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Melanie, First I'd like to say 'sorry' that you are feeling this way. I did some research prior to plication surgery because I remember having kind of a blah feeling a couple months after my Lapband surgery in 2001. I had such high hopes and put in so much energy into researching surgery, weight loss and keeping track of everything that I don't think I really thought about the psychological aspects. I also have been reading up on what our bodies go through when we start losing weight and I think we release hormones and chemicals when losing weight. I read this article and I thought it was interesting and might be helpful for you. I hope you feel better soon. You are doing great and you are probably just in a tough spot right now. Keeping doing what you are doing as it seems to be working great!! Take care of you, Prior to obesity surgery many of us consumed copious amounts of processed carbohydrates including sugar, refined flour, starches and grains. In the body carbohydrates meet up with the amino acid tryptophan and make serotonin, the "feel-good" hormone that stimulates the brain as a comforting mood enhancer. macaroni & cheese is an American favorite comfort food, and for good reason. It combines enough tryptophan with enough high-carb Pasta to produce sufficient serotonin, which relieves symptoms of depression and boosts feelings of contentment. Enter weight loss surgery and the Protein first, limited fat,and low carbohydrate diet. Suddenly the biological process of serotonin conversion is out of order. We no longer have the means to self-medicate our mood with foods that boost serotonin levels, yet we continue to have the cravings because our body is crying for help. It does not know any other way to manage mood. It just makes sense that this extreme dietary change results in an altered mood and in some cases, a state of biological panic or emotional depression

Hi Becca, It was fun! I am going to try Zumba Gold. It's meant for Seniors but the instructor said it's for anybody just at a slower pace. I weigh 258 and I wasn't the biggest person there so it wasn't too intimidating. If you can, take a friend.

Stacy, Yes it is so much fun! I didn't go this morning cause I'm still sore from yesterday but I will definitely be back. I really want to try the XBox Kinect and I heard the WII has Zumba also. I like the idea of being able to do Zumba in my own living room. But I totally agree that there is something great about being in a dance studio again!! You are doing fantastic with your weight loss! Take care,

I've been wanting to try Zumba for about a year. The gym I currently belong to doesn't offer it at many locations or times I need so I haven't been able to try a class. I have done the Zumba videos but really wanted to try a class. I used to be a on the dance team in high school and currently take Swing dance lessons with my husband (for fun and because we have a plus size Rockabilly, Swing clothing line) so I think I can follow dance instructors pretty well. I told the ladies around me that it was my first time and that I might crash into them. They were super nice about it and even showed me a few quick moves before the class started. The instructor was great and the class was very fun and energetic! I did the whole 60+ minute class and kept up pretty well but now I am super sore!!! My calves are killing me. I walked around the block tonight to see if I could stretch my legs a bit and ease the pain but no, they still hurt - but it's a good kind of hurt!! I was goin gto try to go to the Zumba clas tomorrow @ 9 am but my calves might tell me something different in the morning. I'll see how I feel. Overall, I really liked Zumba and think it's a great class, even for beginners. It would have been fun to have a friend with me so we could've messed up together! Take care,

Thanks Irene for the link. That was an interesting site. My BMR was like 1,900! Yikes... Sleeve 4 Me - You are doing great, only 5 pounds to go!!! KUP

I've been wanting to try Zumba for about a year. The gym I currently belong to doesn't offer it at many locations or times I need so I haven't been able to try a class. I have done the Zumba videos but really wanted to try a class. I used to be a on the dance team in high school and currently take Swing dance lessons with my husband (for fun and because we have a plus size Rockabilly, Swing clothing line) so I think I can follow dance instructors pretty well. I told the ladies around me that it was my first time and that I might crash into them. They were super nice about it and even showed me a few quick moves before the class started. The instructor was great and the class was very fun and energetic! I did the whole 60+ minute class and kept up pretty well but now I am super sore!!! My calves are killing me. I walked around the block tonight to see if I could stretch my legs a bit and ease the pain but no, they still hurt - but it's a good kind of hurt!! I was goin gto try to go to the Zumba clas tomorrow @ 9 am but my calves might tell me something different in the morning. I'll see how I feel. Overall, I really liked Zumba and think it's a great class, even for beginners. It would have been fun to have a friend with me so we could've messed up together! Take care,

I have a banded plication as well. I had the band in 2001 and developed some complications a couple of years ago so I had my band replaced and the plication done at the same time. I'm glad to see others here who have the same procedure. By the way, I'm planning on keeping my band completely empty due to reflux. Good luck!

Thanks everybody!! You gals sure are motivating!

Yeah! Congrats. Your pics are sooo cute!! You are doing so well with your weight loss. KUP!!

Thanks Becca and Amy! I lost another pound today so I'm hoping my stall is officially over. I'm going to be very pleased if I have a sustainable 1-2 pound loss per week. I'm going to go walk on the beach today for a different type of exercise. Have a great day!!

