Cleo's Mom

Queeny - please make sure to get everything checked out. Get complete bloodwork done and your thyroid checked, too. It does sound like this is all band related but there could be something else going on too. I am glad you are getting a second opinion. That is smart. Maybe an endoscopy might shed some light on this situation. But in the end, if they find nothing wrong, then you might just have band intolerance and have to have it removed. I wish you well.

I am sure you will discuss all of this with your doctor next week and he/she will be able to give you some advice. You might still be healing from the port re-attachment and the fill will have to wait. How many cc's do you have in your band? What size band do you have? It sounds like your eating is okay. You might just need a little more time and to step up your exercise when you are healed. Good luck.

What do you mean you had a revision? That refers to a change to a different WLS. Or maybe a band replacement. Why are you on limited exercise and if you have quite a bit of restriction why are you going in next week for a fill? What are you eating each day? Are you on a full diet? Sorry for all the questions but your post doesn't provide a lot of information.

To JennRobb and all those who have posted about their or their loved one's cancer - you have my sympathy. I know first hand the cancer journey. I was diagnosed with breast cancer in 2002. 11 months later my husband was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. This was the result of years of heartburn & GERD that eventually resulted in barrett's esophagus and then esophageal cancer. He was scoped yearly and it was caught early. Didn't matter. He died in 2005 at age 56. That's why you will see me posting on here to those who dismiss heartburn and reflux as the price to pay for being tight enough to lose weight. When he was undergoing cancer treatment there was a sign on the desk at the hospital that said what cancer can't take from you. Oh, yeah. Well, let me tell you what it took from me. It took my beloved husband, it took our future, our retirement that we were looking forward to. It took him from walking our daughter down the aisle. It took him missing our son's wedding, too. All he wanted was to retire and play golf after working hard all his life and play with future grandkids. Cancer took that from him, too I am a baby boomer and I don't remember one person having much less dying of cancer while growing up. Later when I got to be college age there were a few people my parent's age who had heart attacks. My mother smoked cigarettes, my dad cigars. Both were obese. Neither exercised. My mom lived to be almost 86. She had heart surgery and a stroke, but no cancer. My dad died at 78 of congestive heart failure. I have the distinction of being the only person in my family to ever have cancer. And I am always waiting for the other shoe to drop. The death rate from cancer might be falling slightly but in absolute numbers more people, especially young people (under 65) are getting cancer. I read the obituaries everyday. When I see someone young, I know the cause of death before I read it. When I was in high school there was not one teacher who died. But my husband was a teacher and there have been several from his school who died of cancer while teaching. We do a better job with screening for cancer and catching it early when it is more treatable but just with breast cancer - the rates are increasing from one in 14 in the 1970's to about 1 in 8 chances now. What's changed? I don't know. All I know is that if your life hasn't been touched by cancer, it will be. Someone in your family or close circle of friends will be diagnosed. It just seems like it is everywhere. Again, my sympathies to the OP - you've been hit very hard by this. I wish your Mom the best and hope that everything turns out well for her and continued good health for your daughter.

I saw this article by Geneen Roth (who writes some good stuff about weight, dieting and body issues) and it helped to put things into perspective for me. It might help you too. It's entitled: Worrying about weight doesn't help you lose it. Worry About Weight Loss - Stop Worrying About Losing Weight - Goodhousekeeping.com

You risk dehydration and your doctor should not have made you wait but had you come in right away - regardless of the time of day or night. You need to address this with him when you see him.

Have you called your surgeon? If not, you need to and explain how you feel. Having Fluid coming out of your ear is not normal and dangerous. What are you eating at this point? Did you have any fill during surgery? Everyone heals at different rates. You can't compare yourself to your relatives or friends. I remember I felt lousy for a week and not myself until after 2 weeks. The port pain lasted longer. Your stomach is still swollen and your body healing. But definitely call your doctor. And by the way, was your doctor called when you went to the ER? And if so, what did he say, if not what did they say? And make sure your are not getting dehydrated. All the more reason to call your doctor.

I heard about this on CNN this morning and also posted it on the exercise & fitness forum, too. It's an interesting read. Why Exercise Won't Make You Thin - Yahoo! News

I just heard about this article today on CNN. Just thought I'd provide it as food for thought. Pun intended. And remember - please don't shoot the messenger! :wink2: Why Exercise Won't Make You Thin - TIME

How long ago were you banded? Ask your doctor for anti-nausea meds. It's not unusual to be nauseated when first banded but it should go away. If you don't improve, call your doctor and discuss this with him.

