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I had bypass on 10/4/17 and after about day 4 the gas pain was gone. Things are going to move quick. Sent from my Pixel using BariatricPal mobile app

I seen a lot of people on this forum not receiving family Support and getting called weak well i have a confession to make i didnt get any support i was laughed at and made fun of called weak called will less was told its all in my mind and was told several time I will fail most of the people were so called friends and family who themselves are not in perfect shape but have a lot to say . I feel it is your strength that you are taking this step also all you are getting is a tool to help you win this battle. I went to hospital with one of of my friends cause family wouldn't support me and thought i am wasting time.Guess what Surgery weight height 6 ft wt 287.5 in 5 days ( my surgery was on 8th of this month) today weight 264.... With ought this tool it's a very hard battle something I read at New York Times..... Shows Why It’s Hard to Keep Weight Off For years, studies of obesity have found that soon after fat people lost weight, their metabolism slowed and they experienced hormonal changes that increased their appetites. Scientists hypothesized that these biological changes could explain why most obese dieters quickly gained back much of what they had so painfully lost. GETTY IMAGES But now a group of Australian researchers have taken those investigations a step further to see if the changes persist over a longer time frame. They recruited healthy people who were either overweight or obese and put them on a highly restricted diet that led them to lose at least 10 percent of their body weight. They then kept them on a diet to maintain that weight loss. A year later, the researchers found that the participants’ metabolism and hormone levels had not returned to the levels before the study started. The study, being published Thursday in The New England Journal of Medicine, is small and far from perfect, but confirms their convictions about why it is so hard to lose weight and keep it off, say obesity researchers who were not involved the study. They cautioned that the study had only 50 subjects, and 16 of them quit or did not lose the required 10 percent of body weight. And while the hormones studied have a logical connection with weight gain, the researchers did not show that the hormones were causing the subjects to gain back their weight. Nonetheless, said Dr. Rudolph Leibel, an obesity researcher at Columbia, while it is no surprise that hormone levels changed shortly after the participants lost weight, “what is impressive is that these changes don’t go away.” Dr. Stephen Bloom, an obesity researcher at Hammersmith Hospital in London, said the study needed to be repeated under more rigorous conditions, but added, “It is showing something I believe in deeply — it is very hard to lose weight.” And the reason, he said, is that “your hormones work against you.” In the study, Joseph Proietto and his colleagues at the University of Melbourne recruited people who weighed an average of 209 pounds. At the start of the study, his team measured the participants’ hormone levels and assessed their hunger and appetites after they ate a boiled egg, toast, margarine, orange juice and crackers for Breakfast. The dieters then spent 10 weeks on a very low calorie regimen of 500 to 550 calories a day intended to makes them lose 10 percent of their body weight. In fact, their weight loss averaged 14 percent, or 29 pounds. As expected, their hormone levels changed in a way that increased their appetites, and indeed they were hungrier than when they started the study. They were then given diets intended to maintain their weight loss. A year after the subjects had lost the weight, the researchers repeated their measurements. The subjects were gaining the weight back despite the maintenance diet — on average, gaining back half of what they had lost — and the hormone levels offered a possible explanation. One hormone, leptin, which tells the brain how much body fat is present, fell by two-thirds immediately after the subjects lost weight. When leptin falls, appetite increases and metabolism slows. A year after the weight loss diet, leptin levels were still one-third lower than they were at the start of the study, and leptin levels increased as subjects regained their weight. Other hormones that stimulate hunger, in particular ghrelin, whose levels increased, and peptide YY, whose levels decreased, were also changed a year later in a way that made the subjects’ appetites stronger than at the start of the study. The results show, once again, Dr. Leibel said, that losing weight “is not a neutral event,” and that it is no accident that more than 90 percent of people who lose a lot of weight gain it back. “You are putting your body into a circumstance it will resist,” he said. “You are, in a sense, more metabolically normal when you are at a higher body weight.” A solution might be to restore hormones to normal levels by giving drugs after dieters lose weight. But it is also possible, said Dr. Jules Hirsch of Rockefeller University, that researchers just do not know enough about obesity to prescribe solutions. One thing is clear, he said: “A vast effort to persuade the public to change its habits just hasn’t prevented or cured obesity.” “We need more knowledge,” Dr. Hirsch said. “Condemning the public for their uncontrollable hedonism and the food industry for its inequities just doesn’t seem to be turning the tide.”

I saw my surgeon, Dr Schneider, in Boston, MA yesterday and was cleared for surgery. Surgery date is 2/24. I need to lose 10 lbs before then, and pre op diet starts two weeks prior. I am excited and nervous! 2 months and counting!

Hi there, I am only three days out, but I am not hungry at all. I get pains in my belly that i am associating more with gas than anything else. I wasn't released until 3pm yesterday so my first attempt at Protein was last night, I got about 10 grams in. Today I have already gotten 48 grams with my unjury chicken soup and a Chilke strawberry Protein powder shake. I pour each ounce in one of the ounce size plastic cups I got in the hospital and sip, slooowwly LOL. I start getting a bit of a burpy feeling and know that I need to slow down or take a break. My body told me pretty quickly what it would be ok with. Hope taht this helps!

