AlienBandit

I was 24 when banded and now I am 25. I have had lipo a few times on numerous parts of my body and just had a mini tummy tuck. With plastics there are many things to consider before doing a surgery like if your going to have kids etc. Some doctors dont recommend things like a tummy tuck or breast lift before kids. This is something to consider. Please keep in mind though that since we are young our bodies will change so much after we lose weight. I wanted a breast lift but now I find my boobs are ok now and I think I will skip a lift.

YYAAYYYY more foreigners in Korea being banded! Trust me I understand the whole eating thing it is a challenge without someone there to help you along the way but this website is great. You can talk to other people and learn from them You can do this. Good luck! I think I might have met your doctor before but I am not sure. What band are you getting? There are two different lapbands brands ( as well as the SAG band) that are in Korea the new one lapband AP just got approved by the Korean FDA in July 2010.

Not only do I fit into Korean clothes I fit into the middle sizes. Korean clothes go odd numbers up to 31 and I am size 27! My waist is about a size 25 but Koreans don't have big thighs so I must buy bigger sizes to accommodate my large thighs :S I would love to shop at Shinsegae but god so expensive! I am so jealous!

Ok not to get totaly off topic but congrats on the engagement and welcome back to the land of the band. I am sure by the time you come to Korea you will be able to fit into the ridiculously tiny clothes here. It is such a great feeling to fit into Korean clothes :huh2:

With my first band this never happened. It wasn't until I had the balloon that i started to notice this when I over ate. Now sometimes I get it but not often. It always comes if I am out socializing with friends and eating or drinking more then I should over a long period of time. It looks so strange. Try eating less and waiting longer before drinking after eating. P.s Vio any recent trips to Korea? Its been a long time since we chatted!

For me the band has worked. I would never get the sleeve done because it freaks me out that they would cut out my stomach. the plication is different because they don't cut your stomach they stitch it. here is a video. I have even heard of this being done under your band so you don't need big fills and there is less chance of stomach erosion and your band slipping. Anyways though I have had some complications I have still been really successful with the band and don't regret it. i started with a low BMI so I didn't want a drastic surgery. I'm now 12 pounds from goal. If you work hard, follow your doctors orders, and exercise you can be successful too :blushing: Everyone is different so it is hard to pinpoint why people are not successful sometimes it is their health, sometimes it is their diet, sometimes it is their head hunger, sometimes it is their lack of exercise, etc. If you have a good support system, have a good nutritionist, a good doc and a good mind set and motivation you will succeed.

With my first band, when I went for a check up a month after being banded my doc wanted me to have a fill. Since I had already lost 20 lbs and had a bad stuck episode with a Vitamin a few days before, I said no. After arguing my point and listening to my docs points he let me be but told me to come back 2 weeks later for a fill. I made an appointment but then canceled it because I still wasn't ready for a fill. When I finally went in 3 weeks after the first time he tried to give me a fill, a week later then when he wanted me to come back I got a fill. However my doc wanted to give me a large fill and I didn't like that idea either. Again after arguing my point and listening to his point we agreed on a smaller fill. Another time I went in for a fill but found it too much so I asked for it to be removed. I had it removed because my doc was going away on business and I had family coming to visit who don't know I am banded. My doc was fine with my request and just gave me another fill after my family left. The first few fills have little effect on us usually if it is a small amount. If your not ready for a fill then talk to your doc about it. Once I got my second band I never said no to a fill but I always made sure to get a small fill each time to slowly work my way up getting used to eating like a bandster again. You are supposed to get a fill if you are eating bigger portions, are hungry between meals and not losing weight. If that is not happening to you, then tell your doctor. I wish I could have as little fill as possible and still be successful however, thats not the case with me.

Every time I lost weight in the past I would lose my hair too. my doctor always said it was normal because I was losing a good amount of weight. I did a diet called the Dr Berstein diet that required me to get b-12 Vitamin shots 3 times a week and take vitamin ( cal.mag, multi vitamin, Omega vitamin etc) every day. It was a high Protein low carb diet. I lost my hair like crazy every time I did it. Basically it is impossible to avoid losing your hair. I found after being banded I have not lost as much hair as fast as I used to with other diets.

A pre op diet is meant to help shrink your liver and get rid of some fat around it. If you have too much going on around your liver then your doctor might not be able to do the surgery. That would be terrible to wake up and be told you couldn't get the band. I have a low BMI so we weren't worried about my liver. I did however start doing more liquids, reducing my food portions etc a week before my surgery.

