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No I mean 158. I had my band removed due to complications at the same time and had the sleeve done. I hope the water weight doesn't stay for too long. I'm following everything to a T.

Hey Jacquelynn how is everything going with the pregnancy ? Ill b 6 months post op in a couple of weeks so I was just wondering if UR having any complications . I plan on getting pregnant but idk what's "too soon"

Kat, Thanks for responding. I am kind of new to navigating in a sight like this. Well after a year of investigating I am looking forward to it I think. I am about 80 lbs over weight. Because of an auto accident four years ago, not only has the weight kept coming, I have not been able to control it. High blood pressure, apnea, and a few other complications has required me to go this direction. My wife thought about joining me in doing it, she is now nervous about the side affects concerned she would have things begining to sag. So I am on my own.

Cathi, welcome to LBT Early congratulations on your upcoming anniversary! It's really great to hear a success story like yours. I was banded in Oct 2005, am approx 25-30 lbs from goal. I have to tell you, I still find it hard. I am not perfect, I don't always make proper food choices. But, with the band I definitely can't eat large quantities. I find holidays (Thanksgiving/Christmas) especially tough, it's really hard for me to see others eating such large portions. I want to have a small taste of everything, but that's not always possible. Last Nov I think I had 3 bites of turkey and a bit of veggies and I was done. Those holidays are so focused on food/preparation, and for us it's over in such a short minute. Good news is I'm in a much healthier place and size than I was 18 mo ago. I've lost at a steady rate, and have been fortunate to have few complications which have enabled me to maintain where I'm at. I've made a commitment to be at goal by my 2 year anniversary in October, in a couple of weeks I'm starting a program at a new fitness center opening in my neighborhood. I've signed up for a few personal training sessions, and am excited to begin targeting some of my problem areas. I hope others are not too shy to chime in, it really helps to have many different perspectives. All the best, Karla

It is good to hear you are doing well. I too have been playing with doubts and insecurities. Mostly for just the surgery part. I am nervous and scared. Although I don't doubt I will be successful after the surgery. I'm just scared of complications during the surgery.

I didn't quit- no complications at all. I think I even had a cig on the way too the hospital

:wink2: Hi all, i have read so many good stories here that i almost do not want to post this, but i need to know if anyone else is having endless problems to the point of wishing you had cancelled! i had my banding done on the 5th Dec and have not yet been able to go back to work, my husband has not yet been able to work a full week and my poor kids have had the crappiest school holidays and christmas ever!! My banding was 'a success' with no complications....until a week later i started bleeding from the port site, i rang my surgeon and was refered to my GP who said all was ok, a week later i still had blood coming from the site, another GP, another 'your fine'. By new years day i had liquid pooring out of the site, finally i was given a script for antibiotics for the infection, the next day i collapsed at home and was admitted for 3 days on an IV then sent home with 7 days of antibiotics, 4 days later they were booking me in for a port removal, the tubing from the band to the port was being pushed out from my body, the room would spin daily while i had to clean & dress the wound waiting another 5 days to have surgery........i was soooo scared. i had the port removed on a wed 'another success' but ended up in cardiac care due to a low pulse, needed a trace done and an ultrasound of my heart....all was fine. Thursday was time to go home again, i mentioned i was having severe pain in the lower abdomen but was assured it was gas and would disperse in 48 hrs...it didnt, i rang the surgeon on the friday and was told by her nurse that its not a band issue, she is not a uroligist (i mentioned that maybe it was a urinary tract infection) so YET AGAIN i am being pushed from GP to surgeon, all has shown up fine on the ultrasound so i am wondering what the hell is going on now??? Does anyone maybe suffer from IBS which is triggered by the surgery.......im grabbing at straws.....im desperate! and in pain!! on the up side i have lost 12 kg:thumbup: however if anymore surgery is needed its going! i sound soooo negative but im so frusterated, angry, upset and in pain.....guess i am looking for some answers and support:blush:

Well, everyone's procedure varys. As an example, I was banded on 11/11/2008 and had some complications during surgery and in the hospital. So, I stayed in the hospital for 2.5 days. That is not the norm, and nor did I expect this to happen. I am not sure how long it took the surgeon to complete my surgery. My spleen started to bleed during the prcoedure and they had to get the bleeding under control. But all is well now. I am jogging, losing weight, and have lots of energy. Good luck!

