Hello:

I am new here. I had the band put in in June 2003 in Michigan by Dr. Mark Pleatman......the fills were never that comfortable to me (my sister called the LapBand "forced bulimia," as all I was ever doing was PBing after one-too-many (but really few) bites!). To make a long story, short, I lost about 50 pounds in that first year of about 90-100 that I wanted to lose, or roughly half. About 15 months after I had the procedure, I wanted to take a "break" from all of the golfball-feeling discomfort after eating anything other than soft foods, so I had a complete unfill. Around that same time, I also accepted a position doing home transcription in which I get NO EXERCISE in the course of my day....and I have now put on approximately 18 pounds from my all-time LapBand low.

I am very tired of the LapBand and did not understand when I had it done, as my doctor now tells me, that he has found that most people only lose about half the weight they wanted to after having the LapBand. I am seriously considering having it removed, because....call me silly, I dream of being able to eat HEALTHILY again, if only given the chance.... of being able to eat a whole piece of healthy Protein, be it steak, chicken, etc. and vegetables, without my food being doused with grease in order to go down through the band and not "fight" it, only to have me PB the food later, as is the case now. I want to try to lose this last 50 pounds by just being ABLE to eat right, which I am unable to at the moment, even with it being unfilled...there is still a restriction there that I can still definitely feel with certain foods. I am tired of sticking to all liquidy, greasy foods in the name of LapBand compatibility, and I don't think that this is the healthiest way for me to go. I want the opportunity now to prove I can do the rest on my own.

Trouble is, I have switched insurance carriers since I had the procedure four years ago, and the new carrier won't cover anything related to morbid obesity procedures (but they'll cover sleep apnea, diabetes, hypertension, etc.....don't GET me started!). I have already talked it over with my Lapband doctor in the past, and through an arrangement for self-pay patients with the hospital, it would cost approximately $5000 for everything to have it removed once and for all. Considering I initially had to pay a $2000 one -year "program fee" with my doctor for fills, nutritional support, etc. after I first had it put in and also $1000 or so for a plan deductible when I had my procedure, the 50 pounds I initially lost will end up having cost me more than $8000, with extra in gas to get to my doctor out of town for each visit. Ugh!

Although my doctor says it's not so, I also can't help but think that the longer the band stays around the stomach, the more the chance for problems or worse adhesions down the road. There is this little voice in the back of my mind saying, "Get it Out! Get it Out!"

Am I crazy for even thinking of paying this $5000 to have it taken out?

I guess it kinda makes sense. When I first started getting fills, it was great, I just dont know what happened. A person can only tolerate a certain amount of fill. And this is where my theory comes in "a fill is a fill". Once you get to the point that you can tollerate, does it matter what size the band is?

I pretty much eat everything I want, and have gained a lot back. Part of me wants to be like Sharon Osbourne, and have it taken out once and for all get to the "root" of why I eat in the first place. I'd like to talk to Sharon, and see how she is doing. I really dont know what to do, guess I am just afraid of the same ole roller coaster ride.

Also, I can't even sleep at night comfortably. My band wont allow it. It is painful. I am a stomach sleeper, and there are times when I raise up it feels like I am ripping the band out of place. OUCH!

I think you have the right attitude for all the good reasons. I am surprised he didn't try to talk you into the gastric sleeve which to me is a real bypass, only they don't change routes, they just cut three forths of your stomach out and staple it together. So what if it leaks and then you have sepsis? That's deadly!

I too am having my band out too. Yes it is scary. But like you, I wonder what is going on in my innards that I can't see. Like erosion, leasions, etc. My husband is sick of all my heaving and vomiting, and I as well. I only have 1.4 in my band but have restriction still.

The gastric sleeve is still experimenal, but are'nt they all at some point?

I'm just not willing to jump on this "band wagon" so quickly.

I wish you well and all my lapbander friends out there.

gayle

alexandra, is your band an Inamed and how many cc's or whatever will it hold???????

Thanks.

Sallie

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I think you have the right attitude for all the good reasons. I am surprised he didn't try to talk you into the gastric sleeve which to me is a real bypass, only they don't change routes, they just cut three forths of your stomach out and staple it together. So what if it leaks and then you have sepsis? That's deadly!

I too am having my band out too. Yes it is scary. But like you, I wonder what is going on in my innards that I can't see. Like erosion, leasions, etc. My husband is sick of all my heaving and vomiting, and I as well. I only have 1.4 in my band but have restriction still.

The gastric sleeve is still experimenal, but are'nt they all at some point?

I'm just not willing to jump on this "band wagon" so quickly.

I wish you well and all my lapbander friends out there.

gayle

The Sleeve is not a bypass because no intestines are bypassed. The risk of leaks are about 1%. Bands can be deadly, too. VSG has the same operative risk profile as the Band which is why it was first conceived as an operation for super MO patients who were too large to undergo other WLS safely.

alexandra, is your band an Inamed and how many cc's or whatever will it hold???????

Thanks.

Sallie

Thought I'd chime in on the AP band. Yes, it is an Inamed, it is the latest band released from them. The AP small holds 10cc/mL the AP large holds 14cc/mL

Thanks, Fab. I'm not sure if I got the small or the large AP band, but either way it's a lot bigger than my original 9.75cm Inamed band.

