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There are complications with any surgery even lapband. When we make the decision to have surgery we have to out-way the risk and benefits. This is why it is so very important for us to modify our behavior and not rely soley on the band for our success. I have several friends who after 3-5 years have had complications and have had their bands removed but I also know they never bought into the idea of adopting a healthy diet and life style. Doing everything right does not guarantee any of us that we will not have complications but modifying our behavior does give us a little better odds of life time success if we do. I chose lap band knowing these facts because morbid obesity was preventing me from enjoying life and my family. Talk to your physician, this is one study out of many and in medicine there are always going to be studies that prove and disprove the success of surgery. Gastric bypass has been around for a very long time, I took care of the patients that had this surgery in the early 1980's, a lot of these patients had cardiac complications, over time the surgery was improved and lessons learn. The same is true for lap band. I understand your concerns and fears we all share the horror and realization of what would happen if we lost our bands but which is worse the life we were all living or the life the band allows us to have. Please discuss your concerns with your physician and make sure this is a choice you really want to make, if you have already had the surgery than do what ever you can to protect your band and make this new life style a success.

It is a personal choice. i chose to tell everyone I worked with and all my family and friends. Today when people ask how I lost weight, I say with a lot of hard work and LapBand.

Most insurance companies if they cover require some documentation of failed weight loss. If you have never had discussed your weight with your physician and they have documented issues than you may have to do 6 months of a monitored diet. I was lucky, I went to a seminar in September and had surgery less than 30 days later. This is not the norm.

The choice is yours but are you having all the problems that go along with a band being too full. As stated above usually when you need an unfil you can not pass liquids and you have reflux when you try to ly down. I also have a very sensative band and I have had to have one partial unfil in two years but I could not pass water without refluxing. My last fill took me a little over a week before i was able to really eat the way I wanted to. I had to gradually work my way back to solid foods and solid protein. I hope you get some relief, it is miserable not being able to eat solid food. Good luck tomorrow,

Read this article, when working nights it can affect your sleep pattern and slow your metabilism. I have lost weight on nights before long before I was banded. I worked nights right out of nursing school and weighed in at 196 lbs, I joined WW with my mother and lost down to 124 lbs in a little over a year, now I did gain it back over time but the point is I lost the weight working nights. http://healthyliving.azcentral.com/lose-weight-working-night-shift-5645.html

Good luck to you and congratulations on making your decision. We have all walked in your shoes and know how you feel.

If removing milk does not work I would call the physician who ordered them and ask for alternative. I never have mixed milk with my protein, I have always used water, dairy products give me gas since banding. This is no way to start your process. Hope you feel better.

I live in SC but my BCBS is of NC go figure. My insurance did require documenation of failed weight loss. I had to have my PCP write a letter to say why she believed the surgery would help me. I do have underlying issues, asthma, hypertension, joint issues, sleep apnea. Or did have I should say, surgery corrected all but the hypertension but improved it. I would call your benefit case manaer with BC or the surgeons office should know. My surgeons office did all of my paper work and told me what all they needed me to do. Good luck with the process!

That depends on if you are on full liquids or clear liquids. During the full liquid stage I would say yes, no during clear liquid. Not a fan of green smoothies, I like to chew my veggies but I am sure someone on here drinks them.

Checking in: 12.1 miles. I will do better next week.

Mary I have had friends who went from band to sleeve but due to band failure and they both have done very well. I had another friend who lost her band due to slippage but she was at goal and our insurance would not pay for a new band or the sleeve because she was 3 years post op and of a normal BMI. She was told her BMI would have to be over weight or unable to maintain current weight before they would approve her for the sleeve. Sad, because she is really struggling with not gaining weight and up about 20 lbs.

Not uncommon in the beginning, I am 2 years banded and I honestly thought in the beginning I would never be able to get all that protein in or calories. It gets easier over time as you learn your band. Breads are my issues and fiberious fruits and veggies, I drink occassional carbonation but honestly really do not enjoy it, makes me burp like a sailor. Take advantage of this period this was when I got a good jump start on my weight loss, if your protein intake is low, add protein powder to your yogurt, cottage cheese or a protein shake. Good luck.

I like crunch more than the nugget style like Pure Protein. So I lean more to Kind Bars, Nature Valley Protein Bars, Mini Cliff Bars or Supreme Protein-(I love the peanut butter and Jelly) None of these are high protein but are all around 180 to 200 cal with about 8-15 gms of protein. You can have a snack of cheese, (baby bell) Nuts about 1/4 cup of almonds, or some nugget jerkey also to mix it up. I would suggest you make sure you count these snacks in your daily calorie count it is easy to get in the habit of snacking and it will slow weight loss. Hope this helps.

Head hunger or emotional hunger is one of the battles we all must overcome. My solution was to remove all trigger foods from my home. Out of site out of mind for me. Now that I am further out, 2 years post op, I have more control most days and can have the food in my house and understand that everyone in my family does not have the same issues that I do. The one food I do not allow in my house is potato chips. This is my crack and I will eat them if they are here and I will eat the whole bag so, rule is if you bring them into the house you have to hide them from me. If you are an emotional eater I would suggest conciling post surgery to help you figure out why your eat when you eat. Good luck tomorrow!

