2muchfun

The green zone is ambiguous for many of us and can be fickle at times. Don't be surprised if the zone becomes too tight or too loose as time goes by. Tweaking with more adjustments can happen. But congrats on being in or very near the zone.

Curvy, Apparently not all sleevers share your views on malabsorption: http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/295731-i-wish-i-hadnt-gotten-the-band/?p=3343995 Jean McMillan is a respected author on weight loss from the band to the sleeve. And if you read this report/study from the creator of this forum, Alex Brecher, you will see that the procedures don't differ all that much. "By procedure, gastric bypass and sleeve gastrectomy resulted in the greatest weight loss, but had a higher rate of complications and mortality than adjustable gastric banding. Gastric banding had the highest reoperation rate (12% in randomized trials), while gastric bypass had the lowest at 3 percent, followed by sleeve gastrectomy, which had a reoperation rate of 9 percent. The new meta-analysis included sleeve gastrectomy, which was not available in the 1990s" Study is here: http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/291785-new-jama-surgery-study-shows-weight-loss-surgery-is-getting-safer-and-more-effective/ You have to realize that no one can go from sleeve to band so we have no bandster's complaining that the sleeve didn't work for them or that the RNY didn't work for them. I will concede that the band is much less forgiving to those who do not follow the rules, or those who have concurrent illness/diseases and those whose bodies reject a foreign object. But we're talking a 3% difference which could very well be the people who revise to the sleeve or RNY simply because they can. tmf

You should start your own topic/thread as there are only 9 people following this thread and there are hundreds watching the forum. Your health is the most important thing to you and it sounds like you're not healthy right now. Find another doctor. Most only charge $200 for a self-pay visit. You may need to have some Fluid removed as throwing up is a sign your band is far too tight or may by slipped? If you're living on junk food, you're not getting the nutrition you need and you won't lose weight as long as the band is not adjusted properly and you don't follow the rules. Don't wait, it's important to call a doctor asap. tmf

Keep in mind that the band has been an accepted procedure longer than the sleeve, therefore the number of patients will reflect a higher number of complaints or problems overall simply due to the fact there are more patients. Also, for some reason, sleevers seem to be very defensive over their choice and often come to threads like this to disparage the band with anecdotal stories or stories of their own. Be aware, that the patients who claim the band failed them had/have the option to revise to the sleeve, therefore you will find them here complaining how the band failed them. You won't find the opposite where sleevers have revised to the band or back to nothing when they've lost 85% of their stomach. And the complaint that they don't want a foreign object in their bodies? How about dental fillings, heart and kidney stints, joint replacements, organ transplants, metal plates repairing fractures, mesh to repair hernias and so on. Most everyone has some kind of foreign object in their bodies. I won't disparage the sleeve as I believe it to be a very viable procedure. The fact that some people do experience malabsorption is a concern to me though. But not enough to persuade me from having this type of surgery. I try to keep an open mind and not live and profess from my limited anecdotal life experiences. Both surgeries are effective tools for losing weight if you follow the rules. Here is a more recent compilation of studies that gives a clearer vision of WLS. http://www.bariatricpal.com/topic/291785-new-jama-surgery-study-shows-weight-loss-surgery-is-getting-safer-and-more-effective/

I managed to not gain any weight over the 4 month period(of Bandster hell) by trying to stick to healthy food. I didn't follow the 1/2-1 cup rule most of the time but I ate healthy foods like chicken, seafood, salads, veggies etc. I did seem to find that I could feel satisfied by eating less food which is what the band is supposed to do. But I could still eat slider foods to my hearts content the few times I exposed myself to these foods. Slider foods are taco bell foods, ice cream, chips/dips. Start watching for the signals that you're no longer hungry or no longer feel like you need or want to eat. Hiccups, runny nose, pressure near your sternum, burping can all be signals you can stop eating and feel satisfied for hours. These are all subtle hints and you really need to listen/feel them. Don't drink and eat at the same time. Eat Protein first. Here are some very good videos for you to study. Obey your doctors orders but this Dr, Dr O'Brien, is one of the foremost bariatric surgeons in the world. These videos will give you a much better understanding how this all works. Much of the stuff we heard in seminars and nutrition classes lacked clarity. These videos can clear some of the fog. Good luck. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qa3Lwt6ElIs&list=UL Part 1 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K4jYJipQ7vc part 2 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wbdhf44ZweI&feature=relmfu Part 3 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KF3TCKUn3YI Part 4

Yes, good news is, you're normal. Bad news, welcome to what we call Bandster Hell! I was in it for 4 months but it's worth it.

BTW-Did your doctor clear you for eating solids? That's unusual? tmf

Your band won't work it's magic till it's adjusted properly. That might be 1 fill or 6. What you're going through happened to almost everyone of us. It's normal. Some doctors leave the band unfilled, so the stoma is wide open. Each fill shrinks the size of the stoma/opening until you feel restriction/satiety. I could eat anything I wanted for 4 months till my 3rd fill gave me some restriction/satiety. Hang in there, this will be a thing of the past someday but for now, it's still just another diet. tmr

You might want to make yourself shorter or gain weight? Even if you're 1 inch shorter you might make it?

