Slow Losers - Unite!

[Analoren 2]

im nOt a Slow looooser. im a LOSER!!!!

[hcinicolo 0]

Why would you say that? You have been doing great. Sure, it never goes as fast as we want but it never will in life. What is the hurry anyway? Is there an occasion you want to fit into a dress by?

I went for an esophogram today and thankfully the band did not slip again. I gained 3 lbs. since last week though and had my appetite back to strong. He tightened me a bit and now I am quite unable to eat or drink for that matter. I am down to my last 20lbs, don't know how to convert that to kilos. I always feel for some reason that I am not really a member of the not fatty club. If I happen to lose weight I am just a guest there. I still cannot picture myself as permenantly normal. Perhaps that is why I sabotage myself with food I know I can't and should not eat. I almost feel as though I am just visiting this thin place anyway, so does it really matter how long I stay? I know that sounds bizzarre but I just realized that today. What I think I have to do is change my self perception and expectations of who I am. I do, as do we all have a right to be a lifetime member in good standing of this normal and thin club. What my head knows that my body has yet to internalize is that the Carvel store will still be there tommorrow, so I don't need to stuff my face and overdo it today. Savoring the moment is something to strive for.

[sweet1 0]

:cry Hi...Good Morning I'm a new comer to all of this.

I was banded on 6/30/06 approx.10 wks ago and I have only lost 8lbs.

I had my first fill on 8/24/06 3.5cc(everything was in tact)and do not feel any restriction- can anyone tell me why I'm losing at such a slow pace? Is this normal...I'm eating right(small portions),don't have thyroids,stay away from soft drinks, and I walk 1.5-2 miles every other day- any suggestions?

26yrs old

Starting weight 207lbs

Now-199lbs

Very Confused....HELP:confused:

[marys 2]

Hi Sweet

You really don't start counting your weight loss until after your first fill as most don't have much restriction once the swelling goes down. Also, do you have the larger VG band, and how much did they put in? The larger bands take a few more fills to get to a good level of restriction and even the smaller bands sometimes take several fills to get the right level. I"m going for my fourth soon and i think i'm close! Another thing, on my last fill - i didn't feel any restrictions until after two weeks - the first week i could eat a lot, and while i had heard others say, relax, wait, it takes a while to 'kick' in - i had not experienced that. Walking is also TERRIFIC but if you are strolling you might try hoofing it up a bit - get a little sweat going and breathing a bit harder or just time how long it takes you to walk and try cutting a few minutes off of that time every few days or week or so. Believe me I am losing slow as a turtle but it is losing and if we are losing we are winners. Keep a food diary to make sure you aren't snacking grazing during the day, up your exercise just a tad and wait one month - if you still aren't losing check with doc about maybe another small fill. hang in there - we are all with you. mary

[sweet1 0]

Hi Sweet

You really don't start counting your weight loss until after your first fill as most don't have much restriction once the swelling goes down. Also, do you have the larger VG band, and how much did they put in? The larger bands take a few more fills to get to a good level of restriction and even the smaller bands sometimes take several fills to get the right level. I"m going for my fourth soon and i think i'm close! Another thing, on my last fill - i didn't feel any restrictions until after two weeks - the first week i could eat a lot, and while i had heard others say, relax, wait, it takes a while to 'kick' in - i had not experienced that. Walking is also TERRIFIC but if you are strolling you might try hoofing it up a bit - get a little sweat going and breathing a bit harder or just time how long it takes you to walk and try cutting a few minutes off of that time every few days or week or so. Believe me I am losing slow as a turtle but it is losing and if we are losing we are winners. Keep a food diary to make sure you aren't snacking grazing during the day, up your exercise just a tad and wait one month - if you still aren't losing check with doc about maybe another small fill. hang in there - we are all with you. mary

mary thank you for the support and if you don't mind me asking is it 19lbs pounds total that you have lost in nearly one year?I realize that everyone's body is different but how can someone at or around the same weight and age as me lose 20-30 lbs in less time ? Thanks again for your support. erika:)

[marys 2]

Yes that is my total weight loss and i'm even embarrassed to say that 19 was at my lowest right before my unfill - i'm even up 4 lbs BUT i refuse to feel bad about it. I had a huge breakthrough with figuring out what full now means - just satisfied which is a helluva lot less than my definition of full - and that took me almost 1 year to figure out. i think it result in the scale moving now too. I also started training for 1/2 marathon and i am runing 4 times a week (albeit slowly with heavy breathing) and doing weight training again - i know my body shape will change and firm up. so i am hopeful again.

My guy constantly tells me to keep in mind the positives of the behavior changes, slow wins the race, its better than gaining, take the long term perspective etc etc etc. it can be maddening at times but he is right. To answer your question I just dont know - all i can say is everyone of us is different even if our age and weight is the same - it probably has to do with stuff like history of dieting, weight loss and gain history, metabolism, bone structure, and all sorts of things. focus on the bandster 'rules' - eating three high Protein small meals a day with 1-2 healthy high Protein Snacks, drink tons of Water, watch snacking and exercise so that you are breathing hard (but can still talk!) and it's bound to work - maybe slowly - but will work.

[Banded14yr 2]

:cry Hi...Good Morning I'm a new comer to all of this.

I was banded on 6/30/06 approx.10 wks ago and I have only lost 8lbs.

