Cocoabean

I did not do an unfill, I just stabilized at a weight and stayed here. I get a slight tune up once a year. My surgeon orders an upper GI to make sure all is right with the world, we do about 0.25cc and life is good. I've maintained my loss very easily for over 2 years now.

I still get pain in that area, for me it is gas. Sometimes worse than others. If it feels very wrong, call your surgeon ASAP.

Awesome! And it itsn't really over, it just continues. The same as it was. Nothing really changes. Keep on going, just don't look for losses on the scale now. Look for non-gains.

Is your surgeon aware you are still not keeping liquids down? If not, make him aware. If he is, what is he doing to keep you hydrated? That should be your first concern. If he is and you are dehydrated still, and he is not addressing it, contact your primary care physician. How long is the Diflucan supposed to take? I know for yeast infections the oral is one dose and it takes a few days to clear it. Doing a quick search it looks like you'll be on it for a few weeks, but do you know when the symptoms will subside? Is it like with an antibiotic that you start to feel better after a day or two but must complete the entire course of treatment? If you can get any liquids down, try for some clear Protein like Isopure. It won't be as thick. Also gatorade to get electrolytes in. I hope you feel better soon!

A lot of folk around here like Isopure. Give it a try. You might try Unjury also, they have chicken flavor and unflavored. I think they'll send you samples to try before buying a ton of the stuff.

That is 3-4 lbs per month. A bit less than what lap band says is average of 1-2 lbs per week. I lost an average of .75 per week when I was actively losing. I wished it were faster, but you know what? I got there. I didn't work overly hard to do it. I've maintained it for over 2 years. I developed eating habits I can live with forever. Never before had I been able to lose weight in a primarily downward trend for such a prolonged period of time. I lost it over a 2 year period. Now I've easily kept it off with the help of my band. That would never have happened before. Stick with it, you can do this!

Mimi, sorry I did not see your questions about WW until today. Glad your appointment went well!!! I see you said later than your insurance does not required a 6 month program. Did you hear that from them or from your surgeon? Check both ways. Trust me, surgeon's offices make mistakes, not on purpose, but it happens. I do not know if WW keep an archive of the records. You might be able to submit credit card records of having paid them? I would recommend starting to keep a food journal now. Work with the nutritionist to develop a plan for pre-op, just in case they come back and say you DO need to do the 6-month plan. Your first meeting would have been the consult this week. As you go through your testing, time marches on, and you'll most likely see your surgeon during that time, each month that ticks by will count toward a 6 month program if you talk about what you are eating and you weigh in. From when I saw my surgeon to when I finally was in surgery, 6 months had gone by. So my having gotten it waived didn't really save me much. A two week pre-op diet to shrink the liver is pretty standard. Some surgeons don't do one. It is not fun. You don't have a band to help you, but it is very worth it!

Someone I know has UHC, she just discovered they have the 5 year history requirement for her policy as well. She did not go to the doctor every year. So we are brainstorming ways to prove she was obese.

This exactly. You do not want your stomach to grind AT ALL right now. That is the point of the post-op liquid diets. To allow the band to heal into place without ripping the stitches. It sucks, but really, you didn't go through all this just to possibly lose your band because you are hungry. I understand, I woke from the anesthesia hungry. When my surgeon called at 3 days post-op, I told him I was ready to eat my dog. Lucky for my dog he was much younger then and moved must faster than I. Please stick to your surgeon's plan for you. It sucks, but it is best for you.

Hi and welcome! Not sure about doing your profile on the app, but you can do it via the browser version.

Concern over the stitches is valid. If the nausea continues, definitely call your doc for something.

Yes, definitely for me. And my band has a total mind of his own. His name is Bandit, as he steals meals from me when I least expect it!

Well done! Keep up the good work!

Many people have revised to RNY or sleeve and been successful. I just have a bunch of questions for you to consider: With your band, were you able to eat according to band rules? Did you change your habits to positive food and exercise choices? Why does he say the band will have to be removed? Because of a minor slip? Slips can be treated, although some will cause severe enough problems to require removal, but you stated it is minor. Do you think that if you started getting proper aftercare with your band and see if you can get back to following your band rules you can be successful with your band again? When you started regaining weight, was it because of the pain you were experiencing? Or was it because you just didn't want to follow the rules of banded life? If you are not willing to follow the rules of banded life, will you be willing to follow the rules of RNY or a sleeve? None of the procedures is auto-pilot, you have work to do with it, and have to be willing to do your share. Just some points to think about....if my band HAD to come out, I'd not hesitate to revise to another procedure. Best wishes to you, it is a big decision.

