SO here I am almost 2 years out. I had gotten down to 262lbs from 330 and now I am back up to 272!!! This 10 lbs has been lingering for too long. Along with that I will be started infertility meds soon and they also put weight on - sooooo

I bit the bullet and started on phentermine today to get this 10lbs and hopefully more off before starting meds.

I have to say it really works awesome - no appetite.

I had a Protein shake for Breakfast

tomato Soup for lunch

flounder filet and squash for dinner

Just wondering if anyone else has any experience with this drug??

I've resisted this thread for several days, but I can't resist sticking my big nose in...well, I could, but I don't want to.

The band is meant to be a lifelong tool. It's meant to help you learn how to eat smaller portions and, when you have restriction, it "turns off" your hunger because you fill up faster.

I think using diet pills with the band is just so wrong in so many different ways.

First, the band is a way of getting OUT of that cycle of dieting just to lose some "magic" amount of weight. Even if you lose slowly with the band, it's meant to work with you for LIFE. You don't stop it and start it according to when you want to eat or not it, or when you need to drop a few pounds or not.

Second, diet pills are NOT meant to be used for long periods of time. As many of you mentioned here, they lose their effectiveness after a relatively short period of time. Even if they didn't, they're not safe for extended periods. So in that sense, they're a *gimmick*.

Third, MUCH of losing weight and keeping it off is learning how to deal with HUNGER. Being hungry ain't going to kill you. You might not like it, but you can learn to deal with it. Learning to deal with hunger is also about learning to differentiate between HEAD hunger and true physical hunger. If you're shutting down your feelings of hunger, then you're not learning how to deal with any of it...you're simply letting a chemical do the work for you.

Fourth, it sounds like people are wanting to use diet pills in one of two situations. The first is to get through "bandster hell," that period before any fills when you're on liquids, mushies, etc. This is a NORMAL time with the band...it's part of the learning process. If you're not experiencing hunger during this time because of a diet pill, then when you do get a fill, how are you going to tell much of a difference? If you're using diet pills after a fill or two because you're still hungry, then you don't have the band adjusted properly or you're eating the wrong foods...so again, you're NOT utilizing the band correctly.

Quit looking for the easy way out, folks. If the easy way out worked, we'd all be thin. You need to learn to *work* with the band so you can get the weight off and *keep* it off for the rest of your life.

Cindy

The reason I am doing the "pills" is to get off weight I have gained (10 lbs- due to hormonal issues) before starting infertility drugs and to hopefully avoid gaining while on the drugs (they tend to put weight on you)

I just have to say the the band is a tool and I did not get it so that I will never have to try any other method of weight loss again. That is unrealistic.

I have lost almost 70 lbs with my band but never have I lost interest in food or had a complete loss of appetite as I am experiencing now.

I feel great and have been eating healthy and have lost 4 lbs so far.

How can that be negative??

IMO you should have not posted if you have a problem with it - we all do what we have to.

IMO you should have not posted if you have a problem with it - we all do what we have to.

Iagree that you have a right to do what you want. But I do not agree that a person who has another point of view should not post at all in this thread if they don't agree that taking diet pills is a good thing. This is a thread about taking appetite suppressants while having the band. A person opposing that idea has every right to post here (and in my opinion, it would be irresponsible to fail to point out that taking diet pills is not a good thing to be doing when you have the band.)

The purpose of the band is to find a place where your appetite is under control by using the restriction of the band. If you need phentermine to control your appetite then the band is not adjusted properly. It's fine if you want to take phentermine, but this is a forum about the lap band. I think it is important to provide correct information about the lap band to the people coming here for information and support.

The fact is, if you are using diet pills to control your appetite, your band is failing. You say that you never expected that the band would be the last diet tool you would ever use. But I certainly have that expectation, and I think most people do. That's the whole point. Giving people the impression that it is normal to use diet pills at the same time you have the band is bad information.

Actually my band is adjusted pretty well (i.e I had lost almost 70 lbs) but the fact is that I really did not watch what I ate nor did I exercise to lose the weight. I guess I am lucky in that the weight came off like it did but now it has stopped, I put on a few pounds and the pills are helping me mentally and physically get back on track.

Yes, I realize they are a short term "tool" but I cannot think of a negative reason not to use what is available if it helps.

Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my band and could not have lost what I have so far without it but yes, it is a lifetime commitment, I fell off the wagon and need some help. I have lost 6 lbs in 3 days and am feeling good again. I was in such slump after putting on weight and now I am totally motivated again.

So....sorry if my prior post was snotty.

Actually my band is adjusted pretty well (i.e I had lost almost 70 lbs) but the fact is that I really did not watch what I ate nor did I exercise to lose the weight. I guess I am lucky in that the weight came off like it did but now it has stopped, I put on a few pounds and the pills are helping me mentally and physically get back on track.

