BandedMomX6

Anyone else in a slump? In almost 6 weeks I've only lost 2 pounds. I'm rather frustrated, but I thought maybe some of you were there, or been there/done that and had some wisdom to share. Tho' every time I sign on and read it seems like everyone is doing awesome. Maybe I'm alone with this... The worst thing is that I think I finally have my 'sweet spot.' I don't need another fill, I've had about 4 fills, one unfill and I really do feel this is the right fill for me. I feel like I have never eaten so little. And I've tried the adding more calories and it doesn't seem to do anything but make the scale go up. I'm not giving up, I'm reading, writing down everything, and hoping that it will move soon. Or am I destined to lose 1 pound per month... at that rate it will be YEARS before I'm at goal. That is if I can maintain this momentum. :thumbup: I have to say, that pre-band, I was not aware that this was really another diet. I'm not sure I would recommend it to anyone. I think a more thorough examination of each candidate needs to be done. For example, look at their diet pre-band to see if they already eat fewer calories, or see if their metabolism is very slow. I could not lose weight on traditional diets, so maybe lapband was not the wisest choice for me. When I read about big losers on LBT it seems like they were really big eaters pre-banding. Sure I went through a short eating fest, but for years I was already eating healthy and fewer calories. I could not lose weight, so I thought lapband would do it for me. Little did I know it was just another diet. This is really hard to take, it seems like I put a lot of hope and dreams into this, and thinking that I would finally see results. It seems like on LBT this is almost a taboo subject, and I think it should be addressed. If you said your disillusioned by the lapband people jump right in to defend it, but I think that those of us who are losing painfully slowly should be able to ask for help ... sorry to be a bummer.

From this article: Royal college warns abortions can lead to mental illness - Times Online "Women may be at risk of mental health breakdowns if they have abortions, a medical royal college has warned. The Royal College of Psychiatrists says women should not be allowed to have an abortion until they are counselled on the possible risk to their mental health. This overturns the consensus that has stood for decades that the risk to mental health of continuing with an unwanted pregnancy outweighs the risks of living with the possible regrets of having an abortion." THIRTY YEARS LATER: EVIDENCE THAT ABORTION DOES REAL DAMAGE TO WOMEN Cover Story Is There a Post-Abortion Syndrome? I can give you more to read if you want.

I love sparkpeople too btw! I did get the scale finally moving and it was by writing myself out a schedule to follow. An eating plan that is. I went off it this weekend and so I need to get right back on track. Funny thing, even though I eat less with the band, if it isn't all good things, then I will not lose. Feels more like a diet than I wanted it to feel like. But I doubt I could have done this w/o the band. How was your weekend Becky? BTW, if it makes you feel any better I've lost about 10 pounds since January. :eek:

You know that there are a couple of things you could check, sodium level of some of that, and also how much Protein did you get and how many carbs. At least this is what my doctor would say. Your day looks somewhat like a typical day for me, was. I'm working on getting protein in and not turning to soft foods that are high in carbs. But like I said, this is new to me, the tightness, so I'm still adjusting. The scale is starting to move again. So theres hope.

