Electrawoman

I don't have my band, yet. But I started menopause this year. I am not happy about that! Feel like shit most days---I'm losing hair, have lots of nausea and hot flashes, drop in libido, plus a very bad mood hangs over me like a cloud. There are also a host of other weird problems that come with it. I had a pain under my left ribs that I thought might be a hernia. Turns out it's another weird Meno side-effect that other women online have experienced. I am hoping that losing weight will actually help regulate my hormones. I have had PCOS for years. I was on bio-identical hormones for most of this year and they really help. I am just behind on my prescription because I haven't had the money to pick it up. I highly recommend them---and some good antidepressants to help get you through this nonsense.

The only people I have found who think this way (including myself at one time in the past) are obese people who are afraid---afraid they will lose you to the skinny crowd and you will be one of THEM (the people who judge and mock us)---afraid that it will work and you will change. Maybe you won't want to hang out this them anymore---afraid that others will put pressure on them to do it too and so many others If anyone ever says that to me, I plan to say "Even if is cheating (which it is not), so what? I need to be healthy and I don't care how I get there, as long as I get there." DOn't let her get to you :tongue2:

YAY! Thats awesome. I will add you to my friends now!

Can someone tell me how this is possible? It's freaking me out. MY surgeon said that a small percentage will gain. How would this happen? Drinking your calories? Eating lots of small food throughout the day? I'm confused.

@carolynfletcher: You're the first person I have seen who hasn't lost quite a bit of weight in the first year with the band. Did it not work for you? Why do you think it isn't working? I am just curious and asking questions because I haven't gotten mine yet and want to be aware of possible problems and things to look out for.

I have Tricare Standard and I am waiting on my approval. I had no big secondaries (like diabetes) but was approved by the surgeon because I am 200% over my ideal body weight. I haven't received notification of the costs and haven't even asked yet. I am sure you know that if you call three different people on the same day at Tricare, you will get 3 different answers. Add me as a friend and I will update you on the approval process via my profile. :smile2:

You are an inspiration and I need a buddy! :smile2:

My surgeon told me that the statistics are that the majority of lap-band patients will lose and keep off only 60% of their excess weight. That was hard to hear but I think very realistic. He said that a few people will edge up and a few people will edge down but the only real way to break out of that 60% is with exercise. I don't even have my band yet but if I were in your position, I might change my workouts and just hang in there. Regardless of what your metabolism is doing or not doing, remember the simplicity of calories vs calories out. Eventually, if you are taking in less than you are burning, you will lose weight.

Love the idea for an I WANT LIST! Starting one now :w00t:

Well, hell. Forget what I said earlier. My friend just accidentally outed me on Facebook. Ha Ha. Speaking of "The Secret", problem solved! I guess the decision was made for me. That takes the pressure of worrying about it off of me. ha ha BTW, I am a firm believer in the Law of Attraction. It works!

I hadn't heard of that phrase, hummingbird but for those of you who want to know the good and the bad about surgery and aftermath, go to your local bariatric support group meeting and you will hear all about the problems people are facing. I also found a group here for folks having trouble. I find it is good to see what can go wrong and the information in that group is very helpful. I can read them and ask myself what I would do in that situation. That way, if it happens to me, I will be prepared.

I love mom.on.the.go's answer. I have been trying to decide how to handle this as well. I think I will adopt your strategy with hints of the other suggestions here. I will start out by telling folks that I cut my portion sizes and choose healthier foods plus exercise. For my overweight friends I will add "and a lap-bad helps me to feel full longer so I can do these things."

