trish151

I was just wondering if there are any other bandsters in here from Longview, TX who might want to team up for support or walking?

I had my band for a little over a year. I went for a fill and they did a barium swallow and I was dilated over my band. They sent me for upper egd and my band had slipped. I was really lucky because I never had any pain. Honestly I was mad at time but am so thankful now because the sleeve is so much easier on eating. I still have to work to get the weight off but I never get stuck or slime. I did throw up once when I took one too many bites. I haven't had any left shoulder pain either. Aren't u in Longview too? Email me if u have any questions and I'll give u my phone number.

I didn't get your email. I'll check my spam folder. I'd live to know how you are doing. Bacca? I used a surgeon out of Dallas for my band and revision. He did an excellent job on both.

It's slimming. I had a band first and slimming was pretty normal. I only get it now if I take one bite too many. My signal is I sigh. I have to pay attention or I miss it. Sent from my iPhone using VST

Good Protein too! Sent from my iPhone using VST

I had a revision from band may 30. Was 218. Now 187.

How are you liking it so far? I actually posted this back in March when I still had my band. I had revision surgery in May to the sleeve. Do you hit any of the trails around here or go to any certain Gym's? My email is trishsmith2@yahoo.com if you want to chat sometime.

I had surgery May 30, too. I was a revision from a lapband and thought I was pretty prepared but I also came home wondering what in the hell I had done to myself. Then I realized I just had most of my stomach cut out. Helps not to think about it much and just get to feeling better. I'm already down 16 lbs in 7 days and It feels good to see the scales moving. This time next year, I'm sure we won't think anything of it.

I've only found one I can stomach. It's called Pure Protein shake and it comes in a can like a coke. It is really watery and goes down easy. It has 35 grams of protein and 4 grams of carbs. I tried the vanella and didn't like it. The chocolate is pretty good. They are pretty expensive so I just have one a day. I got them at our local vitamin shop but I heard GNC carries them too.

I agree that it probably has a lot to do with your insurance. For my band, I had to be on a 3 month medically supervised weight loss program (that was a joke), I had to have a psych eval (which was a joke) and EKG. For my revision, I actually went in for an appointment to get a fill because I was not getting full off of my cup size portion. When I went in they found that my esophogus had dilated. They took 1 cc out of my band and sent me home with not much information. I called the surgeon's office and set up an appointment with him. He sent me for an upper GI and found that my band had slipped. After that, it took them a week to submit the paperwork to the insurance company. It was approved in two days and my surgery date was set for May 30. The day of surgery, they made me take a pregnancy test, drew blood, and did an EKG and took me straight to surgery. I am so thankful I did not have to go through all of the hoops again. I'm 3 days out and am feeling much better.

Mine was a little different because I had a revision from band to sleeve but once I saw my Dr. and we found out my asophogus was dilated, we discussed doing something else. My Dr. sent me for an Upper GI EGD and they got me in in two days. That showed that my band had slipped. It took them a week to submit my information to the insurance and I was approved in two days. I practacally begged the PA to set my date as soon as possible. It was set for two weeks out and I thought the wait was going to kill me. But.................it didn't. I had surgery three days ago and I'm already feeling much better. I know the waiting is going to be the toughest part for you. Just get on here and vent when you can and try to keep your mind busy.

I was a sleeve revision from a band on May 30. The day of surgery went pretty well as I was able to get up and walk around. The day after was heck. They kept changing my time for the barium swallow leak test and my tongue felt like shoe leather. They finally got me in there at 1 pm and then had me drink water every 15 minutes for two hours. Then I got to go home. Today has been much better but all I have had is my gummy vitamin and 3 bottles of water. Every time I take a sip, I can feel it going down and I am tight. My surgeon told my husband my sleeve was the sie of a pencil. I'll try protein tomorrow, I'm just so scared of getting a leak from over doing it too quickly.

Well I found out a few days ago that my band slipped and I will be leaving bandland for a revision to a sleeve procedure on May 30. I don't regret getting my band at all. It was not exactly what I thought it was going to be but I have lost 65 lbs over the last year and a few months. Mostly I think my weight stalled after my doctor chanced my thyroid meds........ugg. Anywho. I got where I didn't get my normal sigh signal that I was full. I thought it was time for a fill. I made the appointment and then started having a little difficulty swallowing my Water. food would go down good. When I went for my fill, I told the PA. They had me do a barium swallow and it showed normal. Then they had me eat some nasty thick oatmeal and do another barium swallow. That time it showed that my esophogus had dilated. They took 1 cc of liquid out of the band and told me to come back in 4 weeks. My throat was a little sore but it kind of felt like a normal sore throat you get with a cold. Long story short, I kind of freaked out and called and made an appointment to see the surgeon after the PA wouldn't or couldn't really explain what was going on with the dilation. My surgeon sent me for an upper GI EGD and it showed that my band has slipped. My surgeon is now going to do a revision surgery to the sleeve. I do not regret my decision to get banded. I thought I would have lost more weight in a year because I really watch my food intake and I work out daily. My surgeon explained that some people just have a faster metabolism than others. I have been fortunate in that even with a slipped band, I have not had the reflux or throwing up or a lot of other problems many people have had with a slipped band or dilation. Please remember to listen to your body. You know when something is not right and sometimes you have to get the doctors to listen to you. I was fortunate that my PA did listen and order the barium swallow. If something doesn't feel right, Please have someone check it out. You may not have outrageous symptoms that something is wrong, but you know something may have changed. Best wishes my banded buddies.

Banded Beauty, yes, my insurance is coving the cost of the revision. I have BCBS of TX.

