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This was a post about switching surgeons at the last minute. They had gone through everything and were waiting on insurance approval, but they found another hospital a few hours away with more surgeries per year and fewer complications and wanted advice on if they should switch and how to do it. Not sure why that merited a delete! *shrug*

Hypnosis is a wonderful idea. I love the relaxation aspect hypnosis brings. Good luck to you. I hope that it helps! Hypnosis helped me with anxiety and smoking cessation, but I never really tried it for weight control. It also helped with pain management. When I was banded, I had severe complications from diaphragmatic damage. Pain medication didn't help at all. Hydrotherapy and hypnotherapy did help a little. I use hypnosis techniques during dental procedures and often can manage without painkillers.

I think I am experiences early signs of esophageal dilatation or some type of esophageal complications. After having your lap band removed, does swallowing and other complications return to normal?

I have lost only 16 lbs at 5 weeks so I am frustrated along with you. Had hoped for much quicker weight loss. I'm grateful for no complications, however.

Wow, I love love love your story! What is an OA? Our struggles are similar, it took the death of my mom just before my 45th b-day (due to complications caused by obesity) and realizing I was following right in her footsteps, to get me serious about making a change. I realized I am 45, not 85, time to start living on the right path! I couldn't bear the thought of forcing my husband into caring for me the way hers had for her fir so long and so young! I will say that the lack of accountability is too much for me. I've had 6 months of managed nutrition and did very well, but have a 2 month lag from my last weigh in with the NUT and surgery. The fear of not being to eat certain things for months if not forever, have me wanting them all the more, add to that I thought surgery would be less than 30 days away so waited until the last minute to quit smoking! Argh! I really need to get back on track. Weighing every day: I can see the pros and cons. I haven't bothered at home because I was weighing in monthly w/ NUT and didn't want to stress myself out w/ ounces at a time, and am afraid to right now! It felt good to see pounds shredded at one time. But post surgery for me also, if I see a gain, I'll know right away to make a change. I do worry about the stalls, they are the reason no diet in the past has worked for me, I give up when I don't see progress or movement. Aaahhh... pizza is mine as well, I have not yet been able to surrender it just yet. It's the one thing I allow myself right now, and have my sights on it all week while I graze on healthy food. It's almost like a reward for me. Tracking carbs and calories sounds like a great tool, I have only been tracking Protein, sugar and fat at this point. Bread is like crack! I can do well without it, but once I taste it? It's all downhill from there! I love your statement about 300 lb brains being unable to understand portions! I've said similar things recently. There is a reason I'm fat (and don't have a problem saying that!) I had to learn why I am and how I got that way, to understand how not to return to it. No 'diet plan' has ever taught me that! A fat brain doesn't understand why it is, only how to sustain the body it sits on. And that I got the way by not paying attention. When I get busy talking while eating I pay less attention. I tried really hard to get out of the required 6 months with the NUT, really because I'm just impatient. But it truly was the best thing I've done, ever! I feel ya on the activity also! My body is screaming back at me! My knees gave in to my brain for a little while and they have finally decided they are not having this anymore! But I started doing exactly as you did. I USED to drive around until a spot close to the door at the grocery store became available, now I choose a spot at the far end and in a different aisle than the cart return is. It forces me to walk to the car and back to the store again. And after a little weight loss already I'm finding it a LOT easier! I'm no longer deciding if I want to go some place based on how far of a walk I'd have to give. I may just try the Water aerobics, I hadn't because, well, I just thought, 'I'm not going anywhere in my bathing suit where there are other people'! My surgery is Nov 3, and it will be too cold then to get outside. Fortunately I love Christmas shopping! But don't that will be enough. How great for you to be able to participate in activities with your kids now!! I was considering a Fit Bit or the like. But don't know anything about any of them. What made you decide on that one? So... I had not heard that I should expect a change 'hormonally' at all! 5 months!?!? I still have some crazy dream that a bikini is in my future before I'm 50! And in the back of my brain I know that's not going to happen, but for awhile I'll let the front drive me for awhile and worry about that disappointment later when I'm wearing a size 10 and no longer dealing with the co-morbidities! I wish you luck with the legs, is that something that can be resolved with PS? Please feel free to share away! There are so many stories online but none similar to mine, it's been hard to find a story I can relate to. I love the before and after pictures and am so happy for those with great success, but really no one has talked about what it took to get there, what worked and what didn't, so thank you for that. I was impressed by your loss in a short period if time, and thought you would have some incredible insights. I really want to know what the higher rates are that cause the average to be 60% of excess weight loss, what did those people at the higher end of that spectrum do differently than those at the lower end? I don't plan on sitting still while my body does all of the work, I need to ensure I don't return to this lifestyle. Thank you again!!

