icestorm12132008

Are you referencing the post that Jean made about allergan selling it's Lapband division? that leaves many patients in a bit of a pickle i think. I'd ask your surgon if he has a spare plan for those who have the allergan appliance and are in need of further surgery due to appliance difficulties. It is sad that allergan is basically "dumping" their client base, baised on the article that Jean posted. I'd talk with your surgon if this is concerning to you.

everyone is different, as are their reasons for obesity, therefore their method that works for them will be different. What matters is that we eat good solid nutrtion and work out and stay hydrated and remember our portion control.

she is darling! I had a g. shepard/mix growing up as a teen she was the best dog ever ery loyal and protective yet she was very friendly to the right folks. enjoy your new addition

Allergan may have compitition with the Realize system wich is just a lapband but made by a different manufactuer. with different material and guideline(realize folks get their bands filled right off in the OR). I think the real question lies in the medical community themselves, alot of the sucess of banding comes from not only the patient and their adherance to MD and nutrtional orders, but the MD's dedication to their patient. If you have a surgon who maybe does not fully understand the workings of bariactric medicine and how Adjustable Gastric Banding is supose to work, then there are going to probally be problems. I'm so glad I decided to have surgery last fall when I attended my surgon's informational session on the lap band. I've lost well over fifty pounds(close to 70 i think) in not quite a year. The Lap band has been around for a while, the sleve is still a new procedure and it is still the new kid on the block as far as the treatment in obesity. It is unfortunate that for some the band fails or does not work for the patient, and for some switching to a sleve works or a typical RNY is what does the trick for them. All that is important is that those with bands take care of their bands by following the rules and going to see a compitent surgon who knows how to care for a banded person.

you go tell them to suck it keep blogging sister and keep loosing

some have symptoms like bleltching and their diet changes aka what they can tolerate talk to your doctor for more accurate info though as slipping is a serious thing that needs evaluation by your surgon.

detoxing from suggar and carbs can be a hard one but it can be done. I recomend like many said going cold turkey many wommen have a poor response cycle to suggar anyhow. So like previous poster said: no white flour, potatoes, rice, Pasta or bread. You can have fruit because it is less of a glycemic index then the bread and pasta. Just have smaller amounts of fruit like 1/2 of a nael orange or 1/2 of a large apple.

many surgons that specialize in WT.Loss surgery hold clothing swaps for their patients every few months. IF your MD does not offer this there are several options. 1. Find a good tailor/seemstress who can take clothes in for you as you go down in size. 2. Your body might be going thru an "ackward" stage where maybe your toso is thin but maybe your thighs and legs are still larger and things don't match up. maybe find items that fit your trouble zones and have them taken in. This won't last forever i've been told eventually the whole body will equal out. 3. Ask friends and family if they would not mind letting you borrow some items as long as you promised not to alter them if they wanted them back. 4. Keep on the look out at thrift stores and yard sales you will never know what you can find. A new thrift store is the SAVERS thrift, they look almost like department stores and they take in better quality clothes and they have sale days wich make the clothes wickid affordable but you have to sign up for their savers club card to get the extra discount. 5. If you are good at sewing or know someone who is good at it they might if you offer them come compensation make you some blouses or dresses to ware as you go down in size.

you are doing great, trust me after day 4 anything is possible with the liquid diet

be very careful with their boxed entrees they are high in salt and rice and carbohydrates wich is not band friendly. If you can cook some of the recaipes in the cook books to suit your band by leaving out the rice you should be fine. Just remember to weigh your portions as some servings can be more hten a lapband portion. Let me know how you do.

so you have had a bad protien experience yuck... There are several out there that are made just for bariactrics and they are actually quite good There are two kinds of protien powders : milk baised and those that can be mixed into fruit juie or water. I personlly like the Bariactric Advantage powder that you blend with fat free milk. There is also the Syntrax NECTAR protiens wich you can also find at the bariactric advantage site. That is one you can mix intowater and it tasteslike juice. They taste much better then the junk sold at nutrtion stores.

