Tell Your Weight Loss Surgery Story

Hello everyone I found your forum researching the Lap-Band and although I have read quite a bit already, I feel I have much more to read before I ask any questions. So for now... I would just like to introduce myself, give you a little back round, and say I'm pleased to meet each of you and thrilled to find a place where I will have people who understand what I am facing as I go forward with Lap Band surgery. I'm a 38 year old wife and mother (to one 13 y/o daughter) who has been overweight my whole life and currently staring down the face of obesity. Last July, I found a painful lump in my breast and shortly there after was diagnosed with invasive Triple Negative …

I am one of those people who will read everything there is to read about something that I am going to be doing to myself. I want to know every detail of what I will be going through. Thats just the way I am. So when I found this site I was like yayyy and read until I went into overload. I will say it prepared me for a lot of what I should expect and then some, but not what I actually went through. I am not writing this to scare anyone but just to be informative. My husband told me that if I had read what I went through I wouldnt have been so scared. April 27th at 7:00 am scheduled for surgery. Got to the hospital and checked in by 5:00 am. Everything is going accord…

Hi, My name is Jodi and I am new to the site, I had my surgery 09-10.... I will be 8 mnths post op in a few days and have been stuck at my current weight for about 5 weeks... I lost 42 pre-op, and I have lost 88 lbs since surgery, I lost a lot first few months but slowed down drastically after 3rd month....as I knew it would..... but I am so upset that the scale hasn't moved in a while, and am getting very discouraged.....I have struggled with Protein since day 1 because I can't drink any of the Protein drinks or use the powders, they gag me and I get sick, I also can't eat yogurt for the same reason..... Is there anyone out there that give me any advice, or anything to t…

I had my lap band surgery on April 27th weighing in at 230.9 pounds. I am blessed to have a sister who started this journey with me. We made a conscious decision that we wanted to get healthy and made an agreement that we would have the lap band surgery. We have gone to every appointment together from the initial visit to Dr. Paul Enochs of Bariatric Specialists in Apex, NC, to every appointment for medical approval, all the way to Rex Hospital in Raleigh, NC to have our surgeries together. She is very dear to me and I am so blessed to have her in my life. I am married to my best friend and we have 2 daughters and 2 sons. I was an xray technologist for 26 years and l…

Hi all, Well Tricare received my request for surgery today! I am so exicted....I am super DUPER nervous. I am asking for all of you to pray for my approval so I can be on my way to a new and healthy LIFE!

Hello all I'm new to the forum, just to introduce myself I'm 33 5'5" 293 and have been battling with my weight fot at least the past 12 years, so I finally said enough is enough about 3 months ago my wife and I started the process together and we are BOTH scheduled for surgery next Wednesday May11th, so I'm trying to do some last minute reading and things, I must admit I'm nervous, was there anyone else who started to get cold feet before and if you could share anything it would be welcomed. Thanks in advance!

I took my first business trip this week since being sleeved on 2/22. I have lost 48 pounds, and felt pretty confident about being able to handle being outside of my safe environment of home/work/family/selected restaurants. Then, I realized I wouldn't be able to take liquids through the TSA security checkpoint, and wouldn't be able to take any Protein drinks with me (as "backup" if I couldn't find a decent protein choice). Gulp - one crutch was taken from me! ( I talked to a TSA agent, and described to him being on a special diet and needing to carry liquids through - he said they would accomodate that - would need the OK of a supervisor) It was fun packing smaller …

Does anyone else have united buy up plan.......the bariatric center I'm using told me I had been approved by united ......so I drove all the way to Denver yesterday ........and they said the approval was just for the office visit..........I know what I heard when she called me......so now I have to do 6 months of dietary classes, that united requires that....... What has been the experience other people have had? I kind of feel she was deceptive to get me to Denver........... Thanks Laura

HI everyone! I will be having my surgery 2 weeks from today. I am 21 years old and am super excited to finally conquer my weight to be healthy starting at a young age! However, I am finding myself being extremely emotional. I am an emotional girl anyway, but everytime I talk to someone about what is going on I end up crying. It isn't "sad" tears, but a mixture of excitement and also worry. I was wondering if anyone else is emotional about it or if I am the only one?

