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Yes, the fills are $200.00. I had my operation in the surgery center and not a hospital, I did not spend the night. The total cash pay for me was $9000.00, which didn't seem that bad to me. I got two free fills included. The aftercare is expensive with lapband, if you are cash pay. However, I have heard of some people getting a year of aftercare included in their cost, and other type of "deals." Just see what you can get!

And yes, the fills are just saline, but that is what they charge where I live. I have heard some people say more, some less - I live in the Miami area. I did not followup every single month with the surgeon. I started going to my family doctor for my check-ups. I only have gotten one fill, most people get more than that. I have continued to lose weight with just the one fill, so I didn't need to get fills every month. However, EVERYONE is different.

If I were you and you were trying to decide on which wls to have, I would check the costs of all of them, including the aftercare and then just see. For me - there was no way that I could afford the sleeve or the gastric bypass. In my area, it was over $25,000-$30,000 for the procedure and the one night stay at the hospital.

Its good that you are checking around and seeing what you can do. I DO NOT regret this decision.

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Hi there, it's important to know that Lapband surgery has quite a bit of aftercare -- I have 11 visits in the first year. For me, I like the accountability; touching base with my medical professionals is reassuring. This is the "adjustable" part of adjustable Lapband surgery. The band can be tightened or loosened not to provide restriction -- that's not how the band works! -- but to dim the appetite properly so we can make healthy choices. I like it that I can still enjoy real food.

This is a great website for explaining different types of weight loss surgeries: http://drsimpson.net/fills/Lap-band-eating/lap-band-not-restriction/lap-band-and-restriction.html

Check out the menu on the left. Like you, I started thinking about weight loss surgery and began reading all the posts I could and asking questions. I had to ignore some stuff that was obviously ridiculous -- people can be weird and every one thinks their surgery is best -- but in this process I started to be able to see patterns and why some people were very successful and others not so much. That has to do with willingness, I think -- for me I felt so desperate that I would go so far as to have surgery, so I felt willing to do whatever I needed to do to make it work. Also know that there is not one "right" surgery for every one. We are all different and people choose a particular surgery for different reasons. Whatever surgery you choose there will be a process, so you may want to start with a primary care provider who can help steer you in the right direction. There will be a lot of labs and pre-op hurdles -- I had a psych eval and two visits with a nutritionist prior to meeting the surgeon. Then from there it went pretty quickly. I felt really ready and while I was frustrated by how long it all seemed to take, as I look back I think that time was important to that readiness. Also I upped my exercise and saw a counsellor to peel back the layers of my overeating behaviors so I was coming to this from a place of brutal honesty -- that I needed help, that I could not succeed on a diet, and I was ready for surgery. Hope this helps! You are choosing yourself and your healthy future and that is a very powerful thing. All of us here have felt the powerlessness of battling significant weight loss challenges and started right where you are now. Best wishes to you!

Thank you for this post! When you say that you saw a counselor to peel back your layers of overeating, what exactly did you to? I feel like overeating is one of the main issues that I have. I just mindlessly eat for no reason sometimes. I know that I need help, I don't know why food is such a mental struggle for me. Are there any surgeries that help specifically with the mindless eating aspect of things?

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That's the one thing none of these surgeries can do. Much of this is mental. You have to be in the right frame of mind. The surgery just helps to dim the appetite or prevent you from eating too much at one sitting. Everything else is on you. Some folks go to therapy, others just find things to occupy themselves so as not to mindlessly eat. I used to sit in front of the TV alot and now I don't do that anymore. Too many food channels, too many food commercials. I do other things. Just understand that all WLS are tools and not magic wands. The weight does not come off by magic and even if you lose it fast, it can come back just like any other diet. I see posts all the time from folks who have gained some or all of it back. :( ..

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You need to just call a weight loss surgeon in your area and set up an appointment. They will go over all of the different surgery options, pros and cons of each etc.

I will go out on a limb and say that if you don't have insurance you might want to consider something other than the band due to the fact that the ongoing follow up visits would get very expensive.

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excuse me, what is plication and what i sits advantaage?

Hi Martha...

I had lap band with plication…..basically the plication is just like the sleeve without actually removing part of your stomach. They fold the stomach in on itself and suture it to look like a banana. In addition to having the band it makes your stomach smaller.

Not all/many doctors do it that I have heard of. My doc was doing a study to see the long term results of having lap band with plication together.

For me, from what i get from my follow up visits to the doctor, I don't have cravings like I used to, my hunger is under control right from day 1 of surgery, and I have not needed a fill yet. They cannot definitively tell me that this is from the plication but Im guessing it has something to do with it.

I know of a couple of other people that also had plication with their lap band and their hunger returned right after surgery and they have needed fills to help them get to their green zone.

So , with everything else, it is very different from person to person.

Hope that helps!

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    • LeighaTR

      I am new here today... and only two weeks out from my sleeve surgery on the 23rd. I am amazed I have kept my calories down to 467 today so far... that leaves me almost 750 left for dinner and maybe a snack. This is going to be tough for two weeks... but I have to believe I can do it!
      · 0 replies
      1. This update has no replies.
    • Doughgurl

      Hey everyone. I'm new here so I thought I should introduce myself. I am 53y/o and am scheduled for Gastric Bypass on June 25th, 2025. I'm located in San Antonio, Texas. I will be having my surgery in Tiajuana Mexico. I've wanted this for years, but I always had insurance where bariatric procedures were excluded. Finally I am able to afford to pay out of pocket.  I can't wait to get started, and I hope I'm prepared for the initial period of "hell". I know what I have signed up for, but I'm sure the good to come will out way the temporary period of discomfort and feelings of regret. I'd love to find people to talk to who have been through the same procedure or experience before. So I look forward to meeting you all. Hope you have a great week!
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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.
      · 1 reply
      1. LeighaTR

        I hope your surgery on Wednesday goes well. You will be able to do all sorts of new things as you find your new normal after surgery. I don't know this from experience yet, but I am seeing a lot of positive things from people who have had it done. Best of luck!

    • 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
      1. This update has no replies.
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