No losses :(

[bandedbunny 2]

Hiya all! Thanks so much for everyone responding to my last post on gas pain! It really helped and thank goodness...I'm 12 days post-op and that pain is gone.

Now I have a new concern....I'm hungry all the time...not losing weight, eating only Soup and Water, and no longer feel like I've even had surgery at all. There's no restriction, I'm starved, but even though my max calories are 900 a day, there's just no scale movement. It's miserable and I wonder if people really lose a lot of weight in these first weeks before the first fill?

I already feel a bit of a failure as I had wanted to feel a bit more satiated. Am I doing something wrong?

Thanks guys xx

[KarenWB 20]

I've hardly lost anything since my surgery and am discouraged. I've had two fills. I lost about 35 lbs before surgery. Am down 48 lbs now and it is four months post surgery. I expected to lose much more than that by now. It seemed to slow my weight loss for some odd reason. Before surgery I stopped eating bread and the weight was falling off. Now I don't eat bread still but am also restricted on what and how much I can eat and it is VERY slow going.

[HealthyNewMe 1,935]

First, many people do not lose AT ALL the first few weeks after surgery (others do lose from the beginning). I think a big problem with most people is that they expect quick weight loss. The fact is, a good weight loss is one to two pounds a WEEK, not a day!!!!!! So, if a person loses between 4 to 8 pounds a MONTH, they are doing well. SUCKS, right???? I chose a different route along the last two years. I chose not to weigh but once a month...... I have seen anywhere from a three pound to nine pound weight loss each month. I do not get on the scale daily (my choice). Others get on the scale daily. It depends on what you can handle. Can you handle not seeing the number change on a daily basis? Can you handle a pound or two gain due to Water retention? I could not, so I decided to give up weighing daily. As I'm sure you have read, there is a period after lap band surgery and before getting enough fills to get in the GREEN ZONE. Many people experience little or no weight loss, hunger, and no restriction. Why on earth doctors and nurses don't explain this to banded people, I have no clue. My doctor and nurse practioner did explain that to me...... BEFORE MY SURGERY. So, I knew what to expect. It can be frustrating, but the band is not a magical fix. It works for those that work with it, and your total weight loss will NOT happen overnight, over a week, over a month, and in some cases over a year. Thus, you read about the weight loss as a JOURNEY. There are ups, downs, curves, flat plateaus , slips, and slides along that journey. Enjoy the journey. Log calories. Excercise. Make good food choices. It will work. It will work. It will work. Best wishes on YOUR JOURNEY.

[B-52 7,113]

Hiya all! Thanks so much for everyone responding to my last post on gas pain! It really helped and thank goodness...I'm 12 days post-op and that pain is gone.

Now I have a new concern....I'm hungry all the time...not losing weight, eating only Soup and Water, and no longer feel like I've even had surgery at all. There's no restriction, I'm starved, but even though my max calories are 900 a day, there's just no scale movement. It's miserable and I wonder if people really lose a lot of weight in these first weeks before the first fill?

I already feel a bit of a failure as I had wanted to feel a bit more satiated. Am I doing something wrong?

Thanks guys xx

I gained AFTER my first fill......for many, just because you had the band installed, does not anything until you start the process of getting it adjusted just right to suit you and your weight loss....

Took me months of aggravation, feelings of failure, etc.....

Fortunately I have a Dr. that took the time to explain things to me....he even laughed when I gained weight after my fill....

[2muchfun 8,927]

Having band surgery is just the beginning. Your weight loss journey won't start till you get the fill or fills you need to feel restriction/satiety. Until this happens, it's just another diet.

Your stoma is wide open so you can still eat as before. Your hunger will not go away till you get enough fills to take you to the yellow-green zone.

[missyb10 21]

I had my surgery June 7 and I've lost 35 lbs total. But that's from may 22 til now. I am still hungry and just like the above post stated, right now it's just a diet. It is a real struggle right now, but I log my calories and exercise. But it is absolutely a conscious effort to eat healthy and not go out and blow it!!! Hang in there, they say the first 6 weeks is healing!!!

[AllisonKara 46]

I think it depends on the body type.Sometimes It is not sure that your body starts to lose weight immediately after you have had your lapband because different body types react differently after the surgery.Therefore I would suggest that you should wait a while and then decide weather the surgery has helped you or not and if it has not, then what steps can you take to get the desired weight loss.

[bandedbunny 2]

Yes, you're all right. I guess I just wanted to see faster losses than what I've had. I shall be patient and keep going strong!

Tonight I had my first "soft foods" and also my first terrible stuck moment. It was like a terrible pain in my chest like someone using sandpaper on the inside. I didn't drink Water, just waited for it to pass....is that normal to feel like that? Is that the "full" feeling I will feel with restriction, or is that a bad feeling because I ate too fast?

Anyone know?? Xx

[2muchfun 8,927]

That is a stuck episode and you might want to slow down your eating or eat smaller. I assume if it was soft foods, chewing isn't a problem?

Eating too fast is very common and I speak from experience still to this day and I'm 2.5 years out.

[bandedbunny 2]

Thanks so much... I think I'll have to take it slower then!

[Bandista 7,466]

@@bandedbunny you are on your way, going through the steps we all had to learn on our own. These early days are about healing and learning to listen to your body's signals. This can be so hard. I was a Bolter -- very fast eater. So I had to really work at slowing down and for me that took time and some stuck episodes as you have just experienced. I did some practicing with the clock to teach myself to put my utensil down, etc. I was so resistant to that, lol. So I'd watch the clock hands go around a full minute before another tiny bite and try to tune into my body. Now it just comes naturally -- I can tell what's right for me food wise and when I've had enough. It's not hard to stop and to me this is a Miracle. It really does work but it takes time in these first months. Don't worry about the scale right now. It will move and you'll be surprised. The real goal right now is to get the appetite monster off your back. The band is installed and as you go through the stages to assess for fills with your doctor your appetite will be dimmed and you will be able to make good choices. You will get there!