leatha_g

No ma'am. I was rebanded due to 'slippage' which I feel correlated to a hiatal hernia that was not repaired in the first banding. To be rebanded you have to go through the same surgery as your initial banding

lol, me too. All I know is that it says no one should go under 1000 calories per day. I am not mathmetician, but one thing that has stuck with me from Jessie.. If you want to weigh or your ideal weight is 120 - you need to only consume enough calories to maintain THAT weight, which would be 1200 per day. This would equate to 10 calories per one lb of body weight. If your ideal weight is 130, then it would be 1300 and so on. That helps me to understand sort of 'why'. I suppose once you enter in exercise and Protein vs fat and carbs and your own real metabolism this could fluctuate or vary? Bottom line, if I'm not losing, I HAVE to be eating enough calories to maintain this weight.

The main symptom of Erosion would be NO restriction after several fills. In other words - if you go get a fill this week and you don't feel restriction right away. This does not mean you have erosion. You are a new bandster and most of the time new bandsters take anywhere from 2-4 fills to finally feel restriction. However, IF you do finally get restriction and you go along for awhile with restriction, then you begin to feel you need another fill and you go get another and feel nothing, so you go get another and feel nothing, and another and feel nothing, so on... then would be a good time to be checked for erosion. If the band has migrated inside the stomach wall, no matter how much they tighten it, there will be no restriction because it is no longer outside the stomach. Just remember, this is the worst of all complications with the band and according to Inamed, there is still only 1% chance that this could happen. To me, it's still worth having the band, because even with that complication, it is SO much less devestating to your body and is still removable. Gastric bypass is pretty much a 'forever' thing.

Jane! Well done! You're looking great! Keep up the good work!

Minny, There definitely ARE some issues to be concerned with with the band. As with any surgery, there are risks. As with any weight loss surgery, there are additional risks. With the band, you have such minor things as flipped ports, possible port infections, tubing leaks, all these are mostly fixable with an office call. Occasionally, the dr will work on them in a hospital setting. Then, you have about a 3% chance of slippage, according to reports, there is a 1% of erosion, where the band migrates inside the stomach wall and would have to be removed. Even the two most major complications are far less devestating to your body and your health than those one can expect with the gastric bypass. The band does require ongoing maintenance, such as fills. I've been banded and RE-banded again and I have still only had 6 fills in 18 months. Remember, I've been rebanded, so this would have been less were I able to keep my original band. My fill level was pretty perfect after 3 fills then. So, yes, initially, you have to see the Dr pretty often. Once you have reached a fill level and your healing is all done, you don't see the Dr that often and you are on your merry way of losing weight and learning to practice good eating behaviors. I'm not trying to persuade you into making any certain choice. But, I can tell you this is the most effective and healthy way I have ever attempted to lose any weight. Gastric Bypass was simply not an option for me, so rather than 'dieting' over and over again. This was my choice. I am glad I made it. I am not at goal, but I am at 183 lbs, which I would never have been able to attain by myself and I was in the 'gaining' mode when I started so I may have reached 300lbs by now, otherwise. I think I saved my own life, literally. I would do it again, too. I wish you luck with whatever you decide. If you have Dr. Ren, then you really have an awesome Dr., you're one of the lucky ones!

Don't make me smack you, Jack! Get a band! God does NOT want you to be fat! lol

If you really want to lose weight, you HAVE to cut out the calories that help you to maintain you current weight. Plain and simple. Your body simply will not hold onto the weight if you are eating the right food choices and amounts. Doesn't that just suck!... see my post on band discussion.

Welcome Minny! Thanks for sharing a bit about yourself. This is a great place. I think you'll be glad you came here!

Not everyone has a substantial weight loss in the first month. As a matter of fact, you'll see over and over again, new bandsters bemoaning the fact that they can eat as much as they want and they're not losing weight! It's really sad that most doctors don't educate their patients more about what to expect that initial 6 weeks out. It's not uncommon at all to even re-gain the initial weight lost once you re-introduce mushies/solids back into your diet. The folks who have the most weight loss that first few weeks are lucky enough to have some restriction right outa the box (most don't - irregardless of which band) OR they have a larger BMI to begin with, which takes more calories to maintain. You're really looking wonderful already! This is not a race. Usually with the VG, they give a much more substantial fill in the beginning, so it really all evens out in the long run.

