PrettyThick1

Thanks B-52! It's my personal goal, not my bodies. The thing is I don't want to be any smaller. I don't think I look good like this and it's kind of bothering me. If I knew where I would bottom out, I wouldn't worry so much but I truly wish I had about 5 pounds back.

Here I am just 2 days away from my 1 year Bandiversary and I'm confused for the first time during this journey. Why have I lost my appetite? I hate the sight, smell, taste and texture of food...having it in my mouth is TORTURE. I went through this the first couple of weeks after being banded, but should I feel this way now? I'm 8 lbs. below goal and losing more by the day. I've gone back to drinking my calories, but there's only so much of that I can take, too. Has anyone else had this issue? What did you do? I'm guessing I need another unfill (I've already taken out .5cc's) but could there be something else wrong? I'm so serious when I say food make me nauseous! Help!

@@lisacaron you are amazing and I appreciate your advice!!!! I will certainly do as you have suggested.

Congratulations to you too!!! I had no idea the end of the journey would be like this...I worried that I wouldn't reach my goal. I guess this isn't a bad problem to have, but I truly don't want to lose anymore weight. More calories is a joke, I barely get 1,000 in now because I simply do not have an appetite. Let's keep each other posted and figure out how we are going to consume more calories. Sigh...

I never expected that my struggle in maintenance would be in staying at my goal weight and not going too far BELOW it! I was sure my body had bottomed out...obviously it has not because I realized I reached my goal more than a week ago but I've lost another 5 lbs. since then. I've already had an unfill of .5cc, (4.5cc's in a 10cc band) but it seems like my body adjusted to that and I'm still in the green - eating well and losing. I guess I'll let it ride a little while longer, I don't think I'll like the way I look if I lose more than another 5 lbs. I was never meant to be skinny and I never wanted to be skinny but I'm knocking on that door now. #unexpected

Pics only...nothing else needs to be said except: Banded 06/19/2013...to goal in about 11 months!!! I was still 10lbs heavier when my "after" pics were taken, more to come later. Toning in progress!!!

Thank you so much 2muchfun!!! I appreciate the support I've gotten from you and the other awesome faithful!!!

Don't know when it happened, but it happened...I woke up, weighed myself and found out I was at goal. How long I've been there, I'm sad to say I don't know because I quit weighing myself regularly several weeks ago...it got boring. I'm happy to say that I'm here and I don't need to lose any more weight...my Bat Girl pic is actually 10lbs ago, but it's so cute!

As strange as it sounds, maintenance is...(drum roll) nothing. You'll figure out how calories work with your body once you've "bottomed out", pretty quickly. I'll say within a week you will know if you are consuming too many. For me, I haven't done anything different, same fill level, same diet...still planning on starting to work out and it seems that my body is telling me we are where we need to be. I'm not hungry, I eat what I want but I've stopped losing weight. There are 1-2 lb. fluctuations here and there, but for the most part it was my body that made the decision on what to do with what I give it. I will say, it's nice not to feel like I have the band anymore but still have the control that it gives me.

No, what you're describing isn't a soft-stop. Your soft stop will be something that you'll feel and it goes away: a sigh, a burp, nose running, things like that. You may have something gooey stuck in your throat. I don't remember when I was brave enough to try Pasta, but it was several months after I'd had surgery.

I can't wait to hear about your NSV's either!!! You are already gorgeous, honey when you're at a lower weight you're going to need a security escort at all times!

I have to be honest with you, I don't exercise. I'm about to...because I'm basically at goal. When I lost weight during previous attempts, I did work out and yes, it did seem to slow the weight loss. However, you have to consider the muscle/fat relationship and how you are actually benefitting from the exercise in ways that aren't apparent. As you build muscle and become stronger, you have less and less fat. In time, you will see what that has done to your physique...weight loss isn't always about the scale's decreasing numbers.

Don't get me wrong...my ego hasn't gotten to the Beyonce "Flawless" stage: I'm flawless...I woke up like this, I woke up like this... Not hardly. I'd also like to add that I've never had a big problem with self esteem, even at my heaviest I felt attractive. I've had my band for about 9 1/2 months now and it has been a great journey to say the least. I enjoy the weight loss with this device and I like the fact that I can go off course, gain a few pounds, give it a day or two and be back to normal. Love it! Anyway, while I've been losing, there are times when I feel like I am "bad built", out of proportion and simply without feminine form. Now that my weight as stabilized, my body no longer has to go through the big top, small bottom - normal - small top, big bottom - normal - big top, small bottom...you know the thing that seems to happen about every 5-7lbs. I haven't lost or gained in about two weeks and as a result my shape is truly starting to show and I love it. I looked in the mirror this morning and said to myself "damn...I'm sexy!" I've done that many times before (you have to give yourself pep talks or no one else will) but this time it wasn't forced and seemed to just slip out. I guess because I truly feel sexy, in a way that I don't think ever have before.

That was an aggressive fill. I'm most comfortable with no more than a 1cc fill each visit, but I have a friend who's doc gave her 3cc's at once and she was fine. It usually takes my fills 3 weeks to fully "settle".

