Wow......I can't believe that it is me finally me, that has made it to the 1 year!!!!! I want to share so much. I was so hoping to be at 199.0 by the time I made it to my year mark....but I weighed in the morning at 206.2 so in a year that makes my total weight loss 60.8 lbs. I'm so so happy. I went from a size 22 to wearing a 14 (with a belt). I can't believe that it is me!

I want to be VERY clear that the band certainly isn't a "cure-all" and I can't begin to express what an emottional journal I have been on and continue to be on everyday now since being banded. I'm 32....so when people were learning to feel their emotions apparently I started eating mine. So now being a grown adult, mother, wife and working full time and feeling feelings as opposed to eating them is quite an adjustment...to say the least. I've also started seeing a therapist about 4 months after surgery, just to help me learn and process everything that was going on inside of me. Also, how to live w/ out numbing out and abusing food.

It is also my opinion that you can't prepare for how you will react emotional after having surgery no matter how much you prepare so before hand.

I would do it again in the morning! I was in a very dark hole with my weight, had dieted on....just like all you tried everything known to man to try and be successful in this area of of my life.....the band has been the tool that made it possible for me.

I eat very small bites, chew chew and chew

No pop, at all

Drink Water NEVER at the same time as eating

I do little exercise, really need to increase

Since being banded...I've said goodbye to bread.....mabe a tinsy bite every now again, no eggs, can't really eat certain chips.

So far meats, fruits, Veggies are all ago.

I want to thank so many of you who answered my questions in the begninng and offered so much positive support throught this year.

This board is full of so much wonderful support and info.

If you are just starting out be patient.....it is so hard, but don't be so hard on yourself. Follow your Dr. orders and the weight will come off slow and steady!

Hi, congrats on your one year. I was wondering if you ever had a month where your weight loss stopped or slowed down. I was banded on 12/21 and at my Dr. Appointment on 3/6 I had only lost 3 pounds in one month. I got a 3cc fill on 3/6 and feel a little bit of restriction and have lost 3 pounds in a week. Just wondering if you experienced this along your way. Thanks for sharing your story.

YES!!! I'm really slowing down now. But looking back over my weight tracking I def had a pattern on months I lost very little, I seemed to lose more the next month...kinda weird but that is how my loss has went. Try and not be discouraged...just keep on keeping on.

My fills were:

2.5 cc

2

1.5 may 25

1.0 june 8

.5 june 29

total 7.5 in a 10 cc band. It took my a while to get in the "green zone" they do fill every 2 weeks so after surgery I was going frequently to get in the green.

Congratulations on your success! Stories like yours are very encouraging for those of us who are not "banded" yet. Thanks for posting and best wishes for continued success!

Your welcome...good luck and best wishes to you as well!

thanks so much for posting. i reckon everyone here is hanging on every word, as you are now so far out from your banding. You mention about emotional baggage?? boy... ive just realized how much i have it, how much i was eating to cover up heaps of issues that are going to have to be dealt with...and, whats worse, hating myself more and more as i kept doing it. Hating others because they didnt have the weight issues and the joint issues that im ''stuck with''.... so much going on with me.

I think the utter dislike i had for a friend of mine when she waltzed in my door, beautiful frock on and carrying a handbag on her arm was a wake up call. I never would have thought that i could feel like that. So, that was a wakeup call. That got me thinking about how much bad food habits had interfered with my perceptions of myself and it was interfering with my friendships as well. So destructive. (not to mention the havoc with my health )

REading you post is just so encouraging. Im going to be banded on the 22nd of March. im 65, which isnt young for stepping out into this adventure, and i have to admit that im scared. im scared that maybe ive left my run too late?/ that perhaps the band wont be of much benefit to me?? im scared that a whole lifetime of eating whether good or bad has to be completely turned inside out now. until now i never realized just what a biggie food was in my life. .

Being on this forum has really shown me the bigger picture of life after banding. Without this forum i would be foundering, im sure. no matter how many questions i would have for my drs and staff, there is nothing like reading about others who are sharing their lives with us all.

Im better prepared now that i ever thought i would be when i started out on this journey. And, i want my self respect and a healthy self love back. i want to be able to look in the mirror and like what i see. i want to be self assured when my trim, beautiful friends come around in their best gear. i was hating what i was well on the way to becoming thats for sure. i want to be healthy again.

Thanks so much for your openness here with your post... it was positive and very encouraging. I got a lot from it.

Congratulations....I agree with everything you said.

I hit my one year January, and I can also say I hit my mark.

Don't regret it for one minute. Best thing I have ever done for myself.

Literally changed my life!

Thanks everyone! Good Luck to you all......raise Water bottles and Cheers to all you

Today was my f/u....My A1C was great, chol was great, The only thing was my Iron was low and the Dr. told me I really needed to take my Vitamin EVERY DAY.....(which I don't do) So I'll make a new committment to that.

So it was nice to hear that my body is healing itself on the inside too.

I also got a tinsy fill of .2 so my grand total now is 7.8 cc.

and I also tried on 2 pairs of 12's at Target Mossimo brand and I BOUGHT one of them b/c they fit fine atleast 10 years since I've wore anything in a 12...to be honest I can't remember a time that I did.

Judy, it's never too late to get healthy! My good friend who I met at our preop visit turns 65 this summer. We both had our surgery in Feb 2011 and both are down about 80 pounds. Good luck to you.

Judy, it's never too late to get healthy! My good friend who I met at our preop visit turns 65 this summer. We both had our surgery in Feb 2011 and both are down about 80 pounds. Good luck to you.

thats just brilliant news. when im down that amount i will be back to the weight i was 25 years ago.. at the moment it seems more like a dream than anything. thanks for sharing this one. how has the last year been for you both?

Congratulations....I agree with everything you said.

I hit my one year January, and I can also say I hit my mark.

Don't regret it for one minute. Best thing I have ever done for myself.

Literally changed my life!

this is very encouraging.. thanks.. you know?? when i think back, the highlights of my life in how i felt about myself were when my weight was off. every time i think of those times, how much i weighed at the time was a big factor. I guess because my health was also at its best then. I do believe this is the best thing i could do for myself as well..

Thanks everyone! Good Luck to you all......raise Water bottles and Cheers to all you

Today was my f/u....My A1C was great, chol was great, The only thing was my Iron was low and the Dr. told me I really needed to take my Vitamin EVERY DAY.....(which I don't do) So I'll make a new committment to that.

So it was nice to hear that my body is healing itself on the inside too.

I also got a tinsy fill of .2 so my grand total now is 7.8 cc.

and I also tried on 2 pairs of 12's at Target Mossimo brand and I BOUGHT one of them b/c they fit fine atleast 10 years since I've wore anything in a 12...to be honest I can't remember a time that I did.

im hoping that the barley green i bought will provide me with everything i need. i must read on the label again. gosh, i cant remember when i last wore size 12s either.... this is great news. im so looking forward to doing the same thing.