Search the Community

She's done pretty good, she hasn't been too rough and atleast she does sit when told. I was so happy to get the dang drain out Tues. I kept it tucked in my undies bc I'm short and the tube was alittle long LOL I was so worried it would be hanging out and the dog would snag it...thank goodness that DIDNT happen!!!

What BC were you on before? Michelle Post op revision band to bypass 9-28-17 Sw 276 Day of surgery 252 Cw 248 Goal Healthy BMI 154.

I am in the same boat i lost 22 lbs before surgery and then i gained like 2lbs before i got my forst fill bc it took my dr 2 months to do it! But after my fill which i got july 2 i have only lost 2 lbs. I can eat most days alittle more then a cup but i dont eat a lot. Sometimea when i attempt to eat like just now (bc its morning) i took two bites and I'm too tight right now to even eat. So its not like I'm eating too much. I havent been able to really excersize since but i do try to get in some walking at work. I'm assuming thats why I'm not really going anywherw

I just got 2 calls from 1800 F***ers... today is tuesday... WAY after mothers day... the first call was to tell me that they dont have anymore of what i ordered so they are replacing my order with something the florist has left.... the second call was to tell me that the delivery boy cant find the address and they cant reach my mom on her cell so they didnt deliver it.. and they dont know what to do now. i am so pissed... i gave her hell on the phone though. this is the 2nd and last time i will use them.. the first time it was the same BS and i ended up with a gift certificate.. which i used for this order... and it is worse this time around. stupid stupid argh

Hi all, I'm post op 11 days. Right now I'm still in my full liquids phase, and I made a bunch of Soup to help get past this phase. I added unflavored Protein and it has a gritty, chalky flavor which I can't stand. I love the soup, but without adding the unflavored protein I won't be meeting my protein goal. I want to give up on the 60-70 grams of protein I should be having, it sounds crazy to me.. besides the Greek yogurt and occasional Protein shake.. and then just really pick up on it when I start my puréed diet next week bc I will be able to have puréed chicken. Would this be really bad? Sent from my iPad using the BariatricPal App

I meant to add this to my post above: Like I said, I have been on this forum for 14 months. In that time I have found 3 posters who are wise and knowledgeable. They strip through the BS and hand out sound advice. When these people post, I READ. Elcee, B52 and Corrigan Elcee and B52 are at goal and Corrigan is close to goal.

It's been over a year (5/2012) and I'm "only" 40lbs down... And still have a way to go! I would like to lose a minimum of 70lbs more however I'm not seeing that scale move! I get an adjustment like clockwork every 4wks and the scale will go down about 3-5lbs and either stay steady or regain about that much by the time the nxt adj comes around. I feel restricted and my diet primarily consists of salads, soups, yogurt, protein shakes, chili, fresh fish and veggies...every once in awhile I will have some wine or ice cream (again...periodically).. I exercise 3-4x a week for 30-45 min intense tabata, kickboxing, strength training type regimens buuuut collectively it's NOT WORKING.. I'm really scared and desperate bc I keep thinking I didn't go through this journey of Lapband to only succeed 1/4 of the way! My MD and staff just keep saying workout harder, eat differently and I don't know how to do anymore of both.. My body is clearly stubborn (always has been in weightless w PCOS) and it seems to have adjusted to the band and this is it!! Pleeeease if someone can share if they've had a similar issue and eventually had a breakthrough I would appreciate some ideas and stories of hope!!

$17,000 including tax # False Creek Medical in Vancouver, BC

Hi Alfie, I'm a retired Verizon employee in MD with Anthem BC/BS. I was banded 11/19/06 and a few weeks ago my band of 6 years has to be removed due to many problems, one being a dilated esphogas. Before my band I was on so many meds, now have kept off 62 lbs and BMI is 34.5. After speaking to my Anthem case worker Tuesday, I'm really afraid Anthem is going to deny my band to sleeve surgery due to my lower BMI and controlling my diabetes by diet and exercise. I am very concerned.....any thoughts or words of wisdom?