I love this stuff! I haven't been banded yet but I eat the Fage brand and add honey. Sometimes, I go wild and add granola or fruit. I have also had it (or cottage cheese) with tomatoes, salt and pepper. I also use it in place of sour cream. Some froyo places sell plain/tart frozen yogurt that is also good. Sugarlessdelight.com sells a SF honey that's good (all their SF stuff is good!)

thanks! I know that I will be asked a few questions about my struggle with weight and then given the MMPI. I took that test years ago when I worked at a psych clinic so I already know the results, np. I did find out today that triCare requires the eval be done by a psychologist and my therapist is an MA, LPC and some other letters. The surgeon gave me the name of a psychologist and I have an appt on the 16th. yay! My nutrition appt is on the 13th. I have also decided not to broadcast this decision like most things I do in my life. I told my closest friends, talk here, and will probably leave it at that. It's not everybody's business. I have a big mouth so I hope I can stick to that! ha ha

PB means productive burp. It's when food gets stuck at the opening of your pouch. It has been explained to me like this: drinking cold soda really fast and getting that chest pain or getting a burp stuck in your chest. It hurts pretty bad when that happens but it lasts less than a minute. The difference is that with a PB it lasts longer and some food may come back up (like spit up but not violent like vomit). I plan on avoiding them as much as possible!

Great info in that post, Alex. I also asked my surgeon last night. I told him what the True Results lady said about erosion and the triangle-factor. He confirmed that Realize may have a slightly higher rate of erosion, it has a slightly lower rate of slippage. Personally, I think I would rather take the chance of slippage before erosion but the percentages are so low, I am not really worried about either.

Im adding you Mel! I visited my surgeon last night and made my decision for lap-band. I just need my psych eval (probably next week since my counselor is out of town), nutrition class, and Tricare approval. Wheeeeeeee! Heeeeeere I go!

I haven't had a band put in yet so I can't comment on most of these posts, but I do know something about food and depression. For many of us (I don't know any overweight person for whom this is not true), food helps keeps depression and anxiety at bay. Eating releases chemicals in your brain that make you feel good. Several of you are just barely out from surgery and it would make sense that, if you were using food to feel good before you might feel bad now without it. I expect that this will happen to me if I get banded so I started trying to think of alternatives to food. What are some things you can do to get the same release of dopamine and other feel-good chemicals? Exercise, eating jalapenos, playing with a dog, talking to friends, watching a funny movie are some that I though of. And I agree with the other poster who suggested you go see another surgeon. Your doctor may not be paying proper attention to you. I know that might sound simple but it's worth a try just to get you over this hump. Did your surgeon offer aftercare? If so, go to the support group meetings.

I went to my first seminar (True Results in Dallas area) and asked about the difference. She took awhile to answer (which concerned me) and then said something about Realize being the "old swiss band". Then she said it was triangular-shaped and increased the chances of erosion because tissue could get stuck in the corners. I am looking at a picture now and the Realize band is unfurled in the photo but doesn't look triangular to me. I have an appt with another surgeon on Thursday that uses both. If it's equally safe, I really like the online resources that Realize offers. But would not sacrifice safety for them.

Well, now I am confused! At the seminar I went to, the liquid to soft to small foods after surgery diet was explained. Then, they told us that we would be able to eat anything we wanted only in smaller portions while living with the band. They said that some people develop an aversion to certain foods or have some things stick at the band opening leading to restrictions on some items. (the lady that talked to us could no longer eat white bread, for example). There was talk of eating healthy (of course we all want to do that). But nobody said anything about restricting a lot of food types. Can someone jump in and explain? Thanks!

Thanks everyone! Great Expectations, please feel free to add me to your friends list. I will add you too (and anyone else who wants to friend me). I am sorry about your sister. That is really sad.

