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Had gbp 2019... over 18 months I was able to lose 100 pounds. Since loosing the initial 100 lbs I still have approximately 30lbs to lose. But it's not budging. I carry all my weight in midsection. I think the last weight i need to met is my stomach. I work out and eat healthy. Any tips on how to loose that last 30lbs? All suggestions are appreciated. Sent from my SM-N960W using BariatricPal mobile app

I have PCOS and I'm loosing weight with the sleeve. I think I'm loosing slower than many folks, but at least I'm loosing. I'm down 100 pounds after about 7 mos. I didn't have any hair loss, and other areas seem to be growing faster than they did before. (I think it is the biotin in the multi vitamin and the hair follicles are closer together since there is not as much skin). There is hope for weight loss even with PCOS, just be prepared that it might be slower than others.

Were you self pay or insurance? I'm going to be self pay, and I think I'm just curious about the process all around; from the consultation to surgery. Did you have to loose a lot of weight before surgery? How long did was it between your first consultation and your surgery? I'm glad to know you liked him so well. I've heard he is no-nonsense, but I like that!

Good news is that I am not that far from my BMI ideal weight. It is only 40 lbs away and I have already lost 121 lb in 5 months. So it got me thinking abut what really is my target weight and when should I achieve it? Given that 10 lb a month is pretty standard, an easy calculations reveals that I wold hit BMI ideal weight in about 4 months, give or take a couple weeks depending on how slow or fast the scale weight moves. That is fine with me and places my target of 180 lb in the middle of feb. 2013. The question is whether BMI is a good goal to shoot for. My doctor, NUT and supporting staff have not talked to me explicitly about a target yet and I always assumed it would be BMI for my height of 5 ' 11 ". However, feb 2013 is the 9 month mark for me which statistically places me 1/2 way through my golden period of sleeve effectiveness. Should I stop there? What happens if I reach goal at new year instead because I have been getting pretty serious about exercise and weight lifting in the last month? My wife and mother in law have told me on numerous occasions that they think I might look unhealthy at BMI because my bone mass is medium to large and I have muscle on me. They might be saying these things with some self motivation. for example, my mother in law is constantly on a diet losing and gaining the same 10 lb. my wife is a candidate for sleeve, so may not quite understand the whole less is better attitude. not sure. I certainly feel good now and think 20 lbs more lbs would put me into a solid state of health, even if 20 lb over the BMI for my height. The last thing I want is to develop some kind of need to lose weight into the unhealthy zone, below BMI. Not saying this would be from anorexic tendencies because I am not starving myself in my diet nor am I doing crazy exercises ( max 1 hour a day, most of the time 45 min). However, I do see that I need to be careful to not lose too much and get unhealthy. I will continue to be active in my exercises, not just in my home gym but also running 5ks, hiking and other things. These will all contribute to my metabolism burning, burning and burning calories. I look pretty healthy in the mirror with and without clothes on. Not a lot of lose skin and am shaping up like a swimmer ( broad shoulders and narrow waist). My caloric intake is currently around 600-900 and consists mostly of Protein for 6 meals a day. I feel ok with this eating, am not hungry except to refuel and have a lot of energy from this eating, from exercise and also from coffee. Can I continue to eat like this? Not sure. I think I would like to eat more fruit and veggies at some point, eat more like a wholesome and natural Mediterranean style diet. That is a goal of mine for when I stop losing scale weight. It is going to take me a few weeks of transition time to moderate my eating patterns from high protein to Mediterranean style. Have not crossed that bridge yet, but know it is soon arriving on my journey. Appreciate the thoughts from others, especially mature sleevers that have "been there, done that."

I am 62 and would'nt take for my lap band. I needed to loose 70 pounds and now its only 50 so I will do pictures when I am finished. Out 1 month tomorrow.I can really tell it in my tummy, face and clothes. I have gotten rid of 20 inches also. I love that also. Tell them to go for it. I just wish this had been around a long time ago. I did'nt even hear about it until Dec. 05. Just got tired of fighting it so hard.

Mines was easy…we talked about loosing anyone or anything, and i was a basket case…i had just lost my 23years old god daughter 8 13 13..so i was a mental case i cried the doc cried lols..come to find out the doc lost her daughter, in the most horrible way..shared loss…needless to say the doc thought its okay to have a good cry no matter the magnitude of you're loss!!!!

You hang in there I just had the surgery on Friday the 10 of July I know what your going through. I feel your pain and am there with ya. Just hang in there and drink vitamin water and sugarless jello it helps you loose faster I already lost 5 lbs and its only been 2 days. Drink your protein shake in the mornings and drink broth and vitamin water and tea during the day you'll loose weight faster, and dont forget to take all your vitamins, hang in there Liza

I was banded 10/2 and mine are still on. They look disgusting. I've showered and washed every day since surgery and they are still stuck. They aren't even loose! Is that normal? I go to the doc Tuesday for my post-op check up so I'm wondering if he will try to pull them off?!!

