Alexandra

Welcome to LBT, DrC! We really appreciate your participation and I'm sure we will learn a lot.

I'm sure the person in question didn't mean to be hurtful, NewSho, and since they've apologized the ball is entirely in your court. Only YOU can choose how to feel about an unintended criticism, and clearly no pain was meant here. "Failure" is completely subjective. I consider myself a whopping LapBand success, and my BMI is higher than yours. It wouldn't make me angry if someone were to send me the same message; I'd just assume they know nothing about my personal situation and didn't know what they were talking about. No reason to fume, not at all.

Hee hee, this isn't a bad thing! You'll be amazed what a difference a well-fitting bra can make. You'll love it! One of these sorts of things I'm anticipating is whether I'll need to attend to my bikini line this summer when the bathing suits go on. I've never had any worries in that department before; since my folds hid any hair that wasn't covered by the suit. THIS summer I just might have to whip out a razor.

I agree with others that your attitude is absolutely inspirational. You may have lost your band, and that's sad, but you have your health! Nothing is more valuable.

I don't see anything really wrong with this either. Anne makes a good point: your doctor is a surgeon, not normally in the business of providing nutritional counseling or other support services. Yet these things are important for banding success, so he wants you to have them and you should want to have them too. If he doesn't offer any of these services, you should find another doctor. Because regardless of the cost, these are very important factors in your success as a banded patient.

Yep, this is normal and I'm sure it's from swelling. Just take things very slowly and be good to yourselves!!

Another thought: My brother made the observation that if the board had already decided NOT to hire me, they wouldn't have invited me back for a second interview. So assuming they haven't already made that determination, I'd have to agree that my chances look pretty good.

Thanks so much, everyone. I'm all a-jitter every time I check my e-mail, though I know it's too early to expect any news. It's killing me! I had a dream the other night about telling my current bosses I am leaving. What a wonderful day that will be. :biggrin1:

Good letter! Just a typo that needs to be corrected: the word "excretion" probably should be "exertion" if you're talking about shortness of breath. Right? :cool: You or your doctor should point out, too, that a BMI of 40 or above is the benchmark for determining the medical necessity of bariatric surgery. If they are declining you on that basis alone, they are making a medical determination that runs counter to all established medical criteria. (This is a sly way of saying you'll sue them, and they'd lose.) If, on the other hand, they're just saying that you haven't yet established the medical necessity, that just means they're looking for more data. I mean, they CAN'T claim that with a BMI of 43 you are not medically qualified for bariatric surgery. What does their rejection letter actually say?

This thread is being locked at K@t's request.

Update, in case anyone is interested: I had the interview yesterday, and it seemed to go well. There were three people there, including the person I'd be replacing. We talked about my prior experience with the organization, what I learned, what they've changed in the interim, how I'd get back up to speed, how I might handle specific situations, my personal situation and how it's changed, the challenges ahead in the short term for the organization, what I do now and how it relates... In short, it was a 45-minute discussion that all seemed positive. There was no discussion of compensation or anything. Many of the issues brought up would be impossible for them to talk about with other candidates, since they related to my prior experience and specific knowledge. In other words, this isn't a level playing field. I have no idea who my competition is or what the committee is considering when comparing candidates. As far as qualifications go, there is quite literally no one better qualified to do this job than I. But there may be other concerns to which I am not privy. So now I wait. They said they hope to have a decision by next week. Please have good thoughts for me--I want this job so badly I can taste it. Now I just have to try to keep my tension level down for the next few days. It's in other people's hands...

My idea of success was and is maintaining whatever loss I was able to achieve. So I'm still working on the goal, and will be the rest of my life. To that end, the worst move I could make would be to remove the band completely. From here on out I'm going to be very cautious about messing with it.

Hi Fab, It's comments like yours that make me wonder whether I should be thinking about getting another fill after three months without saline in my band. The very LAST thing I want to have happen is to become sad and tired with the food restrictions to the point that I think about having my band removed. I've lost over 100 lbs since surgery, 130 since my highest non-preg weight, and it's been a miracle in my life through and through. There have been no major complications, but I've been unfilled twice due to reflux and esohagitis. Now I have no saline in the band and very little restriction, and though I'm maintaining my weight within 5 lbs I can tell that it's getting a little harder as time goes by. So I've been thinking about a small fill. But what if even a small fill causes problems? Will I be courting complications by tightening the band at this point? So I'm going around in circles in my mind, wondering if where I am is where I'll be forever (which would be FINE) or if I can eke out a teeny bit more assistance from my band without risking problems. Are you seriously thinking about having it removed completely, or just the fill? If I were you, I'd have half the fill removed and see where that puts me. A lot of "episodes" can get tiresome, indeed, but life without a band at all seems to me to be a worse alternative.

