Ladybandito

Hi LadyB! Yep, surgery tomorrow. THen I'll heal and get back to being filled and have my fingers crossed that it will be as good as before or even better!
How are you doing? I had a physical last month, and though the weight has gone way up , my cholesterol is good and my blood sugars are low! So overall healthy. Now need to work on the fat again!
Nicki

Great post Bandista. And I get what you're saying. I too have found this weight loss journey not nearly as difficult as I imagined. Eighteen months and down 130+ lbs. I noticed today because I'm wearing a dress, that my thighs don't rub against each other anymore. I'm still working on my 'new normal' but I swear I haven't been this happy about my appearance and subsequent mobility and health improvements in more years than I care to remember.

Congrats, Leepers! You've got this!!!

Congrats, Leepers! You've got this!!!

What food?
You're experiencing what most of us in the green zone experience though. I've been doing this long enough to know what to expect and can feel those soft stop signals before I have a major stuck episode.
Learning to eat slowly and eat smaller bites can take a year or more for some of us to figure out. If you're chewing properly, it's most likely you're eating too fast.
But, our bands are fickle and most of us struggle with Bfast meals.

Sorry, I'm not buying it You just took a picture of your daughter and stuck it in there

I like the 3-2-1 too! New to this app and just had my 2nd fill today. Enjoying all the information

I do drink tea. It is a help to chew food well as it does not get pushed down too hard as it leaves the esophagus. That is a concern that stretching the tissues that way can cause leaks...Over time we can be ones that get ulcers....Not necessarily because of the sleeve. But because of acids in our stomach that is not attended too. Also it has been proven that if you get one your in line for others if you do not take meds to help bring down acids in your stomach......
Most don't get any of these problems but me..I am trying to set a world record for the person with the most complications from weight loss surgery...lol

Hi Jill. I have a band that I have been very happy with, so I don't share your particular frustration, but I do understand your concern. Since neither the band nor the sleeve have any malabsorption elements to them, maybe the bypass (which does have that feature) may be the xtra weapon you need in this battle?

Hi Jill. I have a band that I have been very happy with, so I don't share your particular frustration, but I do understand your concern. Since neither the band nor the sleeve have any malabsorption elements to them, maybe the bypass (which does have that feature) may be the xtra weapon you need in this battle?

Hi Jill. I have a band that I have been very happy with, so I don't share your particular frustration, but I do understand your concern. Since neither the band nor the sleeve have any malabsorption elements to them, maybe the bypass (which does have that feature) may be the xtra weapon you need in this battle?

Hi Jill. I have a band that I have been very happy with, so I don't share your particular frustration, but I do understand your concern. Since neither the band nor the sleeve have any malabsorption elements to them, maybe the bypass (which does have that feature) may be the xtra weapon you need in this battle?

I was banded in December 07. I lost slowly, but went from 235 lbs to 188 lbs (I am 5'9"-) and kept that off for a couple of years. Then I started eating too much and had a dilation. All Fluid was removed and I recovered from that - then started getting fills again. My weight went to 193 and stayed there for another year. The next slow gain was to 203 for another year. Now I have been at 210 for 2 years, currently size 16-18. Still I am happy with the band. I have restriction and I can't eat much at a time....I am 61 years old and have been on a diet since I was 13 I took diet pills for years, and I believe I "burned out" my metabolism, so I now have problems losing weight. If not for the band reducing the amount I can eat, who knows what I would weigh? The band is just a tool.....you have to "listen" to it and feel when you are full, then stop. It is easy to eat foods that go down easily and it is easy to eat too much and not "listen." The band is a part of me now, and I have to remember it is there and not stress it.

I know I have to continue to eat like I did. And try to block from my mind that the band is unfilled. I know with the heat my band will tighten on one a bit. My goal is fresh veggies a still keep one cheat day ever other weekend either Saturday or Sunday. Oh great good thing I only have 2 graduation party to go to one is early even and I do not eat after 7PM. So safe on that one. I told a few of my friends what is happening. I told them if you see me eating something good tell me to SPIT IT OUT!!!! And I won't lie I am sure I will be on the scale way more then I should till this slip repairs its self or has to be fixed. I am still waiting to here back from the contouring surgeon. So maybe good for now. Thanks for being out there for me. My support group here in town are all bypass people. No banders. So they have no clue how I tick.
I will stay strong I hope.....

