Tell Your Weight Loss Surgery Story

I was banded on May 14th by Dr. Macura and Dr. Sherwinter in Brooklyn. From this day forward my birthday is no longer in March it is now in May! I'm alittle sore very excited and can't wait until I hit my goal weight!

Hi Everyone! I'm soooo excited about getting my surgery date! I got the call today and it's set for July 2nd. I'm very excited and have to thank all the people here for the great information and support. I've learned so much and it's very comforting knowing my feelings about certain things are the same concerns other people have. Thank you all and good luck in your continued journey to a healthy life-style. Lisa :thumbup:

Hello all! I was referred to this forum by a friend who went through the surgery last year. I went under the knife on April 25th this year, and am so far very happy with the results. My doctor was Frank Veninga in North Dallas Texas. I think they did a great job despite me being a very difficult case. I am not small by any means (385 and 5'10" prior to surgery) so I had a ton of muscle and fat in the abdominal area. So far the only issues I have had are with the incision sites. It seems that one got slightly infected, and then the largest one where they placed my port has been weeping a bit. All seems to have cleared up though:thumbup: but now I have a peice of stitc…

Yay! Had my Psych evaluation today at 9:30. Lasted until 11:30 and the doc said I am a perfect canidate for surgery!!! :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup: ALSOOOOOO...had my 2nd nutrional class at 2. I lost 5 and a half more pounds!! 5 months left in my 6 month diet...weee :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::hurray::thumbup::hurray:LOL :thumbup: sorry im exciteddddddddddd W00T 8.5 pounds total!!!! weeee!!!:thumbup:!!

I am just at the beginning of the lapband journey, I have seen my surgeon and my Eval is schedule for next week, My PCP has approved my procedure, My medical records were mailed off today to the surgeon's office to be prepared for the insurance company to review...My problem is that since I have decided to have the lapband procedure and waiting for approval I have been eating all bad foods, I quess thinking in the back of my mind ( I'd better eat all I can now, because in a couple months all that bad stuff will and must stop). Am I crazy or what???? Has anyone gone and done the bad eating and eating:w00t: thing?????Before pre-op surgery???????

Hi, I'm new to the forum, hope I'm posting in the right place. I'm seriously considering getting the lap band, but I wonder if it will work for me. I'm 53 and have been overweight all my life. I eat even when I'm not hungry or even already full. Will the lap band help me? Can it stop me from overeating? At present, I weigh 275, I'm 5'4" tall and am 54 years old. My husband has Parkinson's disease and I'm under a lot of stress, which adds to my overeating, which makes me more stressed. I'm worried I'll have a heart attack, although I'm in good health, no diabetes, and I exercise occasionally--dancing and bike riding, mostly. I want to stop eating so much and los…

I had my original surgery in Feb 08...only lost 23 pounds and now have to have a port revision next week. I had a revelation last night and realized that if I want this to work, I will have to do some work. I live in a non-supportive house where everyone thinks it is a big joke to bring my favorite ice cream in and see if I will fall. I have decided to pour myself into exercise to help quit smoking and get my mind on healthier thoughts instead of ice cream. If anyone would like an online buddy to exercise with, please let me know.:thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

Is there any military spouses here that has had a lap band done? and If so how good was tri care about covering It

Hi, my name is Shelly and I am now waiting on my insurance to give me the go ahead. But, I want to ask if you could do it all over again would you?:confused2:

:confused2:I am just going through all the waiting at the moment to find out if I can get the lapband..I have seen everyone I need to see and done everything that I was told to do and have been told by everyone there that I am an ideal candidate for surgery....Until I get my letter though, telling me that I am going to get it I won't believe anyone! I have waited for a long time to get this and I am so scared of believing I will only to be told I can't. I hope it won't be too much longer before I know for sure..For now though I am coming on here to find out about other peoples experiences, hope and dreams, helping with advice or support if it's needed and hopefully gettin…

Hi Everyone, I am sooooooooo happy to have this forum to read about and know that I am not the only person dealing with this. My first consult is on May 22 at TrueResults in Atlanta. Has anyone ben there and if so, what has been their experience. This decision was not easy for me to make and I am glad that I will have a place that I can come to for a reality check and for people to keep it real with. Trini40

