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Dr. David Kim in Colleyville accepts Mexico patients. $200 for fluoro fill. Bariatric Weight Loss LAP-BAND System Gastric Bypass Surgery Arlington Dallas Fort Worth (Ft. Worth) Texas (TX)

Thanks dan i wish you and your wife all the best. My husband and myself are both having surgery he is having bypass due to his dibeties and i am having the lapband. It will be early january for both of us. I am very excited he is not just feels it is necessary to fix his dibeties. I can't wait to be banded and start the process of feeling better physically and better about myself. Thanks for the support. Take care

I stand corrected. I was just told that my insurance will cover lapband, duodenal switch or gastric bypass after all of these years. So now I'm more confused than ever...

As someone who self paid for the band, and self paid for the sleeve, I can tell you getting the sleeve was the best money I ever spent. I am so glad my band is sitting on my dresser. Feel free to ask any of us anything. There is also a band to sleeve revision thread.

Any Bariatric surgery (except the band) can cause dumping. The risk of dumping severity and longevity increases with the bypass. In my support group we have 4-5 Sleevers that have dumping.

Hi all I haven't had the surgery yet but am nervous and excited at same time. Just would like to know who would or wouldn't do it. Tu

Hi! My VSG date is 16th of November 2010 which is just a few days away. I'm feeling a little anxious already, but i stay motivated looking at the success stories in this forum. I am a 25-year-old Male from Bangalore, India. I am currently 266 pounds and my goal weight is 161 pounds. So i have over 100 pounds to lose. Current BMI: 41.5 The doctor is Mr. Rajshekar Nayak (http://rnayak.com/about.php) of Gunaseela Hospital, who has already performed over 50 VSG's and over 90 Gastric Bypass surgeries. Recently he was featured in a newspaper for performing the surgery with just a single incision of 1 inch under the belly button. Here's the link to the feature: One inch wonder He is a well known surgeon and i also spoke with a few of the peeps who underwent VSG from him, and they're very happy that they did it. I asked Doc if I should bring anything along with me on the day of Surgery, he said to bring just the diagnostic test reports and to get admitted in the hospital the day before surgery. But i want to know if there's something that would help me stay comfortable. I'll start blogging about my journey, and this is my first entry. Pray for me! Namaste. Source: VSG Surgery on November 16th, YAY!!

Ok hi ladies. I was banded in March of 2005. The good news is that I had, at one time, lost from 285lbs down to 150lbs. However, I got to that 150lbs because I was starving. In early 2006 after I got be around 170lbs, my band slipped and I could not eat for two weeks. I could'nt even keep water down so I had revision surgery and they fixed the slip. Since then I was so scared to get a fill so I went without one for almost a year. By this time I had gained back up to 180lbs. Gradually I started getting fills until I now, and I have 3.1 in a 4cc band. I have not had any restriction whatsoever since my last surgery. Each fill feals the same. My doctor seems to think that I am just not following the band rules and by the way I feel like a failure because I am now up to 225lbs! Omg back over 200lbs! I know this isnt as high as before and I know I can lose it but I just need my band to help me out. I know I have to work hard and I am ready to do that. I admit I have made many mistakes but I do need that little bit of help from the band to let me know I am full. My doctor won't put anymore in my band until I take a nutrition class and have an upper GI to see if it slipped again due to my history. It doesnt feel like a slip because the first time It slipped I couldnt even eat and now I can eat anything I want....I mean ANYTHING! I know just because I can, doesnt mean I should but why the hell did I get this band if it isn't going to give me some help? Ya know? Anyway, I lost 135lbs once before so I know I can lose 60lbs, I just hope it hasn't slipped again. Could it be that my pouch has stretched over time and I just need to shrink it? I was thinking maybe if I went on a liquid diet for a week or so that it might help shrink it if indeed that is the case. Anyone have any suggestions? My upper GI should be scheduled soon and I am just waiting on the DR to call me. I am on my second day of liquids and I just figured that at least this might jumpstart my weightloss....if anything.