Ok this is the story, I am three years out and I have lost 80lbs.I have had one fill six weeks after surgery and a complete unfill two months ago. My current weight is 155. I have a slipped band and I will require surgery soon. I am a self pay and I have not even paid off my last surgery yet. My husband will probably divorce me because we can’t afford another surgery. My band was completely fool proof until three months ago. I loved it, after four or five ounces of food I felt like I had eaten a thanksgiving dinner. Occasionally, I would overeat, eat to fast or be too hungry, the result was vomiting. People call it purbing, “productive burping.” Perbing is the dirty little secret of having a Lap-band. Perbing is vomiting and ultimately it can cause a prolapsed stomach. After a bout of what I thought was stomach flu, I vomited more than usual. The symptoms were the onset of reflux, stomach pain and more vomiting. The night time reflux became so bad that I aspirated and contracted pneumonia. I have been on anti-biotics, Nexium and Carafate. I now have ulcers and my barium upper GI showed that I am damaging my esophageal sphincter. I had an endoscope under fluoroscope and the bottom line is I have to have surgery and have my band fixed, revised or removed. I have an appointment with my original surgeon on Friday. I am not sure how this will all turn out but I want others to be aware that you can slip your band years later, after no problems and a good weight loss. I you eat until you vomit, you are eating too fast or too much. I have pretty good insurance, but they will not cover the Lap-band. If I have any more complications with my second surgery I will be bankrupt. I never considered these possibilities when I had my initial surgery. Would I have the LAP-BAND surgery knowing what I know now? Yes, absolutely I would have the surgery again. I love the result, losing this much weight has changed my life. I will figure it out, I will figure out how to pay for it, my husband will not divorce me. I will keep you all posted…….Jennifer

There really is a lot of variation in practice! Makes me wonder if these variations don't contribute to the success and complications for some with this surgery. I can only hope that my doctor is doing the very best?

@ Jenna1985, I'm so sorry to hear about your complication. How do they propose to correct this "mistake"?

Is your weight loss history standing between you and your current success after weight loss surgery? If you’re not getting the results you want, there’s a good chance it is. In Part 1 of the series, we brought up the idea of learning from your past, not running from it. Now, we take a look at a few more ways your past might have brought you down, and what you might be able to about it. Problem: Depending on Others This one’s not always so obvious, but it may be keeping you from reaching your full potential in weight loss and, frankly, in life. Of course, it’s normal and healthy to depend on others for some things. Maybe you rely on your spouse to pick up the kids from school, and you depend on your parents to parents to take care of your house when you’re on vacation. But what about the important things? What about your health? Do you take full responsibility for it? Or do you do what you did as a kid – depend on someone to make sure you had the food you needed and expect your parents or the doctor would make you better if you got sick or hurt? You’re still living in the past if you have not taken control of your health. You are the one who needs to purchase and prepare healthy food; set aside time to work out; eat the right foods to avoid complications from surgery. Others can help, but you need to be in charge. Problem: Looking for the Quick Fix If you look for a quick fix, you’ll probably find one. You can lose weight quickly using any number of strategies, and you’ve probably used them all from juicing to low-carb to low-fat. The problem with quick fixes is they’re quick to break, as you’ve found out when you went off the diets and gained the weight back. After WLS, don’t look for the quick fix. Be patient, and know you’re in it for the long haul. Looking for the quick fix can be something obvious that you recognize in yourself, but it is not always. Looking for the quick fix can be as subtle as subconsciously thinking of what and how much you eat as a temporary diet or thinking of your exercise program as something with a start and finish. You may be subconsciously looking for the quick fix if you’re unwilling to sign up for a long-term gym membership, or to invest in a kitchen scale or bariatric surgery recipe book. If you feel these things aren’t worthwhile, think about why. Is it because you don’t honestly see yourself needing them for long because you’re not really invested long-term into weight loss surgery success? Problem: Not Building Your Support System Many obese people struggle with late-night eating. Even if they are able to make it through the rest of the day eating reasonably healthy, night-time binges can strike furiously. If you weren’t able to overcome them previously, it may have been because you did not build enough of a support system. This time, don’t underestimate the power of your support system. Include people, such as friends and family, as well as alternate plans. You can set up many layers of protection against late-night overeating. Don’t store junk food at home, and don’t drive home past trigger spots like drive-through burger joints. Have two or three friends or family members whom you can call or talk to if you’re about to make a bad choice, and choose a pre-determined activity to do before eating, whether you decide to blog, sew, or take a walk. Also, have plenty of ready-to-eat healthy food around so it’s easier to grab than any junk. Problem: Lack of Self-Confidence Have you ever heard of a self-fulfilling prophecy? You think something will happen a certain way, so you act as though it will happen that way, and then it does. For weight loss, that can be a bad thing if you let it. “I know my diet’s going to fail, so I’m not going to bother weighing my food.” Then, guess what – you don’t lose weight! “I knew I wouldn’t lose weight.” But self-fulfilling prophecies can be just as positive as they can negative, especially if you have self-confidence. “I know WLS will work for me, so I’m going to hit my protein goals and weigh my portions every meal.” When you don’t even let doubt creep in, you can be more empowered to follow the behaviors that lead to success. Weight loss surgery can be a fantastic tool for weight loss, but it’s only as good as you make it. To make it more powerful, don’t run from your personal history. Recognize your past, identify what went wrong, and fix it. Make sure this time really is different.

