Well I am just over one year out and have lost 90 pounds and only have 7 to target, so you may ask whats the problem? The problem is that I feel I have not learnt anything about food, being full is all in my head not in my stomach, I will be on a diet for the rest of my life as I only have two ways of eating, either dieting or eating way too much and the band has done nothing to curb this, I still weight myself 5 times a day, I lose unto 4 pounds some days and put unto 7 pounds on some days, I know it is all water weight but just fear the day when I don't jump back on the wagon after bingeing. I know the band helps but I have learn to eat through the fullness, for me it is like if I don't stop when I am full it seems to stretch the band and I can just keep eating and eating and after a year of feeling deprived I just want to binge, what also doesn't help is everyone telling me I have lost enough, I kinda don't want my journey to come to an end, I want a reach my target, I am now 176 pounds and I am 5 foot 7 , so I am still overweight, my bmi is still 27. 7, I just want to know if any experienced bandsters have had the same problem and how to overcome it and try to be normal. Any advice welcome.

You can always go tighter, and have the fill help kill the hunger itch.

Make it possible that you won't even think about food for 5-6 hrs...

Talk to your surgeon, this is all possible.

On a serious tip you may want to talk with your doc or a therapist aboput this for support. Im with you being little over a year out from surgery. havent made it to my gola quite, but I struggle like you. Just watch it and be careful. and yes I hate when people tell me not to lose anymore. I wanna be healthy and not still considered obese. Anyway getting support from this site and within the community is helpful. I dont think others who arent banded understand what we go through

I've never overcome it and I'm banded 6 years. I dont know how to stop trying to lose weight. I've been a steadfast "non dieter" in that I wont follow a plan, I wont log, I wont count calories, I wont low carb but I do consciously restrict what I eat on a daily basis and I stay away from bad foods, I feel guilty when I eat a lot or indulge in something fatty, I will move heaven and earth to get in six exercise sessions a week. I weigh daily and am only happy when my weight is down, and I've gone WAY past a BMI of 25, to get right down to 20. I've regained a little weight after having cancer and treatment for a year and still weigh less than when I was diagnosed, but I"m trying to lose 10lb at the moment.

Its a sickness, and it can only be managed, I dont believe it can be cured or that you can recover. I am better at some times, worse at others - at the moment I'm worse due to the slight regain and am obsessing over it all again. I've never felt this way before but a major illness like cancer was like tripping a switch for me because I got a taste of being REALLY skinny and have had to deal with some regain, healthy regain but still hard.

Most of the time I can tick along with a fairly good balance between just enjoying life and indulging the right amount, and keeping my weight steady, and I can live with that, I dont really think about being "cured".

Well I am just over one year out and have lost 90 pounds and only have 7 to target, so you may ask whats the problem? The problem is that I feel I have not learnt anything about food, being full is all in my head not in my stomach, I will be on a diet for the rest of my life as I only have two ways of eating, either dieting or eating way too much and the band has done nothing to curb this, I still weight myself 5 times a day, I lose unto 4 pounds some days and put unto 7 pounds on some days, I know it is all Water weight but just fear the day when I don't jump back on the wagon after bingeing. I know the band helps but I have learn to eat through the fullness, for me it is like if I don't stop when I am full it seems to stretch the band and I can just keep eating and eating and after a year of feeling deprived I just want to binge, what also doesn't help is everyone telling me I have lost enough, I kinda don't want my journey to come to an end, I want a reach my target, I am now 176 pounds and I am 5 foot 7 , so I am still overweight, my bmi is still 27. 7, I just want to know if any experienced bandsters have had the same problem and how to overcome it and try to be normal. Any advice welcome.

I'm a few days short of one year. I totally agree with everything that you've posted. I've read a post from another site saying that we should have our brain banded before the stomach and man isn't that the truth!!! The first thing that comes to mind that gives me hope is that it took us a long time to develop these eating habits and may take a while to undo what we done to ourselves with food. Yes, it is a diet that we will be on the rest of our lives and God willing the band continues to keep us in check. I can honestly say that there are some old eating habits that I have overcome and I hope I can continue with success. Night eating was my biggest problem and is one of the habits that I hope I will continue to conquer.

I get the same comments as to my weight loss. People also tell me that I have lost enough and that I'm good where I'm at. I finally made up my mind that I would stick to my goal or beyond, otherwise, I would feel like I failed myself later on. Stick with your target goal, is my advice to you and don't listen to others. Listening to others may be the main reason you are feeling the way you are. I remember when dieting before the band and how I rewarded myself with food once myself or others observed my weight loss, then, before I knew it I was back to my old "live to eat" way of life. Maybe one day they will be able to band the brain, but, until then we just have to be patient with ourselves. jake

I haven't been banded nearly as long as any of you folks, but I think I can give a little advice on the mentality of the surgery. I knew that 90% of my eating was in my head. My doctor would not do the surgery until I was in counseling first because I was an emotional eater and had issues with coping (boyfriend passing) along with abandonment. I was in it for 3 months before surgery and I truly believe that my success thus far is because of that! I needed to find myself again and realize that I was worth living a better life. I needed to get past all the bullsh*t in my life and focus on myself instead of everyone else around me. It took lots of tears and I was scared to death!! With that said, I really believe that therapy is a necessity with any bariatric surgery. I would tell every single person that decides to do this to talk to someone before the surgery happens to make sure they are strong enough to deal with the changes and figure out why they got to 200 or 300 lbs in the first place.