Carnie Wilson had bypass. She was just on the Oprah show about transfer addictions, she became an alcoholic after her bypass surgery apparently.

Cathy - Your doc sounds like mine - I had homework too - there are so many people here who don't know what to eat or do after they they have surgery - It sounds like you will have all your facts so that you will be able to succeed at this and not be lost as what needs to be done once you are banded. I have 1 older sister - she was happy for me - she doesn't have a weight problem - My little bro was ok too.. I guess they figured I was a big girl and I could make my own decisions. My support has been my Lucky#7 gang - We have the greatest group and my 50+ ladies - these are the 2 thread that I have posted to religiously since I joined in May.. Bypass vs lapbands - for me and per my doc it depend on many issues - if you are a big sweet eater - then bypass may be a better option as you don't absorb your calories and with the band you do and candy/sweet are easly eaten with the band - For me it was a portion control issue - I didn't eat tons of junk just too much good home cooked food and no exercise. Welll gotta get back to work - ttyl....

There is one gastric bypass aka RNY There is one sleeve aka VSG There is one lap band ( however different suppliers of the band)

I'm working on getting sleeved. If the surgeon decides because of reflux they recommend bypass I will refuse because I'm 28.

What is your GI history? Just curious...i want the sleeve but with a recent barrett discovery, the doc is recommending bypass.

Does your surgeon know your indecision? I would think that the operative set-up would need to be switched out. I changed from bypass to sleeve, but did so a month before my surgery. l needed to be home the same day. The sleeve surgery allowed me to do that.

August 13th revision lapband to bypass

After RNY gastric bypass surgery, when was real oatmeal ok? Nothing against cream of wheat or watery oatmeal but I’m not doing very good with anything else. I’m having major food aversions. Day 29 post op. Week 5. Any

Brandy, i am going to bypass all the back and forth and address your original question. I believe it is possible to be overweight and have healthy self esteem- I would characterize it for myself as self love. Whithin that love I can still be aware and addressing my character defects. They will always be there whether I am fat or thin. I will always be able to act from the best of myself or the worst. I have lived my life as both a fat person and a thin person. When I was young and fat, I hated myself for what I saw as my hugeness. When I was thin, I indulged in a smug arrogance that I was somehow superior to my former self because I had conquered my weight problem- really I replaced that weight problem with an exercise problem. In reality, I worried constantly that I would lose it all (ie be fat again and therefore without value) I was unable to enjoy my hard work. In fact, my hard work became a prison. Instead of being a food addict, I was an exercise bulimic. I was not so different at all, only the package was different. When I was young and fat, I was filled with self hate. When I was young and thin, I was filled with self hate that I directed at others. i was so afraid I would lose control. I hated anything that reminded me of my former self. Eventually, I did lose control- as we all do when we are acting from outside ourselves. ANd it was the best thing that ever happened. I was still the same person, different package. I had to learn a different way of being. Now here I am, years later- still fat but healthy and happy, with a husband who loves me(I never would have allowed him in my life until I learned to love myself first. I wouldn't have been able to tolerate his positive and unconditional regard.) i have a life that is full, rich and overflowing with more abundance than i could ever have thought I deserved as my younger self. And I have all of it fat. I think you are very couragious to put these questions out there. It isn't easy to be on a quest- which I think you are. (Know that sounds corny). To conclude my long winded post. I think that fat people's choices and mistakes are written on our bodies in a way that other peoples are not. But I believe that our mistakes are no greater than any one elses. If they are worth something, so are we all. We are all the products of our choices. We tend to focus on the bad, but we are all a mixed bag. Look at your good stuff. Work on those and the bad will diminish in comparison. What grows in us is what we feed- no pun intended.

