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Hi KTK. My husband and I have had the lap band for 2 years now. We have a friend that had the Gastric Bypass a year and a half ago. She lost her first 100 lbs faster than us, however she has had many complications. We have had absolutely no complications and over time, we have lost more weight. Both surgeries are very effective however there are people that have not been successful with either one. The Lap Band and the Gastic bypass are only tools. You get out them what you put in to it. I chose the Lap band because I felt re arranging my insides was a bit much. The Lap Band is adjustable and reversable and it has worked great for both of us. Feel free to contact me if you think of any questions. I love giving the advise that helped my husband and I. We are both half the size we use to be =-). Good Luck. Once you start see the results, it become an easy life style to adapt to.

I have started the process of getting bariatric surgery. I am in month 2 of going to the nutrition meetings required by my insurance. I never really thought this would happen for me. I have been thinking of having the surgery in an abstract way for years. I always said that if I won the lottery I would do it in a heartbeat. I found out a month ago that my insurance covers the surgery if they find it medically necessary. I am type 2 diabetic, high blood pressure, higher than my doctor would like cholesterol, and I have extremely bad sciatica issues from a car accident when I was 14. It seems like every time I go to the doctor I get some new medication to add to the 13 pills I already take a day. I also have anxiety issues that I take medication for and I am currently trying to quit smoking. I know that is a lot to take one but I am a goal setter and a goal keeper. 5 years ago in 2009, I was depressed, I mean extremely depressed. My friend that I have known since I was 13 told me she worried that I was dead on the floor and my cats were eating my body. She was joking of course but, I didn't really talk to anyone for 6 months. I stopped wanting to leave my house, I had no motivation to take a bath, no motivation to do anything but lay on my couch and wish I was dead. I finally pin pointed the reason for my depression as I was stuck in a job I hated with no real way to get out because I had no high school diploma. I made a plan and a 5 year goal and a 10 year goal, I decided to get my GED at 35 and go to college. I bought books and started studying for the GED test. I came to a point where I knew I needed help because math is not my friend. I went to my local GED prep classes to get help. The process took a week to see where I was with my English and math skills. I kept taking test after test until I took the practice test and I was told that I could take the real test the following week. I passed my first try. I entered college in the fall of 2010. I will graduate next May with 2 degrees, I will graduate from the Honors Program at my school, I am a member of the Honors Society, and I have carried a 3.5 GPA the entire time I have been in school. That was my 5 year goal. To get my GED, go to college and get a degree, find a job with good insurance so I could try to get the surgery. I think I did well so far. LOL Anyway, the second phase of my ten year plan was to get into shape and get my health where it should be. I was diagnosed with diabetes at 33. Only because I had shingles for the second time in my life and I went in for a physical. Sorry this first post is so long but, I feel like if I get support now the next 7 months will fly by. I hope to have the surgery next summer. The point is that I make and keep goals. That is something I have been bad at most of my life but, I know that I must keep this goal in order to live a long and healthier life. It will also help with my favorite passtime of throwing pottery on the wheel. Its one of the talents I found while in school. I never knew I was talented or creative in anyway before I went to college and now I make beautiful art pieces with just my hands, some clay, and a kiln. It is my zen place, the one place where I am completely in the moment and not worrying about everything. It gives me peace. Now I found out that my insurance provided by my state through Medicaid expansion, because I am a poor college student that moved back in with my dad at 35 so I could concentrate on school. I do work, but I work for my school and it is part time so I get the Medicaid because I am poor. I always said if I had health insurance that covered it I would jump at the chance to get it. Well here is my chance and I am going full steam ahead with it. I will be attending my local support group that is part of the program I am working; I have been having a hard time with the exercise portion of the program though. I have long standing back issues and I really have to be careful what I do because I get this horrible burning pain that shoots down my leg sometimes just from normal walking. Plus I can't afford a gym membership right now. I did look into my local rec center and it seems they have pool exercise 3 times a week which I am going to try next week. I am not sure which surgery my surgeon will recommend for me but I am pretty sure I will ask for the bypass because of the remission of diabetes. I have been reading all about it in medical journals and I even tried to join the Cleveland Clinic study on the subject but I didn't have insurance before and they would not take me. I really am only worried about my health. I have seen what this obesity can do to a body from my mother who was 518 pounds at 53 and we had to put her into a nursing facility because she could no longer take care of herself anymore. Her story is sad, but it has a sort of happy ending in that, for her the surgery was a success and she is now living in an apartment on her own and able to take care of her own needs. Anyway, I am Naomi and I will be posting here. (If your read that whole thing I am really sorry, I tend to be long winded.)

