Cleo's Mom

Thank you, JoannMarie, for a very thoughtful and informative reply. Trust me when I tell you that I am a very proactive patient. My doctors will confirm this. I have results of every medical test I have had in the last 10 years. I carry with me at all times a list of all my meds and OTC drugs, medical conditions, allergies, surgeries, etc.. That never fails to impress the doctors. :biggrin: I research everything. Breast cancer patients tend to do that anyway. My oncologist is coming back Tuesday and I will discuss with him options, including the IV form of these drugs. I don't have any problems with taking pills but I will find out the side effects and my oncologist is very good and changing meds if something doesn't work. I have found out, as we all do, that taking meds for one problem often creates another. The femara for my breast cancer is the cause of my osteoporosis. I do take calcium and extra vitamin D3 on my own. I have never been a milk drinker. I hate cheese. So, I am concientious about getting calcium in supplements. What was the reason for discontinuing Fosamax? Did you develop problems with it or did it adversly affect an existing condition? Good luck to you. Thank you again for your reply.

The advice to eat and drink every and anything you want and as much of it as you want the day before major surgery is irresponsible and medically dangerous, as you found out. I would seriously consider another doctor. Such advice would never come from a qualified and experienced bariatric doctor. Most people on here at the very least had to do liquids the day before surgery. For me, it was 2 weeks of liquids only before surgery. Even for minor surgery most doctors tell you not to eat or drink after midnight. If you stay with this doctor I hope for your sake that your after care is better than your pre surgical advice. Good luck to you.

The UN food officials define going hungry as those who consume fewer than 1800 calories a day. This comes as no surprise to those of us who have been on myriads of diets over the years with far fewer than 1800 calories. No wonder they fail time and time again. But the grim news from the UN was that 100 million more people were defined as going hungry this year compared to last year due to droughts, war, political instability, high food prices and poverty. Very sad.

They took my catheter out the day after surgery and I was not able to urinate on my own. They had to straight cath me and kept me an extra day and if I wasn't able to go on my own they were going to put the catheter back in. But thankfully, the next day, I could go on my own. I was 57 then and nothing on your body works as well as it used to. LOL. But it's not uncommon because of the anesthesia and pain meds. Hope it workds out for you. Good luck.

It came as no surprise to me today that my most recent bone density test showed that I had osteoporosis because two years ago I had osteopenia. Mostly this is due to my breast cancer meds which are anti-estrogen and hard on the bones. My weight loss hasn't helped either. Has anyone gone on Boniva, Fosomax or Actenol? And if so, are the pills hard to tolerate with the band? I don't have very tight restriction and haven't had any problems with pills. I just joined a gym and started weight bearing exercises to add to my aerobic exercising. Hope that will help. Thanks.

You can go on the forum here that lists the lapband surgeons for each state and cities in that state. You can see what others have to say. What part of PA are you from? But ultimately you need to talk to the doctor's office and find out how many bandings he has done, what the complication rate is, what type of follow up program they have in place, - nutritionists? PA's, etc..Or attend different doctor's seminars. You need to find out how accessible your doctor is outside of normal business hours. I had to switch surgeons because mine was inexperienced and after I developed problems when he overfilled me, his experienced really showed. So finding the right doctor is very important. Good luck.

Most people who have insurance have it through their employer. If I am not happy with the plan my employer has, then the only option I have is to get my own plan and pay for it myself. That won't change. Employers will have the chance to switch to and offer a public plan but it won't be free to them. It might be cheaper, but it won't be free. Or they can keep their current plan, also not free. That will just me one more option to employers or individuals. Why would they continue to offer health insurance? - because no plan would be free to those who could afford it. You couldn't just opt out of your employer's (or your own) plan and just expect the government to pay for it. Like I said, the health insurance companies are not going to be able to add 47 million uninsured on the government's dime. But if you are uninsured and can't afford health insurance, the government will provide a subsidy. I like that employers would have one more choice when looking at health plans for their employees.

