I have failed my band - SUPPORT GROUP

Tabithan · 11-24-2008, 04:18 PM

Occassionally, I run across a few posts from people like me who have failed their bands. But these posts are usually just a venting opportunity. I have failed my band - I acknowledge it - and it would be great if we could have a group of other "failures" who want to work together to become success stories.

MY STORY
I was banded in March of 2007. At the time I was 299 lbs. I am a 6ft tall lady. Today, I weigh 255, and basically just as big as I was when I got my band. I have got numerous fills and I usually eat through my fiils. I can eat whatever I want. I overeat and I am confident that I have caused my stomach to expand. I snack on candy, I eat the wrong foods - I eat until I am STUFFED. Sometimes when I overeat, I feel sick and gag to relieve the pressure.

I moved to Houston 4 months ago, and last week, I went in for a port-readjustment with Dr Alanis. It went well and I now have a new resolve to make it work. My doctor mentioned to me that about 40% of all bandsters fail. I do not want to be a failure. I have paid too much money to go through this.

MY GOAL FOR DECEMBER

To write everything I eat down, including calories
To stay within 1500 Calories.

What's your story? What's your goal? How can I support you? How can we support each other?

Misery loves company, and company can help us move from failure to success. Please join me by telling me your story, and your GOAL for December. Let's vent - but more importantly, let's talk about strategies to make this work - let's share and support each other - Let's turn this from failure to success.

I REFUSE TO BE A FAILURE

**Jack** · 11-24-2008, 09:51 PM

Bless you and good cheer in your journey.

MizPeppy · 11-25-2008, 08:42 AM

Me too! I am going to a fill center today since I can't work with my surgeon. I am excited about a new start! My goal is to eat only when hungrey, stop as soon as I am full. Beth

Tabithan · 11-25-2008, 10:51 AM

Hi MizPeppy!!! Good luck with your fill today - Tell me - when did you get your LAP-BAND® and what do you think has caused your lack of success to date?

My lack of success has primarily been caused by a lack of committment to this - not viewing this as a tool and definitely my addiction to food. I do well sometimes for a short period of time, work out, eat right, count my calories, then fall right back off the bandwagon!!!!

Tabithan · 11-25-2008, 10:57 AM

Yesterday I met one of my goals - I wrote down everything I ate. But I ate around 1710 calories.

Today, I have the same goals. To write down everything I eat and eat only 1500 calories. I have to go and buy pies for a pie party here at work. I have to somehow find the strength not to indulge.

Wish me luck!!!

Tabithan · 11-25-2008, 06:16 PM

This feels like therapy so I will keep writing. I hope my fellow strugglers join me....

Today, I had to buy pie for my team - we had a pie party. And I knew if I had one slice, the entire thanksgiving weekend would do me in - one bite and I would go crazy all weekend. So I bought the pie, put it in the conference room, sent out an email to all about the pie, gathered the folk...then went and hid in my office. it worked!! I didnt eat a slice of pie and the temptation went away.....well somewhat...

I came home and had two slices of bacon (100 calories) and one egg - 70 calories - but at least it was controlled consumption.

This is the beginning of success. How was your day, fellow struggler???

Tabithan · 11-26-2008, 09:44 PM

Today, I met my goal. I wrote everything down, drank my water, and saved calories for the indulgent dinner I wouild have at PF Changs. I managed to stay at 1277 calories total by checking the caloric cotent before dinner. What a relief!!

Tomorrow, thanksgiving, is the new challenge. My goal for thanksgiving is to write everything down and stay within 1500 calories.

happy thanksgiving to all.

Is anyone reading this struggling as well?? Please write, and let's supprt each other - to the sweet end! :)

MizPeppy · 11-27-2008, 02:52 PM

I am so happy with my fill. She took an hour going over things with me. She is so different than my surgeon. I am following her eating rules and am really looking forward to success.

I got my band in Oct. 07, but have had difficulty with fills - nausea, unfills, etc. I gave up this summer because I felt like such a loser. I am recommitted now and will join you.

For the past two days I ate when I was hungry - 200 calories average at a time. I ate 5 times. I was satisfied. My family is doing a buffet for Thanksgiving so my goal is to eat 1 tablespoon of the things I want and stop. It will be easy to stop since I have a good fill. I am going to make another fill appt. tomorrow.

Take care Tab, and be strong today. You are so worth it! Beth

MizPeppy · 11-27-2008, 02:53 PM

PS - I love the thread title! It puts the responsibility back where it belongs. I am not a victim, I just haven't been taking advantage of my tool.

Tabithan · 11-27-2008, 03:43 PM

Hi Beth,

I am SOOOO Glad to hear the fill went well!!! and hopefully you have some good restriction that will help with the quantity restriction. I dont have good restriction right now hence I can eat as much as I can, so I am working, fighting daily to keep my calories in place. I just had port revision and once I heal, I hope to get a fill and more restriction. But I definitely am getting full with 2 cups of food which to me, is still good because on my pre-band days, I could eat a 12 oz steak (always medium-well) with mashed potatoes and corn on the cob or veggies and wipe the plate CLEAN!!! :)

Let me know how it goes this thanksgiving with the snacks and if you are able to stick to the goal of a little of everything.

I havent had to face the food demons yet as we havent had dinner yet - I will keep you posted!!!

GOAL for today - To write everything I eat down even if I didnt do as well - have to write the good and the bad and to stay within 1500 calories.

LapBanders - What multivitamins do you take and where do you get them from????

Thanks for joining me Beth - we can do this.

Any other strugglers out there???