My good friend Attorney Walter Lindstrom from WLSAppeals.com just penned this great blog entry.

I don’t remember the first day of OJ Simpson’s pre-trial hearing for the murders of Nicole Simpson and Ronald Goldman. I know my wife Kelley does – she watched the whole thing from a waiting room in a hospital in San Diego. Me? I was having surgery. It was June 30, 1994.

Today is the 20th Anniversary of my "open" Roux En Y (RNY) Gastric Bypass.

Could it really already be 20 years? I guess so. My 9-month old daughter – my living, breathing “A-HA!” moment – is 20 years old and doing a summer abroad in Spain. My 16 year old son – the gift I hadn’t even conceived of yet – is about to get his driver’s license. 20 years goes by in an instant.

Even as fast as the time has passed I dare say I’ve learned things over those 20 years which might help someone else, whether a person exploring the possibilities of surgery – a soon-to-be patient anxiously awaiting their impending surgery silently praying this really is the answer she or he hopes it will be – or people like me in the midst of their wonderful post-operative journey. I even have the audacity to hope these musings will offer something to health care providers offering surgery as a treatment option.

So, in celebration of a very important date in my life, my gift to myself is in writing some reflections, one for every year. It is my sincere hope one or more of these thoughts resonate with someone who might read them and need them. Please share them liberally with anyone who might benefit.

An Open Letter To The Bariatric Surgery Community

1. Bariatric surgery isn’t for everyone. Sure there are medical reasons which disqualify some people but I’m not talking about that. If you’re exploring it for yourself and decide it isn’t right for you – DON’T let anyone try to shame you, scare you, beg you or otherwise try to convince you to have an operation you’re not fully committed to living with for the rest of your life. Allow yourself the gift to choose another path.

2. “Support” is not a 4-letter word! If someone you care about is having surgery and you’re not comfortable with their decision you’re probably feeling a host of emotions ranging from fear and apprehension to disappointment and anger. DEAL WITH IT! Whether it’s pre-surgery or 20 years later this is really hard on us. It makes it easier when we have people in our corner and not trying to sabotage us.

3. Say it loud! Say it proud! OK – I respect anyone’s decision about privacy and what they wish to share or not share about their lives, especially in this age of social media. But I really hope you can honestly, even proudly, talk openly about your decision to have weight loss surgery. I believe many of us keep it secret because we fear it’s not going to work but I think committing to it out loud strengthens our resolve to succeed more than does a mysterious “gallbladder surgery” which wondrously resulted in a loss of 150 lbs. a year later. Besides, keeping it secret is a disservice to others like us who are often desperate to know “how is she doing it and why can’t I?!?….”

4. Post-op patients should learn to use two words: “FOR ME….” For 20 years I am constantly saddened by the “patient on patient” crime I read on “support” sites. “Only an idiot would have XYZ procedure….” “I’d never go to that doctor….” “If you don’t do ABC then you’re going to fail….” Be supportive of others’ choices. Hostility does nothing to elevate your own choice. Learn to voice things positively: “For me, doing XYZ was the best choice….” Like I said, “support” is not a 4-letter word!

5. Pre-op and Post-op patients should not underestimate the value of being in a well-run support group, especially before surgery and for a good amount of time afterwards. Questions need to be asked and answered about what to expect, what to do and when do to it. Shared experiences and feelings in the early stages of the process are invaluable. Don’t blow them off indiscriminately as too “touchy feely” (and yes fellow MEN – I’m talking to US!). That is a mistake.

6. Just because a surgical option is new that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s better.

7. Just because a surgical option is new that doesn’t necessarily mean it’s worse.

8. There is no Gold Standard! The next time someone, anyone, tells you the “X procedure” is the “gold standard” you might want to remind them we haven’t used the “gold standard” since 1933. That term is really quite useless. Insist a health care provider speak to you in terms of what is the best course of action FOR YOU.