Hi everyone...my name is Sue and I just found this forum. I thought it would be nice to be able to "talk" with others who have had the same surgery as I have. I had my banding done last summer. So far I have lost 77 pounds (I'm just over half way to my goal) and have had very few problems or complications. I'm extremely happy with the way things have been going since the surgery and would do it again in a heartbeat. I had my surgery done at Loyola Medical University in Maywood, Illinois by Dr. Sarker. Anyway, it's good to be here. Sue

a couple weeks to go now... yay! I noticed from other threads that there are a few of us getting banded 02/16, let's stay in touch here if we can. I'm going to Dr. Ortiz in TJ, Mexico. How about you? i've been pretty excited for the past few weeks since i booked it, but now i'm getting nervous. i have a million thoughts running through my head: what if my liver's too big? what if i'm one of few who get complications? what if i can't adjust to the lifestyle changes?. i guess these are all normal thoughts before going under the knife.... anyways, despite all that, i'm still totally excited for the band to be in. i can't believe that in less than a month i'm getting banded!!! omg, to finally have hope of being thin and healthy...

my doctor said that the only complication he had had during surgery was when a man sneaked a cigarette right before surgery and he stopped breathing (they revived him). said it was a complication with the anesthesia and smoking right beforehand. i think this was unusual but you should discuss with your dr and let him know to make sure. and cold turkey is pretty tough, maybe try doing patches.

Hey! I’m new here. Stats first. Starting weight :270 height: 5” 4” Surgery date: July 18 2019. Current weight: 177. Goal weight: 145 I know that by now I should be getting the hang of this eating situation, now that I’m 9 months post op. I just can’t seem to get control over my eating. To make matters complicated, no matter what in the world I’ve been eating, I’ve been losing weight nicely and have no complications whatsoever. I really have no motivation to eat ‘healthy’. The reason I did this surgery was to become HEALTHY, not to lose weight while stuffing my face with whatever I want.. I’m confused. To what extent to I need to “diet” if I’m mal-absorbent? My bloods are fine. I’m on top of my vitamins. I work out every day. Should I be concerned about my eating? Do I have to watch strictly or eat only healthy? Because at this point it doesn’t seem to be making a difference. Sure, if I eat oily foods I have bathroom issues. But weight wise my eating seems to do nothing.

Success after weight loss surgery is no accident. It is the result of a lot of hard work and careful planning on your part. While of course it depends on a skillful surgeon, your post-op success depends most heavily on you. You can begin to set yourself up for satisfying weight loss and preventing regain long before your surgery date. Here are some ideas for building that solid foundation that will make your weight loss surgery journey smoother and more satisfying. Choose the right surgeon. If weight loss surgery is the tool, your bariatric surgeon is the one who makes the tool and gives it to you. You want a tool that is made precisely, ready to do the job, and built to last. Your surgeon needs to make the right cuts and place the band properly or make a tight, solid sleeve or pouch. So, look for a surgeon who is experienced and has a good track record of successful patients and low complication rates – don’t be afraid to ask! There’s more to choosing a surgeon than technical skills. Also, consider what else the surgeon will do for you. The right surgeon for you is willing to discuss your options and the procedure with you in a way that you can understand. You’re setting yourself up for extra challenges if you’re afraid to talk to your surgeon or your surgeon is unavailable. Get the scoop on the diet. Your diet is central to every part of the weight loss surgery journey. You may be told to lose some weight before surgery as a test to make sure you’ll follow the rules post-op. Then there’s the pre-op liquid diet to shrink your liver for a safer surgery. Next, for faster healing and fewer side effects, you need to follow the post-op progression from liquids to pureed foods to solid foods. Finally, there’s the nutrient-dense, low-calorie diet to help you hit goal weight and stay there. At best, you will have a surgeon or a nutritionist who gives you plenty of information. Since that’s not always the case, you may need to take steps to figure out the diet for yourself. You can look online, and may need to shell out the money for a few appointments with a nutritionist. Not knowing the right foods to eat can set you up for surgery complications and disappointing weight loss. Take responsibility. It’s nice to depend on a stellar surgeon and complete healthcare team to walk you through surgery and beyond step by step. Ideally, your trusted surgeon would explain your options to you and recommend the best surgery for you, whether it’s the sleeve, band, bypass, or another choice. You’d go back for follow-up appointments and ongoing nutritional and psychological counseling. That doesn’t always happen in the real world, but that’s no excuse to give up. You can take responsibility for finding out the information you need to know about what to expect, how to prepare, and what comes next. Be persistent and do your research in all kinds of places, and you’re more likely to succeed. Face the facts. Weight loss surgery isn’t all fun and games. You don’t leave the operating room skinny. Weight loss isn’t steady. It may take you longer to get to goal weight than you hoped. Recognize the real possibilities to avoid being disappointed and possibly even giving up. These are some other possibilities to consider, so you can be prepared if they happen to you. You may still love sugar, salt, fat, and/or starch. You may still be hungry. Others may not notice your weight loss, or may not be impressed. Others may be jealous of your weight loss or say you didn’t earn it. You may have loose skin when you are finished losing weight. Weight loss surgery doesn’t solve psychological problems. Be Open-Minded If you want to lose weight and get healthy, you’ve got to change your diet. Whatever eating habits got you to this point are not going to get you to goal weight! That may mean you need to be open-minded. Maybe you hated vegetables, or can’t stand the thought of downing protein shakes for 2 weeks on the pre-op liquid diet and up to 4 weeks on the post-op liquid and mushies diets. It’s time to re-evaluate. Can you sneak some veggies into your diet? Can you retrain your brain to love them? Can you force down those protein shakes for a few weeks in exchange for a lifetime’s worth of better health? Learn to see the good. There will be disappointments - guaranteed. The scale may not cooperate, or you may make a poor eating choice, or you might skip your morning workout because you didn’t make sleep a priority the night before. Focus on the negative, and you just may talk yourself out of continuing the hard work and good progress. Instead, learn to appreciate yourself and see the positive sides of things. Maybe you didn’t lose weight this week, but did you eat right? Maybe you downed a piece of pepperoni pizza without thinking about it, but did you pass up the breadsticks and soda that you would have had before surgery? Maybe you didn’t work out this morning, but did you make it to the gym more this month than you did last month? See yourself as a strong, powerful person, and you will act like one. You can build on the positive behaviors you see in yourself so they eventually overshadow the mistakes. You have control over your own destiny. Success with weight loss surgery depends on planning and hard work. The more you are involved and the more responsibility you take throughout the process, the better you can do.