I haven't been banded nearly as long as any of you folks, but I think I can give a little advice on the mentality of the surgery. I knew that 90% of my eating was in my head. My doctor would not do the surgery until I was in counseling first because I was an emotional eater and had issues with coping (boyfriend passing) along with abandonment. I was in it for 3 months before surgery and I truly believe that my success thus far is because of that! I needed to find myself again and realize that I was worth living a better life. I needed to get past all the bullsh*t in my life and focus on myself instead of everyone else around me. It took lots of tears and I was scared to death!! With that said, I really believe that therapy is a necessity with any bariatric surgery. I would tell every single person that decides to do this to talk to someone before the surgery happens to make sure they are strong enough to deal with the changes and figure out why they got to 200 or 300 lbs in the first place.

Excellent points 728newlife, especially, "I really believe that therapy is a necessity with any bariatric surgery. I would tell every single person that decides to do this to talk to someone before the surgery happens to make sure they are strong enough to deal with the changes and figure out why they got to 200 or 300 lbs in the first place."

Bariatric doctors should make this mandatory before any weight loss surgery, in my opinion.

Thanks for all your comments, I already knew the answers when I posted I think, seeing a shrink I think is the best option. My main problem is food is my life, I am a chef and I used to eat loads at work, all high fat and high calories, one of the easiest parts of my life change was to never eat at work again, this is something I have managed for a year and feel very comfortable that I can continue with this for life. I just taste and spit out and have to explain to my junior chefs why I am doing this. It is so weird that we all go through this to become normal. In a few years time when I no longer see people who knew me as fat I will be just be seen as me. I think it is almost scary to become normal which is strange as that is what we all trying to be. Jacut saying that they have been banded for 6 years and still struggles is the way I think I will be in 6 years, it is almost a curse but in a way at least it gives us a goal to work to, I already know that when I reach my goal of 169 pounds then I won't just stop because in a way I won't want to. It is like we have been conditioned into dieting and it has become the norm. I either really enjoy dieting or really hate it there is no in between. After 6 years jacut do you still have top ups and do you still have restriction? At the moment some days I feel restriction to a point some days I think I don't feel any but I think maybe we have just got used to feeling restricted and aver the last year we have learn to chew more, eat smaller bites etc and now that has become normal. I just can't understand how I can still binge on loads of food one day and then be sick the next days because I eat a small amount the the foods that I wasbinging on the day before. It just doesnt make sense. All the people who have just been banded or are thinking about being banded should read this tread because I wish I had before I got banded, it wouldn't have changed my mind because I am so much fitter but I would have had my eyes wider opened by it. Every one always asks me if I am happier now as they just think being slimmer must make you happier but I can honestly say I don't know. I was a happy fat chap who loved food and smoking, now I am not so fat, don't smoke, much heathier but I have given up so much of the things I loved and now I am coming to the end of my journey and am becoming what they call normal I have the chance to waer nice clothes but I still see the same guy in the mirror he just doesn't smile as much.

I think one thing that feeds our "diet mentality" is that so much food out there is just excessive. Not just the sizes but the composition. I had a birthday lunch to attend this week at Olive Garden. They do have grilled chicken there but I eat grilled chicken every day for lunch and dinner. EVERYDAY. So I ordered a dish where they take a piece of cookied lasagna pasta put a layer of the cheese filling and roll it up, for a lasagna roll. Well it also comes with a cheese sause over the top. I ask the waitress for a regular red sauce. Saved me I sure a couple hundred calories. At what point does a dish become over the top?

I've never overcome it and I'm banded 6 years. I dont know how to stop trying to lose weight. I've been a steadfast "non dieter" in that I wont follow a plan, I wont log, I wont count calories, I wont low carb but I do consciously restrict what I eat on a daily basis and I stay away from bad foods, I feel guilty when I eat a lot or indulge in something fatty, I will move heaven and earth to get in six exercise sessions a week. I weigh daily and am only happy when my weight is down, and I've gone WAY past a BMI of 25, to get right down to 20. I've regained a little weight after having cancer and treatment for a year and still weigh less than when I was diagnosed, but I"m trying to lose 10lb at the moment.

Its a sickness, and it can only be managed, I dont believe it can be cured or that you can recover. I am better at some times, worse at others - at the moment I'm worse due to the slight regain and am obsessing over it all again. I've never felt this way before but a major illness like cancer was like tripping a switch for me because I got a taste of being REALLY skinny and have had to deal with some regain, healthy regain but still hard.

Most of the time I can tick along with a fairly good balance between just enjoying life and indulging the right amount, and keeping my weight steady, and I can live with that, I dont really think about being "cured".

Very well said, Jacqui. I could not agree with you more!

Drsmossy,

I lost my smile a long time ago. Had nothing to smile about bcz this weight was hurting me, literally. I couldn't enjoy life bcz of pain and exhaustion.

When you look in the mirror next time remember bcz you are thinner you will have more time to figure out different things that make you happy now. You have a whole new life in front of you waiting to happen.

I'm only 12 days out and I'm finding my smile again.

Well, I had my band totally unfilled for a bowel resection and chemo, so I've been at my doctors this year as often as I was right after being banded. But in that long stretch between hitting goal and being diagnosed, I saw my doctor about every six months and had tiny top up fills (0.1, 0.2cc) probably once a year. I did find restriction over time would wane and I would find myself eating more and faster. Its maintenance, you dont hit goal and never have to worry again.

And truth be told, many people that we perceive as naturally thin work hard at being that way - what's dieting and obsessive to one person is normal lifestyle to another. I'm certainly not the only person in body pump 3 x a week and they're not all fat and trying to lose weight. In truth, whoever made the point about the excessive food today made a good one - we're only restrictive and dieting becuase of the bombardment we face at every turn. If all I had available to me to eat was healthy, natural food, I would never have become fat in the first place, let alone have to say no to a ton of unhealthy tempting food every day.

I pray your smile returns soon.