Well, I am officially approved for band to sleeve revision on Oct. 24th. My doc wants to do it in ONE surgery. My band has been drained for 2 years so he feels one surgery would be fine. I pray that is the right decision. I am having a bitter sweet moment... I am excited for the new journey and praying it is the best decision for myself and that I am successful especially since I was NOT on the band. But the biggest struggle to me is having a 15 month old son that needs me. The thought of not picking him up for 6 weeks seems like eternity and I am sure will be so hard on both of us. I can't really afford to put it off because insurance approved it and I my deductibles are met for this year. So I really hope and pray this decision works out for both of us I think having an active mom in the future will pay off. So I'm joining the Oct new band to sleeve revisions

It sounds like something is still wrong. I've heard some gastric bypass patients experience sweating as part of dumping syndrome, but our stomachs are intact from the esophagus to the pylorus, just smaller. I had sugery 4/6 with no problems, and have never broken into a sweat from eating. Time for a second opinion, carefully documenting your previous care and moving forward dilegently monitoring your health. You deserved better care, now is the time to fight for yourself.

I have gained and lost weight for the past 25 years. I tried it all: Diet pills, HCG, weight watchers, Nutrisystem, you name it I tried it. Last year I decided I wanted to check into the lapband after a friend had success with it. Went to a seminar in June 2012 and made my decision 2 weeks later. My insurance did not cover the surgery so I went through True Results. They had me checked for a hiatal hernia which was covered by insurance and I paid just for the lapband. I started my preop diet for 2 weeks and lost 6 lbs. I was banded with plication on August 13, 2012 weighing 199 lbs. At my 2 week preop visit I had only lost 7 lbs. I had my my first fill in October and a second fill in November before Thanksgiving. Not really any restriction from those two fills. Around the first of January 2013 I started having really bad stomach pains. I would throw up every time I ate dense Protein. Anytime I hate the pain was horrible. I called my surgeons office and the response I got was "if it hurts that bad go to the ER." Well that really pissed me off. I finally got in to see the surgeon who checked me through fluoroscope X-ray. Everything in place. Mind you I didn't get to talk to him in an exam room. There was about 8 people on the other side of the door who heard everything we were saying. He said my body was most likely rejecting the band. He said we could remove it and do the sleeve. And it could be done in one surgery. Then he asked if I was using insurance. When I stated I was going to try since I was having complications, he then states we needed to do it in 2 surgeries. That raised a HUGE red flag with me. When I went to check out his insurance coordinator whispered to me to get a second opinion! That was really worrisome. And the fact that I had only lost a total of 22lbs bothered me greatly. So I went to see my PCP and she recommended a surgeon who she had worked with for a long time. I called their office and explained my problem. They told me there was $900 assumption fee the surgeon charges. I was willing to pay it. At that time we did not set up any appointments. Imagine my surprise when I got a call early the next morning from their office. The surgeon wanted to see me and he was waiving the fee! I went in the following week on February 19th and was so glad I did. I absolutely loved the staff, nurses and surgeon. I had a long talk with him and explained all my problems. He was very sympathetic and made me feel at ease. After my talk with him I met with his nurse/scheduler and we scheduled my nutrition&education class, pre-op visits, surgery and post op visit. The nutrition&education class was 5 hours long and was very informative. Never had that with my lapband surgery. We got a binder full of information and samples of Vitamins, Protein drinks. I did a one week preop diet and had my revision on March 7th. The hospital and nurses were wonderful. The rooms looked more like hotel rooms with a hospital bed. Everything went well. I was up walking the halls that evening. I had my barium swallow the next morning and had no leaks. Got down my 8 oz of Fluid and was out of the hospital by 12:15. So here I am 12 days post op and wish I would have gotten the sleeve to begin with and asked my PCP's advice on surgeons. I have my 2 week follow up tomorrow. If anyone has any reservations about the sleeve, don't. I can't tell you how great it feels not to have stomach pains, not to throw up not to mention having a wonderful surgeon who cares about his patients. If you have reservations about your current surgeon and don't feel you are getting the care you need, seek out another one. Had I went with the first surgeon again I think I would have been very unhappy. He is in it for the money and nothing else. Something else my current surgeon said was that he doesn't do lapbands anymore unless that was all the patients insurance would pay for. And that he has seen so many removals due to complications in the past year. So if I would have saw him first I would have never had the lapband, would have had only 1 sugery and I would be at goal now. I am a self pay for the revision to sleeve and believe me it was worth every dollar.

