Lately I have been hearing the phrase that WLS is personalized to each individual, and I could not agree more....

It's "Personalized" because the band is adjustable....my band is not like your band as is the other person's band...

If I never had a fill, or when I was just starting out, I could eat and drink anything as though I did not even have the surgery...it was all about will power and classic dieting...

As my band got adjusted, things began to change, and become unique TO ME, and NO ONE ELSE....what other people experience is unique to themselves and no one one else....sure there are some common things....

People need to realize that there is no concrete answer to questions such as drinking with meals, eating rice, breads, etc...experiencing hunger/cravings, and portion control....because everyone's band is different from everyone else s...

That's why when someone asks a question, you are going to get 100 different answers....

I read posts, and see the person was banded within a month or so, even within a year sometimes, and I will avoid giving my response because it is night and day.....where I am at, and what my band does is no where near what the new person is experiencing, and things I may say, well I might as well be talking about visiting Mars or something....will not make much sense....and only confuse many people....

Only things I can say sometimes is "Yes, I've been there and yes, it does pass, it does get better...things do progress"

And the only thing we have in common is that we all have to follow our Dr.'s treatment plan, and not what someone we never met on the internet tells us to do....and even our Dr.'s advice will differ from one another's...is one Dr right and the other wrong?

My only pet peeve, after saying all the above...is when people come on here and say "THIS is the ONLY way"..."It's my way or no way" Do it THIS WAY or you will be sorry!!!

How can people say that? It may be true FOR THEM.....and that is good! Share your experiences....that's what it's all about,,,,,But sometimes people will make a definitive statement about something that can never happen or will not happen, and I'm sitting here scratching me head thinking I have personally experienced the exact opposite....???

Someone may post here stating that the way they became successful was by standing on their heads for 30 minutes after every meal....may even provide a You-Tube from some Yoga instructor, etc....refer to a book or 2....

I have no problem with this person sharing their experiences, I find it informative, and perhaps entertaining., and enjoy reading everyone's different ways they have found happiness and success.......I may even try it myself and see for myself the results..or I may not....

BUT

As soon as this person comes on here and starts telling everyone THIS is what you MUST do if you want to be successful, or else you are asking for certain doom...medical problems.....

Saying To loose weight and be successful...YOU MUST stand on your head for 30 minutes after every meal, OR ELSE!!! It Is the ONLY WAY!

Now I have a problem....I lost my weight and never stood on my head....yet this person is telling everyone this is what you HAVE to to, this is the ONLY way it works....

There are are a lot of new people here looking for guidance...and they're being told they must stand on their heads for 30 minutes after every meal?

I cannot let this go by unchallenged....

Ok, my so much for my coffee induced morning rant...off to the gym....Hey IT'S FRIDAY!!!!

Edited January 17, 201412 yr by B-52

someone actually said to stand on head>> ?? LOL.. sorry but thats a good one.

Chris

Lately I have been hearing the phrase that WLS is personalized to each individual, and I could not agree more....

It's "Personalized" because the band is adjustable....my band is not like your band as is the other person's band...

If I never had a fill, or when I was just starting out, I could eat and drink anything as though I did not even have the surgery...it was all about will power and classic dieting...

As my band got adjusted, things began to change, and become unique TO ME, and NO ONE ELSE....what other people experience is unique to themselves and no one one else....sure there are some common things....

People need to realize that there is no concrete answer to questions such as drinking with meals, eating rice, breads, etc...experiencing hunger/cravings, and portion control....because everyone's band is different from everyone else s...

That's why when someone asks a question, you are going to get 100 different answers....

I read posts, and see the person was banded within a month or so, even within a year sometimes, and I will avoid giving my response because it is night and day.....where I am at, and what my band does is no where near what the new person is experiencing, and things I may say, well I might as well be talking about visiting Mars or something....will not make much sense....and only confuse many people....

Only things I can say sometimes is "Yes, I've been there and yes, it does pass, it does get better...things do progress"

And the only thing we have in common is that we all have to follow our Dr.'s treatment plan, and not what someone we never met on the internet tells us to do....and even our Dr.'s advice will differ from one another's...is one Dr right and the other wrong?