Oh come on, stay and finish what you started. I could pick up a bit of sarcasm in your email, but aphrodiet, I was not being sarcastic, however, when I re-read mine I could see that it may have been taken that way. Emails, computers, etc, is a kind of cold way to have a conversation, so much is lost in the translation.I have pro-abortion and pro-life friends. We just come out shaking hands when it is over. I hope you'll be able to do the same. I hope that you will see that I am as passionate about my need to set what I feel is wrong, right as I can tell that you are. So I wanted to alert you that that was a myth. I am by nature one that defends the underdog, and in this argument, to me the baby is the underdog.:eek: You write: But actually you are. When you say that if they can't get them legally they will do it illegally. That is millions. There are 4,000 reported abortions per day. You wrote: Also, you wrote: Isn't that the same thing? An abortion just sounds like a nice neat medical procedure. (pardon my frankness, and yes I'm being sarcastic here) But whether a hanger is used or other metal object, it is all pretty gruesome. I dare say that you would want to read the following. "abortionist must first paralyze the cervical muscle ring (womb opening) and then stretch it open. This is difficult because it is hard or "green" and not ready to open. He then inserts a hollow plastic tube, which has a knife-like edge on the tip, into the uterus. The suction tears the baby’s body into pieces. He then cuts the deeply rooted placenta from the inner wall of the uterus. The scraps are sucked out into a bottle (see color photo in back of book). The suction is 29 times more powerful than a home vacuum cleaner." Go to that site and read some more if you can stomach it. I can't, but I do because I feel if the babies have to give up their lives then the least I can do is be informed enough to speak the truth when I need to. I have debated friends, some persuaded, but some just determined to defend their point, regardless of the facts. No matter how you tidy it up abortion is murder, of the defenseless. It is our modern day birth control pill. If you think I'm wrong on this I can gather some statistics for you. And making it illegal WILL reduce the number of abortions because some people do recognize the law. This is proven with the few illegal abortions that were done prior to the millions that are done annually. One of my dear friends used to work in an abortion clinic. She did it while in college. She said the majority of abortions were done by middle class working women. Yes it is a tough decision, but it can also be a selfish one. I'm really dumbfounded by your name, Aphrodite, which is the goddess of love and fertility isn't it? Don't argue to just be right, argue to be correct. Here are some awesome articles that will enlighten you: Women who regret their abortions Former abortionists speak against abortion Celebrities who oppose abortion and Roe v. Wade Feminist, Prolife and Atheist Feminist quotes(see some below) "How quickly a 'woman's right to choose' comes to serve a 'man's right to use.'" --Juli Loesch "[A]bortion is one result of the historic and deep exploitation of, and discrimination against, the female.... [W]hen this exploitation and discrimination end, the practice of abortion will also end.... It is a strange irony that other, pro-choice feminists embrace abortion and define it as a fundamental feminist right instead of seeing it as a fundamental and devastating exploitation. Such a feminist embraces and cooperates in her own oppression. Abortion, in the final analysis, works to the advantage of the exploitative male, not for the female.... Abortion is a male sexual fantasy come true." --Susan Maronek

I think you are right here. It is very hard to stay on program when you are so tight that nothing will go down. I had that problem. It was awful. Even Water would sit in the 'chamber' and go no where! I felt this cold pain in my chest, from the water. I had some of the fill taken out. But then I had some put back in and for a couple of weeks I was tight but I could eat Soup, etc. Then I finally reached that 'sweet spot.' I could eat, but felt full and satisfied. However, recently it has felt v. tight. I think it is from some sinus meds... maybe I'm dehydrated a bit. I am really staying on program tho'. I am having to rack my brains to find things that will go down. It took me 2 hours to eat some soft scrambled eggs. Thanks for your reply. I do see that for some it is slow. I have been sick for a while and an injured ankle so I have not been exercising, and you are right it does come off faster when I do.

