I will admit that I have fell off the wagon....I can't believe I have had my band since 2008 and I haven't lost all my weight. Life has gotten in the way and so has depression....I will admit I stopped doing the lap band rules of eating etc....I need lots of support to get back on the band wagon...I had two miscarriages in one year last yr...so I just stopped following everything.

But I seem to be doing okay emotionally...less stress in my life, and I want to lose this weight...I didnt go through all this to not succeed in losing all this fat off my body. I want to start jogging and working out at the gym...I did a liquid diet then I went on vacation and didn't do the lapband rules again....I just have no support in my household....My husband is overseas and I figure this is the best time to get back on the wagon to keep me busy.

So any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance for reading my post

Thin Dolphin

I would consider going to the doctor to see if u need a fill as a baseline to kick start you again, many here go back to basics if they fall off the bandwagon and start their liquids then on to mushies etc and always following the eating rules of the band.

I know this will be hard if u need a fill so i would check that out first .. and start exercising anyways, it will help shift the weight and help burn the calories.

Oh, multiple times.

This simply isnt about getting a band and being perfect for the rest of your life. Its about being healthy and sensible most of the time, and getting back on the wagon each and every time you fall off it.. There's always going to be events, holidays, stressful periods, whatever.

I have some habits I can keep up no matter what - those are small portions and exercise. Others - such as food choices - wax and wane. Sometimes I eat **** for weeks on end. I have a real problem with sugar and can survive for weeks on Cookies, muffins, Cereal and Pasta. I dont often gain more than a pound or two because I do exercise it off. But its not healthy for m,e.

I do believe ,many people can be pretty faultless for a year or even two, but in reality the effect of the band on your body DOES lessen over time - no matter the restriction you will find that years down the track you can eat more and can even eat things like bread that you couldnt eat before. So it is, to my way of thinking, more important to work on those life skills - how to get back on the wagon, how to fit exercise into your daily routine forever, how to manage eating out, holidays and the like - much more so than patting yourself on the back because you're living on Protein shakes and egg whites three months into the journey. In the end, you have to live a real life in the real world and most people cannot maintain their enthusiasm for a life of Protein Shakes and egg whites.

It is NEVER too late to simply start over and get back in the groove.

I think every banded person has fallen off. I'm 18 months out, have regained 8 lbs in the last 2 months and ya know what? Thats ok...I'm banded, not dead. Junk food is always going to be around, I just have to find a way to deal with, and avoidance isn't the way. Everything in moderation. Life DOES get in the way. Jobs go to crap, new bosses are jerks, no time for the gym, etc etc etc. Give yourself a break and just remember that each day you wake up is a do-over. I'll get my 8 lbs off and you'll get yours off.

I have again

I think many of us fail to address larger issues that cause us to overeat and mistakenly expect the band to do all the work for us. After I hit my goal I immediately became depressed because I was no longer riding on the high of weight loss. I had lost 127lbs but never dealt with the problems that caused me to gain the weight in the first place. Sure, there were medical reasons, physiological reasons, and yes, I just liked to eat. However, if you overeat when you are stressed, depressed, happy, etc. then YOU ARE AN EMOTIONAL EATER. That was the hardest thing for me to realize. After therapy I learned that I had to find other ways to cope or cut out the stress that was causing me to seek out food as a consolation. If we don't change WHY we eat then then band won't be able to do it's work effectively because we'll constantly sabotage and circumvent it. I highly recommend anyone that has WLS immediately start seeking therapy and attending support groups to begin changing bad habits and learning to find other ways to cope with the hardships of our lives. Good luck!