Search the Community

I had my surgery on the 20th of July.....lost 17 lbs. in 6 weeks. Lost all restriction.....had a small fill in Dr.'s office on Thursday....felt no restriction.....now today....I think I have some restriction...but what is weird....I ate...and then about 45 minutes later I felt like something was stuck for the very first time.....I don't have the feeling of being full until about 30-40 minutes after I have eaten....shouldn't it only be 20 minutes....maybe my brain is a little slow. Was going to go for more fill next week. The Dr. said next time he would do under a fluoro. I'm confused...I know I am eating too much...I stopped loosing weight...I really liked it after surgery when I could only eat 1/2 cup at a time of anything I wanted....will I ever get that back...it sure worked for me....if takes 45 minutes for me to know I am full I'm in trouble....any comments please.

Hi Everyone! I am excited to find this site. I was banded March 31, 2006 in Hurst with Dr. Robert Snow. I started at 246 and am down to 212. My goal weight is 140. I am excited about finally having the chance to get healthy. I have read many of the posts in the different areas. I am having a little problem with mucous but not too bad. I have found there are certain foods I cannot tolerate and I have thrown a few things up but no nausea. I had my first fill on 5/11/06 with 1 cc. I have a medium band and was told it holds 5-6 cc. So far so good but I do notice that I felt restricted for the first few days after my fill and since then I have been hungrier sooner. I have lost 4# since the fill so I guess things are going well. I am working hard to maintaiin low carb high protein intake & if I want something sweet I eat it but the nice thing is now I have 1 cookie instead of the whole package because physically the band will not let me handle more. Cut to the reason why I had the band! I do treat myself occasionally to a Jamba Juice Mango-A-GoGo fruit smoothie but it has a lot of carbs so I only do a small one and only very occasionally. I do feel better since the weight loss and I find that I have a bit more energy. My cloths are starting to get very loose! I love that! Well, enough rambling. I am just taking things one day at a time and with the love and grace from our Lord, I will be successful. By the way, how do you get one of those graphs to post (the one that shows your weight loss and goal etc...)?

If Betadyne is on the skin then alcohol will take it right off. If it is on clothes then hydrogen preoxide will take it out and not leave a stain. After using the alcohol on the skin put some lotion on to soften the skin.

Hi.... I am having difficulty and I wanted to see if any of you are expereincing the same thing.....I am 11 days post-op so still have 19 more days of mushies food! I am bored!!! It seems that everything revolves around food. My family says "Do you want to go to the movies?" Nope...popcorn! "Dave and Busters to play games?" Nope....drinks (which I miss tons). "Sports bar to watch the Cowboys....(loose...waaaaaa)?" Nope....too many temptations there. "Out to lunch or dinner?" You get my drift! I feel like I am stuck at home. I am not sure I can stand it for 19 more days....I am going CRAZY!!!!! Any suggestions??

Hello, the consultant at the clinic that I went to is about 5'4" and started at 346, she is now 140. She let me touch the port on her abdomen to see how it felt. If she hadn't shown me where it was I wouldn't have known except for the scar that is there from the incision. I believe she had a tummy tuck but i didn't ask. When I was much thinner 20 years ago and had a baby I was left with sagging skin that will always be there unless I have it fixed. My highest weight at 5"3" was about 190. Hope this helps. Lena

