Wheetsin

I had surgery on a Wed and returned to work one week later, after my staples were removed. I could have returned sooner, but I was enjoying my time off. :thumbup:

There is a place for board-related computer issues. For generic issues, I would suggest using the Lounge. To me, it doesn't really make sense to have a technical support forum on a lap-band board, but we have had technical discussions (and resolutions!) occur several times in the Lounge.

He's a total geek, but I like Alton Brown. I love learning about the chemistry and physics behind what's happening in food. I'm a why kind of person. Don't care too much for the other shows. The tiny petite Italian lady with the huge head makes some good looking dishes, but I think she's annoying and... that head... Ellie's dishes look good, but I wonder how they actually taste. Saw her make mac & cheese with winter squash in it... not sure about that. Her husband is hot.

Only you can answer your question. I'm not sure why you say you have to give up food. We all eat food, otherwise we'd starve. SInce you say "chicken out" I assume you have a surgical date. Honestly - you may want to postpone until you can get to a more confident (either way) place. I know that pre-op I second guessed myself, but as soon as I would think "this time when I lose the weight, I don't have to lose it again a year later" all of my doubts went away. You'll want to feel reassured with your decision. Taking the time to get there is worth it. Getting stuck, sliming, etc. is part of having restriction. I don't know a single person who would say it's not worth it. Sounds like you have a lot of thinking to do.

My band was my first surgery. I had a slight panic attack the morning of surgery, right as they were beginning to do the prep. That's really the only major mental thing right before/after surgery, but I spent about 5 years preparing to do this, so I had an advantage of being in a good place about it, mentally. Often people find they aren't sure how to cope or that they "mourn" the loss of their constant companion Food.

1) Is it true you are on a liquid diet for 2 weeks prior to surgery? Depends on your surgeon. I was on a 2-day pre-op diet, so it's not true for me. :tongue: 2) I am private pay so this is a huge investment. I am concerned about cravings, etc for 'forbidden' foods after the surgery. Is this an issue for everyone or does the nausea curb your cravings? There isn't nausea typically associated with the band. The band is a restrictive procedure, not malabsorptive. Malabsorptive procedures are the ones where yu typically associated eating particular kinds of food to feelings of nausea/sickness. My cravings have continued, but the nice thing about it is -- I can eat a small amount of what I'm craving and be satisfied, I no longer eat the entire package or container. 3) I am getting conflicting reports that say avg weight loss is only 30-50% of excess weight. From your experience is that true? Well, I'm currently at about 80% of my weight lost and I'm still losing. So from my experience it is not true. Here's the deal... The band itself will not dictate how much weight you will lose. That's up to you. The band, when used properly, will help you get there. Look into the reasons why someone may only lose 50% of their weight, and you'll see a lot of behavioral and motivational aspects there -- you will often find people slacking off and slipping into old behaviors, or not doing their part with the exercise, or not seeking aftercare the way they should. There's nothing inherent to a band that says once you have this in place, it's physically impossible for you to lose more than 50% of your weight.

Ask your questions. We're happy to provide answers, or point you to where the question has already been answered. :tongue:

The band is placed around your esophagus. It has nothing to do with your tummy. Having a fill will not bother your stomach. :tongue: Most surgeons require an initial wait of 5+ weeks before they will fill, and some surgeons fill at the time of surgery (bad idea IMO). There is a healing stage where you should not worry about weightloss. Some people call this "bandster hell" (IMO people who haven't yet been convulsing over a public toitty trying to yak up the last bite of the day). I don't think you've gotten great advice from your medical staff. They should know that the band cannot do its job until it is filled enough to give restriction. (I missed that you were only 3 weeks out when I first read your post)

I find that the EAS flavors aren't terribly sweet. They're definitely (to me) the least sweet of the 15+ kinds of tried.

Hi serenity55, it's very admirable for you to open yourself up to questions. There was a lot about blindness that I didn't get until I met and became good friends with a blind man. That really helped put things into perspective.