Because I get over technical, I'm still not quite sure what a slider food is. And really, the patients of these procedures largely make this up as they go. So it's just some word someone threw out to mean something at some point in time, that has probably been grossly bastardized since then. I've seen some people say that chips are a slider, or watermelon. Well, both chips and watermelon chew up to almost nothing. So in terms of raw volume, there's a lot. But in terms of the volume it takes up in your sleeve, there's not much at all. To me, that would NOT be a slider because it's not "bypassing" your restriction, you just have to eat a large raw volume of it to occupy the same space as something that did not mash up so much. That rationale seems kind of like saying "cotton candy is a slider because I could eat a whole tub" (even though the melted volume was maybe 1 tablespoon). To me, a slider would be something that retained most of its volume, but did not trigger your full sensation, or restriction, or whatever. Like let's say -- eggs. If I could eat 3 eggs, but only 1 piece of beef, I'd probably consider eggs a slider food.

I've had the DS. I'm about a month post op and my highest weight was 320. At your starting weight I'd really consider the DS for its better weight loss and lack of regain, or go bypass if you have a lot of GERD issues. I have some GERD issues but it is controlled by medication pretty well and I needed the DS because I'm diabetic with high blood pressure, high cholesterol, sleep apnea. I had a hysterectomy for cancer. All in all so far it is worth it! I'm down 30+ lbs from my highest weight, off all diabetes medications, off blood pressure medications, my blood sugar is normal, my BP is normal, and I have more energy! I'm really glad I went with the DS. Its a riskier surgery but only by a bit, and the things you gain from it like disease remission made it very much worth it for me. I'd encourage you to read about ALL the various surgeries and then discuss it with your surgeon. They'll be able to tell you what will be most effective for your individual case based on their experiences. If you can, go to someone who can perform any of the surgeries, only certain surgeons can do the DS or Bypass.

Rica: I was a Bone Marrow Transplant Nurse for 8 years. I was one at Vanderbilt for 4 and helped establish the BMT Unit at the Nashville VA hospital and worked there for an additional 4 years. I have seen many success stories with Leukemias, Lymphomas, Hodkins Disease treated with Bone Marrow Transplants. I won't lie to you either. I have seen just as many failures as well. At the most, you put the treatment in the hands of the doctors and nurses and place faith in Heaven to do what HE wills. Since I stopped being a cancer nurse there has been great leaps and hurdles jumped in the treatment of All forms of cancer. They are not only revising the Bone Marrow Transplant process for Allogeneic patients (people that get marrow from unrelated donors) but for Autologous patients (people that get their own marrow). THey are now doing Stem Cell Transplants. The type of treatments depends on the stage of Leukemia and the particular type of leukemia. There are several kinds. Here are just a few. ALL (Acute Lymphocytic Leukemia) AML (Acute Myelogonous Leukemia) CLL (Chronic Lymphocytic Leukemia CML or CGL (Chronic Myelogonous or Granulocytic Leukemia) Hodgkins Disease Non-Hodgkins Disease Aplastic Anemia There are more but they elude me for now. Happy to try to answer any questions but the one that you should be asking is his doctor. My prayers and thoughts and support are going out to you and your family. {{{{{{{{{{RICA & FAMILY}}}}}}}}}}}

Get the gastric bypass "now"?!! I just had my second fill and that's the only time I really felt ANY restriction, aside from right after surgery. How much are you currently eating?

I am having my band out/revision to sleeve on the 17...day after you. I hope you feel better way before than! Why did your doc choose to do 2 separate operations? How long was your band in? Mine is only 15 months old so maybe its a scar tissue thing if yours was in longer? In any event, you are 1/2 way home! Go you!