GeezerSue

Lynsey, There is a real problem with people staying too long on mushies. You need to learn what YOU can eat. Apparently, not bread. Try the tuna alone. The band does not work with liquids. I met a woman who lost only ten pounds the first year, because she was afraid to vomit. This may help: http://www.geocities.com/lapbander/solidtips.htm Sue

I used to like her a lot more. Now, I'll just have to admire her. Hurumph!

Not everyone is losing. Not everyone has hormone issues; I think it's age-related. Some of us are beyond that.

Yup...don't by mornings. And potatoes are tough for me when I'm restricted.

Hmmm...and I'm surprised that some people didn't quite "get" that, although we all hope to get to goal, the average 5'5" person with Sue3's numbers will lose about 30 pounds. Although 30 pounds makes a difference...it isn't what I had in mind when I paid many thousands of dollars and traveled to a foreign country to have surgery with a surgeon I'd never met. I guess I'm learning that some people WOULD be happy with those results. But if my best friend were making the same decisions with the same info, I'd surely have given her the same answer. In fact, while the band does SOME of the work, the longer I'm banded (it's been alomst two years) the more I realize that over the long term, it's probably 90% head work.

Zoe, Glad you are finally Rumbautized. If you get to starving during the liquid phase, consider visiting your nearest Jamba juice store. If you get the free Protein boost along with something already fairly high in protein (Peanut Butter Moo'd?), you can stave off the Galloping Hungries that attack just before you can go on mushies and pureed foods. Good luck, Sue

I didn't get buy Inamed because when I was in the mood to buy, they had just gotten approved for implants and I really hate the whole "get implants" message, so I didn't go that way. (I'm from the militant nursing mom segment of society and think that balloon tits look ridiculous.) But I bought JNJ, against the advice of my friend who really does do well in the market (He reitred at age 41.) But when I explained that they were in clinical trials with the Swedish band, he was not impressed. But he's not obese. I'm probably wrong, but my thinking was that JNJ had a lot more money in its advertising budget than Inamed...and that we may be seeing those commercials failry soon. Interestingly enough, the JNJ has held its own and made a couple of bucks. The Inamed is doing well now, but those who bought when it was closer to 70 probably wouldn't agree.

Sari, Well, his website has a lot of testimonials. But to tell you the truth, in over two years of almost daily reading about the LapBand, this is the first time I recall seeing his name. Do you know anyone who has been to him? Do you live near Mexicali? When is your date? Oh, yeah, and welcome! Sue

No sleepless nights...just a good experience. You'll be able to write to us from the business center on the first floor of the hotel. Keep in touch.

Aha! You, too, have been on the weight gain train. I needed to lose 130-150 pounds. Twenty or thirty came along with a very early surgically-related menopause. And then there were Prednisone pounds...about forty of those. And then there were Prozac pounds, p'rolly around thirty, and then there were the twenty or thirty from the Effexor/Paxil/Zoloft months. Which explains the lion's share of my weight gain. PLEASE, PLEASE tell me how the Wellbutrin works.

controversy? offended people? Not here. I think most of us remember being where you are and that the risks are high for such a small payoff and that there is so much work to do even eith the band, that it wouldn't hurt to start the work now...whether you can get a band or not.

Debra, I realize that all of us who have BMI's of 40+ used to have BMI's of 30. On the other hand, not everyone who has a BMI of 30 will get to 40+. (Remember those friends who are still "chunky," but never got morbidly obese?) It would be great if we could tell WHICH of us are going to need banding at a BMI of 30, and then we could all fight the overweight vs. obese battle together. Kelli, Someone with a BMI of 35+ with comorbidities DOES meet the criteria for surgery in the US. Back to my 5'5" person...at BMI 30, she weighs 180, at BMI 35, she weighs 210.5 and with comorbidities has a very different life than the 180 pound person. And, boy! Do I relate to the absentee-husband situation. For most of 31 years! In fact, seven hours into his day today, I just got the "Babe? I'm probably going to end up putting in a double shift" phone call. I just mentioned it because if you were post-op right now, whether he were here or not, you'd need to be heading out the door. As do I. And he's not here to go with me.

Kelli, The band DOES help. But it is a drastic step. Right now, what do you do when your husband offers to walk/exercise with you?

You doctor is VERY ill-informed.

Angeleyes, I think most banded people would tell you that they don't diet and never will again. It's a way bigger change than that. And again, there probably aren't many doctors in this country who place the LapBand in anyone with a BMI of less than 35 with comorbidities. That makes me wonder if you will find aftercare nearby. Make sure you have that all lined up.

