WHy didn't anyone tell me....????

[kitters 0]

Please, don't give up. Remember how far you have come. Try to start adding some walking in. I never was committed to exercise until after I had my band. It has changed my life. I now love walking. I started out slowly and have slowly built up to 6-7 miles per day. My family has now even started getting into walking with me some. I feel so much better. My fatique has gone away. I sleep better and my health problems have gotten better also..

[lacasst 1]

Lacasst, you look like you are doing pretty darn good to me! I am glad if anything I said was helpful.

Gentywind,

Thanks for the congrats!! Your doing great too! I didn't realize our dates were so close together.Very Cool!!:eek:

You just made alot of good points that really reinforced things for me.Because you start out so good by the book and then little by little you let your guard down and then it's just all bad from there.....So thanks & have a great day!!

[coloradobanding 5]

Bottom line, it works for some and doesn't work for others. Just my .02

Edited January 30, 2009 by coloradobanding

[jms462001 9]

You are losing nothing? Here is some simple math.... multiply your weight by 10 (women) or 11 (man). This is how many calories you are absorbing on average each day.

This math is a basic guidline and doesnt matter if you have a band or are on Jenny Craig!

What number did you come up with? Track your calories and see if the number is about right.

If you are eating way less calaries. then either you are not counting them correctly or you have a medical condition like a thyroid problem or whatever.

Weight loss is simple math. Less calories = Lose weight.. if you are not losing then you are still absorbing the same calaries. Eitherway that has nothing to do with the Band.

Sorry, but what those calories consist of DOES have an influence on your weight loss

[jms462001 9]

Hello Bob1212:

This is a very interesting web link. Thank you for sharing. I believe I am a better person for knowing both sides of a topic. I had no idea how many people have medical issues with the band.

I did some research on the band. I read JAMA articles and other medical journal articles, but they provide statistics. It is more meaningful for me, to talk to people who are doing great on the band and who are not, so that I can make an informed decision.

Medical technology is not perfect. Because we are all individuals with different DNA, some will tend to respond to a medical procedure better than someone else. I suppose the disclaimer that doctors might consider giving is "Proceed at your own risk, reaction and outcomes to this medical technology/procedure might not be typical."

Anyway, thanks for the link. I thought it was insightful.

Best regards.

I totally agree, and i think the data probably shows, the band will not work for everyone.......even if they follow all the "rules". I doubt the companies who make the band would tout that info in their ads though. It probably is in the fine print somewhere.

[twirl 0]

I was baned on 12/7 and do not think I have lost but maybe 10 lbs - my doc is happy but I am not -- I can not drink all the fluids due to dialysis --- this is slow--- and I do feel hungry

[~MyNewLife~ 0]

EXCELLENT POST!! You all have encouraged me to not give up! I am tracking my food on daily plate and have not gone over my allotted calories for a couple of days. They told me that i should lose 3 pounds a week by doing this, so I am giving it a shot. If this works I will decrease my calories even more. I am also taking advice and thinking again about my chewingI did schedule a dr. appt for 2-12 to discuss all of this..

There has been alot of GREAT advise given to you. In my opinion, because EVERYONE is different, you need to listen to your body. If you give it a GOOD try and eat what you are suppose to eat, exercise and you are still not loosing, you need to speak with your Doctor. There may be another reason or something medical going on with you body that is not allowing you to loose. I have a friend that had Gastric Bypass and still is in the 200 lbs range. She struggled for sooo long and got very frustrated because she was not loosing. She found out that she has a very bad Thyroid issue. Dont get frustrated. This is only a tool, not a MAGIC BAND. We did not get fluffy overnight and We sure are not going to get skinny overnight. I am a newbie per say and I have done very well, but I HAVE HAD TO WORK MY BUTT OFF to not eat the no no foods and to exercise:mad:. I paid for this surgery myself, Insurance would not cover. I think alot of people including myself thought that ok I am going to get this band and the weight is going to fall off, not true. You still have to make the good food choices and have SELF CONTROL. You have made the BIGGEST step yet, you have gotten banded, Now you can work with this GREAT tool and get the weight off. Like someone else said, make a list of questions to ask you Doctor and if you dont feel like his solution is going to work, FIND ANOTHER DOCTOR.

This BAND WILL WORK!!!! :thumbup:

This has been a VERY Interesting thread and I hope you keep us posted, we are all cheering for you!

[laurigee 545]

