PCOS and the lap-band

I have posted about this before but didn't get much feedback so I am trying to post about it again. I have been recently diagnosed with PCOS, I had my band in January 2011 and have lost a total of 40 lbs counting the 20 lbs I lost to get the surgery. I have been the same weight now for 3 months, I have been following the rules.
My doctor has put me on metformin and I was wondering if there is anyone else out here that has gone through the same situation with the plateaus and how they broke through them and how long did they last?
With PCOS its even more difficult to loose weight but I am not giving up, if you have gone through this and understand PCOS, please write me and tell me how you overcame the plateaus. I don't need anyone to respond that is going to be negative or judgmental, I am looking for feedback and support.
Thanks!

Hello,
I am just starting but I do have PCOS. The metformin worked for my mom. It really helped her (non-band) to drop weight. I'm sorry I can't give yo more help but wanted to let you know I will keep you in my thoughts.

I also have PCOS.  It is a real struggle for me to lose weight, and I have also hit a stall.  However, I can't really blame the PCOS or my band for that as I have not been following the rules.  What has worked for me (and what I'm committed to get back to), is following a very low carb and low sugar diet, think Atkins style.  If I have just the teensiest bit of something sweet or simple carbs, I crave, crave, crave more.  I've got to get that under control to lose weight.  I am currently taking metformin and birth control, but have also taken spirnolactone in the past, which helped me to drop about 20 pounds.  If you were recently diagnosed, you may be going through a period where they are trying to find the right doses of medication to control your hormones.  Don't give up.  Until I fell off of my diet plan, I was losing weight at a pretty reasonable pace.  the most I lost in 1 month was 10 pounds, which was awesome, but sometimes it would just be 4 or 5 pounds.  Unfortunately, the PCOS is going to make the whole process harder and make you have to work a little bit more, but I just keep telling myself that it's all going to be worth it in the end.  Hope this helps.
Jamie

 i have PCOS/insulin resistance, which makes me a bonafide slow loser. i haven't had a huge stall as of yet (fingers crossed), but i also don't see the big losses many non-PCOSers see from week to week. i'm down about 29 lbs and 22 inches since having been banded in march. i continue to see lots of movement on the measuring tape, but not a whole lot on the scale. good luck to you in trying to bust through this plateau -- wish i could offer more help!

I was told I have severe pcos. I tried metformin years ago and it just didn't agree with me. I'm about 10th months out and down 65lbs. I plateaued for about 3 months before my last fill. For me calorie counting and balancing carbs & protein are key for me as I am also hypoglycemic. It is harder with pcos but for me the symptoms have lessened since the weight has came off.

Thanks for responding ladies, its so funny that more people on here are not posting about this subject, based on my research this is a huge problem among morbidly obese women. I am newly diagnosed so I am trying to attain as much information on PCOS as possible. I am basically on an Adkins phase one diet and it really sucks to eat so restrictively and exercise and still not have any results. I haven't had a period for 3 months now and I am hoping that I will start soon because for me there is a direct correlation with having my periods and weight loss.
Anyway, thank you all for your posts... Good luck to you on your weight loss journey...

Hi,

I have PCOS and had my band "installed" in August of 2009. To date I have lost 63lbs. My goal is to lose 100lbs total over a 3 year period.  Since having the band I've been eating 1400 cal per day and doing a 1/2 hour of excersise 5, usually 6 days a week. The weight has been slowing dropping off, but it is coming off slower the further out I get. I'm not sure if it is PCOS or not, but I'm sure I have some metabolism issues, because the team at my surgeon's office and any calorie counter online I *should be able to eat at least 1800 calories a day and still lose -- that is NOT the case for me :)
 
Even though I have PCOS, my fasting sugar levels consitently  test in the low 80's and my A1C is good. I'm not exactly sure how those numbers are affected by PCOS, but my doctor is always very surprised those numbers are good. She put me on metformin for several months a few years ago and I didn't notice any changes so I went off of it.

I have PCOS too.  I don't take anything for it.  I tried Metformin in the past but it didn't agree with me and didn't help me lose weight. 

I lost 50 pounds the first year with the band and 25 the second.  I am a slow loser, but I'm also a sedintary person.  So, If I would actually get off my butt and exercise I am sure I would have lost more. 

I have been maintaining for about 8 months or so.  I am happy where I am at, but would love to lose another 10...maybe I'll get off my butt yet. ;o)

Hang in there.  Just take it a day at a time!!

I also have PCOS.  I took metformin for a while (before getting banded), but it upsets my stomach so bad, I quit taking it long ago.  I've been seeing an endocrinologist who suggests a low carb diet with almost no simple sugars.  I do the best I can with this, and I have found that the band has actually helped because it curbs my desire for bread, tortillas, pastries, and the like, which I used to LOVE.  The fact that bread, etc. get stuck in my unfilled band has made it very pleasant to eat those things, so the band is a sort of aversion therapy to keep me away from the carbs.  My one weakness is ice cream, which obviously slides nicely through my band and is loaded with sugars.  I'm working on it, but I definitely think the band surgery and subsequent weight loss (about 25 pounds) is helping with the PCOS symptoms.  Like the other ovary-challenged ladies on here, I am a slow loser.  Although my surgery was 5/3/11, and I've never had a fill, so I'm actually pleased with my weight loss results so far.

what is PCOS??  I'm waiting to have my surgery on 8/18....new to forums......thanks