3 years out.... regain

Soo I was down to 125. Now up to 135-140 depeding on day... What do i do. I am freakingout inside that I am going to gain all of the 140 that I had gone. But everyone around me says that its not a big deal cuz im still healthy. To  me none of them get it !!! Help !!!!

hi JoJo, I understand your fear because i am in the same position currently. I stood back and took a good hard look at where I had slipped and realised very quickly that I was eating too many carbs and fats, and being very stupid about a lot of my choices. i think I just got complacent - I look 'normal' and I live in a new country now so only the people I choose to tell know what i have been through, so i think I have just started taking my surgery for granted and tried to eat and drink a bit too 'mainstream'!!  I have completely gone back to basics; protein first, no drinking with meals, plenty of water, all my vitamins etc, and I have lost 5lbs and feel so much better (no more reactive hypoglycaemia!) already.  Maybe keep a food journal for a week or two and see if there is anywhere you could tighten things up a bit?

Hi Kelly, great post. It resonated with me b/c I too have gotten "sloppy" with my eating and exercise and have noticed the pounds creeping back on. And you actually put a label (reactive hypoglycemia" on something I have been experiencing for the past year or so. I am so happy to read your post and get inspired again. Thank you!

I was told before I even had surgery that when I got to my lowest to prepare for about a 10 lb rebound on weight. Which at 125 - 135 is right there. I was like you and would panic too but just remember when it's up just pay attention to exercise and food intake. And remember your tool is still there it's just more work to maintain it. :) 

I've had bounce back, too, and it is scary not knowing if or when the scale will stop going up.

The first time was about a year or so out.  I got under 100 lbs so it was a good thing but still scary.  I settle at about 105 for a few years and then about a year ago the scale started going up again.

This time I settled right at 110.  It's not the weight gain that bothers me as I know I could afford a few pounds, it's what it does mentally to see the scale go up and the fear that it will be like every other time I lost weight and regained it all back.

I looked honestly at my eating and saw that my eating wasn't out of line.  I still avoid sugar and gluten.  I wasn't really eating more, although my capacity for food varies a lot day to day.  Some days I feel like a bottomless pit and others I get full after a few bites.  Same as always, so I knew I wasn't really eating more.

I decided to just see where it lead me and, like I said, it stopped after about 5 lbs. 

I have a number in my  head that I would like to stay under and if I hit that number then I will decide if I want to eat more or weigh less.  Right now I just stay accountable by weighing myself regularly so I can catch any regain before it becomes out of control.

Realistically I know that as long as I don't go back to eating the way I did before I should be ok but mentally there is always the fear that I will suddenly gain all my weight back.  After all, I do have history in regain after WLS.  But I also know that my regain was totally due to what I was eating.  It wasn't a mystery as to why.  So at least I know what not to do now.

I had lap band surgery 3 1/2 years ago.  For the first year, I continuously lost then the loosing stopped.  I had to have fluid taken out several times because I finally could not even drink water comfortably. ( I have always been able to eat ice cream and chocolate which is a problem.  I gained about five pounds, then five more, then five more.  This gain occurred during December each year and despite working at it, it hasn't permanently stayed off. I have never gotten back down to my lowest weight and seem to easily go back up this last 10 pounds.  I needed to loose about 30 pounds more to be more healthy with my arthritis.  With the holiday season approaching I am scared.  My husband is not at all happy with my size which doesn't help.   I now have what I consider a lot of difficulty eating, more than I did eating the same foods in the first year. I have had to vomit more in the last three months than ever before.  Perhaps, I don't chew enough, but all dense protein and even ground beef is difficult for me to get down without a lot of sauce of some kind. I can't eat bread which is okay and not much missed.  The thing that works best is to use a food processor to grind the food into baby food consistency.  It I eat pieces of meat in a salad with dressing, I do pretty well.   I feel very discouraged most of the time.  My health is important to me, food is important and my appearance in that order.  I don't like that I am still in the obese category. A key problem is that  I am stubborn and have a hard time doing what people tell me to do and following rules for eating.  During that first year, I was better about that and did well, never vomiting etc.  I was diabetic, but now my H1C is 5.7 which is non-diabetic.  My cholesterol recently was nearly perfect, but I am borderline on many of the test that indicate malnutrition.  Essentially, I am fairly healthy except I have arthritis, allergies and obesity that are a problem at times. I guess I like food, especially chocolate, more than I want to be two sizes smaller and be able to wear clothes that have a waistline.  When I know this, I feel depressed and hopeless about changing.  I take medication for depression so I am not worried about suicide etc.  I am just not satisfied with the body I have.  God gave me a nice figure and shape and I have not taken care of it.  I have a big belly with flab, but I kept putting off having skin removal because I hoped to loose more weight.  I realize hope is not enough.  As a counselor, I lead a surgery support group for two years.  I got to know about 12 people very well during that time.  All of them except one had by-pass and their weight just fell off.  One of them has regained all of her weight and the others are doing well.  The one other person who had lap band has the same problems that I do.  The last time I saw the surgeon, he essentially said he was finished with me when he removed about cc of fluid and said you just have to learn what you can eat and exercise to excess.  I do exercise and I am very active in general.