No problem! And trust me you're not alone. All these tests were making me a basket case. During my testing they thought I had barretts esophagus ended up being a mistake. I was told I had an enlarged heart, mistake, something else major happened bunch it's all a blur... Or I blocked it out. Oh they found gallstones.... Lots of them. Thanks for the compliment. I've been extremely lucky. I had one small complication which required me to stay in hospital for 4 days. Make sure you read up on the complications just to be prepared. There are many success stories here but also some very scary ones. Don't go into this blindly. Not trying to scare you just want you to be prepared.

It sounds like you have been through a lot. I was sleeved Dec. 31 and spent 2 days in the hospital. After a week, I felt ok, just tired. Before 2 weeks, I felt pretty normal. I didn't have complications, but they can happen. Good luck to you with whatever decisions you make. By the way, I'm in Dallas. Dr. Cribbins did my surgery - he is terrific.

Hi everyone!! I dont know if anyone remembers me or not. I was here 2 years ago, had a lot of doubts and was scared. Backed out of surgery the night before. Here I am now banded one week and so far loving it. Thinking where would I be today if I had just went thru with it the first time. I just Pray that I have no complications because just one week out, still on full liquids and I love my band!!!

I had surgery with a weight of 240 after the diet. My rny was fine at first but I started having complications. To this day we aren't sure what caused them, but after four months in and out of the hospital I had my surgery reversed and had gastric sleeve instead. It's very rare to do this but this was my surgeons suggestion. My first surgeon was a total jerk and was very unsupportive. It was a tough experience and very scary. I had two pic lines and went days without eating or drinking. After my sleeve surgery, my major complications stopped, but I have never been able to transition to solids. My sleeve surgery was March 2015 and I've never had a full meal. I found a new surgeon who has diagnosed me with a stricture and scar tissue in the spot they reconnected my pouch from the rny with the new sleeve stomach. He has done one dilation on me but it did not help. He wants to continue the dilations. The ironic thing is that he says if the dilations don't work, I may have to go back to rny. So I'm 123 pounds at 5'6 and still losing about two pounds per week. I can't seem to settle on a weight loss goal and I'm terrified of entering maintainence. On the positive side, because this post is not in any way intended to be negative towards this surgery- I have never looked or felt better. I feel amazing in my new body. I love the way I look now. I Celebrate this body by dressing up and buying clothes and enjoying a dating life and a social life I would never have had otherwise. My confidence is through the roof. My back pain is gone and I have more energy for my kids and life in general. This surgery have my my life back and released me from the chain of a food addiction. I would do it again in a second!!!! Again and again. Because guess what? Nothing tastes as good as thin feels. Period. I hope my story helps you in your journey. I highly recommend this surgery, it is a wonderful tool that can give you the leverage you need to lose weight and the truth is the vast majority of people do not have complications. I would do it again in spite of mine and I'm happy to answer any questions anyone has for me. Here are some photos of me. I haven't had any plastic surgery and don't plan to. Before: Most recent: The last one, me swimming with my kids, is something I could never have done without this surgery.

