, counter top for bathroom (this may take 2 days) 4) not eat after 8 5) remember to relax and unwind

First off, Thank you to all the well wishers. I didn't have that hard of a fight. I met 2 out of the three items for their criteria. I'm just glad I have finally been approved. I know my life is going to change for the healthier. As far as the weight gain goes, yes, I do have to gain back what I busted my butt to lose. And to answer the question yes it is for insurance. 43.9 is not the same as 45 as far as BMI is concerned in their book, so I need to maintain 45 or better. I will keep all of you posted, thanks again for the congrats and the well wishes!!! Mike

Will Miss Birdee... take satisfaction in this... you made a very intelligent and healthy choice for your body now and down the road. Your body can absorb all of the nurtrients it needs and when you are an older Birdie... your bones will thank you! It's too bad she didn't listen to you and one day she may look back and think... *Damn... that Birdee was really smart and I wish I would have listened to her instead of being a boogerbutt* :cool: My Sissy is having trouble with weight gain with her RNY GBP... but... she is also putting on the breaks and trying to work with the tool that she went through so much to get! Before your band... if you lost this much weight... would you have gained it back by now... plus more????? I know that is why I am hopeful about getting banded... not because I will lose the weight fast... because I will lose it for good! (((hugs)))

LOL Salsa...I was sitting here thinking the exact same thing about Frangi and Stein Mart!!! I'll be back on the exercise thread tomorrow. Nursing a back pull . But...no weight gain!!:biggrin2:

Here it is. Obesity and Mortality Risk New Findings From Body Mass Index Trajectories I signed up for this site, its free and quite interesting. You can get notices on any topic you want. http://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/815335_1 Here is a tantalizing two paragraphs from a LONG DRY article. IntroductionThe rising prevalence of obesity has emerged as a potential threat to overall life expectancy in the future. The extent of this threat, however, is still uncertain, and estimates of the percentage of total deaths due to obesity vary widely, from 5%[1] to 13%.[2–4] Although these estimates are all based on measuring the mortality consequences of body mass index (BMI) assessed at baseline (i.e., at 1 point in time), other studies have found that a dynamic measure of weight status (weight or BMI change) is more predictive of mortality than is a static measure of weight status (i.e., baseline BMI), especially among older adults.[5, 6] We might expect obesity to increase the risk of death more profoundly when it persists over the life course. Therefore, in order to better assess the rising threat of obesity, it is essential to examine the mortality consequences of BMI trajectories. Prior studies based on dynamic measures have yielded mixed findings about the mortality consequences of weight change.[5–21] Several factors contribute to the mixed findings. First, the association of weight change with mortality depends on baseline BMI status. Weight gain leads to excess death among overweight/obese individuals but lowers the mortality risk among underweight or normal weight people.[8] Second, the association differs by the magnitude of weight change. Modest weight gains are associated with a decreased mortality risk, but excessive weight gains predict an increased mortality risk.[7, 13] When both initial weight and the magnitude of change are taken into account, small weight gains (1.0–2.9 BMI units) are not associated with excess mortality risk among 50–70-year-old Americans, regardless of their initial BMI levels, whereas large weight gains (3.0–5.0 units) increase the risk of death only when the initial BMI is greater than 35. Moreover, both small weight losses (1.0–2.9 units) and large weight losses (3.0–5.0 units) are associated with an increase in the risk of death among people who are normal, overweight, or mildly obese at baseline.[22] What!??? 8o

