kewlshort1

My cousin had surgery with him last month, and has nothing but positive things to say. She personally knew a number of people that all raved about him and his practice as well.

I just had my band removed three days ago for similar reasons. I'm working on converting to bypass, and expect my surgery will be in February. I had my band placed in 2011, and lost about 85 pounds. Unfortunately I started having problems with esophageal hypomotility, and was vomiting all the time. So my surgeon removed all the fluid, and I've gained most of the weight back. I'm looking forward to the bypass, and finding a more permanent weight loss.

I am going from band to bypass. I have to redo the nutrition classes. I had the band in 2011, but I have switched jobs and insurances since then. Not sure if that plays a part or not. I was disappointed, but it is what it is.

I was banded December 19th, and it has been a breeze. I had major nausea post-op, even with the patch and maxed out on IV nausea meds, but only had it the day of surgery. I had very little gas pain, and none in my shoulder. It was just a pressure under my sternum, and passed after post op day one. My dr is less strict than many, so I have been eating regular food for almost a week now. I have no fluid in my band yet, so I have had no problems eating anything. I mostly have head-hunger over real hunger though, so I'm constantly having to ask myself if I'm really hungry or just bored, etc. I won't get my first fill until the end of January, and I'm anxious for it to get here. I'm down about 20 lbs, but haven't lost anything over the past 5 days or so.

I know everyone's experiences are different, but I'm curious as to how people that have had cesarean sections would rate their post op pain? I have had two c-sections and recovered like it was a piece of cake. By one week post-op, I was back to normal and pain free. I only took my pain meds for a few days. Certainly it was not a pain free experience, but I tolerated it easily. I get that the surgeries are completely different, but I'm crossing my fingers that this surgery will be as tolerable as those were. I would guess that I have a high tolerance for pain. I'm guessing that plays a huge part in people's differing experiences. So I am curious, those of you that had both surgeries: what were your experiences like and how were they in relation to each other? Did your c-sections cause you immense pain, or were they easier to recover from? How were they in relation to your experience with the lap band surgery? (does that make sense?)

I had the patch as well as maxed out on multiple anti-nausea meds, yet I still came out with major nausea. I had the patch for 3 days, and had a few bouts of nausea the day after surgery still. Some of us are just more prone to nausea, no matter what steps we take to prevent it.

I gained weight during my 6 mos nutrition counseling. It was insurance mandated, not physician mandated btw. My surgeon had no weight loss requirements, like some do. I wound up on large doses of prednisone during my 6 mos, and subsequently gained a bit of weight. I was still approved on the first try. I have Humana insurance.

I have to say, every time you post, I do a double take. Your avatar is the same picture I have for my twitter picture, so it always catches my eye and makes me wonder when I posted that

I'm being banded on the 19th as well. I have my pre-anesthesia phone interview this Friday, and my pre-op appointment the following Wednesday. I was initially set for the 15th, but I'll make do with the 19th Either way, it's my Christmas present to myself, so I'll take missing out on whatever I have to at dinner on Christmas!

Didn't your dr give you post-op directions? The post-op diet varies greatly by doctor. My dr is one of the more lenient. I have one week post-op full liquids, with the guidelines of "anything that can be sucked through a large straw, or poured from a pitcher." After that first week, I can move to mushies and then up to solids as tolerated. Some people are full liquids for up to a few weeks. It's not a cut-and-dry rule, so it really depends on your surgeon's preferences.

What do your post op directions say? My post-op directions allow me to eat anything that can be taken through a large straw or poured from a pitcher. Cream of Wheat is allowed, as long as it is thinned and not thick. This is an area that varies with each doctor as well though, so I can't say that your doctor agrees with mine.

Holy crow, that is awesome!! I've never heard of a surgeon doing that. Sweet!

I'm so sad My surgery date was initially supposed to be on 12/15, and today I was told it will be 12/19. It's 4 days, which doesn't seem like a big deal, but it totally messes things up. The 15th would have allowed me to be able to miss fewer days off of work because it's my e/o weekend off. The 19th not only means I'll have to miss a stretch of work days, but puts me too close to Christmas, which means my boss may not allow me the time off. Apparently being the week before Christmas, and being an elective procedure, gives her the ability to say no I've emailed her, and am waiting on a response. Regardless, I'm not putting it off any longer. I don't want to wait until January. It will just mean that I will have to trade shifts with coworkers, and the week before surgery I will have to work all the hours I am scheduled in a 2 week payperiod. That would stink, since I have a sick pay bank that would pay for me to have a week off to recover if she approves it. ::sigh:: I should have known that the 15th was too good to be true!!!