My surgery is next Friday on Aug. the 10th and I have been seeing all of the complications and its making me nervous. I know I know that I knew all of these possible complications before but, for some reason they are just now becoming real.

Hi everyone, I had RNY 7 weeks ago today at UCSF here in northern California. My husband and I live on the Mendocino Coast and are both educators. I am an elementary school (k-2) librarian and he is a high school government/history teacher. At 28 I was diagnosed with diabetes and then at 29 I was diagnosed with kidney cancer. I had a successful surgery where they removed my entire left kidney along with the gigantic cancerous tumor that was attached to it! Because of the diabetes and history of kidney cancer my doctors recommended the RNY. So now, at the age of 31, I am on the road to a healthy life! I have been very lucky so far, no complications and I have had no problems getting my liquids and protein in everyday. It is amazing how much your posts have helped me during this process so far. It is so comforting to hear stories that are so similar to my own experiences. I look forward to getting to know all of you and sharing our journeys together!

I have BCBS of Illinois. I was approved for the sleeve and one overnight. That is all my doctor required. Additional nights would only be if there were complications. Would your doctor be OK with a 1 night stay... maybe the insurance would approve that. Good luck.

Hi---I had surgery the same day as you :-) Sorry to hear about your complications! Someone once told me to just step on the scale every other week, so that we aren't dwelling on the number. The weight will come off, some weeks more rapidly than others. I'm guessing that once we become a little more active, the weight is going to just melt off. For me, five days postop, I had already lost 18 pounds. Now the scale hasn't budged in three days.... But I'm not too concerned. I will be starting on puréed food today, not really sure what exactly I will be having, it seems so weird just preparing two bites of something, Lol.

The standard for my doctor's office is after your 2-3 week follow up appointment. Although they were willing to write it for 6 weeks. I think I could have gone back after I was off of pain meds (4-5 days) but I would have been exhausted. It also depends on how well you recover. I am only 36, I had zero complications, a starting BMI of 42 and was otherwise very healthy - all of which made my recovery very easy. Now if I was still at my old job, which I hated, I would have taken the full 6 weeks.

My surgery is today...feel exactly the same way. I think I am finally at peace with this decision...praying for a great outcome with no complications! Will pray the same for everyone else going through this process. Good luck to you all and keep us posted! My surgery is at 11 today.