9. Repeat after me: DOCTORS and PATIENTS should make decisions regarding medical treatment and surgery, THERE IS NO PLACE FOR INSURANCE COMPANIES TO SUBSTITUTE THEIR JUDGEMENT FOR THAT OF YOUR DOCTOR AND WHEN THEY TRY TO DO THAT YOU SHOULD FIGHT IT WITH EVERY Fiber OF YOUR BEING!

10. Remember the bathroom scale is non-judgmental. It doesn’t think you’re a “good” patient/person or “bad” patient/person. It gives a number.

11. Plateaus happen. When you’re a patient early in your post-op journey please remember that the number on the scale may not move in the direction you’re hoping for every day. It may not move at all for weeks at a time. Pretty much that’s normal so don’t stress about it.

12. Reach a balance between using the scale to obtain information so you can assess how you’re managing your chronic disease and stalking it in the hope the number says what you hope/want/need it to say. We patients all have a terrible fear, often unspoken, that we are destined to fail surgery just like every diet we ever tried. We tend to freak out when the number doesn’t go down or – God forbid – it ticks upward.

13. YOU have the power choose how that number on the scale is going to impact how you feel about yourself. I choose to have that number tell me how I’m doing managing my chronic disease, no different than a hypertensive patient paying attention to blood pressure readings or diabetics looking at HbA1c numbers. Sometimes I manage my disease better than at other times. But FOR ME, knowing the number a couple times a week works better. When I tried managing my disease by consciously deciding I didn’t want to know the number because I didn’t want to be a “slave to my scale” I went by how my clothes fit. That was a mistake.

14. If you’re really concerned about a plateau or weight regain, contact your doctor’s office FIRST – then you can make that social media post. Too many of us post as a substitute for reaching out to our bariatric programs. Sorry but sometimes the “advice” isn’t so good.

15. Don’t make my mistake. If you’re regaining weight after you’ve had surgery, PLEASE do not avoid seeing your surgeon and his/her team because you’re embarrassed or feel like you’ve failed them. I had a revision 9 years after my original surgery. I waited way too long to address it and I see or speak with bariatric surgeons and integrated health professionals around the world every single day! You haven’t failed unless you make the choice to not see someone about what’s going on. Given the chance most quality programs and professionals would be begging you to make an appointment to see what’s going on so they can help. Let them.

16. If you’re a bariatric surgeon, nurse, integrated health professional or office support, PLEASE be doing surgery because you care deeply for patients like us and understand that we have a chronic disease. If we’re struggling after surgery the last thing we need is someone who is supposed to be in our corner being judgmental. What we patients are going through, whether year 1 or year 20, is freaking hard. DO NOT MAKE IT HARDER!

17. Repeat after me: Needing a revision doesn’t mean you’re a failure! Needing a revision doesn’t mean you’re a failure! Needing a revision doesn’t mean you’re a failure!

18. The nature of bariatric surgery support groups invariably changes the further out from surgery you are. My support group no longer meets at the hospital where I had my surgery. My support comes from my family, friends and colleagues and has as much value FOR ME at this stage of my journey as any bariatric in-person or online support group I was part of as a member or which honored me with an invitation to speak and share experiences.

19. Whether you are pre-op or 20 years post, we all need help along the way. Take a minute today to say “Thank You” to someone who is helping you with yours. It feels good. After 20 years I have so many people who helped me that to try and list them by name risks leaving someone important out so I’m not going to take that risk. But I will tell you we as patients owe thanks to a two organizations, their members and their leadership. I joined the American Society of Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery in 1996 and at the time it was closer to a “cult” than it was a major specialty surgical society. ASMBS has grown to help guide and shape important decisions that affect all of us as patients and it has been and will continue to be an important part of my life where I have met many of my closest friends. Equally true is the place Obesity Action Coalition has in my life. Simply stated, there is no other voice out there for us and I’m OK with that because the OAC and its amazing team has achieved things I never dreamed possible when I was being wheeled into the operating room or when I began my new professional life as “The Obesity Law & Advocacy Center.” If you haven’t joined OAC – please do. We all deserve it.

