OK here's my update, I took everything you guys said to heart. I have been on a completely clean diet for the past week or so and I've not lost a pound. I eat lentils, lean meats, no simple carbs ( lentils have carbs ) no bread no pasta no sugar no creamer. For whoever said my husband is considering revision you misread my blog, he has never had surgery before but is considering Bypass. I'm wondering if bypass is a way to reset? my restriction isn't what it was obviously but I do still have a little restriction. I still don't know if the hunger is TRUE hunger so I'm only eating when I'm supposed to and eating as much as I'm supposed to. my weight is at 203-204 it bounces between those two. I still have my appointment with my surgeon on the 3rd to see what he says. I do not want the DS I want to either have the RNY or check to see if my sleeve is still the size it's supposed to be. The nutritionist said that they may be doing hormonal testing on me to check my thyroid and a few other things. I started at curves yesterday and I'm hoping that helps things along as well. If I started losing weight doing these things I would not need a second surgery. Next month I start seeing a psychologist that strictly works with eating disorders. I look forward to talking to her. Anyone know anything about hypnosis? Does it work? That's probably a silly question but just want to know if anyone has tried it. I'm going to go a few days fasting to see if I can set that hunger thing and see when I truly am hungry and when I'm eating just to eat. Thank you all for the information I appreciate it.

I don't think Starving yourself is going to make you healthy... we have done all these crazy diets before, haven't we?  

I read the advice here as everyone suggesting you return to your original post surgery eating plan, whatever was recommended by your program.  But if you are determined to do something more dramatic... Instead of a fast, why not go back to the beginning of the WLS journey and eat protein forward.  Maybe 2 to 3 shakes a day and a healthy protein forward dinner?  This is drastic but at lest you will be getting protein and nutrients, so it is healthier and better for your body than fasting. Your body will need the nutrients as you're trying to exercise too.  

Be patient and good to yourself until you see your new psychologist.  I think that ll really help a lot! 

I had hypnosis for smoking (28 years ago) and it worked - like a miracle.  I could never smoke again.  When I went back to the same people for a weight loss hypnosis, it had no effect. 

Hypnosis is good for smoking cessation because it's about breath. When you smoke you take deep breaths and it's calming. Hypnosis mimics that. I quit in 1999 and practiced breath work to do it...still use it. Won't do anything for my diet..alas.

Deb T

HI!  Do you have PCOS?  Have the doc check your luteinizing hormone and follicle stimulating hormone.  They need to be within a certain ratio for you to be "normal".  My periods always showed up on time..and when Docs looked there were no cysts on my ovaries so lthe little country docs concluded there was "nothing wrong" despite my hairiness, high testerone, dark skin patches, and my blowing up to MO proportions.

Decades later, I was in a city and my NP solved the issue and a real endocrinologist determined that I DO have PCOS.

With that said. Ditch the lentils.  I KNOW they are one of the legumes with the most fiber and protein. But you are trying to reduce carbs and a small amount of them = BIG calories.

Seriously, for this time (i.e. the basics) I suggest 1/4-1/2 cup NON STARCHY VEGETABLE and 1/4-1/2 cup MEAT.  That is it. Note there is no sugar laden dairy. Note there is no cheese. Note there is no fruits, bread, beans or rice.  This stuff has lots of carbs (cheese and dairy= lactose & galactose; others glucose).

Please give this a whirl for a week...and let us know.

If you need a bit of a treat, try fresh avacado. But dont go crazy with it. Like only use 1/4 of the avacodo max.

Hi, Jenniflower.  

Hypnosis. I tried this about 11 years ago for weight loss.  I felt that it helped me be more mindful, at least for a while.  It was not a cure-all.  And it did not last. I was already exercising hard (one hour-plus, 6x/week), and was striving for a healthy diet.  As one piece of that puzzle, the hypnosis did help me lose 12 pounds that I had gained just before, when my son was in a life threatening accident.  It helped my genuine and focused efforts at that time.

The hypnosis actually helped me in two unexpected ways not related to weight loss.  First, I was able to tap into some powerful nature imagery that I still go to when I meditate, and which helped me understand myself better.  Second, it helped me heal something deeply troubling from my youth.  These just kind of happened during the sessions, and they were real gifts to me, but not related to weight loss.

if you want something similar to hypnosis, but less expensive, you could try meditation/affirmation recordings.  I really love the series by Belaruth Naparstek, on the label Health Journeys.  Again, not a cure in themselves, but a help with mindfulness and support of other efforts.  

Fasting.  What kind of fasting are you going to do?  There are so many kinds. I have done a LOT of 3-day juice fasts.  Dozens.  (Based on the Dr Christopher protocol, and I am thinking I  am sounding woo-woo-weird now, if I can talk about different fasting protocols.) These did help me empty out and lose a few pounds but I promise, you gain it all back in a day!  They did not really help me with hunger understanding at all.  In fact, after a juice fast, I would be feeling so deprived at I returned to o,d habits quickly.  The juice fasts were an exercise in mindfulness, and they gave me a sense of what I could do.  But not for long term weight loss.

i have also done a little Joe Crocker juice fasting.  It is not for me.  It takes a lot of time and focus, more than the post WLS lifestyle.  My personal trainer was really pushing me to do that instead of WLS. As part of that, I watched the movie, Sick, Fat, and Nearly Dead.  I guess I feel that juicing for nutrients can be a good thing, and possibly part of a maintenance program, but the sugar content is high. I ended up liking some vegetable juices (cucumber and celery my favorite), but even strictly green vegetable juice has a lot of carbs in it, from the post-WLS point of view.  Overall, I felt this kind of juice fasting would only offer short term success.  Not a replacement for the hard work of personal change we must do.  Joe Crocker himself admits he has had to make a huge lifestyle change, and the trucker he highlighted in the film had the benefit of Joe's financial support so he cold focus on the weight loss, and the trucker has apparently had really significant regain.

i have also fasted periodically for religious reasons throughout my life, for about 12-24 hours each time, no food or water at all during the fast.  This has never been a weight loss method.  You always lose a pound or two because of bulk and dehydration, but it is right back the next day.  However, like the hypnosis, it is a source of mindfulness and a time for personal evaluation.

Best to you.

How MUCH are you eating? 1500 calories of lentils and chicken is still 1500 calories, and you may need to cut back.

As Chili said, one wek is a very short time and is no indication of whether or not the changes you are making are "working".  You need to give it much more time.  Also, as someone else already mentioned, you might want to limit the beans because of the very high carb content.

Hypnosis works some for some people.  It is not, however, likely to make a significant difference in your weight.

Fasting probably isn't a great idea (although at this point you may already have tried it).  Often fasting just makes people feel deprived and then it makes it hard for them to stick with a healthy, sensible eating plan after they break the fast.  It is the same thing that happens with dieting, but it is often more of a problem with liquid diets or fasts.

Lora

It looks like you got a lot of really good advice. I'm just curious if you were on a ppi? Sorry if this was mentioned already but in your post you mentioned about true hunger & I know that acid mimics hunger. Have you tried things like tums during those hunger times? There is the whole head hunger thing too. Have you tried upping your water intake? Working with what you have seems to be the best bet, you don't have much to lose & a revision probably won't help you.

Again, sorry if I'm just repeating what someone else already said. I'm just a little over a year out but I'm glad you're getting yourself checked out & will start therapy soon. Good Luck, I really hope that you won't need a revision.

Go pull out your file and pull out your origional post op diet plan. Liquids, Softs, then regular food. That is how you reset and detox from the carbs. The first 2-3 days no carbs! No lentils, no salads... One week does not a change make.