Help! I feel that this whole thing isn't working for me right.....

[marfar7 1,528]

I had my surgery on OCt 1. i lost about 12 lbs following my docs liquid post surgical diet, and about another 12 lbs since my 1st fill ( 5cc) which made me feel no difference whatsoever, I lost it mainly becuase I wanted to, not becuase my stomache was telling me not to. I can eat anyting I want noww, including bread, rice, Pasta - I feeel like I have no restriction whatsover. I was hoping evefything I put in my mouth since I hjad my first fill Nov th, would make me sick - that I would truly stay away from again.

I have a 2nd fill on Dec 16, and I'm wondering if this too is just a promise of restriction when it's reallly not. I know the magic may not happen till the 3rd fill, but does something happen after the 2nd? I'm praying that it does. I had this surgery for a reason and I'm praying that it works.

I understand that I need to knock my excercise into gear whch I really v haven't done much of lately), but other than excersise, can I have hope that this 2nd fill will help more than the first fill?

Thanks!

Marci

[Jachut 487]

Hi Marci, I answered you in another thread too.

I feel your expectations of "magic" are a little unrealistic. Honestly, magic never happened for me in the sense that you're meaning. I've had a band for four years and I can eat bread, rice and Pasta, and have done all along. There's no "magic" in not being able to eat foods like that. I never suddenly went from no restriction to restriction and I've never 'felt' restriction in that sense, I'm simply satisfied on the right amount of food for my body, and each fill kept me losing a little, rather than suddenly finding some magical level and weight started pouring off. The only time I "feel" restriction is if I eat too fast, or am tight for any reason and sometimes have trouble getting something down.

All weight loss really is is calories in/calories out. People have different views of how best to achieve that, but you can low carb it or not, either way you can lose weight. Hoping things will make you sick is not really a terribly functional or healthy thought process, and the weight you lose will be lost because you WANT to lose it, not because the band makes you. You will have to work for this, but honestly, in the long run, that's good. It teaches you how to manage your weight for life, and it rebalances our dysfunctional thoughts and behaviours. You will be proud of what you've achieved and justifiably so.

Your results so far are great, I dont know what it would take to make you really happy but that's solid weight loss! This surgery is no miracle and it takes most people over a year to really make a dent in a sizeable weight problem, personally, I lost 70lb first year, and 30 the entire second year - yes, less than a pound a week. But do you think I care about that now, four years down the track? Hardly. Weight gone is weight gone, no matter how fast it comes off.

But you do need a certain level of restriction, and that will probably come for you after the next fill or perhaps the next one after that.

I will be honest and say I worked DARN hard exercise wise, running an hour a day and doing circuit training too. its a vital part of the equation.

Dont lose hope - this band WORKS, without magic and without impossible amounts of hard work, its hard, but its a hard we can do.

Edited December 7, 2009 by Jachut

[Just-Ice 1]

May I make a suggestion..

It's not that you CAN eat something you KNOW you shouldn't.. it is that you SHOULDN"T eat something you know you SHOULDN"T. Sure.. rice, Pasta and bread CAN go do, but isn't that what got us in this place to begin with? You have to change your eating habits yourself. THey will not automatically change for you. The band is a tool to help you eat better, not to allow you to eat what you want as you did before. From my research, some people are able to eat regular foods and lose weight, some arn't. You must be in that "arn't" catageory. Find what works for your body and stick with it.

[LollyMoe 1]

Your band is a tool...not a magic wand. That needs to become your mantra. You have already had very good weight loss and should be proud of it. Right now, you have to control what you eat and eating things that aren't good for you is not getting you anywhere except into trouble in the long run.

You will have to work very hard along with your band in order to achieve your goals. Proper diet and exercise is the answer. It's up to you to maintain a program that will allow you to lose weight.

As for restriction, you may not feel it until your 4-5 fill. Wanting to vomit is not realistic or safe. The body does not like to vomit and causes trauma. It's also not good for your band...do you want to cause it to slip. If you have used vomiting as a weight means in the past, then you need to address that problem with your doctor. If you wanted FAST results, you should have considered the gastric bypass.