Thanks, Fab. I'm not sure if I got the small or the large AP band, but either way it's a lot bigger than my original 9.75cm Inamed band.

I have a 9.75 cm Band. I tell myself that I have a small band because inside I'm a small, delicate person. :eek:

I think they had both the 9.75 and 10 cm bands during the FDA trial. I seem to remember Dr. Rumbaut telling me that he put the smaller band in me... but it's been awhile, so I could be wrong.

Thanks, Guys!!

hey there hun i feel you 1000% every thing i eat gets stuck. un less its something thats fatting (mushy softs). i thought things would be diffrent with the band guess i was wrong. and i dont think its healthy to be vomiting or sliming all the time. god only knows what its doing to our insides. i really want my band out just scared to do it all i know is this was wrong for me . and if you want it out you go girl .total support over here. and good luck to all

Good Luck on your weight loss journey no matter what you chose. I too after 3 1/2 years PB when I eat food I can not tolerate and there are several, ie PASTA, BEEF, SANDWICHES, BREAD, ANYTHING DRY but most of these are the things that made me fat to begin with(my weaknesses with portion control) so I am happy that I cannot tolerate them and after awhile I no longer desired them. For the first time in my life(now 55) food is NO LONGER an issue for me. I never wake up and think about what I will cook for dinner because I do not crave food. I eat only because I want to stay healthy. Eating slow is also very, very important. There are times my husband says to me slow down because he knows the next minute I will be in the bathroom but I LOVE my band because it has forced me to give up the foods that put the weight on, it has forced me to eat slow. and it has forced me to always ask for a take out container when dining out because I never finish that meal in a resturant. When I am with friends and I find that I am almost able to eat 3/4s as much as they do I know it is time for a fill. I keep my band at a low restriction also because I have found that if it is too tight it causes too many problems so I do diet but it soooooo much easier now to eat less and stay focused. Sorry if I am rambling but just wanted to share my experiences........GOOD LUCK TO YOU

My band and I are learning to co-exist. If I get a little out of hand, my band taps me on the shoulder (well, not exactly THERE!) and says, "Ahem...shall we revisit that last activity and talk about it?" and I say, "Oops, sorry buddy....I got ahead of myself and wasn't thinking" We mutually discuss what I did wrong to cause whatever consequence I experienced, I make a mental log of it and promise to adjust my actions accordingly. Shake hands...no hard feeling and go on about my business. My band is my little watchdog and I cannot CONCEIVE of life without it. No one is going to convince me that you can take the band out of a person and they have "learned their lesson." This is a physical and mental disease we have, like alcoholism. It does not "go away in time". You were born with it and you will die with it and you will cope with it forever (band or no band). I know myself well enough not to pull the wool over my own eyes and think for one minute that after 55 years of failure I could remove this watchdog and NOT go back to exactly the way I was before.

Great description, Kacee. Mine does a little more than "tap" my shoulder--we're talking of knife-stabbing pain there! Thanks for the smile.

I have had a sliming issue too. I was told to drink an entire glass or tea or water before eating a meal to open up everything. It has been working for me. I haven't slimed at all since doing that. Just something to maybe try. I hope everything goes well for you.

This reply will probably not be very popular, even on this thread. I was banded about 1.5 years ago. I lost about 15 pounds before the surgery and another 30+ shortly thereafter...much due to limited eating (protein shakes and soft foods) as well as a great deal of exercise. During this time, I was regularly PB'ing as well as just plain vomiting. Numerous attempts were made to find the ostensible "sweet spot" but either there was no restriction or I was vomiting. When I first mentioned to my surgeon some months ago that perhaps the band was not for me, he said that he had never had to remove one...thus cowed, I agreed to give it another shot. After yet another adjustment and several more months of vomiting due to as little as a sip of liquid or a small, well-chewed bite of egg, I flat out told him I wanted it removed. I never knew when the vomiting would happen....sometimes in my waste basket at work, other times I managed to make it to the nearest sink or toilet,several times in a napkin at a restaurant...definitely no way to live. By the way, I should tell you that during all this intermittent vomiting, I also managed to re-gain all the weight I had lost except for my pre-band loss, as when I wasn't vomiting, I had no restriction. About a month ago, I quit all the low/no fat junk as well as processed foods and went to "real foods", ie, organic raw milk (yes, real, creamy full-fledged milk), meat, butter, eggs, cheese, vegetables. I am now easily sated and have lost 11 pounds. In addition, I feel terrific...my blood pressure is down considerably (108/70) and my energy level has exponentially increased. The only problem that remains is the intermittent vomiting due to the band, which will, thankfully be removed in early November. My regular physician said that the surgery to remove it is less risky than having this piece of plastic in my gut which could, at any time erode. What was I thinking? We fat folk are so desperate to try anything that we will, in fact, try anything. For me, I'll be grateful to be done with it and simply go on eating real food which, unlike the no/low fat nutrition-void, chemical filled junk we pump into our systems, actually satisfies and assists in weight loss. Check out your local organic farms...buy local, know your food source...try sites like the Weston A. Price Foundation and learn to love real food again. You may want to read a book called "An Unburdened Life" which can be ordered from this site. I wish you all the best.

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Scout

Wow Scout! Sounds like you had a real time of it! I am sorry you have had such a hard time.

And I agree, that whole, un processed foods are the way to go. Real food beats non fat / low carb / low sugar stuff any day in my opinion!