I'm not sure where you are at with you Banded Journey, date of surgery, # of fills, Green Zone or not,....so I won't get into the nitty-gritty..... When I was first starting out, and things were not going good, I always thought about improving the Band's performance.....I always asked myself "Should not things be different because of th band?" and if not, WHY??? But now, for me...it is a lifestyle, not a "White Knuckle" Diet...... I enjoy things like ice cream, different scrumptious Desserts, etc, etc...... from time to time and do not feel guilty about it at all......nor do I gain weight......and because of that I no longer even "Fear" gaining weight, or falling off the wagon, etc, etc.... I look at the total picture...can't loose sight of the Forrest because of the trees.... I have many friends I socialize with who are all very thin and fit.....I find I eat and drink the same things as they do when go out together...., we all have the same activity levels (exercise)...the word "Diet" is NEVER used.... They do it because they were brought up that way...the have the "Discipline" that led to their lifestyle......I can do it because I was Banded, WLS....and has become the same LIFESTYLE for me now....a day to day "Normal" way of looking at things.... But Like I said at the outset...I am unaware of where you're at with the band..... If you are just starting out, I can understand your frustrations......for me, when I was first starting out, and things did not go well, I always asked myself "Is not the band supposed to perform better than this?" "Did I not have WLS for a reason?" I got down on the band, not always myself.....and I would tell my Dr. I cannot control my hunger and cravings, portion sizes....he always understood, and would tell me not to worry and explain to me how this all is supposed to work...... And for me...It Does.... So don'r\t be so down on yourself as though this is Jenny Craig or Weight Watchers, but ask yourself if your band is doing anything to help you, and if not, why?

This is a marathon, not a sprint. You are 15 pounds closer to your goal. If you loose to fast you hit a plateau, which is torture. Hang in there you can do it..

There are probably a few different things going on here, including hormonal changes and the fact that you are not eating very much, if any, fat anymore. I, too, had terribly oily skin prior to surgery, I imagine it was because I was the BUTTER QUEEN! Now I have to put a very thick and LUSCIOUS cream on it (CeraVe in the big tub, find at Walmart), and do that twice a day. Summer will be worse as it is far drier here at that time of year. But think of it this way: if it's leaving your face, it's leaving other areas, as well!!!!!! Yay!!!

@ckji don't know the answer but I have noticed the same thing I had oily skin on face after surgery so dry all over the desert lol still somewhat dry but seems to be balancing out

April, I am just over three weeks out and I felt pretty icky at first, too. Now, the pain is better but I feel depressed! It just started. Everything has been going well with my progress. I don't feel deprived. food and liquids go down well (maybe even too well). I am very happy with my decision and I just wish the weight loss was faster! LOL. Nonetheless, I feel so sad and lethargic. I have read several forums and it sounds like this is normal. Things should improve by week 6-7. All we can do is hang in there. I am expecting that I will experience some angst as my weight decreases. Loose skin is definitely a concern. Perhaps focusing on the improvement in life quality will help with body image issues later on.

I loosely used BMI to help me. At 140 lbs I would no longer be considered overweight. My surgeon set a goal of 160 but when I see other women with my shape/ height at that weight, I think they still look a little pudgy. I also have a clothing size in mind- an 8. No real reason pther than it is a single digit. Frankly, I won't really know when I am goal until I get there.

I have found quite a bit, but trying to get my doctor and the ladies at the clinic to get it out of their mind for a minute, that it isn't always about the amount of food I eat thats causing the problem . It's like they don't want to find fault in the band, just the person and thats whats frustrating. Especially since I loose every week and work really hard at eating healthy.

Hi to all, I am new to forum and interested in getting banded. I have intro meeting 7/10 and kinda scared. Congrats to those who have made the choice. My fear is that what do i do with the skin and will i feel better about ME once complete. I have two kids (single mom) and need a self esteem boost and to shed a couple pounds (50+) lol due to medial concerns. Nice to meet you all and share your thoughts:smile:

I actually had everything I needed but I was most happy that I brought pajama pants (loose) to be worn for walking the hallway and so I wasn't so cold in bed and also that I brought my own pillow (hospital pillows just aren't the same). Would also recommend chapstick, hand sanitizer, comfortable loose clothes for the trip home, pillow to hold on stomach for car ride home.