I am having surgery on April 2nd at the Florence/Oasis of Hope, with Dr. Fernando Garcia. I am 44 and have battled with my weight all my adult life, I swear I can hear my moms voice saying you better not eat chocolate cake and chocolate milk for Breakfast it will catch up with you... all the while being a size 6.... fast forward 10 years and it caught up with me and then started multiplying. I now am battling degenerative arthritis and a torn meniscus, 7 years I have been told nothing is wrong with me all the while it getting worse and my ability to keep active dimensioning. I am now so out of shape and in so much pain that I have been taking anti depressants just because the pain finally got to my normal up beat attitude. After 8 months with this orthopedic doctor he was able to do an MRI and he was able to diagnose me!! I thought yeah now they will fix it and I can get moving and lose some weight, the next thing he said is if you want replacement surgery you will need to lose weight.... I lost MY MIND!! WHY would you not have discussed this during all the shots the draining and the pain I am enduring to now tell me that I will have to continue to fight a fight that I already struggle with when healthy and who knows how long it will take me to lose enough weight... That was last month... I have now made the decision to go forward with the weight loss surgery, I had been pre approved before but switched jobs and states before I was able to jump through all the hoops to get it done, I have had psych test and nutrition classes so I do believe that I am prepared that way. Mentally I can't WAIT!! I am getting married Sept 16, 2016 and I WILL dance at my wedding!! I have a wonderful supportive man that loves me how I am and only wants me healthy and happy. Please let me know your experience and if you have any regrets. I will be returning to work ASAP but it is an office job so from what I have read I think I will be ok...

Congrats! I have my date 10/20. I got approved immediately with bcbs but they sure made me go through hoops after approval. Please keep us posted on new updates. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

Wow good for you,I just recd a call saying my Dr had to reschedule my date to the 17th bc he will be going out town on the 19 so we will be sleeve on the same date my time is 12:00 so lets keep n touch

Jessica! I'm also 25 and I got banded 10/16. I was wondering the same thing. Let's keep in touch and see what works and what doesnt. I'm working out often and started doing light weights. It seems to be helping. I've lost lbs since then. I had a starting weight (initial consult...July 30) of 279 (yes insane)...and now I'm 235. I have 100lbs to go but I'm excited! Let me know what kind of exercises you're doing!

Hey lessofme and Sharon P--hope you are both doing well with your surgery and your decisions. I'm having Dr. Hansen do my surgery on March 19. Right now I'm feeling a little apprehensive about it all--will it work? can I eat following the rules for the rest of my life? (I'm sure those two questions are related!). What if I have complications? Spending money out of pocket for the surgery is one thing, but thinking of doubling or tripling that amount because of complications is very scary. Lessofme, have you survived the long period of liquids and pureed/strained foods without too much problem? Have you lost weight yet? You'll have your fill the day I have my surgery! I'm so full of emotions: excited, nervous, anxious, hopeful... But, what else is new??? Good luck to you both! Karen (in Provo)

GM...... Its getting close can you go on fb and send me a friend req? @ Debi ChaseValdez . I tried to look you up but had no luck. I am in Milwaukee Wisconsin. I am sure the pounds will be rolling off once we have the surgery! I have dropped 13 in 10 days. Today is a rough day having some hunger pains

My doctor has me on clear liquids for two weeks so I haven't even started protein and lost 10 pounds total. Anyway I don't think you're doing too bad considering you're already drinking protein but I'm a newbie so hopefully some other people weigh in.

I feel like I just won the Texas Lottery, after reading so many post on how hard it is to get approved. I found out today that I am approved and I have a surgery date of July 24th. Which can't come soon enough since I have had some complication from my Lap band. As hard as these past 3 years has been with my band I believe the lessons I've learnt will benefit my new life with the sleeve. Winning the Lottery changes people lives and being sleeved will differently change my life. I have BCBS of TX and hen I called today I was told that my doc office sent the paperwork in on the 5th and it could talk 7-10 business days to get and answer that was at 11:01am and by 3:59pm my doc office was calling me to say I was approved. I was in shock and happy and nervous all at the same time, like a lottery winner. I would have jumped up and down too but I was in the car parked in front of Wal-Mart and have too much port pain. Good Luck to those waiting on approval.

Hi my name's Eve. I live in Australia and seems most of this is American - though I did grow up in Calif. I can't advise you yes or no except to get you to ask yourself this question....what can I gain from saying yes, and what can I lose from saying yes? Fold a piece of paper down and the middle and do the pros and cons and you're likely to get the answer from you're heart not your head. Good luck I've had a gastric band and waiting to have an Omega Loop on Jan 19 - YEA only 7 weeks to go.

