Jim1967

This is normal. It is almost like an initiation phase that will pass. I had a lapband in 2012. On Jan 8 I revised to bypass and had my gall bladder removed. I am still not past the misery stage but getting there. Gas pain is the worst. Keep the faith it will get better.

Well surgery was yesterday. Got home about two hours. Gas pains are the worst. Just need to keep moving.

Hello All, Long time a member but have been away a long time. I was banded in April 2012 at 488lbs. My lowest weight attained was 170. I have since over the years climbed back up to 328. Monday, Jan 8th I am scheduled for a conversion to bypass. Removing my band as well as my gallbladder. Any advice would be appreciated. It's been 10 years. I imagine somethings have changed while some haven't. I know it's a tool. I know the weight doesn't fall off overnight. The band saved my life. I hope bypass gets me back on track. Thanks, Jim.

Hello all, long-time member who has been away for a while. January 8th I am scheduled for a revision lapband to bypass. The band was successful for years and no doubt saved my life but it has run its course and the weight is going back on and the band is maxed out.

Thank you very much!

Hello All, Hope you're all hanging in there and Winter hasn't been too cruel to you. Kelli and I spent Valentine's Day sharing some pretty remarkable news.....TWINS!! She will be 13 weeks tomorrow with a due date of Aug 24. Must admit I have not been eating well these last few weeks, ok maybe months and I know my weight is up. Hopefully, I can get back on track and continue to be healthy for these little gifts on the way are going to require a lot of attention.

So has anyone spoken with CarolinaGirl lately? I know she hit a rough patch a while back. Hope she is doing well.

Hello one and all! Hope you're all doing well. I've gotten pretty bad about checking in here. I have a new position at work and seems to suck up any and all 'free' time I had. How dare these people expect me to work during a work day. Anyway, all is good here and living life...

3+ years here and doing fine.....

I'm always late the party... My name is Jim in case that is not obvious and I'm 47 and live in NH with my wonderful Wife of 8 years. Just taking life one day at a time and enjoying as much of it as I can.

My only regret is the lost time while struggling with day to day life both physically and mentally. Like so many others I wish I had done it sooner. I am a little over 3 years out now and life had done a complete 180 degree turn. It has been such an eye opening experience.

I did the band for two reasons..... 1. I was 488lbs when I started the process and thought the was band safer choice with less chance of complications and reversible. I was pretty concerned about being able to survive the procedure. 2. My only options were band or bypass because the Sleeve was not yet offered at my Center and quite honest I never heard of it before. I have had tremendous success with my band and I have been pretty fortunate to have such a smooth journey but if I am being totally honest I don't know if I would make the same choice if I had to do over with today's available Sleeve option. Decision would definitely require more pondering.

Good to see you my friend and excellent post as always. I have long gave up trying to debate the band haters. I know it works for me but I also know that it may not work for others. WLS is not a one size fits all surgery. It's about finding what works for you and then work it. I am for all forms of WLS if it helps a person reach their goal of getting healthly. What I am against is bashing any form of WLS. Only thing I really get hung up on is when someone says "Oh you have an awful lot of weight to lose. I wouldn't recommend the band". 99% of the time it is a non-bander saying it with no experience with the band to back it up.

Nothing sweeter than a non scale victory!!

Nice reminder to hang on the refrigerator

And this is why I keep coming back Thank you.

Congratulations on your upcoming anniversary and success. We share the anniversary day just a couple of years apart. I come back pretty much for the same reasons you mention above. I try and avoid the negative posts but I like to give back by offering encouragement to those looking to change their life. Seems that new bandsters are slowly fizzling out. I can not visit for a week and still manage to catch up pretty quickly. Part of it saddens me but I completely understand medical technology changes all the time and WLS is no different. Seems like yesterday I was new and didn't know where to start. So many people helped me along the way. Most of them have moved on. I guess some get what they need from the site and move on with life.

It is a very slow process. My Wife is also banded and she lost just under 30lbs in the first year. They are bringing her along much slower then I Keep in mind I was pushing 450lbs and generally the more you weigh the faster it goes especially in the beginning. Key is to stick with it and push through those frustrating times. @CTJohn I have a lot of loose skin and as a matter of fact I just went to information seminar this past Tuesday. I have serious wrinkles every where and it is not pretty. I did what I could at the gym but given my age and amount of stretched skin all the workouts in the world couldn't help. I am going to be making a consult with plastic surgeon but a lot is going to depend on whether or not insurance will cover anything. Right now none of it is bothering me health-wise. No rashes or irritations of such. April 16 will be my 3rd year anniversary.

I talk to Missy very often. She is doing great and living life. Like most of us who live in the 'winter' states she is waiting for warmer weather to come and thaw and get outside and play again :-) Sadly, I do not speak with CG much at all. I visit her blog every now and then but I don't hear from her much.

