lellow

Wait, are you seriously saying that to make a balanced, well-informed opinion, that someone should ONLY hear about complications and NOT about how the band has worked for other people? That phrase alone takes away every shred of credibility you have. I am a big believer that people should know, and be prepared for, any complications that may occur. I don't think enough people educate themselves as to the risks involved in any wls, not just the band. But let's put it all into perspective, shall we? Complication rates for the band are NOT 50% or more (unless you can show me studies to prove it) and most complications are not life threatening, whereas in some cases, staying obese is as good as a death sentence for the patient. Risk vs benefit is what it boils down to. And the risk of not doing anything should be considered as well, and you MUST have weighed that risk up or you wouldn't have had wls in the first place. I'm glad that people reading this are getting scared. Get scared because every patient should worry about the possible risks, and decide if they're risks they're willing to take. But also be realistic, and consider the LIKELIHOOD of the risk eventuating and weigh out the possible benefits to your life in light of that. So don't tell me not to talk about how the band has changed my life for the better, because it has, for almost 5 years now. Without it, I would no doubt have the same health problems that my siblings are experiencing - diabetes and hypertension. And chances of me being around to see my youngest son into adulthood virtually non-existent. And also my band is not the same as your band, either (if you had yours done 20 years ago) so it's again a different risk profile. This thread is bordering on just being stupid now. We get it, people have complications. Everyone should be aware of the possibility of complications. Everyone agrees with you, but not with the assertion that all banders are doomed, DOOMED I tell you! Are we done now?

My BMI was 35 on surgery day, and I lost all my excess weight in 7 months. Got down to a BMI of 21at one stage (which was too skinny). Have had some complications but nonetheless have stayed on or around 100% excess weight lost for almost 5 years now.

I don't count calories so don't use myfitnesspal anymore. I'm the kind of bander that just lets my band do it's thing and it maintains my weight easily . But if you're losing, then you're doing well! Eat to satisfaction, not fullness, and you'll be fine!

I think I remember that first thread you did, so it's really great to see an update where you're feeling really positive about yourself! And as for saggy skin, I think you do dig deep and do what you need to when the time comes. I've had plastic surgery and while I wish I hadn't needed to, if you do, you do. You just do what you need to to get where you wanna go.

I didn't count calories but when my girlfriend recently mentioned that she ate less than me but wasn't losing, I got her to journal her calories for a few weeks and WHOA she ate a lot more than she thought she was, and all high calorie foods too. Where I'd eat an entire piece of salmon and be overly full, she'd have 1/3 of one then eat a creme brulee and have three cocktails. And 2 hours later she was hungry and I wasn't. Portions are important but what makes up the portions are equally important. Good luck with breaking the plateau!

I think it's a great idea to wait if you have doubts. I looked into lapband surgery long before I got it, and each time I thought I was ready to commit, I'd change my mind. Once I did commit, I went in with my eyes open, determined that I would work with it the best I could, and meet the the lifestyle changes and the possible complications if they occurred head-on if I needed to. Even when I had the option of revising, I did the same thing - weighed it all up. You need to be sure. And if you're sure, you're more likely to embrace the lifestyle, if you're sure, you'll be more resilient if it isn't easy (and it's not). You roll with the punches better if you're informed of all the good and the bad, and you choose it anyway. So I commend your decision.

When you're close to the green zone, that last fill will make you feel overtight for a few days (sometimes up to a week) following the fill because the swelling tips you over. Once the swelling settles down, you'll be at a great restriction level. If you're feeling fine now, I wouldn't go get an unfill. Just enjoy it.

Ahhh thank you, so I'm not abnormal! The bruising itself is fading but the pain is still present, and I wondered if that was normal. I am getting my lower inner thighs and knees done in a couple of weeks too and was hoping that at least my current areas would be back to normal before then. I did buy a compression suit in a smaller size today (because I've gone down a size now) and that actually seems to have helped heaps too.