Marie, First, congratulations on your marriage. I'm sorry about the stress you've been going through and the problems with your band. I have been living without my band for 1.5 years now and I know how hard it is, but it is possible to at least maintain your weight without gaining more and I would probably start there. Some of the changes I have made living without my band is to substitute one food for a lower calorie option. Check out the book, " Eat this, Not that" for ideas. I substitute lower calorie Cereal and look for ones that have the most Fiber. Use non fat milk ( which I measure) and I always measure out the serving of cereal. Lunch: Cafe Steamers by Healthy Choice followed by a piece of fruit. or Tuna (packed in Water, not oil, but drained) and always use Whole Wheat bread or whole wheat pita pockets. I use a limited amount of mayo as I prefer my tuna on the dry side anyway. Snacks are often low calorie rice cakes with sugar free jelly and in the winter have the snack with a cup of hot coffee or tea which helps fill me up. I also have canned peaches or pears ( the lite sugar type) on hand for a snack. Anything that is a "trigger" food must be kept out of the house completely. Cravings: Get the donut, but share it with someone or get two munchkins. Always buy the smallest size of any "bad" food you eat. Example: at the movies, I like Twizzlers but the package is too big at the movies, so I buy the small pack at the drug store and bring it in my purse. If I want popcorn, I pop a 100 calorie snack bag and carry a bigger purse! I no longer keep bags of pretzels or boxes of crackers etc in the house but always have apples, pears or oranges available. Steam a few small (like fingerling size or the small red ones) potatoes with dinner instead of having a whole potato. Make only what you need to eat at that meal, avoid having leftovers b/c you will go back for seconds. Always have one or two vegetables with dinner prepared in a healthy way. My last piece of advice is to walk, if you can or whenever you can. Park farther away at the mall or work. TAke the stairs when you can or invest in a pedometer ( they are not expensive) to keep track of how many steps you take in one day. Make it a game to walk more steps each day until you get as close to 10,000 steps a day as you can. I would concentrate on maintaining first b/c trying to lose is hard and will add more stress and that can add to weight gain which will only stress you even more! I make plenty of mistakes and eat things I shouldn't but I try really hard to get right back on track and not let that day turn into a week. I wish you well and I hope some of my suggestions work for you. Perhaps they will help you until you can get more fill back in your band.

Phentermine, taken alone is safer alternative to using it in conjunction with fenfluramine, which was associated with some significant cardiac risks in the 80's. I had used it several times over the 10 years prior to my band surgery. Your body does build a rapid tolerance to it, so it was effective for only about 3 months, and then I would have to go off of it for another 6 months. A three month prescription was all that my physician would prescribe. I lost about 30 pounds during the 3 months, and did manage to keep most of the weight off after every 3 months off of it. "Rebound weight gain" is common, when the patient needs to go off of the medication. This can happen if the individual does nothing to maintain a long term adjustment in life style with changes to smaller portions and exercise. I have not taken it for several years now. I recall that I did like the increased energy associated with it, and though I took in in the morning, I did not like the insomnia which I also experienced while taking it.

Curious, did it lead to any weight gain?

Beckiet - I get clothes on a regular basis. I didn't include it in my incentives because I have to have them. That's why I don't have more "mini" goals on there. I'm going to raid mom's closet today - she has clothes from 8 - 18; I'm down to 14 and they are already getting baggy (woohoo!! what a problem to have!) Menopause has really caused her a lot of weight gain. I had to promise not to get rid of them when they don't fit me anymore Anyone else need to resize their jewelry yet?

I was banded march 2012. I am down almost 90 lbs. I had a fill in January that put me in the red zone. They removed the fill. I was ok at my February appointment and didn't need or want a fill. Last month, I felt I needed an adjustment (since ice been on a plateau since January). They gave me .2, I can't tolerate anything more than that. Anything more takes me right in the red. Anyways,,,, I've always been tight in the morning, coffee is my morning beverage of choice always. I have trouble with tiny tiny sips for about the first 2 hours in awake. About 4 hours after I'm awake, I can comfortable eat oatmeal and nothing else. Breakfast is usually about 10 am. lunch comes at noon and usually I can eat my lunchtime meal. After lunch my band is really open and I'm totally in the yellow zone and constantly hungry till about 6 pm. About that time, I'm in that wonderful green zone. I tighten up almost immediately as soon as I lay down. My first and second meal have to stay on schedule... If I don't have my lunch on time, it's Soup the rest of the day or I have to start over with oatmeal. If I go more than a few hours without eating... I close up. I've never had symptoms of being too tight. Besides the over restricted, nothing is getting through this baby bandster hell. No night cough, reflux, weight gain... Nothing. At my last appointment last week, they did a swallow, due to my appointment, I skipped my noon meal and of course I was over restricted. The barium was sitting right on top of my band. I had a tiny bit of dilation but not enough to warrant a complete unfill or even a partial unfill which shocked me. She put me on the 2/2 as if I had a fill and said to come back if I had anymore problems. Before being banded, I had really bad reflux. Once I was banded it completely disappeared. There was NO hiatal hernia repair either. There are times I feel burning around my band, but nothing like the reflux I experienced post-banding. I'm finally losing again, being 4 lbs the last month! Not much, but so glad I'm on the losers bench again. Has anyone ever experienced this kind of fluctuation between zones? What have your experiences been? Mine are: No more than .2 at a fill 2-4 weeks before I'm adjusted to the fill Extreme morning restriction If I lay down more than 5 minutes, I'm super tight. After 30 minutes... It's as if I'm at my morning tightness. I have to eat on schedule Any recommendations? It's really hard to keep a newborn eating schedule and I live in constant fear of eating! As long as I stick to my schedule, the PBing is maybe 4-6 times a week. Thanks for any input!

