Hi there! I'm new to this site, but I am looking for some support and am excited to join the community!!

I had my lapband surgury in October of 2009 with Dr. John Webber at DMC in Detroit...having no clue what I was getting myself into. I was young and healthy (besides, you know, the morbid obesity) so I went to a seminar, got an appointment with the surgeon, and it was scheduled for 2 weeks later. I lost 20lbs with the pre-op diet and another 25 after....and then I stalled out. I started to get back on the wagon at almost a year post-op, and that's when I found out I was pregnant! The surgeon emptied my band, I gained about 50lbs during my pregnancy and it's been pretty much an uphill climb since then.

Throughout the years I have been on the yo-yo of "Back to it! Let's lose weight! Fill it up!" to "I can't eat anything healthy, everything gets stuck, I'm having pains, I'm sick of throwing up" and after lots of test, they empty it. Then a bit later I get motivated and try again...rinse and repeat.

My band has been empty for almost 2 years now. I am officially 35 lbs heavier than when I went to that seminar years ago. Something needs to change.

I have fought my lapband since day 1, which I am sad to say. I was 22 when I got the surgery and did not address any of the issues that got me to that surgery in the first place. I did what so many do and foolishly hoped that the lapband would magically fix my overeating and poor choices. Well, I hate to break it to any newbies out there, but it didn't!!! I still had the issues and poor choices, and just added an inflated tube inside of me.

I know I'm sounding quite negative toward the band, that is not my intent. The lapband can definitely help drastically and has taught me SO much about myself and eating. You just need to be prepared to put the work in as well.

So, after that novel, hi! I'm here! I am looking to support others so they don't make the mistakes I did, and to get support myself so I can start moving in the right direction again!

I look forward to talking to you all!!

Hi There,

For some reason I just started getting notifications from Bariatric Pal again. But I am happy to connect with some of you fabulous ladies. My journey has been a long and painful one. I had Gastric Bypass in early 2001 with a staple line disruption 6 weeks later. They did a revision 6 months later. I had very little weight loss. I was getting married that following year so I worked really hard at it and lost 55 lbs. The day after my wedding I started creeping up again. I gained back every pound. I had a baby in 2006 and slowly crept back again. In June of 2013 I was at my witts end again. I decided to have the band over bypass surgery done. My doctor was not sure it would take.. But desperate and wanting to live my life and be active with my husband and son I did it. I lost only about 25lbs in 7 months. I felt defeated. Depressed and felt like this is clearly the way I am supposed to be.

I ran into an old friend and she introduced me to a nutritional cleansing program. I get up every morning feeling energized, ready to conquer the world after a fabulous nights sleep. ( I have suffered from insomnia for many years). I have lost a total of 70lbs from my start before the lapband. Most importantly I am out of PLUS SIZE clothes and fit into an XL. I still have about 50 lbs to go but fir the FIRST TIME IN MY LIFE I know I will reach a healthy weight.

Unfortunatley we can't get the nutrients from basic food anymore. It has been nutritionally altered with pesticides, herbicides and many other cides!! I write this to you to let you know that this is a great program for lap/band and gastric patients. If you would like more information please email me and I would be happy to share this with you. doreenturenne@comcast.net

I wish you the best of luck... Stay strong.

Doreen

Do you really want someone's opinion?

I don 't want to come across as being "Hard"

There has been a lot of finger pointing here to the p[point where people cannot speak their mind anymore....

If you really want to hear what I have to say, PM me....

But on the other hand, this is something the "Newbies" should know, since you called them out...

I know I'm not following the program, and that's why the weight is back on. I guess I just am looking for some people going through life with the band as well. Sharing struggles, and achievements that they have had through their journey. I think that can help me get the momentum going again inside myself so I keep trying. I don't deal well with being the only one who has to eat differently with my family and friends. That is something I need to get over, and quickly. I'm hoping seeing some people in the same position will make it easier, although I know that at the end of the day, it's on me.

If you are having problems with fill levels, that is the first thing to try to address. I find a fill as small as 0.1cc can make th difference between tight and just right!

Something is clearly not working as it should. You say you are tired of not eating like your friends. Well. I do! If you at a meal with me, you would have no idea I have a band, you might be surprised how little I ate and you you might think I was sometimes a bit picky, but that is all.

That is one of the difficult things about the band. If it is correctly adjusted, we CAN eat everything, or most things - most of us do have a few things we need to take care with. For the first year or even several years, motivation can be high enough to carry us through but after many years (almost nine for me) it is very hard work. We can't rely on our bands, all they do is give us a little bit of an edge by reducing our appetite so we don't think of food all the time.

If I go out for a meal which is a social occasion and we all eat slowly over conversation, I could eat an enormous (in banded terms) amount. And I regret to say, some times I do. actually, I don't regret it as it gives me pleasure to do so SOMETIMES, for special occasions!

What we need to learn, and remember, is to make healthy choices not of the time, eat the appropriate amount and then STOP?

I reached normal BMI about 15 months after surgery. Keeping it off was easy for maybe four years. Now it isn't. I would like to be in control, but I'm not. What I have done over the last five years is gain weight, lose it, gain, lose. I have never gained anywhere near back to my old weight - my yo-yo style never takes me up more than about 25lbs at which point I panic and lose it again.

I hate it when people at about six mo the out start posting"X pounds lost forever". Maintaining is harder than losing!

It is hard and it gets harder. My own view is that the mind is the key. We have to want this more than we want too much food. If you can't get to that state on your own, maybe you could join a group, get counselling, even join something like WeightWatchers.

Thanks! Although my band has been empty for a long time, it still restricts, at times a lot. So even without a fill I believe I can still get a lot out of it. Which is good, because the surgeon I was seeing retired lol. I definitely think a group setting would be a good idea. Thanks!

You are in the right place for support! What about finding a new surgeon and getting a fill assessment? Maybe the retiring doc was too heavy-handed, too little or too much -- it seems like there is a real art to nuancing the fill level to get it just right for where we are at a particular time. I'm going in today, as a matter of fact. I've had six fills and two small unfills (in-between). Have been at a good restriction but something has shifted and I can tell I'm ready for a little more saline.

I just called the one in the area that I just moved to but he is retiring (just my luck!) And the two new replacement docs have not started taking new patients yet. I'm trying to set up an appt with my original surgeon in Detroit to see if he can help me. The one I have been going to for years that retired was the one out by my college so I haven't seen my actual surgeon since the surgery.

Hi switter10 - You are among a good bunch here, so welcome! I love how honest and self-effacing you are in your first post. I'm a strong believer in this community, having followed it quietly for 2 years before making the decision to be banded this past December.

I'm 4 months into my weight loss journey and am learning more every day from my body, from this forum, from the band itself teaching me what I need to learn.

Aw, so what about your yo-yo-ing and poor choices. Forgive yourself. You're human. From the sounds of that first post you seem to be a positive, upbeat person who is ready to take charge. A new bariatric surgeon and nursing team is a great place to start! Hanging out on this forum is good, too.

Welcome, welcome, welcome!