Yadiordz

Reading all the messages and sending my virtual support and prayers. I'm down 53 pounds since getting banded in October. I'm not making progress due to lack of exercise. My knees ache. I'm going to see a sports medicine / orthopedic surgeon tomorrow (Friday). I don't a specific injury. I suspect age and obesity have taken a toll. I'm hoping he does x-rays and identifies the issue. I'm hoping he can give me cortisone injections in both knees to get me relief so I can exercise and take off more weight. I hope I don't need surgery. I wonder if I have arthritis? Hopefully all will be answered tomorrow.

Lap-banded and love it!

Hi I am been there and recently decided to go back to basics and ask for help from the doctor, he send me to a Bariatric Nutricinist and I am back to eat the way I was told and seriously it was the right decision because I already lost 10 pounds since march 4 when I saw her and everything is about eat the protein and the right food , she told me that we can still enjoy the food just the right food and even ice cream but to look for the ones low sugar and high in protein and it is thru we are only humans and we will fail but the important thing is get out and try again , get help and support this is not a easy journey but I can tell you that eating with a schedule from Breakfast thru dinner and Snacks and water in between is helping me a lot , even when I go out to eat I am not the same as before because when you see the pounds coming back to you then you realize that you need to go back and start again with the basics stuffs , good luck .

Hi I am been there and recently decided to go back to basics and ask for help from the doctor, he send me to a Bariatric Nutricinist and I am back to eat the way I was told and seriously it was the right decision because I already lost 10 pounds since march 4 when I saw her and everything is about eat the protein and the right food , she told me that we can still enjoy the food just the right food and even ice cream but to look for the ones low sugar and high in protein and it is thru we are only humans and we will fail but the important thing is get out and try again , get help and support this is not a easy journey but I can tell you that eating with a schedule from Breakfast thru dinner and Snacks and water in between is helping me a lot , even when I go out to eat I am not the same as before because when you see the pounds coming back to you then you realize that you need to go back and start again with the basics stuffs , good luck .

I started out in 2013 at 283 pounds. I had type 2 diabetes, high cholesterol, high blood pressure and I was miserable. I hated having photos taken of me. I couldn't go up stairs without heaving breaths, my kids were active little toddlers and I couldn't even come close to keeping up. I had no self confidence and no joy for my life. I banded in April 2013 and over the next year dropped about 70 pounds. It was like I was given a new lease on life. I felt like a completely different person and was thrilled with my health. Thats not to say my lapband journey was without complications...I had a miserable first couple of months with the band and was at a point where I asked my surgeon to remove it. I'm so glad he talked me out of it..


I disappeared from this site a few years ago because I felt like I was in maintenance...yes, I still worked to make sure I was making good choices, but other things started to take that #1 spot in my life that my lapband and weight loss had occupied for so long. Over the next year I dropped another 10 pounds and was over the moon to finally be back in "onederland."

And once again I was in maintenance...just chugging along happy with where I was and without any thought of those long ago far away health concerns like diabetes and cholesterol.

Then our family was sent to Africa for my husband's job. Wow...talk about life changing. And not just in the "developing country" way of things...all of a sudden my food and exercise "norm" was tossed out the window and I had to come up with something completely new. It was a good thing...and the change jump started my weight loss...30 pounds and counting this year.

To say I'm happy with my choice to lapband would be an understatement. I make so many good choices for myself these days. I use the band the way it's supposed to be used...as a tool to remind me to eat slower, chew longer, and make better food choices.

I took this photo on a work trip recently...I barely recognize the girl in this photo...I'm still getting used to how she looks...I know who she is and what she wants...it's the physical changes that surprise me sometimes.

I'm hoping to continue to my final goal weight of 135 over the next year...and when I reach that there is a Tummy Tuck and breast lift reward waiting for me...

I'm back online because with this new change in location I need the reminders of what going back to the basics means...I'm no longer content to maintain at 200 pounds...I want the bigger picture now.

Hi I am been there and recently decided to go back to basics and ask for help from the doctor, he send me to a Bariatric Nutricinist and I am back to eat the way I was told and seriously it was the right decision because I already lost 10 pounds since march 4 when I saw her and everything is about eat the protein and the right food , she told me that we can still enjoy the food just the right food and even ice cream but to look for the ones low sugar and high in protein and it is thru we are only humans and we will fail but the important thing is get out and try again , get help and support this is not a easy journey but I can tell you that eating with a schedule from Breakfast thru dinner and Snacks and water in between is helping me a lot , even when I go out to eat I am not the same as before because when you see the pounds coming back to you then you realize that you need to go back and start again with the basics stuffs , good luck .

