Search the Community

My husband had the RU N Y done in November---I have decided to have the Lap Band. I go for my first meeting 8/5 and I so cannot wait!!!!

Hi, My best friend is having lap band in the next month. I am very excited for her and support her decision. Mainly for her health and to be healthy for her family & me of course...haha to live for a long time. I never gave it any thought but recently I have been noticing stories where people who have surgery lose their friends. My best friend also has fear of losing weight changing her. Now I am terrified to lose her, I would be devestated.... it has taken so long to find that special friendship. I love her so much. I wanted to know if anyone has had similiar fears or advice to help me through her transition. Please be honest. Thank you so much for your time!!!

I am about to go in next Monday with another month or 4 weeks of no weight loss. I have weighed the same since November 1st. I am scared that this is it. I cannot do this on my own. I have proven this over and over. I am craving sweets and am taking bites here and there and I know my dumb mind is letting me because I am NOT losing. this is my pattern. I will probably start to actually gain and will not stop until I do. I need SOMETHING to get started again. I exercise and walk just about every single day. Help, help help...

Yeah...you have become a winner! Thanks for the information. Did you have a sleeve or a bypass. I am scheduled for surgery on 12/27...anxious and excited in the same breath. Sent from my iPad using the BariatricPal App

:thumbup: Well I am now out of school for the year! That is a good feeling! I NEED the rest and time to regroup :w00t: My daughter and I are joining the community center and will be lifting some weights and I intend to do a lot more exercise. Right now I still feel kind of tired. Even though I was off yesterday I am tired. School just wears me out. I read an article this week on the Spark that was about how working overtime makes you fat. Studies done, etc.that show it. Well, well what surprise that is! But there is nothing I can do about that! I have tried to evaluate how to make it easier and it just does not happen. Also does not leave me with lots of time to work out, etc. I am exhausted at the end of every day. Can barely get home, make a meal, clean it up, walk about 25 min, grade some stuff then go to bed at midnight. Weekends I catch up. Heavens if I have to get up early on a weekend. We go to church Sat night which I hate but is good for the catching up on sleep. Some Sundays I grade papers ALL DAY LONG. Oh well, BREAK time is here! Yeah! OK now the weight thing. I am going in Monday for my 11months. I think I have gained a couple more pounds. So I have lost maybe 35 lbs total. Have not lost a THING since November. I have to go to an open house for a family member and I have a sister in law who had a roux-en-y right before Christmas--she had lost 70 lbs. Who knows now? It is going to be HARD to look at her and not be upset. This is just not going the way I thought it would. By the time school was out I thought I would be maybe 20 lbs from goal. Well I am nowhere near that and not losing. I am struggling to not gain.... I need to lose about 65 lbs. and it is just not happening. Gosh I would like to lose 5 lbs a month?? I would get there eventually. So tired of this. I read the answer to my blog and have started just this week to eat very high protein with little or no carbs. However, I have fallen down at the end of the day a couple of times this week and had some fruit. It has been hard. Interesting that when I do this I feel really tired no matter what time of day it is and need to shut my eyes and sleep! My head starts to hurt and eyes hurt. Hmmmm.... The two days I ate so much protein I felt invigorated and good. Just ran into trouble on the other two. I did a BIG protein shake this morning adding 26g whey to 2c milk (16g) and the low sugar inst breakfast (5g). That is a whopper 47g for breakfast. I intend on having meat if I have anything else before dinner. There are some carbs there but am trying to do what was suggested to me. I think I will be able to now especially with school out. What I need to see if some RESULTS! If I start losing and I feel a lot better I will be motivated to go on. However, this is just like Atkins diet. I went on that once. Lost 13 lbs first month then like 5 then it stopped. As usual for me. But with the band, maybe this is different. So I go in Monday to weigh (great??) and probably get yelled at again. I have no idea if I will get a fill or not. I am not going to base my life and my outlook on that darn fill and it making a difference. I have done that every month since I started this mess and it has been a severe letdown every single time. What a rollercoaster ride this is! I also am NOT going to let the negativity from those in charge at my doc's office get me down. I will NOT let them do that to me. I am trying as hard as I can. I exercise DAILY with a fast walk at 20-30 minutes, I am drinking more water than ever, I gave up any caffeine, carbonated drinks, bread when eating out(I have NONE!! when I used to limit myself anyway!), and am writing down most of the time too. What else is there to do??????? I SELDOM feel any what I would call restriction. I have just about given up on hoping the the band is going to help me to restrict and stop eating at a very small amount. I do not eat much anyway but I guess it is too much..... I have a friend online who was struggling too. She just got a fill, said she now gets stopped and almost throws up at each meal. Has lost 7 lbs this month! How great! Where oh where is that for me! I told her she would get the throwing up figured out and quit eating at the right point. That will stop. Again I have another friend who had a roux-en-y and she did that but eventually knows exactly how much to eat and has done well. She has less in her band than me. I am so happy for her but man this is HARD to take. I think I have 6 1/2 in my 9 band. How much does it take? How much will they put in? I fear that they will say--hey that is it, we aren't putting any more in, it isn't safe so now it is all up to you. And guess what? I am not getting it done....... I know my doctor is very conservative. They told me this. Which is good, they have had almost no complications with their bands. But gee this is just not doing much for me. I just do not get any help from it, very, very little. Very disappointing after 11months.... Also I am SICK SICK SICK of the way I look! I have this big fat shelf belly that is gradually growing back. UGH, UGH!! I wanted to just look better this summer. UGH. So disappointing. I think my body has been on a diet so so so long it just adjusts to whatever level I am at. All thyroids been checked, are OK, I am not diabetic, had that test. I just suck! Well this is long, it is nice to have time to get it all out. Please don't read this if you want encouragement because it ain't here. This is just a place to POUR it out. I am gearing up now to go in Monday and getting in my ZEN place so I do not get upset when they tell me I am a failure... I just keep repeating "zen, zen, zen....." I will keep trying to exercise, eat lots of protein, not drink diet coke which I still love and MISS after a YEAR of not having it. Like it is doing any good. Maybe the next fill will work.....ha. Do you believe this? I still have that little hope in there that I will finally get this.....later.