I had the two week preop, cheated on day 9 not bc I was hungry bc I'd gotten threw that phase but bc my family went to the mall where my fav meal was. Tried it, was discusting, made me angry but I survived. So, postop day I had complications so for the next 5 day stay in the hospital, no drinking, just iv fluids, on day 6 they let me drink. Day 8 came home for another 2 wk liq. I'm no hungry, physically or mentally but my doc makes me drink the 1 oz med cups 4/hr. So I'm constantly drinking shakes, crystal lite lemon flav, some chicken broth I'd done myself prior to surgery ( low sodium) and jello in the oz cups. Ik I prob didnt help u, bc u do know what ur feeling, but the routine of drinkn that I'm on, keeps my mind settled away from head hunger. I cooked for my family today, was hard smelling it but I did good. I guess smelln it everyday in the hospital helped a lot. God bless and gl and if ur able to walk, take a stroll, read a good book, play spades on ur phone like I Do, lol. And most of all, all u can do is one day at a time, so don't waste it on the next day or the ten other days. Just get threw today.

I have just started taking the first few steps in organizing my lap band surgery. I must admit that so many things are running through my brain, will this work!! Will I have complications, how can I avoid those complications, will I still have a life, have I picked a good doctor to perform the surgery and how fast am I going to loose the weight. I have struggled with my weight in the last 10 years; I have tried diet pills and number of diets like the Cohen’s diet, I am up and down with exercising (to be honest I don’t have time anyway) nothing seems to keep it off. My current BMI is 42 and that’s the highest it’s ever been. I am looking forward to receiving advice from the people who have already gone through/experienced this. I would love to hear from people that live in my home town as well.

Hi, I am just beginning my journey! My doctor is Francis Teng, MD, out of Las Vegas, and I have been following his work for almost 6 years. I have my consultation on the 15th, seeing the psychologist and nutritionist next week. My insurance is not paying, so I'm doing it all myself, with a little help from my mother. LOL! But, I have a 12 year old daughter who is at weight loss camp now and she has been there 2 weeks and has lost over 13 lbs so far. I want to set a good example for her, because she is doing it for me. I have entertained the idea of weight loss surgery for years now. My brother had the bypass done last year and has lost over 150 lbs. He had so many health problems so the surgery probably saved his life. I was set on having the same surgery when I learned more about the lap band. I like the idea of losing slowly, no cutting, less complication/risk, among other things, so I decided to go this route. I have about 140-150 lbs to lose. I would be ecstatic with 100. I found this site yesterday and I'm looking forward to learning from everyone here.:thumbup:

Same here. Also although the sleeve seems to be a good option I still think I would be quite hesitant to revise to one . The surgical and post surgical risks and complications sound so scary compared to a band. If something went wrong with my band I would be hoping that they could replace it. If they couldn't then I would probably go for a sleeve but I imagine it would take a lot of work to convince my DH that it was an option.

The adjustable gastric band (Lap-Band or Realize Band) is not all that new any more. The Lap-Band has been approved for use in the USA since 2001, the Realize Band since 2007, and other brands of bands have been used in the rest of the world since the 1980's. I had a band slip (resolved with a complete unfill) and a port flip (corrected with surgery), but I loved my band. You're correct that band surgery is reversible, though I wouldn't recommend doing that unless it was to treat a complication. Just because it's reversible doesn't mean that the band is easy to remove. RNY (gastric bypass) is also reversible, though not easily. VSG (vertical sleeve gastrectomy) is not reversible, and only the "switch" part of DS (duodenal switch) is reversible. Good luck with your decision. It's good that you're doing research. I suggest thatyou carefully weigh what other bariatric patients and a bariatric surgeon tell you, and pick the procedure that feels right for you, to meet your weight loss needs and your post-op lifestyle. Jean