:biggrin: I met with my coordinator today, did the weigh in, medical history and scheduled an appt with nutritionist and Dr. Facundos. My doctor does not require a pre-op diet. I was referred to him by my doctor and my niece who is an RN at the hospital he does his bariatric surgery at. In fact, she knows him personally and told me she wouldn't want anyone else to work on me. I am so excited! I am almost 46 years old and have been over weight for most of my life. I can remember as a child my mother having to get my clothes from the "special" department at the stores. I am tired of being overweight and the comorbities that are occurring now. And boy....does it…

:unsure:Hi! I have been lurking for a month or so, but I have a surgery date of 5/21... so now it's beginning to seem like it's really going to happen. I went today for my pre-admission testing (PAT), and everything's set. I was fortunate to have BC/BS Federal, so I did not have the 6 month waiting period. I also chose a surgeon (Dr. Cottingham in Birmingham AL) that I was able to get an appointment with about a week after attending his seminar. He's fairly new to lap-bands, but has done extensive GI surgery, so it's not so hard to get in with him. The thing that took the longest was getting my dietician consult. She was hard to schedule. I have started my 5 day pre-op …

I am signed up for orientation in mid June. I have been successful in losing weight (up to 80 lbs.) at a time, but I continually gain it back., even after I tell myself, I'll never get there again. I then have an extreme hard time getting onto a diet again. I am hoping that this time after the band, when I lose it, it won't regain like I did before I had the band. Will I be refused if I have been a long time yo-yo dieter. I continually end up going back to bad and over eating habits. I am also wondering what kinds of things they look at at the psych eval.:confused2:

I'm in Iowa looking forward to hopefully having a Lap Band next month, keeping my fingers crossed that my insurance will cover me. Dr. Glascock is who I'm hoping to have do it. I have so many questions about this I can't even think of one! If anyone has some answers, please share!

I am researching lap-band and learning all I can before i make a decision. Jan

Hi I'm Leigh married with 2 teens 45 from Texas I'm 4'10" and 235# I've got my pre-op set for 5/21 and surgery set for 6/2 this is what and where and the who is at the bottom of the link Trinity Mother Frances Health System This helped me... DO NOT WATCH IT IF YOU ARE EASILY GROSSED OUT [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ds_nwlgQztE]YouTube - Lap Band Surgery[/ame] Suggested reading from my Nutritionist The Success Habits of Weight-Loss Surgery Patients by Cook, Colleen M. and The Emotional First Aid Kit: A Practical Guide to Life After Bariatric Surgery by Alexander Cynthia L I'm excited nervous happy scared hardheaded and ready to go I…

I had lap band surgery 22 Apr 08, have lost 18 lbs so far and ready for first fill.:tongue2:

Name:Jeff Age:36 Height:6'1" City/Town:Richmond Surgeon: Hadar Spivak Surgery date: 05/14/08 Starting weight:Pre Sugery 448lbs At Sugery 418lbs (after low carb diet) Do you have the band or just investigating it: Support people in your life: Wife, Son Parents Any weight related medical problems: mild reflux, slighty high BP Had procedure done at True Results. They had me in and out of sugery in about an hour and in recovery for about 2 hours. Some modertate pain but for the most part I've been up and around pretty good.

Hi my name is John and my wife and I are planning on having the Realize Banding. I will be having the banding first , then a few months later my wife will have hers done. I'm at the point now where all the paperwork is fixing to go to the insurance company to be approved so I'm crossing my fingers and toes that everything goes o.k., I have been overweight all my life and I had gotten up to 580 lbs. three years ago and I lost 90 on my own and now I'm 490 lbs. and I can't seem to lose anymore on my own so I can't wait to get my lapband and start toward having a healthier body.

Hello Everyone. I am new to the boards and I am new to the lap band system. I have seen the commericials, and seen the success stories, and yesterday i took the first step and set up a group consult along with a one-on-one. I am scared to get excited. Because nothing ever seems to go right in my life, so I have doubts I will be approved. My insurance says I have to have a documented history of 5 years obesity, I just don't know if I have the history. I am 21 with a BMI of nearly 50. How outrageous is that. I have been overweight my whole life and I am tired of. I am tired of being the fattest girl in the group. Today is my 22nd birthday, and I need change! Nothing …

