LoserHeather37

I have not been on this site for 2 years now due to my having failed my lapband. I was banded in May of 2009 and have only lost 35 pounds. Due to issues I've had with my band, I have ended up having all of the fluid removed and since then, I've gained about 10 pounds. I'm thoroughly disgusted with myself and feared this from the beginning as I've never been successful at anything regarding my weight. I am switching physicians and will be going to see my new doctor on January 8th. I PRAY that I can get back on the bandwagon and be successful in 2013!!! The first step for me was coming back on this site and acknowledging that I have not done my part in this journey. So...here's to 2013! I hope that we are all successful in our weight loss journeys!

I'm almost 9 months post op and I've only lost 48 pounds. I have, what I think, is good restriction, however, I can take much bigger bites than I think I'm supposed to and I can eat more, sometimes, than I I'm supposed to. But there are other times when I can barely get anything down and don't eat even half a portion. So I'm confused. Like right now. I'm going to finish my McDonald's salad, which I really don't think I should be able to do. And I know that my bites are bigger than I should be able to eat. Do I need a fill or don't I? I haven't been to see my doctor in a while and I know I should just call them and they'll tell me to come in. But what are your opinions? Thanks for the help!!!

Where in the world do you buy these things? I asked my pharmacist at my grocery store and he had never heard of them.

So I'm looking for some suggestions and encouragement on ways to deal with stress!!!! I have found myself reverting back to old habits. I don't keep junk food in the house, but I have been stopping at convenient stores, drive throughs, taking from my friends, all of the junk food I can get my hands on. We have had 2 deaths in our family in the past 4 weeks and my family has been in horrendous turmoil! So, on top of the good food that people have lovingly brought to our house, I am eating everything I can get my hands on! I am at fairly good restriction, but I'm eating slider foods and can get around the band! I can't seem to make myself stop! I'm out of control. What do I do????

And, if you're like me, you won't be able to eat Doritos. As much as I love them...they don't love me. I ate 2 and got horrendously stuck!!! :frown:

[Can you designate a cabinet or area for the other people in the house to keep their things that you'd rather not see? You could even go as far as to put a lock & key on it and give them a key and not keep a copy for yourself. Make yourself very small and attainable goals. Even as little as .5lb a week.. and when you reach that goal, give yourself a non-food reward. Manicure, pedicure, special book, bubblebath? As you get stronger, gradually increase your goals. These are some REALLY good ideas!!! I think I may do that as well. I have very active children and a husband with a metabolism worth killing him over, so they can eat the things that I can just look at and gain. Thanks for great ideas!!!

This is exactly the way it happens for me as well.

I had an NSV just today. I've had previous MRI's on my knees and they've been unable to fit my leg comfortably in the knee coil....until today!!! I had an MRI today and my leg fit perfectly in the coil! No pinching, or having to stuff the fat down to get the coil to strap on. It was such a little thing, but a HUGE deal to me!!!

Popcorn may be a slider food, but it is also a whole grain. Let's not forget that.

I was banded May 10, 2010 and have lost 35 pounds, just by limiting my food intake and doing light exercising. I find myself going 3 weeks, gaining and losing the same 2-3 pounds and then dropping 5-8 pounds, which is fine, but...I've blown my knee out and am no longer able to do ANY exercising. To be honest, this doesn't hurt my feelings because I HATE to exercise, however, the scale hardly moves at all if I don't do something. I've had a problem with my caloric intake anyway. I see all of these posts about taking in 800-1200 calories and how much weight they're losing, but I can't do that. If I have 800-1200 calories, I gain. My doctor doesn't give any calorie restrictions either, just to use a salad plate, dividing it into protein, veg and starch and eat in that order. So I find that I need 1500-1700 calories to lose anything. I'm just so discouraged because I read about people who were banded the same day or after me and have SOOOO much more than I have and now I can't even do the minimal exercising I was doing before. I know, I know, I'm not supposed to compare but it is almost impossible not to when you read these posts everyday. Don't get me wrong, I'm THRILLED for those who have lost, I'm just so jealous, I'm turning green :smile2:!!! Any advice...is there anyone out there like me? HELP!!!