I've been stalled since the end of February and this morning I finally lost another pound!! I was stuck at 260 and really wanted to be in the 250s but my body wasn't having any of it. I increased my exercise, water intake and protein and that seemed to do the trick! I officially weighed in at 259.0 this morning. Yeah!! I'm going to Las Vegas in about 5 1/2 weeks and I'd really like to lose another 15-18 pounds by then so I'm going to focus on increasing my exercise slowly over the next month or so. My goal for April 7 is to be 250 but I'm going to try to surpass that. At the gym I'm currently doing a 10 minute warm-up on the bike, 20 minutes on the elliptical (an increase from 15), and 30 minutes on the treadmill (an increase from 20). I will increase my time on the elliptical and treadmill next week by about 5 minutes. Hopefully, this will help boost my weight loss. I also do walking or dancing exercise videos at home if I don't make it to the gym. I had to take a look at what I was eating also and realized that I was eating a bit too many carbs. My dr. doesn't have a prescribed amount of carbs that I should eat but he does emphasize eating protein first, then any veggies (which I really can't have yet), then unprocessed carbs. I am going to be cutting back a bit on carbs and see if that will help. Take care,

I think it's normal to worry. I'm almost 5 weeks out and I'm also a bit worried. I did talk to Dr. Billy about this issue and he said that inadequate blood supply is a concern but the stomach receives blood from about 5 arteries so even if 1 is harmed or injured, the stomach has other ways of getting blood. My question is about how this problem is detected, is it just an Upper GI or a barium swallow? Lmom - Did you have an Upper GI before being released? I had an upper GI in the hospital and one at about 2 weeks post-op, that eased my mind quite a bit. Glad you are recovering nicely.

Glad everything went great and u r on the road to recovery. I'm almost 5 weeks out and have noticed that I can eat a bit more. I'm trying to follow the "Just because I can, doesn't mean I should" rule. I'm almost never hungry but do feel empty if I haven't eaten in awhile. Today was the first day I ate food for breakfast - I usually do 1/2 a protein shake. I ate almost 1 scrambled egg with a sprinkle of cheese, about 3 tiny bites of potatoes and a bite of tortilla. I'm still in the midst of a stall so I'm going to increase my exercise, water and protein a bit next week to see if that helps. I have lost inches and am down from a size 22 to a 20. Make sure u record ur measurements because that has really helped me during this stall. Take care and walk!!

Thanks everyone! I worked out like crazy this morning, drank 1/4 of an Isopure and weighed hoping to be in the 250s but alas, I was stuck at 260.0. Frustrating!! I'm going to do an exercise video later tonight after my munchkins go to bed and hopefully that'll get me to the 250s.

Hi, First, sorry you are going through this. I'm wondering if it's because you were eating dinner. I am only a month out but I notice that I can eat more at night than during the day. I also seem to be able to eat more when I'm at home than when I'm at restaurants, I'm not sure why. Maybe do the 5 day pouch test and see if you can gauge your tummy size? You can google it and get info. Good luck to you!!

Yeah! Congrats!! Take it easy, sip and walk. Hope ur tummy feels better soon.

My starting weight was 283, according to the doctor's scale I weigh 262. My home scale is a bit nicer to me but I'll take a 21 pound loss anyday! I've been exercising about 6 days a week and have lost about 2 inches off my waist and 3 off my hips. Overall I'm pretty happy with my progress. My next goal is to be in the 250s!! Take care,

Good luck! Hoping for a quick recovery for you!! Please kup.

You may want to post this on the Total Gastric Plication board. I had the lapband for almost 10 years and just revised to gastric plication. So far, the plication has been great! My recovery was fairly easy - I was in the hospital for 1 night, no drains, 5 small incisions and I was home the next day. I've lost 23 pounds in 1 month. I also researched the sleeve which was my 2nd choice if the plication hadn't worked out. I would not consider the RNY because I have severe anemia. Good luck with whichever procedure you choose.

Ok so I've become a little obsessive about getting my daily exercise. I'm striving for at least 30 minutes per day. I alternate between going to the gym and doing exercise videos in my own house. However, yesterday I took my kids to the park and decided instead of sitting on the park bench and watching them play (like usual) I would go for a quick walk around the playground. I started out doing a power walk and soon both my kids joined me! It was great! Then today I took my car to be serviced and instead of sitting in the customer lounge I took a 25 minute walk. I also went to the gym but it was nice that 1/2 my workout was already done! Surprisingly I'm not finding it too hard to squeeze in my workouts, although I start back to work in about a week so we'll see how it goes then.

Carol, That's great! I like using the videos also in the *comfort* of my own home! I have been doing Hip Hop, Crunch videos and walking videos. I don't particularly like my gym and want to switch when my membership is over so this is a good alternative. I don't have to look for a parking spot, wait for a treadmill or elliptical like at the gym and I can do them after my kiddos and hubby all go to bed - aah! I'm glad I discovered them!

I don't have a lot to add but I did want to commend you on losing 55 pounds!! When I was first banded I think it took me about 1 1/2 years to lose 55 pounds so in my world, you are doing FANtastic!!! I think the 5 day pouch test is a great idea and thinoneday's diet sounds amazing!! I'm in the midst of a stall as well so I might be trying that diet too. Take care of you!

