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Lynn B

LAP-BAND Patients
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Posts posted by Lynn B

  2. Posted

    This thread is one of the reasons that I have not visited this site as much as I did in the past - it seems that there are some very bitter people here.

    As to the question - would I remove my band to be proactive? I personally would not. With a 1% chance of erosion (and even as more people are banded, its not the percent to goes up just the total number of people ex. 1% of 30 is 3 - 1% of 300 is 30 - more people same percent) When you consider that 4 out of 5 people will be in a major car accident (that is 80%) should you proactively stop leaving your house? Of course not! I know that it is hard to stay level headed when people that you feel close to start having major problems like this - to all that have eroded my heart does go out to you - but it is not time for everyone to panic yet. I don’t blame those who have had problem for being angry, upset, sad, etc....I would feel the same way if I had been in pain and then ultimately lost the tool that had given me hope.

    I wish there were rules - do this, don’t do that - and you won' t erode but that it not the case - we don't know exactly why it happen to those it does so there is really no way to prepare or prevent it. For those that are PBing often or who can feel the band I would see your doctor - that doesn't sound right to me. The only time I have ever felt the band itself is when the doctor filled me to 4ccs during my second fill to see if the band returned the same amount of Fluid (my first fill disappeared). Although I felt pressure I did not feel pain, even at that I could not imagine my band feeling like that all the time.

    I thank those that have eroded for staying and providing advise for those that are still banded, I also hope that which ever road you chose now (re banding, alternate surgery or au natural) that you have great success and no more complications down the road. To date I have not experienced any problems with my band - I don't know what the future holds - I hope that I will live happily ever after with my band, but if I don’t, I would not tell anyone "don't get it done". If I end up part of that 1% then my best wishes for success will go with the 99% who do fine.

    Peace,

  3. Posted

    There are 3 medical centers in my area that do the band and each has several doctors. As I researched on line I started leaning towards one facility....I went to their info night and met the doctor I had selected and knew immediately that he was the one! It helped that he was the chief of the whole minimally invasive surgery dept and I did research his past both since he had come to our area and when he practiced in Texas. His wife is also a doctor (anesthesia) and I looked up a ton of studies that they had done together mostly on ways to treat nausea after lap surgery. As it turns out his wife was my anesthesiologist during surgery (he asked if I had arranged that).

    I have not regretted my decision, once you have done the research and found someone that has the skill and background to do your surgery (if you find more than one) meet them all and go with the one that you feel more comfortable with because its a long journey and they are your partner for the duration!!

    Good luck all,

  4. Posted

    Well I couldn't have done it. That would be surgery day, day 2 in hospital and then one day at home - I could barely pull up my own pants on day 3 forget about going to work. I couldn't even post on the internet until day 5 when I could sit in a chair for more than a few minutes - personally I would take at least a week off (I took 9 full days but wished that I had done the full 14). Everyone is different but you don't know how you will react to the anesthesia etc. (you can check out my journal for all of the details)

    If you need more time and you boss wont give it to you then look into FMLA (Family and Medical leave act) You have up to 12 weeks I believe to care for yourself or family due to medical issue and your boss can not fire you - your job must be held for you.

    Good luck!

  5. Posted

    Ahhh...smoking....boy do I miss it!!!. My doc says no smoking for 2 months before surgery (I fibbed). I cut way down and stopped about 1 week before - my surgery went fine and I have healed wonderfully but I was only a 1/2 pack a day smoker. I started right back up after surgery and have been smoking ever since with no ill effects.

    But the reality is that (and I forget where I saw this but I believe it) in the US Obesity is the second largest factor in premature preventable deaths - can anyone guess what number one is??? Bingo - smoking. I have been thinking about this since surgery and it has taken me a while but I have to quit. I tried on New Years Day and almost killed my husband - I had to lock myself in the bathroom so that I wouldn't yell at anyone - and then I started smoking that night after quitting for a whole 10 hours.