Since this thread has morphed into a healthcare debate I would just like to add a few things. Much of what has been written is anecdotal - I know someone who...there were these Canadian nurses who....This is what happened to me when..... Overall, those who have health insurance in this country are happy with their plan and care. And under any kind of healthcare change that is being proposed, THEY CAN KEEP THAT PLAN. PERIOD. But if they're not happy with their plan, they will have choices, just like the members of Congress do. Their health care is paid for by taxpayers and they get to choose. Let's focus on the 47 million uninsured. They have the right to healthcare insurance. The health insurance industry is salivating at the chance to insure 47 million more people if it's on the government's dime. That isn't going to happen. I watched Pres. Obama's speech on healthcare the other day. He said people without insurance or those who don't like their plan would have a choice. One of those choices would be a government plan. That plan would be provided by health insurance companies but the government would be able to negotiate costs, etc.. which is a good thing. The scare tactics used before, the swiftboating techniques - they aren't going to work anymore. Like a bureaucrat from Washington is going to come between you and your doctor. You mean much like my HMO comes between me and my doctor? Look at how many people post on the pre-op thread about being denied coverage. Or those who can't get insurance due to a pre-existing condition. That won't be allowed under the new plans. The public supports a single payer system or a goverment option. So, Harry & Louise should just retire to Florida. Everyone should see the movie "Sicko" which compares our healthcare system to other countries (not just Canada). We come up woefully short in many areas. When a boatload of New Yorkers with 9/11 caused health problems whose insurance wouldn't provide care or who were uninsured can go to Cuba and receive first rate care, that is scary. And it is unacceptable. When an uninsured farmer cuts off two fingers with a table saw and is given the price for attaching each, can only afford to have one attached. This is in the United States. Why should someone here have to live forever without a finger? Yes, these are anecdotal but my point is that the movie does an excellent job of showing the shortcomings of our healthcare industry compared to others. Our health care insurance industry is motivated by one thing only: profit. And to that end, they are in the business of (1) selling policies (2) collecting premiums and (3) denying as many claims as they can get away with. And to that end they employ as many medical "experts" and lawyers as they can to do just that. That is how they make their money. A public option takes that profit motive out of the equation. Medicare/Medicaid are not profit motivated. I am not saying they are without flaw, they aren't. The system is repeatedly abused. But their administrative costs fall far below the private plans. Having the uninsured go to the emergency room for basic medical care is driving up the cost of healthcare for the rest of us. Our healthcare premiums would actully go down if everyone were insured. Also, about 18,000 people die a year from lack of insurance. They just can't get the care they need for their chronic illnesses. That is totally unacceptable. And medical bills are the number one reason for personal bankruptcy. There has to be a better way, and there is. And that is what is being proposed. But the insurance industry has a lot of money and powerful lobbyists to stop this from happening. They will pull out all stops and anything that they perceive as coming between them and their profits.

Your approach reminds me of the Republican's behavior back then which was based on the old: No change is better than any change. Thanks for your post Cleo's Mom. I sure didn't have the energy or time to line by line take both of them on. You made some good and valid points. Thank you, BJean. I always enjoy your perspectives and posts. The conservative positions remind me of an episode of All in the Family in which Archie Bunker inadvertently joins the local KKK. At the membership meeting the grand KKK guy says he has some doubts about Archie's patriotism and Archie says: "What do you mean? I'm a true, blue American. I'm against all the right things." Being against, yeah, that's what they and Archie are all about!

My doctor gave me anti-nausea pills for just such situations. I had to ask, he didn't volunteer. Call your doctor and keep them on hand. Hope you feel better.

I weighed 196 on the day of surgery. A healthy weight BMI is 146 for me - so that is only 50 pounds. The band is promoted as helping you to lose 50% of your excess weight, which means for me that would be about 25 pounds. However, I have lost about 75 pounds from my highest weight to where I am now and that is from my own dieting, the 6 month pre-op diet, all the liquid only dieting before and after surgery and then some (about 15 pounds) from the band itself. So, I would never have lost this much weight without starting the lapband journey. Who voluntarily goes on liquids for a month? You have already answered your question by saying how much you hate being fat. If it is consuming this much of your time and thoughts, then you should go for it. Do your research, and choose an experienced bariatric surgeon in a hospital of excellence and one who provides good follow up care. Good luck.

Make sure they have done a correct height check on you. You may be shorter than you think and this will affect your BMI. No one ever measured my height before surgery and I just got it checked (by another doctor for another reason) and being 58, I shrank over an inch. So, that would be the first place to start. Over what period of time is your 6 weigh ins? 6 months? You should be able to gain 10 pounds in 6 months. If you just stopped going to the gym, your metabolism might still be high. Give it some time. There have been others who were just a little short of the weight they needed to be to qualify and there were many suggestions, the rolls of coins being one of them. Good luck.

I was given liquid roxicet for pain (never used it), plus anti-nausea pills (haven't had to use them either). I was already on nexium - so that's it from my doctor. But they also stress taking a multivitamin (mine's chewable) and calcium (again, chewable). On my own, I take extra vitamin D3 (we don't get enough), omega 3 fish oil (chewable) and some other meds for allergies and breast cancer. And Boniva (for osteoporosis) might be looming in my future (my cancer meds plus weight loss can cause bone loss). So, I doubt I'll ever be pill free! You just have to make sure all meds are tolerated by your band. Some need to be crushed, split or chewable. Good luck.

