Meekie

Hey ladies,
I am a pastor's wife with the band. We are Americans living in Germany and pastoring an international flock. God is awesome. I was banded 29 Aug and am on my way to a better life. Thank you, Jesus, for this band. We will be separating from the military in less than a year and staying here to do God's work.
Take care all,

Most of our congregation knows about my band. (I was banded August 2008). Those who were there then know. We are a military community so our flock changes often. Newer people who come in usually don't ask until they see a picture of me or someone notices I don't eat much. I don't hide it but I don't blast it from the mountain top either.
I also am willing to share my success with others who struggle. Many times believers feel guilty that we haven't prayed enough, fasted enough or whatever to get the weight off. I always share that God has different methods for different people. He instantly healed some as for another, he made a clay out of spit and put it on the man's eyes and then he was healed. So, as the Lord leads, I share.
Yes, I am on the ministry platform as well.

I still do enjoy all kinds of food. I just don't enjoy as much of it! I live with the motto of moderation not elimination. Whatever you take out of your diet to lose weight is what you'll have to keep out of your diet to maintain that weight. I have a little, tiny bit of everything. I just can't eat all of it. That is the purpose of the band, to help with the amount of food you eat. I do exercise a lot! I do my part. I don't eat sweets for every meal but if there is an occasion where there is a dessert, I'll have some. I won't have 2nds or 3rds as in my previous life before the band but I do indulge in moderation. I don't want to live on a diet forever. I, personally, don't find that pleasurable. So, yes, I still do enjoy food. All the best to you on your journey!

Wow, I see that you are having the same problem and feelings that I do (This is what I too loved about this site---we understand one another). I am sorry you are going through this but your story is so very similar to mine. I've been away from board too and feel like such a "failure and embarrassment" for gaining weight back and just not able to get to that "sweet spot" even when I was getting fills. I will pray for your strength and want to encourage you and please do the same for me. You are definitely not alone.

That stuff that Spivak used was called Omnipac and I've over the years seen many of his patients discuss it.
Now, the harsh bit. I think you need to pull on your big girl boots and get real about this. First and foremost if you can find another doc, then do so. But if you have to stick with this guy, I would personally look at it this way :No relationship with the doc? So what? You dont need to piss in his pocket, you have the resources to do this, you need a service from him - that being a fill, or as many as it takes. Who cares if you cant stand him? If he's what's available, then put your feelings aside and use him.
Secondly $150 a visit? Does this deter you because its expensive (and thus tiresome) or because you genuinely cannot afford it? If you truly cant afford it, then my heart goes out to you but I really wouldnt know what you can do about that. Its really rough that your doc retired, and it really does suck, but this is what's available and you can either pay for it or you cant. If you cant, end of story, if you can but just find it annoying, well, thats a choice you're making isnt it? If it were me, I'd perhaps be going back, saying I cant afford to visit every week for these tiny fills and trying to maybe compromise on a slightly larger one, whilst still being cautious that to be unfilled will cost you money too.
You havent failed, honestly, we all need these bands filled for them to work, aftercare is vitally important. Support and compassion from our medical practitioners is invaluable, but at the end of the day, you're a pro at this, you know what to do and all you need from this guy is a medical service, not a soul mate. You also dont need to beat yourself up for not being happy with what you'd achieved,50lb is wonderful, its not small achievement, but I'm a chronic high achiever too and I personally would have been pissed off majorly to only get halfway to my goal, but I dont thnk it helps to look at what you secretely feel is a half arsed result and say perhaps I should have just settled - you're worth more than that and you got that far, you CAN go the whole way. But you need to suck up the rough situation and make it work for you.
Getting back on track is always hard and its always about blunt truths like this. They're not that great to face, but if you want the outcome, you'll put yourself through the pain. If you can possibly find a more compassionate and cheaper doctor, then obviously that's what you'd do, but if not, then I'd just be hard nosed about it, take what I need from the situation and seek moral support elsewhere.

It sounds like you HAVE to make finding a new doc a priority, even if it requires a lot of effort/travel/money out of your own pocket. This surgery just absolutely requires maintenance and tweaking to work and you can't do those things without a doc. I'm sorry you're experiencing this, but I have seen people around these boards who have a similar story who do get back on track and lose the gained weight + more once they start following through with the rules.
Good luck!

Congrats on your marriage!
Have you thought about working with a therapist to help with the addiction issues?
My suggestions for getting back in control:
Take it slow, baby steps.
First find yourself a band doctor and get things checked. Get a fill if that is what you need.
Set small goals. Pick parts of what I have below and implement them slowly. Changing our lives in one big swoop can be overwhelming. These need to be changes that we can live with forever.
Start back with your band rules of eating. Solid Protein, small bites, veggie side dishes, starches if you have room. No liquids with food. No liquid calories. Try not to eat highly processed foods (i.e. junk food) as they tend to slide through the band and do not sustain you for long. Don't eat between meals.
Drink 8 glasses of Water per day.
Exercise? Yeah, I hate it. Start slow. Walk up and down your block for 5 minutes. Park farther away than you usually do. When you go to the mall take a lap around before beginning your shopping. Adding activity into your life doesn't have to be major workouts.
You CAN do this!