I never thought I would consider it either but now that I am dragging skin behind me I have no choice. I hope insurance will cover at least some of it. If it were me I would wait until you hit goal before doing. There could be more loose skin to come yet. I am attending a seminar this Tuesday night to see what it is all about. Good Luck!

Thank you. I try to think back and I honestly cannot remember if the slow part, bandster hell was ever explained to me. I remember reading about on here when I was pre-op but I honestly don't recall being told by my doctor and staff. Maybe it was selective hearing. Still went and had surgery and about two months in and the frustration kicked in. Even though I read about here I still let it get to me. Thankfully, I just stuck with it and kept up the appointments and fills. I was determined. One way or another I was going to exhaust the resource I invested time and money in and take it as far as it could go and if it didn't work out at least I gave it my best and would start looking at other options. Sleeve at the time was not an option for me. My Surgeon was not yet offering it back in 2012. In fact I think I was a year post op when they started offering Sleeve as an option.

Yea I can relate to all of those and the variations. Your face is sooo skinny now......thanks, glad I shrink my beach ball head for you. Jim will be so handsome once he loses all the weight (overheard one co-worker saying to another) So what are you going to do with all the loose skin once you lose all the weight? What you haven't lost all that weight yet? Now that I've lost the weight....and yes, after a while it does get annoying to hear it. I've battled obesity all of my life and have been teased and lectured by various people through life. This does get old and sometimes annoying. You're too skinny. You need to stop losing weight

Thank you all for the kind words. Sorry it has taken me so long to get back in here and reply. Work and life has been crazy as of late. Northeast really got hit hard this Winter and we've had snow every single weekend since beginning of January. I think in regards to the band life I believe you really have to take it on and make it a project. To be honest when I reached a point where trips to the Doctor office became less frequent I began feeling more out of touch with the process. As time has gone on I still miss the frequent interaction it but I am enjoying life more than ever. I only see my band doctor one every 6 months. This last time they asked me if I wanted to push it out to a year and I said no way. April 16 will be my 3 year anniversary. I still have my days when I look in the mirror and see a very large man. I have lots of loose skin that needs to be taken care of at some point. I am betting with skin surgery that scale will easily drop another 10 and maybe even 15 pounds. I have sag every where and it is not pretty. My wife has been nothing but supportive and said she is so happy I am healthy and energetic once again. Bandster hell was the toughest phase for me. I think it was 6 or 7 months before I really found the zone and the weight really started moving. It was frustrating as hell but I stuck with it because it was all I had. Anything was better then the alternative. If you find yourself stuck in bandster hell or even going in the wrong direction with the scale the LAST thing you ever want to do is cancel appointments out of embarrassment. Doctors and adjustments cannot help you if you do not go to those appointments and let it all hang out. No excuses, no embarrassment just tell them what is really going on and let them help you. Right now I fluctuate between 159 and 163. Not bad for a guy starting out at 488. Please let me know if I can be of any help to anyone. I know I don't get on here nearly as much as I should but I do get email notifications of PM's and responses threads I participate in. Thank you again and I hope you all become successful and happy losers :-)

My band surgery took place 6 months prior to my 45th birthday.....

MsAnn, I would feel sorry for you but it seems you're doing a pretty good job feeling sorry for yourself and blaming everyone else around you. I agree having support around you is very important however it is not impossible to succeed without it. Not sure what your deal is with your husband but it sounds pretty old school to me (Wife belongs in the kitchen type stuff). Fine make him his food if you must but it doesn't mean you have to eat it. As for the PB and Bread for a stuck episode...in a normal non banded situation that would work so maybe he is just lacking some education on the band and what a stuck episode means? Has he ever taken any interest at all in what you are trying to do? Has he bothered to learn what is important to you and your needs? Doesn't sound like a very supportive spouse to me or at least that is the way your describing him. As for your brother are there any other support groups you could attend without him? I know around here there are several other facilities which have groups and there is no cost associated. My Wife and I are both banded and I know it would be quite annoying if we were being compared all the time. It has come up from time to time but not very often as we were band a year and half apart. You mention switching to the sleeve and I ask what is the point? All of your issues with lack of support will still be there regardless of the surgical option. I am not against any option but at the end of the day all of the obstructions you mention above will still be there. I am sorry my post is coming off so negative but at the end of the day this is your journey and at some point if you want to be successful you need to take the bull by the horns and tame the beast. Find a new support group....get your husband on board and if he isn't willing to put time in to what is important to you then I guess you know where you really stand on the importance scale in his life....(in his kitchen being his wait staff, cooking and cleaning his house and making sure he has clean laundry). My Wife wouldn't put up with that crap nor would she ever have to. This isn't 1950....it's time he wakes up and smell the roses however he isn't going to just do it if you keep giving in. Good Luck to you.....