I had a bypass earlier this year and so far zero regrets. My weight loss, even with bypass, has been slower than average due to a screwed-up metabolism from years and years of dieting. I know if I had gotten a sleeve I may have had slower weight loss and more stalls, so I am happy with my choice to get the bypass. Since the surgery, I have a really strong sensation of restriction, next to no hunger, food aversions (sweet and fried foods) and I can taste things way more intensely. I can eat very small portions of junk foods like ice cream (1 or 2 tablespoons). Anything more than that and I just feel icky so I just avoid them. I lost my sugar cravings, which was the cause of my weight gain in the past. I hope those sugar cravings are gone for good because not having them will help a lot with maintenance. The only struggle so far, however, is dehydration. I have to be so focused every day on meeting my water goals. If I don't, I wake up in the middle of the night with the most awful dry mouth. Other than that, all is good.

Yesterday was the first day since surgery where I had a 'good' food day. Everything I ate was tolerated well. I got in my liquids. I had a nice diverse meal day...egg and greek yogurt with strawberries in the AM, chicken salad at lunch, homemade crab cake for dinner. Get on the scale this morning and up .8 of a pound. Really? Sooo frustrating because I had so many bad food days in the last 2 weeks during pureed and early soft food stages....learning about so many new intolerances (lactose being the biggest of them) and then I have a great food day and...weight gain.

Thanks for the support. Today I am 7months pregnant and she is doing well. She is over 2.5lbs and kicking lol. When I went to take my glucose test today they say I lost 7lbs since a month ago. I continue to eat but not as much especially with the heart burn. I take in small portions and sometimes I don't even have a appetite but I force myself to eat to get nutrition. I must admit I do look in the mirror at times and am thankful to be able to have a child but also in the back of my mind I worry about my weight gain. To date I have gained about 18lbs which is probably all baby. I do plan on working hard to get back down after the baby is born because I have many clothing to get back into and I enjoy not being so winded when walking and I want to be able to play with my daughter without feeling sluggish. Blood pressure has been good as well as the remainder of the pregnancy. I look forward to one day lying on my stomach Lol. Thanks again

Sounds like we are all going through the same thing. I am sitting here feeling really bloated... I am amazed at how much I have been able to fit in in the last 2 days. I went for a long walk today and will continue to do so in the next week just to keep the weight gain at bay. Good luck everyone with getting back on track.

I decided to go back on BC pills and not have another mirena. I think that was a factor in my weight gain after my pregnancy.