In Tijuana, just across the border with San Diego $4,900 with Dr. Jalil Illan and Hospital BC. The price includes transportation to and from San Diego International airport, 3 nights at the hospital, nutritional support, pre-ops, and one companion

Hi All, ​I am in the very beginnings of the process, I have not met with a surgeon yet. I have Anthem BC and still am unsure of what the insurance requires, I have an idea but want to make sure before getting my hopes up. My BMI is 55 and I am 56 years old. I have many health issues going on which losing weight I am sure will make better or end them completely. I just want to be able to enjoy my family and activities like before I gained this weight. Looking forward to a new life

Hi all, I have two insurances, both will cover the surgery but I'm not sure at what percentage. My question is, can approval be submitted to both insurances? One is a little more strict than the other and I think i may be denied through one but approved through the other. Has anyone went through a similar experience? The insurances are BC/BS of AL and BC/BS Anthem.

This was also shocking to me as my surgeon, who performs bypass and bands really prefers the band for long term healthy weight loss, as does my nutritionist. Find a surgeon who has a great track record and few problems. Mine has performed something like 1000 of these and ONLY ONCE did a patient need to have it removed and do bypass instead and that was bc she couldn't get to a sweet spot, either she couldn't eat at all or she ate as much as she wanted. But that's 1/1000. I was so excited when I learned about lap band because it sounded like the tool I needed. I was not the person to sit down and eat a half gallon of ice cream or a whole bag of chips, but let me load up my plate as a meal and I could do some damage and left to my own to make meal choice decisions and I made BAD ones. I figured at least with this when I made those decisions I would do LESS DAMAGE. For me, bypass was out.. too many health risks and I was a very healthy fat person, I was not willing to risk everything else. The band makes you eat less. That's all I wanted and I couldn't be happier with my decision at this point. In the past I was so prone to overeat that I defeated myself from the get go... now it's so much easier to turn down food or just get a taste. Find a doc that is good at the band and you might get a better answer... sounds like this guy just isn't a good lab band surgeon.

That sounds like my cycle in the 9 months before my hysterectomy. :-/ I would take to your GYN about, if you're on the pill, you may need to switch to a different one, or if you're not on one, maybe consider starting to get it controlled. Due to a clotting disorder, I couldn't use hormonal BC and ended up with the hysterectomy after an ablation failed. Usually if its not just a temp thing caused my surgery, a GYN can get it under control with a hormonal BC! good luck. I know that sucks!!!

I won't give a number rating now bc I feel I haven't been sleeved long enough to really know (6 days) but I've lost 14.5lbs in those days so that's definitely something to think about! My husband said my surgery took 45 mins but my time in the recovery room was more than double that.

Date sleeved:8/28/12 Start weight: 276.4 Weight today: 247.2 What you eating and how much daily: 400-600 cal Daily work out: walking, not set program How hungery are you?: not very. Sometimes in the morning I am hungry, but not too bad How you feel physically: very exhausted daily! How you feel emotionally: drained/ depressed! WHY!?! Are you glad you chose the sleeve?: so far I am Anything extra to say?: battling my emotions and dealing with some stress lately has tested my sleeve and will power! So far, I have conquered! Feeling like I am not losing bc I can't see it! Agh

I was denied 3 years ago bc I didn't have documentation of supervised weight-loss attempts (Weight Watcher's, TOP'S, Jenny Craig) or even weigh-ins at a doctor's office. Our insurance changed, still bcbs, different "of" state. This time, it didn't affect the outcome. The criteria was different - and it wasn't necessary. (YAY! - because i was not able to regularly attend a wl group.) Each bcbs division has their own policy, I have been told. They don't have universal requirements for pre-approval. That doesn't really make a whole lot of sense, but it is what it is. If you speak with a representative, they will gladly send you a copy of their requirements, in much greater detail, than your coverage booklet. Good luck to you!