O.K. Well to make it short as I could go on and on about what happened to me.............Ditto to what Natalie said. I did well after receiving the band until about Feb of this year (had lost 85 lbs). I had always had pain in the abdomen around where the port site was every time I did anything requiring use of the abdominal muscles. I had always had pressure type pain in the esophageal area, even after having had nothing to eat or drink for several hours. In short, I was never able to forget that I had a foreign object in my body making me miserable every day. The feeling of something not being quite right has been with me basically 24/7 since the original surgery. I was willing to accept this as I felt that I was loosing weight and getting "healthier". In Febuary of this year, I developed severe chest pain one night and it was all down hill from there. Just prior to having this, I was having so much acid reflux for a couple of weeks that the skin around my lips felt like it was on fire 24/7. My teeth were rotting out due to the acid breaking down the enamel (I can't imagine what it was doing to my esophagus). Anyway, went to my original surgeon who took me to surgery for lysis of adhesions around the band. Since then, I have been unable to get a fill to reach restriction. I do not even have the amount of fill in my band that I did before the second surgery (only 4.5 ml in a 10 ml band). Every time I try to get a fill to get the magical "sweet spot" that I heard everyone talking about, I develop severe pain with the first swallow of any thing, including Water. I have this problem even when there is no Fluid in the band. Have had multiple different x ray exams, etc. Had a slight slip which corrected after an unfill. Have been diagnosed as having esophageal spasms after all the x rays. The spasms happen as soon as the first swallow of water or what ever I try to swallow rounds the bend from my mouth into my throat. These spasms feel like someone is shoving a knife down my throat. Then it feels like someone slugs me in the epigastric area with their fist. This happens simultaneously as the food rounds the bend. The original surgeons had placed me on Prevacid in the AM and Pepcid in the PM, with Maalox/Mylanta between times for the reflux. I would take the Maalox/Mylanta 4-5 times a day. Much to my dismay, several months after the second surgery, I developed nausea with vomiting and diarrhea pretty much after attempting to eat anything. Went to my original surgeons office and their response was "you should be happy that you have lost 85 lbs" while demanding that I put my purse down and get up on the table so they could do an unfill. The nausea, vomiting, and diarrhea went on for about 5 weeks. The only way I could make it through the day was getting I.V. fluids pretty much every couple of days (I am a nurse at a surgery center so every couple of days when I was looking like I was about to die one of the surgeons would write me a prescription for IV fluid therapy and my co workers would hang an IV on me). Believe me, I did everything by the book to make this thing work. I would chew any food I was able to get down into liquid form, obeyed the no drinking rules, no eating for 3 hours before bed rules, etc, etc, etc, etc blah, blah, blah........... (That is why i got so pissed when I read on another post in the lap band talk that a "nurse" said that most people have problems with the band because they are not doing what they were supposed to do-bull shit..........). I had posted several times on the lapband site and Wasa came to my rescue. She literally saved my life. I will be forever grateful to her and so very much miss her contributions to the site. Anyway, through her I met Dr. Aceves. She also told me about band intolerance. I went to Dr. Aceves. He took me off all the antacids. Stated that I had basically probably wiped out all the normal acid in the stomach and that the food was basically rotting in my stomach before being digested as the acid was not there to help in the digesting of it. This pretty much cured the vomiting and diarrhea issue. I am at least able to eat now but still have the severe pain with any thing as soon as it "rounds the bend". I still am unable to go out to eat with anyone and need to set close to a bathroom as I never know when with the first swallow I will spew (yes, this is even after I have chew, chew, chewed-I swear to god if I hear this one more time-I do chew, chew, chew. Do people think I enjoy the severe pain with swallowing every day? How can I chew water? Jesus). These are only a very few issues that I have had with the band. If I listed every one of them it would take all day. These are just the "highlights" so to speak. I am so looking forward to the day when I get my sleeve. I can not live the rest of my life like this. I want to lead a normal life again. I am not afraid of the sleeve like some people are as I know that they have been doing partial gastrectomies for years. Believe me, I am not just counting the days but also the hours. I want to thank everyone who posts here daily (VegasAngel, Oregon Daisey, Mac, Ruthi, etc). Just reading your posts and tips gives me hope.

Hi all I am totally freaking out! My surgery is one week away and i am so tempted to cancel. I am really scared and nervous. I am not new to WLS, i had the band for 6 years, had complications and had it removed 12 months ago, so i have been through this process before and have an idea of what to expect kind of. I keep asking myself the following... - Cant i just continue Optifast to loose weight. - what will happen 20 years down the track. - is it necessary since i am not that big and i hold my weight well - why go through this and get loose skin when my body is not that flabby now. - will this cause me to have no social life as eating is a form of social and cultural get togethers. - my hair is already falling out.... will i be bald. And so much more. Ive researched for months and still can't imagine how much I will be able to eat n drink. Please help... i am seriously tempted to cancel my surgery as i am petrified that ill end up with complications that I had with my band 6 years out. Did anyone else go through this so close to surgery?

thank you guys for your input! I actually told my mom today that I wanted the Surgery, which is a big step in my situation because my parents are very anti weight loss surgery. And since i'm young they see no reason why I should that sort of surgery in the first place. We'll see how it goes! Another quick question... how much did you guys have to loose before the surgery? how is that usually determined?

My port was completely flipped around (the first month I had the band). They didn't catch it till 5 months out though. My port was just above my belly button.. due to the flip, my doctor moved it to the hard spot between my breasts, and 'extra' stitched it. He said from now on, all of his patients he will be putting the port between the breasts on the hard spot. He said there's no way to know what caused it, but he thought where it was, was too soft and moved a lot, etc. So now it doesn't move. I can feel it perfectly too, the top,sides, etc. It's right under the skin.