Some surgeons send home anti-nausea meds. I didn't have a problem. You could use pepto or give your surgeon a call and ask for a prescription to be called into your pharmacy.

Welcome! This is a great place to come for support.

A lot of it depends on your level of restriction and the size of the bread they use for the service. Do they tear it in advance or do you tear it as they hand it out? If you tear it, you could take a tiny piece near the crust. Otherwise, I like the idea of speaking to your pastor, you might be able to take communion in private with him or perhaps they have an alternative to the bread you can use. Seems to me God and Jesus will understand if you cannot partake of the bread, far better that than running out in the middle of service to urp up the body of Christ. (Honestly, no disrespect intended). There are Christians who cannot chew or take solids of any kind. Accommodations are made all the time, I am sure. Speak with your pastor, and don't feel guilty. You are making your body that was given to you by God more healthy, it is a great way to say thank you.

For me, white meat chicken is totally off my menu. Just not worth the effort when it almost always gets stuck no matter now much gravy or sauce is on it, or how small the bites or well chewed. Fish...I don't like a lot of fish, but I was eating sauteed cod once and commenting to my DH that many people get stuck on fish and I didn't understand why. Jinxed myself. I still don't understand it with fish. The cod was not real dense, and it was cooked in a moist way. I was aware of chewing as we were just speaking of getting stuck on it. Then add insult to injury, when I urped it up in the restaurant toilet, I got the backsplash in the eye! And I mean it was perfect aim!! That is when I learned that if you put a seat protector on the Water before you hurl, it will stop the plop and splash back.

When I got my pre-op instructions my surgeon said, "we sell HMR here." I had a bunch of Medifast from a previous attempt. I asked if I could use that, he said no problem. He sells the HMR because it is convenient for the patients, he said, not because he requires it's use. Perhaps your surgeon would be the same and let you use Medifast...? Give him a call.

My insurance company required it, but I got it waived with proof of several previous attempts. I had done Weight Watchers for more than 6 months many times and still had the records. I gave them copies of that, along with personal diary entries from other attempts on my own. So, sometimes it depends on what you have done in the past, and what you have documented. Also, my personal belief is that the insurance companies do whatever they can to make it as confusing as possible and make it take as long as possible so that you will just go away Even though I did not have to do the 6 month diet, it still took me that long to do all the other tests and appointments and get approval. But it was oh so very worth it!

I was denied the consult appointment because I hadn't done a 6 month supervised diet. I basically followed the appeals letter in WLS for Dummies. My letter was about 5 pages long, full history of weight loss attempts and amounts lost and gained with times to regain. Weight related health history. Weight loss attempts records, weight watchers records and personal diaries. I then went into why I wanted the surgery which was to improve my health, improve my quality of life, and extend my life. To allow me to enjoy being with my family and not just watching from the sidelines. I won the appeal and did not have to do the required 6 month diet.

You will still be able to drink 4 liters of Water, yes. You might not be able to chug, but to drink throughout the day, yes, no problem. Water intake is very important to a heathy bandster. Welcome to the boards! You should be able to find your insurance co's requirements online, then give them a call and ask for their bariatric medical policy and your plan brochure.

Doctors have their own preferences for port placement. I believe the are all anchored to muscle. They cannot just float around in the fat tissue. We all have our reasons for not liking where they are placed. Mine is to the left of my belly button just below my waist when standing. I've found that high-waisted pants with a narrow waistband tend to be uncomfortable. I also don't like pants to be tight around the waist, it can get a bit painful. At nearly 49, I don't so much like tight clothing these days anyway, so no problem.

Yes, I've been overfilled. I gave it a week. When I got stuck on mashed potatoes, then yogurt, I got a slight unfill, MUCH better! A month later I went back for a refill.

Agree with honk. By 3 1/2 weeks I was on regular foods with no restrictions. YOUR post-op instructions may be different, however. I just say that to let you know that the foods probably did not hurt the band. The vomiting is of more concern for a new band. I would say do liquids today, if you cannot get liquids down, call your surgeon's office and ask what you should do, being Sunday it will most likely be the answering service, but someone should be on-call. Explain you were vomiting and can't keep liquids down.