Hey Guys, I would like to introduce myself. I'm Jan from Arkansas. I'm married, the mother of a wonderful young lady and the grandmother of the cutest four kids in Arkansas. I've thought about weight loss surgery for several years now; but, my husband pretty much said "no-way". He wouldn't even talk about it...so I let it drop. Last February, I went to a seminar given by Dr Roller in Springdale AR. I came home real excited about the lapband and attempted to explain it to him. He was still totally against it; but, at least he was willing to listen. Gradually, using my womanly wiles I began to convert him. Not really, but he did become more open to my decision t…

Hi all I'm 22 and I was banded 3 years ago I was 176 pounds and lost up to 66 pounds but currently I have put back 22 pounds. I don't know where to start with my experience with this little monster. There are days when I love it and I thank God a million times for making this decision. But there are other days when I just want to get rid of it. The only complication I am currently facing is acid reflux. I wake up at night feeling like my esophagus is on fire. Salwa:wink:

Hi, I'm Cyd. I had the lap band installed on Monday May 12th. I thought I was totally prepared however, Sunday night I got a call from the surgeon saying he couldn't do the lap band his partner would have to do it. I said ok but wondered if it was an omen or something. In the hospital, 15 min before surgery, I met the surgeon and he told me he could place the belize band it would have to be the lap band and did I want to proceed....Yes, I was ready, checked in, had an IV in, I guess that would be OK. Then he came back and said they needed to move someone ahead of me and I would need to wait 2 hours. I have to admit I was freaking!!! It turned out I didn't have to…

Just thought id give you an update on the begining of my journey... Tonight i went to see my Dr & he is going to refer me straight away to the hospital, (sending a fax to them today) he said i shouldnt be waiting long to hear from them & he said he believes i will go on a liquid diet prior to my operation to reduce my liver, Ive come away feeling more hopeful knowing my Dr is behind me on this & he said he believes this is the best option for me to have the surgery & this will give me my life back.. Im going to be wanting the days to pass quickly to get to the hospital to be assessed & get a date for surgery Im sure i will have lots of questions, …

Hi Everyone!, Giving a big shout out from New Jersey. My husband was just banded on the 12th. I'm really exhausted from taking care of him and the kids. Just need to know from all you good folks (my pool of experts!) is it normal for someone post-op to feel really dizzy and hot. My husband does'nt have a fever but his arms are really hot the rest of him feels normal. No fever either. I want to call his doc but he does'nt also he needed to go to the bathroom but when he sat down he really got dizzy. Does anyone know what I'm talking about? Let me know and blessings to you all you're really brave!:tongue2:

I'm just thinking about a lapband, but what I really want is for food not to be the center of my life. I seems like after the lapband it is still all about food, just how you eat, what you eat, etc. Does it ever end?

Hello Everyone :tongue2: I am a post lap-band patient and feel all/most of the struggles that I read about on these blogs. I had my seminar/consultation on February 5, 2008 and then 10 days later I am wheeled into surgery and had my lap band done on Febuary 15, 2008. I was not a candidate for insurance since my BMI wasn't high enough so it was financed which was why they did it so quickly. I did get a GREAT deal though because all the doctors in Dallas are competing for cash patients. I have had 1 fill on April 3 they put in 4 cc and it feels like NOTHING!!! Luckily I get filled again tomorrow and they need to double it. I have referred back to overeating unfortunatl…

Hello all, I made the decision to have the lap band about 3 weeks ago and will have it done next wednesday. My doctor is Dr. Aaron Cenero in Sherman, Texas. Because my employer has an exclusion to weight loss procedure it will be a self-pay...but this Dr is very nice and worked hard to help me make this happen. Even at a cost to him so he comes HIGHLY recommended so far!! I am 39 with a BMI of 44.0 :thumbup: My highest weight ever was 368, first Dr. visit 349, currently 342... Hope to lose 110-125 total... On liquids for 7 days now and already lost 7 lbs...7 more days to go till the surgery... I will keep everyone posted after the surgery...