I just found out my band slipped but I haven't had any issues. I got where I could eat a little more and went for a fill. I could eat with no issues but it was a little harder to drink my water. They did a barium swallow and showed normal. Then they made me eat this thick oatmeal and it showed that my esophagus had dilated. They took 1 cc of fluid out. Then I made an appointment to go see my surgeon and he had me go do an upper GI. That's what showed my band had slipped. I do not have a lot of the symptoms other people describe, no throwing up, reflux, nothing, just got where sometimes the band was tight and some times not.

I'm currently going through the same thing. I had my bandaversary Feb 23. I was doing ok until about a month ago. My weight loss stalled out several months ago. Last month I went to get a fill but I I had been having problems with my band being real tight one day and way too loose the next. They did a barium swallow and a flouro and it showed that my esophagus had dilated. I went for endoscopy and it showed that my band had slipped. I am not in any pain, I can just eat more than I could before, hince I thought I needed a fill. My dr. wants to do a sleeve and I'm pretty excited about it myself. I have only lost 65lbs in the past year with the band but I had to fight for every pound. I get stuck occasionally but there are a lot of things I cannot eat. I got approval for my revision surgery this morning with BCBSTX and they are supposed to set my surgery date tomorrow for the revision. I hope everyone pays attention to their body with the band. It can be a really good tool and I am thankful I had it but be aware that complications can occur down the road and you may have to make someone listen to do some checking to see if all is well.

Every month for the past 7 months, I have gone through a week or so where I thought I wasn't losing. Then for some reason around my TOM, 5 or 6 lbs will drop off. It's frustrating sometimes, I just have to remember that it will come off and keep on keeping on. If you're like me, then you probably wish you could just ahead and lose 25 lbs a month and get it over with...............lol.

I hated exercise at first too. After surgery last Feb, I said I promised myself that I would commit to at least 30 minutes per day, like it or not. At first it was a struggle. Then I put some good 80's music on my iphone and would head out. I missed a couple of days and found that I really missed it. That was odd for me to say. Then I found myself only doing the minimum of what I could just so I could say I did it. It was not until I started seeing more results that I started uping my efforts. I'm down 65 lbs now since Feb 23 and the last couple of weeks I stalled out. It really made me frustrated to see my efforts not moving the scales. Then everyone wants to tell me how I am making muscle and blah blah, blah, you no the drill. About two weeks ago, my husband's best friend made a statement that really made a lot of difference in my workouts. We were lifting weights and he said "soreness is a sign that weakness is leaving your body". I never looked at it that way because I had so few muscles that I hated being sore. Now, I have really been trying to up more workouts and when I get tired and I want to quit, I just remind myself that the weakness is leaving and strength is taking it's place. I've also had a victory in this too because my husband could used to easily outwalk me. He's 6'2" and I'm only 5'1". Now I can walk faster than he can and I'm not winded anymore. I've also been playing badmitton and jogging every day. I'm finding that is a great stress reliever. Hope you find what works for ya sunshine.

For me, every time I have a fill, it's a little different and I have to learn what I can eat all over again. Some of the things I could eat after surgery, I cannot eat now. I have had 6 fills in the past 7 months and my band is pretty snug right now and I like it that way. My band is always a little looser at night. In the mornings I can only drink coffee, water, and muscle milk, so that's what I do. Then in the afternoon, I usually have a small V8. At night, I can usually enjoy a small meal of almost anything. It will take some time but you will have to decide where how tight or lose you want your band.

Today was my first time eating on a big plate since surgery last Feb. I was so surprised at how little I was eating. I have gotten so used to eating off of little saucer plates that when I put my small amount of food on my big plate, it still looked small but I sure couldn't eat as much as my eyes thought I could. That was such a good feeling.

you can do it. I think it's great you set mini goals.

Woo Hoo. I'm soooooo happyy. After a 2 month plateau of being at 203, I finally hit onderland this morning. This is so awesome. This morning I am officially down 64 lbs. I have lowered my BMI 12 points since Feb 23, 2011. I figured it out and even with the stall, I've lost .24 lbs a day. Woo Hoo.............go me, go me.

That is so awesome. My husband is that way too. He's 6'2 and I'm 5'1. He has always been slender. My goal was to be able to wear his shorts. He has had a 33 inch waist since I met him and Mine was a lot bigger than his. I passed him last month and got down to having a 31 inch waist. I also passed him in weight too. He weighs 208 right now. He is very supportive and tells me all the time that he is excited with each pound I lose because he can't wait to see my shape when I get to where I want to be. Really helps to have the support of someone cheering you on.

alright!!

I have been batteling this for a while. I want the weight off but scared at the same time. I've used my weight for years to keep jerkish people away from me and I know this. I just didn't know what to do about it. I hit 203 August first and while I was still eating right and exercising. I hit a plateau and felt I was sabatoging myself some how. This morning I finally reached onderland. What has helped me the most is talking to myself about why I am scared and then admitting that I am scared and reminding myself I can stop losing at any time I get uncomfortable. So now, I just play the mental game with myself and say, Ok, I'm going to lose 5 more pounds, that's my new goal, and I'll reacess where I am at and how I feel. Each time I let it go, It wasn't nearly as scary as I thought. I also told my husband in the beginning that I had emotional issues with this. He jokingly asked me at surgery if I was gonna get skinney and leave him. (not a chance) but I told him I was more apt to get more clingy for a little while with him just because I hate the attention. What I am realizing now is how much I actually dreaded the negative attention from being overweight. People treat you cruel. I also had a mental block for a while because I have always weighed more than my sisters and now at 199, I'm the smaller one. I also sat down one day and listed all of my fears about being at a normal weight. Now that I'm seeing my goals are attainable, the fears are not nearly as scary.