Alexandra

Rachel, I found that Prevacid really helped a lot with the pain and discomfort. In my case I really did have a slip, so I absolutely think you should go in for an x-ray to see what's up. But in the meantime sticking strictly to liquids and using an acid blocker should calm things down in a couple of days. Go for the precription. Prevacid makes a chewable which was the only thing I could get down when things were at their worst. OTC stuff never did the trick for me.

There is no real reason to avoid sugar if you don't want to. Noncaloric sweeteners are obviously a staple of many dieters' lives, but only because they want to avoid the extra calories. If that's not an issue for you, then do what works. Banding is not just about cutting as many calories out of our lives as humanly possible, it's about living comfortably on fewer calories than we've been taking in--and thus losing weight. Just as no diet works for everyone, there is no one way to live with the band. Many people find that fresh fruit is too bulky and fibrous to eat when they have good restriction, while others keep their bands looser specifically because they want to be able to eat fresh fruits and vegetables. You find the balance you want and make it work for you. That's how the band works.

I sure hope you're feeling better soon, Rachel. Have you been back to the doctor to have a fluoroscopy exam? You're describing the way I felt when my band had slipped. Ultimately I was able to treat the irritation but the slip was already there and medication did nothing. Please stick to liquids for as long as you can (a week, at LEAST) and try to get back to your doctor soon. It may be more than just irritation. Good luck!! :hug:

Rachel, I've always found it's MUCH easier to give up food entirely than to try to stick to a diet of any kind. If you really make a commitment to stick to STRICTLY liquids even for the next one full day, then you can maybe make it two days and then three. Finding a way to avoid solid food entirely was, for me, a lot easier than trying to eat just a little bit. This is not about dieting for you right now, and not about weight loss. You really need to take drastic steps to preserve the health and integrity of your esophagus. This is WAY more important than losing a few pounds. Please do yourself the immense boon of trying to stick with liquids for a few days at least. And take Prevacid or Nexium if you can get a prescription for it--you really do need to heal before you think once again about eating the bandster way.

Happy birthday, indeed, and GOOD LUCK TOMORROW!!! I'm pulling for you to have a very smooth, uneventful surgery and recovery. Take care!!

I've had the same problem intermittently, and I have no idea what's causing it. In some cases I'm able to navigate to a thread by trying a different avenue (going through the forum/section page, rather than new posts, for example) or by going back later. The owner of the site has been notified, and I'll let you know what I find out.

Rachel, that cycle is going to lead to your band being removed. That's simply the way it is. Eventually you will cause yourself damage--either by making the band slip down further on your stomach, or by causing a hernia or erosion, or by irritating your esophagus so much it leads to a pre-cancerous condition. All three of those situations may eventually require band removal to correct. And if you continue the behavior without correction, you could seriously injure yourself, even permanently. Why go that route? I think we can ALL relate to how hard it is to accept the new "full" feelings, and how difficult it can be to believe that the small amount we can eat is actually the correct amount we should be eating. Been there, done that, got the t-shirt. But there is no happy ending if we continue to fight the band, which is exactly what you are doing. You KNOW this is causing you harm. How can we help you get through this? Maybe you can start by telling us, right here in this thread, what made you decide to get the band in the first place? What was your experience that led you to bariatric surgery? Let's go back to the very beginning. Tell us how you heard about the band and what made you think it would help you.

Same as always! There are just new sections for threads relating to a specific banded time frame. If your question or comment is general, post it in the general discussion or support areas. But if you are addressing people who were banded in the same month you were, or want to meet people being banded in the same month, go to the relevant section in the new Monthly Support Groups area.

I've had similar trouble from time to time, but clicking again usually resolves it for me. And then I find I've double-posted! I don't know what the issue is, but it's no doubt technical and will be temporary. Edie, what precisely is the name of the thread you say you can't get to?

Of course it's normal to be a little scared!! You wouldn't be a thinking human being if you didn't consider all the possibilities. Take a deep breath and just keep moving toward the goal. Good luck with your surgery!!

Of course it's normal to be a little scared!! You wouldn't be a thinking human being if you didn't consider all the possibilities. Take a deep breath and just keep moving toward the goal. Good luck with your surgery!!

Hi Sue, welcome to LBT! It sounds like you're taking a very realistic view of banding and what it can do. There are lots of Texas people here. You're in the right place! :biggrin1:

Hi Sue, welcome to LBT! It sounds like you're taking a very realistic view of banding and what it can do. There are lots of Texas people here. You're in the right place! :biggrin1:

What's the name of your thread and where do I find it?

The one that sticks in my craw was a combination insult because of my size AND a sexist put-down. And this from a "professional" colleague! A guy was being introduced around my office who was coming on board as part of the sales team, and when he got to me he said "wow, you're a BIG girl, aint'cha?" in front of several other people. Even giving him the biggest benefit of the doubt I possibly can, and trying to think it just popped out of his mouth, I can't reconcile that comment with the notion of a decent adult human being in this day and age. I never laughed about this sort of thing. It just makes me think less of whoever is making the comments. Because they, consciously or not, are trying to make me think less of myself.

