KristyT

restriction is different for everyone but the lap band is not just about restriction. you could be in the green zone and still eat a box of cheeze its or an entire xl portion of a vegetable depending on how you eat it. if you chew chew chew and take your time then you can eat just about anything you want. and cheeze its and cooked vegetables always go down easier than meat or bread. you have to learn to utilize your restriction through proper eating and the techniques you were taught. you should not chew chew chew tiny tiny bites because this just allows you to eat more. you should not eat for more than 20 - 30 minutes, my surgeon says 20 minutes. if you are taking longer than 20 minutes to eat, you are out eating your band. you should choose foods that are more satisfying and stick with you longer like lean meats and things that will fill up your pouch. cheeze its and chips, ice creams and soggy foods go right down and restriction is no longer a tool when eating that stuff. i have great restriction but sometimes I dont use it the way i should. I know that i can eat an entire salad with dressing on it because it slides down but i also know that a half of piece of chicken will fill me up and my pouch will restrict the portion size unless i eat slider foods with it. i also know that if i drink when i eat i can eat more which again takes away from what my restriction is suppose to do. if i dont wait 30 minutes after i eat to drink liquids or drink with my meals im hungry way sooner than i would be if i dont drink. so get your rules out and follow them to see if you have true restriction. good luck to you.

im almost 7 months out and I have only lost 20 lbs, i get discouraged and frustrated but we need to realize that we are all different and we all lose weight differently. 48lbs is great, i lost 25 before surgery but only 20 since surgery, maybe there is something with a plateu after closing in on that 50 lb marker, keep your head up as i am trying to do myself and remember 48lbs is a small child that you are no longer carrying around. god bless and good luck

thank you all for the positive comments, i truly do believe that exercise is my downfall, I need to do something even if it is just walking for a bit a day. I just feel so frustrated because of reading how successful everyone is and no matter how you look at it , i still feel like a failure because my weight loss is so slow, today was my weigh in day and i lost 1 lb. guess that is better than nothing. I am going to try the walking and I have a swimming pool but cant use that right now, but i do remember last year when i was alot heavier that it was easy on my joints being in the pool, so i do have that to look forward to. thanks again for all the positive comments its good to know you can vent here and not be judged. god bless

I feel your pain, but to me you are doing great, I would love to see 30 lb weight loss in 3 months, I was seen in december of 2010 and was 272, I had to go to my primary dr for 6 months with supervised diet which I did and got down to 254 in august of 2011, I did preop diet for one week and lost 5 lbs putting me at 249 day of my surgery which was aug. 31 2011, thats 6 1/2 months ago and I am down to 229. I cant seem to budge, I eat so much less than i did before but nothing seems to happen. one week i weigh 229, then i weigh 233 then back down to 230 then to 229 its like a yo yo. I have had 4 fills with a total of 6 cc in my band and i have restriction. I dont pb much and I dont eat much but something is not working for me. it is hard to read these post and blogs sometimes and see the ones that have lost 80 lbs in 4 months, I know we are not suppose to compare ourselves but it makes me sad sometimes. guess we should be happy with the weight loss we have and not worry about what we havent lost yet. good luck

As I type this, tears fill my eyes. I am so frustrated with my weight loss. I was seen in december of 2010 and was 272, I had to go to my primary dr for 6 months with supervised diet which I did and got down to 254 in august of 2011, I did preop diet for one week and lost 5 lbs putting me at 249 day of my surgery which was aug. 31 2011, thats 6 1/2 months ago and I am down to 229. I cant seem to budge, I eat so much less than i did before but nothing seems to happen. one week i weigh 229, then i weigh 233 then back down to 230 then to 229 its like a yo yo. I have had 4 fills with a total of 6 cc in my band and i have restriction. I dont pb much and I dont eat much but something is not working for me. I have a difficult time exercising because I have muscle weakness and pain, went to my primary dr today and he is testing me for rhematoid arthritis and says i could have fibromyalgia or myastenia gravis. my surgeon says that i shouldnt have to exercise to lose my weight and im eating correctly or atleast i think I am but im not losing. very very frustrated and my surgeon is not very nice anyhow and all he says is what are you doing wrong and I explain to him what im doing and he says well you habve plenty of restriction you need to learn to work with the restriction you have and im like wtf does that mean? I am working with it. I also joined weight watchers thinking that would help keep my on track and track my food better but still nothing, not really gaining but not losing either. and I know we are NEVER suppose to compare ourselves with other WLS patients, but when i read all these blogs and profiles and see how so many have lost 80 lbs in 6 months it just makes me cry even more. guess Im just destined to be the fat chic forever.

