lellow

When I was in maintenance before my leak, many asked me why I didn't remove my band because obviously I was eating better and was far more active than I ever had been. But the leak taught me one thing, and that is that without the band, I struggle with hunger, and what that does, despite my best efforts, is make me gain weight. 10 months, I gained 35lbs, not from over-eating, but from struggling with eating band sized portions. I still ate very well and was active, but it wasn't enough. You won't know how you manage until you don't have the band. I agree with Nana, if you really want to see how you'll go, get a complete unfill and see where you are in 12 months. If you're maintaining without it, then get it removed if that's what you really want. That seems like the less risky way forward, to me.

How long between when you had 6.5cc in there and when you had 5cc? I ask because my leak was slow. The Fluid was NOT discoloured either. I lost about 0.25cc a week. Attrition (loss of fluid from the band) is said to happen but I actually think it's more about a loss of the level of effectiveness in the band in a patient who has had it a long time than actually fluid loss. I could be wrong, of course! But a 1.5cc loss in a relatively short period of time is a leak. Pure and simple.

People will always think that their choice is the superior one. I had a colleague get the sleeve on the same day I got my band 5 years ago. She was very adamant that I was going down the wrong path and that the band was 'out-dated'. As a result, I had huge sleeve envy to start with, right after I got my lapband. I did feel like maybe I did the wrong thing. Then the months started passing. I initially lost more slowly than her, but as I got fills, my weight loss picked up. By the time she'd hit goal, so had I. I went back to my old workplace last year, 4 years out of both our surgeries, and I saw her again. She's gained about 1/2 her lost weight back. I had a leak and still had not gained as much as her. And for me, a replacement band has meant that I then went on to lose the weight I had gained and am back in maintenance. I got a chance at a new start. What choices does she have?? So the moral of the story is this: weight loss surgery is only as good at the person who is willing to work at it. There is NO magic surgery. If anyone ever says you should have got this or that, next time say, 'well we'll see where we both are in 5 years, shall we?"

Nope I don't burp at all.

I suspect that bayou and I would DEFINITELY get arrested... wanna come along CG?

Nawww Guy, perhaps we just need to get to know each other better....?

The fact is you don't wake up from surgery and the band has changed everything about you. The only way to lose weight is to eat less calories than you expend. In the first few weeks post surgery, your body has been traumatised, you have 'shocked' your body with a liquid diet and you're recovering. Given all these factors, why would anyone expect to be losing huge amounts of weight in this time?? The liquid diet, imo, sets people up with unrealistic expectations. They lose big numbers on the liquid diet by virtually starving their body in order to reduce the fattiness of the liver, and then wonder why they aren't losing big numbers after their band is placed. Except the liquid diet serves a medical purpose, not a vanity purpose. No one can lose weight in a healthy way by only drinking VLCD liquids. It's a short term thing only. Once banded, you go through a period of healing from the abdominal surgery you just had. Healing is what is important. However, if you want to lose weight in this time, by all means exercise, burn off more calories than you consume. It's simple math. Eat less calories and exercise to lose. But the band will not likely even be working yet at this point. Once you start getting fills and feel the band working, controlling your hunger will be easier, but it still won't control the amount or type of food you choose to put in your mouth. Most banders could be too tight and still gain weight by eating ice cream (and I see them on this board often). So there you have it. Understand your band, understand the process, and be realistic. Otherwise you're going to quickly get disillusioned by the band when in fact it can be really effective for most people.

Haz it's LOUD. Like noticeably audible. Not something anyone could ignore. And it's started back up since my last fill (the boyfriend is very happy about that!) Again looks like it's unique to me...

Year ago I asked if anyone felt like their band got tighter when they were aroused and I swear, all I got back was crickets. So let me ask this way: do you get funny noises coming from your tummy when you're in the mood? My boyfriend can tell if he's going to get lucky if he makes overtures and my tummy starts making rumbling noises lol. It actually gave him a complex when my band was leaking and the noises stopped. He started thinking I'd lost interest!