I actually researched for a year before deciding. I researched outcomes and complication rates for both and talked to people I know that have had either VSG or bypass. I decided on sleeve since it doesn't have the malabsorption issues and there are less associated complications and side effects. On my initial visit, the nurse practitioner that works for the program suggested I revisit bypass because I have PCOS and she said my weight loss would be better with bypass because of the malabsorption. (PCOS makes it harder to lose weight). However, I was set against bypass after all my research and when I met with the surgeon, he said I made the right decision especially considering some of the meds I take for asthma and with the fact that I sometimes have to take steroids for my asthma. He says with the malabsorption, my meds would not be as effective. So ultimately, I would say to do some research, decide what you can live with and then discuss it with your surgeon. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

so yes i have been debating on posting this topic but i need answers i am an weed smoker prolly about 2-3 times a day i am geting the gastric bypass on sept 21 im not sure if i should quit smoking bc of the possibility of complications during surgery from smoking..i have looked it up online and nothing says weed can cause issues during surgery but nothing definite was wondering if there was anyone else who has quit prior to surgery for that reason

Hi Melanieleigh, congratulations search, you've come to the right place. This is a long, overdue story and I will also post it in “My Positive Experience w/Dr. Watkins Thread." This forum is awesome and I've been researching WLS HEAVILY since about June. I've read a lot on WLS. I struggled with the idea of partial stomach removal w/VSG, but knew that having a foreign object in my body would make me worried: slipping, rubbing, etc. - so I wasn't excited about lap band, but some have had great success with it. When I read about GPS on this forum, I KNEW it felt right. WHAT MAKES THE RIGHT DOCTOR? Initially, in my mind, I was all set to go to someone locally, so that if I needed support or had issues they would be there for me. I have never had surgery of any kind so this was all new to me. I also thought that I would ONLY choose a doctor who has had some sort of WLS and would be understanding in the weight loss/surgery/food struggle. I attended a seminar from a Dr. who I think had done only 3 VSGs (yes, I know, they have to start somewhere and make a living, but in this case, I didn’t want it to be me) and I found out later that certain things he talked about were incorrect, (like shoulder pain cause being unknown and that could be permanent) is actually referred pain from the diaphragm -per Dr. Watkins. RESEARCHING… THANK GOODNESS I RESEARCHED MORE! According to one of the WLS books I read, complications go WAY DOWN (like 80%) when you use an EXPERIENCED surgeon. Of course, this GPS surgery is NEW, but it would stand to reason that it is still better to choose a doctor who had done a lot of surgeries, especially weight loss surgeries. Naturally, I researched Dr. Corvala in Mexico because I think has had done over 100 GPSs by now plus thousands of other weight loss surgeries. However, the book I read also cautioned that while some hospitals/Dr. were terrific in Mexico (just like US-there are good and bad hospitals/Drs.) it may be more challenging to find aftercare in the US. However, there are many people happy with their choice to leave the country and I probably would have been very happy with that route, but I am a worrier. As I constantly read the forum and asked MANY, MANY questions of the patients and to a few doctors. Dr. Watkins was the most responsive doctor. I would ask him about the surgery details, what other patients experienced, emotional eating, what hunger felt like, hormones, genetic makeup, etc. my symptoms, how big the size of the sleeve, aftercare, etc. For awhile I thought I would try dieting and exercise one more time, and he directed me to the free YOU TUBE about weigh loss which again, shows that although he does run a business, he is really trying to help people. I came obvious conclusion that Dr. Watkins is EXTREMELY KNOWLEGABLE, DEDICATED and in always in COMMUNICATION when you need him, is ALWAYS helping on the forum (even if someone is not his patient) and isn’t pushy. I had a friend that wasn't sure about her GPS surgery, and he left it up to her - didn't pressure her. She had it and is doing fine. I researched him EVERYWHERE and found happy patients and a great track record. Like others have said, it is important that you have the hiatal hernia fixed when they are doing WLS surgery, and that was important to me that Dr. Watkins did that. Yes, I love Cincy Weight Loss-NO I don't get any financial gain or have anything to gain, no discount for my writing all of this. I do not work in any way with Cincy/Dr. Watkins; I am just a happy patient. WHEN ONLY THE BEST WILL DO..TOP NOTCH CARE- DR.WATKINS/CINCY WEIGHT LOSS & HOSPTIAL This Dr. does the right thing.. he even denied me surgery because it was the right thing to do.. Here is my story: After asking A TON of questions and doing lots of research, I was scheduled for Plication surgery in the fall w/Dr. Watkins a couple months ago. Everything went great up to surgery, did well on the pre-op. Visited Cincy Weight Loss, it was a VERY NICE, NEW upscale area, the OFFICE was GREAT. EVERYONE there IS REALLY & TRULY INTERESTED their patients! They had a great book with lots of before & after pictures of real people and it was so exciting to see the success. My husband and I chatted with Diane for almost 3 hours about the great things and weight loss challenges. We met the nurses and his lovely wife