First, I would move hell and high waters to get the surgery. That being said, I have worked in patient accounts for a number of years. I wouldn't count on the hospital covering your balance, and would think about alternatives. Even if the alternative is working like crazy to make payments. While hospitals are required to "write off" a certain amount of debt, and you may qualify based on income alone, every hospital I've worked at has the clause that states the assistance is NOT allowed for elective procedures. And as much as many of us would say this surgery is NEEDED and not just elective, it is going to be considered elective. Regardless of what the representative might have told you, the ultimate decision is way out of their hands. Perhaps you could contact patient accounts and get information on their assistance program. The guidelines should be clearly stated. Not trying to be a downer, just don't want you to wind up with added stress later!!

It looks amazing!!

I have Lupus and Rheumatoid Arthritis. In addition to multiple other pills, I do take a prescription NSAID. My surgeon recommended I stop taking it. I haven't taken it for quite a while now. Really, I never felt it did a whole lot for me anyway. My other meds do much more to control my symptoms, so I haven't missed it.

You can do it! I'm getting banded on the same day. What's your pre-op look like? I have a week of low-cal/low carb dieting to do. It's one of the least restrictive pre-op diets I've seen people have, but I'm still not looking forward to it! Being only a week though, I know I can do just about anything for that little time!

OMG!! That's horrible! That's a large part of the reason I chose NOT to keep it a secret at work. I work on the OB unit, and each night I print out the surgery schedule for the whole hospital for the next day. We get surgical patients that have had hysterectomies, etc on our unit, so we need the housewide schedule. That being said, people browsing through to see what we are expecting the next day are privy to the name of every surgical patient that is scheduled and what they are having done. Because my surgery is at my hospital, my name will eventually be on that list. I would only be inciting gossip by letting it be some secret that gets discovered. That being said, i have not told all of my coworkers. I do speak freely about it with them though, so presumably others have some idea. If anyone asks, I will certainly share. Hopefully it will be on my terms though, and not on someone elses.

Mmmmm.... definitely going to remember this one!

OMG! I'm afraid I would not have been very kind in my reply to someone that said that to me!! Not being supportive or agreeing with my choice is one thing, but being a complete asshat is another!! Wow. The things some people think are acceptable to say outloud

Here's my thoughts on this. A crutch is something that helps you do what you've always done. A tool is something that helps you fix something, or make something. You are choosing to get a tool, and its purpose is to help you fix your unhealthy eating habits. Does that make sense?

My dr was not that concerned about the Lupus or the RA. I am not taking NSAID's now, as he recommended against that. I really don't think they helped anyway. I am still on immunosuppressants and a bunch of others though. He did express that Lupus CAN be a contraindication, however he said the biggest thing was that it MAY cause me to reject the band when it is put in. But even that is not a huge risk, just a small possibility. If that happens, then we would remove it. Personally, I would rather take the chance and then take it out if it happens, than not try at all. I've had 2 c-sections, and never had any issues. I realize they are taking something out, instead of putting something in LOL but I'm fairly confident it will be a non-issue. (or maybe I'm just refusing to accept anything less? ) I did discuss it at a fair length with my surgeon, although I'm not quite recalling all the specifics of what was said. The bottom line was that he was confident it was at least worth a try, and I was glad to hear he thought that. If I were her, I'd check with other surgeons. What's her main Lupus related issues? For me, I have joint and muscle issues. I suppose if I had organ involvement, things might have played out different? I'm not sure. Lupus acts so differently for every person. I would keep looking though, at least for a second opinion. She may be able to find someone that feels confident in the success even with Lupus.

Mine was uber easy. It seems this is another thing that is different though, depending on who you see. We sat and talked for roughly 15 minutes. He asked information about my family history, my personal medical history, and who my "support people" are. He wanted to know whether I've tried other weight loss methods, and what the results were. He also asked why I wanted to have surgery. After that, he said I was a good candidate for surgery. It was really laid back, quick and easy. Others have had to do a 500 question psychological profile (something like that), but I did not. I was pleasantly surprised. Basically, he wanted to know that I had a support system in place, that I was likely to be able to "handle" the changes necessary, and that I was doing the surgery for the "right reasons".

My insurance said the same thing. It is clearly written out in their requirements that it has to be a physician monitored weight loss program and lists Weight Watchers and a few others as NOT meeting the requirements.

I am so nervous about hair loss! I lose a LOT of hair daily as it is. I have Lupus and Rheumatoid Arthritis, and I have lost hair by the handful since I was a teenager. That being said, I have extremely thick hair that was to my waist until I cut it short about 2 years ago. When I wash my hair, I pull a fist full of hair from the drain when I'm done. At any given time, I can run my hand through my hair and pull out at least a few strands, often more. I don't know how I haven't gone bald! The thought of something else potentially causing hair loss freaks me a bit. When I started on immunosuppressants, I was really worried because a side effect was hair loss. I think it may have gotten a small bit worse (maybe?) since then, but not significantly. I am hoping that by chance I will have a similar response after surgery. Fingers crossed!!