Elisabethsew

It might be a good idea to make an appointment for your husband to see a pulmonologist. They specialize in this area and would refer your husband to a sleep center for proper evaluation. Home tests are NOT reliable.

I think you look better in the black outfit and the 20# gain really does NOT show. I would post the 298 picture on your fridge because there is a BIG difference in where you were then and where you are now. You look great... stay ON the band-wagon.

I am an RN and work full-time as a critical care educator in a large university hospital teaching RNs to work in ICUs. I am adjunct faculty to several colleges and universities and mentor 8 graduate students a year. To cap it off, I'm in a full-time PhD program with a specialization in adult education. I completed stages one and two and am now a doctoral candidate and move onto the dissertation. I need more hours in the day. LOL.

You've certainly had a lot of health problems and it's good you found this problem before having lapband surgery. That surgery is not for everyone so it might be a good idea to get all the other problems dealt with before opting for an elective procedure. I certainly hope all goes well with the carotid endarderectomies.

The xyphoid process is the pointy end of the breast bone and the mid-clavicular line is the middle of your shoulder bone. Sometimes medical people use terminology common in our field and foreign to others. LOL.

MANY people live without their spleens and do just fine. Tonsils are another organ that aid in fighting off infection and tons of people live fine without them. I doubt you would have any problems moving forward with the lapband surgery but it has to be your decision. Good luck.

You didn't mention how old you are. The older you are the less resiliant your skin is. A plastic surgeon friend of mine said the body could "handle" a 2 lb weight loss a week without significant skin sagging. Since the band promotes a 1-2 pound weight loss a week, you should be fine. For me, my health comes second to saggy skin.

Donna makes a good point about eating types. My surgeon thought this would be a good surgery for me because I am not a junk food eater. I am a volume eater. Carbohydrates begins to digest in your mouth (If you leave a cookie in your mouth it will dissolve to a liquidy state and easily pass through the band). If I were a candy, cake, cookie, ice-cream, etc. kind of eater, he would have suggested RNY. Also, comparing yourself to your husband's rate of weight loss will always result in disappointment. Men have a higher percentage of muscle to fat and most have faster metabolisms so they tend to always lose faster than women do. Since he's not obese and you are and have "tried everything and failed", you're metabolism is apt to be slow. Fully investigate the surgery before you decide and call your insurance company to find out if they will pay.

I'm very sorry you had such a horrible experience. It sounds like you developed sepsis post-op and that is a life threatening condition. I could afford to self-pay and have the operation in Mexico but I have some other medical conditions that eliminated that option for me. I stuck it out and did everything the insurance company wanted and FINALLY got them to pay. Thankfully, I had no complications from my surgery but I have to admit it gives me piece of mind knowing the surgeon is just 10 minutes away if I need him. Clearly, you're lucky to be alive and I hope your health has improved.

I am an RN and I work in a hospital where many gastric bypasses (RNY) are performed. The reasons I chose lapband were: 1. It's a relatively quick and safe operation. 2. Weight loss is not through malabsorption so there's no need to take supplements. 3. The operation is reversible. 4. The recovery is not bad (went back to work in a week). 5. The band is adjustable so you can make it tighter/looser as needed. 6. It's a tool that has been proven to augment weight loss. I am only 8 weeks post-op and just had my first band adjustment. The surgeon tightened the band by instilling 1 cc of saline. I have a male friend who was banded in July of 2005 and he's down 125 pounds. I do not regret my decision to have the surgery at all. Weight loss is the one thing in my life I have never been successful with. Prior to this operation, I lost a little over 200 pounds via diet and exercise but put back 100 pounds. I NEED the band to help me get to my goal weight but realize that diet and exercise complete the trilogy. Does that help you a bit more?

Lite ricotta cheese, flounder and tuna salad worked to fill me up when I was on the soft phase of the post-op diet. Congratulations on having the surgery and I hope your recovery is uneventful.

My port is placed about 4" below the bra line slightly more to the left of center and I have not experienced any problems with it. It seems having it placed lower in the abdomen results in soreness and discomfort for some people.

No coffee? I would die. LOL. I was given a list of foods that were poorly tolerated in a lot of people but the only forbidden choice was carbonated drinks. The only time the band would be removed would be for medical/surgical complications so I'm planning on keeping mine for as long as I can. What I have discovered is that you have to be patient with gastric banding. You have several weeks of healing and then the process begins of going for adjustments to tighten the band until you reach optimal restriction. Go to the Inamed website and do some reading there also. Welcome! Feel free to ask lots of questions as the people here are quite knowledgable and willing to help.