I thought I was going to be the ONE person The Sleeve didn't work for. My "stall" lasted a whole month so I decided to go BACK on all liquids to try and kick my body back into weight loss mode again. I only had to do that a couple of days and THANKFULLY I am losing again (down 5 new lbs in the last 2 weeks). I still feel someone my size should be slimming quicker but I am staying positive and focused on continued weight loss. I do feel GREAT and loving that I am getting back into some of my old clothes already and enjoying working out. I was just sleeved on Feb 28th, 2011! Any others have a similar experience so early? I want to hear how YOU overcome stalls.

Hello new friends, after changing my mind earlier in the year..... I am getting started....I will have my first weight in on the 12th of May...I have already seen the psycho visit (lol)! I started going through with a friend of mine and she has already had her surgery..and I backed out....but I have made my mind up because I and unhappy of the skin that I am currently in at the moment...and I am doing this for me.....and I am ready to become a new person and open up a wide renage thing thats' waiting on me......A NEW ME!

Hi everyone ~ I am new to this website so still figuring it all out! I got my band on April 12th and have had ups and downs ever since, but each day is a new day and each step forward is one that I look to! Three weeks post op, I am still not eating too much which I think it's contributed to anxieties of the fear of getting hiccups or it coming back up. A week post op I did get dehydrated and had to get fluids, after that I was great for a week, until those hiccups came after my post op appointment .. spent 4 days in pain from those as they caused an air bubble that was huge. But my nurse at the doctor's office is great, she got me on the path to recovery and now I feel…

Ugh. Oh well. Moving the date because we are moving the venue. Getting the surgery done by Dr. John Coon at Parkview Hospital in Riverside, CA. Had to move the venue to this hospital as it is in Network for my insurance and the other one wasn't. All good...just want it over with already....

Hello all!! It's been 8 days since I was sleeved and 2 weeks since I started my pre-op liquids. I had my post-op appointment today. I am down 19 lbs in the past 2 weeks!!! I am lighter now than when I delivered my son almost 3 years ago!! Thanks goes out to this forum for me to share my thoughts and learn from others. I am motivated more than ever to kick away my excess weight and find my way to my "inner" me!

OK so it starts today. Started on my liquid diet. Not bad. I am using Bariatric Advantage Meal Replacements. They allow me to mix in a little Peanut Butter, splenda and banana. Not bad at all and pretty damn filling. Going to have to get creative with these shakes if I am going to last all week. Thinking of picking up some sugar free syrups (like the ones for coffee) to help make these a little more unique. Tomorrow is my pre op consult. WOOT!! just around the corner now.

Hello Everyone, My name is Lara and I live in Alaska in a very small town, I have a wonderful husband and two beautiful girls. After the birth of my last daughter I was never able to loose any weight, so for the past 12 years I have been dieting only to loose 20 lbs then gain back 30...you know how that goes. So... I have just decided to have the vertical sleeve procedure done. After a year of am I ready for this? I have looked all around at the different types of weight lose surgeries and came to the conclusion that this one sounded the least evasive and had the best results. The problem I'm having now though is I can't find anyone in the state of Alaska that does the…

Ok, here is my dilemna...I did the preop diet and lost 11 pounds....i was banded on april 13 and in 7 days i lost 8 pounds........now, here is the problem........ I am eating what I'm supposed to, which means I am surviving on less than 300 calories a day...I am also exercising at least 45 minutes a day. But, here is the deal..... I weighed in on Wednesday only since it was dr follow up day......then i weighed in on Sunday since thats always the day I do it. The scale didnt budge!!!!!!!! Now, i know Water varies day to day....but we are talking about less than 300 calories a day and burning a decent amount.....how is the scale not moving????? Does the band work for ev…

My goal is probably overstated (to weigh what I weighed in high school) and I’m now over halfway there so I’m writing to share with those who may be interested in what I’m experiencing after the first half of my journey. I’ve lost about 70 lbs in three months. Approximately 25 lbs a month is amazing! Especially considering I rarely get to the gym and I’m not at all obsessive about what I eat. I just passed my three month surgiversary and I’ve yet to begin full on exercise. I work out about once a week but I am more active on a regular basis than before. However, I NEED to start working out with weights because my skin looks and feels so gross! I feel like a bi…

