Hi,

My question is I am a 43 year old woman with high cholestrol, sleep apnea and a borderline diabetic. I need to lose 60 lbs and have tried all the diets out there. Am I a candidate for adjustable lap band surgery? Also can anyone out there recommend any doctors in Westchester County or Manhattan?

Thanks in advance for your responses.

Judy

You might be a candidate - if your bmi is at least 35. You can check your bmi here: Calculate your BMI - Standard BMI Calculator

I was banded in Mexico at the OCC (Dr. Ortiz) because I didn't fulfill my insurance's requirements - my bmi was about 40, but I hadn't been that heavy in the previous two years. To get banded at the OCC you just need a bmi over 30.

I'm getting my next fill in nyc - at nyu bariatric. They have an excellent surgical team. Check them out here: Roux-en-Y Gastric Bypass - Types of Surgery - Surgical Weight-Loss by Laparoscopy, NYU Medical Center

Good luck!

Susan

I think you should talk with your primary care doctor. He should be your first contact. Get a referral to weight loss surgeon and talk to them. They are the experts. You may get different answers 2 of my doctors thought that it was to extreme and that I wasn't that fat. (Yeah right). My BMI was 36.6 at first. But the weight loss surgeon was more supportive given my lifelong obesity. (over 30 years) Expect different opinions from different sources THEN make your own informed decision.

Hi Ladies,

Thank you so much for your responses. My other question is (and it's a crazy one) do you actually feel the band? I'm very freaked out about the concept of feeling the band in my stomach...

Is it painfull to get a fill?

Do you have to get a local or general anesthetic to get a fill?

Thanks in advance,

Judy

You can't physically feel the band since it's under your ribs and liver and whatnot - but you do feel the effect of it - especially once you have a good fill - you get full quicker, and if you don't chew well enough, or are too tight, you can have pain in your chest (where the band is) and have to PB (productive burp) the food back up. It's not the end of the world, but definitely not so pleasant either. It just really reinforces the need to chew really well - especially things like meat and fibrous veggies.

Most people can feel their ports, but it's not a big deal or anything. I think for some people the port can become visible through the skin once they've lost all their weight - but still not a huge deal generally.

I've had just one fill - get the 2nd one this week - and it barely hurt at all - no worse than a regular shot - probably even less painful than that. Totally not a big deal.

There are definitely some adjustments to make with the band - but so far I'm really happy with it. I need to work harder at cutting back on sugar in order to accelerate my progress, but I could never have done as well as I have without it, and for the first time in years I actually have hope and confidence that I'll actually be able to succeed at getting rid of at least most of my excess weight - if not all. That's a really great feeling.

Good luck!

Susan

Thank you Susan, do you ever take the band out entirely after you've lost all the weight your looking to use?

Hi Judy,

My understanding is that people generally gain back the lost weight if they have the band removed. You could get a total unfill if you wanted to have less restriction, without having to have another surgery - that's what is recommended when people get pregnant. The band with no fill only gives very minimal restriction, if any.

I hear that Sharon Osbourne got her band removed - I haven't heard whether or not she has regained any weight. I'm assuming I'll just keep mine in forever, unless a serious problem arises that requires that I remove it.

:thumbup:

1. Are you a candidate? if your BMI is over 40, then yes. If your BMI is over 35 and you have co-mobitities (sleap apnea, diabetes, etc). then yes you are a candidate. However, discuss with a surgeon your options. I live in Manhattan and my surgeon is listed below.

2. Do fills hurt? No more than having blood drawn. Ya know, being fat and uncomfortable hurts way more.

**Your best next step is to make a consultation appointment with a bariatric surgeon who has done several lap-band surgeries. Good luck in your journey.