Is it worth it?

[lindsayb 0]

When I was banded, on 6/5/09, I was at my highest weight ever, 212. Now, a year later, I'm at 190.5.

It took me 10 months to get to a satisifed level of restriction in my band.

Now my weight is hardly budging, despite reducing what I'm eating. I don't always make the right choices, but sometimes I do. Exercise comes and goes, right now I'm not exercising.

I went into the surgery with a weight loss goal of 60 pounds. As it never seems to get any closer (21.5 lbs in a year??!!), I'm really beginning to wonder if this is even worth it.

Right now, I'm basically using the band to help me not gain weight, or at least not gain much weight, and am still having trouble learning how to eat.

I've been eating on my own for 20+ years, and trying to learn how to re-eat is incredibly stressful.

Does anyone else feel the same way as me? My nutritionist is on maternity leave, so the girl that has taken her place is just not nearly as good as the one I was used to. Granted, she does a great job sounding like a text book, but I left my most recent appointment (Thursday) feeling even more upset. The exercise physiologist helped some, but with having to make up some missed time at work, I'm finding it hard to exercise.

I'm having a lot of trouble with this defeatist attitude - throwing up 50% chance at meals/not losing weight/makes me not want to exercise.

Can anyone help me? This is the hardes thing I've ever done in my life and I just don't know if its worth it at all.

[vlp1968 83]

I am sorry you are having such a hard time. Sounds like you are in a tough place. I deffinately reccomend to excersise regularly. It will make all the difference in your mood, weight loss and hunger. I know when I workout I tend to make healthier food choices. The 2 seem to go hand in hand. Of course working out will help spur some weight loss. Start out slow and gradually increase your intensity and/or duration.

Making the right food choices is tough. I suggest you only keep foods that are on your eating plan in the house. Talk with others you might live with. Hopefully you can gain their support. Maybe they can enjoy the treats they want out of the house, at least for a while.

Remember why you had the surgery in the first place. Probably most of all, to be healthier. Hopefully your regular nut. will be back soon. She is a great resource. Knowledge is a huge part of winning the battle against excess weight. Keep us posted on how your doing! Best wishes!

[MarilynJ6354 5]

Do you track your food intake to see how much fat and sugar you are actually taking in? I use Livestrong.com. Even though I am on 1200 calories a day or less, there are days I am eating more fat than I should so I really pay attention to that. The biggest success for me is exercising at the gym 3-5 days a week. I even work out when I travel for work. I joined planet fitness and it is only $10 a month. I pay $20 a month so I can go to any gym in any city. I went on vacation a few weeks ago and still managed to get to the gym a few times and track my food and exercise. You need to take control and not think of this as a quick fix, because it isn't. I get frustrated many times that my weight loss has slowed down, but my inches are showing to everyone and my clothes go down a size every other month. Hang in there and take control!

[Catherine55 43]

Hi -- I am sorry you're having a tough time and hope it gets better soon! On the bright side, you are down 21 pounds and (if you're like me) if you weren't banded, you might be up from your highest weight by now.

Getting to good restriction should be a huge help, but it sounds like you are PBing too much. I wonder if you are too tight. I liked the suggestion to journal your food -- and definitely exercising regularly is a HUGE help. Some bandsters even join Weight Watchers to help with tracking and food choices -- maybe think about whether that would work for you (you could even do it on-line if you want).

Today could be a new beginning for you with your band. Think about this as an opportunity to start again, get serious about journaling your food until you feel on top of it, and recommit to exercise.

I know that this stuff isn't easy, but it is worth the effort and the band really does work well when you follow the rules the majority of the time. Is there a support group you can join through your Dr's office or otherwise? I'm sorry that it doesn't sound like you are getting the support you need there.

Maybe think about starting a blog about your band experience. That has been a huge help to me and a great source of support. It might help you to keep on track really well and to get good advice and support from other bandsters.

Hang in there!

Best wishes for your success,

Catherine

[emjay 8]

Lindsay B - I read your post a couple of times. You "sometimes" make the right food choices and right now you are not exercising. Those are the signals to me that you need to get in the right frame of mind. Very difficult to do. I struggle with that also.

As Catherine said, you do sound like you're too tight. If it is a crapshoot as to whether or not you're able to keep food down, then you're either eating too fast, eating foods that may be "difficult" for the band, eating too much, or are too tight. If you are eating things that just go down easy, that isn't good either because they tend to be slider foods of little nutritional value or don't stay in your pouch long enough to keep you satisfied.

Your attitude can affect so many things, especially when you are not seeing the results as quick as others. Please don't compare yourself to others. Do what works for you. You may want to do the 5 day pouch test to jumpstart things along. It can also help to keep you from snacking.

