Search the Community

Well the 12th is getting here really fast. I dont say much on here but could write a book with the things going through my mind. This site has been a great comfort. I am in a new place with no friends around to talk to. I have a wonderful understanding wife but she cant really relate. Its been really good for me to read the sucesses, the what to bring checklist, and even the complications just to know that if I have any of them, I wasnt alone and not in the dark about them. It doesnt take away the nerves but it has helped alot. Thank you to all that have shared the good, the bad, and the ugly and after Tuesday, I will be adding more experience to everyone looking for information. E

I did not have a pain pump, I was in alot of pain, but I think that might have made it much more complicated and worse. Just a tip, make sure you get your scheduled fills after to get best results! Good Luck! I took a nasal spray pain medicine which was great and worked well.

Hi, Excuse me but I am new to online forums. I'm sure over time my tech-savvy will improve. I am 4 weeks post sleeve. My first 2 weeks were awesome I thought "wow" then I've been really going backwards. I have celiac disease which flared a lactose intolerance, which has added to my woes. At about 2 weeks on a minced and mashed diet I started to vomit all solids. It didn't matter if I took nause medication (I take Nexium) up it would come. Landed in hospital for a night just after xmas for fluids and a scope - all was fine. Home sweet home for a few days and the vomiting started all over again. My doc is great but I think he's wondering what to do with me. Also every time I eat solids or even thick Soups I get moderate to severe stomach pain - like a spasm and in my stomach that radiated to a variety of places over my tummy. I have now been told this is not 'normal'. After I eat, the pain goes away generally within 5 to 10 minutes. I am keen to here if others have experienced a similar set of complications and how did you cope and DID IT PASS? Cheers, Gmac (I have not figured a signature out yet!):thumbup:

I would think you are probably fine, but get it checked for peace of mind. And perhaps you should up your calories to more than 800 a day. Not more than 4-6 oz in a sitting, but more calories a day could be why you are hungry. I have to eat between 1400-2000 calories a day. Yeah I'm eating all day long.... but I worked my butt off to lose the weight, now I gotta work on keeping it up a bit (due to complications as my signature shows, I've not be a "normal" sleever and lost too much this last go around due to complications, so now I'm working at keeping my weight at 135, which I am below this week). I know at one point in my journey, 800 calories wasn't doing it for me. Perhaps you are just at that stage, but I hope to read you are fine and all is good after getting it checked. Best of luck, always.

Rhonda, Your decision should be made between you and your surgeon and some self-reflection. I am 4 mos out now and feel great with my decision and my weight loss. That said, my surgeon was very clear with me that if I could not commit to regular exercise I would probably lose 20-40# tops! I am in the gym 5-7days every week since a month after surgery. For me, I had lost weight before I considered surgery. I know I can lose it and have the right mindset to succeed and keep it off. Also, I had made many lifestyle changes prior to surgery. I am young and otherwise very healthy aside from a back injury. At this point, I didn't feel I needed to go the more drastic route of RNY. I like that I am responsible for my weight loss. I have some restriction now, but I still have more control over my choices than bypass patients do. In 4 mos postop and a little over a year since starting this process I am now down almost 90# and down 6 dress sizes. So it can be done, but takes A LOT of dedication. If you are able and willing to commit to regular cardio and strength training as well as make the changes in your diet, then the band may be right for you. However, choosing the bypass is a great option as well. You will lose weight faster, but there are other possible complications and longer recovery. You can dump post bypass but not post band. With either surgery, vomiting and PB'ing can happen. Since bypass is malabsorptive, you can have Vitamin and mineral deficits, but these issues can happen after the band too, if you make poor choices. Also, do not look at the band as reversible because it should not be removed except in the extreme case of severe complications. The band is placed to help you manage your weight over time. Just because you lose X pounds doesn't mean then the band can come out. Both surgeries are major abdominal procedures and are permanent except in the rare case. RNY is more drastic and requires a lot of cutting and stapling while the band involves some internal sutures around the device. Both surgeries have been proven to be safe and effective. Remember, RNY is still considered the gold standard for WLS. In the end, both surgeries require you to exercise in order to keep the weight off. The bypass just shortens the weight loss phase. I know many people who have chosen both surgeries and each has been successful and healthy. The choice is yours, but I encourage you to be honest with yourself- your comittment, expectations, and lifestyle. Talk to your surgeon and others who have had surgery. Best of luck! I'm sure you'll come to the right decision for you. I wouldn't change my decision for anything!!

