Alexandra

Yaahhoooooo!! Welcome to Bandlandia, Trish!! Do you know if they used the VG band on you? Larger anatomies are what dictates that, I'm told. Take good care of yourself, sweetie, and drink, drink, drink!! :)

Here's hoping everything resolves and you're back to banded health soon!! Both of you!

Nope, Jenna, sometimes the hair loss doesn't start for months. Sorry!

Staramorcita, my hair loss after surgery was exactly comparable to that I experienced after the births of my two children. About 4-5 months after the bodily trauma, I had pretty significant amounts of hair fall out. But only temporarily, and after a month or so it had slowed down considerably. At one point about 6 months after surgery I had a haircut, because long hair looks worse when it's thin than short hair. But that was it, and my hair is all back now and better than ever. It's definitely not a permanent effect. And I've been told time and time again that by the time you notice any thinning on your head the worst is far behind you and it's growing back in.

You'll have to ask your employer's human resources department to get the details on the various plans on offer. If you are presented with a selection, you should be able to get full details on the various plan available to you.

I don't think there's anything "bad" about the greater fill capacity, at all! The greater capacity might mean that it will take more Fluid to reach a good restriction level, but that doesn't have to take any longer than the smaller band to reach. Presumably your doctor knows how to fill this band so it will be effective. This band may be gentler on the body, so see that as a good thing. I know of patients who have had problems with their initial banding and had the smaller one replaced with the VG band after a second surgery, and had no problems with the new band. Chin up!! Your doctor knows what he's doing.

Hi Tippytoes, Congratulations on your banding and welcome back! The VG band is just a different version of Inamed's Lap Band, and there's nothing wrong with having one. The doctors I know say they decide which band to use only when they actually get into the person's abdomen and see which the anatomy dictates. Doctors may have an idea which band they're going to use beforehand, but circumstances will decide only on the operating table. The VG band is a little larger and has a greater fill capacity.

These are really issues to be discussed with the surgeon prior to banding. There are risk-benefit judgments that are made with respect to pain relievers that can be taken after banding. I know of many people who have had to take anti-nausea meds after surgery, so I don't think it's a big deal. After healing, the experiences we all have vary so much that it's hard to predict with any accuracy. For me, nausea ONLY happens if I'm sliming, that is on the occasion that something gets stuck and my body tries to lubricate it loose. This has happened about, oh, five times in the last 20 months and not at all in the last almost-year. So it's definitely not an ongoing problem. Regular PBs, the kind when I've eaten a little too much and it has to come back up, are not nausea-inducing at all.

Hi Ryanne, My doctor's postop regimen was a lot like yours, but I think now they've changed it to at least a week on liquids. In any event, back when I was healing I tried some eggs and things like thick Soups on the 6th day and my body just wasn't ready for it. That's what your body is telling you, so listen to it! Don't try anything that causes you any discomfort at all. Congratulations on your banding, and nice to meet you!

Margo, if you're at the point with this doctor that they're going to submit your medical records to the insurance carrier, then you're already a patient. A lot of time and effort has gone/is going into getting your file ready for submission, and it's well worth the $300 if you believe your carrier will cover the surgery. What is your sense about that? If you have an exclusion or have other reason to believe you won't qualify, then you might want to think twice about paying the $300. But if you are on your way to being operated on by this doctor and you/they think you'll be approved, it's a reasonable fee worth paying. Good luck!!

That is absolutely NOT my definition of "sweet spot." Too tight does NOT equal sweet.

Every doctors' practice is different, but to my mind there should be no charge for seminars. They are essentially marketing tools for the doctors' offices, which serves them more than they serve you by letting them do the intro for dozens or scores of patients at one time. If there is a fee it should be nominal, like $10 or so, to cover the cost of copying the paperwork. It's not anything that can be submitted to your insurance carrier, because it's just a meeting not a medical visit. A consultation fee should be charged if you have had an office visit with a surgeon who spent one-on-one time with you. This is payable whether you decide to have surgery or not, since it was a doctor's visit. It's a medical evaluation so it's certainly fair game to submit to insurance. If you're using an in-network surgeon there might only be a copay for this visit. Program fees, to my mind, should only kick in once you've decided to have surgery and become a patient of the practice. The one fee (if there is one, not all surgeons' offices do it this way) might include a couple of follow-up visits to the surgeon, possible a nutritionist as well, support group meetings, and maybe a fill or two. (It doesn't make sense to me to pay up front for fills, because no one can predict how many a given patient will need, but it looks as though many docs are throwing them in with the surgical charge.) Look at what the "program" fee includes to decide whether you can submit it to your insurance carrier. Office visits or meetings with medical providers are medical expenses, support-group meetings are not. So if you're being charged one amount for all of that, see if they will break it down for you for insurance purposes.