Good Morning, Well today is my day. I am so nervous I woke up with hives from head to toe. I have to be at the hospital at 830 am to have surgery at 1030am. I believe that is good. I watched an epsoide for Dr. Oz and he says that is the best time to have surgery. Good Luck to all who is having the surgery today. I have decided not to take my laptop to the hospital. So I will catch up with everyone later. Till Friday. Best Connie

Hi I am new just joined up. My name is Roxxie and well my Lap Band is almost 4 years old now and due to some problems I am now seeking a revision from the band to Gastric Bypass. I will be turning 60 in a few months and it is harder for people my age to lose weight or to keep it off. I lost over 100 pounds and re gained 16 back in a year, not good but who knows why for I sure don't

Today is the 4th day of my pre-op liquid diet. I have 10 days to go but that's ok. The first 3 days were the hardest like everyone said but I have discovered a very good coping skill....STAY AS FAR AWAY FROM THE KITCHEN AS POSSIBLE. Everything smells good...even the garbage. But after the 3rd day it really was fine. I have been drinking the protein shakes furnished by my doctor and in between I will sip on chicken broth. I made some before hand and froze it cause I don't like the canned stuff. But what I discovered yesterday that really brought me to my knees was Wonton Soup (sans the wonton). The water or juice was wonderful.....I heard music when I sipped it O…

Hello everyone! I am new on here as well as just getting started with my process. I have done my seminar and now in the process of the 3 month requirement for weight loss and pshyc eval of which I go tonight. I am thinking I am going to like this site. I have learned alot by just looking through here today. I am very nervous and hoping I am making the right choice, but I have got to do something. I want my life back. Well wishing all you newbie's the best of luck with your process and the ability to reach your goal weight!

Hello! My name is Jamie, and I'm very happy to be on the path to getting a lap band. About me... 32 years old, my height is 5'4", BMI = 38.6 happily married for 7 years to a naturally thin (and wonderful!) husband two adorable kids, daughter is 2 and son is 1 live in Northern Virginia, about 25 miles away from D.C. elementary language arts teacher My weight struggles... heavy since I can remember lived around 175 in college lived around 185 post college got up to 195 pre-first pregnancy got up to 235 with first pregnancy, then down to 210 got up to 240 with second pregnancy, then down to 225 now at 225 for a year, weight is not moving I have an insatia…

Hello All, well it has been 6 months and I am scheduled for my surgery to be held on 5/17. This afternoon I will be attending my Pre-Op nutrition class. Nervous is an understatement! Excited as well. I feel as if I have failed on so many other DIETs how can this be an exception. I would appreciate any tips, tricks and just ideas. I want to have energy, look good and have the confidence of a can do person. I am looking forward to sharing this journey and learning from all of you as wel. Blessings.

It has been an interesting journey leading up to this point. I am still hoping that my surgery won't be canceled. I am trying not to worry about it since there is nothing I can do to change whatever the outcome is at this point. I keep thinking I will wake up and find out that nothing was done. I have lost about 17lbs on the pre-op diet but 13 of that was over 3 weeks ago, these last 3 weeks have been slow going. I have only lost an additional 4 lbs so I think the surgeon is not going to be happy at all. I pray for a smooth journey tomorrow with no complications and that I can finally join the other side equipped with my sleeve. I keep trying not to think about it b…

Hey everyone, My name is Shavona. I finally got the relief I was looking for when finsing out that my insurance covers the lapband procedure. When starting this journey 2 years ago I was trying to go through all the hoops for Cigna. Then right before the final test was complete we found out that we were switching insurance companies. We went to Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield and to my surprise they covered the surgery. So after other things like moving going on in my life. Moving from Nebraska to Colorado I made a appointment with Dr. Brown here in Denver. I went in for my appoointment and they take care of everything, there was no making a million appointment to see…

Hello everyone. I was banded on Wednesday, April 27th, by Dr. John Marsden in Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas. I am surprised and pleased to say that I have had very little pain. In fact, I am going back to work three days ahead of schedule. My goal is to lose approximately 150 pounds in two years. I look forward to chatting with you all soon.

I started reading the stories on here recently. I have hit the two week mark, got all of my pre-op work taken care of this morning. I wanted to say thanks and good job to everybody. The stories you guys tell about your losses, the tips on diets, etc has all been really helpful for me. I am ready to "get 'er done"!

