lellow

I won't lie, I found maintenance difficult in that I personally found it hard to break the habit of wanting to lose, and being in the green zone, for me, meant virtually no hunger.. I am one of those posters who have often said I lost too much (not my opnion but in the opinions of others, including my doctor) and had to work to gain a little or risk being unfilled. Even now, being in maintenance at a perfectly healthy BMI of 24 and a BFP of 19%, I still have days where I think "I reckon I could stand lose another 20lbs" even though I've been 20lbs less than I am now and even then, I kept thinking "just a few more lbs". It's easy to get caught in the idea that weight loss in the only goal, instead of a means to an end (a healthy weight). Everyone said 'let your body decide' but for me, it didn't work like that. If I left it to the band and my mind, I wouldn't eat, and my body would starve. My head had come to believe that weight loss was always good (even when it wasn't) and my band helped it by taking hunger away. Those two things in combination is not a good thing, So now I consciously decide on the weight I want to maintain at and work to stay on or about that weight, and also leave myself a little unrestricted in order to allow myself to feel hunger. I expect that for most people, that happens more organically though.

5 year vet now, and I've tried before to get a vet thread going. Went well for a while then it kinda died. Why? I reckon it's coz people who are doing well tend to not talk about the band anymore when it becomes second nature, like breathing. How often can someone talk about how they're breathing? Lol! However it's nice to have a place like this, nonetheless.

Hi hiddn I'm so sorry to hear of your complications. The leak would probably not have caused a lot of the issues you're experiencing beyond loss of restriction but the rest of the complications certainly sound difficult, especially considering that you had no Fluid in your band at all. I hope your removal goes well. I believe that whether it was the band or not, once your quality of life is affected to that extent, you should try anything to try to improve it, including removing anything that may or may not be a possible cause, if necessary. I hope removing the band gives you the better quality of life you're seeking.

Before you decide if you need more fill, I'm going to suggest that you keep a food journal and track all your calories for a few days. The reason I suggest that is because I have a friend who is also banded, who exercises far more than me, who isn't losing weight despite 'eating very little'. One day I spent the day with her and I immediately figured out why. Basically she ate very little hard Protein and instead grazed all day on cookie dough or drank coffees with 2 sugars or would have 1/2 bottle of wine every night. While she felt like she wasn't eating much, in terms of calories, she was ingesting the most highly processed kind she could have been getting. It meant that no matter how tight she was, she not only couldn't lose, but gained sometimes too. She has lost less than 10kg in 3 years and unless she changes the way she eats, I can't see her losing any more. Part of your success will come from your band, but the rest will come from learning to eat well. And of course exercising helps. So start with learning about the quality of the food you're eating.

A friend who got banded 6 months after me found out she was pregnant just one month after she was banded too. She has PCOS and hadn't had a period in years until her pre-op diet, so it was a wee bit of a surprise, suffice to say! She'd had one fill so they removed it and she had an uneventful pregnancy, had a bouncing baby boy, and after she'd finished breastfeeding, they recommenced her fills and she lost all her excess weight. Talk to your lapband surgeon and talk to your obgyn. I don't think you have anything to be stressed about. And congratulations!

I lost 100% of my excess weight (actually 130% of my excess weight) but did in fact exercise and watch what I ate to lose the 100% initially. Once the band kicked in with the right restriction, I actually continued losing without really trying or exercising all that much. 60% is not a hard and fast amount and does not mean that that's all you lose.

It sounds like you've irritated your stoma, causing it to swell and hurt. If you're able to hold liquids down, I'd revert to liquids for a few days, move to mushies, then soft foods. You need to allow it to heal. I find pineapple juice helps with the swelling. You could get unfilled a little but you'll probably lose restriction and have to build it back up again once you heal, but my doctor is of the belief that you ride it out, baby it for a few days and see how you go, so that's what I tend to do after every stuck episode.

I know that generally speaking, once erosion has occurred, it is believed that the prognosis for another band is poor. I personally would not ask for a new band if I've experienced erosion, and I actually think your doctor is being responsible by not wanting to place another band. So the choice now for you really is: sleeve or try to maintain without further wls. I know what I'd choose, I might maintain without the band, but it was always be a struggle, and the chances that I will slip up and regain is too high for me to take. So I'd get the sleeve, because without being able to get another band, that's probably the only other choice I'd be comfortable with (as opposed to bypass). But that's me. If you're truly worried about committing to a sleeve, you do have to option of not making your mind up now. It's likely you will have a period of recovery after your removal and in that time perhaps you can see how you go with managing without your band before you make the decision on moving onto a sleeve.

I had to ask myself those questions too when almost 2 years ago my 3 year old band sprang a leak. In the end, despite having the option of revising to a sleeve, I opted to be rebanded. And the reason is I had great success with the band, I live with it easily and for me, the success of it is known. The sleeve would have been a complete unknown for me, and not a risk I was willing to take. So yes, you can say I don't regret getting not just one band, but two.

Saturday for me now (I love being in the future!) and yes I love Fridays too, but only at about 4.30pm in the afternoon lol. I love my job but I love not having to go into my job more!

I agree with everyone. I consider myself lucky that I am able to lose without counting cals, and that I don't feel like eating when I'm not hungry, because it definitely made weight loss easier for me. But I accept that everyone needs to find their own way. There are many paths to the best outcome, so whatever works for someone is the right path for them.

If you're not chewing, scarfing your food down and not feeling the band kick back until you've over-eaten then you probably need more fill. But sticking to the band rules until you get to green will mean that you'll lose even when the band isn't at optimum yet, so it's all for a good cause - you!