Here is what helped me: I ate 2 teaspoons every 2 hours. I am still unable to even eat 2-3 oz of food at a sitting and I had my surgery in November. Take your time, it is a new BABY tummy. They don't eat much when they are first trying foods either.

I am 3 years post-op RNY gastric bypass surgery. The plan I was given to follow was: Weeks 1-8: 2 ounces of food per meal x 3 meals per day Weeks 9-15: 3 ounces per meal Months 4-6: 4 ounces per meal Months 7-9: 5 ounces per meal Months 10-12: 6 ounces per meal Months 12-18: 7 ounces per meal Months 18 and beyond: 8 ounces per meal One other point. Protein shakes do not count against your meal allotment. I would blend in a half a banana into my Protein shake and the half a banana does not count against my meals. [but don't take this to the extreme.]

It is so encouraging to hear of a great result like yours. I too left an abuser after ten years of being isolated from my family ten miles from the nearest town, down a 1/4 mile gravel road out between the corn and the beans. I come from a family of 400 pounders but was always the skinny one until I had kids. Then it was divorce then another divorce then menopause, two knee replacements and a stroke. Any excuse will do, I guess, but the point is, in my old age I am catching up with the family tree. Already at 235 pounds, my legs do not want to hold me up, and I don't want another stroke. With a 53 inch waist, I am almost as round as I am tall. I am in the midst of the nutrition appointments and will probably have my surgery in November. Thanks for the encouragement. I know there can be setbacks, but your experience shows that it can go well.