I have decided that I want to have RYN bypass and I have set up an appointment for my free seminar 01/08. I have my primary physician behind me a 110%. I just want to know what all else you have to go through before you get your surgery date?

@Sprinkles1 hi cutie happiness is all that its cracked up to be!!☺️ wonderful bypass - wonderful success! 119 lbs gone out the window!! You are approaching weight loss finish line then you start all over w/maintenance for the rest of your healthier, happier, longer life. reaching GOAL is wonderful - then hard work continues - following the rules forever and ever and ever keeping the lbs off - i know you can/will do this keep up the great job!! kathy congrats

I had bypass on 4/23/18. My starting weight was 340lbs. I'm currently 221lbs. That's a total weight loss of 119lbs! I honestly can't tell you a time I remember being this small my entire life. I'm so happy! First goal: 250lbs [emoji818] Second goal: 225lbs [emoji818] Third goal: 199lbs ...*pending* Final goal: 160-170lbs I never worked out until this month. These last 22lbs until onederland are stubborn. I'm also doing keto and intermittent fasting. This surgery changed my life. I'm almost positive I would be closer to 400lbs by now if I didn't have this surgery. Sent from my SM-G955U using BariatricPal mobile app

Welcome. so again, has anyone here had lapband done through Cahaba Valley Surgical Center? they are in Alabaster. my surgeon is Dr. Vincent Gardner. just want some feedback on him. like was he a good surgeon , did you seem to care about your well being, did he give pain meds after. stuff like that. i got the impression that he is a good Christian man and i liked him but just want others who have used him opinions. thanks. my surgery date is November 30th. VERY EXCITED AND VERY, VERY SCARED!!!!!!!!!!

WOW. That is fast. I have been going to appointments since November and classes will not be done until January than I will get a surgery date. I think I would have postponed the surgery too. I'm still shock of reading your post.

Hi, VSG friends!! I know this question has been asked a million times but every one of us has different circumstances! So, here I go, and I apologize for this being kinda long to begin with! My name is Dana and I've been married 12 years to my wonderful hubby! We have 2 gorgeous girls (ages 9 & 6) who I homeschool! We've been trying to have one more baby over the last 5 years, but have been unsuccesful. I have PCOS and have been on fertility meds off and on and every time I take the meds, I gain 10 lbs. So, I started out 5 years ago weighing about 225 lbs and I now weigh 288 lbs. We've decided to leave the fertility drugs alone forever, choosing VSG instead and if we have another baby when I get healthy, we'll be overjoyed.....if I don't get pg, we'll count our blessings and move on! I had a friend ask me the other day if we were still trying to get pg. I paused before I answered her because I just didn't want to tell her about WLS!! So, I told her we weren't trying anymore, but I was going to see a dietician in January (not a lie, I am to meet my pre-op requirements!) and see if I can get some help losing weight. Ok, I don't mind telling people I'm having WLS AFTER I've already had it. It's the before part! My hubby is chairman of our church's deacon body and although our church is loving and supportive, I will be the FIRST person to have VSG or gastric bypass in our whole church, not to mention as a person who holds several leadership positions. I'm not at all sure of what reaction I'm going to get. I KNOW a few people would try to talk me out of it and tell me I just need to pray for more self-control....just a few, but I'd really rather avoid any negativity altogether! Do you agree?? If you were me, would you wait until after to tell? The other issue I have is when to tell our parents. With my in-laws, I'm not worried about them being unsupportive necessarily. They won't be thrilled, but I don't think they'd discourage me. It's more that my MIL worries and when she worries she gets horrible migraines! With my parents, it's a bit stickier. I don't have a good relationship with my parents right now. My mom tried to committ suicide for the second time a year ago and it was then that I finally realized that we've had a co-dependent relationship my whole life. I started setting healthy boundaries, my parents didn't like it, so we only see them on holidays/birthdays now. Their choice, not mine, but I decided a year ago that I would be healthy mentally and this year decided that my body needed to reflect the new health on my insides!! Anyway, what would you do? I was thinking about calling and telling both sets of parents the night before my surgery. I think they'd all be upset if we told them after the fact!! I'm having my sleep study done on January 5th, my diet consult and psych eval on January 12th, then we submit everything to my insurance company and I should have a surgery date in February! I'm so excited and feel so blessed that I have a hubby that is so incredibly supportive. I can't hardly wait to start my new life!!! Thank you to those of you who made it through all that!!

