Don't you just hate it when Connie tells you that she's lost 22 pounds in 2 weeks on Medifast?

Don't you just hate it when Mary says she lost 25 in 6 weeks on weight watchers?

Don't you just hate it when you tell people you've lost only 22 pounds in 3 months AFTER surgery and they say "Really? I thought yuou would have lost more by now with surgery!"

Well, I thought that too!!! What a surprise to learn that I am a slow loser.... bah humbug... The only thing I have going for me right now is that I will not gain back the weight I lost unless I try reaaaallly hard.

Can you tell we had people over last night?? Just needed to vent... thank you!

I'm so sorry to hear about your night Alicia! That is just awful. You know, if you have been a chronic dieter your metabolism is probably effected and the weight will come off slower. But, take comfort in the fact that if it comes off of you it will STAY off of you. Time will tell if your friend on Medifast (a terrible diet and what I believe was responsible for my mother developing and dying from actue pancreatitis) actually keeps the weight off. Same goes for WW. Reassess your situation in another 6 months- put it on your calendar. I guarantee that things will be different.

Originally posted by Wendy

Alicia,

Remember that with the band the weight loss is PERMANENT!!!...

Wendy

At the risk of being a wet blanket, there is no guarantee that any weight lost with any surgery is permanent. An older study revealed that even after RnY, with all its malabsorption issues, fully 25% of patients returned to morbid obesity. I'm not familiar with a similar long-term study done with the band, however, I believe that banded patients on average weigh more at three or four years post-op than they did at two years out. (But I'll go look for the studies.)

Sue

The only study I found (an Italian one) which addressed the issue of weight regain with the band, mentioned that 20% of patients regain their weight.

Sue

Regarding the regain issue, well, there are no guarantees, but I am sure we have much better odds of keeping the weight off than someone using Medifast does. Medifast is the protein drink diet, right? Nobody can stay on those protein drinks for a lifetime (personally, I couldn't stay on them for more than a couple of days at a time!). As soon as you stop drinking them, you're probably going to put the weight back on. Every diet works in the short term - the trouble is that it's so, so hard to stick with a diet for your whole life.

With the band, I am eating in a balanced way that is satisfying, so I know I'll be able to handle this lifestyle for the long term. My suspicion is that the reason for regain with the lap-band would be if you become complacent and don't bother going in for fills as needed after a couple of years. That's something we should probably keep in mind and keep following up with our surgeons.

I'm sure the band is a healthier approach than any of the liquid Protein diets. I've watched friends and relatives lose and then regain and then gain even more on those plans over many decades.

I envy those who are satisfied with the healthy meals they are eating with the restriction they have. The first chunk of my extra pounds came off that way, and then I was told I needed an unfill, I got it and then, even after a re-fill a couple of months later, I've been stalled. I've lost--depending on when you start counting--between 32 and 46% of my excess weight and then I stopped losing. I haven't gained any weight. But I have stopped losing for many months, and I'm not happy about that development.

My guess would be that the gains that occur after weight loss are not due to something as simple as neglecting to get a fill. I think that some of us eat more than we need to eat, and we eat in ways and for reasons that have nothing to do with hunger and survival, and therein lies the problem. Because band or no band (bypass or no bypass), a "need" to consume foods over and above that which we need for survival is at the heart of my eating issues and I suspect I am not alone.

So, I'm working on those things.

In case anyone who is researching the band is reading this, please understand that I am INCREDIBLY healthier and happier than I was before I had surgery. I can move, I can buy clothes, I can fit in airline seats, I no longer need my Bi-PAP (like CPAP) machine, I don't remember where my canes are, and I can do lots of fun things. I am sure that if I had not had band surgery, I would not be down those many pounds (and be in a size 20 instead of a 30-32), and--more importantly--no one could ever have convinced me that I was quite as nuts regarding food as I am. (I would have understood it logically, but would not have accepted it emotionally.) With the restriction that the band affords, I now know beyond a shadow of a doubt that I am absolutely full, even as I attempt to find something else to eat. That knowledge has prompted me to seek other help for my problem eating. (BTW, my take on the difference between band and RnY for people like me is that the RnY people lose the weight and then regain, while the band people get hung up on the eating issues before reaching goal...like I'm doing.)

So, now that I can actually experience what "full" feels like--courtesy of the LapBand--I have the sensory clues I need to move to the next level in dealing with my eating issues. I piped up here originally because of the use of the word "permanent." I'm afraid to use that term:nervous--and like to warn others about using it--because I'm convinced that the weight loss gods will smite us when we do.

Sue

Everything Sue says is true, of course. Every type of weight-loss surgery can be rendered ineffective by negative behaviors. Yet the band won't by itself lose its effectiveness the way the RNY can over time. It will still be there, waiting patiently for an adjustment or whatever, if I fall off the wagon for a while.

THAT'S what I love about my band. It won't abandon me even if I abandon it for a time.

Yes, this is all very true, but what happens 3 months out - 2 fills later when you are still gaining weight. I go for my 3rd fill on December 1, 2003, and unlike alot of bandster - I have told my colleagues and EVERY EYE IS ON ME! I am getting very frustrated. I was restricted for about a week or two after my 2nd fill, but now am able to eat preband. What is a girl to do?

Hey Barb,

I know you probably do not want to hear this, but the only way to lose weight even with a band is to eat healthy and exercise. IF you are gaining weight, then you are not eating the bandster way or you are eating too many calories. Protein and veggies on a salad plate. Eat slowly and chew you food thoroughly. Keep your caloric intake to less than 1200 per day. Stay away from the carbs and junk food and exercise and you will lose. Until you get proper restriction, it is harder to lose, but certainly not impossible. I did not have restriction for 3 months after banding and still lost almost 50 pounds, so it can be done. However restriction in itself won't keep you from putting junk in your body. If you want to pollute with junk food, you will find a way to do it even with restriction. I have some restriction, but some days I feel like I have none and I have to make a conscious effort to behave. When I absolutely feel I need to have something, then I do. But most of the time I think, Do I want to lose a pound this week or gain one? So there is a lot of work that has to come from you as well. Don't worry about the folks who drop 22 pounds on liquid diets. They most likely will gain it all back once they stop. Also, some people mistake small gains in weight as a permanent thing. I have had weeks where I gained three pounds and lost 7 the following week. I retain a lot of Water about two weeks of the month and usually see a big drop only one week of the month. It is hard on the brain, but the highs, lows and plateaus are part of weight loss.

Babs in TX

334/268/180

6/23/03

-66 and counting

2.00 CC

Thanks, guys, for all of your support. I know that the gal on Medifast will have problems later on... I did. It just gets frustrating to be such a slow loser... Doula Lee, you support my theory on my less-than-desirable low metabolism...

Thanks again!!