They have added a forum for us - let's post here... So we can share with the new people....

Hi Charlene K

Spoke to my GP yesterday who is also having weight problems of his own. He said he had been considering banding but pulled back after seeing myself and another patient have bad times, did extensive checking and decided NO WAY. He is leaning more to having the sleeve operation. My surgeon had written to him saying that he considered another banding for me was far too dangerous because of all the damage inside and that I still am not healed inside. The removal was 7 months ago.

Look after yourself and don't be like me and leave it almost too late in getting a second opinion if you're worried about anything.

Best wishes, Katy.

Edited October 14, 200916 yr by Katydid

Katydid, when I was researching the band one thing came up about this WLS in Europe. The Europeans were going back to gastric bypass because of issues with long term bands.

My fill doctor even said that it's a foreign object in your body and sometimes your body just wants it out of there. There is a lot to the band with the port and tubing and all that so it is definitely something to think about.

I believe there are doctors that will do band to sleeve revisions, but from what I've read from you, you still have a lot of healing to do before that can happen. You don't have your band anymore do you?

Thank you all for your help regarding the Gastric Sleeve site. I've put in a query to find Oregondaisy to see how she is and to find out more about the

sleeve.

Best wishes, Katydid.

You guys are scaring me with all the stories about the band. What are the figures on people who never have problems?

Thank you all for your help regarding the Gastric Sleeve site. I've put in a query to find Oregondaisy to see how she is and to find out more about the

sleeve.

Best wishes, Katydid.

I talk to her every now and then when she comes on chat, and she loves her sleeve!

Take care,

Corliss

You guys are scaring me with all the stories about the band. What are the figures on people who never have problems?

I honestly don't know of any verifiable stats. I think the most you can do is find out your docs rates. I have heard of docs who say that they only have had one or two of their patients slip. I don't know how I got so lucky to wind this lottery! I would much rather win money instead of a slipped band. It was so good for so long though that I chose to have another instead of having a sleeve. So far this one is doing great, but no wt loss as of yet. I am thinking I have to get one more fill and then maybe I will start working it, lol!

Don't worry, just enjoy the ride. :scared2:(Ride it till the wheels fall off!)

Corliss

I'm getting frustrated. No where on the site can I find instructions on how to start a new thread. I've gone to FAQ, I've even searched in Google.... nothing. Can someone help me, please!!?!? Thanks!

This sounds odd but I'm to have my surgery in a week and I've seen nothing on the site that answers my question.... once you have the surgery and have lost weight and feel so much better about yourself, if you are fortunate enough to meet someone who wants to date you, how do you go about your first date? You can't eat steaks, you can't eat chinese food, you can't eat pizza, you can't eat italian foods so you have to be a bit selective when invited out. What has everyone else done in this situation? How do you "steer" the guy to what you can eat? Any input would be greatly appreciated!

This sounds odd but I'm to have my surgery in a week and I've seen nothing on the site that answers my question.... once you have the surgery and have lost weight and feel so much better about yourself, if you are fortunate enough to meet someone who wants to date you, how do you go about your first date? You can't eat steaks, you can't eat chinese food, you can't eat pizza, you can't eat italian foods so you have to be a bit selective when invited out. What has everyone else done in this situation? How do you "steer" the guy to what you can eat? Any input would be greatly appreciated!

There is nothing to explain... you can have a nice Soup. There is no reason to tell someone on a date that you have been banded :thumbdown:

Just stay cool and just tell your date that you are not that hungry and trust me your date would be thrilled if you did not eat a steak.

After, when you are comfortable you can tell your date that you have been banded. As for me I am married and when we go out some of our friends know but most people never even notice... most people just deal with their own foods

Just take one day at a time and when you do date..why not now? You might meet someone at your LBdoctors office or self help group whom you can do the journey together

And if you have relations..there is a thread somewhere on this site... you tell him that you had a hernia sucked out for the scars. Men are results oriented and really do not need or WANT the extra information

Good luck... I hope that you find someone who has been banded or the other surgery.. they make cute couples and you do not need the extra pressure... your surgeons receptionist should know that you are looking and hopefully you can be set up... due to the privacy laws..she just has to make your appoointment the same time ..he comes for his appt

Laura from ny

I have dated a few men since LB surgery. A few know of the surgery. In fact one giy actually went through my recovery with me.

Now I have met a great guy. I said nothing about my surgery. He knew I had lost weight, it was a topic of conversaqtion, because of my limited eating choices. When I ad my TT he was there with me. I finally told him of the LB after the TT.. he felt the port under my skin and paniced it was something serious. Now we have discussions on how I chose the procedure, why and how I live with it day to day. I felt no reason to mention it until we got to a point that it was a natural part of a conversation.

Whether I should have mentioned it earlier is not to know, but all is well now and he realizes I may not eat the usual meal, but it is what I need to do. If we go out to eat, I will have soup and an appetizer..no questions asked.

This sounds odd but I'm to have my surgery in a week and I've seen nothing on the site that answers my question.... once you have the surgery and have lost weight and feel so much better about yourself, if you are fortunate enough to meet someone who wants to date you, how do you go about your first date? You can't eat steaks, you can't eat chinese food, you can't eat pizza, you can't eat italian foods so you have to be a bit selective when invited out. What has everyone else done in this situation? How do you "steer" the guy to what you can eat? Any input would be greatly appreciated!

