Hey Guys,

I've been distant on this site for a while. I've been dealing with so much stress lately, I feel it's taking it's toll on my band!

I was banded May 3rd of this year, I am down 20 lbs...that's it! I feel I should be losing much more than this. I've lost all motivation due to everything else going on in life, it seems excerising just gets away from me. I started at 316 lbs and am barely holding onto 296, i'm so frustrated I could scream right now.

I really have no one to turn to talk about it. I go in next week for another fill, i currently have 7.5 cc in a 14 cc band and I feel absolutely NO RESTRICTION! It's so annoying.. when I get my fills I feel restriction for the first couple days (Probably from being swollen), but after that I feel nothing. I can eat more than 1/2-1 cup of food... I don't really know where to go from here. *sigh*

Thanks for listening.

Sorry to hear the hard times you are going through! Don't know what to tell you on that as my first fill is not until Oct 31st (banded Sept 19), except talk to your Doctor, (as I have read on here from some pretty awesome lapbanders)that is what they are there for. To help you! Take in your food journal and review with your Doctor. Maybe there is something there you don't see. You gotta make time for exercise. Every little bit helps and drink your water. Hang in there!! Best of luck

tracking your food is so important.. I use myfitnesspal.. it really helps me.. I drink water through the day or some kind of tea... the band will not stop you from making bad choices . also if you have a nutritionist at your dr.;s office perhaps you can consult with them..

Hi Stina, it's great you've lost the twenty -- hang on to that success; it is a great start. I am pre-band and decided to seek therapy to sort out food issues -- the reasons besides physical hunger that make me want to eat. Anxiety is a big one for me -- anchoring myself or hushing a whirring inside. Stress eating, eating out of boredom or to prep myself before doing something I don't want to do, or eating for pleasure, etc. identifying these patterns has been really helpful for me and now that I'm aware of what the tendencies are I feel so much more empowered. The band dims the appetite but if the food is about something else, that something else needs to be dealt with, too. I find journalling very helpful as well. Good luck to you -- the fact that you are here and reaching out just prior to getting a fill next week tells me that you are ready to do what it takes. You can do it!

stay tough and stay the course even when it seems like it is not working..

eat your allotted amounts, eating more than you should is not a good thing but you must

eat more filling/protein foods...as sharpie and bama said, drink alot. stay busy..you lost 20 pounds..WOW......great job.......if you are buying smaller clothes, its working....inches mean pounds/weight loss

stina, this is for you

Request a consult with the nutritionist. Are you eating the right foods? Protein first? Be aggressive with your fill requests if you don't feel the satiety you need?

tmf

I was having a slow down and my doctor suggested upping my calories and said I wasnt taking in enough calories. I realized that wasnt the whole problem when I reviewed my journal ( I also use myfitnesspal). I have dropped myself to 20-25 gm of carbs and so far it has jumpstarted me. The important thing to remember is that all calories are not even. Simple carbs or bad carbs will make you crave. Good carbs like vegetables won't. Protein first then carbs (and try to get the good ones) and you'll probably see your body start reacting.

Some people do it without exercise, but I couldn't. Its easy for me to make excuses, but once I get into the habit of exercising, I feel guilty if I dont do it. Keep us posed with your progress, visit the site often and you'll get plenty of support, exercise and drink plenty of fluids. A good healthy weight loss is 1 to 2 lbs per week and though it'll go slowly, you'l be grateful that it did in the end.

Thank you all so much for your replies. Its nice to have somewhere to go to chat about this. I got a fill, I'm at 8cc's now and boy can I feel it! Tho the scale hasn't changed, my eating habits have. I have cut out bread and pastas from my diet completely, for one because I just simply can't eat them anymore and two because they are my weakness. Also, my sugar intake has been lowered. I noticed when I'd get stressed or anxious I'd lean towards something sweet to soothe the craving. A lot of my calorie intake was liquids... coffees, koolaids, sweet teas, so I've stopped that as well. I drink water and green tea only. When I get the craving for sugars such as koolaid I drink crystal lite, its really helping! I'm still at a stand still, the scale just won't budge, but I haven't lost faith completely. I haven't tried journaling, I'm going to check out the myfitnesspal app. Thank you all again, it really does help to hear everyone's thoughts.

Does your surgeon have post-band eating guidelines/rules? Mine doesn't permit sweets, pastas and high simple carb foods. Splenda is my friend, in nice hot flavored teas, for a sweet treat.

Cutting out the bread and Pasta from your diet you should see some big results this week, especially if you're replacing them with healthy lean Protein.