Jachut

Not that you want to reverse weight loss surgery, more a what if you had to do so. It wouldn't worry me that much, half my colon is gone and I have adjusted.

What I would want to know is can it be undone. Yes your band can come out, but if you have a slip or erosion can theplication be undone too for complete recovery? If not, personal I would just go with a sleeve. I know little about plication so I may be off the mark but I kind of don't see the band wiith plication choice as much different to a sleeve other than they're not actually removing part of the stomach?

We have tem here in Australia, I came across the more as a gluten free thing, and a fantastic source of soluble fibre, which i really beneficial for m particular bowel issues. They're called Slimpasta here. For a zero calorie alternative to Pasta, they're fabulous! They do taste the same but are near enough to satisfy, my kids will even eat them! But if you can't handle pasta with your band, I doubt these will be any easier. The texture is very similar.

I've got a 4cc band, never had a problem in seven years. What is likely is that you will find good restriction very quickly, unlike with larger bands. The trade off is that it is statistically slightly more likely to slip.

Ditto

Im just a whisker away from seven years. I've been so happy with my band. I've never suffered any really bad problems with it - none of that too tight, cant swallow spit emergency unfill stuff. At seven years, my band is very different to what it was at first. I think a lot of it is you get used to the feeling of restriction, and you think you dont have as much, but you do. Its very easy to fall into the trap of filling more and more looking for that feeling when in reality you are simply used to it and used to a bandster way of eating. For the first few years I would go out for dinner, eat a few mouthfulls and feel embarrassed because I literally could not eat any more. That never happens now - but I can still not eat a full meal. I can eat more but I am still satisfied with less, if that makes sense. I have developed a slightly stretched out pouch which my surgeon does think is fairly normal at this stage. I do have a little bit of heartburn, I do take a nexium every three or four days but I have had a lot of other health issues after having rectal cancer and I cannot necessarily attribute that to the band. I do maintain my weight, but I can swing around a bit more easily now than I could since I can overeat and I do still struggle with things like overating chocolate and Cookies. I think my desire for these foods has actually increased with teh band as things like bread which are filling, no longer appeal because they're hard to eat. I was thinking about dinner tonight and what we're going to have - we've got some rib eye steaks in the freezer and i feel NO desire to eat those at all, in fact I really DONT want to eat steak - hard, chewy, difficult, I would much rather have rice cakes and Peanut Butter for dinner. I have to fight that sort of thing all the time. I've also had a few emotional and mental issues around losing weight, getting really skinny, overexercising and such. It doesnt happen to everyone but sooner or later, the reasons for your disordered eating tend to present themselves. The other thing is after lots of years banded, nutrient deficiencies are showing - undereating over a long period of time - which is what you do with a band, no way around it - does have an effect on your body. I have Iron, B12 issues and my bone density is pretty bad. But I wouldnt change it. I only ahve to see a photo of myself and really like what I see to know that.

Exactly the advice my dietician gave me after i handed in three weeks of journalling - I eat too little, too irregularly and too many nutritionless carbohydrate snack type things. I was there for reasons other than weight loss but that was her observation. She got me to beef up what I eat, more wholegrains like brown rice, more Protein. And to aim to get my calories over 1500 every day. Eating enough and eating regularly is surprisingly difficult to keep up. I had to journal to make sure I did it, but I've slacked off because to be honest, I think journalling and counting your food is the singular most destructive and dysfunctional thing you can do on the road to being a normal eater. Yes yes yes, it helps you to keep track of calories and to lose weight. But it really does very little to help you listen to your body, feed it intuitively, eat without being obsessed - just like scale addiction it really just gives you something else to obsess and beat yourself up over. so......... because i'm being so sensible and NOT journalling, I'm probably back to not eating enough, and I know I'm eating rice cakes and useless stuff like that and I'm definitely eating very irregularly. But that doesnt mean the advice isnt sound. As to exercise, after years of running and cardio based stuff, I really have needed to introduce strength training and finding the time without giving up cardio is hard. I've had to do what you mentioned - I run five mornings a week at 6 am and go to the gym three times a week or so in the evening or on the weekend - on the weekend I might do my program and spin class together. I've actually got MORE time, just from sacrificing a bit of lying in bed time (was awake anyway as my hubby has to get up at 5.30), as I'm no longer trying to find an hour to run or do a spin class every single night. I hate morning exercise, but its really great to get it out of the way.

