thefinalgirl1971

I have been banded over 13 years and have kept off over 100 pounds. I was currently back up 30 pounds due to slipping back into bad habits and a new very sedentary job but have already lost 7 again. I love this thing!
I find that for me if I just listen to my band and try to follow the rules I do fine. I am very comfortable at a BMI of 27 and this is what I am aiming for again.
I still want to lose like 25 pounds but I know that with my band's help I can do it!

I have been banded over 13 years and have kept off over 100 pounds. I was currently back up 30 pounds due to slipping back into bad habits and a new very sedentary job but have already lost 7 again. I love this thing!
I find that for me if I just listen to my band and try to follow the rules I do fine. I am very comfortable at a BMI of 27 and this is what I am aiming for again.
I still want to lose like 25 pounds but I know that with my band's help I can do it!

Hi Donna. It's not plastic surgery you need, it's therapy with your husband. Somehow you two have to learn to love each other again if possible. Only a professional can help you navigate such a difficult set of issues to find each other again.
As far as the physical challenges you are facing...ask the doctor. Two years of diarrhea and Constipation must be exhausting for your body. Have the doctor work with you to figure out how to stop the cycle.
Wishing you all the best...hope you can work out the problems.

Why not go back to the surgeon and get a fill? Every surgery will be hard work. If after rebooting you aren't doing well, then consider a revision. Don't be embarrassed. They have seen it all

Hi all,
I know how hard it can be to find a good place to get fills-especially if you were banded in Mexico. Forest Park Medical Center in Dallas does great fills for $75 with fluoroscopy. They were able to get me in within a few days and were extremely nice and professional. Just wanted to put this out there as an option.

Hi everyone.
I recently found the forum again after some time away. I've had my band for 12 years and did a good job of maintaining a BMI of about 27 (still overweight but not obese) until this past 6 months.
My total loss was 134 pounds but I have gained back about 30 pounds since January. I've been very stressed out with work, a pending divorce, new relationship and a son who is having issues in school and I basically found myself eating too much and the wrong foods.
I finally got the nerve to get my first fill in about 7 years. I was really nervous. I only ended up getting 0.2 added to my band but my hunger and general interest in food has gone way down! I am so looking forward to getting back to that weight where I felt and looked so much better.
Well just checking in and saying that it's never too late to get back on track.

Hi everyone.
I recently found the forum again after some time away. I've had my band for 12 years and did a good job of maintaining a BMI of about 27 (still overweight but not obese) until this past 6 months.
My total loss was 134 pounds but I have gained back about 30 pounds since January. I've been very stressed out with work, a pending divorce, new relationship and a son who is having issues in school and I basically found myself eating too much and the wrong foods.
I finally got the nerve to get my first fill in about 7 years. I was really nervous. I only ended up getting 0.2 added to my band but my hunger and general interest in food has gone way down! I am so looking forward to getting back to that weight where I felt and looked so much better.
Well just checking in and saying that it's never too late to get back on track.

Hi everyone.
I recently found the forum again after some time away. I've had my band for 12 years and did a good job of maintaining a BMI of about 27 (still overweight but not obese) until this past 6 months.
My total loss was 134 pounds but I have gained back about 30 pounds since January. I've been very stressed out with work, a pending divorce, new relationship and a son who is having issues in school and I basically found myself eating too much and the wrong foods.
I finally got the nerve to get my first fill in about 7 years. I was really nervous. I only ended up getting 0.2 added to my band but my hunger and general interest in food has gone way down! I am so looking forward to getting back to that weight where I felt and looked so much better.
Well just checking in and saying that it's never too late to get back on track.

Hi everyone.
I recently found the forum again after some time away. I've had my band for 12 years and did a good job of maintaining a BMI of about 27 (still overweight but not obese) until this past 6 months.
My total loss was 134 pounds but I have gained back about 30 pounds since January. I've been very stressed out with work, a pending divorce, new relationship and a son who is having issues in school and I basically found myself eating too much and the wrong foods.
I finally got the nerve to get my first fill in about 7 years. I was really nervous. I only ended up getting 0.2 added to my band but my hunger and general interest in food has gone way down! I am so looking forward to getting back to that weight where I felt and looked so much better.
Well just checking in and saying that it's never too late to get back on track.