Hi, I was banded in 2001 at Cedars-Sinai. I was a slow but consistent loser and ended up losing about 110 pounds with the band (from 289 to about 176ish). I always had difficulty with fills though because my port flipped almost immediately. I would sometimes go through being poked 10-15 times before getting a fill. When I became pregnant with our first child, I had horrendous morning (all-day) sickness and ended up losing about 20 pounds the first 7 months of pregnancy. I had a complete unfill due to this also. I became pregnant again when our son was about 16 months old and ended up on bed rest for 5 months with our daughter. Another complete unfill plus pregnancy cravings and bed rest were not a good mix! I gained most of my weight back during my 2 pregnancies and beginnings of motherhood. After having 2 babies I was ready to be filled again but I had a tremendously difficult time getting a fill due to the flipped port. I guess my pregnancies and 2 c-sections cause the port to move even more and fills were nearly impossible. About a year and half ago I saw my doctor for a fill and was told that I had reflux and my esophagus was dilated. I had another complete unfill and was told to wait 6 months. When I returned 6 months later, I was back up to about 250 pounds and my doctor started discussing other options. I have also been diagnosed with severe anemia and ended up in the hospital with it so RNY wasn't an option. I started looking into the EndoBarrier and the balloon. I also researched the sleeve. My doctor at Cedars doesn't particularly like the sleeve mainly due to the risks of leaks, especially with people who've already had the band. He likes the EndoBarrier but it is a short term solution and wasn't looking for that. After researching for about a month I stumbled upon the plication. I have lots of experience with Drs. Ortiz and Corvala because I would go to them for fills so I was going to go with one of them. Luckily, during my research I had sent out about 100 emails to doctors closer to me and I found Dr. Billy. Dr. Billy is in Ventura, CA and I live in Orange County - about 2 hours away. I was set to go to SLC, Cincinnati or Tijuana so I could have the plication but I was lucky to find Dr. Billy. I believe Dr. Waldrep has worked with Dr. Billy as well. Life with the band for me was pretty good the first 3-4 years with the exception of the fills. I did have issues with vomiting and I could never eat real food until about noon but could eat larger quantities at night. I also hated the tight feeling in my chest. With the plication I have not vomited once and the full or satisfied feeling happens in my stomach like before the band, not in my chest. My weight loss is also a lot better (so far) with the plication. I expect that I'll be a slow loser but for me, long term results are more important. My post-op experience was about the same. I felt like I had done thousands of sit-ups and was pretty sore for a good 2 weeks. Dr. Billy used some of my old incisions so I only ended up with 2 small new scars. My surgery was a bit different than yours because my old band was removed and replaced and the plication was done all at the same time. Apparently, some doctors are beginning to study the effectiveness of plication with the band as a back up. So far I have no inclination to use my band and plan on leaving it completely unfilled but it's nice to know it's there - just in case.

I took the kiddos (2 y.o. and 4 y.o.) to the park as DH has been sicky-sick in bed with the stomach flu. It was nice to play with them as it was the first time I've taken them to the park alone since my surgery. I played soccer for a bit with my son but am still limited as my dr. doesn't want me to pick up anything more than 10-15 lbs. and my daughter weighs around 30. I wanted to walk the track but the kiddos had other ideas about swings and building sand castles so, no track for me. After about an hour or so the kiddos started asking for McDonalds. They only get McDs once in awhile and it's always after the park. We have one of those fancy McDs that has an indoor playground and it was a bit warm today so we went there. I don't eat much red meat and haven't eaten a hamburger in like 20 years so I wasn't going to order one of those. I decided to order a grilled chicken caesar salad. I know it has about 400 calories with chicken,croutons and dressing so it's a pretty safe bet. I halved the salad and cut up all the chicken that I was going to eat - about 3 slices. I did use some of the caesar dressing and had about 4 croutons. Pre-surgery I could easily eat the entire salad plus a couple of left over chicken nuggets, a few of my kid's fries and apples, at least 1 large drink and probably a sundae. Today I ate the 3 slices of chicken along with a few leaves of the dark green lettuce. I chewed and chewed and actually counted my chews as I'm not really *supposed* to eat lettuce yet. It was so freakin' awesome!! I was full, I was actually a bit overfull - I think I took 1 bite too many. I walked around a bit and had a couple of sips of my Propel and I felt better. The experience was great because I was able to go to a fast food place with my kids and enjoy a bit of food, and a bit of play time. I wasn't obsessed with eating all the food in sight. I took the salad home and ate more of it for a snack and then finished the chicken for dinner. I probably left about 80% of the lettuce, all the tomatoes (can't have those for a while yet) and ate the chicken, the cheese and most of the dressing. Next time I order the salad I'm going to switch the dressing for their Balsamic Vinaigrette because it has 40 calories compared to the caesar dressing which has 190!!

Yeah!! Congrats and have a safe journey. Please KUP as to your progress.