Mperez, you have a lot of research to do, it seems. These are two VERY different operations, and only you can make the decision for yourself. Don't let a doctor (or assistant!) talk you into something you're not 100% sure of. This is a great place for information on what it's like to be banded, but you'll have to look elsewhere for real info on the gastric sleeve. It's not common in the U.S. and I personally have never heard from anyone who's had it done. Good luck with your research and decision!

Hi Tired, Your symptoms sound VERY similar to what happened to me, but I didn't wait long to have them addressed. For a solid month earlier this year I had reflux to the point of regurgitation while sitting in a recliner. It was awful! I had an endoscopy which diagnosed...a too-tight band and esophagitis. A "complete" unfill has completely resolved my reflux, and a barium test three weeks after the unfill showed my band to be in great position. My esophagus was a bit "prominent" which is something my surgeon wants to follow up on, but for now I'm thrilled to be reflux-free. It's now been about three months since my unfill and I'm starting to think about another fill. My hunger is manageable for now, but I can tell it's going to get harder and harder to do. However, I don't expect miracles from my band and if this is how it's going to be that's OK with me. As long as I don't have to have it removed I'll continue to be a very happy bandster.

Once I decided to go ahead with banding I did "diet" with the help of ephedra. I lost about 30 lbs in the year that I was fighting with my insurer. Once I got approved it was another two months before surgery, and in that time I put on 7 lbs. Last supper syndrome is insidious!!

I didn't really notice excess skin until I'd lost at least 80-90 lbs. That's anywhere from 50 - 75% of my excess weight lost, depending on how I calculate.

I'm with DonnaB; the LAST thing I wanted was for people to be watching me, even if they would consider it "cheering me on." Because my insurance battle went on so long, I did tell a couple of professional colleagues. One was wonderful and still is, the other did that "watching" thing I wanted to avoid. Outside of them, though, I really only told my husband, brother, and a couple of other family members and very close friends. I don't regret keeping it close to the vest AT ALL.

This is what is dictating my "goal" weight. If I lose more weight, I think the loose skin issue will get bothersome. The worst is my arms; I still feel like I can't wear sleeveless tops (not that I ever could, so this is nothing new). PS is out of the question for me anytime soon so my only choice is to live with it. I've seen it change for the better in the last year, though, so I'm hopeful more time will help. But I'm not in a rush to lose more weight (though I have plenty left to lose) just to add to this other problem I can't do anything about. For now, things are good.

Congratulations, Christina!! :biggrin1:

Christa, the usual experience is that in the very first week or so there's not a lot of hunger. But then--and this varies a lot from person to person--the swelling goes down and healing is proceeding, and people's appetites return. This is, for many people, the most difficult time if it happens before they've progressed from liquids on to more substantial foods. The band can't work to dim your appetite until it is adjusted. So you'll likely feel perfectly normal (whatever that means for you), once the healing has moved along well. Managing your hunger at this time is important, particularly if you have not yet been given the go-ahead to eat solid food. Eating solids before you're completely healed is not smart, because the stomach work harder to move solids along. So no matter how hungry you are, it's best to stick with liquids as long as your doctor has told you to. Everyone's experience varies. But the short answer to your question is if you're hungry, eat (or drink) something. You're not "supposed" to be hungry. But the simple act of placing a band doesn't automatically turn off your physiological hunger signals, no.

As someone else said, I think "regrets" depends on your expectations prior to banding. And preparation is key to that. I've been banded almost three years, and it's not been a walk in the park. But I didn't expect it to be, so I haven't been surprised or disappointed or anything. Weight-loss surgery is a big step, and anyone ready to take that step MUST be at an emotional place where theyr'e ready to take some chances and make significant changes. The only "regret" I can see anyone having is if they went into it utterly unprepared, having been sold a bill of goods about some magic pill. This ain't it, kids. And anyone spending any real time at LBT would know that. How can someone regret making a significant decision to improve their health? And if that's not why someone is being banded, they're setting themselves up for "regret."

I have heard, though I can't prove it at this moment, that the original draft actually said "Life, liberty, and the pursuit of property" but someone thought better of it.

I am not religious and don't have any personal experiences to report, but here's my take on the subject. It's marketing. People don't necessarily want to be holy, but everyone wants to be rich. By flouting riches and saying that holiness is a path to wealth, churches can attract parishioners--i.e., customers. The people who spout this sort of stuff ARE likely to be rich, because they're the ones reaping the rewards of ever-growing congregations and endowments. IMO it's anti-spiritual in the deepest sense. It appeals to the basest desires of humans for the benefit of a few and leaves what's really important about religion in the dust. I'm always amazed that people don't see the rank hypocrisy on display; but then, I feel that way about all organized religion, and this is one of the reasons why. "And I tell you this also. It is easier for a big animal like a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." Matthew 19:24 Too bad some of the TV evangelists don't read Matthew.

I got 9 out of 10. :clap2: Stupid dog.