Hello All, I got sleeved on 4/22/2011 by Dr. Anne Lidor at Bayview Hospital. The surgery went great though apparently I'm not quite correctly assembled down there so it took a full hour longer than scheduled because she had to hunt for some organs that were placed oddly. Other than that the surgery went great. I woke up in recovery and had one of those nice buttons that dispensed dilaudid into my system. Recovery was fine though I had a little issue with the catheter, seems they only used a 5mm balloon and I'm rather wide up there so it slipped out of my bladder and into my urethra which was a bit frustrating since I really had to pee. I eventually ended up peeing around…

Hi Everyone, My name is Shari - I had my lapband surgery on Jan 5th, and in two more days I will hit my four month mark. I've only lost about 9-10 lbs so far. I'm not sure if this is normal, but I finally just got my first adjustment that seemed like it worked. I'd had a couple of fills initially but they didn't seem like they did much. My first "real" fill was about 3 weeks ago and I lost 4 lbs in 3 weeks. I went to my Dr. (Dr. Simpson in AZ) yesterday and he filled me again. I started having a lot back up/mucous and so I went online to research "why," that's when I came across this site. What a valuable resource. Anyhoo, nice to be hear - can't wait to dig …

Hi there, everyone. I'm just starting off on my LapBand adventure. I have spoken to my PCM, who suggested banding. I initially recoiled from the idea, but the more I read and thought, the more I started to really find encouragement in the idea. And now I'm completely convinced this is the way to go. I submitted my application this morning to the Washington University Department of Bariatric Surgery. They'll contact me when my application is reviewed and approved, and they'll get me started on where I need to be. I'm an Army wife, using TriCare Prime. I've heard a few varying experiences regarding what TriCare requires for approval, so we'll see what they ask of me whe…

Looks like a lot of people on here have surgery scheduled for May and June! My surgery date is Thursday, June 16th. I will start pre-op liquid diet on June 5th.

Hello all, I was given this forum by my nutritionist so I could understand more about the surgery and what to expect. I am struggling with this because I always thought I was okay. I have now discovered that my health is in jeopardy and I need to make a decision as to what I am going to do about my weight. I have lost weight in the past buy have never kept it off (sound familiar?). Anyway, I am still struggling with this and hope to understand from all of you what I can expect if I choose to go ahead with the surgery. My friends and family are encouraging me not to do the surgery. They are concerned and afraid as I am. I need to lose 80 pounds which seems like an…

Hey Everyone, I arrived in TJ and had a nice American lady named Lana pick me up from the air port and within minutes we were in TJ and at the private hospital where I would be staying. Lana stayed with me till I got all my pre op stuff done. I met the team of doctors that would be assisting dr. Ponce de leon, Dr. Friday is Dr. Ponce’s right hand man and Dr. Sanchez the anesthesiologist. The hospital administrator came to welcome me and each day that I was there she’d stop by to check on me. I thought that was very nice. Oh and let me just say ALL the doctors were very cute to boot but really they were warm, genuine and friendly. Since I had my surgery on Friday I reall…

I arrived at San Deago airport and JerusalemHospital staff picked me up there, from there we went directly to the Clinic. I had my heart checked and some blood drawn. It was over before I even knew it. I am on day 7 post op, and will get to drink whey protien powder today, it is chocolate and looks good, think I will blend with ice. I was going to have running cream of wheat, but alas there is none in the cupboard. I did find a bunch of Cereal I will be passing on though! Dr. Mario Almanzo Reyes was my Doctor, and he was great.

Hello everyone, I am super excited to start this new journey. I am in my late 20's and for years have struggled with weigh loss and gain. Due to my PCOS condition, it has made it even harder to keep the weight off even when I loose due to my crazy hormonal imbalances. My best friend was banned in 2010 and she loves it and it is working out great for her. I am a nurse and I am fully aware of the risks that are associated with being obese and therefore, decided it was time for a drastic change. I am due to have the surgery sometime in early summer. I am even more excited to be able to hear from others and follow their journey. Look forward to sharing with each of you as …

Ok, so I went in to the hospital on Monday 4/25/11 and they gave me a cocktail to make me relax and I've gotta say folks, I don't remember a thing after that. I went in early cause I had to take my Aunt Nancy in for her lapband surgery on the same day and hospital. She went in @ 8am. My surgery went off without a hitch. I am still not clear on whether the Dr fixed my Hiatal hernia or not. He apparently told my husband they had found it wasn't very big and so they didn't have to fix anything but when I asked a few days later, he took a look at my stomach and said yes, he did fix it and all was good. Anyway, the pain was bad the first day and they had me up as fast as possi…

