My History:

Weight loss has been a struggle for most of my life. I was active in tennis as a teen but when I was put on birth control at the age of 14, for medical reasons, my weight began to skyrocket. I became the classic yoyo dieter. I'd lose 20-30 pounds but within months it was all back. I developed hypothyroidism and my metabolism is almost non-existent. My OB-GYN thought that the lapband would be a good tool for me to loose weight and hopefully reduce my thyroid meds. Starting weight before liquid diet was in the 220's. Surgery day my weight was 201. My banding date was December 7, 2009. Overall I had no complications. I was eating around 800-1200 calories a day and working out...but the weight wasnt coming off. The only times I had signification weight loss was when I caught a stomach bug and then a bacterial infection after starting a new job at a health clinic. But I kept pushing through and was able to get to my lowest weight of 160. My restriction is as tight as I can get it without having swallowing problems. My mother, who is also obese, had the surgery and I told her I would do the liquid diet with her. This was the beginning of my down fall. After 5 days on the liquid diet i was fatigued and dizzy all the time so I had to go back to my normal diet. I gained what I had lost back and then some... and some more and more.

At a weight of 165 I met my now husband and the weight began to pile back on, especially after we got engaged and the wedding chaos began. I made the effort to work out to maintain my toneness and weight but failed when I injured my shoulder. That sent me into a depression because I knew my body wouldnt respond to just the diet change - so I gave up. Focused more on the wedding planning than what I put in my mouth and the weight packed on. September 3 we got married. I now weight 200 pounds.

I have setup an appointment to see my doctor that I have not seen in well over a year. I plan to start over. Empty my port, do the liquid diet to shrink down my (probably expanded) stomach and begin the filling process again. My greatest fear was gaining back all I had lost. And it's pretty much happened.

My hopes in writing this is to see if others have gone down the same or similar road and what helped you to get back on the right track again?

How do you start over...

I started over too- had a bad dr - was too tight. Lots of damage to my esophagus & hernia. I was unfilled for a few months then new awesome Dr slowly added fills. During this time I started using myfitnesspal & logging all my food. That was my eye opener. I didn't want to count calories but it's the way I lose so I resigned myself to it. I have hypothyroidism too & slow metabolism but the weight is coming off slowly but surely. I look at it like a lifestyle now, not a diet. Good luck & don't give up. You have to work at it but the band will help control your hunger as long as its not too tight & you can keep down solid protein & veggies. :-)

Thanks jrae!

My band is as tight as I can have it. It's caused a lot of issues. Almost problems eating at every meal. Everything good for me was hard to eat so I started resorting to whatever would go down easy. It's not covered by insurance and to get a fill or unfill is $145 a pop at my docs office. So I plan to unfill and start over. I'm also looking forward to purchasing a treadmill within the month!

I am starting over as well. How do we do it? We just decide I guess! I have gone back to basics and looked at what I should be doing, and applying it like I have just got the band. I too had depression that the band wasn't working that well for me, and then I read a comment about someone with the same issue and they said "I let my band down" which brings it back that it is only a tool and it is up to me to work with it.....

I need to start over as well! I want to too. Restriction is okay I just forgot the rules

It is just a tool and I got too wrapped up in the events around me.... wedding planning :-) But now that everything is over I see how badly i let myself down and I'm trying to pull myself back together and refocus on myself and my health. God willing I can do better than I did the first time.

this year i got to my all time highest weight.

i knew i had to do something. so i went and asked for

surgery and did all the things i had to do in order to save my life.

so how did i start over (seeing this is/was another weight loss attempt).

i just started.

so just start right here, right now.

that first step is and truly the hardest.

dont think of the past, as its gone and never to return

people tend to think of how far they have yet to go

instead of how far they have come.

so today......begin (again).

I'm starting over today even though I don't see my doctor again for another week. I prepared for the new beginning this weekend by preplanning my meals for the week. Chicken salad and apples. I also am looking into doing the 5 day pouch test to get my stomach to shrink again. Since my band is as tight as it can be I'm almost positive my doctor will pull it out and make me start over. A lot of the problem I was having was difficulty eat the things that were good for me...so when i found something I could eat- good or bad for me- i ate it so I wouldnt be hungry. I'm almost never able to eat breakfast that I cook for myself and my husband on the weekends. That upsets him that I did all the cooking and then cant eat it. Or that I have to have hot coffee or a carbonated drink to be able to get it down. Before my last fill I never drank while eating...so hopefully i can start over and find a good spot where I can eat the good foods and plan ahead to not eat more than 1 cup of food.

I too am starting over today. I am going to attempt to do 2 weeks of liquids so I can try to get my pouch smaller again. I know I've been eating way too many slider Foods in too many high calorie drinks . I have been hungry all the time and my doctor doesn't really want me to get another fill they suggested liquids so I guess I will give that a shot.

wish me luck

I'm starting over also. I have let the stress & the sad emotions in my life get the better of me! Starting today I'm going to try to start eating correct. No more sliders foods or grazing on foods I don't need. I wish everyone good luck with getting back on track and hope that I can stay on track also!

I too need to start over, I was banded 10-5-2010 2 year anniversary just past.

I lost but have started to slide backwards. I need to start over now, recieved a letter today from my Doctor who wants to see me within the next 30 days or he is going to stop any doctor/patient help, which means any problems I have

I will be on my own. I'm disappointed in myself for letting myself down and not completeing my dream and hanging onto it.

So, I have completed a full week now on reapplying the principles of lapband eating. My word, life is soooo much better when not constantly regurgitating food! Sorry that is gross, but really, that is what I was doing. Have achieved some sort of zen at the moment. Lost a bit of weight, but not measuring, was aiming in the first week tosimply take control and if some of the food was a bit fatty (couldn't get hold of low fat yoghurt) then too bad.

Have also heard about the 5 day pouch test. This doesn't seem so much a test as a resetting excercise and I plan to do that this week starting monday.

I feel so much better seeing there are other people on the same path - honestly, I wasn't feeling great about having let down my lapband and my mum who paid for it (I am sure she looks at me with dismay that she will never see me healthy). I live in London and my mum lives in the southern hemisphere - I am going over for her birthday in June next year and her present will be my slim self! God speed us all!

Guys, I have just set up a Starting Over group as I couldn't see any other groups that particularly applied to our experiences. Please join if you have struggled with the band for less than optimal results. As a group we can support each other to make this thing work for us for life.