Now, try to settle down, follow what your doctor says, exercise regularly, get your fills, and the weight will come off. If you only lose 1 pound a week, you will be 52 pounds less in a year than you were the year before you tried. Be thankful for any weight loss.

[LindaFromKY 0]

Marci,

It works differently for everyone. I haven't had a fill yet and I have lost 15# since Oct 8th. I dont' feel restriction anymore either. I go for my first fill on the 18th. Remember, it is only a tool, not a fix all. You have to do your part too. Would you have lost it without the banding? I wouldn't have. Maybe you need an xray to see if your port is connected. I don't know. Hang in there.

[greytz 4]

Agreed, the band is not a magic cure and you still have to work for it. You have to have the desire to lose weight and the desire to exercise. The fills will help you with restriction and allow you to get that full feeling more quickly, but you still must refrain from the wrong foods and until you do reach restriction, you will need to show some restraint in what you are eating. You have actually done well so far at 24 pounds and should be proud of that. But, you will need to make a change in your eating habits and stick to Protein and veggies for now. You can slowly add the Pasta and rice back into your diet but for me, they were sabotaging what I was working so hard for. Please don't be fooled into thinking the band will do all the work for you because it won't. You have to do the work. The band is your helper.

[ParrotheadCathy 0]

The goal really SHOULDN'WT be to not be able to eat things like bread, rice and Pasta. REALLY. Try this. Make sure you get 20 grams of Protein in a meal at the minimum. Have 3 oz of lean protein (about the size of a deck of cards), a vegetable and a serving of whole grain carb. Look at the clock when you start feeling hungry. How long from your meal to the time you felt hunger? If it was less than 4 hours, eat a small protein snack (a boiled egg, an once of low fat cheese, or some deli turkey -- about 70 calories) and that should hold you for a while. Really, you don't "feel" restriction -- you "feel" satiety. And satiety is being able to go at least 4 hours without feeling hunger. Just because you can eat a mountain of mashed potatoes or a quarter pounder doesn't mean you should. Just like, just because you can swallow 10 alcoholic beverages doesn't mean you should.

[NurseMelly 0]

Marci,

By your weight loss stats, it appears you are doing very well. This is a process and you will not lose the weight overnight. If that is your idea of success, you need to put that notion out of your head. Eat good, nutritious foods, exercise, and get your fills. You will lose the weight in time!

And please don't rely on getting sick to make you stop eating. There are plenty of people on these boards who seem to do that and they're the same ones posting with complications down the road. I can eat bread, rice, and Pasta and I have good restriction. I just eat limited portions. You need to learn your soft stop. Puking is a hard stop. My soft stop is just a tad bit of pressure in my port. I know when I feel that I need to stop and that is actually before I am "full". Hope this will help you out some and best of luck in your journey!

[marfar7 1,528]

Thanks everyone. I AM proud of my losss so far. When I went home for Thansgiving my mom said she couldn't tell a difference. That really hurt me. Other people said thhey had, but leave it to mom to say no.They see these shows on gastrci bbypass on tv and thought I'd be one of thos ladies.

I do know that I do nneed to jump start my once weekly treadmill walk into an everydaay thing. I jhave another fill on Dec 16 and I'm praying this will help my hunger. I'm hoping to be able to put my fork down after only a few bites of Christmas dinner.

Thanks again for all the help. I don't know where i'd be without this site!

Blesssings!

Marci

[Jachut 487]

Well, firstly they pick these people to feature because of their exceptional results - even for bypass, those results arent necessarily typical.

And secondly, it comes as a shock to most of us that people dont instantly notice weight loss. I didnt start to look "thin" until I only had about 20 or 30lb to go. Fat is fat is fat, whether your'e 50lb overweight or 150 and when you've got a lot to lose, it takes an awful lot before you really look different to people. What happens instead is that you tend to lose size, but stay the same shape/proportion so people might sort of be able to tell that something's different but cant quite put a finger on it.

Heck, I had a BMI of 36 and i had to lose over 30lb before people noticed - and it was only once that chin fat and cheek fat and obvious stuff started to go that they did. Nobody noticed I'd gone from a size 20 to an 18, I still had a big ass no matter what way you cut it.

Keep your chin up, you'll get there.