slikchik10

Hey, had band removal, sleeve revision & hernia fixed on 5/20 by Dr. Chin out of the Redlands office. Loved it! I'm down 15 so far, and the after care has been awesome. I would also recommend getting involved with the support group out in Fontana at the weight management center. My stay at St. Bees was good and am up and around doing well. The Kaiser program is WAY better than I had with my banding experience. Education is the key and they help in all capacities with that. Good luck.

Ok, I've had many of the NSV mentioned being almost at my year mark but recently I had to purchase new bras and I just ordered the same style but the smaller size. Well, when I got them I discovered they were 2 clips on the back! I've not been in a 2 clip bra since my mid teens!!!! Gone are the days of 4 hooks being necessary to help hold the girls (and the fat). Yay for me! :-)

I think my folks will attend. Maybe 3 or 4? :-)

Nice job. Looks like if we keep spreading the word things will grow. :-)

THANKS TO ALL WHO CAME TO SATURDAY'S
FIRST OFFICIAL ONTARIO/CHINO CHAPTER GROUP MEETING!
It was great to meet everyone! I hope you felt comfortable, and enjoyed being among 10 others traveling this WLS path. Most importantly, I want you to know that this Group belongs to ALL OF US and I welcome your feedback and suggestions any time.
SAVE THE DATE: First Saturday of Every Month
September 6, 9:30-11:00a.m. (Same location-see Post #25)
And, to all the other Ontario/Chino & Nearby BariatricPal Pals out there--PLEASE COME JOIN US!

Well...let's see. Banded in 2006. Got the typical probs...reflux, vomiting, uber restriction w/fluid removal. Fast forward to 5/20/13 and had removal, revision AND hernia repair all in one surgery. Now...I am 70% down in weight and in a size I've never seen in my life! I got the best reaction on my visit home this summer. One of my best friends of 20+ yrs. walked right past me until I said something to her back and then she recognized my voice! This surgery is what I hoped my band would do. Good luck to those upcoming revision folks. Work the plan, stick to your mini goals and long term goals and it WILL happen for you!

I don't know if I now count as a vet (1yr. +) but in my 1yr. appointment the Dr. actually emphasized waist measurement instead of weight amount and BMI #. She said to watch and go for the <35" rule as a woman. Waist measurements smaller than this are a better indicator of health than the weight. Don't know how y'all feel about this, but just an FYI.

I don't know if I now count as a vet (1yr. +) but in my 1yr. appointment the Dr. actually emphasized waist measurement instead of weight amount and BMI #. She said to watch and go for the <35" rule as a woman. Waist measurements smaller than this are a better indicator of health than the weight. Don't know how y'all feel about this, but just an FYI.

I don't know if I now count as a vet (1yr. +) but in my 1yr. appointment the Dr. actually emphasized waist measurement instead of weight amount and BMI #. She said to watch and go for the <35" rule as a woman. Waist measurements smaller than this are a better indicator of health than the weight. Don't know how y'all feel about this, but just an FYI.

I don't know if I now count as a vet (1yr. +) but in my 1yr. appointment the Dr. actually emphasized waist measurement instead of weight amount and BMI #. She said to watch and go for the <35" rule as a woman. Waist measurements smaller than this are a better indicator of health than the weight. Don't know how y'all feel about this, but just an FYI.

Well...let's see. Banded in 2006. Got the typical probs...reflux, vomiting, uber restriction w/fluid removal. Fast forward to 5/20/13 and had removal, revision AND hernia repair all in one surgery. Now...I am 70% down in weight and in a size I've never seen in my life! I got the best reaction on my visit home this summer. One of my best friends of 20+ yrs. walked right past me until I said something to her back and then she recognized my voice! This surgery is what I hoped my band would do. Good luck to those upcoming revision folks. Work the plan, stick to your mini goals and long term goals and it WILL happen for you!

Your level of success is mostly up to you. It's similar to high school where the scholastic average is around 3.0. You can be a 4.0 student if you work hard. You can also fail and be much less than 3.0. That's why it's called an average. We have many 4.0-4.2 students here but we also have some 2.0 students too. Sometimes it's not how hard you work, but life can throw a lot of curves.

I was banded in January 2007, I loved the band in the beginning, but after losing a lot of weight needed more fills, anyhow, long story short I never could find the sweet spot after 23 fills, lost all restriction and gained about 70 lbs back. Finally converted to sleeve on November 20, 2013.
Band weight 248
Gastric sleeve weight 214
Today's weight 165
Goal weight 145
Happy? Heck yes I'm happy. Best decision ever.