Okay..... some may disagree with my input here, but if you use common sense, calorie wise, etc., you can eat just about anything you want to, just in much smaller portions. Steak... I eat steak several times a month, but only filet, and only 3-4 oz, usually with sauteed mushrooms and onions, maybe a small amt of veggies. Italian... avoid things with a lot of cheese... like you don't want to order lasagna, but you could do spaghetti and meatballs... just make sure you eat only a small amount. Some restaurants will let you order a child's portion. We go out for Breakfast ocassionally. I like omelets, esp if they have seafood omelet. But I eat my normal portion and take the rest home. Did that last week.... DH had to throw it out after I'd had it every morning for four more days. We both got tired of looking at it! LOL! A couple of times I've shared eggs benedict with DH or DD... don't eat the english muffin. Sauce is high calorie... eat a small amt if you must have it. You are in Florida... do you like seafood?? Great choice. You can almost always get grilled fish in a restaurant that serves seafood. Don't get fries... get baked potato w/condiments on the side.. don't eat more than 1/2 of it. Some folks say their doctors say you can't eat salad. After six months I decided to see if I could tolerate it. Chew, chew, chew... I have no problem with salad. You just have to regulate yourself wth the dressing... ask if they have low fat and ask for it on the side. Become a high maintenance girl! Ask questions about menu items. We went to PF Changs once... asked the waiter a lot of questions about different things on the menu. If he didn't know the answer, he went and asked the chef. Then the chef offered to cook what I wanted in Water instead of oil. It was great.

Another thing you can do... if you know where you're going to eat, lots of restaurants now post their menus on the internet and often even have the calories, fat grams, etc. Shortly after my surgery we were going to Red Robin with a group of friends, which is notorious for its high calorie hamburgers. So I looked up the menu on the internet, found a grilled chicken dish that was served with a side salad. At the time, they served it with 2 chicken breasts, so I ate one and DH ate the other. We went a couple of weeks ago because it's our granddaughter's favorite restaurant and we were taking her out to lunch and now you can order it with one chicken breast or two.

So.... just a few ideas. Don't freak.... you will have healthy choices. Just remember... small portions, tender meats, low cal condiments, and ask a lot of questions. I read a book before my surgery that was written by two bariatric surgeons in NYC. They actually sometimes take a group of WLS patients out to dinner to demonstrate to them how to function in social situations like that. They even DRINK with their meal.... order a glass of wine and take very small sips during dinner! Drinking with your food is normally a big NO-NO, but their position is that if you use common sense, it's okay once in a while in that sort of situation.

Like I said, some wil probably disagree with my input, but you can do this WLS and still have a semi-normal social life that includes food if you use common sense and learn exactly what foods you can tolerate. You don't want to have to run off to the BR and lose your lunch in the middle of a meal! But you will learn. Like... I can eat chicken, but only if its very tender. If I order chicken and find it's dry... I better stop ASAP because it's probably not going to stay down. You will figure these things out. Hopefully not the hard way. As soon as you feel some discomfort with something you are eating, STOP!

Okay, I've probably rambled on long enough. Best of luck to you!

It seems I was having a mild anxiety attack... I'm finding if I relax I can think and come up with great ideas. I realized fish is served at all restaurants, so is salads, so is Soups.

My doctor absolutely refuses to allow steak/hamburger as he says it's way too dry. No drinking what so ever.. you can do it but it won't allow you to fill up properly so you won't use the band the way it is meant to be used. Defeating the purpose.

I can eat anything obviously but I won't lose weight if I don't adhere exactly. I've located a LOT of recipes on line for lapband using chicken and fish so I'll be able to enjoy cooking at home. They gave me great ideas to watch for out to eat also.

To start if I go out to eat again... salads, broiled fish meals. This allows me to not worry about how tough chicken is.

I just have to think. I worry too much!

I rely on steaks and hamburgers a lot and I lost 126 lbs in a year. I have to do tenderer cuts of steak but the more expensive cuts are worth it for me to enjoy them and almost always make 2 to 3 meals out of one. I do burgers w/o the bun and get them medium and eat with a knife and fork and they work well. I do have trouble with chicken breasts so tend to get thighs more and do have trouble at times with some pork. Basically the drier meats. After some time and practice you will find what works for you. And have fun getting back out there in the social scene!

You can't eat steaks, you can't eat chinese food, you can't eat pizza, you can't eat italian foods

Just another bander who eats all the above, regularly I have a piece of pizza almost every Friday night. There's not a single food out there that I can't eat and I'm at my Sweet Spot...losing 1.5-2 lbs. a week. If you can't eat solid Proteins like hamburger (yes, moist is best) then you're too tight.

I'm with Phyll. There's a lot you can eat. You have to experiment. On special occasions I eat differently. I still limit but may use slider food. I enjoy the food and get back to a more restricted protocol the next day. If I know I'm going to something special I only have 2 protein drinks that day. Every once in a while I have a day where I'm craving something. Sometimes I just have it. As long as I get back on the horse there are no lasting effects. I've lost 50 and have 20 to go. I have another fill on the 27th. But I still have a lot of restriction when I stick to the denser proteins. My problem is at night when I haven't that much restriction. But I'm making it. Feeling better and being healthier is wonderful.