Hi everyone.
I recently found the forum again after some time away. I've had my band for 12 years and did a good job of maintaining a BMI of about 27 (still overweight but not obese) until this past 6 months.
My total loss was 134 pounds but I have gained back about 30 pounds since January. I've been very stressed out with work, a pending divorce, new relationship and a son who is having issues in school and I basically found myself eating too much and the wrong foods.
I finally got the nerve to get my first fill in about 7 years. I was really nervous. I only ended up getting 0.2 added to my band but my hunger and general interest in food has gone way down! I am so looking forward to getting back to that weight where I felt and looked so much better.
Well just checking in and saying that it's never too late to get back on track.

I've had my band for 12 years. Still loving it!

Hi everyone.
I recently found the forum again after some time away. I've had my band for 12 years and did a good job of maintaining a BMI of about 27 (still overweight but not obese) until this past 6 months.
My total loss was 134 pounds but I have gained back about 30 pounds since January. I've been very stressed out with work, a pending divorce, new relationship and a son who is having issues in school and I basically found myself eating too much and the wrong foods.
I finally got the nerve to get my first fill in about 7 years. I was really nervous. I only ended up getting 0.2 added to my band but my hunger and general interest in food has gone way down! I am so looking forward to getting back to that weight where I felt and looked so much better.
Well just checking in and saying that it's never too late to get back on track.

I've had my band for 12 years. Still loving it!

Ugh. I hate to get caught up on negativity...BUT...this is a sensitive topic for me. I actually made a well educated, purposeful decision to go to Mexico for surgery...on multiple occasions. Likewise, I made a decision to have a 4cc band.
It is factual that there is a higher slip rate, but as previously stated, there are some contributory factors to that statistic that are not band, but rather surgeon related. Also, why get a band if its not as efficacious? 4cc banders reach and feel restriction, and for that benefit need to be smart about their fills more so than those with a larger band.
We can all banter for a while...each has pros and cons. Some of the evolution was in response to band competition and marketing in the market...some was for reduced slippage.
Regardless, people with 4cc bands are not damned to horrible complications. And on a final note, Mexico can be a very safe, and for me SAFER because of anesthesia issues, than in the US.

I had plastics in Monterrey, MX and lap band last week with Dr. Aceves in MX. I had PS here at home one time, and RNY several years ago here at home.
I still talk with my Mexican PS surgeon. He was caring and I had a daily personal nurse come to my hotel before I could go home. After my LB in MX I was motoring around with my IV pole the same day. The have different rules about anesthesia- for me it was MUCH better than surgery at home.
I will say I have a 4cc band, but I didn't argue. They had the AP and realize. 4cc have higher complication but better restriction sensation. Since mine is band over my bypass pouch, I figured higher pressure was better.
What do I know! But I know I have a band and port. Fluro to prove it. I can't imagine where people are getting gauze instead. I believe bad things happen everywhere.

Like most people who go to Mexico for the band, I did my homework and chose a well-respected surgeon at a center for excellence - Dr. Ariel Ortiz, a gastric band pioneer who trains US docs. I knew the risks and set myself up with a local nutritionist and ARNP to do my fills prior to surgery.
I honestly don't believe your surgeon had ports with no bands, or gauze wrapped around the stomach. I think there is a culture of fear surrounding Mexican surgeries, propagated by those who stand to lose business, etc. Unfortunately, there are those who don't line up aftercare and don't research their options, but those few stories are the ones that get passed along so readily on these forums.
Also, there was a comment about not bargain hunting when it comes to your health -- that's not exactly fair. Some of us were only able to have the surgery because of the relatively low cost. If I were to self-pay here in Seattle, I would never have come up with the money - it took me almost a year to save 5k, I couldn't wait 3-4 more years. We all know how helpless we feel once we choose weight loss surgery, some of us just don't have the money to make it happen.

Ummm... Have you guys talked to people who have had lap bands in Mexico?? Dr. Rodriquez (see Beliteweight.com for his bio/resume) is a leading lap band surgeon. They use Alergan brand lap bands. There is no gauze left in your body. That's funny though. I have done a ton of research and talked to many references of people who have had lapband in Mexico. Please don't spread the fear about getting surgery in Mexico. Talk to people first. In fact I'll let you know how mine goes next Friday Februrary 22;). Yay!!! Only 5K in Mexico and my follow up care/fills will be $150-190 here in Portland.