Pamela and they were ALL great! We made new friends and had a GREAT TIME. We met Dr. Watkins in person, and sat in his office. He truly is a NICE, SINCERE, DEDICATED & KNOWLEDGABLE PERSON. He is very humble, but it still made me feel good to see all of his certificates/accolades on the wall to know that I was getting a quality and knowledgeable doctor. Since they rarely talk about it, I’ve taken pictures so everyone can see HOW NICE & NEW, MODERN the hospital and his office are. Never once did we feel “rushed” or pressured, or cut off in conversation, they listened answered our questions thoroughly-my husband and I were REALLY impressed. I was VERY scared, because I hadn’t ever had surgery or been put under other than my wisdom teeth. However, being put under and waking up was a breeze. HOSPTIAL was MODERN, NEW and I felt VERY confident with my surroundings. They even offered me a hospital gown with state of the art technology where warm air was blown in. I walked with the Dr. and staff into the OR, and laid down on the table. Everything was state of the art, clean new and I was out like light, felt NO pain (except for the initial IV). It felt odd when I woke up, like it had only been a couple of minutes. Unfortunately for me, the surgery didn’t happen because I had surprise stomach polyps for no good reason. I was VERY disappointed and asked Dr. Watkins about 5 times if we could do surgery later on that week, but it was important to have some other tests & due diligence done. Even though he faced disappointing me, he did the right thing. Some surgeons don’t even do an endoscope, which can reveal polyps, ulcers, hiatal hernias, etc. My family was also grateful for the level of care and professionalism from this Dr. Later on that day and few times over the weekend, he called us to see how I was doing with anesthesia recovery, and I didn’t even have the surgery! But he is that caring. After many tests, (gallbladder, H Pylori, blood test, gastric level tests, gastric emptying test and colonoscopy) it looks like I am fine. I have one more I am going to have done on Friday but I am SO happy that I SHOULD be having GPS surgery with Dr. Watkins in about a week! I am praying that there will be nothing from stopping the surgery and the new life.. Here are a final few words on what I’ve learned..1) It is NOT normal to have stomach pain/throat burning. I lived with this probably my whole adult life. The pain/burning I experienced feels the same as STARVING HUNGER-GOT-TO EAT-NOW was actually acid and was GREATLY reduced on the pre-op diet with the PPI/Prevacaid. Dr. Watkins and his staff have kindly and patiently helped me through this lengthily process of research and tests. Hopefully, no one will have any surprises like I did, but it only made me feel better about my decision. 2) Keep researching until feel comfortable w/your doctor. If you research their website you’ll see they SUPPORTIVE & HAVE GREAT FOLLOWUP: http://www.cincyweightloss.com/ Here are my pictures.. Info from Cincy Weight Loss Site Cincinnati Weight Loss Center is owned by Dr. Watkins, not a large corporation. This allows us to provide you with the kind of customer experience that family owned businesses like ours can provide. Most of our competitors focus on surgery. We focus on weight loss. There is a huge difference between the two philosophies. Other practices try to compete with us by lowering their price. We focus on maximizing your weight loss success. We don't strive to be the "cheapest in town". That is not a good weight loss model. We strive to provide the best weight loss success in every patient. We offer value - the lowest cost per pound lost. We get a lot of transfer patients who had gastric band surgery elsewhere and are disappointed with their post-op program so they transfer to our practice where we help them achieve their weight loss goals. Many practices don't monitor their weight loss success. We do, and have published five scientific articles on gastric band weight loss. We started doing band surgery shortly after it was FDA approved in the United States (June 2001). Since then we've completed nearly 5,000 gastric band procedures and have experience with band adjustments that number in the tens of thousands. That extensive experience has taught us many import things on how to perform gastric band surgery and how to take care of patients afterward to minimize their frustration and maximize their weight loss success. We repair/revise a lot of band operations done improperly by other practices. Patients who choose our practice want it done right the first time and want to maximize their weight loss success. People who only care about getting the cheapest surgery and don't care if they lose weight afterward go to our competitors. Dr. Brad Watkins Dr. Brad Watkins is one of the few surgeons in the United States who: · Has completed well over 1,000 gastric band procedures · Has experience with nearly 5,000 procedures in his gastric band clinics · FDA proctoring surgeon for both band companies (Allergan, Ethicon) · Published five academic papers on gastric banding in the surgical literature · Performs band-over-bypass procedure · Performs the new incisionless ROSE procedure · Teaches other surgeons on primary gastric banding · Teaches other surgeons on band-over-bypass · Teaches gastric band courses · Teaches ROSE courses · Consultant for Allergan Company, LAP-BAND® · Consultant for Ethicon Company, REALIZE ™ · Consultant for USGI Company, ROSE procedure · Completed many advanced bariatric courses and bariatric CME programs · Involved in multiple clinical trials for adult and adolescent obesity · Nationally recognized on the "Today Show" · Member American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery · Member Council for Advances in Bariatrics