Well I have decided there is no "leaning" toward the sleeve - it is definitely the one I want. My appointment with the surgeon is April 7th but my insurance just changed and now I have to see my primary Doctor for 6 months instead of 3 - a little disappointed, if I had not sat on the fence for a month I would probably be scheduled already But hey, all in good time. I now think it will be August, hopefully earlier in the month and not latter!! I joined weight watchers this week in hopes to start losing some now and as part of my "plan" with my doctor - even if I lose 50 lbs I still have a high enough BMI. I went ahead and scheduled all my monthly visits with my doctor. Honestly, if it weren't for all the scary "your insurance won't pay for complications" I would go to Mexico and have it done tomorrow!!! I am really enjoying reading everyone's posts, this is a great board. I don't know anyone around me who has had the sleeve, pretty new around here I believe. I know a ton who have had RNY and a few with Lap Band and one with DS but that's it so this board has been so helpful!! Thanks everyone!

I am a 49 year old female with a BMI of 35, high blood pressure. For years I have been wanting a lapband but neither my insurance nor my husbands would cover it. Since the kids are now out of school my husband said if you really want this then do it. I talked with a surgeon in my city and then went to Houston to see one that my friend had used. I was all ready to get it scheduled and then when he heard that I wanted to lose 50-60 pounds he said, no I'm not going to do it because you will not lose that much weight and you will be wanting a revision in less than 5 years. He wanted me to do the sleeve and I said no and he still wouldn't do the lapband. Now I am a self pay and this is a real good surgeon. So after crying all the way home I started thinking why would he say this to me if its not true. I believe that you can search these forums and find the responses that you want to find, I always mostly read to good about lapband. I have to say that I can't find too much negative about the sleeve. My only problem is that I am so scared of complications since I am a selfpay. I don't want my family to have financial problems because of me. My husband says whatever I want to do he is behind me but added that he really doesn't think I am big enough to have the surgery, just exercise and follow my diet. Oh of course, I hadn't even thought about that. Anyway, I read these forums daily and just can't decide what to do, its not the money, its not having to deal with eating small portions, its just being scared of a leak. I just want to cry every morning when I get dressed cause I look so fat.

oh, I know I'm not getting the lapband. After the surgeon refused to do it and I got over the rejection, I started really reading about it and decided not to do the band. I just need to decide if to do the sleeve, just scared of costly complications. You have done so good, I enjoy reading your post

It'll pass faster than you think, I had to do 6 months but my dr accepted a previous month as a starting point, would tha work for you? My cousin just had sleeve on 3/21 and she purchased a insurance thru the droctor office to cover complications it was 1200.00 and covered any dr anywhere...just saying it does exist if you are leaning toward self pay. She pd 12,200.00 and tht included EVERYTHING! Good Luck you'll love this forum. Eyeryone is super supportive!!

Hi there- I am a revision patient. I had a band for almost 4 years - lost 40 pounds, gained back 20. Totally not worth it. That said, only you can decide if the sleeve is the right thing to do after the band. I wanted an "insurance policy" after I had my band taken out. I wanted to make sure that I wouldn't baloon up again after the band was gone. It has been 6 weeks since my revision and I am ECSTATIC with the results. The recovery was hard, but the positives outweigh the negatives. I am at a point where I can eat almost anything (but very small quantities) and it feels really good. Make sure you read through this board extensively - there is so much infromation here! Also, there is a band to sleeve revision topic on the main page (scroll down until you see it). A lot of us revision folks post info there. As far as your questions: 1. Is all this true? Averag weight loss is just that - an average. Since I have less to lose, I am not sure how close I will get to my goal or how soon. People lose well over 100 pounds with the surgery. 2. Are there more than 1 type of sleeve operations? There is one variation that I know of - sleeve plication. You might want to do a search on this board for "plication" and send messages to some of the folks who have had it done. It is not nearly as common. 3. Is it difficult to transition from the lapband to the sleeve? Surgically, it can be challenging if you have had complications or excessive scarring. The doc won't really know until they get in there and see what is going on. My revision was not terribly complicated - Dr removed scar tissue and adhesions from my liver and my total surgery time was less than 90 minutes. Emotionally, the transition has its ups and downs. You will feel restriction like you never had with the band. This is good, but the first few weeks on all liquids and very strict diet can be tough on you emotionally. The good thing is that it doesn't allow you to cheat. After 4-6 weeks you are eating normally (but a lot less) and it gets much easier. 4. Does Insurance cover it? (I have Blue Cross) For some people it does - you will have to explore that option. 5. Are there other important questions that I am not asking? Read through the boards extensively and you will most likely come up with a list of questions for your doctor. Also, feel free to ask all of us questions about our experiences. The knowledge and support here is invaluable. Good luck to you in your decision! Lara