OK, we're going to try this. I've created a new section called Monthly Support Groups, and there's subsections under that for each month of 2007. I think it makes sense to limit it to one or two years' worth of monthlies; we'll see how it goes with this one year for a start. Go for it, peeps! Start new threads in your sections, and I'll move the monthly threads into the appropriate sections. Thanks for the suggestion!!

I'm not sure I understand. You are saying you want a separate section for each month? Or one section where all of the monthly discussion threads are gathered?

You have every right in the world to just tell her not to discuss it with you. This is YOUR health issue, not hers, and she has absolutely no business trying to sabotage or discourage you. I understand that you want her support but if she's not going to give it freely don't waste your time agonizing over it. This is YOUR life. Not hers. Don't listen to another word she says.

Willbethin (actually, you ARE thin)-- The band isn't what is not working. It is a fact of every bariatric patient's life is that at some point, we HAVE to face the truth that it is OUR behavior that makes us fat. The band has clearly helped you eat less and lose weight. But NO surgery can magically relieve us of our compulsion to overeat, or permanently remove the desire to eat more than we need. That's just the truth. The hardest thing is to give up the idea that we will ever be normal. I know I struggle with that every single day, but I struggle with it MUCH MORE without my band. With the band at least I had a fighting chance of dealing with the mental issues while NOT stuffing my face. Without the band, food seems like an answer even though I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that it's not. That's all the band can do for us. It's a lot, but sometimes it doesn't seem like enough. At those times, we have to look elsewhere for answers.

Hi Dawn! Welcome to LBT!! I'm a very happy Abkin/Bertha patient and can't recommend them highly enough. Have you been to any of the lapband support group meetings? The next one is on the 27th, and that's a great place to meet and speak with other banded patients of ALSOM. The NP, Linda, runs that meeting so it's really the perfect time to get all your questions answered. Looking forward to meeting you in 3D sometime!

Msmalone, I totally feel your pain. Do you have an insurance broker who can help connect the dots? I do this all the time. First, a denial for lack of information is not a denial of coverage and doesn't need to be "appealed." From what you say above, it seems there was only one actual denial and that's the one for "medical necessity." That one can be appealed, and you should proceed on that score. In your denial letter you should have been given detailed instructions on how to appeal. You should get copies of everything that was submitted to Aetna, and be prepared to supply anything that is missing. In your appeal letter, list all the material and information that has been submitted. Copy Aetna's criteria for medical qualifiations (I'm sure you have that documented somewhere) and show in your letter that you do, in fact, meet the criteria. Aetna can't "not tell you anything." They MUST respond to your inquiries in a timely manner. You might want to contact Ohio's department of insurance (or health, whichever has jurisdiction over HMOs) and find out what the carrier's obligations are to you. Most states have a patient's bill of rights that guarantees you access to information. You should be able to find an advocate there, or at least information that can help you force Aetna to move it along. Aetna is a behemoth but they have no interest in being sued. If you show that you are indeed medically qualified, and that you have met their criteria, and that your policy does not exclude bariatric surgery, they will cover you. Getting all those dots connected can be a challenge, but it's worth it in the end.

There's no easy answer to this question. A lot depends on what state you're in. There may not be individual insurance available at all, or it may be medically underwritten (thereby excluding people who are morbidly obese), or it may be unavailable to those who are eligible for group insurance (such as your wife). Your best bet is to call a broker in your state who knows all the laws and the products available to you.

Yeah, it's really weird, isn't it? My BP has always been right there, borderline-high, and as I got older it seems that my doctors got more concerned about it. I'm sure they wouldn't have been as ready to medicate that BP if I were a "normal" weight 45 year-old; even after a loss of 100+ lbs I'm still obese so I guess even a borderline set of numbers is not good. My gynecologist was a little surprised to hear that my PCP had put me on medication, though. But when I told her what I am taking (Altace) she shrugged and said "well, it'll protect your kidneys, in any event." I know my mother took BP meds, so I'm fine with taking something if it will protect me in the long run. Now I'm usually ~110 / ~75, which everyone is happy with.

Not to pick nits, but there's a big difference between liquid calories and "empty" calories. Empty calories are those that come without any nutritional benefits--and while one can indeed make that claim about alcohol, it's far from true about all liquid calories. If it were, we'd all starve to death on the liquid diet! Once bandsters are on solid foods, we are indeed told to avoid liquid calories to maximize the effect of the band. But that's not the same as saying that all liquid calories are "empty" calories. Sometimes liquid nutrition is VERY important!

(What's a scmo?) I had high blood pressure before banding, and about three years into it I still had it. My BP wasn't as high as yours; it was only about 130 over 85 or so, but even after losing 100 lbs it was still borderline high. That's when my doctor decided it needed to be medicated, because it clearly wasn't caused by my excess weight. Your numbers sound alarmingly high, actually. It would seem to me that it's important that be controlled even before surgery. Once you've lost a lot of weight maybe you can come off it, but in the meantime blood pressure that high is nothing to ignore. Good luck!!