leatha_g

My Dr. does take new patients - if they were banded in the states. (I believe). His name is Dr. Frank Veninga North Texas Bariatric & General Surgery 4333 N. Josey Lane Plaza II - Suite 205 Carrollton, Texas 75010 PH 972.939.8218 FX 972.395.1789 Have you had any luck with anything any closer?

MBZ, I wonder if you have considered what COULD happen IF you do have slippage and it gets worse? :straight

I've been drinking the Campbell's Soup-at-Hand. It's a little more expensive, but it's ready to eat - no adding water and it's all pretty well blended.

Thank you, Marie. I'm alot of things, but one thing I am NOT is a quitter.

No ma'am. I lifted that from Yahoo Groups Smartbandsters. lol.

I was banded in May, 2003. My loss has been slower than some, but really better than I felt I was doing. I have lost 63lbs to date and I can't tell you how my health has changed. When I began this journey, I had been recovering from a bout with deep vein thrombosis and pulmonary embolism in 2001. Between the year 2001 and 2003, my body basically just turned on me. Feet and ankles swelling to almost bursting, my lung capacity went to nothing after the embolism, my cholesterol went up to 306. I was started and stopped on several different medications which started a weight gain mode. I wound up gaining an additional 40 lbs on what was already a 210lb 5ft tall body. I was dying a slow miserable death. I had heard just bits and pieces about the lapband possibilities, but when I heard that a co-worker had gotten one and our insurance company paid. I got busy on finding out what I would have to do. I saw a doctor in Houston, who refused to band me due to my diagnosis of Systemic Lupus in 1983 and my past blood clotting problems. I was so ready to begin losing, but I had promised myself I would never do the yoyo dieting thing again. But, I was at the point of asking to be put on some sort of medical weight loss plan or consider gastric bypass. I was so depressed and out of shape, I was ready to give in, but I am single and had no one to fall back on, so I knew I HAD to do something to regain my health and be able to continue to provide for myself, so I set out on my research to find someone who would do the surgery for me. Long story a little less long, I read the yahoo message boards faithfully and everything else I could find and finally heard of a woman in San Francisco who had been banded and also had Lupus and DVT problems. My ex-husband and my son live in Northern California, so my daughter had wanted to move out there and asked me if I wanted to go with her. My job was 100% travel, so I was able to do that. I contacted the Dr and the rest is history. I was the first to ever have the lapband and a vena cava filter (to help prevent blood clots from moving to the lung, brain or heart) placed at the same time. My surgery went perfectly and along with learning how to deal with my band, I also have been able to work my health back to some semblance of normalcy. Instead of barely being able to do 10 minutes on a treadmill, I now go to Curves 3-5 times a week. I can walk much farther and I'm trying to get the guts to see if I can jog. (I don't know about that yet.) I've bought myself a bicycle, which I haven't tried in years. I have gone from 250- 187 (size 24-16). My cholesterol is no 168. I am beginning to feel more like the feminine, sexual being that I once was as opposed to the sexless blob I felt I had become. My whole outlook is back to something much better. I have had some complications recently, which I had repaired. My band was apparently positioned too low or had 'slipped' and I had a hiatal hernia repaired just 2 weeks ago, but I'm definitely not finished. I love my band and I missed the restriction when I was un-filled. I do have respect for the band, because I know it's not foolproof, but, yes. I'd definitely do it again. So, where in Texas are you located? I wish you much luck in your journey to be banded!!

Welcome Trish!! Sounds like you're doing wonderfully! Keep posting!

I have been told during my band problems that the band is definitely supposed to be sitting at an angle.

you had a fill at 2 wks post op?? wow. .. that's pretty unconventional. are you eating solid foods? welcome to the board!

At this time, your goal is not to count calories or lose weight. It is simply to maintain hydration and allow the stomach to heal. I have been having one cream soup per day. Even with that and a protein shake and jello and yogurt or tapioca - I'm not hitting 1000 calories per day. Enjoy!

My baby sister is a heroin addict. It's devestating. She was our cheerleader, valedictorian, golden girl. The past 2 yrs she has been clean, thank God, but the 15 years before was a living nightmare. I haven't read the article, but most all of my schooling is in Drug and Alcohol counseling. I love the studies that have been done on the human brain and addictive personalities.

