Hello other bandsters, I am so happy to be able to return to this site after so long away, and know that when I post something on here, I am going to get responses from people who actually KNOW how I feel, and what I am dealing with. I have so many people in my life that THINK they know . . . sad really, that they are totally oblivious to what a banded-person lives with on a day to day, meal to meal really, basis.

Here's my story: I was banded in February 2007 by the most wonderful, Dr. Hadar Spivak in Houston, and was very pleased with the aftercare he provided. I had several fills, both up and down, determined to get 'there' . . . I am certain I could have tried much harder to make my initial experience successful - straight talk: I still drink sweet tea, milk and dr. pepper (not diet) . . . I know crazy, and yes . . . I was a cash pay patient, so even the knowledge of how much money I spent, didn't really change anything.

I eventually dropped about 50 pounds and should have been THRILLED. But, being the over-achiever I am, it was never good enough. I even had a tummy tuck after about 50 pounds lost, but was never happy with the results of what I felt like was a pretty drastic surgery.

Post TT, I maintained my weight for several months, and as I said before - should have been extatic with my results, but deep down, I wasn't.

Fast forward a few months, and imagine the worst stomach virus you can . . . YEP! I got it . . . because of the insane amount of vomiting, I had to have an un-fill. That was in April 2008, and I have never had another successful day.

Gaining weight at a pretty steady rate, I became ashamed to go back and let Dr. Spivak see me - I was so embarrassed. And when I finally decided, 'Okay!! This is insane . . . I have the tool, but am OBVIOUSLY not using it correctly, I called to make an appt to go in, face him, and deal with the mess I had made.

Never have I been more shocked than when the receptionist said, 'Dr. Spivak retired.' I hung up in absolute disbelief, and went immediately to his website, and sure enough, this doctor who I trusted so much, was no longer available to me. Tears and frustration, all directed at myself.

A few days later, I was able to get in with a bariatric surgeon, who had apparently worked out an agreement with Dr. Spivak to see his patients. VERY long story: in a nutshell, he told me that there is no such thing as a 'thicker' solution to fill the band with, as Dr. Spivak had always said he was using, is this guy calling Dr. Spivak a 'liar' ?? Pretty sure, that'd be a 'yes.'

Ummm, okay . . . so he inserts the needle into my port (I had forgotten how badly I hated THAT), withdrew all of the Fluid, made me drink that stuff, and decided I could have .1 more cc than I already had. So, he said he filled me to 1.9 with the regular saline soution, and said that should do the trick.

Now, 4 days later . . . I do not think I have any restriction at ALL. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!! Going back and forth like I did with Dr. Spivak is not possible for two reasons: 1. No relationship with this doc, and he does not appear to want to be in the room longer than he has to. I have a feeling more than a couple of questions would irritate him. 2. This guy charges $150 every stinkin' time you see him. So, if I call tomorrow and say that: 'I have no restriction' . . . Oh, they'll see me alright, for $150.

All of that is just my background. I got back on this site tonight because I want to DO IT this time, but I know I can't do it alone. I would love to hear from any fellow bandsters, and could sure use some encouragement and advice about how to . . . for lack of a better way to say it, 'start over.'

Thanks in advance for all of your input and suggestions, I look forward to them.

Gosh, I am so sorry this ended up so long!! I just wanted to put it all out there the first time. Thanks if you took the time to read all of that!! :-)

Signed,

Mommi-Hammi in Houston

There has to be other Docs in Houston that will do fills for a fee. I would look for one. This site is a good place to start. I am sure there will be some recommendations. You need a Doc that will support and listen to you. Rapport with your Physician is important for success. Docs sometimes forget that patients are "customers" and customer service is important! Luckily you're in a metropolitan area with other fill Docs.

I am self pay and my fills are 150 too. I think that is standard.

Good luck and congrats on recommitting to success.

Wow! I wish I could help you. Truth is your story is almost EXACTLY like mine. In fact I recently came back to the board after a few years of being away. I got a fill last Monday and he said I had a lot in my band and he barely put in anything. I am calling back today to get another fill but I don't know if he is going to do it.

Good luck!

Hello other bandsters, I am so happy to be able to return to this site after so long away, and know that when I post something on here, I am going to get responses from people who actually KNOW how I feel, and what I am dealing with. I have so many people in my life that THINK they know . . . sad really, that they are totally oblivious to what a banded-person lives with on a day to day, meal to meal really, basis.

Here's my story: I was banded in February 2007 by the most wonderful, Dr. Hadar Spivak in Houston, and was very pleased with the aftercare he provided. I had several fills, both up and down, determined to get 'there' . . . I am certain I could have tried much harder to make my initial experience successful - straight talk: I still drink sweet tea, milk and dr. pepper (not diet) . . . I know crazy, and yes . . . I was a cash pay patient, so even the knowledge of how much money I spent, didn't really change anything.

