HELP! I am gaining weight back!

[Roxy]

Hi Everybody.

This is my first post but I am desperate!

I got the surgery at the end of May 2007. I was at an all time high of 245 and lost 5 lbs on the pre-op diet.

I lost about 10 lbs. Then I had my first fill in July to 1.9/4.0 cc, and lost another 5 lbs.

As of the end August I had my 2nd fill to 2.4/4.0cc, and a little after that got down to 220.0-a loss of about another 5 lbs.

Not bad overall, a total of 25 pounds over 5 months and people were finally able to tell a little. BUT....

The last few weeks have been a nightmare with just eating! It seems the lap band restricts somethings on some days, and other days I can eat whatever I want. Some days I have ABSOLUTLEY NO restriction what so ever after the morning hours, and it feels like I am battling food just the same as I was before I even got the surgery...and not winning the battle. The band seems to work the first week or two I get home from a fill, then I can start eating a little more, each day, until I am back to eating normally again. Then I am on my own with diet and exercise, and I don't feel I have the extra TOOl of the lap band to help me at all.

I have regained 7 pounds in the last 3 weeks and I am really SCARED. I am scared that I am one of those people that the lap band IS NOT going to work for, and that in a few weeks I will be up to my old weight like I never got the band or spent the money for it! SCARED that I just wasted $8500 to be a failure on another lose-weight scheme.

Please be honest, is any one out there having the same problems with feeling that maybe this isn't working like they say it will? I have read posts on the internet about people that have lost up to 100 lbs. because they get sick when they eat too much and are FORCED to stop. I am NOT having that reaction more than a few days after the fill!

The last few months I have been following a diet and exercising (moderately I'll admit) to lose that 20 lbs, and I feel like the lap band HELPED, but it wasn't the WHOLE reason I was able to lose that weight. I watched what I ate! Every time I do get a fill, I AM forced to stop overeating, but it goes back to normal after a week or two. Somehow I doubt I can keep getting fills EVERY five pounds like I have been until I reach a 100 lbs. weight loss. That would be like 20 fills and impossible with only a 4.0 cc band.

I am frustrated because I KNOW what the doctors will say, that you have to eat right. DUH! I knew that before the surgery and from a life time of dieting, but my issue is that I eat TOO MUCH, even healthy foods, and that is where the lap band, I thought, was going to come in and help me. I KNOW HOW TO DIET, the idea behind getting the lap band was to STOP OVEREATING by being forced to eat smaller portions on those days I wanted to eat more and not diet.

I am back to old thoughts of SPENDING more money on weight watchers, diet pills, personal trainers...but to be honest, I don't have the money anymroe! Having this surgery was a HUGE step for me and I got a loan for it, I DON"T WANT to spend any more money, I felt like this was supposed to BE IT...THE ANSWER to help me get on my way. It has not been the answer i thought it was going to be. There are no fill centers near me, so I have to fly to Mexico and rent a car so each trip for a fill ends up costing about $300. That's a lot to spend for a 5 pound weight loss. I can't do that every 6 weeks!

Yes, I know that losing 20 lbs is a lot, but honestly, I HAVE done that in the past few years on my own with diet, SEVERAL TIMES, and it always stops after 20 lbs. because I start to overeat too many calories or stop the diet. I am at this point again, and gaining again, but I THOUGHT this time would be different, I thought it would be different because of the LAP BAND> I thought the lap band would force me to get to the next step of say, 25, or 30 pounds and more weight loss.

I feel like an absolute failure right now, especially because I think that I KNOW what people's reactions are when they see me (those that know about the lap band)....that its my fault I am not losing weight becuase I am still eating too much. WELL, DUH! That is why I got the lap band...to stop myself !!! And its not working. I am starting to get frustrated and more than that, EMBARRASSED to see the people who do know I got the surgery. I am not the poster-child for lap band weight loss I thought I was goign to be when I bragged to my close friends that I was doing this surgery to help me get over my usual lose 20 lbs, gain it back pattern. I feel desperate and extremely sad and a little mad that maybe, just maybe, I spent $8500 on somethign that was achievable with diet/exercise alone, since I have ONLY reached the same weight loss I reached with OUT the lap band and no more. I feel desperate and to be totally honest- I feel let-down and cheated.

HELP!!!!

[snowbird]

Sounds like you just need another fill. It's been a couple months since your last one, right? Some doctors are very conservative about fill amounts.

Don't panic; you probably just need your band adjusted. It can take a number of fills to hit your "sweet spot" and you just aren't there yet. It's not that you are getting fills for every five pounds you lose; it's that they haven't gotten to the right fill amount yet.