Hi, Sue3. Welcome. Mine will problably be the most "negative" response you get, so don't get discouraged. Others will be nicer! But let's look at some numbers. A person who is 5' 5" and weighs 180 pounds has a BMI of 30. That person would, at the middle of the normal range, with a BMI of 21.8, weigh 131 pounds. Which means that this person has 49 pounds of excess weight to lose. The AVERAGE banded patient, at two years post-op, has lost 62% of his or her excess weight. In the case of the above example, the AVERAGE person with those numbers would, two years after surgery, weigh 150.6 pounds. That is, after many thousands of dollars, and gobs of effort, the weight loss would average less than thirty pounds. Weight loss surgery is a drastic step...even the band. There are risks to every surgery. We've had people here who have had to have the band removed. We have others who have had ongoing infections and other problems. These are reasonable risks to take if one is morbidly obese and his or her life is in danger. But the less overweight you are, the more unreasonable those risks become. And there are absolutely NO guarantees. I've had my band unfilled because of reflux and for other reasons, and now, almost two years post-op, I've regained about half of my lost weight and have to start over. I've met people who have spent ten of thousands of dollars getting banded and have lost ten pounds because they were not able to make the lifestyle changes. Also, you say that you don't feel less pain than someone with a BMI of 40+. Sorry, but I think that only someone who has never had a BMI of 40+ would say such a thing. Those of us who are 40+ (and 50+) have problems you can only imagine. And pains, physical and mental, you cannot imagine. If you can fit in an airline seat, if you don't have an oozing fungal rash under your pendulous abdomen, if you can wipe your own butt without defying the laws of physics, you cannot imagine how NOT being able to do those things--and so many more--can impact your life. Granted, you are disturbed about your weight and want/need to do something, and you are only a few pounds away from being classified obese. But did you know that most of us would give our eye teeth to be at a BMI of 30? Anyway, read all over this site and other sites about how hard it is to lose weight WITH the band (and how easy it is to regain lost weight with the gastric bypass) and think about whether you are really sick enough to take such a drastic step, when it requires so much effort and costs so much money and provides no guarantees. From what I understand about the FDA guidlines, you would not be considered that sick in this country. And I hope you don't get that sick. And I wish you health. Sue

I am SOOOO outnumbered by....believers. Skepticism is a lonely zip code, boys and girls.

Yo, Wheeler! Welcome. And, what they said.

Oprah once said something like: Motivation doesn't come before you exercise...it comes from having exercised. Doing it once--and feeling the way you feel when it's done--is what makes you want to do it more. I kind of get it. When I was young, I used to think that I needed to get motivated to do the dishes. Well, actually, a clean sink is what motivates me to do the dishes. I never have developed a desire to complete the act of doing the dishes. I HAVE developed a desire to have the peace and serenity I experience when I don't live in a pig sty. And I got that feeling the last time I washed the dishes. So, what motivates me to do the dishes? Nothing. But I AM motivated to have the serene feeling I get when I have a clean kitchen, so I wash the damned things. Does that make sense?

Any chance you've lost inches in the measurement nearest your port? Most of the time, people notice the port because there is less fat there. Sometimes, when people get very near goal, they even consider having the port replaced because it starts being in the way...you know...it shows when they wear their teeny bikinis.

Ya know...I'm gonna be odd man out. I think you have to be emotionally ready for any elective surgery. Our daughter was a certifiable candyass when it came to even getting a shot. So you can imagine how amazed we were that she wanted breast reduction surgery. I asked her what made her want to go through something that would normally have scared her half to death. She said that when living with the problem becomes a bigger hassle than doing whatever it takes to get rid of the problem, it's time for surgery. She's a wise woman. When you find that living your life, as it is, becomes so problematic that you'll do almost anything to change your life, you'll be ready. If you're not there yet, don't push yourself. Sue

What they said.

For some of us. One day, when our daughter was just a couple of months old, I was at a mom-baby-thing and was changing her diaper on her blanket, on the floor. The housekeeper of the woman who was hosting the event came over, looked at my NAKED baby and said, "How lovely. Is your baby a boy or a girl?" I stared for a moment at my naked child and said, "Looks like a girl to me!" She was naked. Nude. Sunny side up. I mean...???

Yeah, one day, on another board, he just wrote something like, "Oh? You want a LapBand board? I can do that." And he did.

Bright, I, too, went to Curves...but only for a month. It was good to get me up and out of the house, but not very challenging (and I'm 57 years old), and very limited in terms of hours and services. Curves in my area had a circuit, a restroom, small towels and lotions. The full service place had a new member promotion, which--for $10 more per month--included WAY more stuff. They had far more equipment and they offered classes, everything from stretching and yoga to high impact, and a couple of hours with a trainer were included in the package. The facility includes the towels (large ones, too) and a shower and a jacuzzi pool. And they opened a lot earlier and closed a lot later and were open seven days per week. HOWEVER, the new reason I won't go is that since January of this year, Diane Heavin (Mrs. Curves Co-founder) has already contributed at least $50,000 to the Republican National Committee for the reelection of our idiot president. I wouldn't care if they were saving drowning puppies at Curves, I avoid supporting this president in any way I can and won't give them a penny.