If you go to www.surgery.com, it will tell you the following (I got this from typing "deaths from sleeve gastrectomy" into my search engine) The American Society for Metabolic and Bariatric Surgery lists the complication rate in vertical sleeve gastrectomy to be relatively low, even among patients considered to be at high risk. Cumulatively the overall mortality (death) from vertical sleeve gastrectomy is 0.39 percent—lower than with traditional bariatric surgeries. (last updated 11/24/2009) From an article on www.gastricbypassfacts.com, here is a extract from "How Does the Sleeve Gastrectomy Work?" The risks and complications of the sleeve gastrectomy:As with all forms of weight loss surgery, the vertical gastrectomy does carry risk and these will clearly vary from one patient to the next and must be discussed with your physician. Complications might include: Gastric leakage and fistula 1.0% Deep vein thrombosis 0.5% Non-fatal pulmonary embolus 0.5% Post-operative bleeding 0.5% Splenectomy 0.5% Acute respiratory distress 0.25% Pneumonia 0.2% Death 0.25% http://healthengine.com.au/article/sleeve-gastrectomy.html This article quotes " The mortality rate in gastric sleeve is 1:500 and it lies between the gastric band, which is the safest, and the laparoscopic gastric bypass, which carries the highest risk." So the first source says 3.9 patients out of 1000, the second source says 2.5 patients out of 1000 and the third says 2 out of 1000. So I would feel comfortable (based on these 3 sources) saying the death rate is somewhere between 2 and 4 per 1000. If you are considering a surgeon, ask how many procedures he/she has performed in a year, and how many he/she has performed in total. Then ask the same two questions about how many of his patients died, and how many had PE's. This will give you an idea where your surgeon is versus the norms. You can't go through life avoiding all risks. For me - the risk of dying of heart problems from NOT DOING this surgery and staying obese was much higher than the risks from the surgery. It was the right decision for me. I wish you good luck on making your decision.