I went to the initial seminar in October and had my first doctor visit at the end of November (it was rescheduled due to a snow storm). I got the list of pre-op requirements that I had to complete at that visit and that included blood work, EKG, chest X-ray, and psych eval as well as attend a support group and a pre-op education session on exercise. I finished all this by January 14 and the only reason it took that long was because the holidays delayed things at some offices. My info was sent to my insurance company about two weeks later and was approved in one day. I then got my date, which is March 18. So, the total time was about 5 months, but it really could have been sooner, I just wasn't in a huge hurry. I used that time to do my research and make sure this was something I really wanted to do.

Welcome to the site Brian. It's awesome that you and you're wife are going through this together and I wish you both lots of success. I myself should be getting banded in November, due to a 6 month insurance diet. I am excited too and of course scared some. All surgeries are scary. I wish you luck on your journey and again welcome to LBT.

Hi peeps! To make it easier to find surgery buddies, I made a fb group called RNY November 2016. Everyone having RNY in November are welcome to join. Nilla

I should have been more specific. My question is for gastric bypass forum. I am particularly interested in hearing if things improve and when I might be able to expect that. My last episode with being stuck (this morning) happened after I ate 1/4 cup of flaky tilapia in a thin sauce. I used a baby spoon and chewed every bit at least 30 times. Directions are being followed. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I thought I'd take a moment to introduce myself as I hope to be spending a lot of time here in the coming months. My name is Andi and I recently celebrated my 34th birthday. I am happily married - we don't have any children at this time, unless you count our 3 cats and 4 dogs. I have been diagnosed with hypertension, sleep apnea, Type II Diabetes and Polycystic Ovarian Syndrome, so it is our hope that lapband will help me with many of my health issues. We started this process over a year ago when we went to our surgeon's seminar. ( Dr. Stephen Hamn - Plano, Texas) Shortly after, we had our consult and psych eval as well as nutrition counseling. The only thing stopping me was the BMI requirement by our insurance company. My BMI was over 50 and the insurance company would not approve surgery if it was not 49 or less. As of November 2007, they have dropped this requirement - so there shouldn't be anything else that would cause them to say no. I've met all the other requirements. Our surgeon's office submitted the necessary paperwork to our insurance company December 5th and they said it would take a month or so to find out the result. This waiting is just horrible! A bit about me - I'm the proud owner of two french bulldogs named Joey & Chandler. I'm a gamer girl (I met my husband via a MMORPG), I'm intrigued by true crime and the paranormal. I love horror movies. I'm a fan of the Barenaked Ladies, Kevin Smith movies and Chris Rock. Reality TV is a guilty pleasure and I often quote Dr. Phil. I am excited to find an active and supportive community of friendly folks to share this experience with. I can't wait to get to know you and learn from your experiences as well as be inspired by your success.

I got my bypass date yesterday! Is anyone else scheduled for this date? My friend is getting sleeved the day before. [emoji3]

I had rny bypass surgery a year and a half ago and I had a couple questions. First - other than the sutures in the small bowel and proximal stomach is there any reason I would have had actual surgical clips left in me - and not been told about it? Second I just had to have a ct scan done with contrast and my proximal stomach shows as highly prominent and measuring 9.6 x 6 cm. the er doctor at first thought this might be normal from a recent surgery but my surgery is far from recent so they weren't sure what to think...