Forget what you've heard, what you've bought and what you think works. By far THE BEST and most economical Multivitamin I've found is Balanced Essentials by Heaven Sent Naturals, available at Vitamin World. This product is amazing and completely eliminates the need for additional supplements (B-complex, D and Biotin). It's packed 94 vital nutrients and is much more beneficial than you can imagine. I wish you all could see the difference it's made in my hair, skin and nails in just 3 weeks. Wow...Biotin helped my hair stop falling out, Balanced Essentials is making my hair get thicker, stronger and longer. I haven't done anything different, so it has to be responsible. Love this stuff...get it in you! I caught it on sale for $10.99 / 32oz, right now it's $24.00. It's worth every penny. It tastes so good, you'll look forward to your daily dose.

I really really like Balanced Essentials (by Heaven Sent Naturals at Vitamin World) and my second choice is Alive liquid. They both taste amazing...almost like juice and they are packed with so many vital nutrients, way more than you get in ANY chewable. I tried several chewables and unless they cost a fortune, they are gross and don't have but like 22 Vitamins in them anyway! Balanced Essentials has something like 35 vitamins and 60 nutrients (trick your body in to thinking you live and eat from a garden all day long). It makes a heck of a difference, I wouldn't lie to you. You won't need any other supplement using this...not even Biotin for your hair. This has made my hair really strong and thick, the only thing biotin did was keep my hair from falling out. Whatever is in this bottle makes my hair, skin and finger nails look better than they have in years.

I'm doing two amazing things at the same time, thanks to the miracle of modern medicine: I am losing weight (thanks to the band) and I am on day 5 without a cigarette (thanks to Chantix). Smokers fear gaining tons of weight when they quit...not enough of a reason to keep smoking, but I am so happy to say that thanks to my band my weight is easier to control and thanks to chantix I'm not going ape shyt crazy or eating everything in sight. I'm a loser and a quitter and I've never felt so proud of myself.

I couldn't have anything for breakfast after fill #2 then it went away and I could eat again after 3 weeks on fill #3. When I was in your situation, I didn't even try to have anything but Hot drinks first thing in the morning. food was a definite no-go before 11:00am and at that time I couldn't tolerate scrambled eggs at ANY TIME during the day. I can eat scrambled eggs now but haven't tried boiled eggs in several months. During your stage, I relied on Protein shots mixed in Water to make a fruit punch. I liked cream of wheat a lot and love, love, love Carnation Instant Breakfast (generic brand is fine, too) and Ovaltine. They fill me up, give me the calories I need and about 18g protein when combined with the milk.

Quantity doesn't matter to us, quality does and from the list you've described you should have any of this stuff at this stage of the game anyway. What about your Protein? Rice (carbs), rice cakes (carbs), salad (no nutritional value alone, lettuce leaves) all can swell and or go down too large to pass through. Rapid weight loss won't hurt you, but if you aren't getting the proper nutrition your body will eventually respond in kind. You can expect to feel weak, suffer from hair loss, brittle nails, poor skin quality and the elasticity in your skin will also suffer. Until you can adopt better food choices, you should show diligence in taking your Vitamins and supplements.

You poor thing! That's a huge drop and almost like starting all over again. I was banded with 3cc's and remember quite well that it was like having no band at all. Do your best to stay in a good range, but don't stress about it. Always keep in mind how fast we bandsters can drop weight, when my scale tips up a few pounds it's right back where it should be in a day or two, the same will happen for you.

Thanks for the motivation and inspiration Mikee! I'm giving it all I've got...I am growing very fond of gum though - LOL.

So Chantix worked for you? I commend your husband on doing it cold turkey and I completely understand sleeping it off. I wish I could do that. It's good for him anyway ; ). Congrats on 3 1/2 years, you are an inspiration and I appreciate your reply!

I did misread your post, sorry about that! You sound like you're where you need to be actually. Enjoy!! Not sure if you read my whole post. I'm pretty restricted. Def not in bandster hell anymore. It's not that I KEEP eating. I eat very little and am not hungry often at all actually. It's just that everything seems to go down as it should (pretty much) I have had a few uncomfortable episodes but no stuck episodes

Yes, that happened to me. Your fill is now "settled" and you have to learn a new way of eating with this one. I would guess this is either #2 or #3, correct? Each one is different!!! You will not be able to tolerate some foods you could before the fill, you also have to eat differently (much slower and smaller bites), you probably shouldn't try to eat until late morning or early afternoon and you HAVE to follow the drinking guidelines right now. If you're cold, stressed, just finished a vigorous activity or are anxious don't try to eat or drink anything until you are back to normal. Never wait until you are actually hungry to eat and don't expect to eat your normal amounts - it could be reduced by as much as half, so find another way to get your calories in, like Protein shots. Your next fill will result in something totally different and you will have to adapt to how that will affect you the same way you have to do now.

Yay! You've discovered your "soft stop" that is a MAJOR milestone on this journey!!! This is the part of the story where Suzzie's weight starts melting faster than a snowman in downtown Houston. Kudo's to you for noticing something was different.