That's interesting that you both brought up Thyroid issues. I actually have a condition called Hoshimotos Thyroiditis which is basically a disease where my thyroid gets attacked by antibodies until the thyroid doesn't function at anymore. And they won't treat me for it unless they catch it when it's low. It's described as a lightbulb going out sometime it flickers on and off but eventually it goes off. Anyway all of the doctor's I've talked to seem to think that an underactive thyroid maybe causes 15 pounds weight gain at the most. I'm not sure I believe it but at the same time it never had any bearing as to whether I'd get the surgery or not. Regardless of my thyroid, I know that 4 pregnancies and eating too much are the culprits for my weight gain.The problem is is that I NEVER feel full and when I have tried to restrict portion sizes I feel like I'm starving, then I'm just cranky and mean, so I'm excited to finally have it done and feel full for once. My husband and my step mom have both had it done. My husband lost about 100 pounds in the first year. He hasn't lost much since but he's not good about getting his fiils, doesn't exercize and drinks soda and water with his meals. I know he would have lost more if he'd continued doing it. Anyway, Dr. Alldredge said that on average patients that he's seen lose about 50% percent of their extra weight. I decided that even if that was the case with me I'd be happy with that. Also, I think that if someone has an underactive thyroid and they think that it is the only reason they are overweight then I can see why they wouldn't get the surgery. But if someone also has clear food issues and it's possible thats the main reason that they are overweight then I don't see how having a low thyroid would make a difference. Anyway, thanks for your responses. It's great to see the progress you are all making!

Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome I was just wondering if there's any other women out there that have this? I have it and due to it I don't ovulate at all and I have darkening of my skin on my neck and armpits and around my waist line. I'm just wondering if this all changes after having the band and losing the weight. Symptoms of this are: infrequent menstrual periods, no menstrual periods, and/or irregular bleeding infertility or inability to get pregnant because of not ovulating increased growth of hair on the face, chest, stomach, back, thumbs, or toes acne, oily skin, or dandruff pelvic pain weight gain or obesity, usually carrying extra weight around the waist type 2 diabetes high cholesterol high blood pressure male-pattern baldness or thinning hair patches of thickened and dark brown or black skin on the neck, arms, breasts, or thighs skin tags, or tiny excess flaps of skin in the armpits or neck area sleep apnea―excessive snoring and breathing stops at times while asleep I'm sorry if this is a reaccuring topic. I didn't see anything about it. Does having this make it harder to lose the weight even with lap band? Any insight would be great. Thanks!

!!! 5 2.5 (they left my shoes on :thumbup:) 215.5 BMI just under 40 with the .5 on my height. should have flattened my hair Went to nurtition vist. After tracking 6 mths of food intake - it was determined I DO NOT eat enough. They recommended I stop gluten foods to calm the gut down. Great more food to cut out. Then exercise for 1 hour a day to burn 500 cal. I can barely walk up stairs let alone work out that much. My knees will fall apart! So - I can do the diet (again). Try to get more activity in (again) Then they added - so what do you hope to accomplish with this surgery - you don't eat much now and afterwards you will be eating less. WOW! That caught my ear. What do I hope to accomplish....I said to not fall into my genetic pattern of obesity and not not wait until I am 50 more pounds overweight to be pro-activly seeking help to stop this weight gain. Does this scream 'You are not big enough to have this surgery' or worse - you could be thinner if you only.......ate more........worked out more..........tried more....... I have gained 50 pounds in 10 years. The more I carry the less I CAN do. I used to work out 4-5 x a week. I am really concerned this is going to backfire on me. See Dr. 6/15

Hey West Houston folks. I was banded 8-2-06 by Dr. Spivak who was wonderful. I am 65 pounds down with about 20 to go and I feel fantastic. Went from a sendentary lifestyle to exercising 3-5 times per week. Little to no hunger pains, little weight gain and easy to lose. Go for it!

Dear Jim and carolinagirl, you both are such inspirations! I lost 100 lbs, and have had troubles maintaining it. Both of you have had amazing weightlosses, and I am so impressed! I have had a recent fill, and am trying to lose the weight gained over the last 2 years after losing my 100 lbs and having a revision. I lost momentum, but now feeling back on track. I have a snacking problem, folks reading this, beware for sliders, they will take over and catch up to you! Congrats to you newbies, and my two heroes!

Me too! Oct 15th. Very nervous. Hoping I made the right decision for getting the sleeve over the bypass. I've been reading about people who are struggling with weight gain after a few years with the sleeve and that makes me nervous. Maybe everything makes me nervous at this point. LOL. Excited though. I'd just like it to be done already so maybe I can quit stressing. Can't wait to hear how our Oct group progresses. This is an exciting journey we are undertaking. I admire you all for your courage.