It is perfectly possible for the band not to work especially if the person with the band expects it to be a magical cure that does everything for them.
There are lots of foods that it won't stop you eating.
e.g
chocolate
Icecream
Milkshakes
custard
candies
crisps
Cookies etc
These will go past the band really easily, they will not make you feel full and you will gain weight.
For the band to work you have to work with it. Follow the dietary recommendations your Dr has given you, don't drink your calories, don't eat all day long and do some exercise.

This is fantastic! Thanks so much for re-posting. I have not been on here as long but I sure am glad I found Lapband Talk that year or so before it combined into Bariatric Pal. I got so much great support from those who went before me.

@@Dusty_S Good thing in Dusty.... you know what your doing .... and it can be fixed. I gain 20 a couple years ago... and when i didn't fit into my favorite jeans... i looked with in and knew what i was doing and set my mind to change it. I said to myself... Self, you didn't do what you did, sacrifice what you sacrificed to go back.... so i lost that 20 and almost 20 more.
That's whats good about the band... you are in control... but you have to be in CONTROL... Remember you can't eat what you don't buy.... when you go to buy the ice cream... don't... in fact don't even go down that isle at the supermarket.
Start back at the basics.... go back to your small plate and have only what you know you should have. NO.. Seconds!!! No grazing.... Go back to the 10 commandments of the lapband. I reposted it a while back.
http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/377235-the-10-commandments-of-the-lapband-a-revisit/

Hey there! Congrats on 13 years of positive change!
I would try and find a bariatric surgeon in your area and be seen just to make sure everything is still functioning right, even if you don't decide to do removal. It's a bit concerning if you can't eat fruits and salads. Might have a bit too much restriction.

Following this topic. I have kept an empty band for a couple of years now and now have to either get it out or revised. (My band was emptied due to its interference with the vagus nerve which was provoking atrial fibrillation.) I just saw my surgeon yesterday who has given me three choices: accept my weight where it is, diet the rest of the weigh off, or mini gastric bypass. She is not pro-sleeve for my situation, as she views the sleeve as the next "lapband" in that she has more and more sleeve patients gaining back their weight and doesn't think the longterm weight maintenance is proving to be the case with restrictive methods such as lapbands and sleeves.
She has floated the idea of a mini-gastric bypass as her best recommendation for my situation.
I'm researching this but I doubt I will do it. The potential complications from the malabsorptive WLS are rather scary to me. Enough that I will probably just go back to Weight Watchers and grit my teeth to get the rest of my weight off.

By the way girls...I've been feeling so down and depressed that I've wanted to eat myself silly. Every time I think about doing so, I hear all of you encouraging me to stay the course. Just shows me that the Beast is there...will always be there. All I can do is manage it.

Time flies I still remember when you was going to your trip to Italy and when you mention the extender !![emoji106][emoji106][emoji106]

Oh my God Liz. What a wallop. Ok, first of all, BELIEVE COREY and stop second guessing him. That doesn't help anybody. Ok? Ok.

Second, FMLA and "reasonable accommodations" regulations protect you in the workplace. Don't be afraid to use that terminology when requesting a temporary work from home setup. They may not "like" it, but that's immaterial. They gotta do it.

Third, but really first, YOU ARE SO MUCH STRONGER THAN YOU FEEL AT THIS MOMENT. Allow yourself to feel the overwhelming feelings, but dose them out.

Forgive my French, but you are a f ucking inspiration to me and have been for the past three years. You've sown seeds of support and love and encouragement throughout this site. Guess what, lady? Time to harvest. Get back in touch (PM) the people important to you here that may have dropped away or who, like us, don't visit the boards as often as they used to. Round up your "army". Fill them in. You're going to have time to spend here so TAKE support for a change.

I know a lot about you from your posts even though we've never met. So I know that before your weight loss and miraculous life change, you were in misery and nearly immobile. This isn't the same. It's scary and feels like it could be the same, but you're in a whole different place. This is temporary. Your doctor says it's fixable. Wow wow wow! Hurray! So it's a sucky, sucky bump in the road but that's all it is.

YES you will travel to Scandinavia.

YES you will play with and babysit your grandchild.

YES you will go to Atlanta with Corey.

Maybe not on the dates you originally chose, but girl, I know you, and there's no way you're "cancelling" these things.

Sending love love love to you and I'll be checking in here daily.