Unless you're really, really tight or having unusual circumstances, Water will pretty much go right through. I can't say for sure, who knows, but with regular/moderate restriction I wouldn't see water stretching the pouch. A sip is... let's say a half tsp to one tsp. When you're drinking a hot drink and just take in a little to test the temp, that's probably a sip. I don't chug now, I have no interest in trying because being overfilled on liquids has its own special sweet pain, but I can take a full drink, swallow it, and take another full drink 3 - 4 times with no worry. (The only time I have issues is following sticky meals). I have no problems drinking 120+ ounces a day.

Restriction right after surgery is most likely due to the swelling. The same can be said for feeling it right after fills. I'm guessing you have a 10cc band, and I know many, many people who have needed 10+ fills to achieve good restriction. But - if I read your post correctly, you have disappearing Fluid? So that would put you at 4cc... So somehow you went from 4cc to 2cc, and were given another 4.5 to give you a current total of 6.5cc. Is that right?

My surgeom himself is great, but some of his office staff is really lacking. Enough so that I know a handful of people who have sought other surgeons for their aftercare, just so they wouldn't have to deal with the miscellaneous people. Does your contract state that fills are free for three months if the doctor approves them? If not, then contest it. $350 seems like a lot for a fill, too. My surgeon charges $150, and many people who had their surgeries with him and are self-pay are going to a different guy who charges $100. (My insurance covers, so they only cost me $20, not that I've needed one in the last year). Explai to your surgeon that even though you're losing within the average guidelines, you're still eating <give example of what you can still eat>, your portions are <give example ofportion size>, etc. and explain that you need your band's help.

Most of us can feel our ports, it's just a matter of looking in the right place and knowing what to feel for. Early on I wasn't pushing nearly hard enough to find mine, so I just figured it couldn't be felt. My surgeon does not use fluoro. I lay on my back while he pushes around the area of the port to locate it. Twinges a bit when he finds it. If he's having a really hard time finding it he may ask us to hold a partial sit up to push the muscle. It's much, much easier to feel laying flat than standing up.

I am almost 3 weeks out and I called the doctors office to see if it was time to schedule a fill. The girl said " If you are not filling restriction anymore then it is time, but if you are still eating less then you need to wait". That's weird advice. "Less than" what? Pre-op? Ok, so I have been able to stay on 1000 cals more or less a day for three weeks. I was starving the first week and a half and have since adjusted to the limited food intake. I am not satisfied by any means but my stomach is not having intense hunger pangs. I notice in the last few days I am more hungry and able to eat more before i am full so I think I need a fill. Sounds like you might. Question: If my tummy is not ready yet will the fill cause harm? The fill has nothing to do with your tummy.

Try sensory deprivation (I think now they're called "sea baths") if you can find one - they're very trendy in overpriced spas right now. The music is a good idea too. There are 4 categories of brain waves, and the Delta waves are the closest we can get to no brain activity and still be functioning. Look specifically for a CD that stimulates the delta waves. An amazon searchs hould find several options.

No worries, I thought my port was a totally different incision for the first 2 - 3 days. I'd say - that's kind of right, at least for me. I can't feel my port just by running my hand over it, but if I push down I can feel it. It feels kind of like a little button or M&M under the skin. Many fills are done with palpitation of the port, so they need to be able to feel them. You'll also see a lot of people swearing they can feel their band, when actually it's more like their xyphoid process that they've just had too much fat to feel before. :tongue:

Abbreviations and What They Mean

That whole idea makes me nervous and I really don't know why. Both would require a surgery if they "broke", but I just have visions of something going wrong and someone getting blocked off. Plus - fills don't bother me. I'm the same way with any mechanical implant that you don't have some type of access to, they creep me out. Like I said - I picture getting home, putting up my garage door, and starting to slime. :tongue: To answer the question I have the Inamed/Allergan band. I don't think I'd care which manufacturer's band I'd have, my only care (were I to be facing surgery again) would be the model, e.g. the 10cm v. VG. I have my own little theory about those model differences and complications, but haven't tried to actually research it yet.

