Hey I'm Kelly. Lapbander for almost 1 1/2 years. I had an account on here in the beginning, but wanted to start fresh.

I have fallen off the wagon quite a few times and have my first fill in 6 months on 1/25. I am really struggling mentally with this. Still eating everything I ate before, but of course in smaller amounts for the most part. I am down 28 lbs as of 1/3. I have been up and down about 5 lbs since I hit my 30. I hope I'm not in the same boat here...Stubborness is my biggest downfall. If anyone has any advice or a particular thread I should look at, it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks and Happy New Year

Just wanted to say Hi and send a word of encouragement! The positive part of this is that you are already banded so no surgery that has to be done and no crazy pre-op dieting or insurance to deal with. I would try and look at this as a fresh positive start to 2012!! You've already made the appointment with your doctor so you're on your way. What do you think your real problem areas are? You said stubborness but what exactly? I know with me, I'm horrible with cookies, ice cream, anything sweet and sugary. Apparently my band hates everything thats not dipped in sugar. I think it is all in my mind though so I have to work on that!! Feel free to message me if you want or respond here but regardless, I wish you the best of luck!! It takes courage to get started again so you are already ahead of the curve!!

Go to myfitnesspal.com its free, and you can

keep track of all your calories, Protein, and exercise,

You can also view other peoples Diary, and see what they are doing too.

If your motivated at all, then this works.

I am Losingintime on that site, contact me and I'll friend you in.

I have gone threw this twice now, so I have lost the weight banded, then gained almost all of it back, while deflated, and I am now trying to get it off again.

Trust me Yo YO Dieting with a Band is a B!TCH ! You don't want to even go there.

If you need a fill get one, but work at trying to get back on the wagon by using the MFP site.

Don't be a stranger, and hope this helps, Shirley.

kristi - that food is my downfall as well! thank goodness the holidays are over for awhile! in the last 6 months i would say ice cream has been the worst for me. i think i got more addicted to it because it slides right through. what i mostly meant by my stubborness is that i will eat whatever i want no matter how hard it is. which is dangerous most of the time and definitely not helping the weight loss. my biggest thing is bread. i cannot give that up.

shirley - i do have a fitness pal account i deleted the app though. i use lose it from time to time but mostly to keep track of the weight. i tracked my food intake for awhile but it became so tedious figuring everything out. it is very scary to know that if i become thin i could gain it all back i know thats a risk with any diet, but after going through surgery makes it seem worse. at this rate i wont have to worry about gaining it back since i havent lost it haha.

thanks for the encouragement guys

PS shirley, what MFP site?

myfitnesspal.com

Hey Kelly have you at any point reached a fill level where things like bread just wouldn't go down? I can't do bread at all anymore. I guess after making myself throw up so many times (bad of me I know) I am now scared of bread. I still eat Cookies and cakes but don't even crave bread anymore. I've been so bad with my band it's amazing I haven't had a slip or worse! But basically I fought and fought with my band and finally let my band win. I don't know if this is what most people go through but I fought against it, like you are now.

So with eating bread, do you have to drink after to make it go down or are you vomitting a lot? I can't drink after I eat otherwise everything comes up. But when I try to eat something (or when I did) it would just get stuck until it came back up on its own. When I was first banded, and even after my first couple of fills, I was still going out and eating subs and french toast and all that yummy stuff. I think it was my third fill that I finally felt a tightness that made me give up bread and things. Then on my next fill, it was obvious that it was impossible to even try anymore. Currently I have 5.3cc in a 10cc band. I really need a fill at this point but I am holding off for a bit. Rally just due to me moving away from my surgeon and needing to find a new one. lol

I think getting into get a fill and discussing your concerns with your doctor will be a great thing. Also coming on here helps you see that you aren't alone and everyone is dealing with these issues too.

kristi - oh wow i do that too lol. im very surprised i havent done damage to myself :/ im so stubborn that no matter how hard it can be to eat i keep trying until i figure out how. i dont think that will ever change. i just want to try harder not to hurt myself and be satisfied with what i can eat. im anxious and nervous to see my doctor (well, her assistant i guess). i know i deserve criticism and some scolding but i dont want it lol.