I eventually dropped about 50 pounds and should have been THRILLED. But, being the over-achiever I am, it was never good enough. I even had a tummy tuck after about 50 pounds lost, but was never happy with the results of what I felt like was a pretty drastic surgery.

Post TT, I maintained my weight for several months, and as I said before - should have been extatic with my results, but deep down, I wasn't.

Fast forward a few months, and imagine the worst stomach virus you can . . . YEP! I got it . . . because of the insane amount of vomiting, I had to have an un-fill. That was in April 2008, and I have never had another successful day.

Gaining weight at a pretty steady rate, I became ashamed to go back and let Dr. Spivak see me - I was so embarrassed. And when I finally decided, 'Okay!! This is insane . . . I have the tool, but am OBVIOUSLY not using it correctly, I called to make an appt to go in, face him, and deal with the mess I had made.

Never have I been more shocked than when the receptionist said, 'Dr. Spivak retired.' I hung up in absolute disbelief, and went immediately to his website, and sure enough, this doctor who I trusted so much, was no longer available to me. Tears and frustration, all directed at myself.

A few days later, I was able to get in with a bariatric surgeon, who had apparently worked out an agreement with Dr. Spivak to see his patients. VERY long story: in a nutshell, he told me that there is no such thing as a 'thicker' solution to fill the band with, as Dr. Spivak had always said he was using, is this guy calling Dr. Spivak a 'liar' ?? Pretty sure, that'd be a 'yes.'

Ummm, okay . . . so he inserts the needle into my port (I had forgotten how badly I hated THAT), withdrew all of the Fluid, made me drink that stuff, and decided I could have .1 more cc than I already had. So, he said he filled me to 1.9 with the regular saline soution, and said that should do the trick.

Now, 4 days later . . . I do not think I have any restriction at ALL. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!! Going back and forth like I did with Dr. Spivak is not possible for two reasons: 1. No relationship with this doc, and he does not appear to want to be in the room longer than he has to. I have a feeling more than a couple of questions would irritate him. 2. This guy charges $150 every stinkin' time you see him. So, if I call tomorrow and say that: 'I have no restriction' . . . Oh, they'll see me alright, for $150.

All of that is just my background. I got back on this site tonight because I want to DO IT this time, but I know I can't do it alone. I would love to hear from any fellow bandsters, and could sure use some encouragement and advice about how to . . . for lack of a better way to say it, 'start over.'

Thanks in advance for all of your input and suggestions, I look forward to them.

Gosh, I am so sorry this ended up so long!! I just wanted to put it all out there the first time. Thanks if you took the time to read all of that!! :-)

Signed,

Mommi-Hammi in Houston

Hello other bandsters, I am so happy to be able to return to this site after so long away, and know that when I post something on here, I am going to get responses from people who actually KNOW how I feel, and what I am dealing with. I have so many people in my life that THINK they know . . . sad really, that they are totally oblivious to what a banded-person lives with on a day to day, meal to meal really, basis.

Here's my story: I was banded in February 2007 by the most wonderful, Dr. Hadar Spivak in Houston, and was very pleased with the aftercare he provided. I had several fills, both up and down, determined to get 'there' . . . I am certain I could have tried much harder to make my initial experience successful - straight talk: I still drink sweet tea, milk and dr. pepper (not diet) . . . I know crazy, and yes . . . I was a cash pay patient, so even the knowledge of how much money I spent, didn't really change anything.

I eventually dropped about 50 pounds and should have been THRILLED. But, being the over-achiever I am, it was never good enough. I even had a tummy tuck after about 50 pounds lost, but was never happy with the results of what I felt like was a pretty drastic surgery.

Post TT, I maintained my weight for several months, and as I said before - should have been extatic with my results, but deep down, I wasn't.

Fast forward a few months, and imagine the worst stomach virus you can . . . YEP! I got it . . . because of the insane amount of vomiting, I had to have an un-fill. That was in April 2008, and I have never had another successful day.

Gaining weight at a pretty steady rate, I became ashamed to go back and let Dr. Spivak see me - I was so embarrassed. And when I finally decided, 'Okay!! This is insane . . . I have the tool, but am OBVIOUSLY not using it correctly, I called to make an appt to go in, face him, and deal with the mess I had made.

Never have I been more shocked than when the receptionist said, 'Dr. Spivak retired.' I hung up in absolute disbelief, and went immediately to his website, and sure enough, this doctor who I trusted so much, was no longer available to me. Tears and frustration, all directed at myself.

A few days later, I was able to get in with a bariatric surgeon, who had apparently worked out an agreement with Dr. Spivak to see his patients. VERY long story: in a nutshell, he told me that there is no such thing as a 'thicker' solution to fill the band with, as Dr. Spivak had always said he was using, is this guy calling Dr. Spivak a 'liar' ?? Pretty sure, that'd be a 'yes.'