My only pet peeve, after saying all the above...is when people come on here and say "THIS is the ONLY way"..."It's my way or no way" Do it THIS WAY or you will be sorry!!!

How can people say that? It may be true FOR THEM.....and that is good! Share your experiences....that's what it's all about,,,,,But sometimes people will make a definitive statement about something that can never happen or will not happen, and I'm sitting here scratching me head thinking I have personally experienced the exact opposite....???

Someone may post here stating that the way they became successful was by standing on their heads for 30 minutes after every meal....may even provide a You-Tube from some Yoga instructor, etc....refer to a book or 2....

I have no problem with this person sharing their experiences, I find it informative, and perhaps entertaining., and enjoy reading everyone's different ways they have found happiness and success.......I may even try it myself and see for myself the results..or I may not....

BUT

As soon as this person comes on here and starts telling everyone THIS is what you MUST do if you want to be successful, or else you are asking for certain doom...medical problems.....

Saying To loose weight and be successful...YOU MUST stand on your head for 30 minutes after every meal, OR ELSE!!! It Is the ONLY WAY!

Now I have a problem....I lost my weight and never stood on my head....yet this person is telling everyone this is what you HAVE to to, this is the ONLY way it works....

There are are a lot of new people here looking for guidance...and they're being told they must stand on their heads for 30 minutes after every meal?

I cannot let this go by unchallenged....

Ok, my so much for my coffee induced morning rant...off to the gym....Hey IT'S FRIDAY!!!!

I agree its' personal....It's NOT my business how tight someone keeps their bands, how often or how little they eat, or how many times someone PB's and slime....THAT's IS THEIR business.

If someone keeps their bands too tight, that is OK, I will still like them and give them congrats on their weight loss...LOL..that is NOT my business how they rock their bands, or lose their weight, but they need to know to don't be surprised if they suffer complications, and even when people suffer complications I will still help them any way I can.-- what I don't like is band bashing...after someone has abused their bands.

I use to just concentrate on giving people congrats on their weight loss and looking at before and after pics.....UNTIL....everyone started to disappear after being banded 5 years...lol....they were losing their band in droves....

Then SURGEONS STOP doing bands for MANY people because the re-op rate was SO high....if you have not heard about the downfall of the lap band you must have been under a rock for the last few years....The lap band is about satiety AND NOT TIGHT RESTRICTION....anyone CAN choose to use their band how they want, they can keep it too tight, etc, but when problems crop up down the wrong, please don't act surprised or start bashing the band..LOL

You have to REALLY know how to use the band for it to be effective and not cause complications, this is why MANY surgeons stop doing bands and started recommending the Sleeve and the Bypass for those WHO NEED MORE help with losing weight, the band IS NOT RESTRICTIVE, it is not designed that way it is NOT designed to stop us from eating it is designed to help us stop....and YES, it is still dieting for many of us...with just a little help, unfortunately.

Anyone can choose to use the band however they like, they can tighten the band to the point of drinking Protein shakes, but what is the point of following the green zone if someone KEEPS their band adjusted in the RED zone?

Adequate fill levels in the band researchers in Australia developed the Green Zone Chart:

Then Dr Simpson and others who follow Dr. O'Brien golden rules went to Allergan and said we need to do something and quick....so many are losing their bands...and MANY started to revise to the Sleeve because MANY were NOT following the Green Zone chart of safety....some people think a too tight band is when you can't swallow your spit...NOT....you can STILL be too tight if you can't eat MOST solids.

Please read here the downfall of the lap band: I watched it all happen.....

Wrong Information

The original model for the Lap-Band was it made a person “feel full with less.” This was preached by the sales force at Allergan to the surgeons who were placing the band. If you were not feeling “full” eating less, then they need to have their band tighter.

Out of Australia the research was showing something different. The band was not making people feel full with less. In fact, the band worked best when it was a bit loose and food went past the band. As much as John Dixon preached this, the only ones who kept up with that data were those surgeons whose main interest was the Lap-Band, but not the entire bariatric community.