Hi, oops... sorry but that is a Myth. It has been perpetuated over the years. Not your fault, I used to believe that myth as well. I never supported abortion for it, but I thought it was true. Funny it was heard around the world loud and clear when everyone thought women were being killed through illegal abortions, but when it was found out to be a falsehood barely anyone got the news. I cut/paste the article I found on the net: The Myth of Mass Back-Alley Abortion Deaths* One of the most common arguments abortion advocates make in defense of legal abortion is that making abortion illegal will cause women to go to the "back alleys" and obtain unsafe abortions. They cite how thousands of women died as a result of unsafe abortions before abortion was legalized through the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision. We already know legal abortions are not safe - they can and do cause women to lose their lives and harm women physically and emotionally. So let's address some other issues. Dr. Bernard Nathanson, co-founder of the National Abortion Rights Action League, admits his group lied about the number of women who died from illegal abortions when testifying before the Supreme Court in 1972. "We spoke of 5,000 - 10,000 deaths a year.... I confess that I knew the figures were totally false ... it was a useful figure, widely accepted, so why go out of our way to correct it with honest statistics?" That claim of thousands of maternal deaths due to illegal abortion doesn't measure up when compared with other statistics. About 50,000 women of child-bearing age die each year -- from all causes combined. To suggest that 10,000 of these deaths were from illegal abortion would make that the cause of one out of every five deaths, or twenty percent. This would have made illegal abortion the leading cause of death among women in that age group. What, then, did cause abortion-related deaths due to illegal abortions? According to data from the National Center for Health Statistics, the legalization of abortion was not responsible for reducing abortion-related deaths. This discovery of antibiotics in the 1940's did that by providing effective treatment for infections. The National Center for Heath Statistics reveals that before 1941, there were over 1,400 abortion-related deaths. Yet after Penicillin became available to control infections, the number of deaths was reduced in the 1950's to approximately 250 per year. By 1966, with abortion still illegal in all states, the number of deaths had dropped steadily to 120. The reason? New and better antibiotics, better surgery and the establishment of intensive care units in hospitals. This was in the face of a rising population. Between 1967 and 1970 sixteen states legalized abortion. In most it was limited, only for rape, incest and severe fetal handicaps or deformities, and when the pregnancy jeopardized the life of the mother (all of which constitute only 5% of the abortion cases today). There were two notable exceptions - California in 1967 and New York in 1970 legalized abortion on demand. Legalizing abortion should have eliminated some deaths related to illegal abortions. That is not the case. In the years from 1963-1969, there were an average of approximately 55 deaths per year due to illegal abortions. In 1970, after this initial wave of laws legalizing abortions, there were 109. Deaths from illegal abortions increased. By the year before the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision allowing legal abortion on demand in all fifty states, the death rate for illegal abortions had fallen to 24 in 1972 (with 25 additional deaths as a result of legal abortions). Now abortion was legal in all fifty states and back alley abortions eliminated with their alleged total of maternal deaths. In 1973 there should have been a sharp drop in abortion-related deaths if abortion advocates were right that legalizing abortion would make abortion safe. Yet abortion-related deaths increased again with 25 deaths resulting from legal abortion in 1973, 26 in 1974 and 29 in 1975. Some have claimed that the number of illegal abortion-related deaths were not reported accurately or underreported. Yet, when a woman was seriously injured by an abortion, she went to another doctor for care. The abortion practitioner was rarely involved at that point. The new doctor in many cases had to attempt to save the mother's life. In cases of maternal death, this new doctor was required to report, and falsification of the death certificate was a felony. Therefore, prior to legalization of abortion, it's safe to say deaths from illegal abortions were rarely covered up. Yet, even if the case can be made that deaths resulting from illegal abortions were underreported, it is equally safe to say that deaths resulting from legal abortions are underreported. In Maryland in 1991, there were four women who died from legal abortions that year. None of the four were reported to the Federal Centers for Disease Control for its statistics. Whereas prior to the legalization of abortion a second doctor, with little or no reason to cover up a death for which he or she was not responsible, was involved in an attempt to save the mother's life; with legalized abortion the abortion practitioner is usually the one attempting to save the mother's life when the abortion threatens her life. Other specific instances help us see how reporting for the number of deaths related to illegal abortions may be low: In 1977 an Ohio doctor noted that while the official statistics showed no abortion-related deaths in Ohio that year, he personally knew of two. If one doctor knew of two cases, how many were there really? Abortion was legalized in California in 1967. According to an article in the Los Angeles Times in 1972, official records showed four legal abortion-related deaths in the entire country from 1967 to 1972. Yet a reporter for that paper uncovered three deaths only in Los Angeles in just one month in 1972. A reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times uncovered 12 legal abortion-related deaths in that city in 1978. The government statistics show only 16 deaths for the entire country in that year. Another important point is that many of the abortion practitioners performing abortions after Roe v. Wade were the same people performing illegal abortions. In the July 1960 edition of the American Journal of Public Health, an article by Dr. Mary Calderon, then medical director of Planned Parenthood, which stated: "90% of illegal abortions are being done by physicians. Call them what you will, abortionists, or anything else, they are still physicians, trained as such; ... They must do a pretty good job if the death rate is as low as it is... Abortion, whether therapeutic or illegal, is in the main no longer dangerous, because it is being done well by physicians." Here is a candid admission that not only are illegal abortions not being done by quack doctors but that the death rate from illegal abortions was "low." This flies in the face of claims of several thousand women losing their lives to illegal abortions and the claim that illegal abortions were performed by quack doctors and not by physicians. As we can see, "Never again" never was. There were not several thousand women losing their lives due to illegal abortions performed by quack doctors. Effective medical treatments helped reduce abortion related deaths and the legalization of abortion never played a significant role (and never will) in affecting the numbers of women who died from legal or illegal abortion-related deaths. That women continue to die from so-called "safe, legal" abortions (perhaps in greater numbers than we know) is a clear indication that abortion is unsafe and hurts women - legal or otherwise. *Sources: National Center for Health Statistics. Health, United States, 1994. Hyattsville, Maryland: Public Health Service, 1995. Abortion Surveillance 1985, Center for Disease Control, Table #18. Induced Abortion: World Review 1983, by Christopher Tietze, The Population Council, p 103 Maternal Mortality Surveillance 1979-1986, Centers for Disease Control, M&M Weekly report July 1991, Vol. 40, No. SS-1.