what alot of people dont understand is there is a difference between a laxative and a stool softener. laxative will make you go to the bathroom, thus thinning your stool out and causing bloating, gas and the diarrhea you mentioned, stool softener will help soften the stool to keep you from straing, thus bleeding like you mentioned. another big thing with constipation is figuring out what is making you constipated. myself, I know i cannot eat cheese or dairy products, everytime I eat cheese, I am in the bathroom straining as you mentioned. keep a log of your foods and recall what you eat the days you are most constipated. increase your fluid intake, water helps with constipation, check what medications you are taking as narcotics and other meds will slow your peristalsis down and constipate you, fiber is your best choice, daily increase in fiber and water should help regulate you, if you get gas, take gas x, it helps. if this doesnt subside, you should consult with a GI dr. to get to the root of the problem, DO NOT become dependent on laxatives, those are more for if you are impacted, try to increase fiber in your diet, water in your diet, add benefiber and check your side effects on your medication labels, log your food and check for which ones make you constipated. if no help, see a gastrointestinal specialist. good luck

i dont pb very much and when i do it is my fault, i dont think we acutally pb enough to take off anyway LOL I track all my points, Im allowed 33 points a day and I usually stick to around that amount of points, usually 30, sometimes I use my extra weekly points for a treat but not usually. congrats on all your weight losses and Im glad you feel better after your unfill, you might actually see a kick off with weight loss when you switch to solid foods, sometimes changing things up with our bodies trigger a weight loss. good luck

hiccups is another way to tell that your pouch is full.

you should know your pouch is full based on how much it is meant to hold which is about 6-8 ounces. the way i tell is by listening to myself for clues, like a runny nose, a burp, a sigh, a hard lump in the back of my throat, pressure between my breast bone. this usually means I have had enough, even though at that point i can usually cram a few more bites in but I try to stop at those signs to prevent myself from p'bing. if you eat slider foods or chew chew chew, you can always get more down than you need to but if you eat normally and stick to around 6-8 ounces of food your pouch will be full if you have the right amount of restriction. good luck

Im not sure when you were banded and how much you have lost prior to and after your surgery but dont get discouraged, we are all very different. I too have pcos and I also have diabetes. some of us just lose slower than others. my high weight was 272, I got down to 254 on my own before surgery and then I lost 5 lbs with 1 week preop diet putting me at 249 day of surgery. My surgery was 8/31/11 so thats what say a lil over 6 months ago and I am down to 229. so only 20 lbs in 6 months, my dr does things slowly and I just finally got restriction last month on my 4th fill so give it time. I also could eat all the stuff you were eating until that 4th fill, I didnt even know what a "stuck" episode or "pb'ing" was until 5 months after surgery. so pls dont get discouraged, just focus on yourself and the good that is going to come and DO NOT compare yourself to others, everyone loses different and everyone has different metabolisms and chemical make up. good luck to you

marci, thank you for posting this, I was reading and reading those posts and I was thinking "good gawd, Im a failure" because im 6 months in and I have only lost 20 lbs since surgery, I did lose 25 lbs before surgery but not that much since surgery and I was also like you, I didnt have much restriction until about a month ago, my dr does things very very slowly. I was so glad to read your post and find some comforting in what you posted, I think its great that you have lost what you did and Im glad to know im not the only one to lose so slowly in first 6 months. kinda wish people would focus on losing and being more healthy rather than how much did you lose. even though I havent lost that much, I am thankful for what I have lost and how much healthier I do feel. god bless and thanks for your post

find a surgeon that specializes in the lap band, good luck

the abdominal distension will go away, may take a week or 2 but it will subside, my hardest problem was the dam gas.. LOL didnt think that was ever going to leave my body. it was so bad I told my hubby day 3 after surgery to take me to the ER so they can get this stupid band outta me. LOL I hope you learn to love the band and enjoy your new life. congrats

i tend to drink a cup of coffee at a restaurant before my meal, this A, helps the stoma open up to prevent food from getting stuck and B, helps feel me up a bit, then I order a salad with dressing because that goes down well for me but no broccoli on it and I always get some sort of chicken and steamed veggies, chew slow, small bites ask for a take home bag. chinese i find that the pepper steak goes down well and it is alot of protein. good luck

not going to the gym, not doing much of anything active other than work and stuff around the house, im sure that has alot to do with it but if that is what is stopping me , I guess I will have to deal with the slow weight loss. I do not like to exercise, I just have never had the motivation for it. terrible to say I know but I just dont , makes me sad, i need to find a way to like exercise so I might get motivated to do it more.

He has given me 3 adjustments since surgery, he gave me 3 cc fill about 8 wks post op, no difference but I was still averaging about a pound a week weight loss, went back 6 wks later and he didnt really want to fill me again because i was still eating but at that time I was able to eat still alot of food, he hesitated but did give me another 1 cc adjustment, told me to come back in 8 weeks, went through the holidays and went back after new years and had only lost 2 lbs, he was pissed, asked me what i ate for breakfast, i say i ate 2 eggs and a piece of toast, he says no way in hell should you be eating 2 eggs and a piece of toast, and im like well if Im hungry im going to eat, because thats what he told me to do. and if i could have refrained from eating 2 egss i wouldnt have had weight loss sugery to begin with, so he gives me another adjustment of about 1.5 cc so now total of 5.5 cc in a 10 cc band. that was jan. 10th, i have lost about 5 lbs since then, i go back to him next week, dont know what to do, i feel kinda lost with this whole thing. I know that i have some restriction because i get full faster but still i believe I am able to eat way more than I should. hoping weight watchers will help me with this. I used to eat 2biscuits with gravy, eggs and hasbrowns, chips , cheese, whole medium pizza and bread sticks, fried foods and ice cream every day. now im averaging about 1 egg a day, no breads, no fried foods, no sweets, no ice cream. today i had kashi go lean cereal with fat free milk, then I had 2 fresco tacos and for dinner i will probably have chicken and veggies but i still seem to not lose that much weight. dunno if its what im eating or just my anatomy. thanks for your help