Tabithan · 11-28-2008, 03:12 PM

Thanksgiving turned out okay. I actually stayed withion the 1500 calories but there was also a LOT of head hunger!!!! :)

Fellow Strugglers - I was reading other posts on LBT and ran across Fitday.com - this is a calories tracker, weight loss tracker, etc. I used it yesterday, put in my weight loss goals, etc. I LOVE IT!!! You should definitely try it if you are looking for a tool to help keep your food intake on track.

Mizpeppy - How was thanksgiving? Were you able to stay on goal to eat a little of everything???

Today I did something courageous!! I signed up for TAE-KWON-DO - I start on Tuesday - I will have to let you know how that goes. As any FYI, they had to order a SPECIAL uniform for just for me - :) Surprisingly, I wasnt insulted!!!!!!!

I'm adding ONE MORE GOAL for today:
- Measure all the food (that is not pre-packaged) prior to consuming. That is, measure my cereal and milk rather than assuming the quantity, etc
- Stay within 1500 Calories
- Write down everything I eat on FitDay!!!

What are your mini goals, fellow strugglers???

SD Chick · 11-28-2008, 05:43 PM

I am not proud to join your group but I am definately in it! I had my surgery July 23, 2007 and have only lost 35 lbs. I feel great to have accomplished that and it has improved my breathing and walking etc.

I am having a few problems now and am guessing I have a slipped band. I go through bouts of vomiting for 3-4 days and then I am fine for 2 weeks then it starts all over again. I can eat most anything with no problems except - scrambled eggs. Most of the time ----they won't go down! I have been having tighness in my chest up to my ears after I eat. That is NOT pain ----just a tightness from my breast up, sometimes it feels like I am going to get a sore throat but then it passes.

I feel that I did quite well on Thanksgiving but I did overeat but not to the point of miserable but I had to vomit after those first couple of bites of turkey but then I was fine.

I need anyones suggestions and help - I hope to be 50#'s lighter in 2009. Feel that I just wasted a whole year.

Tabithan · 11-28-2008, 06:10 PM

Hi SD Chick,

First and foremost - WELCOME, WELCOME, WELCOME!!!!!! You have no idea how excited I am that you have joined us. Thank you so much for sharing your story. Like you, I have failed my band and made some bad choices. What is even bigger is that many times, I have been embarrased to see the friends I told I was getting the band - Because, while they dont say it, I always imagine, that they are thinking it - thinking - why are you still so big after getting weight loss surgery???

Yesterday, I had an epiphany (*sp.) I have a brother who is an alcoholic and I have always wondered why he just CANT STOP - Yesterday, as I was about to get into bed, I realized that I am an alcoholic too - but my addiction is FOOD, not ALCOHOL. ANd I had tremendous sympathy for my brother - If I cannot say "no" to food, how can I expect his journey with alcohol to be easy???

SD CHICK - We have made the first step - we have acknowledged our failures to date and recommitted to being successful. Please stick with me, and the group, and let us get there.

IDEAS:

a) Talk to your surgeon - sounds like some things are happening and you would feel more comfortable and be able to committ much better, just by speaking to your surgeon. THis way, you can focus on what to do right, rather than what is going wrong. I doubt that your band has slipped - because surgeons usually put a flap over the band, it is becoming a much rarer situation. Also, you would be in TREMENDOUS PAIN if your band slipped.

b) Identify the true reasons behind the lack of success, to allow complete focus on them. For example, mine are - eating around the band, eating the wrong foods, not knowing when to say no, head hunger.

c) You want to lose 50lbs in the next one-year - this is an amazing goal that we can accomplish. I think we need to set some mini-goals for you, for the month of december. Small goals that you can accomplish and will get the scale moving in the right direction.

What are your mini-goals for December???

ANY OTHER IDEAS FROM THE GROUP???

Tabithan · 11-28-2008, 09:19 PM

OMG - I came through on the goal to measure everything I eat. About 45 mins ago I had half a cup of basmati rice and 1 cup of ground beef sauce. I AM SO FULL - STUFFED is really the word and I still feel like I want to BURST. I OVERATE and unfortunately, I have not reached the stage where I can push food away - if it is on my plate, I finish it - even if I am stuffed.

I have now figured out the wisdom in measuring our meals. When we measure our meals we can effectively define what we need to eat to be satisfied and not STUFFED like I was. Now I know that for such a meal, I need to limit the quantity to half a cup of rice and half a cup of ground beef.

HERE I WAS THINKING THAT THE REASON I HAD FAILED WAS BECAUSE MY BAND DID NOT WORK - The fact that one and a half cups of food left me OVER STUFFED makes me realize that the past year and a half, was my failing the band, not the band failing me.

Fellow strugglers - How was your day??????

Tabithan · 11-29-2008, 11:07 AM

I bought a new type of cereal yesterday - Kashi GOLEAN Crunch - Honey Almond Flax - It actually tastes GREAT and has 9g of protein.

Since I am in my new "measure everything" phase, I actually measured out half a CUP and added a quarter cup of non-fat milk (I use the Horizon organic brand since it tastes really rich for non-fat milk - tastes like 2% in my estimation.)

Well, you can imagine that the 1/2 cup of cereal looked SOOO LITTLE in the bowl - but i challenged myself to eat that first then add more if I was still hungry.

Well, LO AND BEHOLD!!! I was SATISFIED with the 1/2 cup. Not full, but satisfied. I am LOVING THIS MEASURING OF FOOD.

FELLOW STRUGGLERS - Are you Measuring your food???? What are YOUR success tips??

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