Believe me when I tell you, 50 lbs in less than a year is great. If you go too crazy and get too tight you will loose too fast. These results look great at first, but are very hard to maintain. Additionally, if you get too tight just to get results, you will be living a miserable life when it comes to food. Yes you have to find whan works for you in terms off CCs in the band. I don't know your story, but remember you can always step up your weight loss by working out. The exercise itself will also eventually help you to feel better mentally. If you have the time to do it.

No ideas about singing band, but will add that the potato skin is bad! Potato skins are not band friendly!

All the lapbandster's from 2009 tell me where you are today. It will be 2 years for me on July 31st. How much weight have you lost? Are you at goal weight? How many fills did you need to get? What kinds of food can you eat? Do you still take 20-30 minutes to eat and 30 minutes before/after each meal to drink? Do you still have your band? What kind of exercises are you doing? How much do you eat at your meals? How did you stay motivated to exercise? How did you stay away from the junk? How long do you exercise for? Did you have to get surgery to remove excess skin? Did you need to get a tummy tuck? Do you still drink Protein shakes? How are you managing your weight? Do you still see your lapband doctor? JUST WHERE ARE YOU NOW? As for me, like I said, it will be my 2 years on July 31st. How much did I lose? I'm almost back where I started and yes, I'm very ashamed! The lowest I got to was 193 pounds. I feel like since I've been very depressed I eat more than I should and I eat the junk. I had my gallblader out last July and I do drink some soda, mountain dew and dr pepper but I have to give them up now because it's giving me pains. I use that Mio Water enhancing stuff and I like it. I haven't seen my doctor since last August. I'm too ashamed to see him. I feel so ashamed that I want to cry all them time. I hate myself for not following the rules. The band is doing it's job, it tells me if I should eat that or not and if I ignore it I'll puke. I'm just not doing my job. I COULD HAVE BEEN AT MY GOAL WEIGHT LONG TIME AGO BUT I'M NOT AND THAT IS DEPRESSING AND ALL MY FAULT!! I can't focus again, I can't even get motivated, and when I start I say "What's the point anymore?" I know I should go to support groups and all that but my mom is like "why?" I don't really know anymore.I have 100 pounds to lose.l.. But I need advise and stuff like words of wisdom or something, I need your help as fellow lapbanders. Thank you! Erin M.

I had lap band surgery in October of 2012. From the beginning, it was nothing but trouble. I followed my instructions to the letter, so this was a band failure. Not a surgeon failure, not my failure. In almost a year and a half, I never hit the sweet spot. The band was either too loose, or too tight. I threw up every time I ate. I could not eat the things I was supposed to eat. No meat, no eggs, no vegetables, no fruit. Basically if it wasn't in liquid form, it came back up. Having food get stuck is unpleasant. Productive burps are unpleasant. No matter how well I chewed, everything got stuck. It got to the point where I was eating all the stuff I wasn't supposed to eat, because I couldn't get anything else to go down. I didn't lose any weight. Not an ounce, with the exception of the pre-op diet, and the couple of weeks after surgery where I survived on liquids. The final straw for me was being in the bathroom, violently vomiting, with my two small children standing outside the bathroom door, crying, because it sounded like mommy was dying. Plus, I didn't want them to think that vomiting after eating was the norm. That's not a healthy thing to teach children. My band came out in March of 2014. Best decision I made, regarding the band. I'm having revision to gastric bypass done, later this year. My surgeons are now trying to steer people away from the band, and are more focused on Sleeve and Bypass. I, personally, would not recommend the band, although I do know people who are happy with theirs. Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using the BariatricPal App

I think 1-2 lbs is okay. I don't remember how quick mine was. I was banded in 09/2010 and the first 50 lbs came off in about 6-7 months. But, I've been at a plateau since then. I have thyroid issues, so that's part of it. I've started back with fills (a few months ago) and am really hoping to kick it back in gear with a fill tomorrow. Good luck to you. You're doing fine. P.S. I heard the slower the loss, the less problems you might have with excess skin?

It's crazy cause I am 180 at this moment n ppl is telling me to stop loosing weight cause I look to skinny n I don't agree I have 20 more pounds to go its hard but I know I can do it

Wow! Congrats! You look great, did you have any problems with excess skin?

I would say dont stress and there are other reasons that women don't loose weight that i didnt know about until i had the conversation with my dietitian he is really wonderful i was also stuck at 208 forever but i talked with him and he told me if i wasnt sleeping good i wouldn't loose weight and sure enough i wasnt sleeping good so you might try that. Also i would get a fill if i was always hungry maybe you just need to sit down and chat with your DR about all this because lap band isnt easy but it doesn't have to be this hard. Please let me know if i can help any more. I have been through hell with my band lately but i still believe that it was the best choice for me.