the gas pain lasted for me about 2 weeks it was awful, walking helped alot, i also lost 18 lbs before surgery and then 5 lbs with the pre op diet so 23 lbs before surgery, i was banded 5 months ago and i have lost 20 lbs since surgery. I am a slow loser but I have learned not to compare my weight loss to others as you shouldnt either. we are all different and just because someone is losing fast doesnt mean you are doing something wrong, we all are made up chemically and anatomy wise very differenty. I have pcos and diabetes which slows me down as well and I choose not to exercise. you have made a good choice and you are doing fabulous so far, keep up the good work and remember that positive is as positive does. dont compare yourself or beat yourself up, be glad you have accomplished the weight loss that you have and run with it. the turtle might be slow but he still finishes the race. good luck to you and keep your head up. god bless

i was banded about 5 months ago and my weight loss is very very slow. first visit with surgeon i was 272, i got down to 254 with 6 months supervised diet, one week pre op diet I was 249 on surgery date. I am now at 228. I was stuck for a long time around 233 235, I looked up weight watchers and thought maybe I should try this. my surgeon office gives me nothing to go by for meals, they just say no liquids with meals, no liquids as meals, eat 3 times a day and stop when you are full. my surgeon told me not to count calories, carbs, protein or any of that. but I have noticed that i was at 233, started weight watchers which I feel helps me keep track of things and be more accountable for what I eat and Im down to 228. I am not going to tell my surgeon that I am doing weight watchers for fear that he will get irritated which he tends to do at times. weight watchers currently gives me 33 pts a day to eat with the flex points. i usually make the 33 point range, usually around 30. I have read where other people do the points for what a 150 lb person is but I am doing the correct points for my weight. I am short at 5'3 and have diabetes and pcos which slows my weight loss down some I believe. i read on here how people feel that ww is sinceless because you paid for weight loss surgery but in turn, i have issues with food obviously or I wouldnt be over weight to begin with. weight watchers is giving me the support I need and the accountablity i need with a sense of im eating within range of what my weight should be. I just hope it continues to work because my surgeon is not real big on giving fills/adjustments, he wants you to learn to eat better and not focus on restriction which i understand, but if I was able to eat better portions I wouldnt have had weight loss surgery to begin with. anyone else eat the points they get from weight watchers based on their weight or is everyone doing a low point number?

i had major anger and frustration after the band and I did take it out on my poor hubby. 4 days after surgery I was packing up to go to the hospital "to have this thing removed" LOL my hubby is actually the one that calmed me down. I think weight loss, surgery, change in diet and change to your body in general causes all these hormones and feelings to fluxuate. dont get discouraged, it all goes away in time and NO, i did not go to hospital and have my band removed.. LOL I survived. good luck to you

i had to do 6 months supervised dr visits and i ended up losing 18 lbs before my surgery then another 5 with 1 week pre op diet. so it is worth the waith, be patient and think, it could always be worse, keep your head up. good luck

if the pouch is being stretched out due to over eating, that is not the bands issue, again people need to remember this is a life style change, you cant put the band in, continue to over eat and over eat and expect to have great success, you have to follow the rules. I agree with lellow, if my dr had a 50 percent re weight gain I would not be considering that dr for my surgery.

try papaya enzymes, you can get them at walmart or any pharmacy, they will help disolve the food that is stuck

tatto have you tried appealing to your insurance company about removing the band, it seems to me that if they know your body is rejecting it and you cannot keep adequate nutrition in without vomiting it up, then that should be grounds to have it removed. I would seek legal advice on appealing to your insurance compnay about removal, all they can say is no, but it never hurts to try and having your body reject it is something that is out of your control and your insurance should help get it resolved with the help of your surgeon writing letters for you. good luck

i have absolutely no regrets what so ever about the band other than i wish i would have gotten it sooner. This is my personal opinion but I think if you dont like your band then its either A - your body has rejected it and it is out of your control which I would understand, or B- you are not using it in the correct way which is giving you negative results. If you have the band and you dont like it then you really should sit down and take a look at the reasons you dont like it. It doesnt do all the work for you, YOU have to work also and if you are not willing to do the work that is required to make it successful then that is NOT the bands fault it is simply yours. sorry to sound so stearn but it is the truth. if you have the band and you dont like it, I would suggest you get a book about it, "BANDWAGON" by jean mcmillen is an excellent book written by a long term bandster that doesnt sugar coat anything. her book has been the best motivation for me and the best informational thing I have read about living successfully with the band. good luck to you and your journey