That is great!! I actually say it often but I don't think many people understand what I'm trying to say. Satisfied vs full - huge difference!! I actually have taught my best friend the same thing: stop when you're satisfied, don't eat if you're not really hungry (I used to wait to hear my stomache growl) and then when you eat again, eat slowly, eat half of it (because she doesn't have a band) and then if you're really not satisfied in 30 mins you can go back and eat the rest (and she never has). And she's lost 20lbs in 3 months doing that, without a band. It makes it easier doesn't it when you're not trying to achieve 'fullness"?

My post op with my first band was very lenient too: 1 day Clear liquids, 2 days full liquids, 3 days mushies then solids. I was on solids just a week or so after being banded. Do what your doctor tells you to do. Really, that's about it. I was starving as well just a few days out of surgery.

I had lipo on my waist, back and inner thighs on the 8th of July and am still feeling tender and bruised today which is 11 days later. I remember the nurse telling me I'd be back to normal in 10 days so should I be concerned that I'm still so bruised and battered with no signs of it ebbing?? My inner thighs are probably almost back to normal. Bruising has almost gone and nearly no pain, but my torso still kills if my boyfriend so much as tries to hug me...

I think you're also not going to get a balanced view from people who have had the band 5 years + from a forum like this because people don't come on a site like this, normally, if there band is working with no issues. By Megan's own admission when it was working for her, she left and went off to live her life. So did I. People come back when they're having complications because they actually have something to talk about, so on a forum like this, you will see an over-representation of complications. It's just the way it is. I have a lot of friends who were banded with me, or before me, who supported me when I was first banded. They're not here anymore, but I do have a lot of them on FB. They've lost the weight, they're living their lives and they don't come on here anymore. You won't hear from them, OP. It's just the nature of the way forums works. So if you truly want to know about longevity, studies and statistics are probably the best bet you have.

Sending good wishes!

Good luck!! I'm sure you'll go great!

Good luck, making the decision to take control of it again is really the first step!

This is just going around in circles. I hope every newbie reads this thread and balances the benefits and the costs (in terms of complications) mentioned here before they make their decision to go ahead with WLS. Personally I think too many jump in without knowing all the facts. I KNOW the facts and I got banded not once, but twice. If something happens, I'll live with, and OWN my decision to have this wls. But I'm watching this, and it's amazing how people refuse t agree to disagree. Yes, WLS has complications, yes there may well BE new complications we're only just learning about, and yes, I'm sure it has changed the quality of life for some people for the worse, yet yes it also saves lives, yes, it works to help you lose weight, and yes, this in turn can give you a far better quality of life. It's ALL true. Not one of you is wrong, so why does your POV have to be the ONLY right one? No wonder the newbies are getting scared ffs. The successful banders are getting angry that you're insinuating that they're just being 'sheep' about their band, and the ones with complications are getting angry about being told that band complications can be caused by the patient (and if I had a dolar for every person who I see on this site who consistently doesn't comply with the band rules and then wonders why when something goes wrong, I'd be rich, so let's not pretend non-compliance isn't rife). The band can provide incredible benefit to your life. It's true. But the cost may be small (some pain, learning to live with the fickleness of a band) or high indeed in rarer cases (REAL long term damage). Knowing this, then make the decision on whether to do it or not based on your own assessment of all the risks. And then once the decision is made knowing all the facts, whatever happens after, own those consequences, be in success or complications.

Shakes are typically used after surgery and after fills so yes you should be on a liquid diet now (which may include shakes)

You're going to feel like crap, it's going to feel absolutely impossible, but believe me, you CAN do this. It's not fun, hell I wanted to die during my pre-op diet. Or at least gnaw off a limb, but it's true, after the first few days your body adapts and you suddenly don't feel so horrible. I was on the same pre-op as you - Protein drinks and one very small meal of steamed veg. I survived the two weeks even though I was so sure I would expire from lack of food, and you can survive too. Hang in there. Take it one day at a time. One hour at a time. Just plan to get through to the next shake and try not to think too far ahead.