:thumbup:My team says I am doing great. Starting weight shortly before surgery was 293 and I am now at 277.... 16 lbs so far. My incisions have all healed, I have had no gas pains, nausea or any of the other uncomfortable complications I have read about here. Stayed on full liquids day 2-10 and still incorporate a lot of full liquids such as yogurt, cream of wheat and protein water into my daily diet. In fact you could say I am on full liquids all day, eating whatever else will go down comfortably for dinner, keeping an eye on my own personal nutritional goals. I was doing this for awhile before surgery anyways, and has now bwcome habit. I worry about progressing too fast with the diet. I asked my doctor if I ate something wrong, would it cause any problems with the band, such as slipping? He assured me that might have been true in the “old days” but that he now ties the lapband in securely by bringing up some of the lower stomach and stitching it around the band. The band will not slip by eating something wrong. He did say if I had a prolonged bout of throwing there was a slight chance of slippage, but unlikely. He also said that before the first banding the stomach pouch will not stretch as there is little restriction, any excess food just slips through to the lower stomach. His said I would be limited in what I eat by what felt comfortable “slipping through” and could gage how much swelling is remaining from the surgery by what size goes down OK. I would learn from trial and error what I could eat and what would be not be nice to me. So I have tried out various other foods to see how they feel, being sure to chew very well. This is very much feedback trial and error, as if I forget and do not chew well it does not feel good going down. I have the best luck on foods that are on the soft slippery type, like fish(scallops, red snapper), noodles, eggs and various oatmeals, even soggy morning cereal. All with no problems. No gas, bloating nausea or any other complications that I can feel. All went down just fine. Rice, flour tortillas and anything fibrous that can’t be chewed into pieces get “stuck” and I have to wait for it to clear before eating more. Not painful, just annoying. My nutritionist did say to avoid coffee as that has tannic acid which could cause ulcers on the band. I wonder if that applies to tomato products, such as spaghetti sauce, as tomatoes have tannic acid, as does wine, I think. I will need to verify that with her. I am thinking it may be the daily prolonged use of coffee that could cause an ulcer, but for now I just say no. The temptation is to keep pushing the limit, such as gobbling down a Burger King Steakburger ( I did not even though I probably could if chewed well), but I had better have enough self discipline to not do that or I have wasted my life, time and money on a procedure I do not respect. I log everything on FITDAY.com (have done this for years) and keep a careful eye on my calories, cards, proteins, etc. When I was on full liquids I was taking in about 800 calories and usually met the 60 protein goal. I am looking now at keeping my calories around 1200, so that I will continue to lose weight. My doctor has taken me off the high blood pressure med as I now test in the normal range. I have reduced my glyburide by 50%, and am slowly reducing my 24 hour insulin. I am experiencing fasting glucose of 120, which is about 100 points lower than pre lapband. So far I am very happy with my lapband.

Hi Lisa, I am so sorry to hear you are having some complications... I am guessing that it is something like adhessions too... Keep us posted, we care :blushing:

Failure isnt black or white either. To what "failure" was he referring? Many many people do not lose ALL their excess weight. Is that failure? Or is a realistic outcome for a set of people suffering from an illness that is as much mental as it is physical? How can a band around your stomach fix all the issues with obesity? It cant. But is losing enough weight to save your life, improve the quality of your life and get you independent and back into the world again a success, or is failing to end up looking like a supermodel failure? The stats for people who dont lose any weight, lose and then regain or who have complications that end up with band removal are significant, but 50%? No way. And for a good proportion of those who "fail" its all factors within your own control anyway. Stats say you lose about 60% of your excess weight with a band. Yep, that's what happens if you have the surgery and just kinda go along with it. Its not a bad outcome. But if you eat consistenly right, do the right kind of exercise and approach it with the determination that you are going to do all the work needed, you'll lose more than that. I know that with a band and an hour long run every day, I would have to deliberately drip feed myself liquid mars bars by IV all day every day to gain weight. My weight never budges, I've kept it off for 2 years now and I never even have the slightest qualm that I cant continue to do so.

Tiffykin---I've decided I want to be just like you when I grow up! lol...you and the sleeve have very few complications!

I had my 6 month follow up with my surgeon yesterday. He said I was firing on all 4 cylinder.... finally!! I had gastric bypass April 8, 2014. Unfortunately, I'm one who had complications. I wound up back in surgery no even 12 hours after the bypass. I had adhesions which caused a bowel leak. Thank God my doctor was a great, conscientious surgeon & discovered the problem & repaired the hole. But I became septic. The antibiotics weren't working & my temp kept climbing. For 3 weeks I was on a ventilator & medically comatose. I remember nothing until mid May. I later found out that it was touch & go for a while. I figure God kept me here for a reason. I pent a total of 2 1/2 months in Yvette hospital & another 2 weeks in rehab learning to walk again & building my strength up. But here I am! No longer diabetic, no high blood pressure. & feeling better than I ever have. I'm walking! Everywhere! At my heaviest. I was 350lbs & only 5'3". I'm now 210lbs 140lbs gone in 6 months. I Thank God everyday for letting me live to change my life & experience this new body. I'm not finished yet, but I WILL get there. Yes it was a tough situation to go through, but looking back,so worth it.

Sorry to hear about your complications. I am a firm believer in "everything happens for a reason". I hope that you are able to lose weight without and find that you always had it in you I think it is important newbies like me to hear stories from people that had the band removed. Please keep us updated and cheers to no more complications.