I almost had lapband in June 2009. I started the pre-op diet and scheduled my surgery, but then I chickened out. Mostly because I'm afraid of having gas and vomiting for the rest of my life. Here are my questions: 1. How often does gas and vomiting occur? 2. Also, can you see the port below your skin; is it obvious? 3. How long were you out of work? Thanks in advance for your help.

Yes, I think and have been told that building some muscle will help with sagging skin. Also, the best time to take carbs are right after a workout, because your glycogen (spelling?) has been depleted during a workout, so taking in carbs, along with Protein helps your muscles to rebuild and must be done pretty soon after a workout. I've been back at the gym for a couple of weeks now lifting and it helps me to feel great! I would just caution you to maybe not weigh yourself constantly. I weigh about once every 10 days or so. If you hit a stall (which will be temporary), weighing everyday or every other day will just drive you nuts during the stall. Good luck!!

Recently I have been really concerned with sagging skin, so I thought doing weights in the gym after surgery would help with that. I have read some previous posts, and just wanted to ask if carbs before the weights, Protein after is the way to go? I don't want to bulk up, I am aiming for toned, and reducing skin sagging as much as possible. Also, does the resistance band workout work as well as weights? or stick to weights? Thank you in advance!!! =)

I am VERY excited about my upcoming life changing event! I am also glad that I found this website as a means of support. I am not feeling too supported at home right now. Everything was okay until a few days ago. My husband asked me about loose skin after the surgery. I told him that I know that I may have loose skin in my stomach area and in my breast area, but the rest I think will be okay. Well he continued to question me about the same subject for the next few days.. So last night I confronted him. I said, I am starting to think that you are not so much worried about how I am going to few myself after surgery, but more that you are fearful of what I "might" look like after the surgery. Surprisingly he said, "yeah.." I thought, "Yeah?!" What the heck do you mean "yeah!?" Dude, not to mention that I will not have sleep apnea, high blood pressure and asthma (possible benefits after my weight loss).. But I could not believe that it seemed like he was wrapped up in the loose skin.. Why didn't he say anything the other months that we were discussing/researching?? Instead he decided to save it until 2 weeks before my surgery?? Not cool!

I can't see of feel the difference in myself until my friend put this comparison picture together for me?! This 110% boosted my day and made me realise there is progress and I'm not even aware of it! Happy loosing one and all ????

NSV! I'm going on 4 weeks out and I have a NSV to share! My rings are loose! I didn't think my fingers would shrink so fast, but so be it. What are some NSV's you guys are having?

Bare basics!!! Toothbrush, toothpaste, deodorant, lotion, chapstick, phone, charger, and extension cord. Comfortable, loose fitting clothes or a loose dress. The bra is a toss-up. I couldn't wear mine home, so, the a cami it was. The TWINS were swinging free, lol!!!

I'm scheduled for April 30th...Super excited to start a new life & to feel more comfortable in my own skin. Looking to share this experience with other people going through the same thing. I started my liquid diet on Saturday...today was the toughest so far. I went to the grocery store. I know it sounds silly but I haven't eaten anything other than broth, jello, popsicle's and water since Saturday.

If you buy your paper / non-perishable products at the big box store you'll have more money in the end for healthier foods. Especially feminine products and TP, but also alum. foil, plastic wrap, cleaning supplies, shampoo, etc. I know it's tough when you're first starting out but eventually, you're all stocked up on this stuff, then buy on rotation what your running out of next, 1st. Don't wait until you're depleted and have to buy at the reg store- less for more money. I've used plastic grocery bags for garbage bags so have eliminated the need to buy expensive garbage bags. what has always gotten my goat was buying stuff I'll just throw away- like feminine stuff, garbage bags, TP. You'll get a much better quantity per dollar for big box stuff this way. I used to do a stock-up on non-perishable supplies once per quarter (every 3 mos) or so. You now have a bigger budget to buy healthier foods. It's true, the non-healthy processed foods are cheaper which is a shame. you can build your bigger food budget on the back end this way. When I was a young mom on a low budget, I discovered buying a whole turkey, whole chicken, ham, beef roast, etc was a lot cheaper than buying it all cut up, de-boned, skinned, etc. You basically pick a cooking day and go to town roasting, baking etc- then freeze portions. Next to that, buy family packs & freeze portions. I still do this even though I'm just one now. When you buy in-season, buy in bulk fresh & freeze portions for later- or try canning if you haven't. Saves big time & better quality foods cheaper. If you can, make a day of it for seasonal "You Pick"s like apples, berries etc then go to town cooking & freezing.