You can always have a revision surgery and have the port moved later. I just had mine moved and don't know where it is now. It used to stick out bad too

I have done some roller coasters and other crazy rides ( and bungee jumping strapped at my waist) and I have never had a problem. You might however notice you don't get the butterflies in your stomach feeling. Thats what happened to me. It was so weird!

There is still a band called the SAGB and not the realize band Compare Adjustable Gastric Bands - LAP-BAND vs. REALIZE Band The REALIZE Band is based on the technology of the Swedish Adjustable Gastric Band (SAGB), the original soft, low-pressure balloon design, with improvements to the gastric band locking mechanism and injection port technology. Three generations of improvements: 2009 - REALIZE Band-C 2007 - REALIZE Band 1996 - SAGB (Outside US)

I thought the same thing and I kept saying to my doctor arent they the same. However he says no and I have found info to support what he says.

Co I was thinking the same thing. There is an 11cc realize band as well as an 11cc SAG band ( swedish band NOT the same as realize) etc Does your band look like any of these? Bands: Very IMPORTANT !! Please Read!!

My stomach got so swollen from surgery but after a while it toned down. I am 12 pounds from goal and my port did stick out ( low profile) so when I had my tummy tuck I had my port moved under my muscles now I have no idea where it is. Maybe that is something to consider

11cc lapband? I have never heard of an 11cc lap band. You must not have the AP series (3rd gen) or the first generation. What does your band look like? What is the lapband type?

I'm dying to lose my last 12 lbs before the year is up. I hope I can do it while still trying to recover from my mini tummy tuck. Here's to hoping for the best Christmas gift ever :smile:

My first port never usually bothered me. Sometimes it would move a little and I could feel it but it wasn't anything bad. With my second band/port my port seemed to sit on a nerve or something because I would always get strange pains there. I asked my doc he checked it out and couldnt see anything wrong. I just had my port moved and the pain is finally gone. After 3 months of it, I am glad :smile: I would def ask your doc.

after I had my first band removed, I still had restriction. I remember a month after having the band removed I had a pb episode with kimchi :S It was weird but my doc said it was a normal thing to happen as my stomach size had changed because of the band

Where is your port located? My port was stitched but somehow used to still move sometimes when I bend down, stood up, bend a certain way, if my jeans were pushing on it etc. I used to be able to push down and move my port a bit too. This was a very strange moving or popping feeling. My doc checked it out and said it was nothing to worry about. Maybe it is your port that you are feeling?

Not drinking with meals is hard trust me. Sometimes I forget so there are times where I make a mistake and go to drink right after a meal. I understand the frustration but this is something youre going to have to work with. Someone once posted on here some advice from her doctor. When you go to eat take a glass full of ice with you. The amount of ice that melts during the meal is what you can drink during the meal. This seems to be a great way to start the no drinking while eating plan. Lucky for me half of my family believes that you should not drink during a meal so it has been in my head since a kid to not drink much or at all during a meal, however I am still battling the not drinking right after a meal.

I was 15 pounds from goal when I had my tummy tuck last week. So far things are looking good. My muscles weren't touched because I havent had kids yet. I did have my port moved so it finally doesn't stick out though there is some empty space now where it used to be. Anyways my doctor says that 20 pounds from goal or lower is ok to start getting plastics ( but you must maintain your weight for at least 6 months). I only had a mini tummy tuck so I am still going to have to do some work on my abs which is ok. I love going to the gym and am going crazy without it right now. Since my tummy tuck scar is lower then normal I think after I have kids I might be able to get another one if needed. I am glad my muscles were left alone. If you thinking of a goal of 150-160 lbs I would definitely wait. My highest weight was 220-230 I got banded at 210 and plastics at 155 and let me tell you my stomach changed soooooo much between 155-190 lbs!

check out this link it compares the band with other surgeries Compare LAP-BAND® to Other Weight Loss Options | LAP-BAND®

I have had many negative experiences with people as well who call me fake/lier etc because I want to protect my identity since no one knows about my band. I am sorry you are having a hard time. This website is supposed to be a place to get support and not a place to feel alienated. Please know that we are not all that bad. Many of us are struggling just like you. Just like everyone's bands being different so are our weight losses etc.

With my first band I had 5cc as my first fill ( in an 11cc band) and it made no difference to me. With my second band I had 4cc placed in my band during surgery and I had no idea. When I went for my "first" fill my doctor told me I already had saline in me! I thought I was completely empty because I could eat a horse. The first fill really doesn't do anything