Folks who elect to have surgery in the US have bad experiences too, they just don't make the news. Just sayin'

Oh Please.... give it a rest. I can find lots of internet sites that spread fear and nonsense... You had a sleeve? Maybe you should read this. It has as much value as any other internet news blurb.
http://gastricbypasskills.blogspot.com/2013/02/think-gastric-sleeve-is-safe-think-again.html
They claim a 1 in 50 mortality rate. I guess you beat the odds?
Surgeons don't like the band because it commits them to years of follow care. If the patient is on Medicare, they don't get a dime for follow post surgical care. It is a lot more profitable to cut and slice, and forget.

I expect that kind of comment from Rosie O'Donnell but I don't expect to feel berated here for choosing one surgery over another. This is where I come to feel better, usually by trying to make others feel better. If people sound defensive perhaps it's because we keep having to defend a basic medical procedure. I did my research, I chose what was right for ME. Not any one else, just me. Why not support me on my weight loss journey? Are there people who want me to fail because I elected a different avenue? We are on the same path of wellness. Be supportive, PLEASE. It's the Star Belly Sneeches all over again.
Now, what I thought I'd be writing before I read all those comments -- great piece, Alex, and thanks for all you do for the WLS community through this site.

Everyone is entitled to say what ever they want that is the beauty of living in AMERICA! It's your first amendment right Freedom of Speech.
That does not make what you say, how you say it or to whom you say it or you right. Of course people are offended. If I a former fatty myself called you fat and stupid for not doing your due diligence when you chose the sleeve, a procedure that has been around and was a failure for years and years and only is back in favor now because it's "easy" for surgeons and doctors to not have to "follow up" or "work" for their patients would you be offended? I think so.
No WLS is perfect. How many sleevers or bypass patients have had the lapband added to their surgery because of failure? Are they stupid as well?

"Ummmmm....can we just talk about the fact that everything she said is ABSOLUTELY CORRECT!?!? As someone who HAS done my research and has lived in the WLS world for quite some time now, she's correct. Half of lapbands ARE in fact removed, and the long term success rates of lapband are much less than that of gastric sleeve or RNY. Everyone is so freaking quick to get insulted these days and I wish you would just stop it already. She spoke her opinion, which by the way was riddled with fact after fact, and you guys all get your panties in a wad? Grow UP already.
There isn't enough long term data on the sleeve. My neighbor had the RNY, and after 8 years started gaining weight. She went in to have the band placed over the bypass. There is no hard fast rule on any of this. I've known a couple of people who gained all of their weight back after the sleeve. They just eat small amounts of junk food throughout the day. It doesn't matter what you choose.... If you lose your motivation, you can eat around, and gain weight with all of the surgeries. For me, knowing that, choosing to have most of my stomach removed permanently was not even an option.
I did extensive research before making my choice; left no stone unturned. I chose to have plication with the band, as a secondary source of restriction. It has worked out quite well, and at the one year mark my surgeon said that I could not have done any better with one of the other surgeries. And the reality is, with ALL of these surgeries, the big difference is the first 12-18 months. After that, people get used to whatever they got, and learn to eat around it......if they are so inclined.

Jessi-- back that up with facts. Any elective medical procedure with the failure rate you claim would not be practiced. No doctor needs that failure rate, nor the risk of dealing will a sullied reputation. So, show us facts for lap band failure rates for procedures--excluding the archaic 4 CC band which is no longer used in the US. Surgical techniques have also improved. Your research?? I suggest it is flawed, and myopic.
I did my research, and was aware of the risks. My doctor could have done any procedure, but strongly advised the band based on my health, age and other parameters. Why would he risk my health if the band was a failure? And his practices credentials are above reproach and has a very high success rate with the band.

It will be 8 years at the end of October!! ????

Hi everyone.
I recently found the forum again after some time away. I've had my band for 12 years and did a good job of maintaining a BMI of about 27 (still overweight but not obese) until this past 6 months.
My total loss was 134 pounds but I have gained back about 30 pounds since January. I've been very stressed out with work, a pending divorce, new relationship and a son who is having issues in school and I basically found myself eating too much and the wrong foods.
I finally got the nerve to get my first fill in about 7 years. I was really nervous. I only ended up getting 0.2 added to my band but my hunger and general interest in food has gone way down! I am so looking forward to getting back to that weight where I felt and looked so much better.
Well just checking in and saying that it's never too late to get back on track.