I really think that people get confused with what the band is suppose to do for you. I am always hungry. But not to the point I was before. I can control myself better now. I don't know why people have the surgery if they are not commiting to a healthier lifestyle. Just losing weight doesn't make you instantly healthy. You have to make changes. You can't think, If I normally eat a bag of cheetos and now I can only eat half a bag, shouldn't I be losing weight? (Not saying you do this, but I know some that do) You have to EXERCISE your body to make it healthy and make wise food choices. The reason why most lap-banders are successful is because they have incorporated exercise into their new life. I have been around this site for a long time and I don't think I have seen any sucess stories or long term weight loss without that key factor. If you do nothing else, just do that one thing and I can almost guarentee results. I think that those of you that the band is not working for need to have a long talk with your doctors. If they don't have the answers find someone that does. You just need to find someone who is knowledgeable enough to give you the correct advise and be able to work with YOUR body and YOUR band. Because you are right, everyone is different. For a while I had horrible shoulder and stomach pain. So we took all the Fluid out. We then started filling the band slowly back up over time. For some reason I never got the pain again. The point is, my doctor didn't leave me with pain. He tried something different and it solved the problem. It is not meant to be an aggressive procedure to weight loss. Therefore, it should have minimal side affects and your doctor should have made you aware of what they could be. If all else fails I would remove all fluid from my band and ignore that it is there. I truly think though if you just regroup and use some of the suggestions that have been given, you can have the results that your looking for. I don't think anyone here is trying to be mean or judgemental I think we all want you to be successful, because we all know how you feel, all of us have struggled, and we are hoping this can be your answer to your weight problems like it was for ours. I wish you all the best. Good Luck, and please let us know how things go for you.

Edited February 4, 2009 by laurigee

[BillOh 15]

I would find it tough if I lived in Buffalo, as I would be praying at the altar of the great Buffalo wing at the Anchor bar almost daily :cursing:

I try to limit myself to one order of Buffalo wings a week and have done ok so far.

Bill

AKA - Columbus Wing King - Resident expert on Buffalo wings and Budweiser Wing Zing Judge

[BillOh 15]

I really think that people get confused with what the band is suppose to do for you. .

Congrats on being so close to your goal. I assume a lot of people have seen the guy on Biggest Loser who had the bypass surgery and still was way over 400 pounds. I'm almost sure every program tells you this is a tool, not an answer. I wish that guy would keep his shirt on :cursing:

[SuzanneG 1]

So much good advice on here. I have to confess that I didn't exercise at all during the bulk of my weight loss. I'm now a size 8 and STUCK 15 pounds above my goal. I feel whiny and frustrated, but I know that I have to make some changes to break free of this plateau.

Having said that, I discovered that I was eating carbs, lots of soft, easy to eat carbs and was STARVING. I told my doc I thought I needed a fill only to have him tell me he thought I was too tight. I asked how this could be possible since I was eating more than before and I was so hungry. He said it was because I was eating slider foods. That what people mean by eating around the band. I did it without even realizing it and once I tried to eat good lean solid protien, I discovered he was right, I was too tight. Got an unfill and doing better but still can't move the scales.

Well I've decided to try to "fake it till you make it". I'm going to pretend I love exercise like so many I read about. Going to start the Couch to 5k TODAY! I also think I'm going to join WW this Sat. I need some new/extra accountability.

My advise for you would be to take a serious look at WHAT and HOW you are eating. Dailyplate is excellent, makes it easy to record and see how much fat/carbs/protien your food choices have.

I think if you are really honest about what you are eating you may find that you prefer carbs, (bread, Cereal, potatoes, pasta) I know I always have, but you have to force yourself to focus on good lean protien and veggies and the carb cravings will subside. Carbs make me CRAZY HUNGRY. Measure every meal and take bites no bigger than the size of a dime and CHEW CHEW CHEW.

You can do this! I've read on here where people didn't lose for 1-2 years and then when they were ready to put the effort in and use the band as it is intended, they took the weight off. You can too and although it helps, you can even do it without exercise. The bottom line is calories in minus calories out, band or no band, carbs or no carbs. Count those calories and you will know for sure where your weight is coming from.

I hope one of these posts has struck a cord with you and motivated you to give it another try! Keep us posted!

[ninner 0]

For me, I've found that no excercise = no weightloss. It does not matter how little I eat. Do you have any idea of your calorie count, you could be eating a 1/3 less as you said and still not have a daily calorie deficate.

[cookiebaby 0]

I am restricted on my exercise because I am going to have a knee replacement later this year but have you considered going to someplace with a pool? That's what I'm going to do as soon as they let me. It will give you more energy.

If you are honest with yourself and you are really not eating much then you might want to have your thyroid checked. If that is fine then you are probably taking in more calories somehow than you think - the food diary was a good idea.

[plain 12]

What a bunch of Crap! If I am going to be just as hungry as before, need to work out just as much, and have just as much self control as before to loose weight then I might as well just have given the doctor 12,000 dollars, let him kick me in the junk and been done with all of the mess in a matter of minutes.

Dude....c'mon now....seriously....did you think the band was powered by devil's magic? If your doc didn't tell you that the band was just a tool and you'd have to do your part too, then you, sir, had a crappy doctor. I'd kick him in the junk if he didn't explain how the band works

I HATE THE F** LAP BAND!!!

Everybody should follow this link and read these posts.....these are either the stupidest people ever, or (as I suspect) they are the most misinformed people ever. I tend to blame their aftercare docs. Almost every one of them is too tight, they all tell almost the same story, have the same symptoms, and yet not a single one of them is able to connect the dots as to what's going on. Sheesh. Now I <heart> my doc more than ever......Thank you, Dr. Hekier

Sorry, but what those calories consist of DOES have an influence on your weight loss

Abso - freakin'- lutely....

[SuzanneG 1]

I <heart> my doctor too. I agree, it's all in the aftercare.