Hi Sarah I've been lurking around for a little while round here too! Three years ago at the age of 33 I was diagnosed with uterine cancer which was treated with a hysterectomy. Because it was a very rare type of cancer (uterine adenosarcoma) my surgeon preferred not to do any other chemo/radiation as it was caught early and there wasn't enough data to suggest the benefits would outweight the negatives. So I was lucky to avoid those hair-loss type side effects you experienced, and six monthly check-ups have been all good. I too lost a lot of weight around that time from the stress of it all, but of course gained it all back over time. I got banded in June. I have noticed a little more hair falls out on the sink after brushing it, but can't notice any difference on my head. Not sure if it takes longer than 3 months to be noticeable though? Others will let you know. My orthopaedic surgeon was the one who suggested banding as I needed a hip replacement (to treat congenital hip dysplasia) and he was reluctant to perform the surgery due to my weight and the associated risks/complications. I spent 20 years yo-yo dieting, weight fluctuations of up to 50 pounds, only to wind up heavier than ever. Although my hip would always have failed earlier than most, it's pretty clear my obesity didn't help matters. Sounds like a cliche but I really wish I could have gotten the weight under control 10 years ago when I was your age. The struggle doesn't get any easier, and the impact on your health just compounds as years go by. I've lost about 50 pounds in the past 3.5 months (even with a total hip replacement surgery last month and being unable to do any activity for the past 5 weeks). It's not always easy having a band as I'm sure you've gathered. I've been having a lot of trouble eating and even sometimes drinking in the past couple of weeks. I've had all of my small amount of fill (2cc) removed and still having trouble. My surgeon can only put it down to changes in body's Fluid composition following the hip replacement surgery last month, as a barium swallow showed the band has not slipped. All very stressful, but I would do it over again as it's my best chance at reaching/maintaining a healthy weight and avoiding any more health problems. All I can tell you is I really wish I could have done it at your age and had 10 less years of wear and tear on my body. All the very best regardless of your decision.

My dr. and his partner have done over 2,000 lapbands with minimal (like.02%) complications. That number satisfied me. That being said, I agree that it's also important to get a feel for the office. Also, remember that the more patients, the busier the office. Good luck to you. Rainer

if you go to lap band complications you will find people who have had issues. as for me i think i have first bite syndrome. in the beginning like the first 3 months it felt like i constantly had something stuck in my throat. over time it went away it was just annoying. it does come back every once in awhile. im fortunate to say so far i have not had any major issues.

Update here: I'm now nearly 8 months post surgery and I can honestly say that this was the best decision of my life. I've lost 84 pounds since my weigh-in the morning before the operation and just last week I tipped the scales within the "normal" BMI range. I feel great, look better than ever before and haven't really had any issues beyond the original complications immediately after the surgery. I keep buying clothes as my old ones keep getting too big very fast - I think the money saved on food goes on clothes these days! I'm aiming at losing about 12-15 pounds more but I'm eating a little more already as I'm not sure how easy it is to stop losing weight. To anyone still wondering whether to take the plunge, I say: go for it. There are risks involved but living with obesity is risk filled too.