Sounds to me like post-op gas from surgery. They pump your abdomen full of gas so they can see while they're inside. That gas rises up toward the diaphragm and can be felt up into the shoulders. It takes quite awhile sometimes for it to completely go away. Are you walking? Walking is really the thing that helps it the best. I hope this is all it is. Good luck!

The Yahoo Groups Bandsters have regular dinners once a month - more like a social setting. They have them in different locations throughout the month. Like Arlington, West Dallas, East Dallas, North Dallas - I think. I'm not sure about farther west but there are quite a group of people who attend. It's nice to see people and how they've done. There is one in Carrollton once a month also. The person who got that one together is on ObesityHelp.com. I think a person could keep relatively busy if you wanted to keep up with all the boards. http://www.livebandaid.com/ http://health.groups.yahoo.com/group/DFWBandsters/

This doesn't sound at all like your urgent plea this morning? I really think that if you are waking up aspirating in the night you need to see your doctor. Quote:" I had a bariatric study, check up, in June. Doc said pouch has stretched a bit, and band has slipped slightly, maybe a degree or 2. Do you think this statement alone is enough to keep a close eye on it? If a band is 'slipped' AT ALL, there should be no fill in it. In order to save your band and possibly keep you from entering the ER with a prolapsed stomach and losing your band - it just seems to me that that would be worth allowing it to rest and possibly settle back into place for a few weeks. You will not gain ALL your weight back in 2 seconds. I was fearful too, when they un-filled mine. But I maintained my loss within 5 lbs the whole time. It is do-able. I'm really concerned for your health and the future of your band. I really hope you do the right thing. Leatha

Zoe, Anyone with 100lbs to lose definitely needs a little help! Is there any diet that you have tried in that past that you were able to lose on and maintain the loss? Probably not. That's why we're all here. Diets don't work. If they did, we wouldn't need the band to help us. You are NOT wimping out with the band, you are simply fighting a very powerful battle with the tools that are available to you. As a matter of fact - you have come to a place where you've admitted drastic measures are necessary to win. Thankfully, we have a safer 'drastic' measure in the Lapband. I don't sell bands and I don't proclaim that they are some magic pill and goodness knows they aren't perfect. but they are still by far the best method yet and they ARE working if you work with them. I really wish you a safe and smooth transition into the land of the banded. Leatha

Great loss Debra!!! Congratulations and thanks for an encouraging post!!

Pasta doesn't work well with my band when I'm restricted either. Carbonation is something you should ask your doctor about. There are conflicting views on carbonation, but some say it contributes to stretching of the pouch. Someone did tell you that rice, breads and pastas are foods that aren't normally band-friendly or weight-loss friendly, right? It's possible in your early stages, if you aren't too restricted you could try them. I would definitely go slow as all those things stopped me right up. Good luck! Leatha

Oh, they have those.. lol.

Sharking.. that is exactly the image I got from the other threads. Sharks lingering around, smelling for fresh bait, innocent and unknowing. You're right, too - if they start making up fictitious names and personnas, that's really crossing the line of integrity or credibility.

Thank you, Donali, for sharing. I enjoyed reading your post very much. I, too, really feel that I should give counseling a try. Once August is over and I'll be home for awhile. I really do think I'll pursuit that. How often did you go per month? Leatha

I have seen some strange things too.. lol. So, maybe it's mass 'funny farm'ness.. lol..

mbz, reflux at night is never a good symptom. either you are too tight or yes, your band can slip. being too tight definitely can help the band to slip. when your doctor said the pouch seemed to be stretched, he really should have taken some fill out at that point. i urge you to have this checked out. not only the band itself, but you may need an EGD to check your esophagus if you have been aspirating in your sleep. please, please, please see that some of your fill is removed - aspiration pneumonia is not required to lose your weight! my slippage symptoms were silent UNTIL i was overfilled and started in with the reflux symptoms at night. get thee to a doctor!

Molynn, I think it's good for us to 'ramble on'. It's these things that we need to purge from our lives. Those thoughts that aren't popular to say out loud in some environments. There are some really great books out there on these subjects. Lisa is right. We will always be a product of our environment. Even though, with diligence, we can work on learned behaviors. They change slowly. Sometimes they come back to remind us, but with awareness, we do have the power to change those things about ourselves that we are not proud of. It definitely is not an overnight process. It is a lifetime journey. Have a good day everyone!

I agree with Sue.

Progress, not perfection, Delarla. You'll get there. Besides, it only takes 30 days to break a habit.