What have you tried? Did you try Prilosec? Since you had heartburn before being banded were you treated for it with precription meds? Vomiting to get rid of heartburn is not healthy. With or without the band. Have you added any new food recently? Doesn't your doctor have someone who is seeing his patients while away? You need to call them and demand some relief. Good luck.

You say that your husband really doesn't notice you much anymore and that he would freak if he found out that you were planning this surgery. Sounds like you need to work on these problems before you get your surgery. He will certainly pay attention when he finds out others knew about this but he didn't. But it won't be the attention you want. Discuss with him your feelings of being unnoticed and why you didn't want to tell him and then take him to a seminar. It might help get him on your side.

I would say your gut instinct is to find someone else. Remember that the actual surgery is perhaps the easiest part of the journey. You will require life long follow up care and it doesn't sound like you like the attitude of these doctors. Do you really want to go to someone who you thought was being a jerk? I switched doctors back in April because mine was inexperienced, had unrealistic expectations for weight loss and he overfilled me and then blamed me for the problems. He had only done 22 lapbands before me. If I were you, I would keep looking.

Here are samples of other people who supposedly "get it" and would support "this guy". These are the supporters of what is left of the republican party/conservative movement. Daily Kos: Umm, GOP? You got a second? I want to show you something..

Gore did win. He got 500,000 more votes nationally and he won Florida. Many, including me, believe Kerry won Ohio, too. But these are a whole other forum. And speaking of polls, Gallup is considered very reputable. The latest Gallup poll shows 30 states solidly democratic and only 4 solidly republican. That shows that people have rejected what it is that republicans stand for or more importantly what they oppose.

Me looking at the world with rose colored glasses after 8 years of bush? AU CONTRAIRE!! It is highly unlikely that you talk to people outside of your comfort zone - i.e. those who think differently than you. Therefore, your views are the ones skewed to the right. I'll trust the polls over your limited opinion sampling. Now, back to the rose colored glasses. During the 2004 presidential campaign between Kerry and bush - you will remember that the swiftboaters savaged Kerry's war record and people at the RNC wore purple bandaids to mock the war wounds that earned Kerry his 3 purple hearts. During 2004 the Iraqi war was going very badly but bush kept telling the American public that things were going well. I dubbed that looking at the world through rose colored glasses and called Terry McAullife, then chairman of the DNC, and told him the people at the DN Convention should wear rose colored glasses in response to bush's vision and the purple bandaids. If you watched it, you would have seen that they did. So, no, my vision is crystal clear. It was the neocons who lived behind the rose colored glasses for 8 years of bush.

Whether or not the users like it is inconsequential. The fact is, many doctors will not accept Medicare because it takes them forever to get paid -- and when they DO get paid, they don't even get enough to break even. Many times they don't even make that much. You're the one who said you hadn't talked to anyone who was satisfied with Medicare. Obviously this poll says otherwise. As for doctors, well, they can eliminate a large pool of people and just not accept Medicare patients. And frankly, if the government would get the hell out of the way and quit dictating what insurance companies can and can't do, the insurance companies could combine efforts and save us all a hell of a lot more money. But as it is, they can't do that. Now I'm ROFLMAO - that's just what we need - one giant insurance company unregulated. No competition. I can only imagine how well that would work out for consumers. It could be called Monolopy Insurance for the stupid. Remember that insurance companies want to do four things: 1) sell policies 2) collect premiums 3) maximize profits 4) deny as many claims as they can get away with Now imagine that all under one roof. :thumbdown:

Why is your doctor completely unfilling you when you get stuck at 5cc? Why not just take out 1cc and see how you do? It seems like his approach is all or nothing. I always agree with the advice to get a second opinion about things. I did and changed doctors back in April. I was banded close to when you were. I was banded on Sept. 22, 2008. I have only lost close to 15 pounds from then. But from my highest weight until now I have lost 75 pounds. I am about 20 pounds from goal. But the band has not worked for me the way I thought it would. I have a 4cc band with 2cc fill (3 was too tight) and I have never achieved satiety and hunger has always been my biggest problem. Not any particular food or even bad food choices. Just enough food to feel satisfied and that, of course, was always too much. I agree with HH about the need to confront your food demons. There is a lot in our histories and experiences that when uncovered can explain why we are addicted to food. Please find a qualified phychotherapist. It might help. But you are doing well and are taking the next step by reaching out for help. Good luck.