I think you've made the right choice. A friend of mine is a medical resident and she's currently taking care of a woman who developed pretty serious malnutrition-related complications from her bypass - TWENTY YEARS LATER. And the woman's still obese! My friend is not sure whether she used to be heavier, but she was clearly unable to reach a healthy weight OR be healthy in other aspects with the bypass. I would've never gone for a bypass (if I was 500 lbs - maybe, because the rewards would then be worth the risks, but not at my original size).

Lady- Your in the right place for support and it's ok to be scared. Having the sleeve is life-altering and surgery does come with complications. That said, I am so happy that I have my sleeve now and wouldn't look back. It's working great for me. You didn't say how the person popped her staples, so its unknown if this occurred because of medical error or patient error. However, if you follow your doctor's diet you shouldn't "pop" your stapleline. After the surgery, you follow the diet progression and sip, sip, sip your liquids, and listen to your body. It will tell when you've had enough. It's also important to follow the pre-op diet so your liver shrinks and your surgeon has plenty of room to work. The good news is...you don't starve after surgery!! I was sleeved last thursday (9/16) and am on the liquid diet for two weeks. I sometimes feel "empty," especially in the morning, but never growling hungry. That's the beauty of having the fundus of your stomach--where the hormone ghrelin is prodcued-- removed. Good luck to you and keep checking in - Fit

hey Guys thanks for the posts, when i woke up this morning i threw the rolls out i really didnt miss them as much as i thought i did when the impulse came. I started a low carb diet today!!!!!! Ive been a excellent patient for many years with all my injuries, so if the doctors say do this i will to the T. As for me doing diets and weight loss ive failed for one reason or another and after staring and stoping a diet Ill start again monday or after the holiday im just tired of it all. two years ago i walked into a bariatric doctors for a consultation he talked to me and pushed the Lapband, at the time i had three friends who had it done and it worked for one out of the three (the husband and wife) had complications not from lapband. So after leaving his office and talking to family who of course said just lose the weight you dont need another surgery, i put all thoughts of bariatric aside. All this time my mom has been suffering with Lymphoma (3yrs) and while helping her i popped a umbilical hernia and didnt tell anyone except my doctor and wife and maybe a close friend. I had been taking her to chemo and radiation for about 2 1/2 yrs and i just couldnt do it anymore i needed to help myself i forgot all about me and my needs, thats when i knew it was time to see another gastric doctor and get the help i needed for me. I seen my doctor this summer at the same time mom calls and says my aunt has pancreaitic cancer and not much they can do for her, she doesnt live close and mom and grandmom dont drive so ive been doing all the driving a few times a week back and forth 80 miles round trip and if theres traffic....ugh Id do anything for my family as you can see, had a talk with my aunt while she was in bed already thin and in pain but still smiled to see me and knew i love her, i told her what i was doing and she said its the best thing i could do for myself and wished she would be around to see my transformation, i cried she cried and she said she will always be around watching me and i know she will, last night i visited again and she only has days left. As you can see im a caretaker im not ashamed of what ive done always putting family or friends before me but if your like me and are thinking of bariatric help, DO IT and dont look back you have to put you first take your life back as im doing. Sorry for the long winded post i got off track a lil with my family issues andi was going to delete but there might be that other person who is in same spot and it might help...if not it helped me write it down! God Bless Joe

God be with you tomorrow! Wishing you a complication-free surgery and a speedy recovery followed by outrageous success!

Hello All, I've been "stalking" the boards for some time now ... and I went to the informational seminar in December. I met with the therapist and I have done the medically supervised diet plan ... now here I am. I go to meet with Dr. Singh this afternoon over by St Agnes Hospital in Maryland. I have mixed emotions as the more I read, I am relieved by your successes, and so afraid of my own potential failure, or surgical complications. I just wanted to reach out and say hello, and let you guys know that I may need some hand-holding!!! Please wish me luck on my journey, and I hope to be as much of an asset to you as you all have been to me.