Ummm, okay . . . so he inserts the needle into my port (I had forgotten how badly I hated THAT), withdrew all of the Fluid, made me drink that stuff, and decided I could have .1 more cc than I already had. So, he said he filled me to 1.9 with the regular saline soution, and said that should do the trick.

Now, 4 days later . . . I do not think I have any restriction at ALL. Grrrrrrrrrrrrrr!!! Going back and forth like I did with Dr. Spivak is not possible for two reasons: 1. No relationship with this doc, and he does not appear to want to be in the room longer than he has to. I have a feeling more than a couple of questions would irritate him. 2. This guy charges $150 every stinkin' time you see him. So, if I call tomorrow and say that: 'I have no restriction' . . . Oh, they'll see me alright, for $150.

All of that is just my background. I got back on this site tonight because I want to DO IT this time, but I know I can't do it alone. I would love to hear from any fellow bandsters, and could sure use some encouragement and advice about how to . . . for lack of a better way to say it, 'start over.'

Thanks in advance for all of your input and suggestions, I look forward to them.

Gosh, I am so sorry this ended up so long!! I just wanted to put it all out there the first time. Thanks if you took the time to read all of that!! :-)

Signed,

Mommi-Hammi in Houston

Wow, I see that you are having the same problem and feelings that I do (This is what I too loved about this site---we understand one another). I am sorry you are going through this but your story is so very similar to mine. I've been away from board too and feel like such a "failure and embarrassment" for gaining weight back and just not able to get to that "sweet spot" even when I was getting fills. I will pray for your strength and want to encourage you and please do the same for me. You are definitely not alone.

That stuff that Spivak used was called Omnipac and I've over the years seen many of his patients discuss it.

Now, the harsh bit. I think you need to pull on your big girl boots and get real about this. First and foremost if you can find another doc, then do so. But if you have to stick with this guy, I would personally look at it this way :No relationship with the doc? So what? You dont need to piss in his pocket, you have the resources to do this, you need a service from him - that being a fill, or as many as it takes. Who cares if you cant stand him? If he's what's available, then put your feelings aside and use him.

Secondly $150 a visit? Does this deter you because its expensive (and thus tiresome) or because you genuinely cannot afford it? If you truly cant afford it, then my heart goes out to you but I really wouldnt know what you can do about that. Its really rough that your doc retired, and it really does suck, but this is what's available and you can either pay for it or you cant. If you cant, end of story, if you can but just find it annoying, well, thats a choice you're making isnt it? If it were me, I'd perhaps be going back, saying I cant afford to visit every week for these tiny fills and trying to maybe compromise on a slightly larger one, whilst still being cautious that to be unfilled will cost you money too.

You havent failed, honestly, we all need these bands filled for them to work, aftercare is vitally important. Support and compassion from our medical practitioners is invaluable, but at the end of the day, you're a pro at this, you know what to do and all you need from this guy is a medical service, not a soul mate. You also dont need to beat yourself up for not being happy with what you'd achieved,50lb is wonderful, its not small achievement, but I'm a chronic high achiever too and I personally would have been pissed off majorly to only get halfway to my goal, but I dont thnk it helps to look at what you secretely feel is a half arsed result and say perhaps I should have just settled - you're worth more than that and you got that far, you CAN go the whole way. But you need to suck up the rough situation and make it work for you.

Getting back on track is always hard and its always about blunt truths like this. They're not that great to face, but if you want the outcome, you'll put yourself through the pain. If you can possibly find a more compassionate and cheaper doctor, then obviously that's what you'd do, but if not, then I'd just be hard nosed about it, take what I need from the situation and seek moral support elsewhere.

I agree with everything Jachut said. Pull yourself up. Stop having a pity party and MOVE FORWARD!!! If you don't like the doctor; find another one! You are the customer. Stop them when they want to run out of the room quickly. I had to do this to mine. I had to say "Wait, I have more questions and if you've got something else to do, I'll be right here waiting for you when you finish!". They knew then, I was one they were going to have to take their time with. He turned around and smiled and asked, "What's on your mind?". I then began to tell them that I'm a 25% payer and I don't have the time to continuously come there for small fills and then file the claim, take off of work for both, etc., etc. SPEAK UP, they will listen! Build a rapport with whatever doctor you choose. You are so close to your goal ( according to your ticker). Don't you lose heart or hope. Remember, the band is a tool. No tool ever works unless you grab it and use it! We've all had setbacks. Join the club, honey. But, be a part of us who move past our setbacks, weight gain, and self sabotage. You can do this!