    For me it is not the physical craving that gets me but the emotional stuff. I went to my PCP and she put me on Wellbutrin - take for 2 weeks while smoking and then quit. I spent the two weeks going "OK I feel no different - this isn't going to work" but I gave it a go. Here are my stats so far:

    <table border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="358"> <tbody> <tr valign="center"><td colspan="4" align="left" valign="bottom">My Stats:

    Your Quit Date is: 1/30/2006 1:00:00 AM <table summary="*" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" width="100%"><!-- START: spacer --> <tbody> <tr> <td colspan="4" height="1">trans.gif</td></tr><!-- END: spacer --></tbody></table></td></tr> <tr valign="center"><!-- Dynamic: time smoke free --> <td colspan="4" align="left">Time Smoke-Free: 6 days, 9 hours, 59 minutes and 3 seconds </td> <td align="left"> </td></tr> <tr valign="center"> <td colspan="3" align="left">trans.gif</td> <td rowspan="9" align="right" valign="bottom"> <table style="background-repeat: no-repeat;" summary="" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" height="50" width="179"> <tbody> <tr> <td class="reg" align="middle" background="http://images.quitnet.com/images/q2001/trans_big.gif" height="35" valign="center" width="19%">

    </td><!-- LINKS: is this still your med plan --- keep the non-breaking spaces in there --> <td class="statsDataBlack" background="http://images.quitnet.com/images/q2001/trans_big.gif" width="117">

    </td></tr></tbody></table></td></tr> <tr valign="center"><!-- Dynamic: cigarettes not smoked --> <td colspan="4" align="left">Cigarettes NOT smoked: 96 </td></tr> <tr valign="center"> <td colspan="4" align="left">trans.gif</td></tr> <tr valign="center"><!-- Dynamic: lifetime saved --> <td colspan="4" align="left">Lifetime Saved: 17 hours </td></tr> <tr valign="center"> <td colspan="4" align="left">trans.gif</td></tr> <tr valign="center"><!-- Dynamic: money saved --> <td colspan="4" align="left">Money Saved: $22.50

    <!-- LINK: Open Gadget --></td></tr></tbody> </table>

    You can get this cute gadget at quitnet.com

    Good luck - if we need to start a smokers support thread - I'm in!!

  7. Posted

    As for the Water I had concerns because I chug alug that stuff and drink about 1 1/2 gallon a day

    I never chugged Water after being banded - I was afraid to. Then I go to the doctors for my first fill. They poke me and then sit me up and hand me a glass of water. He tells me to drink it - so I start a sip at a time. He says "OK - a whole bunch at once" so I take a couple of big mouthfulls which leaves me with half a glass. He says "OK- the rest all at once" so I downed it. My doctor then tells me I'm fine, not to tight, I am all set. I haven't sipped water since - I dont gulp it but I can down it pretty quickly. Does anyone else not "sip" their water anymore?

  8. Posted

    1. How difficult did you find the pre-op diet?

    I didn't have a "preop" diet but I was required to lose 10lbs and then light dinner the night before surgery and nothing after midnight by mouth. I did a modified Atkins anyways and dropped 25 lbs before surgery (my doctor removed my gallbladder 3.5 weeks earlier and said that he could see much better inside due to dropping the weight.

    2. I have had 3 cesareans and my gallbladder laproscopically removed. Does anyone know how the pain and/or recovery is in comparison?

    I had 2 c sections, one lap gallbladder removal and the band. The C sections were the worst, I had stones but no symptoms so my gallbladder was a breeze - the band would fall right in the middle for me. I went back to an office job with modified duties (no filing) at day 9 and did just fine.

    3. Now this is one I really haven't seen at all and am a bit shy to ask, but it's better to ask now then end up in the ER. How soon can one umm hmmm be intimate and are you limited in well you know <WHISPERS>positions?

    I have to agree - when you feel up to it. One week is the most I could get away with!

    4. After going on solids, is there a weight gain? I plan on eating only healthy (low carbs) on the liquid and solid stages and fear that once I go on solids I may actually gain weight. Should I jus eat whatever I can tolerate on liquids and solids and worry about losing the weight and low carbing after I go on solids?

    I did not gain any when I went over to solids but I was a chicken - I am afraid to test the limits of my band so I did just fine.

