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Lapband complications section of the board



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Let me start off by saying that I dislike going to that area of the board, however as a prebander I feel it is necessary to hear the good, bad and ugly about this from all view points. However, I have noticed that a lot of people begin having problems years out and dont immediately seek medical care from their surgeon. They live with problems for months and then finally decide to go back to the dr. I guess my question is to those of you that are a success story -- how often do you see your surgeon? My surgeon requires monthly visits for the first yr - regardless of if you want/need a fill. After 1 yr post op your follow up visits are up to you but it must be at least once a yr. So my response to him was "so i can come monthly for the rest of my life?" he said yes. I look at my relationship with my surgeon as one i will have forever. Perhaps all newbies think like that though, then they make it to goal, life get in the way and before you know it you havent seen your doc in 2 yrs. My dr did say that while the majority of his long term post op patients dont come in monthly they do come in regularily-- quarterly, every other month, etc. But when i think about it how does he know the success of the other patients if they dont come in? If i end up having problems with my band i dont want it to be because of something i did. I want to follow the rules and to me regular follow ups with your dr is part of the rules.

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great post ...just at my last visit my doctor suggested I could skip a month because I was doing so well and losing at a good pace ...

I am only 9 months post op....I may have lost 100+ lbs but I am nowhere near foregoing my monthly visits! I said thanks for the vote of confidence but no thanks! I plan on seeing him monthly for at least the first year. In fact it maybe that way until I reach my goal. once I get to goal hopefully by April 2012 I really think once every quarter seems to make sense or of course unless I need a fill.

One of the benefits of the band journey is to have the support system your doctor provides ... To ignore that just doesn't make any sense to me

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Let me start off by saying that I dislike going to that area of the board, however as a prebander I feel it is necessary to hear the good, bad and ugly about this from all view points. However, I have noticed that a lot of people begin having problems years out and dont immediately seek medical care from their surgeon. They live with problems for months and then finally decide to go back to the dr. I guess my question is to those of you that are a success story -- how often do you see your surgeon? My surgeon requires monthly visits for the first yr - regardless of if you want/need a fill. After 1 yr post op your follow up visits are up to you but it must be at least once a yr. So my response to him was "so i can come monthly for the rest of my life?" he said yes. I look at my relationship with my surgeon as one i will have forever. Perhaps all newbies think like that though, then they make it to goal, life get in the way and before you know it you havent seen your doc in 2 yrs. My dr did say that while the majority of his long term post op patients dont come in monthly they do come in regularily-- quarterly, every other month, etc. But when i think about it how does he know the success of the other patients if they dont come in? If i end up having problems with my band i dont want it to be because of something i did. I want to follow the rules and to me regular follow ups with your dr is part of the rules.

My doc didn't exactly specify how often but suggested annually to make sure all was going okay. I'm about 2 1/2 years out and I feel like I'm doing pretty well with maintenance, so a flouroscopy annually to check the bank and have a chat with the doc would be fine with me - unless I feel something out of the ordinary is going on. I think at this point I don't want the band to be a huge part of my life the way it has since I got it. If all is going okay, I see no reason to make appointments unless you need the moral and emotional support and accountability. If you're at a comfortable stage where you are able to manage everything on your own - an annual visit should be fine.

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    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • Alisa_S

      On day 4 of the 2 week liquid pre-op diet. Surgery scheduled for June 11th.
      Soooo I am coming to a realization
      of something and I'm not sure what to do about it. For years the only thing I've enjoyed is eating. We rarely do anything or go anywhere and if we do it always includes food. Family comes over? Big family dinner! Go camping? Food! Take a short ride or trip? Food! Holiday? Food! Go out of town for a Dr appointment? Food! When we go to a new town we don't look for any attractions, we look for restaurants we haven't been to. Heck, I look forward to getting off work because that means it's almost supper time. Now that I'm drinking these pre-op shakes for breakfast, lunch, and supper I have nothing to look forward to.  And once I have surgery on June 11th it'll be more of the same shakes. Even after pureed stage, soft food stage, and finally regular food stage, it's going to be a drastic change for the rest of my life. I'm giving up the one thing that really brings me joy. Eating. How do you cope with that? What do you do to fill that void? Wow. Now I'm sad.
      · 1 reply
      1. summerseeker

        Life as a big person had limited my life to what I knew I could manage to do each day. That was eat. I hadn't anything else to look forward to. So my eating choices were the best I could dream up. I planned the cooking in managable lots in my head and filled my day with and around it.

        Now I have a whole new big, bigger, biggest, best days ever. I am out there with those skinny people doing stuff i could never have dreamt of. Food is now an after thought. It doesn't consume my day. I still enjoy the good home cooked food but I eat smaller portions. I leave food on my plate when I am full. I can no longer hear my mother's voice saying eat it all up, ther are starving children in Africa who would want that!

        I still cook for family feasts, I love cooking. I still do holidays but I have changed from the All inclusive drinking and eating everything everyday kind to Self catering accommodation. This gives me the choice of cooking or eating out as I choose. I rarely drink anymore as I usually travel alone now and I feel I need to keep aware of my surroundings.

        I don't know at what point my life expanded, was it when I lost 100 pounds? Was it when I left my walking stick at home ? Was it when I said yes to an outing instead of finding an excuse to stay home ? i look back at my last five years and wonder how loosing weight has made such a difference. Be ready to amaze yourself.

        BTW, the liquid diet sucks, one more day and you are over the worst. You can do it.

    • CaseyP1011

      Officially here for a long time, not just a good time💪
      · 0 replies
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    • KimBaxleyWilson

      Three months and four days ago... I was in Costa Rica having a life changing surgery! Yesterday we had a followup visit with Dr. Esmeral via video chat and this morning my middle number changed.  I'm down 47lbs and two pants sizes. I can wear a Large tshirt for the first time in like... 14 years! Woot!! Everything is going great. I have zero regrets. I went down to the riverwalk with a friend and walked 2 miles on Monday without even getting fatigued. And no more snoring or chugging pickle juice for crazy leg cramps! I need to go to the gym more... I'm making new shirts next week so that will motivate me. LOL But I'm also just not as TIRED all the time! I have a LONG way to go...but seeing the progress on the scales and in the mirror is a huge motivator!! Thank you all for cheering me on and supporting me!!
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    • bellaamey

      https://alluniqueguide.com/java-burn-coffee-reviews/
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