I chose the lapband because it is a slower and healthier way to lose weight compared to GB surgery. My surgeon makes his patients wait 3 months after surgery for the first fill. That is an eternity in Bandster Hell...... I finally got my first fill of 2cc's in a 10cc band this week. My weight loss has been very slow, but steady.. I was banded 12/10 and down 28 lbs. I started an exercise bootcamp and do that for an hour and a half 2 days a week. That is the most intense exercise you can imagine. I also do cardio for 30 minuts on my own 2 days a week. But I am so sick and tired of people who know I have had the surgery, looking me up and down and getting that look like, what went wrong with your surgery because I am still fat. 28 lbs on someone my size is nothing..... I guess they all expected me to be a size six by now. I can see the look in my co-workers and family memebers. It just pisses me off... Ok, I'm done venting...

hi just

i feel just like you my family and friends think that this surgery is gona make you loss all the weight over night.......soooo far from the truth......it has taken me a long time to loss this 42 pounds but i am happy its very slow but it will happen, we just need to stay focus and disregard others oppinion this is not majic but they dont understand because they are not going tru this so what do they know????? Its alot of hard work and commitment. My friend pad your self on the back and stay strong you will get to goal soon and so will i........believe and you will succedd............oppinions are like butts we all have one........... LOL:lol:

we are all a work in progress!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Hey justme2u, this is your journey, don't let any one take that away from you. 28 pounds is 112 sticks of butter lost, now that's impressive. Learn to understand not everyone is educated on this whole process, most are ignorrant until they learn or decide to take a journey like you have. It sounds to me like you are working the program well, keep it up. If you really think people who look at you as you described, are intending to be mean or inappropriate, I suggest finding new friends. You are doing fabulous!!!

hey dont let anyone knock you down, you have done awesome, you have lost not gained & you are doing what the band is supose to be doing, the reason the other people are prob like that towards you is because they dont know exactly how the band is supose to work?

i too have to wait 3 months after surgery for my first fill, about 5 weeks time my first one will be..

Im sure once you hit your sweet spot the weight will fall off?, but as long as its coming off who cares when people put a time on it..

your doing a great job, keep it up

Now that you have vented, clear your head and look at this in the real. Over time 28 lbs. doesn't sound like a lot but.... In reality it is really quite a bit when you take the following into consideration. You are working out hard, you are building muscle and the fact is that muscle weighs MORE than fat (learned that in Marine Corps Boot Camp). So when you replace fat with something heavier your weight loss might not seem as much as it really is! Next, with that muscle you must be tighter in body, check your measurements, try on something that didn't fit 3 months ago, a smaller size than usual; bet you find that you are indeed smaller. I understand that it is hard for us to see the changes that have taken place, take it easy on yourself. If you are following the instructions given you are already healthier and able to do much more than before. I have had my band less than a week (STOP CURSING AT ME!), but... I am down from 240 to 219 today. I starting changing things in Nov., cutting some sugar, eating smaller meals and test driving the liquid replacements. Lost about 15 lbs. before starting the pre-op liver shrink diet. This was high Protein low carb. Hospital fluids had me up to 227 lbs. at discharge, went in at 216 lbs. I am down to 18 jeans from 22, had on a sweater last night that I haven't been able to wear in 4 years. My husband of 31 years actually said, "Damn you look good!" I told only 1 person outside the family because I don't want anyone else making judgments on my progress or lack thereof. I did this for me not them, and if they haven't done it they won't understand it. As another Nov. baby I know you got all the strength you need to do everything you want to; you have already done so much!

Niterun

Hello,sorry to hear but if i was you i would find another doctor to do a more agressive fill.....2cc's is a little low for the first..(goodluck)

I was banded 1/20, and got my 2 cc fill a week or so ago. I was happy that he takes it slow, to make sure we are successful long-term, not short term. I don't want to feel bad or get things stuck, I like that it's taking time for adjusting to the life. I'm down 30 pounds since the pre-op diet started 1/6/09, and with 3 golden retrievers, I see it as losing a big bag of dog food that I no longer have to carry around every minute of every day (eventhough I can't "see" it in the mirrow or others see it either). I started at BMI 53, and do feel better - that's what counts.

Keep up the great work! 28LBS is nothing to laugh at! You are doing amazing and you aren't on anyone's time table but your own. I learned something early on in this after getting lot of judgment from everyone who didn't approve and that is, "screw them, I'll be healthy and they will still be over weight and stuck in bad habbits"! Keep it up, you will make it!

It gets frustrating, the slowness of it all. But it DOES happen. Keep your chin up, you are doing GREAT!