Hi all. Had a band In 2006 but began the "too tight/reflux" problems in 2008/09. Pre-band I was at 248 and dropped 60 lbs, but with the probs regained about 30. Now, I'm just past my 1yr. mark w/ my revision to a sleeve. I'm down to 155 and in a size I've never seen in my life! I set a lot of mini goals over the year, with my main goal being to hit 70% loss of weight in my first year. (The Dr. said the expectation was this to happen in 2 yrs.). I DID IT!
Now, I'm still pushing on to my next goal, but after my 1yr. check up, my Dr. said my blood work is great and I was doing fantastic with things. Here's the key....EMBRACE THE CHANGE! I took the eating and exercising seriously. Don't get me wrong, I hate any and all forms of exercise (PE was NOT a fav in school) but it is a job I must do to maintain my change. Clearing the house of junk and making sure my body is taking in what it needed and not always what it wants helps the process. OH, and the biggest thing (for me anyway) is learning to recognize the head games my brain will play about wanting food. In the last year I have really tried to focus on learning what is hunger and what isn't, and how to compensate with new things instead of old habits.
A phrase I've adopted is "It's a marathon, not a sprint." As long as I work the plan and stay focused (recording what I eat, exercise 3-4x a wk for 30-60 mins., make healthy choices) my Dr. says I'll stay on a successful path. So, best of luck on your journey!

I was banded for 10 years - epic fail.
Not only was I scared of another surgery, but I was scared of failing again and I was scared of the permanance. I had one basic question "what if it is as awful as the band but I can't reverse it?"
Well, I reached the point where I felt I had no choice but to leap in. It took me over a year of wrestling with this before I finally had the band removed. Surgeons were adament it needed to go before it slipped further. I couldn't get courage up to do the sleeve, but I was preapproved for insurance. Then, I found out my insurance was changing and i had a "last chance" to get insurance coverage for the sleeve - so i went for it in Dec 2011.
Now 160+ pounds lost - I weigh around 140 instead of around 300-315 and it was the best decision ever!

I was banded in 2010 and just made 1 year out of being revised to the sleeve in May. Best thing I ever done! The sleeve is everything the band was suppose to be and more. I no loner vomit, slime, acid reflux etc. I eat about 5/6 times per day in small amounts. I did have to have my gall bladder removed back in November due the rapid weight lost! That was a surgery I was more than willing to have. Lol
My band didn't slip but it was on its way with vomiting multiple times per day. So I went to slider foods and gain 25lbs. Below are my stats from band to sleeve to current. I would like to lose 5-10 more lbs but if I don't lose another ounce I will be ok with that too.
Band stats
Hw 218
SW 200
Lw 160
Sleeve stats
Sw 185
Cw/Gw 130

Hi all. Had a band In 2006 but began the "too tight/reflux" problems in 2008/09. Pre-band I was at 248 and dropped 60 lbs, but with the probs regained about 30. Now, I'm just past my 1yr. mark w/ my revision to a sleeve. I'm down to 155 and in a size I've never seen in my life! I set a lot of mini goals over the year, with my main goal being to hit 70% loss of weight in my first year. (The Dr. said the expectation was this to happen in 2 yrs.). I DID IT!
Now, I'm still pushing on to my next goal, but after my 1yr. check up, my Dr. said my blood work is great and I was doing fantastic with things. Here's the key....EMBRACE THE CHANGE! I took the eating and exercising seriously. Don't get me wrong, I hate any and all forms of exercise (PE was NOT a fav in school) but it is a job I must do to maintain my change. Clearing the house of junk and making sure my body is taking in what it needed and not always what it wants helps the process. OH, and the biggest thing (for me anyway) is learning to recognize the head games my brain will play about wanting food. In the last year I have really tried to focus on learning what is hunger and what isn't, and how to compensate with new things instead of old habits.
A phrase I've adopted is "It's a marathon, not a sprint." As long as I work the plan and stay focused (recording what I eat, exercise 3-4x a wk for 30-60 mins., make healthy choices) my Dr. says I'll stay on a successful path. So, best of luck on your journey!

