I have been banded for about 17 weeks. I have lost around 17 pounds. I'm really struggling - eating the right foods, not having any support. My Dr and his staff are really of no use. I can't seem to find the time to go to support groups in my area - they're usually around dinner time and after work I'm tired, hungry, and just ready to go home! I'm getting better about consistently exercising - but I'm really having trouble believing that this was the right choice for me. Like everyone else, I researched it and was ready to go - but so many things in my life have changed as a result of the surgery, and just in the last 6 months in general, that I just don't know what I was thinking.

Can anyone give advice to stick with this? The food part is the hardest. I'm having trouble sticking with good choices. I don't think I only eat 1/2 a cup of food (but I never measure) either.

Thanks!

I was banded on 9/23/09 and i have lost 10lbs so far. (I haven't figured out how to update my ticker.. working on it) LOL! I am not anywhere near my goal weight, but I have read some grreat advice from this site.

The best advice I have recieved from a girl on this site.. is go to Walmart and by the 1cup bowls. Only eat 1cup per meal, measure everything you eat in those bowls. If it doesn't fit in that bowl then take some food out. Try eating protiens and green veggie's only. If you get hungry between meals snack on piece of string cheese, it takes the edge off.

Walk for 45min at a semi-faced paced rate girlie! EVERY DAY.

Dont get discourged the weight is coming off slower for you but its okay...You need to use the band as a tool, not an answer.. We can do this together! :thumbup:

Sounds like you may need an adjustment. I was slipping back into old habits prior to my last fill. Since that fill, overeating is not an option - one bite too much, and the pain really makes me regret it. I'm slowly learning not to EVER push past that full feeling, no matter how good it tastes.

Are you due for an adjustment?

Good luck!

Hey OP, I know you mentioned the support groups are not convenient but I want to stress how important is to have one. A set of real people who know what you are going through and you can communicate with face to face is going to be extremely beneficial.

I would suggest to sacrifice that one evening for the support group. In the end what matters is your physical and mental well being.

Good luck!

I stay in the uk and have no suport group and no one to talk to, you guys have been great thanks Jacqueline

Lindsay, I hate to say it but you're making excuses for not going to a support group. You'll get hungry? An ounce of low fat cheese, a boiled egg, a piece of fruit...any one will hold you for an extra hour or so and the calorie count is quite low. In exchange for that, you get to talk to other bandsters, hear their questions which may elicit answer which may just happen to apply to you. Trust me. It's worth it.

My doctor's office has a support group and the office has a fruit and cheese tray and cold bottled Water for us. Ask if yours does the same thing.

AND..... GO!!!

Lindsay - I'm going to be frank with you and say that your message had alot of excuses in it. Believe me, I know what it's like to be dead tired after work and not want to go anywhere but home. But we recently started a support group of bandsters in our area that meet once a month and it is extremely helpful like Junbug says. It keeps you focused and motivated to stay on track and make positive changes. And hopefully if your screwing up and making excuses somebody will have the decency to call you out on it (in a supportive way).

I really believe the first few months are the hardest because you still remember your old eating habits and have to develop new ones and new ways to cope with the reasons you were over eating in the first place.

Forums are great to have a chance to message with those having similar experiences but the face-to-face support groups can be a great help to keep you on the right track.

You need to find what works for you. Force yourself to take time to exercise, only bring foods in the house that are healthy foods for you to eat and stay away from slider foods. It is normal to feel a little depressed at times after surgery. If you're not at the correct restriction yet, alot of the weight loss is of your own doing and not really the band helping you. So continue to get your fills if you're not at the proper restriction.

I sincerely want you to do well. It is quite easy to fall back into old patterns and behaviors. You need to find some new routines that will make a positive impact and keep you progressing.

Please don't get discouraged and think this is all a bad decision on your part. You need to give it a sincere effort (both mentally, physically) and follow the proper bandster rules to see if this is going to work for you. Otherwise you are just kidding yourself if you expect the band to do it all for you. As they say, they banded your stomach - not your brain.

I wish you the very best.

I was banded 18 weeks ago, and understand your frustration. I have turned to online support groups because 8 weeks after surgery I moved 100 miles away from my doctor. There are no support groups in my new area, I have checked.

I have had 3 fills and one small unfill at this point, and have reached restriction for now. I do not measure most of the time, however I do use coffee plates to eat on, so I know my meals are smaller.

Get your protein in, eat it, drink it, whatever you have to do. If you can't get out and exercise formally, then park the farthest you can from work and the stores. It is 1/8 mile walk to the mailbox, and another 1/8 back, I walk that a couple times a day, not alot, but something.

If ya need to talk, pm me.

I also find the support groups invaluable. Nothing beats being able to talk to others that have had the same experience. You probably learn a lot more from them than you would from your Dr.But if you can't get to one then you have to look at other options.

This process does get easier.They say that it takes 12 weeks to form a new habit so the longer you do it for the more natural it becomes.Before you get restriction you may still get hungry but as Cathy has already said if you are hungry eat a healthy snack. I think that what you eat is more important than how much. Rather eat a bit more of something healthy than a little bit of junk.

And 17lb in 17 weeks is great. The average is 1 - 2lb per week so you are losing what you should be.You didn't put the weight on overnight so you can't expect to lose it that way either.

Remember slow and steady wins the race!