You need an upper GI to see what is going on. Otherwise, it is just guessing. But frequent vomiting is unacceptable and not part of what you (or anyone) signed up for. Some (maybe many) will put up with these kinds of problems to reach some elusive weight goal. When what they are really doing is jeopardizing their health. Don't be one of them. You got the band to be healthy not to vomit.

Says this survey which I think carries more weight than your anecdotal "survey". Meeting Enrollees' Needs: How Do Medicare and Employer Coverage Stack Up? - The Commonwealth Fund People on Medicare are more satisfied than those with private plans. And the concept that private plans are 100% private is a fallacy, too. Most people who have health insurance get it through their employer and don't buy it directly. There's a big tax advantage to doing it that way since the employer contributions to health care aren't considered taxable income. But to get that tax advantage employers have to follow a number of (gov't) rules - they can't discriminate on pre-existing medical conditions or restrict benefits to highly paid employees. So, to the extent that we have a working health care system at all right now is because the government provides regulations for employer based health care and medicare for those 65 and older.

Actually the government is going to put about $2 billion more in stimulus money into this cash for clunkers program. The fact that there was a greater demand than originally thought does not translate into the government failing to run this program. In this sluggish economy it was natural to have low expectations. I think the fact that the government even came up with this innovative concept shows that they are forward thinking. And not defenders of the status quo. We trust the government to run our military and keep us safe but somehow we don't think they can do a chest x-ray. People love the current run health care program - known as Medicare. Just try telling those recipients they will lose it.

What is the first thing the doctor's office does when you go for a follow up appointment? Weigh you. So what that number on the scale says must be important, at least to them. If there is anyone out there whose doctor does not weigh them as the first thing, I would like to know. And also if their weight loss/gain is not the first thing the doctor discusses with you when he/she enters the room. I think this should make an interesting discussion. I know my experience with both the nutritionist and surgeon is that you are weighed first. That is what they equate with success (theirs and yours). Therefore, I can understand why people get obsessed with their scales at home. This is the message they get from their doctors.

If only we had had all this delay, debate and consternation about the lead up to the war in Iraq that was totally unjustified instead of with health care reform. Bush gave the WMD inspecters 10 minutes to inspect, then he invaded at a cost of nearly one trillion dollars to date. Blank check after blank check was issued without any discussions, fear mongering or debate. After all, to be opposed to this costly (in terms of lives and money) war was to be unpatriotic and be with the terrorists. If only this war had been debated to the extent that health care has (after all it has been discussed since the Truman administration) perhaps nearly 5000 soldiers would still be with us and we wouldn't have had to borrow a trillion from China to finance it. The Iraq war cost money and lives and we got nothing for it. Health care reform saves lives. 18,000 people a year die from lack of health care. But where were all these fiscal conservatives who are so concerned about the cost of health care when the Iraq war was being waged? Not one person or reporter asked Bush where he was going to get the money to fund the Iraqi war. Not one. And he and Cheney were completely wrong about the war - about everything - from the lack of WMD's to being greeted as liberators to the cost of the war to how long we would be there. But no one held them accountable. And still the blank checks kept coming. But now, all those same people are asking ad nauseum, ad infinitum about the cost of health care reform. Even though health care is profit driven and helping to contain those profits will contain some future costs. All of these arguments against health care reform are red herrings to divert attention away from the real issue which is that profit driven health insurers will still be able to do what they have always done: 1) sell policies 2) collect premiums 3) deny as many claims as they can get away with 4) make obscene profits. Why would they want to change any of this?

As someone who changed doctors because my first was inexperienced, overfilled me and then blamed me for the problems that resulted, I agree with HH. Get a second opinion outside of this hospital network. Try to find one in a hospital of excellence. Get copies of all your test results, including disks of your upper GI's, and take them for a second opinion. Include your medical history when you were sick, too. Good luck.

From your band date I assume you have had no fills yet. You should also ask for a barium swallow. Sometimes the endoscopy doesn't show everything. And I agree with Headhunter. You need to get the care your deserve and if you don't - then make demands. Being dehydrated and having a kidney infection are serious conditions. Make sure you document everything that has happened to you before and after you came to the hospital. How often doctors saw you, what they said. If that is too much for you, have your husband document it. Ask for names, what kind of doctor they are, etc.. Document all tests and this is very important: GET COPIES OF ALL YOUR TEST RESULTS - this includes your operative report, and all pre surgical tests. Good luck to you. I hope you feel better.