Hi all. Had a band In 2006 but began the "too tight/reflux" problems in 2008/09. Pre-band I was at 248 and dropped 60 lbs, but with the probs regained about 30. Now, I'm just past my 1yr. mark w/ my revision to a sleeve. I'm down to 155 and in a size I've never seen in my life! I set a lot of mini goals over the year, with my main goal being to hit 70% loss of weight in my first year. (The Dr. said the expectation was this to happen in 2 yrs.). I DID IT!
Now, I'm still pushing on to my next goal, but after my 1yr. check up, my Dr. said my blood work is great and I was doing fantastic with things. Here's the key....EMBRACE THE CHANGE! I took the eating and exercising seriously. Don't get me wrong, I hate any and all forms of exercise (PE was NOT a fav in school) but it is a job I must do to maintain my change. Clearing the house of junk and making sure my body is taking in what it needed and not always what it wants helps the process. OH, and the biggest thing (for me anyway) is learning to recognize the head games my brain will play about wanting food. In the last year I have really tried to focus on learning what is hunger and what isn't, and how to compensate with new things instead of old habits.
A phrase I've adopted is "It's a marathon, not a sprint." As long as I work the plan and stay focused (recording what I eat, exercise 3-4x a wk for 30-60 mins., make healthy choices) my Dr. says I'll stay on a successful path. So, best of luck on your journey!

Hi all. Had a band In 2006 but began the "too tight/reflux" problems in 2008/09. Pre-band I was at 248 and dropped 60 lbs, but with the probs regained about 30. Now, I'm just past my 1yr. mark w/ my revision to a sleeve. I'm down to 155 and in a size I've never seen in my life! I set a lot of mini goals over the year, with my main goal being to hit 70% loss of weight in my first year. (The Dr. said the expectation was this to happen in 2 yrs.). I DID IT!
Now, I'm still pushing on to my next goal, but after my 1yr. check up, my Dr. said my blood work is great and I was doing fantastic with things. Here's the key....EMBRACE THE CHANGE! I took the eating and exercising seriously. Don't get me wrong, I hate any and all forms of exercise (PE was NOT a fav in school) but it is a job I must do to maintain my change. Clearing the house of junk and making sure my body is taking in what it needed and not always what it wants helps the process. OH, and the biggest thing (for me anyway) is learning to recognize the head games my brain will play about wanting food. In the last year I have really tried to focus on learning what is hunger and what isn't, and how to compensate with new things instead of old habits.
A phrase I've adopted is "It's a marathon, not a sprint." As long as I work the plan and stay focused (recording what I eat, exercise 3-4x a wk for 30-60 mins., make healthy choices) my Dr. says I'll stay on a successful path. So, best of luck on your journey!

I would bet that the vast majority of WLS patients choose surgery because they have tried and failed at "diets". I know that I tried Weight Watchers, Nutri System, Zone Diet, Medifast and Atkins at various times. I had varying levels of success with each but ended up putting my weight loss back on. Part of the problem is the "diet"approach. Very few of these diets teach you how to manage food choices beyond their program.
Many WLS programs take a holistic approach to the surgery. That is why nutrition classes, exercise classes, psych reviews are included. Did any have a psych evaluation as part of weight watchers?
The reason VSG is working for me is that I have made a lifestyle change. I am eating healthy Proteins, fats and carbs on a regular schedule, I am drinking more Water than ever, I am exercising and I have tremendous support from medical professionals and current WLS support groups. I have every reason to believe that I will be successful as long as I follow the plan.

I did most of my preop research regarding deficiencies by looking at studies conducted on cancer and ulcer gastrectomy patients. Gastrectomy surgery has been around for a hundred years (just not for weight loss). There are numerous studies conducted 10, 20, 30 + years after patients had part or all of their stomachs removed for medical reasons. It actually took decades for some of the deficiencies to show up.
But since we are all individuals and we all eat and metabolize differently, I think our best bet is you get our blood tests and adjust our diets or supplementation accordingly. At least that's what I'm doing.

Had band surgery in October 2005 and lost 100 pounds and then started having issues with slipping and it being too tight. Gained 90 pounds and had revision to sleeve in November 2013 and am down 87 pounds.

One of my favorite quotes...
“Those who mind don’t matter and those who matter don’t mind.”Good luck...you're in for one heck of a journey!

At the risk of sounding a bit brash...f**k your "friend". She sounds as if she's dealing with her own "fat acceptance" issues. You don't need those kind of people in your life. She's selfish. She created a whole blog post about YOUR surgery and made it about HER feelings. She doesn't care about you. She was never a friend. Cut that dead weight loose now. You'll feel much lighter when you do.

You are likely dehydrated which is why you're week. Prilosec over the counter twice a day has saved many Sleevers. Please get yourself some!