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I sit here struggling with the notion to write this or not...but something someone said to me yesterday is very disturbing. I think her words were "A Slipped Band is not a BIG Deal, quit your whining it can be fixed." I followed all the rules the Doctor gave me and for 18 months have had phenominal success with my band. I eat right and I excercise and within this time have lost 129 lbs...putting me 5 lbs under my original goal. Two weeks ago I came down extremely ill with the FLU and my world changed. I've never been so sick in all my life and the vomitting was non-stop. It landed me in the ER for two days, my LAP-BAND® slipped, they unfilled it...hoping it would fall back into place. Unfortunately it didn't and surgery was scheduled. My Doctor was not sure what they would find. Could I have been so sick that it could of caused a possible errosion. I was lucky...but it is a VERY BIG DEAL! I was in surgery for 4 hours to fix my Slipped LAP-BAND®...and a 3 day hospital stay. It just really angered me yesterday when someone told me to quit whining about surgery. Surgery is risky no matter who you are or how healthy you are. Don't get me wrong I LOVE my LAP-BAND® and I love the success I've had with it...but surgery of any kind is scary. Things like "throwing up" shouldn't be taken so lightly or carelessly. A slipped band can and will happen if you don't take care of yourself properly. I thought this forum was for sharing your stories and helping and supporting one another. If I can help one person not go through what I did, then its a success. Obviously I couldn't stop the Flu from happening, but I wish I would of gone to the Doctor at the first sign of being sick and had my LAP-BAND® unfilled. Maybe then I'd be out running today instead of being on day 7 of recovery. I will however not let this stop me or drag me down. I'm loving life and love the "new me". Everyone has a story and deserves to be heard!

HELLO!!! I saw October and even December Bansters but no November...so I thought I would start the November Bansters! I called the Insurance company and I got a verbal approval. If all goes well I will be banded on November 14, 2011. Woo-hoo!! 11/11 will be the beginning of a WONDERFUL NEW LIFE!! I can't wait to do this for ME!!

Welcome to the club. It was your first episode, and trust me, it will not be your last. It's all part of being banded. Yes. It is a learning experience, and over time, you will have to adapt to an entire new way of eating. I hope you've learned a few things from this episode. In my case, I would say Burger Kings and other such places are 99.9% off limits. Wendy's Chili works good for a quick lunch but that's about it. I can't eat a burger patty, meat is too tough! For that matter, I don't eat much red meat at all lately. Drinking something (anything) while being stuck is not recommended, unless you are prepared for what will happen next. If stuck, nothing can pass, or passes real slow. Thus the sliming begins. Drink anything and it has no where to go, will add to the sliming process so to speak, and it will all come up almost instantly. I have been stuck more times than I can remember, but not at all in the past month or so because I have adapted new eating habits, food choices, etc. I have learned the hard way. My Dr. laughs at me when I tell him my experiences. When I have gotten stuck, I would sip some Water while standing over the sink to get rid of it quickly rather than dragging it on.

The surgery is the easy part because others do it for you. The hard part is remembering you are the one who chooses if it is a success. Good luck to you! It does work but you have to use it! I am back trying to lose it all over again. I tell you this not to be negative but because I am there and I was one of the least likely to be here. I have started over and you are just starting. Make sure you never have to start over again!

I am just going back to what my doctor advised when we started this 5years ago. I am losing so it is fine. Just hoping the band is ok and will stay that way. Kind of feel like this is my second chance and I have to take it and do the hard way.

I can't imagine eating anything like a burger, even without buns, just three weeks post op. I was still on mushies at that stage! Now six months out and I've only had one stuck episode and although my instinctive reaction was to grab a mouthful of drink to wash it down, it had the exact opposite effect and hastened the return process. Stick with your dr's advice, follow any rules given (cos we all get different rules depending on which surgeon we are with), and good luck.

Sushi and rice are two things that are not the same for everyone. If the band prevented people from ever having rice again, Koreans would freak out. However many Koreans and Asians are getting banded ( we eat rice 3 times a day here) and can still eat rice ( and sushi, kimbops etc). It's not that I can't eat things post op, but rather I can't eat big portions or each them really fast. Things that are a challenge for me are meat that is not moist ( if the chicken has lots of sauce i can eat it) octopus ( hard to chew into small pieces so it normally gets stuck unless I cut it small) shrimp ( I still eat it but must cut it reallly small before hand or chew way too much) rice bagels ( yes they make them in Korea because Koreans dont see something being a meal unless there is rice involved) Basically, I am living the 6 month clothing rule with food. If I haven't eaten it ( worn it in clothing talk) then clearly I dont need it ( meaning I shouldnt bother having it ever again, just get rid of that food option)

I drink two lattes a day and eat sushi all the time. I mean, I CAN eat sushi, but I try and keep it to sashimi when I can, just to be "good". Depends on my weight and my mood. The things I can't or just don't eat anymore are: Steak Lobster tail pineapple Melon Shrimp White bread

That is interesting, but I am 13 months out from surgery and 15 pounds BELOW my doctors goal weight so I have lost more than what that article claims. And I know of a lot of others on this board with the same fantastic results. I love my band and I went into it knowing it might have to be removed but I just had my yearly upper gi and everything is perfect and I have had absolutely no complications. I will not let myself dwell on these statistics anymore. If anything happens then it does and I will deal with it then. I will decide to either replace my band or revise.

congrats to all of you! my nsv's so far have been.... -buying some new size 16 jeans (from a tight 20) -my new shoe size is 9 (used to be 10) -my double chin is nearly gone -my rings are nearly falling off -my bracelet slips down to the middle of my forearm (it used to be tight on my wrist) -alot of old friends stop me and compliment me on my weight loss -i had to buy new cute bras in a smaller size -my stomach is flat now, no abs yet....but im workin on em! -i looked at my pre surg pics and was totally amazed at how big i was! -and my biggest nsv, i can cross my legs now!!!!!!