Lol yes, I was having this conversation just recently with a friend. Not all calories are created equal in that 200 of calories in processed sugar is not the same as 200 calories of Protein in its effect on your body, but I'd like to think that someone who was building muscle would know that, as you and I obviously do. I was talking more about the effects of being in extreme calorie deficit and its effect on muscle. I think wls patients naturally lean towards extreme calorie deficit (eating net cals of 500 - 800 cals, whatever the make-up of that is) and this is what helps them to lose weight but the fact is, on that amount of calories you will be losing not just fat but muscle. At the rate that your body absorbs protein that you ingest, you can't replace the protein fast enough to stop that. So if someone's interest wasn't in losing, but in gaining muscle, being in extreme calorie deficit is counter-productive to that. If someone is trying to build a muscular body, being on 500 cals a day will keep them slim but will not get them big.

I don't count calories when my band is working either. I let my band control my hunger and I control what I put in my mouth and it all works out fine. I guess for some the whole calorie counting thing works for them. Like you B-52 I don't knock it. I can actually see some good in it in that it can teach someone who has no clue what is actually in their food but I can't see doing it for a lifetime. Though I will stand by the science that if you are in a BIG calorie deficit, you will lose weight, it just won't all be fat, but muscle too. That's a fact. If you want to gain or keep muscle, it won't happen while on a large calorie deficit. But when losing with the band, muscle growth is often not the goal, so it doesn't really matter I guess if a new bandster is eating only a small number of calories per day. It only matters if, like me, you're trying to actually build muscle.

Losing weight and losing fat are two different things. You can lose weight when on a big calorie deficit but the fact is you will lose fat and muscle, and may end up 'skinny fat'. If you want to retain muscle and not lose it (as you would if you were trying to strength train) you can't be on a large calorie deficit. You need eat well to build muscle. My BFP is lower now at a BMI of 24 than when my BMI was 21. That's because I lost muscle and fat when I was on a large calorie deficit. I also did a lot of cardio as opposed to strength training. Now I'm strength training, doing minimal cardio and my BFP is going down but not my weight. Because my body composition is changing instead.

I just think it was a case of the ports that were provided in the early days were of a higher profile. And it also depended on the make of the band. I had a high profile port when I was first banded 5 years ago. It stuck out more, and that was about the only difference I could see. I now have a low profile port because that's what now comes with the newer bands. I don't think there are medical reasons for replacing with a lower profile port if you have a high profile port, only that when you've lost a lot of weight, the old high profile ones can stick out a fair way out of your stomach and look like you have a goflball under there. It's just not that aesthetically pleasing. My low profile port is deep in and I still look like I've got some weird swelling going on in my tummy if you look at me side on.. :/

It's actually good that you're reading about the complications. You need to be informed of all the risks. Then you weigh it up with the possible benefits (and there are many as well), and decide what's best for you. Not everyone around you, not your husband, but you. I got the 'you don't look big enough to have something as drastic as wls'. I was 5'4" and around 215 -225lbs at the time. People get used to seeing you a certain way and can't imagine you any other way. Now I've lost all the excess weight an kept it off for 5 years, those same people look at pictures of me when I was heavy and say 'I don't remember you being that big'. Really? Coz the pictures don't lie! Losing with the band isn't easy. It's easier. But if you're in pain wouldn't you take painkillers? If you twisted your ankle wouldn't you bandage it? If you need help, you need help. I'm not ashamed to say my band helped me achieve my goals. I'd be sillier not to use any help I could get. Good luck. Do this for you if that's what you want to do. Go in well informed and ready to take this on. And ignore those who are not invested in your choice. Because only you will be invested in you.

I went from being the person who sat on the sidelines almost all the time to being very active. My kids complain that I go and go and go and they get tired just watching me.

What a great story! You look great!! I have to admit that even though I've had success with the band, and live with it easily, if push came to shove and I wasn't able to live with it anymore, I would be looking at what else in terms of WLS was available to me. I don't think the bandster lifestyle is for everyone for sure, and I love that we all have different choices that we can make to find our way to our own success. I'm glad you finally found your perfect solution!

Ha, yes, I know the feeling! But now I look back at pictures of my son's first 3 years and you'd think he didn't have a mum, just a dad. I regret that, that I am absent from all those memories, but like you, I was mortified of having my picture taken. But you're down 25lbs now, and it's only going to keep going down if you work at it. So take pics, and document where you've been, because all going well, they're the last time you're going to look like that ever again.

Ok wait. Can you eat solid food? Or is it just that some days you can't hold anything down but others, you can? Just from the little you've said, I'm wondering if you may be too tight. In some cases, lapband patients can be at green zone with no or little fill. Putting MORE fill in in those cases would make things worse, not better. If you're too tight, it is a miserable feeling, I agree. Been there. You can't eat solids and therefore are hungry all the damned time. Because what keeps the hunger away is being able to eat solid food. It helps to satisfy you in small amounts and at the right fill level, should keep hunger away for 3 - 4 hours. So if you're at the point of not being able to eat solid food, a small unfill might actually help. I know it sounds counter-intuitive, but it's completely possible that you're in the red zone now and your care-givers just don't know it.

Take pictures! I don't have pics of me at my biggest either because like most heavy people, I hated how I looked. I regret that now. Because the best advice I got from a fellow bandster was to take pictures, every week, without fail. And in the weeks where the scale didn't move, those pictures kept me going.

No problems nursecheryl. Good luck with it all. It's totally doable, don't get me wrong. You just need to be prepared for the part you have to play in it.