Is a second chance possible?

[Lyndz421 0]

So, I have not visited these forums in a very long time. But I need some help from my fellow banders. This is my story.

I was banded in October 2009. Lost about 80 lbs and felt successful. Then decided to go back to college. My weight fluctuated, down 20 lbs and then up 20 lbs again like a yo-yo. Then this past summer I hit a wall where I couldn't eat anything, nothing stayed down for two weeks. I had to fly home from school and my Dr completely unfilled my band, since I lived 5 states away and wasn't able to come back to have it monitored, this was the best option until I graduated and came home.

Now here I am, 7 months later and 35 lbs heavier and feeling like a failure. My self control was not what I thought it was. Now, this Thursday I am getting my band filled to what it was before my un-fill and I already know I have to go and re-teach myself like the first time. liquid diet, mushy diet all over again. So my question is.. has anyone had a similar situation of basically starting completely over? Were your results as good as when you first were banded again, or was it a huge struggle for you? I'm very excited to lose weight again, it was so amazing the first time. I'm scared I can't do it again.

So what I am really wanting to know is if this happened to you, or you have been in the same situation as myself. How was the journey for you? Thank you everyone in advance.

[FLORIDAYS 3,040]

I have not had that experience but I cannot imagine why it would not work for you. If you follow all the portion rules and track your calories.... It will work. No different than any other diet you have been on. I know no one likes the DIET word but in my opinion you must follow a stict food plan to see a loss during the losing stage. I ate 3 oz protien, 1/2 c veggies and 1/4 c starch three times a day for a total of 1000 calories. Check with your dr to see what your calorie count needs to be.

Best of luck to you.

[2muchfun 8,927]

It will vary from patient to patient. If you have the want power you can make it happen. It's all about finding that spark that makes you want to feel good, feel healthier and look good too. No one but you will know what's in your heart and mind?

My advice would be to not put a lot of pressure on yourself until you can completely commit to it. Otherwise extenuating circumstances like school, illness, stress from family issues will cloud your judgement. If you can't commit to going 100% then maybe go 75% and try to maintain your current weight till you can really hit it. I'm speaking from personal experience now.

tmf

[Spaness2012 609]

I'm not sure I would throw the 'failure" word around so easily. You lost 80lbs.....and only gained 35 back. Honestly...in my opinion...still pretty good. Knowledge is power...you know why you gained the weight and what it will take to get it off. Your not starting over...just re-committing to the process. I bet you'll be fine!

Good luck~

[futureshrink 45]

Hi Lyndz,

So here's my story...I was first banded in August 2008. I dropped 100 pounds pretty quickly, but within a year, my band slipped. The surgeon unfilled my band for the several months before my second surgery and I promptly gained all the weight back. I have since dropped the 100 pounds again, but haven't really lost a lot recently. I felt so angry and stupid when I gained all the weight back. I remember being in the mindset of "Wow that's a lot of food" before my band slipped...and then when it was unfilled, thinking..."I haven't had a hotdog in over a year...oh boy!" If I had self control issues, I wouldn't have needed the band in the first place, right???

It's been 2 years since my last band surgery. I am back in the mindset of how much food is too much...and being careful about how much I eat. One of my biggest problems is not eating enough, particularly in the mornings and getting myself to the gym regularly.

I think it is easy to feel bad and feel like a failure. I sure did. But it's like any addiction...take it one day at a time. Last night I was missing my family...and most of us have that love hate relationship with food...so I ate 4 Cookies before bed...and was coughing all night due to reflux and throwing up this morning...ick. I knew that would likely happen and it did. Everyone and their uncle can give you advice about how to do it correctly or better, but we are all in a crapshoot. Our metabolisms differ, our ages, our activity levels, what we like to eat, how willing we are to work with the band or how easy it is to "trick" the band, how honest we are about our fills with our doctors, how much support we have.

Judging from being on this website, we are all in the same boat. Some more successful, some taking their time, some needing a kick in the ass now and then...seriously, the gym is 2 BLOCKS away!!! The only advice I am going to give you is, be gentle with yourself and start again tomorrow and take it one day at a time. Focus on your successes and ask for help when you are struggling.

Take care,

Chris

[FutureVet 1]

Hi!

I have had a similar experience. I was banded in February of 2009. I did great and lost about 65 pounds in a year. But everything changed when I was accepted into grad school in a new state. I was on the wait list and didn't expect to get in and I was called up about a week or so before school started. A couple of days after I got the call, I was unable to keep anything down, even liquids. They would just sit in my pouch and sometimes I would vomit hours later. I think it was a mixture of stress and poor eating choices that caused me problems. Anyway, I went to my surgeon right before I left to move and he said my pouch was dilated. He unfilled me and told me to come back in 4-6 weeks. But I couldn't since I was in school and was unable to make the 8 hr drive home. I go to school in a really small town so there aren't any lapband surgeons. I finally found a Dr. about an hour away and was able to get some saline put back in. It had been about 4 months since my unfill and I had gained back about 35 pounds. I was embarrassed and felt like a complete failure. I had restriction but I fell back into bad habits. School was extremely stressful and I didn't take the time to eat or drink so I would end up having one big meal. I would also go out with friends to study and eat fast food since we were in a hurry. I didn't listen to my body and lived like this for about a year and a half. I would vomit and would have constant acid reflux. It got to the point where I couldn't sleep because I was coughing and gagging and food even came out my nose. I was so afraid to go back to my Dr. because I was so embarrassed that food had this much control over me. I began to see a psychiatrist and was put on some new medication for depression and I realized how much danger I was putting myself in. This was during finals so I couldn't see the Dr out of town. I was in a lot of pain and was extremely weak and dehydrated. I was tired of feeling like this so I called everywhere in town to see if anyone could help me. I couldn't find anyone. My friend was so worried about me that she took me to the ER. They said they couldn't do anything for me either. Over the Christmas holidays, I finally was able to see my surgeon. I was so scared and worried that I had done permanent damage to my body.

I am extremely lucky. My pouch was dilated and I may have had a slight slip. Everything else looked ok. All of the fill was taken out and I will be going back during spring break when I go home. I didn't realize how bad I felt physically until I was able to eat and drink again. My family constantly tells me how much better I look. I feel great. But, I'm hungry a lot and I'm struggling to stay on track. I have to believe that if we really try and give 100% that a second chance is possible.

Some things that have been helping me is reading these message boards and thinking about why I originally got the surgery. I also think a lot about my health now. I HAVE to give this 100%.

I really think you can do it and so can others. I think it's a big step to admit that you slipped and are trying to get yourself back on track. That was the hardest part for me. It's easier to just keep bad habits and ignore the bigger picture. I wish you the best of luck. We can do this!

[PattyGirl66 1,243]

Hello Lyndz,

I first want to say to you personally that there is NO such thing as failure. Failure in my book is when you give up! You are here and back and the one thing you never want to do is give up on yourself.

I had this conversation with my surgeon weeks ago.... I asked him about how many patients that he knows off the top of his head that needed no fills and got to their goals. He said two. However those two over time put back on half of their weight. I looked at him and said really, do you know why? He seriously looked me dead in the face, and said ' things happen' life sometimes takes a wrong turn in peoples lives", "the main thing is they are back on track and losing again".

My surgeon is the best! He gets it, he really understands us! I don't have a hypocrite for a surgeon, I have a REAL human being for one!