Hey all! About a month out from surgery I went in because I had an unusual series of events happen. Out of nowhere, I was able to eat significantly less than I had been (just yogurt and cottage cheese), and I had even vomited after a few occasions of simple drinking (Water only). So, I went in and had a swallow study done. That confirmed my new stomach was slow to empty, and my surgeon suggest a scope to go in and verify and if needed, dilate the closing connection to allow me to eat. I got called the next day, offering me a time on Monday to go in, or I could wait about two weeks. Since my symptoms had gotten better by this time, I said I didn't need to rush in and get it done, and that I could wait for two weeks. That was another big mistake. I found my symptoms would be ok in the morning and then at night, they'd flare up and I'd end up vomiting and being unable to keep anything down. This eventually morphed in to being able to consume no Protein shakes (I was put back on Clear liquids and protein by my doc regardless of when my procedure was, UNTIL I had my procedure.) I felt fine though because my body was still burning fat. But all things being the same, I put a note in my online chart for my nurses to see Monday, asking for the next available date to do the scope. Monday I was called and told to come in Tuesday. Everything seemed very routine, and the overwhelming feeling was this procedure would fix my issue and I'd be back on track. Wrong! I got up after the scope ready to walk out and feeling refreshed from what I'd just call a nap. The nurses had different plans for me. As they wheeled me back to recovery, I asked where my wife was. They told me she had gone to get something to eat and would be up soon, in the meantime, I should order some food. I was told that I could "have whatever I wanted," which I immediately questioned. I also asked why I needed a meal if I was leaving shortly. The reply was that I wasn't leaving shortly, I was being admitted overnight. I was literally shocked. Confused, and now wishing my wife was there to answer some questions, I tried to get whatever I could out of the nursing staff. They had limited information because they're all just staff in surgical recovery, they don't know all the details of every patient, and there were a lot of them. I got ahold of my wife who told me she had actually gone home because they said it would be 2 hours before I'd even get back to a room. She told me the dilation was only mildly successful, and that I was malnourished and had to stay overnight for observation. Long story short, I ended up with a PICC Line, a massive bag of TPN, and orders for home health to help me with future daily bags of TPN for about the next 4-6 weeks until they can go back in and do another scope. I'm feeling a lot of things right now, most of that is disappointment that this hasn't gone as easily as really everyone led me to believe. I understand every patient is different, but it's so hard to hear things like "you're an ideal candidate for this now because you're so healthy and your only comorbidity is hypertension, so you're mostly healthy aside from that," or, "we don't anticipate any complications in your case." The moral here is if you think you're having issues, call your surgical team ASAP and tell them. I have no clue if there was anything I could have done to avoid this, I honestly doubt it, but here I am with a 2 liter bag of Fluid I'll be toting around for the next month and a half either way.

I know you had the sleeve but here is why we should not use Caffine. http://hallmarkhealth.org/bariatric-and-weight-management-program/blog/caffeine-bariatric-surgery/ After gastric bypass, you don’t absorb all of your nutrients. Caffeine may further decrease Calcium absorption, which in turn may lead to osteoporosis and increased risk for fractures. Therefore calcium should not be taken with caffeine. Caffeine may also decrease Iron absorption. Plan your caffeine and food intake carefully. (And remember; don’t take calcium supplement with dairy. You can only absorb a certain amount of calcium at once.) Caffeine may cause: • nausea/vomiting • GI distress • Dyspepsia • increase in gastric acid secretion, leading to gastroesophageal reflux and diarrhea Caffeine is not recommended with peptic ulcer, GERD, or irritable bowel. It may cause ulcers in some people. Caffeine belongs to a family of drugs that are heart and muscle stimulants, cerebral vasoconstrictors and diuretics. Caffeine may cause anorexia in high doses and may increase hunger in some people. Dehydration is commonly seen after gastric bypass surgeries. Obese patients require greater amounts of Fluid to maintain normal fluid balance. Caffeine causes increased urine output, which can increase the risk for dehydration, particularly during rapid weight loss. Caffeine should only be added when adequate hydration is achieved and there are no symptoms of nausea. Fluid needs vary depending on your weight and exercise expenditure. Fluid goal is approximately 64 oz. per day. So, if you have surgery to improve your health, why would you risk getting ulcers, osteoporosis or other complications?

(This is my fathers account, but I also use it to research for him) Amen to that, Orlando_mom... Though I am sorry for your bad experience, I am glad to be reassured that WE weren't being unreasonable and we are not the only ones who have had issues with Dr. Marema and his office. Though the complications with my dad could have happened under the care of any doctor, it was how he handled it.