I had my 8 week appt yesterday(even tho tmw is 8 weeks)...I got released to eat "real food" yahoooo! I had a mini salad and loved every bite! My doctor was very happy with my results thus far, down 37lbs from preop diet...over 1/3 of my excess body weight(100 lbs) we discussed my goal and his goal for me, which were surprisingly different, I am 5' even and he said he thinks I should be aiming for 130. I had set my goal in my mind to 110(started at 211) this puts me smack dab in the middle of normal BMI & what I weighed when I was super physically active and in shape. He thinks I will have quite a bit of excess skin due to a difficult pregnancy I had that stretched my body into the oddest shape, phooey! So he says 130 and a tummy tuck and I should end up at 115...I'm ok with that and see his point! At this point I'm just so pleased people are noticing my weight loss! My pants are big but due to being so disproportionate the waists are still fitting(tho surely loose). I'm excited to go down in size!! Heck at this point I'm in my old maternity clothes, which brings me to another part of my update I haven't talked much about on here... The week before Christmas I had a bit of a scare, I was 4 weeks out and woke up to terrible pain and wringing feeling in my stomach, like twisting and wrenching...saw my surgeon, he thought gastritis and possible start if an ulcer, got meds and slowly things calmed down...the day before Xmas I started having some pain on my left side next to my stomach, it got severe on Xmas day...I barely made it through presents then went to bed and slept allllll day...the next day I got a fever so the on call sent me to the ER with two thoughts, possible leak and dehydration...CT showed no leak thankfully but my spleen was gigantic...they were so rude and gave no explanation nor care to further check why and sent me home...the next day my surgeon called very alarmed, they were thinking I may have mono which caused my spleen to expand, so off I went for that test and another Upper GI just to be extra sure no leak....thankfully negative on the leak but sadly mono was negative, that would've been a nice clean easy to deal with diagnosis. So I was put on exercise precautions and asked to be very careful around my children or anyone bumping my side bc it was that big! Both my PCP & my Surgeon decided to take a wait & see approach where my pain was slowly subsiding. So followed up with my PCP last week and he thinks I did catch some sort of virus and it just attacked my spleen...we will do another ultrasound at the end of January and hope to see it shrinking...my surgeon was happy with that yesterday and I see him in one month! So long sorry short I have a gigantic spleen, it was crushing my little sleeve, making it very painful(the wringing and reflux symptoms before Xmas)It is still enlarged but a couple weeks ago I was able to start eating agin and now I feel normal! Phewwwwww! If you caught all that congrats! Lol! I have some preop pics on my laptop but I have one from my sister in laws wedding which was my last straw, I was 211 here, same as I was at my preop diet appt & the other is this weekend at my sons 3rd birthday party, where I got two wonderful compliments!

SOOOOOOO, I am supposed to be doing this pre-op diet. WELL. I have done awful. I have surgery on Tuesday, May31. I am supposed to be doing 3 shakes a day and only clear liquids! I am so upset bc I havent been doing well. Especially today!!!! HELP!!

Well I had emailed the nutritionost throught the Cleveland Clinic, where I am having my surgery, and told her how bad I was doing. She reassured me that YES i need to be doing it but I am not a failure bc i havent done well. I think I just lost it for a bit! But I am better now, lol. I have today, friday, saturday and sunday, 4 days. I vow to my lapband buddies NOTHING BUT 3 SHAKES AND CLEAR LIQUIDS!!!! And I get only clear liquids on Monday! Thanks guys!!!!!!!!!

