So I need to ask those who have been in my position what you have done. I'm assuming there aren't too many of you who can relate(hopefully).

Here is the background story: I had the crapband in Sept of 2010. I was 238 at the time. I was ok for a few months until the sliming and puking took over my life for the next nearly 2 years. I lost about 32 pound in 5 months and then it came to a grinding halt. Nothing I did lost me a pound. Then the weight just came back on until I was back around 222-225. I couldn't stand the f'ing sliming and throwing up game so I did what I thought was the be all and end all for me and had the sleeve done in July 2012. My sister had hers done in march of 2012 and is now a tiny little thing again. She rocked it like nobody's business.

I lost weight the first 3 weeks after the sleeve and then it just tapered off pretty fast. 7 weeks later I had a horrible episode of starvation and I was so hungry one day that I ate a lot of food for someone with such a small stomach. I actually cried because I was so hungry and upset that I could eat 'so much' food. I was having reflux issues too so I had a barium study. Little did I know that in just 8 weeks, the top portion of my stomach, the fundus, had already started to stretch. I found out from my GI doctor that it was nothing I did or ate and it was just due to my anatomy. He said stomachs are creatures with their own minds and mine did it's own thing. The lower portion was unaffected. I eventually lost about 25 pounds in about 4-5 months and then once again, the weight just came back on.

Two Endocrinolgists have told me that years of dieting and the two surgeries have permanently damaged my metablolism. My body can't switch to fat buring like a normal body. It goes straight into panic starvation mode. I have had extensive thyroid and blood sugar work ups and have resolved any issues there. In fact, my labs are pretty damn good.

So in April I go back to my surgeon and tell him that I'm seriously fed up with the lack of missing pounds and that we need to figure this out now. He said that he can redo the sleeve to fix the top and make it really tight. I was game for almost anything so I scheduled my 3rd surgery in 4 years. Good thing my insurance covers everything! I had the sleeve redone July 15th, 1 year and 1 week since the first sleeve. I went in with zero exepectations so I wouldn't get my hoped crushed again. Well, good thing because I'm back at square one again. I lost about 13-14 pounds in the first 3 weeks and now 8 weeks out I haven't lost anymore. In fact, most of it was in the first two weeks. The third week was 2 pounds and for the past 5 weeks I haven't lost a freaking ounce.

Now I have total proof that it's not what or how much I am eating. Three surgeries, all the BS about Protein, no carbs, ect just doesn't apply to someone like me. I can eat protein all day long and I still don't lose weight. I have been hiking, kayaking, etc and nothing happens. I wake up hungry, go to bed hungry. Nothing.

What do you do in my situation? I'm not expecting crazy results like some people do. I am very realistic about what your body can and can't do. I know that 3500 calories is equal to one pound gained or lost. I know that my intake is significantly less that it was a few months ago and I know my body have this amazing ability to fully function on so much less food without buring fat and I wish I knew how or why! One of my doctors said that I truly could never, ever be Anorexic even if I tried, because my body is like some Neanderthal survivor!

Have any of you had such a reaction like mine where your metablolism has legitimately been trashed to the point where you can't burn fat? What have to done to overcome this? I know there has to be a solution to boost my body into fat burning mode and move it out of starvation mode. I would really apprecaiate any input that you have in regards to my situation. I don't consider this a stall like everyone seems to have. This is yet another full stop just like the last two times. Even my surgeon said to me that he was just going to have to suck the fat out. I agree. That is in the very near future.

Thanks!

So sorry this is happening to you. How many calories do you eat a day? Maybe try adding 300 calories extra for 3-4 days then go back down to 800 a day. Have you tried any specific things to increase your metabolism?

You know, I don't track calories daily for a few reasons. I know that makes some people cringe, roll there eyes and think that I'm nuts for not doing it, but I have reason. Each day is totally different for me in what I can and can't eat. I don't always eat foods that are easily tracked. I cook a lot and honestly, I don't sit there and break down how much each ingredient add to the calorie count and them divide that by my portion, etc. It's not that I can't, or that I am lazy, but honestly, it would be crazy to try to figure it all out. I know what is in everything I eat. I control the fat and carbs very well. My nutritionist last year totally understood my madness about that and she agreed that it wasn't always necessary or easy for someone who doesn't eat packaged foods like the Lean Cusines or eat breads, etc. We worked on a portion system and most importantly, what exactly was the best options for me and what was satifying. Some people really need to have the nutritional breakdown that a label can give you and that is just fine if that is what works best. I'm so setteled into the foods that I rotate through, that I know how I'm doing.

I have been getting hungy the past few weeks which is signal to me that I need to eat a bit more because I'm past the post surgery shock to the system days. I bounced back super fast. Just a week and a half after surgery I took off on vacation and went kayaking, walking all over San Francisco, and doing my normal thing. I don't believe in starving my body into weight loss because it just doesn't work. I was told to not go under 1200 calories once I was back to my normal self. For some that is too many calories and some not enough. It seems to be a decent target for me. I think I am going to start a weigh training routine and that will mean I need more Protein and some extra calories. I'll have to see how that goes, but I am hopeful and excited. Ski season is coming up in just 2 1/2 months and I have a pair of new ski pants that I bought too small a few summers ago that now fit my butt quite nicely. Add some extra muscle to the legs and shed a few more pounds and I'll be looking good!

I would recommend seeking some alternative therapies that focus on helping your body fix itself. Acupuncture, supplements. I get really angry when doctors plant an idea in someone's head like your "metabolism is PERMANENTLY" screwed. That's not how the body works, that's just something they say when they don't have the answer. And I'll add, if you believe that this will never happen for you, then that's the truth. Your beliefs dictate how your body responds. I would also recommend consult some other surgeons and docs, because if yours have given up, then you need new blood looking at the situation. Good luck.

Are you tall as well? Your weight doesn't sound over the top, but starting where you did would also lead me to believe, "the smaller they are the less they fall" a little.... how about exercise? How much do you do? Is it enough or is it too much, and is that why you're body thinks you're starving? Personally, my most sincere suggestion is that you reach out to Cirangle's team. He's the surgeon, he may or may not have an intervention through surgery, but he has a crackerjack team assembled. The other thing you could do is think about reaching out to a geneticist. There may be a something at a cellular level that is being overlooked or not considered by the other members of your medical team. I really hope you find an answer, or that I had more advice to share. Good luck to you!!!!! xo!!!

Wow..rude is rite