I think I have made the decision to get a sleeve. I was leaning toward a Lap Band because I don't like the thought of making permanent changes to my stomach. After reading into it, I'm not sure that will work for me and am leaning towards the sleeve. I have my first appointment with a surgeon set up for April 25th. In high school I started to gain weight and by my early 20's was 350 pounds. I lost over 100 pounds and was down to 240 by age 22. My gallbladder gave out and I had that removed. The weight gain started slowly there after. By the time I was 30, I weighed 470 pounds. Not only did I gain the 100 back, I gained an additional 100. I started to lose again but it seemed much harder at 30 than it was at 20. The weight didn't come off as fast as it did and it seemed like I had a harder time controlling my appetite. I did lose 50 pounds and was down to 420 but gained 30 back and am at 450. Now 31, I'm already developing high blood pressure, sleep apnea, and gout. No sense putting it off. I'm wondering how the sleeve will work for me. I can eat a meal, a fairly large meal, and feel full but in about 30 minutes I'm ready to go again. It's my understand that the sleeve will simply not allow you to overeat or else it will cause you to vomit. Does the full feeling last more than 30 minutes? How many calories does one typically eat? I at times struggled to stay at 2,000 calories because I didn't feel full or sustained. I have made some lifestyle changes. The problem is, I can eat a piece of fruit and that isn't enough. I eat a Protein bar but then go back for another one or a 3rd. I would love to be able to eat one Protein Bar or a banana and feel satisfied.

You said "almost" all the Fluid taken out. So you still have some in, yes? If so, then it sounds like you still need to have more removed. Keep in mind there are people that do great with a completely empty band. It's all dependent on your anatomy and how the band fits around your stomach. I would definitely follow up with your doctor. You need to be able to eat healthy "real" foods or you risk running into soft calorie syndrome- eating soft slider foods that go down easy- usually resulting in weight gain. Best wishes

i went through stages. 1st month: looking or thinking about food and eating made me sick. i was like REPULSED. month 2-3: didnt want to eat (but no longer REPULSED) though i forced myself to eat because i was getting weak. i had a very strong restriction so wasn't able to eat much anyway. month 4-7: there would be days that i wanted to eat and days that i didn't. i stopped forcing myself to eat on no-hungry days at this point and just ate when i wanted to because i started to develop this thing where i felt like eating was WORK and i didn't like that. my restriction was still doing its job though, so i still couldn't eat much anyway. month 7-12: struggled to up my calories to ease into maintenance and i think my not-wanting-to-eat phases during this time period had more to do with a mental block than anything else. i had a bit of a time when i had a challenge "allowing" myself to eat higher calorie foods and carbs, ha. fear of weight gain and all that. though in hindsight i needn't have worried, as my restriction kept me in check. 1 year and onwards: i still get the odd don't-want-to-eat or oops-i-forgot-to-eat days here and there. not as often and regluar as before, but they show up every once in a while. i don't sweat it, as i know there will be hungry days too. my restriction is still very much in play, even at 5 years out, and i have learned over the years what foods and what amounts i can consume before i hit my full mark. i was/am a regular food tracker so its second nature. i tend to only eat things that i really want because, why fill my valuable limited real estate with something meh? luckily the list of things i want does not comprise of just junk. while i do enjoy a bite of dessert and a bowl of chips, i love me a salad just as much. though personally, my fave kind of meal is when there are an abundance of different things to take a bite or two of (like hors d'ourves at a cocktail party, or a tasting menu, or dim sum/tapas/izakaya, or when i go to a restaurant with a large group and get to have a bit of everyone's meal!) anyway, i think i may have gone on a tangent there, lol. but yeah, you are not the only one that gets the food aversions, and while you will get differing advice on this topic, i would say go what works for you. if you are getting worsening physical symptoms from not eating, or if your labs are not coming back satisfactorily, of course, please speak to a medical professional. otherwise, if you are losing weight, AND suffer little to no angst, then in my non-medical opinion, you're golden.