Thanks Becky, all good advice. For me, I was not much of a sweet eater before banding. However, when restriction is tight and hunger sets in, I will grab for something that goes down easy. For example, today I had egg salad for Breakfast, instead of a shake, it took so long to go down that I will be back on shake tomorrow. For lunch I steamed some broccoli, and poached a piece of fish. I maybe got one bite of each. Restriction varies so much for me. Today is especially tight, but I'm pretty darn hungry and that makes me vulnerable. Yesterday I did do much better than I had been, and you are right, I may have strayed with a taste here and a taste there. However, when I speak to banders, off list, in person, they too 'cheat' from time to time. I guess some of us just can't stray at all. I'm in this for the long haul. I hope to hear from more out there that got them over the wall. I'll keep ya posted.

woo woo!!! good for you!!! Did you do any exercise? Still at a plateau. But I keep changing things and I'm down another inch on my waste so I have a feeling the scale will soon follow.

woo woo!!! Thanks for sharing... it helps us all to know it is possible.

As soon as you are married. OK I couldn't help myself... LOL

Thanks for your honesty. I think that it is the first step. How many times have I told myself that I was just hungry, or I was craving something because of PMS. Honesty is what will save us all from this disease. I don't think drug addicts, etc, have it easier it is just another addiction. They might say to you, "it's just food it has no power." Addiction is addiction. For me my head hunger and my belly hunger are not indistinguishable. But I'm working on it day by day. I know that I have an addiction to salty and sweet foods. At 3PM my kids come home from school and I start to crave these bad foods. When I realized yesterday that it was because I am overwhelmed with all the stuff left to do in the day, whether it be driving to sport practices, dinner, etc, you get the drill. And I would give myself license to eat something off program. But the problem with food addiction is that if you give an addict a treat she will want the whole bag. (I've got give a moose a muffin on the brain...) I went out yesterday and bought some safe treats. I bought individual bags of baked chips, some sf chocolate pudding cups. They are helping. My thoughts are with you. Try not to look at the big picture, but maybe make strategies to get through the tough moments. One last thing, I have found a great deal of empowerment from discipline. Maybe find one thing a day you can master regarding food. Whether it be drinking a Protein drink over a snack or whatever you choose, do it with consistency even if it seems small, I have to say, I find it exhilarating to have power over the food. Take care. Hope this was helpful.

I had not heard of them... I'll check them out.