My insurance company didn't have a set number of pounds for me to lose, but my doctor wanted me to lose 20. If I had not followed the 6 month plan and lost weight, my insurance company would not have approved. My BMI was actually slightly under 35 (34.8) 2 weeks before surgery and they approved it. Had I not complied with the 6 month program and lost weight they would have assumed that I wouldn't be able to follow a post-op banding diet either and would have denied. They had a woman who didn't follow any of the rules for the 6 month diet/exercise program and they denied her. All that being said, I am not defending insurance companies because I am their biggest critic. It is my belief that they have only 3 goals: 1) sell policies 2) collect premiums 3) deny as many claims as they can

My insurance required a 6 month pre-op diet. Lost 20 lbs. Then my surgeon required a 2 week pre op and 2 week post op liquid only diet - lost 20 more lbs. So that's 40 pounds before the band even kicks in really. So, to me doing dieting before the banding helps. But on the other side with all the weight I had lost prior to banding (I had also lost 20 pounds on my own) my weight loss post banding has been slow. But I'm 75 lbs down and I am happy and I am not so tight that I can't eat most foods. And I exercise every day. Good luck.

Lapbanding doesn't cause malabsorption like the gastric bypass does, therefore, our requirements for daily protein don't change. In fact, the less we weigh, the less protein we need since protein needs are based on weight and caloric intake. Now, eating the protein first is a different matter to make sure we are able to get our daily protein with our smaller pouch and eating less. But don't confuse eating the protein first so that we get the right amount with actually needing more protein now than before banding. We don't. Plus gigim said she was getting enough protein and her weight loss hasn't been rapid, so I suspect something else for her problems.

Bandster hell is the period of time after surgery and before you get proper restriction where you are as hungry as you were before surgery and can eat as much as before, but of course you aren't allowed to eat as much as before. So, you are always hungry. Bandster hell may even kick in while you're still on the liquid only post op phase (as it did for me) when my cat's food started looking good. So, you've gone through the pain of the surgery and you are still hungry but can't eat - thus the hell.

We have the same surgery date and I have only lost about as much as you since the band, but I have lost about 70-75 lbs total (all my dieting before the band and all that pre & post op liquids only). You need to talk to your doctor and nutritionist about the hair loss. I am not convinced it is a protein thing, though. Other than in the healing phase after surgery, why would our bodies need more protein now than before? (I'm not talking about protein supposedly keeping you fuller longer, I am talking about metabolically needing it). There could be other reasons for lack of weight loss and hair loss - namely thyroid problems. Please ask to have your TSH and T4 measured and even if it's borderline, ask for low dosage sythroid (not generic). I'm only speculating on possible causes and solutions. But you need to see your doctor about this. Good luck.

You'll get many different answers as the recovery time varies greatly from person to person. I was not allowed to drive for two weeks post-op. And I would not have been up for any type of work 4 days post-op. Bending over to pick up my cat's bowl was hard enough. But you know yourself better than anyone. If someone drives you and you can sit for the presentation, you might be able to do it. Good luck.

Thanks for your concern. I went for a second opinion in April, and switched to that doctor then. He ordered a follow up UGI. I see him Tuesday. He is happy with my weight loss, I am happy with him. And he is an experienced bariatirc surgeon in a hospital of excellence. Glad you have such great care.

After getting the second opinion, I switched to that doctor back in April. He ordered a follow up UGI and it showed some improvement. I have another appt. with him on Tuesday and hope to be able to meet with one of his two dieticians then or sometime in the near future. I am happy with him. He was very pleased with how much weight I have lost (my former doctor never was) and said I have lost a years worth of weight in 6 months and many of his patients would love to have the percent weight loss I have had. WOW! I had sure never heard that before with my old doctor. And I needed to hear it. So, I am doing fine now that I took matters into my own hands and made the decision to get the follow up care that I deserve. Thanks for your concern.

I had one in after I was under anesthesia and it stayed in until the next day. That was fine with me. I sure didn't want to use a bedpan in recovery and I didn't feel like getting up later that day, either. So, I'm glad I had one.

I agree that the color or gender of a person should not be a reason to vote for or against them. At least it has not been for me.

Well, Colorado, your post makes a lot more sense to me and is a far healthier attitude than those who post something along the lines of: "I vomit 3 times a day, PB a lot, have fluid coming out my nose when I sleep, haven't had a good night's sleep in a long time, have constant heartburn and reflux, can only tolerate liquids until 5pm and then only 2 bites of soft foods after that, but I LOVE MY BAND and have lost ____(fill in the blank)."