I think you intended to put surgery on Nov 2012? There is no normal. But if you are still losing, Celebrate. Many of us get one year out and the weight loss slows to a crawl or a complete stop. I have no idea how many CCs are in my band? Some have nothing and some have 14CC. Everyone's anatomy is different. You're a slow loser but a steady one. Count your blessings and congrats! tmf

Why do you continue to post this old study of 74 patients operated on 15 years ago using flawed bands and evolving surgical techniques? You know very well that the product and surgical techniques have changed and newer studies show a 12% re-op rate compared to 9% for the sleeve. The slightly higher rate(3%) can easily be attributed to the fact that band patients can have their bands revised and it is so much harder or impossible if you're sleeved. I urge you to discontinue using misleading studies. You're harming your own credibility and scaring patients who are researching WLS options with these unreliable studies. tmf

1 small honeycrisp apple.

Did the tube disconnect at the band, the port or is it in between? Any idea why this happened? If you can have it revised I'd go for that? Seems like a small incision and scope to reconnect the tube would be easy?

That's not it. It takes a lot more than a stuck episode to slip your band. Usually takes months or years of abuse. Symptoms include, complete obstruction of the stomach, vomiting, difficulty in swallowing, regurgitation(constant) of food and food intolerances. Persistent pain in the lower esophageal area.. The pain near your rib may or may not be associated with being stuck.

You really need to see your bariatric doctor asap! Call asap!

I'm no help. I've always had group plans and now I'm on Medicare. My surgery was covered through Capital BCBS www.capbluecross.com and it was covered. Initially they required a 6 month nutrition/doctor plan and right at the end of that plan changed it to no 6 month plan. But, I'd already went through the 6 month period so it was a no brainer after that. Good Luck

Speaking for myself and a few other forum members over the years I must admit that this stage was a difficult stage/phase for me. Learning to eat very slowly, chew food to a mush and eat very small bites was one of the most difficult for me to tackle. Even this morning I had a short stuck episode due to eating too fast. One way to see if you're too tight is to open a can of progresso lentil Soup or tomato or any soup that is thick with few chunks. These are usually about 14 ozs. Can you eat more than 8 ozs without getting stuck or full? If you get stuck or full/satisfied on just 4-8 ozs, you may be a little too tight? Paris is right. Let your fill settle in before doing anything rash. Also, you're new to this and are you looking for those signals that you've eaten enough? You say you're full but want to eat more. Those are contrarian comments for bandster's. Are you full or is your body saying it's satisfied with the amount eaten? Satiety is the goal but it's a different feeling for each of us. tmf

Give us a rundown of a meals you eat in a typical day? And what date was your last fill? And you were banded in November so it's 3 months but I still understand the frustration part.

I'm far from NYC but I'm somewhat familiar with how insurance plans operate. Did you check to see if the United plan had bariatric coverage? Every carrier will have to disclose what is covered in the policy prior to signing on otherwise they'd be opening themselves up to a lawsuit for non-disclosure. I would imagine that all carriers will require the 6 month wait or may not offer bariatrics or any other elective surgeries due to the fact you could have the expensive surgery and cancel the next day. Follow the money with insurance and it will make sense to you. It's not like group plans where they factor into the premiums the costs of people entering and leaving the plan. People really do have elective surgery and bail soon after, leaving the carrier with a $10K debt and only a few months of premiums. Not saying you're going to do this, but it is a factor when the carrier is offering a plan. jmo Good luck. tmf

I'm sad you're having your band removed but happy that you're taking steps to being healthy and happy. Don't be a stranger. tmf

ORANGE RULES!!!

I hear all the stores in Seattle have run out of tissues in preparation for the forthcoming major can of whoop ass coming their way this Sunday?

Hang on, this is why we all needed WLS. Soon, those cravings will be reduced to a fraction of what they are now. We all still have cravings but it's so much more manageable now.

1-2 lbs is all you will lose here on out unless you're an extreme runner/biker/climber? Like I said earlier, we lose a lot of Water weight the first 30 days and then it slows down to 1-2 lbs/wk if you follow the rules. Especially for low BMI patients like you. I hope I'm wrong and you're the exception to the rule and can lose more than that but it's virtually impossible to accomplish. You are doing better than almost anyone here so far. I lost 12 lbs the first 4 months. That's all. Then I lost another 38 over the next 4 months. I'm not the poster boy for weight loss but I believe I am somewhat normal if there is such a thing? If you want a scientific reason regarding early weight loss vs stall/plateau, go here: http://www.dsfacts.c...ml#.UqP7uBLn-Uk

I don't get it? Your nut told you you should lose 1-2 lbs a week but you're losing 3 lbs a week? How is that not great? It's virtually impossible to lose more than 2.5 lbs per week and that's only if you eat 1000 calories a day and burn off 900 more calories via extreme exercises. You're going to have to lower your expectations to something more realistic like 1-2 lbs per week unless you plan on doing heavy exercises 2-3 hours a day. It's just simple math and physiology.