20. Twenty years is a long time. God willing there’s going to be a lot more. FOR ME my journey has meant an improvement in health and longevity which allows me to receive the love I get from my daughter Marissa and my son Jared. They honor me every day by growing into truly amazing people and I know in my heart that if I had not had surgery 20 years ago I never would have been around long enough to see that. But most important to me is the need to say thank you to my Hero and love of my life, Kelley. She is my hero because she loved me regardless of how I looked on the outside when my BMI was over 60. She loved me through the scary reality of weight loss surgery, not once but twice, wanting only for me to be healthy. FOR ME Kelley makes possible anything of meaning I experience every day of my journey. She is my reason to travel this path and I’m blessed by her and because of her. I’m a very lucky man.

I can only hope some of you can someday be similarly blessed during the journey you’re taking. Good luck!

I don't miss much. But every now and then, I do mourn Mimosas and an icy cold Corona with lime.

I went to see my Doc today and did the Nasal Endoscopy, and my band and plication are perfect, THANK YOU JESUS!!! He also, had a ultrasound to make sure it wasn't the gallbladder or gallbladder stones. And that came negative, THANK GOD!!
He said it might be something fatty that I might be eating to make me feel bloated. So I will keep and eye out to see if there is a pattern. But I prayed to God it was nothing and believe in divine healing and also thank God for my wonderful doctor he truly is the best!!
Thanks everyone for your advice and words of encouragement!

B-52, one of my realizations about the band was that it works differently in different people, and the we each need to figure out how it is working for us. I have watched (and participated) in the flame wars over how to work your band, how to get through a plateau, what you should/shouldn't eat, until I came to the realization. Now, much like you I share my experiences and let people take them for what they are worth.
I was positive that I was going to lose the whole 100 in the first year, and the first 60 came off fairly easily, the next 5 where hell on earth as I logged, and exercised and sweated and cursed for the next 6 months, until I finally gave up and started living my life and listening to Mistress Band. Then one morning I weighed myself and I was down a pound, then a couple of months later, down another.
Yet I look at my friends on the forum who have lost so much more than I have in a shorter amount of time and there is a temptation to get jealous. But the important part is, I am happy where I am. I am wearing clothing sizes that I have not been able to wear since I was in Jr. High School. I feel good, I am moving and doing things that I never could have done before. My health is better.
And no, it is very hard for the newly banded to understand where we are. Why? Because (for me) it is someplace they have never been. So, I visit the forum on a regular basis, exchange PM with friends, and answer posts when I feel my answer will make a difference.

my goodness, I hope all works out for you. I 'm an example of a slow loser. Before I decided on the band my weight got up to 289. I was too embarrassed to see a doctor at that weight so pre-op I was 267. In mid December 2012 I had my lapband surgery. I thought by now I would be under 200 lbs. it hasn't happened yet. I keep playing with the same 5 lbs. I have faithfully gone for a fill every month and I can say that this is the first time I'm actually feeling restriction. My doctor believes in losing slowly and he is very conservative with his fills. Anyway, I think I'm doing everything right and for the first time since my first fill I am skipping the whole month of July for a fill. I'm hoping that I lose during the month of July and perhaps I can get filled less often. Good luck on your surgery in July :-)

Being given 202 lbs of grain fed free-range freezer beef one week after VSG.
I own a farm and the farmer I lease the cropland to gives me a 1/4 beef every June. It is the best tasting, cut-with-a-spoon-tender, out of this world beef you've ever eaten. My favorite food is steak and there are pounds and pounds of it to pick up Wednesday.
Irony...you can kiss my ***.
haha

this is code for "i only keep people around who can feed my narcissism."

I don't miss much. But every now and then, I do mourn Mimosas and an icy cold Corona with lime.

I'm going in for a check up in a couple of weeks myself. I'm concerned that I might have a slight slip also. Thanks for sharing Otaknam! Once again, our sharing has made me realize we're not in this alone! Just take it one day at a time and remember the basics. I'm even going to ask my doc for a food plan and to give me a list of no-no's again. I'm just going to try to start over, whether they adjust my band or not. We're here for you! BTW, hi everyone!! Sorry haven't been on much, but I think about you all every day. God bless!

To help, try to stay busy. Read. Walk. Play video games. Eat sugar free Popsicles. Remind yourself it's only 4 days. You can do it, really!

Um, no. It is not normal. Now that you have, straighten up for the duration.
Sorry if I'm too blunt; no offense intended.