Gurl....Haters:sneaky: are everywhere! You just need to concentrate on YOU and forget about what everyone else thinks. 28 lbs is awesome and I bet your co-workers can tell. If they aren't encouraging you and helping you, then find someone that is. You need positive people, not negative people in your life now. Like the old saying goes.. Misery loves company. Get out of their zone and into a positive one! Good luck to you.

Hello All..I have co workers that know I had the surgery and they are supportive..they told me that i try to cheat they will yell and me and make me feel like crap..I honestly had a piece of chocolate (hersey kiss) because I was craving chocolate..and the pudding didnt help..I am down 18 lbs since 1.28.2009 and I am proud of myself...I have to say the weight loss is slow but I am in this to win...i am not gonna say this is easy..its not but you have to be patient.i know i have to be..

No one should beat anyone up for their 'bad' choices. 'Bad' should be a word that is removed from our vocabulary... Here is how BAD I am. I get up in the morning and eat a piece of chocolate EVERY SINGLE DAY. I also have an affection for ice cream... but not 'low fat' 'sugar free' or 'skinny' ice cream. I eat Haagen Dazs... It is all in moderation though... Deprivation only leads to binges...

1. -28 is reasonable.

2. Tell people to keep their eyes and their opinions to themselves. Or hell, play with them when you see them looking at you and say, "Yeah, you think I'm sexy now, I'm only going to get more hot."

3. People who lose quickly look less healthy in the long run.

You don't need to defend your choices to anyone. I mean really what could you say anyway? Not like you're going to go back and get the GB, right? This is your choice and it's their screwed up expectations. What it seems like to me is that they are undereducated about the process.

Hi. I read your story and it hit home for me. I was banded in july 08 and have lost about 30 pounds. I recently felt the exact same way you do but I came to these boards and I walked away feeling GREAT! Everyone here is so supportive and will offer you wonderful advice. I just went to my Doctor last week and we had a very long chat about my band. I remember before my surgery he told me that patients could "cheat" the band. I said no not me but trust me, it takes a while for your head to catch up with having LB surgery. I have been overweight for 1/2 my life so the habits definately die hard. I am not sure how many cc's I have to date but I know with this last fill, I feel it. I was going for what people call "slider" foods...ice cream, sorbet etc. It was not the healthiest but I was doing what I could. Just give yourself time and try not to care what people think. I didn't tell a lot of people but I felt the same way as you do. My mother last week actually said too me that my face looked fuller!!!! That about killed me but it was also the straw that broke the camels back and got me on track. I work with a girl who had GB in January 08. To date she has lost 155 pounds and I feel as though people at work that know compare me to her. You can't and I am so happy I did the LB because the amount of skin she has hanging is just gross. Slow and steady wins the race and just remember that. Your doing great so hold your head up high and be proud.

That is precisely the reason I didn't tell many people (noone I work with) and even the few I've told I almost wish I hadn't. I had the LB 9/25/08 and I've lost about 25 lbs. It's a 1b/week which they say is good but I'd like more per week.

No matter what I will keep going and you will too. The journey has just begun and it's not about finishing fast....just reaching that healthy weight for each one of us.

I've been having a similar problem, but as everyone else before me has said, slower is better. It's definitely true. NiteRun had the suggestion which is what I do when I'm feeling down on myself... Try on something old you couldn't fit in 28lbs ago. I don't weigh myself between doctor's visits, and I know in my head I'm smaller, but not necessarily in my eyes or in the mirror. However, I fit into a pair of pants I bought for a work interview 3.5 years ago, and THAT tells me that I'm doing well. I was doing that before I signed on here, just trying on old clothes. It's like a new wardrobe, but you don't have to pay for it.

Also, like people before me mentioned, don't listen to anyone else's opinion of you. As I say to people sometimes, "When I want your opinion, I'll give it to you." You are in a big transition in your life and you should only be surrounding yourself with people who are supportive! I told no one outside my parents, sister, and boss about my surgery. I only told my boss because I needed 2 weeks off for it. It is no one else's business because I am doing this for myself. People have noticed the weight loss, and I chalk it up to a New Years' resolution. I'm not ashamed of the band or embarrassed about the surgery, but when it comes down to it my body is no one else's business. Neither is yours. I have drifted away from some people recently that I realized weren't healthy presences in my life. When a person frustrates you and makes you want to eat, or someone judges the way you look, then they are not conducive to a healthy you. Coworkers are tougher because you probably see them more than anyone else, but if you need pointers I can help you perfect my "death stare."

Best of luck, though it already sounds like you're giving everything your best!