Don't get discouraged. It takes a few fills - I was banded on 3/22, and have had 3 fills and my office is a bit more aggressive. I have 7 ccs in a 10 cc band and I believe I'm at my sweet spot. But, before that - even up to 6.5 ccs, I was not having that much restriction. You'll hit that magic spot and it will be great. Give it time. And the weight loss is slower with the band - but I think it will be more permanent. Just give it time. I promise.

I don't know what the dr. told you but since I haven't had a fill yet, I was told 1/4 cup to 1 cup per meal.. Meals are 3 times a day, with two Protein shakes. I've been having 1/2 cup per meal, Breakfast is just a scrambled egg.. I try and having something every two hours, so I start the day with decaf tea, then at 10 I have breakfast, 12 Protein shake, then 2 lunch, 4 protein shake and 6 dinner.. All the rest of the times I drink keeping in mind the 30/30 rule.. It's worked for me.. I always try and do 1/4 cup protein with 1/4 cup veggies per meal except breakfast..

I also wonder at your reason for not getting a Realize band. I was banded on 10/15/10....and so far, I have had no problem with it. The port is slimmer, so has a smaller profile. Would be interested in hearing your reasons. Good luck!

I am just noticing and people are too...pre-op start 6/22/13,surgery 7/10/13- lost 57.

I get a pain to . I'm 6 days post op. I don't know how to describe it. It comes and goes it sits right behind my sternum at the top of my stomach. It feels like the beginnings of a burp that never comes, or like something is going in and gets stuck even though I'm not eating anything. When it happens it's only for a few seconds like between 5-10. I can't take a deep breath and sometimes it triggers a hiccup. Its really annoying and uncomfortable when its happening. I'm not sure if that's what you're feeling but hope you feel better soon.

I paid $1,000 out of pocket. My payments started the month after surgery and I paid $50/mo, no interest. They would have gone as low as $10/mo.

I am at a loss. I am trying to keep this as brief as possible, so forgive me if you get lost in the muck and the mire. 1. Decide in August to have lap band done w/ Dr. Liu. 2. UHC rep says won't be authroized b/c Dr. Liu doesn't accept insurance. 3. Confirmed by rep 2. 4. Rep 4 says no way. Will be covered at 90% of what's eligible. Must turn in predetermination request. 5. Ask reps 4 & 5 and coordinate w/ Dr. Liu staff what is required (just paperwork from his office. Submitted. 6. Denied. Not a covered benefit. 7. What? That's not what reps 4 & 5 said! 8. Oops. You're right. Denied because no proof of morbid obesity for last 5 years. 9. Submit proof. 10. Denied for not submitting proof of morbid obesity. Argue with Reps 6 & 7 for 45 minutes on the definition of "proof." They say HEIGHT AND WEIGHT IS NOT PROOF. :smile2: Must be a ICD-9 diagnosis from a chart. I said YOU CAN'T GET AN ICD-9 DIAGNOSIS OF MORBID OBESITY W/O THE HEIGHT AND WEIGHT! 11. Get transfered to medical review unit. She tells me I was denied because I failed to submit proof I participated in medically supervised weight loss programs and do not have high blood pressure, heart disease, Diabetes, or obstructive sleep apnea. WHEN WAS ANYONE GOING TO TELL ME THE REQUIREMENTS OF MY OWN PLAN? I've participated in countless weight loss programs (medically supervised ones, too), but the closest thing I have to any of the above is insulin resistance. I feel like I am getting the run around, and no matter how many hoops I jump through, they will find a reason to deny it. Anyone get lapband approved with a situation similar to mine?

I am so nervous and excited! I am excited because I have struggled with my weight my whole life and have done just about every diet out there. I am nervous because of failure. Any tips/advice/suggestions? Thank you all!

I was banded 12/10 and my port site is still very tender. If I bend wrong or do to much then it starts throbbing. I have been to one post op appt and have another on in 5 days. I am sure this is all normal.

I am glad I caught this thread. Cc is an option under my insurance but I am in another state. Having my band removed after 10 years and I am not getting a good feeling about the locals in Chicago. I just think I need to be in the BEST hands, I was thinking that CC would be an option that I would feel comfortable with. Did any of you also have a band removed? Is there reason to NOT go toCC?

I didn't have the same experience, though I was able to find Dr Ben- Meir at Lake health ( lake west and Tripoint hospitals). I actually went through to the end at st Vincent's and had my surgery date if 08/12 when I found him and decided to switch. My new date is 10/14 and I'm so happy to have found him- he had great stats- over 4000 surgeries and never a leak! He left at the end of may and Lake Health was late in getting out his info on the Internet. He wouldn't have been able to take any patient info with him and they were not able to tell us where he went! Hope things are going well for you at CC. Did you get a date yet?

I have the very same pain. I was banded on 10/29/08 and I'm still having the pain. My surgeon said it was the stitches pulling. They stitch the port down and in doing to much to soon I either pulled the stitches or tore them a little. He advised me to take it easy and perscribed mucle relaxers. It is getting a lot better but in the beginning it was very painful. My port is right at my waistline so when I bend the stitches pull. He assured me it was not an infection because I did not have a fever, swelling, drainage or redness.