God, its truly scary what idiots are in charge of some programs. This is probably the biggest load of rubbish I've read on here in seven years - and there's been some whoppers. Stop exercising to lose more weight? I dont think so! I would ignore that advice - and lie about it if needs be.

Sounds like a good healthy smoothie that will work as long as total calories are below what you're burning. If you add this to your diet on top of everything else you eat, its going to slow down your weight loss, like anything. It would actually have significant calories, in the region of what a bandster would eat as a small meal, so use it as a Breakfast replacment or to replace a decent snack for example and you're doing great. If you replace say, a huge muffin and a hot chocolate with this, then its obviously going to work miracles.

Aargh. Halloween is not an Australian celebration yet it has really caught on in th past decade. I have never let my kids trick or treat, without the whole tradition it boils own to annoying the crap out of people banging on their doors asking for food. My nine year old is desperate though. But I will NOT dress up!

I dont have any trouble mixing the milk and cereal - I just eat it the regular way

I do, every day. I dont eat processed things like corn flakes, special K etc. But I do eat either oatmeal, this awesome "Power Porrij" that has grains like quinoa and amaranthe in it or home made toasted granola (full of seeds and nuts) for breakfast every single day. I like my cereal with some yogurt and fruit.

Im sorry but I just dont understand why people get so judgemental and holier than thou over low bmi'ers. You've ALL been there and none of you jsut ate less, exercised more or were honest with yourself back then either! As for cosmetic surgeries - well I am not ashamed in the least to say that vanity was my major reason for being banded. My BMI was 35, I wasnt sick. Nobody blinks an eye at breast enlargements or tummy tucks but have lapband surgery - a surgery which is likely to improve your health in many many ways even if you're only mildly obese - and suddenly that's wrong? Jeez, how hypocritical. I just cant believe that people who have failed to control their weight gain to the point of becoming morbidly obese can then judge someone else's unsuccessful efforts and accuse her of deluding herself or being dishonest. Do any of you REALLY think if you'd just approached it in a different way you wouldnt have needed to be banded? How many freaking times did you diet and gain it back? And yet we STILL give out this advice thinking it will work?

I've developed minor issues at seven years out - I need to be on nexium, but one 20mg tablet does me for three or four days, so I'm not on daily medication. But once that three or four days is up, I know I need to take another. I get burning pain in my stomach, but no night cough, no reflux, nothing coming up my throat. I know I had developed a slightly enlarged pouch, my surgeon believes that's pretty standard for someone as far out as I am. I have also had chemo for cancer in the past few years, and took Iron tablets for months which burned my pouch and caused a small ulcer - I've also become wheat, lactose and fructose intolerant so my gut is pretty damaged by chemo and radiation - its impossible to say if my reflux is due to my lapband or not, but I do know its a lot better when I stick to my low fodmap diet. Do I get the sense my band will last forever? No, not really. Its very different now to what it was five years ago, but its been so successful for me, I would replace it in a heartbeat.

It's within a healthy range. Just sayin. You might think it looks sickly coz you prefer a heavier buld, on the other hand at 5ft 10 I'm just right t 135.

You have the same issue with GF products as with regular - bread, cake, pizza dough can be hard to eat. I find most of it pretty yuck to b honest,I just do without. But if you lie it and can eat it, then just bear in mind a lot of gluten free stuff is even LESS healthy than wheat based, potato, rice, corn, tapioca flours are all extremely high GI and there's often more sugar and fat too.