I had my first fill on 8/24/06 3.5cc(everything was in tact)and do not feel any restriction- can anyone tell me why I'm losing at such a slow pace? Is this normal...I'm eating right(small portions),don't have thyroids,stay away from soft drinks, and I walk 1.5-2 miles every other day- any suggestions?

26yrs old

Starting weight 207lbs

Now-199lbs

Very Confused....HELP:confused:

Sweet,

It sounds like you just need another fill. Are you able to get your fills locally? If so, did the doctor use Flouroscopy?

If you have the Swedish Band it holds more saline than the Inamed band. My first fill was 5cc's..... I'm at at a perfect fill level at 6.4 - but everyone is different. If you don't feel any restriction or if you feel like you can still eat too much, start thinking about scheduling another fill. It might take 3-4 fills to get you to your sweet spot so hang in there!

[carol134 0]

Hi everyone I have a question on getting another fill...I am absolutely getting everything I eat stuck so hesitate to eat at all. I'm not feeling full just scared to eat. I have a VG 11cc band and surgery on June 7th have lost about 25 pounds but not nothing in the last 2 or 3 weeks. Any suggestions? Thanks in advance

[vinesqueen 2]

Carol if you cannot eat now, then you DO NOT need another fill. No, no, no. It sounds like you are too tight now.

Your loss so far is quite good. Have you noticed your inches decreasing? It's just as important to track your inches as it is to track what the scale says. Many people lose, then compact, then lose, then compact, over and over.

[tolmc 0]

Hi, I'm in Australia so I am not sure you want me in. I was banded in April and have lost NO WEIGHT so I think I qualify. I didnt lose weight on the Optifast stage. Very frustrated. Oh well, tipping this will past.

[Tootarts 0]

Dear Tolmc,

Welcome to America.............

Do you know what size band you have? Also have you had a fill yet? I must admit loosing nothing doesn't sound good at all!

Do you feel any restriction? Maybe theres something wrong with the band? Sorry for all the questions.........

[tolmc 0]

Hi Tootarts,

No probs on the questions, thanks for showing an interest. I have the 11ml band. I have had 5 fills and have about 5.5 in. I say about as the surgeon wasnt sure if 2mls went in or not so he added another 2mls. I may have 7.5mls. He was going to check it at a later appointment.

I feel hungry but I do have some restriction, normally the standand foods like bread, rice. etc. I have a lot more trouble with good foods. I have some taken out during the 5 adjustments as well. I am due for a fill next week, should be interesting.

As far as not wanting food until the next meal, ha. On the positive I have lost cms, which is great as I feel like I need proof I am not cheating this. The surgeon isnt concerned that I havent lost weight, he has had some patients who have taken a year to lose weight. That doesnt help. He just puts his hand on my shoulder and say 'at least you arent gaining'

I have pcos & it has to be interfering somehow. In fact, I have remained the same weight for 15yrs, except during pg's. So the not gaining comment wasnt too helpful either. When I started this journey I really thought I would be lighter by now. Disheartening.

So did I qualify for a slow losers - lol

Regards

Lisa

[vinesqueen 2]

Hi Lisa, man, I think I would have kicked him at the "at least you aren't gaining." I HATE that.

Ok, since you haven't lost anything with your band, it's time to start looking at other possible causes. Have you had a full work-up? Have you been to see an endocrinologist? It isn't normal or reasonable to not lose weight while folowing the bandster lifestyle

About 8 or 9 months into my band, and not losing, I started to demand answers. Discovered that I have a brain tumor that is preventing me from losing weight. The tumor is on my pituitary gland and has caused me to have Cushing's. Please do not let it go. Start demanding answers.

I firmly believe that all Turtles should start demanding answers if we are not losing weight with the band. DEMAND answers. If one doc can't help, then it is time to move on to the next one. Keep going until you get some action.

Cheers and Courage!

[tolmc 0]

I have a few thoughts when he said that. The previous appointment we had a yelling match as he wanted me to listen to what he was saying yet he wouldnt listen to me so I refused to listen until he did. It got to the stage when the nurse had to leave the room.

He told me I was still eating too much for my size. I explained (When he listened) that I have a bowl of Special K for Breakfast, salada's (dry crackers) for lunch and a small bowl of something for tea. He said it was too much so I put it to him where I had to cut something out. He got to the stage where he told me I had to skip meals. Well I did that for 2 days and then stopped thinking it was damn stupid

My dietitician agreed. Now I am hungry than I feel I have ever been, restriction is still there but my brain is soooo hungry. It's nice to have your body fighting with iteself.

I also tried to get metformin from the surgeon but he said he couldnt give it to me. I have an appointment with my GP to get a referral to go somewhere else. As I want answers. I also have an appt with the surgeon next week.

Thanks for the information, I will be on my Quest next week. In the meantime I think comfort food is calling. (Ohh, Mum had a brain tumor so I will be looking into lushings, to be honest I didnt know of it.)

Regards,

Lisa

[vinesqueen 2]

I think Lushings is where you drink too much...

Metformin is a powerful medication, and he was right to not just prescibe it. I was prescirbed it by one doc, and I only gained weight on it. 1-2 pounds a week gain. So I quit.

Oh no, no no no, not skipping meals!

Of course, one of the women on my Cushing's board had a doctor tell her that she needed to go on a zero calorie diet. He told her that she would have a difficult time the first couple of week or so, but then she would get used to not eating. That should could go for months without eating.

Lisa, check out the links in my signature. I know we have a few Cushies in AU so you might be able to find someone there you can talk to. Cushing's is rarely diagnoised.