Ladies, ladies, ladies. Haven't you heard that maxim, that the hardest part of banding is the pre-fill stage??? Once you are healed from surgery, your regular signals will return. It's NORMAL to be hungry now! But you're still on liquids or eating mushies, so it's a little harder to keep satisfied than it will be when you can eat solid food. To my mind it's very important to try, though, so that you don't compromise your healing phase by going too quickly to solids. IMO, postops should be encouraged to eat or drink as much as they need to stay satisfied. When you're back on normal food you may very well not feel much change from before your surgery with regard to how much you can eat--your band is not designed to be effective without any saline in it. Most people don't feel restriction until after a fill or two, although if you pay attention you will likely find that your capacity has dropped and it really does take somewhat less to make you feel full. Patience. This is not a race and you will not suffer any long-term negative effects if you eat enough now to stave off the grumbly tummy. After you get adjustments is the time to be looking at whether you have restriction or not. At this point, you probably don't and that is NORMAL.

I am a believer in the sweet spot. But it's a totally subjective thing--it's not like you can ask your doctor for it! The sweet spot is that place where we are satisfied, not hungry between meals, and able to eat reasonable amounts of healthy food without problems, and are losing weight. LadyJoe, it sounds like you're right there! You can't compare roast beef and salad in terms of how easy or hard they are to eat--roast beef and salad are two completely different things! I can eat a lot of salad too, and am glad of it. The sweet spot can come and go from day to day, too. Restriction is a function not only of how much saline is in the band, but also how our bodies are on any given day. There are so many variables that we really have to assess our restriction level over time, I think, in order to decide whether we need a fill. One loose day does not mean all restriction is gone, just like one tight day doesn't mean an unfill is necessary. Woodkd, I also think the sweet spot can be a function of time and behavior. If it hurts you to eat, I'd say you're eating too fast or not chewing enough. Restriction shouldn't hurt, it should just tell you when to stop. If you pulverize your food more effectively before swallowing, you might be able to eat a bit more at a sitting which would in turn let you feel less hungry between meals. Another way time helps is by letting our brains catch up to the fact that 3 ozs of meat is sometimes an entire meal by itself. Hunger after meals is as much a mental thing as physical, and someone with brand-new restriction may not have mentally accepted the small portions as "enough." Last point: It is not surprising, to me, that we are sometimes hungry 2-3 hours after our tiny meals. Our bodies have to adjust to the changes as well, and it can take some time for our systems fully accept that meals are only 400 calories or so. As time goes on the same meal will indeed serve to satisfy for longer, and the day will come when you are surprised to discover it's dinnertime and you weren't even thinking about it. lunch was 5 hours ago and you've just been busy! When that happens, you're at YOUR sweet spot. And it might just be this fill that does it. Or maybe it will be the next one. But it's there to be found, when all the pieces are in place.

Trooper, you sound like an extremely smart person who really knows what's what. Your plan to take some single time is an EXCELLENT one, especially since you'll be dealing with post-band life and all that entails. I have a very close friend who also was never single, from age 13 until her marriage broke up when she was 38 and had two kids. She had a much harder time handling that trauma than she would have had she learned how to live as her own person at any time during her life to that point. You will be doing yourself an immense benefit by really discovering what YOU like, what YOU want to do with your time, and how to comfort and entertain yourself when necessary. Being alone can be scary, but once you know you can do it you'll never be scared of it again. And if you do it on your own terms you are WAY ahead of the game.

Funny you should ask this. I was just making Breakfast for my daughters, cutting a fresh bagel in half and spreading it with cream cheese. If there's anything I miss I think that would be it. But I don't "miss" it in any negative way, really. I smelled the bagel and was able to think about how delicious it smelled, felt the texture and thought about how chewy it would be, and spread the cream cheese and then licked my fingers. I really didn't feel anything more than a fleeting remote sense of how I loved those sensations before. I am in NO WAY sorry that I can't eat an entire bagel anymore.