As a result, patients were getting heart burn, band slips, not losing weight, and feeling miserable. Especially among surgeons who didn’t learn how the band worked. As these patients got into trouble, their bands were removed, or ex-planted.

Now the group of surgeons who used the band a bit, were getting a bad feeling about the band. Those surgeons who used the band as the major focus for their practice, took the new information to their patients, and continued to have good results.

http://www.yourdoctorsorders.com/2013/05/lap-bands-perfect-storm-and-turn-around/

Edited January 17, 201412 yr by NaNa

***People need to realize that there is no concrete answer to questions such as drinking with meals, eating rice, breads, etc...experiencing hunger/cravings, and portion control....because everyone's band is different from everyone else s****

i agree with this B STRONGLY and i found if someone posts an answer one does not (like) then they are attacking them and are mean/rude etc.....i get that (quite often).....but as for the standing on head thing, i did not read that post (thankfully) and i certainly hope whomever does read that will go YEAH RIGHT......as that is what i am thinking...

the only thing i can say is follow what one's own dr advised them to do for best results and use inches lost as a true/accurate way to judge if one is losing weight.......its the way to go and the smart way to go.....any questions, ask/refer to your doctor......but do what works for you......shame on anyone who says you must do it this way or that way........

Edited January 17, 201412 yr by ☠carolinagirl☠

As soon as this person comes on here and starts telling everyone THIS is what you MUST do if you want to be successful, or else you are asking for certain doom...medical problems.....

Saying To loose weight and be successful...YOU MUST stand on your head for 30 minutes after every meal, OR ELSE!!! It Is the ONLY WAY!

Now I have a problem....I lost my weight and never stood on my head....yet this person is telling everyone this is what you HAVE to to, this is the ONLY way it works....

There are are a lot of new people here looking for guidance...and they're being told they must stand on their heads for 30 minutes after every meal?

I cannot let this go by unchallenged....

Lol! B-52, I agree, it is a personal to each body. My son-in-law says he ONLY loses weight after a fill. I never had that problem, because I have restriction and am "green". Sometimes, its easy to slide to "yellow". People need to follow their surgeon's rules, and guidelines,. Then they have to make it work for them! On another forum, someone snidely said, well if you all have followed your surgeon's guidelines so well, then you must be at goal! This was in the January where someone said I am hungry, and we all said don't cheat without your surgeon's blessing!

Karen out! Have a great day!

Kll724

B-52. You worded this so right, the entire post. It has been in my head, reading advice given by some. Thanks for saying it so eloquently.

someone actually said to stand on head>> ?? LOL.. sorry but thats a good one.

Chris

Makes the food pass through more slowly. Just kidding! Now, if I could stand on my head maybe that would mean I wasn't this heavy or I was thirty years younger.....that I could stand.

You have to stand on your head, chew gum and drink your Water at the same time to lose weight or didn't you hear that from your doctors?!

Of course we all are only kidding, and to each his own I agree 100%.

I know I say this often on the site, my hubby and I were banded 3 days apart. We go to every post op appointment together, sit in the same room with the same PA. We talk about our eating habits what we eat together as well as individually as we are not attached at the hip and work different schedules

Our journey's are 100% different. His is his and mine is mine. We support each other, and try to eat together when possible and cook our meals together sometimes. What works for Ken does not always work for me. I needed more saline fill then he does to not feel hungry between meals.

Eating broccoli makes me feel sick (never did before but does now) and he loves it.

When people share what works for them even if it's Yoga or Zumba or taking Hoodia or using the Vitamix I read all their advice take it under advisement. If I feel it's something I might like to give a go like making a health shake I will get the advice of my Dr. and see how they feel especially my nut and if they are OK then I might give it whirl.

Nothing is written in stone other then to say : FOLLOW YOUR DOCTORS ORDERS.

TGIF!!!

I thought it was stand on your head, chew gum and walk backwards...just kidding yeah I do believe everyone's journey is different.. and it seems these my way or no way people are also the biggest complainers as well.... I take everything with a grain of salt.