I went to my first informational meeting at Morristown Memorial Hospital last night. After hearing both procedures I am afraid of the Lap Band and Bypass:confused2: My BMI is 71 and I am over 400lbs. I know the docs probably think with the amount of weight I have to lose the bypass would be best. I also didn't know a port is actually implanted for life under your skin. I don't mind losing the weight slow. I am also afraid of the extra skin. My head is spinning. I wish I could lose weight without surgery. My next appointment is next week for my nutritional consult. Please feel free to send me comments. Especially if you are from NJ. No one understand my plight.…

Im new to this so I was wondering how bad are the hunger pains? Ive read that you have to do a liquid diet a week prior to surgery and im scared that im not going to be able to stick to even that! And then you have to have liquids for several week after? I just wanted to know that hopefully the hunger pains are not so bad after the procedure. Am I right?

:wink2:Hi my name is Sandi, I live in Wisconsin, I'm in the very begining stage of getting approval. I Does anyone have United Health Care Insurance? If so how hard was it to get approval? Well I look forward to sharing more in the future.

Hi, My name is Joanie and I'm scheduled for LapBand surgery 5-23-08. I'm currently on my pre-op diet and have been going to the gym. I'm very motivated but hope to keep it going after surgery. I'm a little nervous because I have to be cleared by my cardiologist with a stress test on Saturday. My reasons mainly to get the LapBand is to get off of alot of my medications. My BMI is 35 with a ton of co-morbidities. I'm also a nurse and know that I want to be an example to the patients and my co-workers.:thumbdown:

Today was a great day! My lapband place called and told me congrats my insurance approved the surgery! They are going to call me again in two days to schedule the surgery date and my appointment for the pre-op diet. I'm one step closer then I was yesterday! Seems like its taken so long to get through those six months of appointments I was struggling to see the light at the end of the tunnel and now I have a glimpse. Hayley :biggrin2:

Hello! I am new to this forum and am looking forward to the support I can receive here. I was banded last Thursday, May 8, and feel great! It is exciting to be on the road to a healthier life! :biggrin2:

Hello, my name is Sarah. I'm 34 years old and had surgery on May 7th. I'm back at work but having issues with sitting for a while (it hurts where my port is). Other than that I'm doing fine. I have moved on to the mushy foods and doing fine with it. I'm glad this site is here so I don't have to bother my doctor all of the time; there's some great stuff on here. Thanks for all the comments! I'm learning what to expect and what isn't normal! :thumbdown:

Hi! I'm Melissa. 24. Army wife. Started the paperwork to get the lap band done. Have date with surgeon and hope Tricare will approve. Married for 4 years. Weighing at 275. 5'7"/8". Did LA Weightloss almost full year, ended up with stomach issues and quite this January. I was wondering if there were any other Army wives in here, especially from Fort Hood? Also, if there are any soldiers in any force who have happened to get it done? I'm trying to find a way to get my husband's band approved. The Army says "Heck No!", but his PTSD meds made him gain over 100 lbs in a years time, so he's topping out at 315. If anyone has any insight on that, I'd greatly appreciate it. :wi…

My doctor wasn't exactly excited that I am thinking about this. She said that most of her patients that go through this procedure gain their weight back. Is that really true or is she trying to discourage me? She said she will support me either way, but got the impression she is not in favor of it. She lost a lot of weight a few years ago and has kept it off. I am wondering if she thinks I am just lazy like so many people assume about overweight people...What are your thoughts/ experiences?:wink2:

Hello All, I have been considering bariatric surgery for a few years now, and just found a group I would like to work with. Now that I found physicians, I need to decide between Roux-en-Y or Lapband, which I found out is not as easy as I thought. I'll be visiting occassionally, as I homeschool and run a business, so I have limit my time online for 'other' things. I am, however, a voracious researcher, so I'll be reading a lot - but probably lurk most of the time. I look forward to hearing both the positive and negative from everyone in my quest to lose the equivalent of my younger sisters weight. Thanks, Leelanau

I have BCBS of ILLINOIS, and the requirment is to have 6 months of supervised weight monitoring...Well my Doctor has in his notes for Nov, Dec and Jan. diet notations and nothing for feb, march, But has notes for April and May weight monitoring. Will the insurance co as for 1 more month which will total 6 months???? or will they say that because 2 months were missing that I have to start with April thur August?????Please help, I will be very upset if I have to wait until August...My Daughter is expecting a Baby Boy in August and I wanted to well on my way to healing by than....Thanks Gigi:huh2:

Good morning, I just found this website yesterday. I am in the process of going through the steps BC/BS requires for lapband surgery. I started last month so I'm hoping to have the surgery in September or October. My doctor is Dr. Michael Peters and he's at Christiana Institute in Newark, Deleware. Is there anybody out there who's going to this facility? Caelyn