Congrats Laurend. I wish I'd taken my measurements before the surgery. I had a similar NSV today. My boyfriend had bought me these flannel house pants type things the day of my surgery so I'd have something comfortable to wear post surgery. Well of course I couldn't get them on which was no surprise. I decided to try them on tonight and I'm wearing them! They are even a little loose. So even though I haven't lost that much weight something is changing! This is fun!

Hello! I was banded on 9/24, exactly 4 weeks ago today. I have not lost anything! When was your first fill and how much did you loose after the first fill? Thanks!! :smile:

I I think I know exactly what you are going through. I was banded on April 4th. At first my bowels were a little loose so I figured it was because i was only having liquids. After 5 days, all heck broke loose. I just about went into the hospital because i had lost soo much liquid and nothing was staying in. I was out of commission for 2 weeks and about 3 days. My nutritionist and Dr. were really pushing that i get liquid Protein and Gatorade into me. Well, my lactose intolerance went into overdrive. I spent lots of money trying different "lactose free" Protein drinks that still had whey (which still caused me to react as if it was whole milk). The other problem was I am not a sweet drink person. I rarely drank soda and i have always disliked Gaterade. Again I called my Dr.. My Dr. said that sometimes our bodies, after abdominal surgery, suddenly can't handle the milk products and our bodies may also be reacting to the fake sugars in some of the sports drinks, and if you're sensitive to sugar, you body will react in the same way to sugary drinks. Which mine did. The Dr. aslo suggested I take Immodium AD (tiny little pill--easy to swallow). Which really helped alot. I found a gatorade I could handle--froze it and ate it, (slowly) and found a Protein Drink that i could handle (went online looking for one that i could take). I was very weak and had to be helped getting up and laying down. I was a mess This is my 4th week and i am just now feeling back to normal. I still have days when i have to stop and take a rest. I suggest you take it easy with the foods, do what the Dr. says and know that this too shall pass. Banded 4/4/08 First fill coming up 5/6/08--can't wait :party:

...So I went down the research rabbit hole RE: scar maintenance and learned about tattooing as and option for scar fading. Basically the tattoo artist would tat over the scars with ink that matches your skin tone. Though I suppose it would become more noticeable if/when you get a tan? ...interesting option, though...

I scar 2x darker than my normal skin tone (Fitzpatrick IV skin scarring to a VI) As everyone said (and it's going to be hard to get just now) you *may* care less and less about the small stuff like 5-6 tiny scars. What you *may* really begin to care about down the line of research is how proficient or skilled your surgeon is at any surgery done to have the best possible post surgical outcomes (that is within your control) Or you *may* still care... My bikini pics are in my gallery with all of my unfaded scars for the world to behold and Zero ***** given 😍

Hi my name is Debbie, I go under Pinkturkey. I had my Lap Band surgery 11/22/05. I got my first fill at 6 weeks and my port had broken loose and they had a difficult time giving me my first fill. I had no restriction what so ever. The second fill had to be done under live xrays at the hospital because he couldn't locate the port. Only felt restriction on the first day after that none. Third fill done in xray, I was so discouraged and ready to give up. I complained loudly that I only felt restriction on the first day and by the next morning, nothing. Well, Dr. Rohrscheib, shot some dye up into the port and watched it all leak out. The first fill had poked holes in the port. I now had to have my port replaced. I had this done in the office, since I didn't have the money to go to the hospital. Port replacement was a success. he filled me to where I was supposed to be on that day. I went for my first fill after port replacement, he put in .2 cc's and I started having problems immediately. I was leaving on vacation and didn't go back, I put up with vomiting 5 days out of 7 for 6 weeks. Boy was I stupid, I didn't even think of going back. I did finally call and make an emergency appointment when I vomited for 1 hour 45 minutes straight because I had eaten a small piece of raw cauliflower. I had gotten where I couldn't eat anything and couldn't drink anything. Well he took out 1 cc and I will go back in 2 weeks for a small fill. I have been very discouraged. I have only lost 30 pounds since November and I had lost 40, but I put on 10 pounds in like 3 days and my body just shut down. I am now struggling to get it to start again. My goal is 100 pounds and I am determined to do it. I could use any advice I can get. Thanks for reading...

Penni, I think you incision is looking pretty good. It is only angry looking in one spot. My daughter has been attacked by dogs 3 times and she has olive skin, each time I put vitamin E oil on her wounds and it helped the itching and I personally think it helped the healing. Thanks for showing us...