I would start with your insurance provider to find out if the surgery is covered so you know if you are going to have to pay out of pocket. Than I would go see my PCP and have them refer you to a WLS that is in your network if covered by your insurance. If you log onto the original LAPBAND site you can request a packet of information and they will send you a very nice packet to explain the procedure and get you started on your way. It generally takes a few months to pull everything together and some it takes longer to meet their insurances requirements. Good luck to you. I do have BCBS but of SC not Montana and mine did cover the surgery with a 500 dollar out of pocket co-pay. I also had to show failure of dieting programs and had to have letters from my PCP to show that I had tried other means of losing weight and failed. Like you, I had done, WW, Jenny Craig, Curves, and multiple other means over the years and would lose only to gain back and gain more. I also had several comorbidites that helped my case, sleep apnea, asthma and hypertension along with mordid obesity. So tomorrow call your insurance and good luck.

When I measure, I use the scale to measure my protein. I weigh out 3 ozs after cooking. Meat shrinks when cooking through losing fat or liquid. I usually have 1/4 cup of veggies if they are green beans. Salad I have about 1/2 cup. If I happen to want a starch like corn, peas or potatos. Than I have to eat less of the protein to make room for it so I would have to lose about an 1 oz of protein so I rarely eat a starchy vegtable due to that. My rule is I only eat for 20 minutes and if there is food left I toss it. I still find that sometimes my eyes think my stomach is bigger than it actually is and as long as I eat slow it does not matter what is on my plate. In 20 minutes I am usually full.

Some hair lose is normal with rapid weight loss, the key to slowing it down is to make sure you take in enough protein, during the early months while learning to eat this is difficult so I would suggest you add some protein shakes maybe twice a day to your daily intake. Also you can goggle this because this is what I did. Goggle: hair loss after weight loss surgery, they say the lose should not be as much with lap band but it does happen. The recommended vitamin for hair and nails is Biotin. I take a chew-able one from GNC and I take 2 of them a day. After a couple of weeks of starting this I noticed a reduction in the amount of hair I was losing and I also was losing hair rapidly. Talk to your physician also they may have other suggestions.

i lost 126 lbs with only 3 fills and I have not had a fill for a year, I learned portion control.

Missy, Congratulations and job well done. I hope the coming year brings you continued success toward your goal!

Really glad your banding was much sooner than earlier, and chewing really is the key and is diffcult to learn. I used to be able to finish a plate of ffod in 5 minutes, 20 minutes for me is like a life time.

Bea, I know you may not have reached your goal but I think the progress you have made is remarkable. i do understand your comments about who you still see. i have lost 126 lbs and when i look in the mirror I have no idea who that person is. i sometimes say to myself, I hate my body or hate the way it looks without cloth's. Yes we all knew the side effects of the surgery and we all knew we would have loose skin but the reality of all the emotional changes we go through can sometimes be very over whelming. I wish you continued success in your journey.

I also use my fitnesspal.com. I have used it for my entire journey. I have always watched my calories and have maintain between 1000-1200 for over 2 years. As far as protein shakes, I feel your pain, my taste has changed so much over the past 2 years and I do not like any of the per mixed shakes they taste and smell to yucky to me. I am a nurse and the remind me of tube feedings I have had to feed patients so I can not stand the smell. I started out with some I ordered from bariatriceating.com, they are low in carbs and calories and high in protein. I love the Peanut Butter Cookie and Carmell Lattee. Also a lot of people speak very highly of Unjury but I have not personally tried them, you also have to order them. Unjury and the previous web site I mention both sell an unflavored blend that can be added to a drink of your choice you do like. I currently drink Pure Protein, Frosty Chocolate. I only mix in 4ozs of water and have never mixed mine in milk, I also use there Vanilla flavor and add peanut butter powder or fruits and SF syrups. I do drink protein drinks but only on the days I lift weights or work out at the gym.

I eat popcorn, it is my replacement for potato chips. I caution you to count the calories, a lot of the pop corn is high in calories due to the fat content. The 100 cal bags are pretty tasteless in my opinion, I use them but add a few sprits of no calorie butter sprays with some coarse black pepper. Spices it up a little or sometimes I add some Mrs. Dash for some spice.

You asked for suggestions on foods to eat, the problem is you have eliminated most of the foods that are recommended for us. You did not mention when the last time you saw your WLS? My suggestion is you discuss these issues with the surgeon and nutritionist. It sounds like your band may be a little on the tight side. By your profile you have not reached your weight lose goals but if you have not been able to eat protein and can eat more slider type foods I am not surprised. I do have issues with some of the foods you mentioned but I can manage most of them in small quantities. I do stay away from fiberious foods and meats that are not moist. I am sorry you are having so many issues so far out from surgery. This is concerning for us that are heading your direction and makes me wonder about the long term success with lap band. I am a little over 2 years post op. I hope you find a solution to your problem.