I am not an expert. I haven't had surgery yet, but I've been pursing and researching WLS since last November. I've been seeing the surgeon since January for my insurance required 6 month diet. My surgery is next week. I know it is hard searching through the topics trying to find answers to your specific questions and it feels like a big step to make a post, so I'll try to answer what I can. In my area (Upstate NY) I actually hear WLS advertised on the radio. A few different hospitals advertise their weight loss options and they have a free seminar you can go to. I ended up doing my seminar online. So you might want to contact your area hospital and ask if they have or know of any free seminars in the area on WLS options. Or if they can refer you to a bariatric surgeon. Many general surgeons can do the surgery, however I think it's nice to go to a practice where that is their specialty. The doctor I chose has a big practice catering just to that. It is listed in their hospital's online directory under "weight loss." I would make my first step be finding one of these centers or surgeons who specialize in WLS and then making the initial consult. They discuss SO much in that appointment and can answer so many questions. Having worked much for surgeons in the past, I don't think you'll get many options in picking the time of day of your surgery. You can request a morning surgery, but that usually doesn't mean you're guaranteed that. I think in an ideal world, being the second surgery of the day would be perfect though. They are warmed up and awake, but not exhausted. I can't speak from experience about the loose skin. I do know genetics and age have a lot to do with it. I've lost a lot of weight on diets in the past and my skin caught up each time. It was slower weight loss, so the skin shrunk along with me. I know that with WLS, it's the rapid weight loss that makes the skin appear extra saggy at times. Then it will shrink some more with time. Will it shrink totally back to tight skin? Everyone is different. If you're young, with good genetics and hydrate well, maybe it will. I think it's likely you'll have some areas you don't like though. With my weight loss in the past, my stomach always kept it's saggy pouch, even though it did get smaller and wasn't noticeable under clothes. As for diet, my surgeon is requiring a 2 week pre-op liquid "stage 2" diet and then I will do this same diet for two weeks post op. I'm on day 7 of it right now. You focus on high protein liquid. I'm supposed to be trying to get at least 80 grams of protein per day. I am not supposed to be having any sugars either. I can have skim or whole milk, black tea or coffee (but need to switch to decaf a couple days before surgery too), sugar free puddings, sugar free jellos, Protein Shakes, high protein/low fat/no or low sugar yogurts, protein soups/broths (without chunks). It kind of sucks. I am doing mainly yogurt and protein shakes through the day. 2 weeks after surgery, I'll be evaluated and switched to pureed foods. You still aim for the protein, but can eat pureed things in the mix. And then I believe it is 1 month post op, I switch to soft foods. This is a pretty typical WLS diet around surgery time, but surgeons are varying it now. Some don't require the 2 weeks pre-op. They say they do those 2 weeks to shrink the liver so that the surgeon has better access to the stomach, which makes sense. Some keep you on clear liquids for a few days after surgery. It can vary a bit, but this is my protocol. I'm not sure there is a best season. I want to be free of this weight NOW. So, NOW is the best season for me. LOL. Good luck on your journey. I think once you can get in for a consult or go to one of the free seminars that a lot of places offer, you'll get a lot of questions answered.

I'm not a guy but I am in Kansas City so I will answer about doctors. The KC Bariatric team has been wonderful through my process. I will be having my VSG in November with Dr. Aragon and would highly recommend his office. Sent from my iPhone using the BariatricPal App

I called to tell them I do not want the gastric bypass and she said the wrong form went out to me. I have an appointment to see if I am medically necesary on Friday Apri 7.

This is the voice of your band! Funny this came up because a Bypass person recently told me that this is her getting full sign. I hadn't realized that it is sometimes mine, I got a fill in Dec. that has changed me greatly and my nose runs, If I don't notice, one or two more bites and I know I'm done. If I'm lucky I only have to walk around the house a couple of times to get a good burp for relief. And if by chance it is a cold or allergies mucus can make it harder to eat. Good luck.

I went the support group in my city several months ago, as it was a requirement from my surgeon. It was a nice little meeting, but they all had the bypass, I was the only one that is going to have the sleeve, it has been a few months since I last went so, I'm going to try again and see if maybe there are any sleevers in there yet. I like talking with the girls, there was only 5 of us there at that meeting, and we just went around and told about our self, if they were post op they explained how they were doing how much they lost etc.