Are you saying that abortion is a good thing because 'just in case' it may eliminate the next Hitler? Following that logic, then genocides or holocausts are also a good thing because they too eliminate possible Hitlers? I've not heard that logic from a pro-abortionist yet, but I rarely visit boards that argue this because most people are very hostile on those message boards. So I may just be out of the loop on this. BTW, do abortionists believe it is killing or not, or what is it?

How on earth did I come across this? :blushing: Anyway, I am a woman, and mother and frankly I think the power is given to men when we have abortions. If you research 'regrets' with regard to abortion it is overwhelmingly the woman who suffers from this. So if you want to take a new age feminism approach to all this you may want to consider that it is very easy for the man to get away with much when abortion is the choice. No regrets, no changes to the body, no obligations... zip zelch nadda I think women are cheapened when they do not allow the man to voice his opinion in this matter. We are a being of such high intelligence yet we kill our young. Women get it together we are given so much yet we ask so little of ourselves. In case you didn't know there are 4,000 abortions a day. Maybe someone who could have cured obesity was one of the million who are now dead. Just a thought...

I keep this list of things to do when I hit a plateau, because I seem to hit one often. :coolgleamA: When I follow these things, I start losing again. Good luck to you! Here are some suggestions: FIRST, believe you can do this. If you let doubt creep in and bring you down you may sabotage yourself by living up to your own 'doubtful' expectations. Be your own Cheerleader!!!!:cool2: You have to be your biggest supporter!!! Make sure you have the right 'fill' (search this forum for help on this). If not then take action, make an appointment. NOTE: If you are too full, you may not be able to eat the proper Proteins, so make sure you can eat Protein. Start tracking every morsel you put in your mouth. Sometimes we are eating things that may not be the best for Lap Band people. Remember high protein, low carb is the best for us. Get all your Water in Make sure you have 90 grams of protein. Start your day with a high Protein shake, and end your day with one for an evening shake. Keep carbs to 50 or less Shake up your exercise, do something different, if you walk then try an aerobics video, etc. Keep a set of hand weights by your desk, or TV and do them periodically throughout the day. Look for opportunities to move. At work stand to do things you normally sit for. At home stand when you fold laundry etc. Move move move. Stop eating 2 hours before bedtime or set a permanent time like no eating after 7PM Eat protein every 1.5 - 2 hours, something small like a few nuts, a spoonful of PB, a half ounce of cheese, keep the metabolism boosted all day so it does not slow down to conserve (often people will think they should skip eating to lose weight but instead their bodies will slow down burning much needed fuel) I was told to even set an alarm to beep every 2 hours so that I wouldn't forget. Let the band do it's job, when you start to feel full STOP! Review Lapband rules of eating and make sure you are following them! GET Sleep! See this article at WebMD:The Dream Diet: Losing Weight While You sleep Start your own list of plateau lifters and go to it whenever you hit one again.

HELP! Do you have strategies for staying on your plan? What do you do at gatherings that are centered around food, like reunions, birthdays, parties, etc? And when you have a craving do you have a 'plan' for it? Like I know that I get 'chocolate' cravings from time to time and recently I've started keeping sugar-free puddings on hand. Looking forward to getting help with this, I have a hard time at gatherings:scared2: and at salt/sugar cravings. Thanks!

Found out that a lap band recipient has to have his band removed. Sad. He ate what he wanted and damaged his pouch. This was what he told the doctor anyway. He ate fast food, buns and all and it went up his esophagus and did lots of damage. I'm so sad for this man. Sad that his pull to food was so strong. Sad that his dream of being thin has crashed. Anyway, it made my ears perk up and listen and to own my lap band, claim as part of me now, because after all it was my idea, and to not fight it as someone once said on this forum. Just thought I'd pass it on..