Congratulations on starting your journey. I'll be curious to hear what your primary care physician has to say about lap band. My pcp didn't know much about the procedure but she was supportive in my quest for more information. I went to 2 different bariatric seminars. The first time I actually went to one in support of my sister who was considering gastric bypass. This was about 4 years ago and they were just starting to do lapband at our hospital. After making the decision to pursue it for myself, I went to another seminar where they talked about both surgeries in detail. Based on the surgery itself, the reduced complications and the recovery time, I knew lapband was for me. My BMI was just under 40 but I had high blood pressure, pre-diabetes and high cholesterol/trigs. The cholesterol/trigs are unfortunately just part of my genetic makeup but my blood pressure and blood sugar are now normal. My primary doc kept me on 5mg of blood pressure medicine for kidney protection (based on the prior pre-diabetes diagnosis) which I was bummed about BUT my nurse at my surgeons office agreed completely saying it doesn't hurt anything. I'm a little over a year out and based on my scale this morning, I'm down 50 lbs. I had a great surgeon and he and his staff are awesome. I feel like I'm part of a family there. I'm going to make a suggestion on a book you should buy or check out at your library. It's titled Band Wagon. It's written by a lady who had lapband and it's full of great information that I have found really helpful. I got the book after my surgery but wished I would have had it prior. I've read it several times and go back from time to time and re-read sections over again. It's real basic terminology, what to expect stuff and it's an easy read. She's pretty funny too which made it hard to put down. Check it out and Good Luck!

I just want to mention this. If you go thru with the surgery and I presume that you won't have complications worse enough to die.... 6 months from now you will be looking back at this and say to yourself that it was the best thing you ever did for yourself.....

Complications are possible with any surgery, but the lap-band was designed to be much, much safer than the gastric bypass. That sad story about the poor man who died of a heart attack made the news because it was a very unusual occurance. There are many people who die from gastric bypass that never make the news. I am another Port Huron bandster. I think Dr. Boutt and Dr. Bhesania are both excellent, very experienced lap-band surgeons. You'll be in good hands. Regarding the issue of being around for your child, well, your losing the weight will probably be a good thing for your child as well. After this surgery, you'll probably have more energy to be able to spend quality time with your kid! Good luck to you.

I had my lap band slip after 7 years in April. I just had my sleeve on 6/26. I'm not going to lie. It hurt. A lot. But I did have some additional Complications due to chronic steroid use from arthritis. Surgery was 2.5 hours. So, I'm attributing it to that. I stayed an extra day bc they had to staple, stitch and glue my new stomach. But I'm completely independent now. No pain Meds for over 36 hours. Waiting on doc to show up so I can go Home. My Husband asked me on the Fay of surgery if it was worth it and I said no. Now, I'm saying yes as long as the post lap band weight comes off. Good Luck!!

Hey all, My name is Amy and I have had my band for a little over a year now. The day of my surgery I weighed 277 lbs and as of this morning I weighed 255. I was down to 249 but we went on vacation and I gained some back (although I don't know how because I threw up A LOT while we were gone). I originally decided on having the surgery because I tried EVERYTHING to lose weight. Every diet, every diet pill, exercise, you name it I probably tried it. I have diabetes, PCOS, anxiety and depression. My aunt who I was very close to passed away a few years ago from complications of diabetes. I am pretty much just like her when it comes to my health. I favor her in looks as well. As much as I love and miss her so much, I do NOT want to be like her and die in my 40's. I am 31 now and I have an 8 year old little boy who is my world. I know this is kind of jumbled up right now, I'm just typing as things come to me. I knew that having this surgery was just a tool and not a solution but most days, I feel like it was the WORST decision of my life. I have lost little weight and even though I don't always follow the rules of having a band, for the most part I stick to them. I am so discouraged and tired of throwing up. I told myself before having surgery that I would NEVER let myself throw up because I despise throwing up. And now its a weekly occurance it seems. I've had Fluid removed and then put back in and I am just now to the point where I feel FULL when I eat. I am a stress eater and this past year has definitely been stressful. My husband just returned from our second deployment in September and I feel like a failure. I had all this time to lose weight while he was gone and yet, I lost a measly 20 pounds. Sigh. Sorry for the rambling, but I guess I don't feel like I can really talk to anyone about all of this that REALLY understands. So I probably sound like Crazypants McGee, but I promise I'm not. I'm just a girl who is trying to regain her health and control of her life.

Most of us have few issues. It's just that people post when they struggle whether it be a real complication or just a problem adjusting.