Thanks for all of the great advice. I needed to have you push me to not use my knee as a crutch, because I know I will. I do journal my food, however, I know that I don't get enough protein in and don't always drink all of the water that I should. This is why I post my problems...because I know that I'll get great words of wisdom and be pushed to do better. Thanks!!!

Not to discourage anyone who wants a TT (because I can't WAIT until I have to make that decision), I have a friend who had her WLS 2 years ago and has been at her goal for almost a year. She had a TT 6 months ago and they had to move her port. Her port became infected and she's struggled with it for months, but finally her doc decided it had to come out. She continued to run a fever and had to have her entire band removed this past Sunday!!! OMG! This scares the crap out of me!!! Although this is an uncommon thing that can happen, it can happen. Just make sure you know all of the pros and cons before making a decision. An informed decision in a good decision!! Best of luck!

I live in Glendale Kentucky, about 45 miles south of Louisville. I'm a PACS administrator/Xray technologist, wife and mother of 3.

I had a stomach bug about a month ago where I threw up consistently for 24 hours. I called my doctor first thing after I started. They wanted to know how often I had thrown up in the last hour, which was like 5 times. They said that when I stopped, stick to clear liquids for 24 hours, full liquids for 24 hours and mushies for 24 hours. If I had no problems with any of those, I would be fine, but if I had trouble getting any of those down, to come into the office.

Wow!! That's terrific! And no, you don't look like you weigh 238!! You look fantastic! Keep up the good work! And thanks for the motivation!

I am in the same boat. I've always taken Ibuprofen since Tylenol didn't touch my headaches but since my surgery, I hadn't really needed any until last week. I tried everything tylenol based and nothing would touch my migraine, so my doctor has prescribed Relpax, which got rid of my migraine instantly!!! You might want to talk to your PCP about what options you have and try to get something that you'll have on hand the next time one hits. Good luck and believe me, I FEEL your pain!!!

I, typically, don't know for sure how a fill is going to work for me until 2 weeks after. I don't know what it is, but exactly 2 weeks from the date that I had the fill, I either know I need another one, or know that I'm good. Right now, I'm almost 3 weeks since my last fill and am trying to decide if I need a slight unfill or if I should wait it out.

I LOVE salad, but I haven't been able to eat it since I got my first fill. My PCP says to keep trying, maybe something will change and it'll start going down. However, I haven't been able to get anything down the past couple of days. Which is weird, because I had a fill 3 weeks ago this Wednesday and did fine up until Saturday. Right now I feel like I have something stuck in the back of my throat. Any thoughts?

So where do you get these Papaya enzyme tablets? I had a "stuck" episode yesterday and still feels like there's something stuck in the back of my throat. I need these tablets bad!!!

I completely understand this question...it's not about whether or not to "break rules", you just want to know the "whys" to why we can or can not do something. I'm the same way, and I get VERY frustrated with the huge differences between what doctor's opinions are on band issues. Like straws...my doc says no straws, but I've read on here where some doctors are telling their patients TO drink through straws. So I'm with you, I'd LOVE to hear from bariatric docs on both sides of the most controversial issues with the band. In the meantime, I've given up my addiction to diet soda, NOT because I was told I had to but because this is a journey for me to become healthier and I didn't feel that the diet soda addiction constituted a healthier lifestyle. However, I have had beer occassionally with no side effects. Maybe a little more burping than usual but that's all.

I'm frustratingly not seeing the scale numbers move, however, I am now able to pull ALL of my pants down with unbuttoning them or unzipping them. Thanks for posting this!!! We sometimes forget that our weight loss journeys are not just about the numbers on a scale, but sooooo much more than that!!!

This is my first challenge, so we'll see how I do with it!!! Good luck everyone!

Oh, how I miss pasta! But I can't eat it. Whether it's regular or whole wheat, pasta does not agree with me. So, I have no idea what I'm going to do with it, but I threw in chicken breasts, olive oil, poultry seasoning and salt and pepper, in the crock pot this morning. I'll probably make some kind of sauce, rice and vegetable to go with it.

I just came home from my 5th fill. I now have a total of 6.1 cc's in my 10cc band. I was so disappointed because I hadn't lost a pound since my previous fill and I've been soooo hungry!!! My doc says that she thinks this will be the perfect place for me, and I'm praying that she's right!!!