The amazing thing I have found though is that good quality food actually tastes GREAT, makes you feel less heavy and bloated and though more expensive, it's only because the demand for good healthy, organic whole foods isn't there. How, as a society, we have been conditioned to think that mass-produced MacDonald's chicken nuggets, which taste like cardboard to me now, is worthy of any sort of craving, is beyond me. Give me a miso-marinated slab of beautiful codfish anyday....yummmmmm.

You can call your doctor, for sure. But in the meantime see if you can get some cold pineapple juice and sip it slowly. Pineapple juice is good for reducing swelling, and if you feel like you've irritated yourself at the back of your throat that might provide some relief. It always does for me after a stuck episode. I have pineapple juice stocked 24/7 at my house.

I know it's hard to believe but being too tight actually stalls your weight loss. Because the things that a tight band will tolerate tend to usually be high calorie foods. Never be too scared to get some fill out if you're too tight to eat solid food. A too tight band can lead to all sorts of complications you really don't want, and can stop you losing weight to boot.

They say that sneezing is an acceptable defence for losing control of your car for a split second.... ....just sayin'.....

Holy cow, if you're exercising and burning 1000 cals a day, no bloody wonder you're always starving! This is only my own personal opinion but 1 hour a day 7 days a week without a rest day is, to me, excessive. Even athletes have rest days. I agree with hazel in that she's just thrown up these variables to you and that to me doesn't teach you anything. Yes, you BMR drops when you lose, and therefore you need less calories to survive in general (and therefore need even less calories to lose) but I agree with you that a 0 net calorie balance for the day is just crazy talk, and even worse, probably unsustainable. In the green zone, even if I've exercised and am super hungry, I still can't eat more than 1200 cals a day if I'm eating good food. Protein fills me up and does the job of keeping me satisfied for 3 - 4 hours. But I also don't overexercise (4 x strength training for 20 mins a day now, and when I was losing, I did 3 x 40 min cardio a week, and that to me, is a pretty strict routine as it was), so I wasn't struggling with my body trying to get me to eat back my exercise calories so I didn't go into too much of a calorie deficit. There is a balance that needs to be struck, and I don't think the advice she gave you strikes the right balance. Just my opinion.

I was going to say the same as Mis. I spend more money on food than I did before. A grass fed, organic melt-in-your-mouth sirloin steak is going to cost more than a KFC meal, and if I can only eat a little bit, I want the food to be great quality and great tasting. So I don't actually think I've saved money on food at all.

Joanne great news on making that first appointment. I gained weight last year with a leak and for about 4 months just gave up. I kept gaining and it all felt to hard. But I too decided to take control back and now I'm rebanded, have lost most of the weight I'd gained and am back to living the bandster lifestyle. All it took was making that decision to go back and see my doctor.

Actually my surgery and the surgery of most Australian wls patients with private health insurance is covered by their insurance without jumping through all the hoops. I automatically qualified at a BMI of over 35 with a family history of diabetes. Spoke to my surgeon for the first time on 4 July, banded on 1 August, hit my goal weight 22 March the year after. Most Australian insurers don't believe a patient has to 'prove' that they're worthy of getting wls. Insurers in Australia are as much in it to make money as any insurer in the US, but unlike US insurers they're not looking for excuses not to give the patient what they need. They recognise that wls will save them money in the long run by preventing obesity-related diseases, and that it therefore is a worthwhile investment. There is no proof that having to do a psych evaluation, multiple information classes, seeing a nutritionist or having to do a supervised diet will mean more success for the patient. I'd like to see independent studies that support that assertion if US insurers are saying that's true. In fact, anecdotally, I find that the Australian banders I've spoken to are often MORE informed about lapbanding including the lifestyle choices they have to make, and what it will mean for them in the long run, and I suspect that has more to do with not spending so much time having to fight their insurance companies and having access to subsidised socialised medicine which means cheap access to aftercare.