Thanks ya'll. You answers are really helpful! And I don't care if you have had your band for years, weeks, or haven't even had it installed yet. I do want to hear what you have to say. Everybody IS an expert about their own situation and that's what I came here looking for--personal stories. To Headhunter, there are better ways to get your point across. I can tell that you are passionate about what you have to say and there is some good information hidden in your posts but I don't feel like sifting through all of your negativity to get to the good stuff. You might get a better response if you move your comments to your own personal and cleverly-titled post instead of piggy-backing on mine. Why I am fat: I am an abuse survivor and gained 100 lbs in 1 year to hide my body. That was 20 years ago and though the reasons for it are gone, the weight remained. Because of PCOS and Menopause, my body holds onto fat. I do not have absorption issues. Hormones make me hungry...ravenous and it happens mostly at night. I feel nauseus during most of the day so I rarely eat Breakfast or lunch. However, I eat much more than I think I do without even realizing it. I can tell you (and truly believe it) that I ate only dinner today (and most days) but if I sit down and really think about it, I grabbed a bagel this morning, had an iced coffee, drank two cups of sweet tea (and no Water all day), ate one of my son's chicken nuggets, 3/4 bag of pork rinds (yeah I said "pork rinds"), ate about half a cup of dinner while cooking it to check the taste...then had two turkey dogs, rice and veggies for dinner. Finally, I made brownies with frosting and chocolate candies. I didn't eat the brownies but I did lick the frosting spoon and eat 2 handfuls of the M&ms that went on top. See? I've eaten way more than I thought I did and to think, I was just patting myself on the back for denying myself that brownie! Yesterday, I was in the kitchen wondering how a PB must feel while drinking some broth. Somehow, I gulped huge air bubble and it stuck right in my esophagus where food might get stuck. It lasted less than a minute and I thought I was going to die. If that's what a PB feels like, there is NO WAY I would risk that to overeat. So I guess I answered my own question :thumbup: I do have counseling in place and a referral to an eating disorder clinic if I need it. But the more I hear, the more I think I will do really well on the band. I still have more research to do and some appointments to talk to psych and medical people but I am going to start the process and unless something happens to convince me otherwise, I am very happy with what I have learned about the band to date. I am going to let this thread die a slow and painful death and then delete it. I will start a new one with some more questions I have for ya'll.

I am a 39-year-old woman who has been overweight for about 19 or 20 years. I have tried diets and even changed my entire lifestyle with healthy eating and exercise for 2 years with very limited results. I am a stress eater but I can't let myself get any fatter and I refuse to buy one more plus-sized outfit so I am getting a lap-band. I would never consider GB but lap-band seemed like a good alternative for me. The only doubt I had was with myself. If there is a way to cheat, I worried that I would use it. I wondered, will the threat of vomiting or PB experience really going to stop me from stress eating? "Funny you should ask", God said today as I swallowed a huge glob of air by accident while drinking some chicken broth. It stuck in my esophagus right where food might get stuck outside of a lap-band. It felt so horrible and painful that I knew I wouldn't ever risk that feeling just for extra food. I decided to go for it. I found a surgeon that accepts my insurance and I will go to the seminar next week. Meanwhile, I want to start lining up supports and this buddy program looks great. A little about me> I am a mother of a two-year-old (a fertility miracle and the coolest human on the planet), military wife, graphic and web designer, artist and small business owner who works from home. I love animals and I live in Little Elm Texas (near Frisco, Plano, Denton etc.). People who love me describe me as eccentric. Strangers just usually raise their eyebrow at me questioningly. I could care less, though. I have never been able to lose any more than 20 lbs at one go in my life. My best weight loss came when I was pregnant and on a diabetic diet for gestational DB. I lost 12 lbs. Gained it all back and then some. I need to lose about 150 lbs, though I would be thrilled just to get my stomach off my thigh or this fat roll off the back of my neck. I don't ever want to be stick-thin but I am uncomfortable in this body and I am ready to climb out. I would love support from someone who gets "it".

Good advice. Thank you. Turns out, the surgery center who held the seminar I attended does not take TriCare although the doctor does. So I scratched Dr. Benavides off the list. It doesn't do me much good for him accept TriCare if his center doesn't. I took your advice and called Tricare today. I too have gotten the runaround from them about other issues so I avoid calls like the plague. Every rep will tell you something different. This gal today couldn't even give me a list of bariatric surgeons. She gave me a list of plastic surgeons! SO I came back here and started searching for doctors that have previously taken Tricare based on posts from members. I located one within minutes. Dr. Cribbins has nothing but good reviews that I can see and I am scheduled for a seminar with him in about a week. MY dedictible for the year has been met so hopefully they can get me in before the end of December. :wink2: Unless something major happens to convince me otherwise, I am going for it. I will keep the thread up to date with cost information as I get it.