Dr Spivak was my surgeon also and I have and have had Omnipac in my band since my first fill. He asked me if I wanted that or saline? I chose the Omnipac as it was thicker. I have talked to a lady Surgeon in Bryan Texas that does fills under fluro for $200.00 I discuss with them that I have Omnipac and it did not seem to be a problem. They are in her Bryan Office every other weekend and then in Tyler, Texas the other weekends. She and her husband both have a band.

Dr Spivak was a great surgeon and such a nice man, it will be hard to find someone who cares about his people like he did. If you compare other Drs to him most will not stand up to the challenge. So if you do not like the ones who are replacing him choose another Dr. I can find you the number for the lady Surgeon in Bryan if you are interested a lot of people really like her. I am sure I will be going there soon. Dr Spivak always did my fills himself and under flouro so that is what I want now. I will not change to saline as I do not know what the restiction will feel like might be different might not be. Anyway the surgeon will not make you choose the right foods and exercise. You are just getting a fill from them, you have to be your own cheerleader.

Cheri

Here is the information on Dr. Stephanie, please note I have NEVER seen her before so I am only passing on information about her, if you want it. I have heard great things about her BUT as I said I have NEVER been for a visit, but plan to.

Dr Stephanie in Bryan. She charges $200 for first time, $180 after that.

Welcome to Dr. Stephanie's Lap Band ® Adjustment Practice! We have two practice locations in Bryan, Texas and Tyler, Texas, operating on alternating Saturdays.

Hours: Open Saturday mornings by appointment onlyIn Bryan: 3841 Sagebriar DriveIn Tyler: 906 E. Front Street

The cost of a Lap Band ® adjustment is $200.A Lap Band ® checkup is $100.All procedures are done with fluoroscopy.

We accept cash, Mastercard, VISA and Discover. No American Express please.

Cheri

Phone: 903-520-8847

Thank you all so much for your responses . . . everything that was said, I needed to hear again, even though in my heart I know that is what I need to / have to, do. What I need to hear, is that I CAN do this!! I apologize if it sounded like I was whining, I didn't mean to be having a 'pity party,' just felt like I should put it all 'out there' since it has been so long since I've checked in here.

Jacqui - I think you were active on this site when I was actively working on this. I remember reading your posts then, and always appreciated your advice, and words of wisdom.

You ladies all seem to have had remarkable success with this little 'tool' . . . I hope I can join you again soon!!

Cheri - thank you so much for the information on the doctor in Bryan. While I am not expecting to ever find another Dr. Spivak, I am a person who prefers a little repore with my doctor, as opposed to the 'just the facts jack' kind of doctor.

As far as the money goes - the package I had with Dr. Spivak included fills and office visits. It's not a matter of not being able to pay the fee, it is just different, and the information out there now, by his replacement doc says his practice will honor Dr. Spivak's arrangements. That just turned out not to be the case . . . no biggee, unless I need to go in often.

Again, thank you all so much for your comments - I am going to make checking in here a priority, maybe that in and of itself will add another element of accountability. :-)

Good night,

Lynn

Hi! I am in a very similar situation. I was banded by Dr. Spivak in June 2009. I lost only about 40lbs. initially with my band, but never really gained anymore weight and was able to eat a pretty normal diet. I too cheated a lot and new that I needed to really commit to the diet that goes along with the tool. In May 2011 I found out that I was severely anemic, and had other Vitamin deficiencies and let my doctor convince me to have the Fluid taken out of my band so that I could swallow all the Vitamins and supplements easier. They also wanted me to do a detox diet that required several supplements. So, I had the unfill. Dr. Spivak was not in, so Brenda did it. I think he probably would have talked me out of it! I started the vitamins, coincidentally found most of them on Bariatric Advantage site so didn't really need the unfill. I never even finished the detox. Mid June I called the office to be filled again, had only gained maybe five pounds at this point and heard that he was moving to Isreal and was given the number for the "other doctor"! Brenda suggested that I wait to get filled until after our cruise in July, so I waited. Waited too long!

I just went in to the "other doctor" after gaining back about 25 pounds! I had the same interaction with him. I felt rushed and he even forgot to tell me what diet to follow after the fill and weight gain. But what he did feel obligated to share with me was his opinion of the lap band. He said that they are now finding that patients are not having long term success. He said that Dr. Spivak was actually doing this particular study and that the sleeve was now the preferred treatment. He said that he would go ahead and start fills for me, but it looked like I am probably one of the many who will not have long term success with the band and that I should consider the sleeve.

I left his office feeling totally defeated. I do not want another surgery. I had to self pay because my weight was not high enough and I have no other health issues. I really can't afford another surgery and frankly don't want to go through that again.

At first I beleived what he said to me, but then started wondering if he's just trying to sell me another costly surgery. I'm sure he doesn't make much on the office visits. I hate to think that way! Really miss Dr. Spivak