Just on the point of psych evals, most doctors in Australia don't require you to do them. Nor attend information classes, or see a nutritionist, do a supervised diet or anything in order to qualify for the band. These are not pre-requisites for success with the band, as I obviously am testament to. I also didn't get a pre-operative report when I left hospital both times, with two different surgeons, and my first surgeon had been banding for 15 years and my 2nd surgeon for almost 2 decades. I didn't know what band I had until my first visit to my doctor both times (when I asked about it) and I don't think I've been at all irresponsible.

4 tenths of a cc is 0.4cc. Is that what you have in your band at the moment or was it a recent fill? My last two fills have been 0.1cc each, and I definitely felt the last one. 0.4cc is probably a little bit conservative but that's not a bad thing. My first fill ever was 0.5cc.

I was talking to my boyfriend about some of the people I've met on here, and being all the way on the other side of the world, I doubt it would ever happen, but in terms of people who have supported me, inspired me, challenged me and made me laugh, I have to say, given the chance, I'd love to meet some of my fellow bandsters like bayousgirl, Mystic Highwayman, carolinagirl, hazelbliss, bandedblake, Solacspree and some oldies like Jachut and elcee (who actually live near me lol), BigLou, maenchen and rolltide, though there are plenty more. Some of the friendships I have made on here have been amazing, and online or not, they have been true friendships. One day I hope to go to the beach with bayou, or see Vegas with Mystic, or go spend time on the farm with hazel or party with maenchen and rolltide, but until then, I hope they know that they continue to be some of my best support and great friends.

It actually never occurred to me that anyone might be confusing how the band is restricted around your stomach with being restricted from being able to eat, even though I've read that article before MIs. Now I get why people get confused by the term. I have talked about how being at the right restriction (of the band) will mean you will be in your green zone (little or no hunger, steady weight loss, satiety for 3 - 4 hours) but would always say that your SHOULD be able to eat, and eat well, with the band. If you can't eat, you're too tight. Now I wonder if I've just been confusing everyone! When I talk about restriction, I'm talking about FILL LEVEL that achieves the outcome of being satisfied on a less food for longer periods of time. The Green Zone is the perfect level of restriction where losing weight and maintaining it is easy.

I have times of the month I just wanna eat and eat. And stress used to be trigger, but I have since found that exercise and the endorphins they release is a MUCH better manager of stress levels. The only advice I have for you is to be prepared. I have cut up celery and carrots and I eat them dipped in hummus as a snack if I really feel like snacking. Or I have unroasted, unsalted nuts. You can't always get rid of the urge to snack, but you can stem some of the cravings with stuff that's still going to be good for you.

I actually think Mis has been very respectful in all her posts to you before you attacked her. Perhaps you were feeling attacked yourself and therefore can't see that she was trying to help you. When I read her posts I see genuine concern for you. I don't agree that she has attacked you or criticised you, though I do think she's criticised how responsible your surgeon may have been if he really put a non-adjustable band in you. I won't lie, I actually think it was irresponsible as well if it's true. Having said that, if he's saying you can adjust it without further surgery, I don't think you have a non-adjustable band at all, and all this kerfuffle is for nothing. When you next speak to him you really need to find out.

I had mine for 3 years before it sprung a leak and had to be replaced. A leak is a band complication and NOT a foregone conclusion, so it was actually a defective band as opposed to it just 'wearing out'. I expect my new band to last as long as I do.

Honestly, I think she's gotten the point that the non-adjustable band is old, potentially dangerous and hasn't been used for a long time. I think I see her point in that it's been done already and what she now needs is support. pampi whether you recognise it or not, that's what these ladies are trying to give you - support. Trying to get a doctor locally is actually a great idea just to keep an eye on you to see how you're going. Even with a perfectly working band, it's not a bad thing to have regular aftercare. Another thing about having someone local, is that complications with the band can sometimes occur very fast, and sometimes you don't have to time to get yourself to Mexico. The risk is there for all banders, not just in your specific case.