You need to stop going over and over and over what is going wrong and get your butt back into the doctor's office. End of story. Get up and do it. Taking a positive action always makes you feel better.

Geez, if you're going to burn over popcorn then you better save me one hell of a big seat right beside you!

I am 7 weeks post op and I thought I knew everything about the band. Well, I am learning new stuff everyday. I think you have alot of stressors in your life that could sabatoge any weightloss surgery. I was 272lbs , 3 days before surgery. So far I have lost 23lbs. I have worked my butt off just to lose it! It doesn't just fall off. The band controls my hunger for 3-4 hours and some days I am hungry all the time but I think its all fueled by emotions. The band is NOT a quick fix and there are people that go weeks without losing a pound. If your okay with losing 1-3lbs or less a week with calorie restriction and lots of exercise then the band may be right for you. If you are going to fall apart after only losing 3-4 lbs a month even after working your but off, then the Band may NOT be right for you. If you cheat alot ,like lots of carbs and refuse to stop drinking while you eat, then the band is NOT for you. I love sweets so I was unsure if the band was the best surgery but I did it anway. Well I my urge for sweets are still there but I have limited my intake of them by 85%. I refuse to sabotage my weightloss. It took me 2 years to decide to get the band. I was all set to have it in 2009 but chickened out because I was not ready for the committment. I am so glad I waited. I think that if you do get the band, you have to be 100% ready for the challenge. Honestly you don't sound like your ready yet. You have constant issues with hunger( which sounds more emotional) and dealing with life after divorce. Hunger was not my issue before the band. I was just GREEDY and ate anything I wanted and lacked will power. Fast food, sweets and carbs was my diet. I ate through all my emotions. Heck I was never one of those people who said "I don't know why I am so big because I don't eat that much." I think that is the biggest lie that overweight people tell themselves. You would be surprised the amount of food that people eat without being aware. I thought about making good decisions about food but failed at it and went back to all my bad habits before having the surgery. Dig deep, seek pre-op diet counseling and come clean about food issues.
Lastly, some Doctors are pro gastric bypass for several reasons. They get more money if you do GB. They have probably seen countless people take the least restrictive route of Lapband , fail and comeback and get GB and the list goes on. Some people have no business getting lapband because they haven't dealth with issues that will sabotage the weightloss or they want instant success. Honestly I think everyone wants instant success! GB will get you that instant sucess but you have to weigh the pros' and cons of the invasiveness of the surgery. GB was not an option for me because I loved sweets and feared that I would have dumping symdrome everyday.Also I am 38 yrs old and want to have children and did not want to wait 18 months to persue fertility treatments. That was my rational for getting the lapband. I knew I had to work harder but felt that was best surgery for me because I knew I could control my sweet intake, without having to give them up completey. Its working for me because it took 2 years to change my mindset before I would do it. Sadly being in bad health and having boarderline high blood pressure and diabetes was not enough to make me consider WLS.It wasn't until I confronted my issues of infertility that made me want to lose weight. Me and my hubby just got approved to adopt a baby and through the process the light bulb came on that I needed to be healthy and live a long time to care for our future child/children. The erge was so strong that it totally changed my outlook on life. I am so motivated that I can hardly stand myself. I am on a mission that I have never ventured into before and it has caused a huge change inside of me. I have my moments where I get a little frustrated but I stay the course and the weight is coming off. I am execising 5-6 days a week and staying away from sweets and carbs. I actually learned that I can go weeks without eating icecream or a peice of cake and have not died! Make sure you have good support systems to help you through any weightloss surgery and seek out counseling if you need it. DON"T RUSH YOUR DECISION!

Sorry this has happed to you.. If you decide to have the band removed make sure it because you want to and not for anyone else. Consult your surgeon and pcp find out what the risks/complications will be if you want to have another band. Ans what damaged the one you have has called. Once you weigh the pros and cons and you are able to make an educated and informed decision then make your choice. But do it for yourself. Good Luck to you.
Ps: having the band removed does not mean that you will gain the weight back. You may want to talk to a therapist and find out if there are any emotional issues that you are dealing with in regards to you weight.

I've been banded for two and a half years now. I have NO REGRETS! I don't regret being able to bend over and tie my shoes without suffocating. I don't regret being able to buy normal size clothes and cute shoes. I don't regret being able to fit in a chair without feeling like I'm the stuffing for a turkey. I don't regret being able to run 4-5 miles. I don't regret being able to sit in the floor with my children and play a game. I don't regret being able to cross my legs. I don't regret being able to look in the mirror and smile. I don't regret having my children hug me and their arms fit around me. I don't regret being able to leave the aisle in an auditorium or movie and not have people cringe because they see the big, fat lady coming. And so on and so on. I love my band even when I have something stuck and it feels too tight or if I overeat and feel like I'm choking. It just reminds me that I need to slow down and eat properly. It helps me not let food control me. This band forces me to deal with my life's issue in another manner besides with food. I'm down 115 pounds and about 35 pounds from my goal. My only regret is not doing this sooner! I feel free now.