I'm so glad your unfill helped you feel a bit better, Corgi. As time passes you'll be able to manage eating so that you don't experience the PBing and feel better still. Sounds like you bit off a little more (or less!) than you could chew with this fill! Stick with it and take it very slowly. Your eyes are still bigger than your stoma at this point; it takes a while to really understand how small portions can be and still be enough. You won't starve, I promise. Just keep healing and try very hard not to provoke a PB. Stop as soon as you feel any indication that you might have had enough. The food will still be there in 10 minutes if you are still hungry. Good luck!!

Take this seriously, trooper, your gut is telling you an important truth. I married someone who was VERY close to his family, which I thought was a good thing since my family wasn't as tightly knit. Then I had pretty much the same experience as Vinesqueen and the marriage broke up. It was only after six years of living together and another year of marriage that it became clear that our goals for our OWN lives were not compatible. I mean, we both wanted a family and a home, but he had one idea of what that meant and I had another. You are so young and while this relationship may be just what you need now, your different visions of the future are quite in conflict. Be thankful this is finding some air now rather than after you've walked down the aisle.

Good job, Sally! You're living proof that it takes perseverance to deal with the insurance carriers, but it does pay off. Horizon is really great about approving bariatric surgery, but they are hell when it comes to handling paperwork. I ALWAYS call to confirm that something has been received when I'm dealing with them; otherwise it gets lost in the miasma in Newark. So you'll have a new date really soon. YAY!! And soon your countdown will begin...

Congratulations, Nick!! You're on your way to bandland and a healthier you. Now on to the surgery and the next phases of your journey. Do check in once in a while and let us know how you're doing, and ALWAYS feel free to ask questions. Best wishes for a safe banding and quick recovery!! :D

Gypj, I agree with everyone else who says you SHOULD NOT be eating solid foods on the same day as a fill. Please take another day on liquids to really let your stomach get used to the added pressure. Here's my thinking. Your stomach is itself a flexible thing. When the fill is put in and the band tightened, it's possible that the stomach tissue itself reacts by thinning out. In time, the stomach wall relaxes, and added restriction is the result. Many people report feeling like a fill "didn't work" only to come back in a couple of days and say "OH! There it is!" I know all of my fills sort of kicked in after two or three weeks. Please don't get discouraged or worried, and don't rush to get another fill too soon. That could lead to problems. Give it at least two weeks bfore you consider going for more. Your body may surprise you!

Exactly what I would have said. There is no reason at all to be unhappy with that rate of loss!! Great job!!! :)

Congratulations to Trish the Bandster!! Thanks so much for letting us know; I was thinking of her frequently yesterday as well.

Hey there, I'm the original ice cream addict!! I have totally come to terms with my addiction, and embrace it as part of my personality. It has not gotten in the way of my weight-loss goals, although certainly I realize that indulging will slow me down. But a world without ice cream is not a world I want to live in. I have some form of frozen dessert, I'd say, five days a week. We keep ice cream in the house and though I try to buy the no-sugar, no-fat variety that's not always the case. At ice cream stores I'll often go for the sugar- and fat-free frozen yogurt, but again, not always. I never really pigged out on ice cream the way I've heard others admit to--eating a whole pint of anything has always seemed like A LOT to me, and now even more so. My servings are typically more like 8 ozs. It doesn't feel like something I'm fighting, because I consciously gave up the fight. There's a balance that lets me maintain or lose weight and still have ice cream in my life. If I decide I'm not losing fast enough or whatever, I'll know the reason why and know that action is within my control. You've lost 80 lbs in what, 6 months!?!? Holy cow, man. I think you deserve some ice cream!! There's no rush to kick a habit that will cause you distress to quit; we're not in this to feel deprived or depressed or cheated out of a normal life. If you're truly overdoing it, just try taking it down to a better level. I'd worry that if I were to try kicking it altogether I'd just find some worse thing to adopt as a vice. So I've settled with the demon and call him "friend."

Another not-dumb question!! Eating too much is possible after you've been banded for a while and get used to the sensations of your band. Some people feel it less than others and aren't even aware that they're eating too much. Others deliberately might try to eat more and stretch the pouch or use the esophagus as a sort of pseudo-stomach. Anyway, the point is that whether it's conscious or not, it is definitely possible to eat too much and cause damage. That's why it's important to not rely solely on the band to tell us when enough is enough--we also have to learn the visual cues of a good-size portion and pay attention to the time when we eat. (Lots of bandsters could get down a whole chicken if they give it enough time.)