Being too tight can set you up for so many unnecessary complications. Please consider a slight unfill (.05 cc or .1 cc) to see if that helps with your pbing. The tiniest bit can make a world of difference. It doesn't make you eat more, just helps make it go down more comfortable and makes eating less a chore.

Best of luck to you.

[dallen 0]

When I was banded, on 6/5/09, I was at my highest weight ever, 212. Now, a year later, I'm at 190.5.

It took me 10 months to get to a satisifed level of restriction in my band.

Now my weight is hardly budging, despite reducing what I'm eating. I don't always make the right choices, but sometimes I do. Exercise comes and goes, right now I'm not exercising.

I went into the surgery with a weight loss goal of 60 pounds. As it never seems to get any closer (21.5 lbs in a year??!!), I'm really beginning to wonder if this is even worth it.

Right now, I'm basically using the band to help me not gain weight, or at least not gain much weight, and am still having trouble learning how to eat.

I've been eating on my own for 20+ years, and trying to learn how to re-eat is incredibly stressful.

Does anyone else feel the same way as me? My nutritionist is on maternity leave, so the girl that has taken her place is just not nearly as good as the one I was used to. Granted, she does a great job sounding like a text book, but I left my most recent appointment (Thursday) feeling even more upset. The exercise physiologist helped some, but with having to make up some missed time at work, I'm finding it hard to exercise.

I'm having a lot of trouble with this defeatist attitude - throwing up 50% chance at meals/not losing weight/makes me not want to exercise.

Can anyone help me? This is the hardes thing I've ever done in my life and I just don't know if its worth it at all.

Hi-

I can't offer much advice because I was just banded on 6/3/10, I can say that in everything that I have read and everything that I was told in the support meetings and in all of my meetings with my surgeon they stress exercise and eating healthy.

This was a hard decision for me to make and even though I am hurting and I want to eat food the way that I am staying focused even during pre opt is that I keep reminding myself of why I am doing this. For my health and for my family. Also I would tell you to remember that your weight did not accumulate overnight so it will take some time and some attitude changes toward food to make this work.

Exercise is anything that you are doing to pump up your heart rate. The last month I have been unable to get to the gym do to family and work obligations but I get up in the morning and do the exercises with the tv....early mornings they have all types of aerobic workouts on. Maybe you can try that.

Don't give up and don't be so hard on yourself. We are all in this together. Good luck and God bless :tongue2:

[khunt719 2]

I ask myself that question all the time. I was banded 9-28-09 and I have lost 15 lbs. I must admit I am my biggest sabotager and I wasn't using the band as a tool, I was just expecting the weight to come off after I got and that didn't happen. I try to watch my exercise, my Protein intake, my eating routine, my journaling...All of it isn't helping. I know it takes time but how much time???? I would think 9 months would be time enough. My mother had the band done in Mexico and lost 140 lbs in a year and a half without exercising. I can't even lose 20? My gosh what am I doing wrong? If you find the answer, let me know because this is very frustrating. My surgeon said to lose 1-3 lbs a month but there are people on here losing 10-15 lbs a month. I know we aren't supposed to compare but it is hard not to.

[jldchester 0]

I ask myself that question all the time. I was banded 9-28-09 and I have lost 15 lbs. I must admit I am my biggest sabotager and I wasn't using the band as a tool, I was just expecting the weight to come off after I got and that didn't happen. I try to watch my exercise, my Protein intake, my eating routine, my journaling...All of it isn't helping. I know it takes time but how much time???? I would think 9 months would be time enough. My mother had the band done in Mexico and lost 140 lbs in a year and a half without exercising. I can't even lose 20? My gosh what am I doing wrong? If you find the answer, let me know because this is very frustrating. My surgeon said to lose 1-3 lbs a month but there are people on here losing 10-15 lbs a month. I know we aren't supposed to compare but it is hard not to.

Couldn't have said it better. I go to the Dr. tomorrow, I hope another fill will do something. Very frustrating when I go get fills monthly and nothing happens. I feel something is just not right. :thumbup:

[sparklette 0]

I'm so sorry that you're feeling this way. I don't have any advice about fills/unfilling/refilling, etc. because I was recently banded on 6/1/10. I can offer you an AWESOME "healthy lifestyle" website FULL of informative information. The site has several "teams/groups" of individuals who have been banded. There are many, many, many other support groups for just about any situation/lifestyle/challenge you may have. For instance, if you suffer from high blood pressure, emotional eating, depression; or if you like P90X, The Firm Aerobic videos, or if you're a walker---there are support groups!! In addition to that there are many articles on various subjects regarding living a healthy lifestyle. Plus, there's a food tracker and a wealth of other info. OK, ok, what's the website. It's Free Diet Plans at SparkPeople. Check it out and if you decide to join, I think you won't regret it. You'll find so many others who are able to offer you encouragement and who can cheer you on to meet the goals you have set out for yourself. Remember sparkpeople.com. Check it out!!!!