I removed all mine except the one in..ahem...an intimate area. And that's because I don't know how to lol. Your nose shouldn't close as long as you get it back in after surgery. Belly button ones stay open for a few days. Tongue stays open for weeks, sometimes years depending on how long you've had it. No one has ever commented on the piercing I didn't take out. I wonder why! Lol!

And the protein shakes seem to be a uniquely US thing. Australian doctors generally say once you're healed, no drinking your calories!

sometimes doctors will tell you to drink protein shakes if you're still healing or they want you to supplement your protein intake, but it should NOT be used as a meal replacement.

The band helps you lose for sure once you have the right restriction level. I lose weight FASTER with a band than without, but that is not to say you cannot lose when you're not at the green zone, or when you're not well restricted, and that was my point. The band helps in that it assists you with diminishing your hunger between meals. That's a huge 'help' when you're trying to lose. Maybe it's me, I didn't wait for the band to 'kick in' before trying to lose. I started working on changing my relationship with food before that. The band doesn't give me motivation, it just helps me not be hungry for longer. What the band does is once you have a good level of fill, you can eat a small amount of food and it will keep you satisfied for 3-4 hours. Can you eat food that is high calorie or lots of icecream, for example? Sure, you can. This is why I said the band doesn't chose what goes into your mouth. The band helps you lose, for sure, but it doesn't do it all for you.

Sorry I'm confused. You say you can eat too much but you're having one small meal and Protein shakes. That doesn't sound like a lot. Are you saying you're hungry in between those things? #1, shakes go straight through the band. If you need it to get your protein intake up, I understand, but the way your band works is you eat solid food and it keeps you satisfied (as in not hungry) for longer. Having a Protein shake as a meal defeats that purpose, so yes, you WILL feel hungry not long after a protein shake because you just bypassed the band altogether. #2, if you eat solid food and get hungry (and I mean real hunger as opposed to 'I'm not full') in a couple of hours then yes, you probably need more fill. The goal is to eat a cupful or so of hard protein first, veg and carbs if your dr isn't opposed to it, and have the band help you remain satisfied (as in no longer hungry as opposed to 'full') for 3-4 hours. #3 a lot of people keep filling the band thinking that it's only working if it stops them being able to eat. Not true. You still have to eat, everyone needs to be able to eat. With the band you SHOULD be able to eat whole, solid food because if you can only eat a little, you're better off eating proper food with nutritional value than eating a Protein Bar. I hope that made sense. I don't think whether you need a fill or not is relevant unless you are eating in a way that works with your band.

I'm trying to keep this short and am not sure I can, so I apologise in advance, but this is my story: I lost all my excess weight plus some with the band. I exercised and ate like a bandster (I'm sure you all know what that is, so I won't explain it). Maintained my weight loss for 3 years then my band started leaking. Fast forward 12 months and while struggling with hunger and being able to eat whatever I want, I gain 35lbs. And that was me trying to be careful, I thought! I was very disillusioned and didn't think I'd ever get a working band again. Then one day, I remembered why I did the surgery to begin with, so I made an appt to see my dr, started counting calories and exercising. Between that day and when I got my band replaced 4 months later, I lost 15 of those 35lbs by myself, without the band's help. If you want to lose, then WANT it and make the necessary changes to get the results. Losing was all on me, but the band would help me maintain: that's how I see it now. So restriction or not, loose band or not, NOTHING is stopping you from losing until you have sufficient fill to help you maintain. The band never has and never will be what decides what you put in your mouth, that's all you. My band isn't even at green zone now, so I can still eat everything, just less of it. And it's helping me maintain my weight easy.

This is a great place to get support, and to help you learn to live with your band. It is also a great place to meet others like you. I have a busy schedule too and have found ways to work around that so that I keep working with the band. When I was losing, I was working a 10 - 12 hour day, with 4 kids at home, studying part-time at night and travelling once every couple of months. You just have to be creative about adapting your lifestyle. Being able to tap into other people's experiences have also been invaluable in that respect. Obviously the more you post, the more you get out of this place, so get out there and start connecting with people! And good luck.