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:

Lisa, I just sent a FB friend request. After orientation, most of you questions will be answered. You have 4 nutrition classes, 2 exercise classes and 3-4 behavior classes. I did not have to have an endoscopy before surgery. They had me do a 2 week Optifast diet. I decided to do 5 weeks to have a bigger weight loss before surgery. It was also 1/6 when I started and I wanted to have a weight loss New Years resolution . I chose sleeve after talking extensively to the surgeon. I do not crave sweets and I do not have reflux. Those were the two big things about sleeve vs bypass.

Hi everyone - new member here. I have been researching lapband surgery for a couple of weeks now. Been considering some kind of bariatric surgery for a couple of years now, but after watching the people at work who have had gastric bypass and all the problems they have had I was scared to do it. After reading about the lapband, I feel comfortable with this method. I am going to the free info seminar next Thu in Houston. I talked to our HR lady who had gastric bypass 4 years ago and she said our insurance (Anthem BC/BS PPO) was good about approving people as long as they meet the requirements (which I do). I will be 49 in January, I am 5' 2" and I weigh 100 pounds more than I did before I had kids (my oldest turns 23 on Christmas Eve). I have been yo-yo dieting for the last 20 years and I am sick of it and tired of being hungry all the time and a slave to my hunger. I am so impressed with all the support and information on this forum!

Hello!! I am new to this page, I just joined today. I have so many questions about lapband and what to do, I do not know where to start. How many of you have had it and love it? Hate it? How well did it work? How long ago was it? I am 29, I will be 30 in November, and I do not remember when I weighed less then 200lbs. I need to do something and I want to do it. But I am nervous. Can anyone give me some advice?

Hi I'm 23 post op gastric bypass and looking for a bypass buddy. Having trouble keeping foods down. Help! 23 days that is

I'm pretty lucky because I work for a HCA hospital and have Cigna. Everyone I know here who had had either sleeve or bypass have all been approved. Maybe they figure it's cheaper for them in the long run.

I was approved for surgery on October 15th and I had my surgery on November 11. I did pre-op lab work on November 7, which consisted of an ekg, blood and urine tests, and a chest x-ray. I had completed several other lab test requirements prior to insurance approval. My insurance is Blue Shield/Hills Physcians.

OK, that's alot of info you are requesting...plus everyone's journey has been different. What I can tell you is that I started with a seminar last July, a meeting with the surgeon in August, several pre op visits...to the psychologist, the nutritionist, the cardiologist, blood work, etc. During the whole process, depending on your insurance carrier, you have to show anywhere from 3-6 months weight loss attempt under doctor's supervision. I also had to show proof of weight loss attempts over the year prior. Then if you are approved and you get a surgery date, you have to be on a mostly liquid diet for anywhere from a few days to about two weeks to shrink your liver. Then you are on all liquids for a week or more after surgery, then you graduate to very mushy foods, and then you start on regular foods. I was banded on January 14th so that give you an idea of how long the process took. Just a disclaimer though...I was supposed to have my surgery in late November but the hospital I was going to was shut down after Sandy and didn't open up again till January. So...figure unless you are self pay, that you will need at least 6 months from start to surgery. FYI, this was the best thing I could have done for myself. I've dropped 41 lbs. and am feeling fine and adapting to eating a fraction of what I used to eat. Good luck on your journey. I

@@Djmohr -- What you said really helped solidify the decision to follow through with my surgery. I was struggling with this decision, and my doctor told me my insurance will only pay for lap-band or RNY & like you, I was devastated thinking about how extreme bypass seems. However, like you said.. if I am going to do this, I only want to do it once. Thank you for your input!

Day 2 home 5 days from surgery. I did 2 laps around walking trail. No problem getting fluid in. Genepro protein what a lifesaver. 30 grams from one tablespoon and tasteless. But am bloated wasnt with band or sleeve. Pain is more but overall bypass is much easier then others. Not one moment of gerd