4RE4ME

1. Would you do it over again? No. I have had 2 slips and reflux issues. I have had it for 32 months but it will be removed next month. At that time I will get gastric sleeve. 2. How long post-op until you feel normal again? Do you ever "forget" you had the surgery done? I was back at work 3 days later. Desk job. 3. Are there any foods you CAN'T eat post-op? )I heard veggie and fruit skins, pastas, popcorn?) For some reason milk didn't sit well with me. Now that my band is unfilled I have no problem with it. 4. Do I need to give up coffee and soda? Forget soda. Coffee is fine. 5. Do you deal with heartburn or reflux regularly? YES! 6. Can you have this surgery and NOT tell your whole family, friends, and co-workers? I find it too hard to remember who you told and who you didn't. Once 2 or 3 people know EVERYONE knows. 7. How is it you DONT lose weight immediately after surgery? Because you have no restriction until they fill if a few months later. 8. What type of band do you have and are there any differences in the manufacturers? I have Vanguard 9. No liquids with meals, whatsoever? Nope. Good luck. It may work very well for you. There sure are a lot of success stories out there. Spend a lot of time in the complications section.

Stuck is usually caused by not chewing well enough and/or eating too fast. Everyone seems to have different foods that get stuck. Popular ones are eggs, dry chicken and bread. The restriction is much more suttle. You may notice not going back for seconds, taking smaller portions at the buffet etc. Its these things, over time that seem to make a difference.

I'm in but I have a question. Why are all time stamps June? Shouldnt it be the date you entered the weight? It's still May. Timestamp LapBand Screen Name Starting Wt Current Wt Challenge Goal Weight Pounds To Go 6/2/2009 CapitolChick 215 215 200 15.00 6/1/2009 AshleyRN 229 229 215 14.00 6/2/2009 wannabthinagain 156 156 135 21.00 6/1/2009 Mim 190 190 175 15.00 6/1/2009 mominlv13 254 254 240 14.00 6/1/2009 jason r 314 314 289 25.00 6/1/2009 scorpioqt 268 268 250 18.00 6/1/2009 Kaninag 210 210 190 20.00 6/1/2009 Chocolate_Snaps 219 219 199 20.00 6/1/2009 Jenai 232 230 199 31.00 6/1/2009 Angelyco 412 412 375 37.00 6/1/2009 Emjay 257 227 199 28.00 5/27/2009 4re4me 285 285 260 25.00

I have been lurking. I had a slip in June 08. Dr. unfilled me completly. I had 9cc in a 10cc band and was doing well. He would not refil till 4 months later and even then just 1cc per month for the first 6 months and a half cc per month since. I am only up to 7cc's now and just starting to feel restriction. I have gained 15 pounds since June 08. Has anyone else heard on this SLOW refill policy. We knew that I needed an aggressive fill before. Why this 1cc a month?? I'm starting to think they enjoy the fill fees more then having me as a sucessful patient. What is the plan with your slip Manatee?

Unless you want to slip you need to get a slight unfill today. If you wait a week count on a total unfill for months. Don't play around with a tight band unless you want all your past efforts to go down the drain.

Julia, Call your Dr and get a bit unfilled right away. If the banded area gets inflammed from being too tight you will require a total unfill. YOU DONT WANT THAT. Do it today. Tom

It does happen to everyone at some point. Here is what I know. When you tighten up you MUST not fight it. It seems that any type of irritation will swell the area thus causing more restriction. Go back to mushies and light eating for a few days so as not to cause more irritation. PB / slime will just make it worse and WILL cause a slippage. I speek from experience. If diet does not change the symptoms then you should get a little bit taken out. Being too tight sounds like a good thing but it is a recipie for disaster with the band.

I guess I got "lucky" :crying: . I had another upper GI 8 days after unfill and guess what?? I became unslipped. I am soooooooo relieved. They will start the refill process back up in 5 weeks. What a wake up call. It all came about from becoming to tight and then trying to ignore it hoping the weight would speed up. WHAT A DUMB THING THAT WAS. I learned a lesson and got a second chance. My new motto is "Respect The Band". Tom

Hey Boo, Did your band "unslip" after unfilling? If so how long did it take? Had my first fluro ever last week and they said band slipped. They unfilled me and tole ne to get another fluro in a week. No liquid diet. Seems too easy to me. Tom

Make that 3 people with same problem. My Dr however did not suggest I go to liquids. He just said eat sensible and chew well. Unfilled me today, wants me to get upper GI on Monday and come back on Tuesday, 7 days after unfill. I guess he thinks if it does not correct itself in a week then it will not self correct.

Lori is right on the money with her response. I had the same problem after having the perfect fill. They took a little out and instant cure for me. We are sloley adding fluid back in after allowing the irritation to heal for a few months. I'm guessing you are having a hard time keeping food down also??

Check this out. It may work for you. www.moderation.org

All true. I packed the sleep apnea machine away once I lost about 50 pounds. The only time I dig it out is if I have a few drinks as that makes me snore. Got to keep the wife happy.

My Dr is weaning me off mine. In fact I have to split pills in half as I am already at the lowest doseage of Atenolol whick is 25mg so I now take 1/2 of a pill or about 12mg a day. (some of the pill flakes away when you slice it) Seems overcautious but he is the Doctor.

I have had the same issues for the last week. I have not had a fill in over 6 months so not sure why I tightened up but I am looking forward to any good advice and/or explanation. I am trying to figure out what changed all of a sudden.

Hey Chris, How did you know to adjust your pressure down to 7. I have been hesitant to adjust mine which I have been using for about a year but I feel I am getting way to much air.

I was banded in May 2007. Last fill was 12 weeks ago. I have 9cc in a 10cc band. About a week ago I started experiencing the same problem with the inability to eat anything most of the day. Even water is hard to get in. Not sure what to think although I do like the lack of calories. Going to contact Dr on Monday if it does not stop as this cant be good.

Try some eggnog. Merry Christmas.

Christmas Eve??? I would be afraid of how much egg nog my surgeon had that day. You really did great on your own. Good luck with that last 100.

I have 10cc in a 10cc band. Always up to the individual.

Heard a great quote from Huckabee, the presidential canidate. He apparently lost 100+ pounds over the last few years. When asked how he finds time to work out he said "I don't find the time, I make the time." If you wait for the time to come to you it aint gonna happen.

It's too bad they did not highlight the good points. They stated up to 30% have these transfer addiction problems. The medical community is not quite so willing to conceed 30% but do agree the problem is there. Lets say the 30% is correct. How about the other sucessful 70%. Wouldn't it be nice if there was a TV show that told the full truth instead of promoting their needed agenda to aquire ratings?

Just a heads up. Oprah is doing a show today 12/7 regarding WLS and addiction swapping. I believe it is a rerun.

MDix30, I would verify that. How can you neasure a solid with a liquid measurement? A cup measures volume so with a strech you may be able to use that on something like ground meat or tunafish but chicken??? I would check the source. Tom

Hey Jenny, I went 3 months without loosing an ounce. A full filll of 10cc's in a 10cc band PLUS exercising a minimum of 5 days a week is what it took to get the scale moving. Sorry you did not see results after going thru all you did but that is all history now. Stay on it. Keep getting fills until they find the spot, exercise NOW as you will have to make that a permenent lifestyle change anyway and make smart food choices. Belive it or not its a blessing that we are in control of our results. Someone told me if you are going to loose weight you are going to be hungry sometimes. My first reaction was DUH.. but you know what.. You got to understand it will still be a challenge with or without the band. Up 2U. I would advise fighting back. You will win.