Could your dietician be referring to RNY (bypass) in regards to meat? I know they have a very hard time digesting meats (especially beef). I've personally had no problems with any types - beef, chicken, pork, fish, etc. Just be sure they are very moist, and have a sauce handy if needed - so they go down easy. Chew very tiny pieces very, very well before swallowing. I had a really gross sliming episode with a too-dry chicken strip once. As far as carbonated drinks, I've tried a few sips of Diet Coke since banding. It gave me a reflux-type feeling inside- not pleasant at all. And who wants a flat coke? Yuke! So I definitely don't miss those now.

I'm moving along pretty quick though I don' have a date yet. I had my seminar on 9/21 and I have my second consult appt on the 26th when they will submit to ins. They tell me it is about a 1 week turnaround for approval and then I get a date. So, I should be in mid-November.

Well, I was going in on the 28th. But, due to a work conflict on my wife's part, we had to bump it a couple of weeks to October 12th. Not a big deal, but I still spent the better part of a couple of hours seeing if I could work out a plan to keep the 28th (drive myself, wait around the lobby for my wife to pick me up a few hours, etc). I did, however, get word from my insurance that I was approved! We were ready to go self pay if need be, but this is better. Last time, when my wife had her bypass, the hospital billed $125K for just it's part (a pre planned procedure with a two day stay and no complications. 800 (x 2) dollar morphine!!!), of which Anthem disallowed 80% or so. I wasn't looking forward to dealing with the hospital on my own without the insurance company to back me up. I know it is all a shell game between providers and insurers, but geez. My wife had an emergency gall bladder removal with an ER visit and a two day stay at a different hospital earlier last year was $35K total. I went to my one insurance required support group meeting last week. Interesting, that of 30+ people in the group, only myself and one other pre-op were going LAP-BAND®®®®. All the others , including all the post op, were sleeve or bypass. One other pre op explained she was fighting with insurance for the sleeve, though she had been approved for LAP-BAND®®®® or bypass. She was very against a foreign object in her body. She felt they all suffer from rejection and infection, no offense to the two of us going LAP-BAND®®®®. Different strokes. Cheers, Erick

I don't like that you are grazing with the trail mix. You may be eating more than you realize that way. Grazing is one of the easiest ways to bypass the restriction of the sleeve, because you never truly get "full". So it can be a slippery slope. Much better to eat on a schedule and have a specified amount of something as your "snack" between "meals". I am not a breakfast person AT ALL either. I never ate breakfast until I started trying to seriously lose weight. Even still, my "breakfast" is just a Protein bar. You could try a Protein Bar or shake, since those are easy to eat "on the go" or at your desk at work. I always eat mine first thing when I get into work, because I love my sleep, so my pre-work routine is waking up at the last possible moment, rolling out of bed, hopping in the shower, getting dressed quick, then usually getting to work 5-10 minutes late. There can be NO DOUBT that eating breakfast helps with weight loss though. So it's worth squeezing it in where you can. Even on weekends, when I sleep in, I wake up at my normal time, eat my protein bar, take my Vitamins, then go back to sleep! So my suggestions are: add a protein bar or shake for breakfast cut out the grazing and instead have scheduled, pre-measured Snacks try tracking your food for a week or two just to make sure you really are where you think you are with your calories and macros, then maybe try adjusting up or down as needed

I had my lapband surgery in November 2006. I lost seventeen pounds pre-surgery and then another fifteen pounds by January. I had a total of two fills. Things were going okay, but not perfect. I had regained a few pounds over the holidays and was struggling to get back on track. In February 2007, I was diagnosed with uterine cancer. I ended up with a total hysterectomy. Recovery, both physical and emotional was brutal. Several months later I lost my job along with my health insurance. I was unable to continue with visits with my bariatric surgeon. The band has since been "unfilled" and I have re-gained every single pound I lost. I am scared, depressed, and most of all ANGRY. How did this happen? Is there any hope for me with the lap band at this point? HELPPPP!!