    6. For some reason it is very easy for me to lose 40lbs (after each of my 3 pregnancies I have lost all of my pregnacy weight which has been 40-45lbs within 2 weeks after delivery AND each time I have done Atkins I have lost 40lbs and then I stall). Do people stall on this and if they do and it has nothing to do with the restriction, how can you tweak your program to break the stall? Or is it a matter of just being patient and waiting it out?

    I'll let you know when I get there.

    Good luck!

  10. Posted

    I have a link in my signature for my OH profile which tells all about my gallbladder surgery. For me it was easier than the band. I had my gallbladder removed on a thursday and was back at work on monday. As for doing them at the same time - my doctor also said that if there were any complications with the gallbladder you would be endangering the band also.

    Good luck,

  12. Posted

    Penni - My heart goes out to you and the others that have had problems with the band. I hope you are recovering well.

    When you feel up to it and if you know the answer - you pictures are looking from the inside...why does it look like the band is curved the wrong way? Shouldn't the inside of the band curve the same way as your stomach - in your pics it looks like the band collapsed in on itself?

    Take care and get well soon!!

  13. Posted

    OK I'll do my best - the difference between and HMO and PPO is with an HMO you need to get your PCPs referal to see a specialist or another doctor. With a PPO (at least mine) I can go to any doctor I want. As long as he is "in network" all I pay is my copay. I currently have BCBS MA PPO and do not have a deductible (I guess that depends on what plan your company opted for). All routine and office visits for "in network" are $25, ER visits - $100.00, Outpatient surgery $150. - Inpatient surgery $250. If I went to an "out of network" doctor it would basically be like a 80/20 plan - insurance would pick up 80% of the bill and I would be responsible for the rest. All in all I love my PPO - I paid $250 for my band surgery (plus the program fee of $500) and $25 for each of the 3 pre op appointments...Oh and $100 for the psych eval which was not covered.

    So it looks like once you meet your deductibel (the first $400. worth of services) you pay co pays and 30% of the remaining bill until you hit $4000. for the year - after that everything is free. So if they are going to cover your surgery you are probably looking at paying the $4000.00 in that year. Does your company offer a medical savings account? If so and you know that you can get approved for surgery you may want to take advantage of putting the max away (tax free) to help cover your sugery costs.

    Good luck - I hope I helped a bit.

    My employer is changing ins in January and the new plan kinda sounds like yours - you have a $200. deductible so first appointment you basically pick up the bill - after that they pay 90% of all future in network charges - I pay a copay plus the 10% balance.

  19. Posted

    I had my first fill at 7 weeks at my second post op check up with the doc. I was losing but was also hungry every two hours so he put 1.5 cc in my 4 cc band but he left it up to me. If I had told him that I was satisfied he wouldn't have done a fill - talk with your doctor and work out what is best for you.

    Good luck!

  20. Posted

    The IL one seems hard to use. I went to my state site plugged in my doctors name and up his info came. You can call his office and get his license number and try running that through the IL state on. There are also bunches of sites that will give you a whole profile...some of them start around $8.

    Good luck,

  21. Posted

    I stayed out of work for 4 days for my gallbladder but mine was not acting up when they removed it. If the gallbladder is really bad you may need a little extra time to recover. Any rapid weight loss can produce stones in the Gallbladder and people that have lost and gained a bunch tend to have issue. I had stones and didn't even know it but my doctor took out my gallbladder before installing my band to avoid any future problems. He said that we could leave it in but chances were that it would be infected within six months of being banded. Sorry you got sick on your vacation but don't worry about the surgery - IMO it was much much easier than the band.

    Good luck,

  25. Posted

    Thankfully I have not had the fun of BPing yet. I have gotten stuck once or twice. chicken was the first one but I wasn't listening to my body. I was talking and it was my last little bite, should have known not to stick it in my mouth. 10 min of walking made it pass and I was fine. Second episode was Bumble Bee tuna steaks (in the foil pouch) I am not sure if I didn't chew well enough or what but by the 5th bite I was in agony (not to the point of crying) but it felt like a tried to swallow a large pill and it stuck right in my chest. It took about 20 min to get over this one - a very airy burp finally gave me relief. I have lost 50 lbs (25 since surgery - I am 2 months out on 11/12/05) so to me a half hour of pain caused mainly by my inattention has been worth it. Good luck.

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