Last week I posted how happy I was to fianlly break into the 150's... Now I am waiting to hear If I have breast cancer.. I noticed a lump in my right breast last friday night, they did a mamogram, untrasound and biopsy yesterday. Although they did not outright say it .. I am pretty sure it is cancer. Have to wait 48-72 hrs for official result I feel so sick to my stomach I can not even begin to expain how I feel right now.. Just please keep me in your thoughts.. Thanks for listening Sherri

Hi all, will a US doctor perform a sleeve on me if I self pay, but am under 40 BMI and have no comorbidites? I'm healthy, but 90-100 lbs overweight. Just wondering if the FDA regulates doctors as to whom they can perform the surgery on. Thanks for any thoughts. Lisa

Hey guys! I'm back. 4 weeks post op, I'm currently in a stall, but overall I feel great. Today I tried on an XL swimming suit and it could fit (bottom fit great, but I'm very top heavy lol) - I am happy to say that being able to see an XL is great, I'm usually having to try on 2 or 3X. I have tried not weighing myself that much this week due to my stall cause it only makes me upset. I'm increasing my fluids and taking in more Protein shakes and Water to see if that will help. It feels like it's been longer than a month, I'm 2 weeks away from being off the soft food diet. I do feel like I would be ok staying on the soft food diet due to my stomach being much smaller but I …

Wish me luck!

So here I am two months after surgery...lost about 15-20lbs and I can do so much better I'm just lacking motivation. I can eat pretty much anything in moderation so I'm contemplating trying Fatsmash out again...I've lost weight with this diet in the past but I was always hungry. I'm hoping bc I have the band now it'll be a little easier. I don't know if anyone is familiar w/ Fatsmash but it strict in the beginning and you add certain foods back in in each phase. Help

I had my surgery on March 31, 2011 and have lost 21 lbs. I am a little discouraged because after I have healed for the most part I have not lost any more weight since going on soft foods. I have not had a fill yet I get that at my 6 weeks check up. Is any one else going thru the same thing or are my expectations set to high!

Hello! I just wanted to introduce myself. I just was approved by insurance this week (yay!) and meet with the surgeon on April 27th. I'm hoping to schedule my surgery for end of May/early June. I'm 28, live in NYC and looking to lose approx 100lbs. I'm really excited about this process--and while nervous, now that I've made the decision just can't wait to start this journey! I'd love to hear from others who have success stories to share, were recently banded, as well as those who are looking to have surgery in the same time frame as me, so we can hopefully go through it together. Thanks!

I had my surgery on March 31, 2011 and have lost 21 lbs. I am a little discouraged because after I have healed for the most part I have not lost any more weight since going on soft foods. I have not had a fill yet I get that at my 6 weeks check up. Is any one else going thru the same thing or are my expectations set to high!

This morning I realized that I had done something pre-surgery that was one of the major catalysts for making the right change in my life AND that it would give me a "jumpstart" on emptying my dress shop closet. Dress shop because it has sizes galore. The thing that I did that pushed me closer to the sleeve? Getting rid of all of my clothes that were too large. Since my dieting career started, I would get to a particular size, buy some nice clothes (yep, I'm pretty high maintenance) but not get rid of the ones I was "replacing". They just moved to the back of the closet (too lazy to clean it out). Then whenever I would start to gain (yep, every single time), I'd have…

Hi everyone!! So I have everything ready for tomorrow, my "BIG DAY", but I can't figure out why the heck I'm so emotional today?? Anyone else feel this way the day before? I mean I'm nervous, but not stressing to much, just keep crying everytime someone tells me they love me or how proud they are of me..WEIRD!!!

I am hoping for surgery in June. Anyone have great success with Pcos and or Hashimotos? Also, what is eating like a year out? Hunger, stretched stomach?

I'm very excited but also very nervous, but I know this is normal. I have so much support and I know this is the best thing for me!! Wish me LUCK!!

Hi All; Scheduled to be Banded on May 25th. Start preop diet on May 11th. Looking forward to communicating my journey with all. Keep me in your prayers. Email me