In any WLS forum, you will read many stories that are scary. I contemplated surgery a year before having it done, and it was what I read in all of the forums that freaked me out. After packing on another 10 pounds, I knew I had to move forward, and I chose banded plication. I was scheduled for the bypass, but was too scared to go through with it. Also....I've known a couple of bypass people who gained a lot of weight over time, and ended up getting the band over the bypass. The downside to the band over the other surgeries, is that there is continuous adjusting & follow up. With the sleeve and bypass, the surgery & done & that's it. Yes, you still have to follow up with your doctor, and there is support, etc. but the band required fills, un-fills, etc. Even still, knowing that it can be reversed was the peace of mind I needed, going into this aggressive form of weight loss. No matter which surgery you decide to go with, eating behavior has to change. Most people have good results in the short term with all procedures. But over time, it's so easy to fall into old patterns; there isn't a surgery out there to change that. One more thing..... When reading through these forums, please keep in mind that the success stories far outweigh the complication stories. It's unfortunate that some people have had a very bad experience. Some of the ones who post about it, feel the need to warn the masses of impending doom. When making your decision, try & keep your eye on the big picture

I have the band with plication. I looked into all of the surgeries prior, and out of all, the sleeve was never an option. It's way too extreme, and any possible issues of leakage from the staples, is life threatening. It could also require 4-6 weeks in the hospital, which I cannot afford. I chose banded plication because I wanted the least invasive of all surgeries. Plication gives the added restriction of the sleeve, without cutting & removing 3/4 of my stomach. Once it's gone, you can never get it back. The band can be removed, and the sutures on the plication can be taken out. I was banded on 3/25/13, and have not regretted it for one minute. I'm not going to lie......it's hard work. But it's hard work with ALL of the surgeries. They are a tool, not a cure. The difference with the band over the gastric bypass, is that the work begins as soon as you open your eyes from surgery. With the bypass, there is a honeymoon period where the weight comes off very quickly. But after 12-18 months, that stops and you're in the same boat as the band; having to control what you eat, and make healthy choices. There are other food limitations with the bypass; like sugar. But it doesn't sound like you're considering that procedure. My vote is the band. But it's a very personal choice, and you have to do what feels right for you. But just know from the get go, that whether you go with the band or sleeve, it will be up to you to control portions and food choices. Good luck

Hi there, fellow Minnesotan. I looked up the number for Unjury online and called. They do send you a few samples! I haven't received them yet, but expect them any day. Oh- and I got the diet recommendations from Abbott/Northwestern but they didn't say anything specific about the band- only the bypass. Isn't that nice of them. I go to my other doctor on Thursday and I have a feeling I'll get better info there on the diet they use. Take care, and good luck! Megan

I had the bypass, my first insurance would have covered the sleeve but Tricare wouldn't. I had the bypass because if was covered by both insurance plans. Sent from my SM-G920V using the BariatricPal App

I have Tricare Prime and my surgery is on May 18th. I have not seen the final ok but the doctor I am working with said it should be no problem and they have many Tricare patients. I can get the sleeve or bypass. The sleeve is new to their list for approval. I asked my primary care for a referral and I had it in less than a week. I researched the area for the surgeon I wanted to go with and checked on their website that they worked with Tricare. The doctor I am using is listed in the Tricare as a general surgeon. The long wait was for an opening with this doctor. Once I got in his office together he and Tricare required: One appointment with psych. (This is covered under Tricare Prime). One appointment with a nutritionist. (This was not covered and I paid $75 to see the nutricianist in his office). An appointment with my primary to be released for surgery. (Regular copay). An appointment at the hospital for prep (blood work, ecg... No copay) If you are getting the sleeve my doctor requires an endoscopy to make sure you are good. (I don't think this was a Tricare requirement). The surgeons office just called and asked me to start on some Vitamin B12, D and Iron due to my blood work. They seem sure I am good to get the surgery in 3 weeks. I am staying optimistic and will update when I more info or if anyone has any questions...

I never like that feeling before gastric bypass and I don't like it now still lol