I agree. It's irrelevant what your BMi is right now, you know whether you're a "fat" person ho needs this help. Youve tried unsuccessfully to lose it. And everyoneksewho says its a lifetime commitment - well that's what weight loss takes. I challenge anyone who has gotte thir BMi down under 30 today truthfully that they now no longer need their band. And to explain to usall, since it's so easy why their wm bmi's ever got beyond 27. I'd also say you could easily stand to lose 50lb at 5ft 7 and 175. Although I don't remember saying it its lo true your weight loss could be like 10 to 15lb, it's really hard to lose weight when you're already low BMi. So I don't think you're crazy, it's your money, our life.

Great news that you've found your solution. The band sure isn't for everyone.

It's already been Friday here, nice lazy Saturday morning now!

One of the reasons band design evolves is to get around the incidence of issues like erosion and slippage. The newer bigger capacity bands have a different baloon design which is pillowed and supposedly reduces slippage. However, from being on here for seven years, one thing I can say for sure - the older 4cc bands (which I have) make it much easier to get restriction - I had good restriction from the day of surgery and didnt have to take months to build up - what would happen was that it would wane over time, and I'd need a top up, of 0.1, 0.2 cc and back I'd be at that sweet spot, until after about six months, the sweet spot just held for literally years. About once every 18 months or so, I've had a 0.1cc top up. so I really do believe you get and hold restriction a lot quicker with the older bands. The teeniest tiniest of fills or unfills can make a big difference, although a delicate touch is required, they do seem to be easier to adjust and keep at optimum level. but because such small fills can make a difference and you really cant go smaller than 0.1cc - even this may be too much and I've known someone in real life who was simply unable to find the optimum restriction as she'd go from loose to tight over 0.1cc.

My definition of a great holiday is where I come home rested, healthy, well exercised and not fat! its very doable. Its entirely possible to enjoy food, enjoy a drink but not gain weight and regret it all when you come home. All it takes is to focus on the holiday not the food! who wants to lie around on their fat ass, stuffing their face and roll home unable to do up their pants? We've just gotten back from Thailand where my hubby got a little miffed with me once or twice because I didnt suck down cocktails and eat four courses every night. He wanted to and required my participation so that he didnt feel like a pig! I just see no point in it, its not worth it when you get home. But did I enjoy Thai food and the odd drink? Of course! I also dont eat airplane food just cos its put in front of me :-) Its usually not worth eating!

For me, it couldnt be described as fast by standards here, but I was ecstatic about 2-3 lb per week for a few months - never had I achieved that before in my life. I lost about 50% of my excess weight this way within six months, the rest took literally two to three years to completely lose. But I am not a calorie counter, i did it all on about 1500 a day and I exercised regularly - running an hour five to six times a week for the most part, now I do spin classes and strength training too.

I do recall there being quite a lot of heavy pain in my stomach, I was groggy but able to ask for pain relief. Once I really woke up though, I was fine, it was not a difficult surgery and it was not that hard to move around after surgery either. I was up and on my feet within a few hours. The next day I went home and went for a 2 mile walk.

The only rules I was ever given was to eat 3 meals, no Snacks, from all food groups, eat until satisfied not full and dont drink whilst eating. The theory being that if yoiu're losing, the calorie level is good, when you stop losing, its time for a fill to reduce calories a bit. It doesnt matter whether you're eating 1000 calories or 2500, whatever you lose on is right for you. I lost weight quite dramatically at first, as I had a BMI of 35, 2 to 3lb a week was a fantastic rate for me and not something I'd ever achieved on a sustained basis before. I lost about 40 lb that weigh and it began to taper off and I began to get fills. After that for the first year I reliably dropped about 5lb a month, but it would come in spurts, nothing for weeks then 5lb all of a sudden. That continued on into the second year only some months it was only 3lb. After the second year, i was down to normal weight, but I continued to lose - but only one or two spurts that year over which I dropped about 10lb in total. The rest of the weight came off, suprisingly in year 5 when I returned to full time work. All in all, I lot 120% of my excess weight taking me down to a BMI of 20/21.

Getting the protein farts is common, they are not easy for sone people to digest. I give them a very wide berth for just this reason.