That's part of the point I was trying to make. You said that you lost the 70 lbs without really watching what you ate or exercising. For many people, the band IS that good...but for most, it really DOES take changing eating habits and exercising to get to goal. So you have been lucky so far...but at some point, YOU need to make the changes that are needed to lose the weight and keep it off. Gaining back 10 lbs, for whatever reason, is a red flag that something needs to change.

If taking a diet pill will help YOU to make the changes you need to make, then great! But if you take the pills for 3 months, drop some weight, but do NOT make significant eating and exercise changes (beyond what the appetite suppressant is doing for you), then what's going to stop the weight from coming RIGHT BACK when the diet pills stop working? Are you then going to look for another one?

Here's the gist of this weight loss thing (for me). I've accepted the fact that, to control my weight *I* have to eat less (and better foods) and exercise more. That means eating less/exercising more even if I'm going through menopause (just a few years away), having thyroid issues, simply getting older, or whatever. Because *that's* what it takes to get the weight off and KEEP it off. Thankfully, the band helps me to eat less...but it doesn't choose the foods for me or make me exercise. Those are habits I've had to develop for myself. Using any other "short term" aid or diet, whether caffeine pills, appetite suppressants, etc, to do the work for me simply prolongs how long it's going to take for ME to learn how to do this on my own.

Please don't take this negatively. I'm not trying to criticize you, and if I'm way off base, then read what I have to say and then discard it without another thought.

Cindy

If taking a diet pill will help YOU to make the changes you need to make, then great! But if you take the pills for 3 months, drop some weight, but do NOT make significant eating and exercise changes (beyond what the appetite suppressant is doing for you), then what's going to stop the weight from coming RIGHT BACK when the diet pills stop working? Are you then going to look for another one?

I won't be taking these as long as three months, as we will be starting fertility tx and I hope to become pg. But as I said earlier, I am eating three small meals a day and no snacking and loosing!!

I have no plans on looking for another pill after this one - I do believe that these are a short term thing - a jump start for some.

I bought some Quick Slim 30 from a chinese herbalist. They have really natural ingredients. I bought them "just in case". I will use them if I feel the need to, but if I don't need them, I won't.

Audree

I think everyone has to use what works for them. I agree that diet pills are not a long term solution. I lost weight and plateaud very early on after getting banded. I went back to mexico for a fill and felt absolutely nothing. I may have gained three or four pounds back but the pills will help jump start my motivation. I also agree that it completely circumvents the band process. But whatever works to get a person back on track ... The fact is, the longer you stay unmotivated the worse things get. I will be going for another fill soon and pray I get restriction again.

Texas Rose,

I cannot find your post, but thank you so much for the heads up on the generic version. Of course, because of the financial aspect considered it. If I opt for them, I will choose another option. Please post again and let us know how the second choice works for you. Thanks, again.

I took phentermine for about 15 years on and off. First off I used to get it from a diet doctor who would dispense right from his home then I started buying it online. It worked great in the begginning I lost all the weight then as years went by I gained it back, as I incresed the medication the side efects were intolerable. VERY moody, hands shaking, migranes, tachycardia. So since I work in the ER at my local hospital I looked the drug up in the Physicians Desk Reference book, this drug is very bad for you. The highest level of problems associated from this drug are CVA which is a stroke, heart valve problems, hypertension and death. This drug is very addicting. I have to say I was so happy to find the lap band to finally be off them pills, they were terrible and I wouldn't recommend them to anyone. This is my own personal exsperience and my own research, along with talking to health care workers about it at work.

Good Luck!

this drug is very bad for you

Thanks for the info but I am an RN and am very familiar with this drug. No this drug is not very bad for you. If you are taking the correct doseage for the correct amount of time (3 months max) you will be fine.

Just for your info all drug companies have to put anything that may have happened while their drug was in the testing stage (before FDA approval) and that info HAS to be listed as a potential side effect.

okay then your a RN so you no what your doing then good luck, was just giving you my own exsperience with the drug.

I agree with you cherg as far as the side effects go. I do remember having excruciating migraine headaches that would last for three days. That's how long it took for the drug to get out of my system. Thank you for reminding me of that. I remembered that, but did not recall how bad they were. If I try them again, I will definitely only take 1-2 pills a week. I took them off and on for a number of years, also. That's so funny how the dr dispensed them from his home!!! That shows you how unregulated these things were at one time. I never had any issues with feeling I was addicted in any way. Sure, I DEFINITELY enjoyed the euphoric, on-top-of-the-world-I-can-do-anything feeling (yeah, it's like that)! But, I didn't have any real issues when I finally stopped taking them. I could no longer tolerate the headaches and irritability. I was mean as a rattlesnake during that time. Taken in moderation, they are usually beneficial. Again, I just want to jump start my weight loss again. Thanks for the input.

No problem!! I wish you all the best of luck!! I as well wanted to rip my husband apart when I was on those pills I was sooooo nasty that I couldn't stand my own skin!! And that was the less severe of all the side effects that I personally had experienced.

Hey King did I mention what those pills did to my sex life!! I drove my husband crazy after a while!! I guess we are getting old!!