I'm glad you survived your ordeal. What complications did you have?

That's a pretty good theory, Alexandra. I had one cc put it and the surgeon said to make an appointment to come back on July 6 to be evaluated. I have to do 2 days of full liquids and 2 of soft and then it's back to a regular diet. I had some soup for dinner and DID feel full when I was done so I'm hoping to FEEL what restriction is once I go to the regular diet. Thank you for your response.

I had pulmonary embolisms (blood clots in the lungs) and take coumadin (a blood thinner) but had to come off the coumadin for the surgery. For the two days prior to surgery and 3 days after, I had to inject Lovenox (similar to heparin) twice a day. Once I was back to a therapeutic level on the Coumadin, I no longer needed the injections. I have not heard of anyone being sent home on heparin who does not have a clotting problem history. Once you're up walking around (for me it was a few hours after surgery) you should not require anticoagulants.

I was covered under insurance but I did look up the costs for my surgery. I stayed overnight in a heart monitored unit and the total cost of everything was $25,000. This included the surgeon fee, the hospital costs, the anesthesiologist costs, all pre-op testing, the post-op esophagram and 90 days free post-op care including fills. I was banded in New York and the surgeon has done well over 1000 surgeries.

In New York, you're employer HAS to give you the day off for Jury duty but does NOT have to pay you. If your employer does pay you, the courts do not pay you the small stipend for jury duty.

I was in the OR for a little over an hour and a half and DID have a catheter but it was inserted when I was under anesthesia. I came out of the OR at 6:30 PM and the catheter was removed at midnight (no pain at all).

I would not call that person a friend at all. For the reasons you described, I chose NOT to go public with my surgery. Only 2 other people know and both are 100% supportive. I too am trying to "find" restriction and having people around who point out how much weight you DIDN'T lose is not healthy.

As a member of the health care profession, I can tell you that MANY MDs do NOT stay current in their education. Therefore, when something "new" comes along that the patient is more knowledgable about than they are, some MDs react by downplaying the question/procedure/test. Sad, but true. Secondly, there is a medical/surgical bias towards obese people. Currently, we have a patient who underwent a RNY procedure who is in the surgical ICU with complications. One of the surgical residents commented that "weight loss surgery is nothing more than a surgical patch for a life problem... after the golden year, she'll be right back where she started." The other intern and residents all agreed. Scary that this is the future surgeon of tomorrow.

This might sound like a dumb question but, why does it sometimes take one to two weeks before a fill "kicks in" and you experience restriction? I had my first fill yesterday and this information was printed on the diet sheet the surgeon gave me and he also mentioned it in passing as he was exiting the room. If they put saline in a ring that is secured at the base of your esophagus, why wouldn't you FEEL the narrowing right away? Does something magical happen at week one or week two? Am I just trying to see logic where none exists? My fill went fine and the only thing I notice is a little bruising over the port area. I go back on a regular diet on Monday or Tuesday. Thank you in advance for any insight you may offer.

Raven, it's awful that you were treated so badly by the nurse. The next time you go in for a fill, quietly tell the receptionist that you prefer not to have nurse X in the room for the fill. You and your insurance company pay the MD for a service and that should NEVER include disrespectful attitides. As for the MD, he should know better than to flirt and tolerate/participate in unprofessional behavior. I had my first fill yesterday and don't go back to regular foods until Monday or Tuesday so I don't know if I am restricted or not... on a full fluid diet today I felt the same as always. During the fill, it was just me and the surgeon... no RN or PA.

Hi Karen, I am glad to hear all went well and that the band is OK. From what you describe, it sounds like you might be having esophageal spasms that would explain the open/closed patterns. Are you on any acid blockers like nexium, previcid, pepcid, etc? If not, you might want to give them a try. There are also antispasmotic medications such as probanthine and drugs that help motility such as reglan. I hope the MD gives you some answers. Keep us posted.

I am very surprised that at 168 pounds, any surgeon would operate on you. It's sad that you had a bad experience in Mexico but it would not be right to judge all Mexican surgeons based on your outcome. How would you be able to "tell" people what surgeon to go to when the surgeon you have no has NOT operated on you?