Not only crazy, but it will definitely be bad for business in the long run. This kind of thing is getting out. All it takes is one bandster with a horror story to run off many prospects. Worst part is: I love my band. I want to keep my band. I want it to be a positive experience for everyone and I don't want to have to defend my choice when people start coming up with the horror stories they've heard about others.

2 in a lifetime? Yikes.. that's ludicrous. My doctor was not allowed to charge me for follow up/including fills for the first 3 months after surgery. Thankfully, that covered my first 2 that really didn't get me anywhere. But, I have never heard the lifetime thing.. wow. Can you appeal that based on the fact that most bandsters need more than 2? I think I would make it clear to my doc that my insurance had such a stipulation and if it is a Vanguard 10cc band, I'd ask for my first fill to be rather agressive. You DO NOT want to be overfilled, but I'm hearing others say that 3-4cc fills on the 10cc bands is not uncommon at all.

I usually know pretty much right away, but many say they sometimes take a few days to even a few weeks. My doctor tells me that if I have not lost within a couple of weeks, to call and come get another fill. This, however, may not always be the case. If you are taking in too many calories or not exercising or not getting in all the Water. Then it may not be the band's fault at all. The best test for me is to have solid Protein, such as chicken or fish. I can usually tell much better with something like that than anything else. Go slow..

Interesting, the lady I spoke with when I had my slippage said they stress over and over the aftercare aspect of the band. They tell the docs who come to the seminars, 'if you are not prepared to provide the aftercare/followup, you do not need to become a band surgeon'. So.. hmm. Her name/email is: denise.maddalon@inamed.com E-mail Address(es): denise.maddalon@inamed.com Business Information: Company: Inamed Address: Ca Phone: 800-624-4261 x 4323

I have my presents mostly bought - for the first time in years! I've been saying every year, 'I'm going to start early next year.' Well I did this year! I've got them wrapped and I have myself a little tree for my apartment which I haven't begun to put up or find decorations, so the rest of the season will be spent actually having fun decorating my new tree.

welcome minny! please feel free to read, read, read all the posts you possibly can. there is so much good information here just for the taking. if there is something specific, there's always someone willing to try to find an answer for you too! you may want to post an introduction for yourself in the Introduction forum so that everyone knows you are new and we can learn a bit about you. Good luck on your decisions!

Seems highly unlikely that the whole of his problems are on this board alone. Sadly, there may be many unsuspecting folks that aren't on ANY support board at all.

Well. The squeaky wheel gets oiled, right? I say that people need to be extremely vocal about their disappointments and their tragic results to INAMED. This one hotbed of what seems to be something less than desireable could taint the whole idea of being banded to many many new prospects, which in turn is definitely going to make an impact on Inamed as the manufacturer of what should be a very positive and helpful tool. I think they'd have to listen.

sighs.... I'm gonna see if I can pay Patti for some of Ryan's time, just so he can utter such sweet words of encouragement in my ear from time to time.. lol.

I'm sorry to hear this Theresa. It's really tough to get all psyched up just to be let down. It'll happen in due time, though and you'll be even more prepared. Keep us posted!

Thank you for posting Karen. I am so so sorry to hear that your Drs fears were correct. Please do not let this go unnoticed by Inamed. Hugs to you and again, I am so very sorry, but I know you'll do well. Please keep us posted on how you are doing mentally and physically. We'll be here for you.

Many of us simply cannot have solids for breakfast. Sometimes, if you're beating your head against a wall, it's best to let the wall win. lol. I have started trying to have bran Cereal in the mornings simply because I need the Fiber. If I don't do that, I stick to a Protein drink (whey protein and water). It's no time before noon and by then I can handle solids better. However, if I try to force solids for breakfast, I may wind up pbing and having to do liquids the rest of the day. I'd rather wait. Maybe just grab a Protein Drink, then carry something more substantial for mid-morning snack?

You shouldn't have to be without food, but I wouldn't eat immediately before. Maybe 3-4 hrs before?

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Osmosis, darling girl... or, maybe some of it backs up in the tubing? It's very common for some to be missing several months later. If it were ALL gone. I'd be concerned.

Awesome news! Thank you so much for letting us know! I wished we could bottle that guy and sell him. I'm so glad you got some reassurance that all is well.