It’s definitely different for me. I don’t get a full feeling ...I feel like the food sits in my throat (assume that’s food that isn’t in the stomach bc it’s full?? Dunno) Either way- I always measure and just go with 3-4 ounces HW 242, SW 236- (Bypass 12/20/17) GW#1- 199 [emoji736] (2/11/18) GW#2- 175 CW 191.4 5’6”

Me too. At virginia hospital center. 8:30 am. I'm super grumpy - almost mouthed off at work yesterday to some lady being difficult. Had to send in admin proffesional to finish w/ her bc I was all out of F$7@'s to give at the moment. allons-y

No ...I've only tried the pure protein drinks which wev already used them over the yrs..but I have the chike from hearing it on here...I think I've seen that brand just havnt tried I hadn't heard anything about them..I want a meal...soo bad! But I'm detaining myself bc I no it's off limits for just another wk...lol..I'm slowly reintroducing soft foods..I'm hanging in there..I weighed awhile ago I've dropped 35 now! So proud of myself. .. finally have gotten something for a solution to this long time letch can't wait till it's gone!

I had surgery at NY Methodist in Park Slope Brooklyn.. just watching what I eat bc its easy to eat non healthy food. I try to prepare all of my meals to prevent a possible bad food choice. Sent from my SAMSUNG GALAXY S3 using LapBandTalk

Hi Marilyn! I had mine removed in September. I spent the night afterward mostly because I live an hour away from my surgeon and we both wanted to be sure everything was ok. The procedure took about an hour and he also did an upper GI (I've forgotten what it's called) to have a real good look around. I was awake all night and sore, but not in pain. What surprized me was the next day they took my IV out and I asked about pain meds. They told me they had not given me any pain meds!! I'd been having IV anti-inflammatory and anti-naseua meds, but no pain meds! So that will give you an idea of the ease. I had adhesions to my liver and to something else, I forget what. The operation report said the band came out easily. (You can request your Op Report afterward. It's interesting reading) In the hospital I had clear liquids. I was told when I go home, stick with liquids for another day and then I could have soft foods for 1 to 2 weeks. I could decide on my own when to move to regular food after a week. I chose to wait 2 weeks before returning to regular food. The most helpful order my surgeon gave me was that I was to walk 5 times a day!! I structured my whole day around that. I was up every 90 minutes to 2 hours to walk; I set my timer. I just walked for 10 minutes. I kept expanding my route and as I got better I could go further in the same 10 minutes. It was helpful that this was a doctor's order and I was really ridgid with it. Doing 5 walks a day was quite an accomplishment! It will help you with stamina. Plus it just keeps things moving. I had very little trouble with gas from the laproscopic part or gas from my innards being messed with. I stayed off work 3 weeks minus 1 day. The first day i went back to work, I worked 1/2 a day. I saw my surgeon the day before I went back to work. Everything was good. One of the steri-strips over an incision had already dropped off. My surgeon checked the incision where the port had been, removed the steri-strips and put 2 bandaides on it. The incision for the port was the largest and it has just now stopped oozing. (I had surgery Sept 16th and today is Oct 22nd). I remove the bandaides on that side and apply Neosporin every morning after my shower. So don't be alarmed if that incision takes it's time to heal. I was very tired during recovery. Sore some, too. I took percosett for a few days for the pain. But I feel so very much better without the band!! They symptoms I had went away immediately. I woke up from surgery and no symptoms! Before having my band out, I did a lot of research on weight loss plans so that I could continue to lose weight. I found the cook book Primal Cravings which has recipes that fit the way I eat. I am gluten free, dairy free(except grass fed butter), and sugar free. I bought the book and use it a lot. Everyone I've shown it to has been very impressed with it. My surgeon told me my body is still programmed to store fat and sugar, so to be careful what I eat. He said the band is only good to stop one from binging. The best diet for me is low carb because my body will always store carbohydrates. The recipes in the Primal Cravings cookbook (and the free ones on their website) are low carb and delicious. One quick recipe: Cut some of those small sweet colorful peppers in half and clean out the seeds. Stuff each half with avocado and top with half a slice of crisp bacon! It's a great snack! Crispy, cool, filling, and satisfying with the bacon. I hope this helps. I have to finish up writing quickly here as a guess is arriving. Please feel free to contact me if you have more questions or want clarity! You'll do fine and feel much better afterward. ~hiddn