Hi my name is Maria I'm 37 years old and I'm from England. I have been seeing a consultant regarding getting banded for nearly two years. My next appointment is tommorow. The reason it's taking so long is because I have a kidney disease called nephrotic syndrome. My kidney consultant doesn't think there will be any problems with being banded and even if there are they can easily take it out. Just wondering if anyone has been banded with the same condition or anything similar ? For the last week I've been so weepy because I know tommorow is crunch time and I'm so scared he's going to say no. I have two lovely little boys and a fab husband but it's not enough. I'm sick of…

I had my surgery last Tuesday. A little disappointed that I have not lost more weight. Gained coming out of the hospital because of the IV's, I am sure. Guess I wanted it to just fall off...guess that won't happen since it didn't come on over night. Still on liquids for another week before I get to puree my food. My doctor was Dr. Monte Schwartz, Tucson, AZ.

hello everyone I am new to the site. I am a 34 year old female in the process of going through the steps to be banded hopefully soon. I should hear from my insurance in a month or two for approval. Dr. Alan Brader will ber my surgeon out of Lancaster PA:thumbup:

I am getting grief at work about losing weight...It's a long story, but my priority is to do what is best for me and I actually started looking into this process before the issues at work came up. I am looking to get banded as soon as I can if it is the best choice for me. Anyone on the site from NH and what is the shortest turnaround time from start to banding that you have heard of? Thanks!

Hi, I am here b/c I am hoping to find out how I can support my sister who is getting ready to go through Lap-Band Surgery this Wednesday. We do not live in the same state so I can't be there with her when she has her procedure but want to support her as she begins her "journey" to the new her! My sister has always been a bit "overweight" but over the pas 16 years (though the birth of 4 children), her weight has gotten to the point that dieting and exercise does NOTHING for her. We come from a family where "weight issues" are very apparent and it is something that I too have dealt with, just not on the maganatude that she has. I am so excited and scared for her at the…

Hello Everyone. I will give you a quick run-down of my situation and then ask my question at the end. I got my first lap band in June '05, lost over 100 lbs. but had to have the band removed in October '07 due to slippage and reflux issues. Back then I paid cash because I was told Aetna would not cover me. Ok the past is passed. Now, I have put back most of the weight I lost and am trying to get a new band. I started in February with the "3 month" required medical weight loss management required by Aetna, but have failed to lose any weight. The dietician says she doesn't want to submit me for pre-cert because she thinks I will get denied due to the fact that I keep g…

Hello everyone, I joined this forum a couple of weeks ago but I have just been lurking and reading what others have had to say. I started my journey with lapband surgery by attending a seminar in July 2007. After several doctors appointments and waiting on my insurance company I finally was approved for surgery. I was finally banned on December 28, 2007. So far it has been a lot tougher than I thought it was going to be. They tell you ahead of time about the liquid, pureed, and soft foods diet but until you are actually doing it, it's a different story. Since I was bannded on 12/28 I have lost 20lbs which made me extremely happy but in the grand scheme of things it bare…

Hello everyone!!! I am here in hopes of finding, HOPE, support, comfort, information and whatever else I can. I am at the worst point in my life right now. I have never ever been so heavy and so depressed in my entire life, it started about five years ago and has become increasingly worse every year. I give myself and others this analogy...I am in a massive, deep crater, I see the light (so I know there is some hope) and I feel the light, but I can't get off the bottom of the crater to do anything. I looked in the mirror today and cried!! I haven't looked in mirrors in three years and I was in utter shock!!! WHO IS THIS PERSON, L0OK WHAT I HAVE BECOME??? LOOK WHAT I L…

Hi everyone! My name is Jodi, I have been lurking on this site for a month or so and finally decided to become a member. I am 38 yo female from Virginia. I have been going through the process of getting the lap band surgery for about a month now. I have done the psych eval, the barium swallow and the nutrition class. Just got a letter on Friday from my insurance company approving the surgery No questions asked, no hoops to jump through...nothing! I was pleasantly surprised by this because I am just within the guidlines for BMI (40) and I do not have any comorbid conditions (yet). I was prepared to be a self-pay if necessary but it turns out I will pay 20% out of pocket…