Perhaps I didn't specify what I meant, according to the doctor, he ate what he wanted in the quantities that he wanted, and it seemed like he didn't make a change at all. As far as 'paying' for your weight loss, I wish it were that easy. If that were the case then there wouldn't be any fat rich people in the world. :coolgleamA: It doesn't always work that easy. Some people eat what they want in small amounts and lose while others either gain, or are stagnant. Congrats on your success so far!

{{{{{{{{ HUGS }}}}}}}}} Don't give up, it is within your reach. Look how far you've come!!! You are more than 1/2 way to your goal!!! I'm at a plateau and it is frustrating. However, I've had these plateaus before and it eventually it moves. But I have to kick it into high gear to do this, AND I can not give into doubtful feelings. In other words, I have to be open to really putting forth extra effort and not saying "I've already done all of this, it's hopeless." So though it is frustrating, I'm hopeful. HOWEVER, I've had some high sodium Proteins and my carbs have been up higher than I had them initially. Do you keep track of the number of carbs you eat? Here are some suggestions: FIRST, believe you can do this. If you let doubt creep in and bring you down you may sabotage yourself by living up to your own 'doubtful' expectations. Be your own Cheerleader!!!!:coolgleamA: Make sure you have the right 'fill' (search this forum for help on this). If not then take action, make an appointment. Start tracking every morsel you put in your mouth. Sometimes we are eating things that may not be the best for Lap Band people. Remember high Protein, low carb is the best for us. Get all your Water in Make sure you have 90 grams of protein. Start your day with a high Protein shake, and end your day with one for an evening snack. Keep carbs to 50 or less Shake up your exercise, do something different, if you walk then try an aerobics video, etc. Keep a set of hand weights by your desk, or TV and do them periodically throughout the day. Stop eating 2 hours before bedtime or set a permanent time like no eating after 7PM Eat protein every 1.5 - 2 hours, something small like a few nuts, a spoonful of PB, a half ounce of cheese, keep the metabolism boosted all day so it does not slow down to conserve (often people will think they should skip eating to lose weight but instead their bodies will slow down burning much needed fuel) I was told to even set an alarm to beep every 2 hours so that I wouldn't forget. GET Sleep! See this article at WebMD: The Dream Diet: Losing Weight While You sleep I hope this helps you. I'm going to get into gear and follow my own advice. We'll get that scale moving soon.:cool2:

I've found my peeps! I am a slow loser and have been told, by my doc that if I don't lose 50% of what I have to lose by my 1 year anniversary date I will FAIL! (his words not mine) I have no intention of failing! Apparently I'm on track but he seems to doubt that at this very slow pace I will be able to continue. He sees weightloss drop off at 6 months. Going to go back and read some more from you *slow polks* :glare: Happy to be among you! Slow and steady win the race!

I agree Jack. As good as eating that fried chicken felt, though a momentary good feeling, the longer lasting thrill of saying NO to overeating is just like you said, EXHILARATING! :glare:

Well the plateau is starting to move. Phew. Thanks for your support. I definitely would do this again. However, I wish I did understand it better before hand, it would have helped with some of my disappointments and misunderstandings early on. At our seminar they didn't say HOW slow it would be they only said that it was a 'bit' slower than gastric bypass, and that isn't really the truth. It is a LOT slower. AND it relies more heavily on our commitment than I had realized. There is no magic cure, it does take work but honestly without the band I couldn't have done it. It really is a great tool.

Would you still have done the lap band? Just curious. I've learned a lot about weight loss from taking the associated classes etc, that go along with getting the lapband. I thought I knew it all ... go figure. I've read so much about how some gain it back. I guess I was tuning all that out when I was going through the process. The weight loss is slow and I just got over a 4 week plateau, so maybe I'm over thinking. I had no idea it would be this slow. I knew 'slower' than gastric but no clue this slow.

My dh is a slow cook with little confidence. He can grill anything, but I am a stay at home mom and frankly the poor guy works so many hours that it wasn't practical for us. But sometimes I get it started and he'll take over. How lucky for you that dh cooks! DH needs to learn this trick! Easter Candy is sitting next to his bed in a bag! LOL:drool: