Elisabethsew

Congratulations, Dan, and much continued success to you. I'm revising to a VSG on 4/1.

I feel so bad that you suffered an infection that requires continued antibiotics. Maybe you should see an MD that specializes in infection control. I am having surgery in Mexico and am so glad I read your post and did not choose your surgeon. Get well soon!

It's interesting to me that you posted in a closed thread that you and your daughter were having the lapband done at the end of February and now you both have the VSG. Did something go wrong and you had to have the band removed and revise to a VSG?

I've got relatives not too far from Walton... a lot of them. LOL. I looked into the RNY but don't feel it's good for me. I have Iron deficiency anemia and can't swallow pills (LOL)... no joke. I eat healthy but the portions are too big and my down fall is hot bread. Unfortunately, I can eat toasted bread and everything else with the band. Best of luck to you.

The cost is $12,500. You send a $500 deposit 10 days before the surgery and can either bring a certified check, cash, credit card, or use financing for the rest (in their information guide). The money pays for a car to take you to and from the airport in San Diego, a stay in the hotel the night you arrive, medical clearance, pre-op EKG, chest x-ray, lab work, etc., the actual surgery, and 3 nights in the hospital. There is no extra money to put out for the anesthesiologist, medications, etc. I have the patient information booklet and can email that to you if you like. I am sorry you're having problems with the band. It seems we're hearing more and more that the band is not working for many people even though they are working for the band.

Thankfully, sleep apnea, etc., are not a problem. In fact, when I am in the hospital, they have even woken me up because I don't snore and am a closed mouth breather. LOL. I do have to admit that my sleeping (when the reflux is not acting up) is much better once I got on the right dose of synthroid for the hypothyroidism. I'll keep you up to date. I started the pre-op diet a day early (today!) and was dying that everything in the store was filled with carbs. LOL. I can only have 30 for the day.

Well said! In this economy, many MDs are feeling a slow down in their business. Paid posters must bring in business. Whenever anyone is considering surgery, they really do need to make sure they find out the facts, the fiction, and talk with actual patients.

I am a registered nurse and followed the rules of being banded to the "T". I don't have a slip or erosion or an overfill. In fact, I have never felt the restriction that the band was supposed to afford me. What I do now have is night time regurg. and heartburn that is becoming persistent. I worked the band but the band did work for me and MANY people just like me exist. I could not be happier for you that the surgery you had was what you wanted and that it was successful for you. However, I don't think it's fair to insinuate that most complications are because patients did something wrong. Now that the band has been a populat surgery for some time, statistics are showing that MANY patients are experiencing complications and that the average time they are showing up is the 3 year mark. When I got my band (a few days shy of 3 years ago), I was told the band might not be a lifelong option because no long term studies were available. For many, the band is failing forcing them to explore other options. I hope you never have to be in the boat a lot of us find ourselves. Best of luck on continued success.

Restriction and no getting stuck... ahhhhhhhhhhhhh. I can't wait to get this band gone... 9 days to go. LOL.

Thank you! I am running around like crazy trying to get everything done at my full time job, getting my student's work all corrected (part time job) and shopping for all the post-op foods/liquids. I am going to work at 6:30 PM on 3/30, leaving work early on 3/31 to get to the airport by 8:15 AM, flying 3K miles to CA, and then it's about another 90 minutes or so to the hospital. Between no sleep, a time zone 3 hours different than mine, and the excitement of getting this band out, I bet I sleep well when I finally get to the hotel room. LOL. I hope you and your mom have a safe flight in and I look forward to meeting you.

They are living in the ice-cream parlor trying to put out the hearburn! LOL. Sorry, I need comic relief at this point but having that awful acid come up and choke you in your sleep and guzzling antacids all day is NO quality of life. I agree that bands will soon be joining the dinosaurs... extinct.

I have a BMI of over 40 so I'll be starting a one week pre-op diet soon. It's low/no fat and carbs. You can have Protein shakes/bars, low fat yogurt (yuck, I'll pass on that), and unlimited lean chicken, fish, and beef. I'm just a few years older than you so I'll definitely keep you posted on how it goes.

kgloverii and oregon daisy, THANK YOU! I am so eager to start my new life and finally feel like I have made the right choice. I'm another day closer. LOL.

Thank you so much! I don't know if I should say I was having a lot of problems or if I should say I kept waiting for it to work. LOL. I do know having this inside me is no longer safe so the countdown to 4/1 begins....

I'll be celebrating the 3rd anniversary of being banded by getting ready to kiss it good-bye two days after that milestone. Like many of the others who can no longer tolerate living with the band, I am having a revision to the vertical sleeve gastrectomy (VSG) on 4/1/09. Unlike many people seeking weight loss surgery, I have never been a normal weight. I managed to eat myself up to 440+ pounds, diet down to 195 pounds, and then regain to over 350 pounds. I was drawn to the band because it promised restriction. I already taught myself to eat healthy and was not a junk food eater. I could look at cake, cookies, chips, ice-cream, etc, and not desire any of it. Put a loaf of hot, crusty bread and butter in front of me and I was in heaven. THAT I could not pass up and I could easily eat the entire loaf. The band was going to prevent me from being able to do that. I was a model patient, did the pre-op diet, and went into surgery confident this was going to be the tool that would get me to a healthy weight. I suffer from arthritis and need two total knee replacements so this surgery would allow me to lose weight, walk without so much knee pain, and get me in shape for the eventual knee replacement surgery. At 6 weeks post-op I was told I could get my first fill. I was hungry those first 6 weeks but I stuck to the post-op diet and was sure the fill would "do the trick" and allow me to feel the same restriction others were posting about. I felt that way after the 2nd, 3rd, 4th, 5th... fills. What I did get was heart burn and acid regurgitation. I was placed on Nexium and told everything was fine and to increase my exercise. Fast forward to today and I am miserable. The heart burn and acid reflux have now become an everyday event and it's now becoming constant. I eat dinner, stop eating and drinking after dinner, and wait until after midnight to go to bed. Right next to my bed is a huge wedge pillow that basically elevates me to a relaxed sitting position. Sometimes I can get to sleep lying down like I used to but it doesn't last long. I am awakened choking on the acid reflux or feel the awful burning in my upper chest and quickly get myself into an upright position. I did not fail the band. The band failed me. Because I "only" have heart burn and reflux, the two surgeons I consulted wanted to either place a new band, manipulate the present band, or convert me to a gastric bypass. I would have to start a lengthy paperwork of MD visits to "prove" to the insurance company that this is necessary. If I don't want to wait, the self pay price is $25,000. Unless I win the lottery tomorrow, that is not an option for me. I had researched the various weight loss surgery options available and decided a VSG would be the right one for me. I never ever felt any restriction lasting more than 2-3 days so the 70 pounds I lost, and kept off, came from me dieting. I eat healthy but I eat too much and that means a restrictive surgery is what should work best for me. Iron deficiency anemia rules out me getting a gastric bypass. My knees are now considered "terminal" and total knee replacement surgery WILL need to be done soon. I finally reached the point where I said, "enough is enough" and can no longer with the quality of life the band has afforded me. It's got to go. So, after doing extensive research, I'll be making my first trip to Mexico but it will be as a patient and not a vacationing tourist. LOL. Dr. Alberto Aceves was the standout front runner when it came to selecting a surgeon and he agreed to perform my surgery. I borrowed some money from my sister, saved some, and emptied my savings and will travel to Mexico on 3/31 for all the pre-op requirements. Surgery will take place on 4/1... April Fool's Day. However, the joke will be on the band and the winner will be me because THAT day will mark the beginning of a new and improved life for me. Please keep me in your thoughts. I am traveling alone and nervous... a good nervous. I'm at peace with my decision and April 1 can't come quick enough.

For privacy reasons, MANY people do not feel comfortable posting a picture on this board. When I had surgery, I told 2 people and that's how it remains today. That does NOT mean I am "hiding" and I must caution you on that point. Some members would consider that comment quite insulting. I had my lapband surgery done in the U.S. but can no longer tolerate living with it. I am on nexium, feel little restriction, and worry that the chronic heart burn and regurgitation will lead to esophageal cancer. On 3/31, I fly to Mexico and on 4/1 I will have revision surgery to a sleeve. I did tons of research, picked the surgeon with the most experience, lowest complication rates, and talked with people who had the procedure by him. I am very happy that the band was so good for you. As long term studies begin to come out, others are not as fortunate as you are and more people are electing for other WLS options.

Many banded people don't lose as they expected they would. You might want to talk to your MD about getting revised to a sleeve.

Posts are removed if the rules of the forum are broken. They are easy to read and understand. If anyone needs clarification of the rules, please notify a moderator or an administrator. If rules are followed, posting is not a problem and emails are unnecessary.

The administrators and moderators are on the alert for paid posters. I had one paid poster email me and she stated she worked for a clinic in Mexico. The problem with paid posters is that you ban one and two more pop up. Please trust that IP addresses are checked and Alex is always looking for the latest in software/internet security.

You got that right. I thought I was pretty internet savvy but I only learned that some posters were paid to come to the forum for the sole purpose of drumming up business for a surgeon. I also learned that a good way to "spot them" is to see how many posts they have made and where they post. The paid posters tend to stay on one topic like vultures ready to swoop down and defend the people paying them.

If you look at your deleted post in the thread it states why the post was deleted. As explained by Susan, posters ARE notified when a post is deleted. Is there some confusion understanding this? I don't understand your post????

Excellent advice, Brandy. What is worrisome is that some of the less reputable surgeons engage in this practice and boast low prices to get people to use them. In this economy, people are looking for bargains and might be tempted to make their decisions based on price alone. When you toss in the paid posters who promise the moon for little money, scams can grab a lot of innocent people. That's why this thread was necessary. We want people to be informed and aware so they don't fall prey to these scammers.

Thank you for posting. What you and most of the other members are doing is correct. You are relating YOUR experiences with different facets of the weight loss surgery experience. It is expected that members will have very positive things to say as well as negative comments. I came to this site after I had my surgery. Thankfully, I had a great experience and a positive outcome. I want people to know that. However, if I had a negative experience, I would want to share that as well so others did not have go through it. The difference between you and a paid poster is that you had surgery, are a real patient, are posting from actual experience of self or friends, and you're not getting paid. Paid posters work for one or several surgeons for the sole purpose of drumming up business. They converge a thread that mentions any negatives about "their" surgeon and crucify those who disagree with them.

As many members are aware, advertising is against the rules of the forum. If a reputable person/medical group/organization, etc. wishes to pay for advertisement, they go through the proper channels. Thankfully, the great majority do just this. Of course, people always find ways to "beat the system" and one of the latest is paying people to post. This occurs when members are giving opinions or sharing bad experiences that they had with a particular group/surgeon, etc. Obviously, this is bad for busine$$. To combat the negative posts, a few actually pay people to create an account and do battle with those who post negative experiences. Many of the paid posters are easy to "find" because they only post on threads that speak negatively about the person or group paying them. Please do your own research and choose your surgeon carefully. The great majority are wonderful and it's sad that a few spoil it for the rest and make it necessary for a thread like this to exist. We have a GREAT forum and we intend to keep it that way. Please trust that paid posters will be dealt with. Thank you,

Reminds me of the saying, "Why buy the cow when the milk is free." LOL.