Hopefully this has changed, but when I met with the dietician she went on and on about what eating was like after RNY, but represented it as though I should expect it with the band. Nice, eh? All about how my stomach would be reduced to the size of an egg, that eating more than 2-4 oz at a time would cause me to vomit, that it would be 6 mos+ before I could eat red meat, eating sugar would cause me severe pain, etc. So my experience would answer, "You can expect a lot of inaccurate and incorrect information" -- but like I said, *hopefully* that has been changed. As for Sabapathy - loved him. I don't know if he still does but he used to make us do deep breathing exercises after the session. I always hated that. But as a clinician I think he's great. I would imagine you can expect a sort of intro session - he will ask you questions about your life, behaviors, etc. and maybe make a few suggestions, and maybe give you a preliminary go-ahead for surgery, even if he wants more visits. (I've yet to meet anyone who gets by with just one)

I told everyone, but if you really wanted to hide it I don't think it would be that hard. As long as you weren't eating lunch with them. Your employer cannot ask specifics about what type of surgery, so you're not obligated to release the information. Eating changes - maybe just tell them you're trying to eat less, that way you aren't lying. I would've had a hard time keeping it secret because there have been several occasions where I've been very stuck, which really hurts me and I can't hide -- or times when I've been holding back a PB in a co-worker's car, and once when a co-worker had to drive me in for an emergency unfill. In all those situations it helped me that they already knew and understood what was happening. But I know there are people who have successfully hidden their bands, so best of luck.

I met a girl this weekend that said that if the food trickles down, my band is not tight enough, even if the food gets stuck. She also said that I should get my band tighter so that I wouldn't get that horrible stuck feeling; I would just know when to stop eating. That doesn't even make sense. The food is supposed to trickle down, otherwise it would stay there forever or until you yakked it out. And a tighter band is going to make things stick more, not less. Another woman said that if food gets stuck and/or trickles down I am too tight and should get an unfill. Not entirely accurate either. Again, food is supposed to trickle down. And getting stuck is - well, chalk it up to part of the learning process en route to getting the right chewing habits, right bite size, etc. Eventually it's part of the game, and does NOT mean you need to get an unfill. This Wedensday, I have an appointment for another fill. Right now on my journey, I am at what they would say that my food sometimes gets stuck. I feel the horrible "Stuck" pain in my esophagus but its once in a while. I would like to see everyone's opinion on what they think. Here are some of the guidelines I use. They're only true in so far as their mine, you'll learn your own as you go. I'm too tight if: I've only been too tight once, and I was sliming on Water. I tried to get a chewable Vitamin down and that was it, I ended up spending the next 7 hours running to the bathroom to yak up what looked liek shampoo lather. Generically, if you cannot get any solids down for an extended time, and definitely if you can't get thin liquids down (other than unusual or known circumstances), you're too tight. Getting stuck is more likely a symptom of poor behaviors than being too tight, unless it's happening on everything all the time. I need a fill when: I find I eat more at a meal than I used to; I need to eat between meals to avoid prolonged hunger sensations; I can eat foods I couldn't previousy eat; I can drink more than tiny sips with meals, without significant pain; I am not feeling restriction, or it is faint.

Get the fill. If they give you the option for lidocaine, opt OUT. (IMO) Don't be afraid of sliming and PBing. Eventually you're going to need your restriction, aka artificial will power, and when you have restriction they're kind of just part of the game. Our stories are horrible, sure, but you don't see many saying "OMFG I can't stand PBs take my band out." :blushing:

I've gotten estimates for brows and they've not said anything about it being dangerous, but perhaps that just means I haven't asked the right questions. :blushing:

Quoting myself so I don't have to retype.