Checking in now and again is a good thing, this is the only thread I follow pretty much. I am doing good, having skin surgery in April to remove my apron. a little nervous but I think it will be so worth it. I have a significant other . started dating him 4 months ago. We are very happy together, we have a lot in common. Did not really think I would take that leap again . Husband died in 2015 and it was a long happy marriage 39 years. but life does go on and I am going to live it . My health is good, no issues with anything. I just had a cold but otherwise I'm good band wise. Hope everyone is doing well and continues on a good path.

Hi July
Well I am trying to go back in basic with the band , yesterday I went to se my Bariatric Nutricinist and she remained me why I dis my band and give me a month band friendly diet ! I have to go back in a month and hopefully lost 10 pounds from the 35 I gained back after my Surgeries it is so great to feel to go back in track, I am confident that I will do it, [emoji2]

Hi Julie. Life goes on...I'm happy with my fella, my back is awful...need to see a surgeon for possible intervention. Work sucks, I've put on 12 lbs. Kids are good. Enjoying my grandson...and watching my intake and doing as good as I can. Could I do better? Yes. Am I living my life? Yes.
Oh, and this too is the only thread I really pay attention to. Hope you are all well. Sounds like so far, so good.
Liz

Hi July
Well I am trying to go back in basic with the band , yesterday I went to se my Bariatric Nutricinist and she remained me why I dis my band and give me a month band friendly diet ! I have to go back in a month and hopefully lost 10 pounds from the 35 I gained back after my Surgeries it is so great to feel to go back in track, I am confident that I will do it, [emoji2]

Hi July
Well I am trying to go back in basic with the band , yesterday I went to se my Bariatric Nutricinist and she remained me why I dis my band and give me a month band friendly diet ! I have to go back in a month and hopefully lost 10 pounds from the 35 I gained back after my Surgeries it is so great to feel to go back in track, I am confident that I will do it, [emoji2]

Hi Julie. This is the only forum I check lately so I agree. I'd love to hear updates.
I'm doing very well. Settled in my new home and having guests over to visit every weekend. F ood wise I had t make some changes over the last few months. I had returned to tv eating. Bad habit. I gave that up two weeks ago and now I don't miss it anymore.
I also had to let go of cream in my c offee because I added up my Decaf habit calories and some days I was adding 600 calories just in half and half to my decaf. So black c offee going forward. It's been a month and I'm used to it now.
Salads. My love and my enemy. Have to be honest, the band lets me eat giant salads. So I'm cutting down on those and trying to cook more often with solid p rotein. Let my band do its job.
I've had such a flurry of activity the last few months with the divorce finalizing , moving, and buying a car that I'm not used to relaxing and enjoying life. I've taken a fresh attitude about my job (act as if I'm excited to go) and working more with my therapist on replacing old messages I've been hearing and tellling myself all my life. Somewhere along the line I learned I didn't deserve happiness or peace. That sounds absurd out loud, but awareness is only half the battle. Replacing those old tapes with positive ones and practicing self love and self care is a habit I must learn and nurture. It doesn't come naturally.
I can "do crisis" and "do chaos". Now I will learn how to "do peace" and ""do joy".

Will some people in this group please update how life is treating you? This is a long road..... and it is helpful to have a few that know how the years go on.
Spring is here ...liking the weather and flowers starting. Not liking the 5 lbs that dropped by....

Time flies I still remember when you was going to your trip to Italy and when you mention the extender !![emoji106][emoji106][emoji106]

So ladies...what is my tag line in my signature? Nothing tastes as good as normal feels. Those are not just words. Yes, I watch the scale but I don't freak out over a few pounds here and there as long as I don't let it get out of hand. As long as I can be and feel normal, that's what's important.

Hi Lisa Hopefully everything is well now with you and your band it is not easy with stress that is the same that happens to me with so many surgeries not related to my band but I am trying to go back and start all over again with my band and with the food I am seeing a Bariatric Nutricinist now and is helping me to go back in track .

I love how wise you are. I love how honest and self-aware you are. I can't wait until your fill, too, and to read that you are back down the scale to your former weight. I have no doubts this will be the case.

Liz so happy you posted this. Everyone who hasn't had the struggle with obesity seems to think it's all mind over matter. I know that without my band I would still eat too much and would be back to my former overweight obese self in no time. The fill itself will not cure the mental problems but it gives you control and a good deal of self confidence. I went to my surgeon on Monday, thought I might need a small fill but he decided to wait a little bit because my emotions are not good since losing my husband last month. My surgeon is a very wise man and a compassionate man, I won the lottery when I found him. I am getting back on my eating plan so I won't slip back into my former bad habits. You have been successful but seem to realize the pitfalls of thinking you can do it alone. Best of luck, the fill process by the way is nothing to worry about. Take Care