[kym828]

i know you know the rules and what you need to do and i know it is a hell of a lot easier to say than actually do... just a couple things might make the difference...

make sure you are not drinking at all with your meal and second, make sure you are eating super super slow like you are savoring every last little bite - take 40 mins to eat a meal instead of 20 mins but with the right size portion and smaller bites.

also, i know none of us want to do this, but you are going to have to count every single calorie you put in your mouth. 1200 calories a day has got to be it - no more no less.

last is the exercise, if you are eating 1200 calories a day and getting 30 to 40 mins of cardio it will slowly come off - its depressing i know but it is the truth that its like the turtle and the hare - slow and steady win the race.

finally, from personal experience, i lost 25 to 30 lbs in the first 5 to 7 months and then stalled until month 9 ... when i went to my family doctor he was very upset with me and that is when he put me on the strict 1200 calorie a day diet, made me start exercising consistantly and every single day and he also gave me a 60 day supply of Fastin (which is suppose to be the good part of phen/phen) i was upset at first because i spent $8500 to avoid having to take a food suppressint, but he told me that i had to relearn to eat and the best way to do that is to have no appetite while i become accustomed to eating like a small person. personally, i was fighting my band and pb'ing so much that i was afraid i would cause it to slip. i have since dropped another 26 lbs and i am finally starting to make the connection between how much food i need compared to what i want.

this is not the answer for everyone, but it did help me get over a plateau when i knew i didnt want to get another fill and PB more. i am not staying on the pills as they do lose their effectiveness after a month or two...so now it is back to me to do it on my own with the right band restriction, diet and exercise and yes, i did feel like i was cheating while i was on the pills!

[Clynn]

Yup, the fills are what makes the band work. If you're not having restriction then it is time to get tightened. Don't be concerned about comparing yourself to other people in regards to how many fills you have gotten or how much they have put in there. Some people get small fills every couple of months because that is what works for them.

[Kari]

I now exactly how you are feeling. I thought the band was going to be the magic potion that made me skinny. NOT!!! I wouldn't have to give up any of my favorite foods.....just eat less of them...NOT!!

I was banded back in July and so far, I've lost about 45 lbs. I have to admit though, that I am questioning the money spent for a band. Like I said, I've lost around 45 lbs but it has been all me. I've had two fills and another one scheduled for Friday. I am hoping I'll find my sweet spot soon cause this is getting old. I watch what I eat. (Yogurt and lean cusines) and I ride my excersize bike at least one hour a day, trying to increase everyday. I want to start feeling restriction and let the band do it's magic. I have to keep reminding myself that it is just a tool. Just a tool. Now, I'm counting on the fact that onceI hit goal, it will keep me from overeating and gaining back what I've lost. Don't know if that makes sense or not. But.............

[FurEllie]

Agree with the "You need another fill" posts. And remember, THIS IS ONLY A TOOL. I started putting on a few pounds when I found out how easily I could eat a chocolate bar or ice cream. DON'T BUY THE STUFF!! If it's in your house, you're going to eat it or else we wouldn't be in this situation

I just had a hysterectomy and oddly now have ZERO restriction. As soon as I feel like moving around I'm headed straight in for another fill. If I had any control over food then I wouldn't have forked out big $$$ for this. Hang tight - once you get the right amount of restriction you WILL lose the weight!!

[iatethelast1]

Hiiii.

Sometimes I've recently had my 2nd adjustment... over a year and a half... It just goes to show that everyone needs a different fill schedule. Also... i dont know this for a fact but it seems like something that is true.. if you eat more than you're supposed to.. couldn't the sack of stomach above the band stretch out just like the whole stomach could before surgery? I find even though i have this thing... if i eat more... to where i'm uncomfortable.. the next time i can eat more as well. I dunno. I've only done that once and i Reeaallllly try not to do that. Although i have no medical expertise, i felt normal again after taking care to eat extra small meals for a day or so. Then i felt like i was full after eating the right size meal.

[Heartwing]

Yeah, the same thing is happening to me! Some days I have a rough time eating almost anything and PB several times per day. Other days (late in the day...can never eat anything in the morning) I can eat almost anything. I'm not sure I need another fill and don't want to keep vomiting (tho I'm getting really good at it). I'm not exercising much because I've been busy and just got over bronchitis. I've lost around 25lbs since June 08....but have been the same weight for 3 months....then this a.m., noticed that I'd actually gain a bit and clothes feel a little tighter. Not sure what to do from here but have a call in to my doctor. :-?

[stormy]

I can understand what you are talking about. I have no restriction right now and it is alot of will power for me. I know that I need a fill. I am hoping that after my 2nd fill that I wont have to use so much will power. Try not to be upset, I think once you get restriction it will get better. What size is your band? How much fill do you have right now? I know how hard it is, dont give up. It really is worth your continuing to try and push forward. It will happen, dont give up. We will be here to support you. I would check with your dr to see if you need another fill.