this far out from your surgery I'd say it's not gas pain that as all left the body by now . I'd think you are to tight. I had the same thing happen to me this summer my diet changed from being to tight and I got left shoulder pain and it was right on the anterior shoulder where the scapula lies against the ribs. My surgon knew right away i was to tight when i mentioned the shoulder discomfort. Has your diet choices changed ie: you are choosing soft slider items that you know will do down and won't get stuck, because healthier things like veggies and protiens are giving you trouble? Are you not loosing weight? These are all signs of being to snug also are you having heartburn and GI upset in the eening? Please go see your MD they can do a barium on you and see what is going on inside.

i was told to avoid "fiberous" veggies cuz they can often be hard to digest and can clog the stoma if not chewed thoroughly. THe elimination is less because we are consuming less but if you feel bound up drink more Water and talk to your surgon about adding a fiber suppliment

My question to you is what do you feel comfortable having done to your body? I'm 5ft8in and pre banding I was 317lbs female. I had my band placed because I felt that the band was the right option for me. You should not be pressured by your surgon or MD for one procedure over another. With that being said I've had my lapband now for about ten months and i've lost 74lbs do date since i starrted my pre op diet before surgery. This is only about 1/2 of my excess weight and my doctor says i should loose more within the next year. Everyone looses differently and it depends on what else may or may not be going on with your body. My advice to you is to keep doing your research on Sleve, bypass and band. talk to several surgons/hospitals and find one that you feel comfortable with. Also you should assess what your plans for pregnancy are . I know many who chose the band because they had intended to start or add to their families once a specified amount of weight was lost. Also realize that some doctors are only pushing one techique because that is all they know how to do and if you choose the technique they know how to do it means they get paid an additional fee because they get to do surgery on you. that is not the way to practice medicine it should be what is in the best interest for the patient.

I was exzactly as you said as a girl "big boned". And it is true my bone structure for a female is on the larger size. I also have an endocrine disorder called PCOS. I've had it my whole life according to the Reproductive Endocrinologist who dinagnosed me at 28 years of age with the disorder when my husband and I went to boston ivf for a diagnostic as to why we where having trouble with conception. My relationship with food before the diagnosis was an awful one. When i was her age that is when the trouble started, no matter what I ate it was never enough and I was always hungery dispite eating healthy meals. I also at twelve started my cycle and things just went south from there. I gained weight dispite diet exercise and eating healthy meals. Part of it is the blood suggar spikes that are happening within the body if these go un controlled the weight gain for her is never going to cease. Can you talk to her about how she feels when she eats, for me when I don't eat after a very long time say waking in the am I don't get a hungery signal and I feel sick to my stomach. But when i do finally eat that is where the ravenous hunger would start and from breakefast till dinner it semed the hunger never went away. unchecked high suggars can lead to cardiac problems and even blindness and problems with cirrculation and limb loss. Does she have an incidence of type II diabetis in her family? Did her mom have gestational diabetis while pregnant with any of her offspring? Also is she developing male hair growth(the legs will show dark hair first it hten progresses to the armpits and unfortunately the face and other areas are often covered with hair). The pcos can also lead to dysufunctional and painful periods due to fibroid formation within the uterus. I can understand your concern for your step daughter. She may want some help but might be to intemidated by her mom's poor reflection of you as a step parent. Can you talk to your spouse about it and just say you are worried for your s. daughter's health? I know this is a hard time for her as a teen and she might not realize it now but you are only trying to help her.

I'm a frequent scale hopper too. IT's so hard to break the habit of weigh in mentality especially if you have done weight Watchers's for a long time. You can live and die by the number on that scale. I actually try to only weigh in on my scale now only twice a week on Sundays and and wednesday's to see how i'm doing. But I only record Monday's weight and only my doctors' scale counts as the offical log of how i'm doing. but i do use the weekly weigh in when i'm not going to the MD to guage how i'm doing as far as working out and the nutrtion part of things. I think i will be a slave to the scale forever.

Congrats on your decision to look into WLS surgery, this is a huge step and it shows that you are ready. I read in your post that you are newlyweds(congrats) and are considering starting your family building after you loose and are closer to an acceptable goal weight. Some wommen with obesity suffer from fertility problems in relation to their excess weight, and oddly enough this endocrine disorder can bring on ecess weight as well. I would look into getting your thyroid function tested along with asessment of your menstral cycles(are they to long, to much blood, to little, or extra painful). Also you should be tested for PCOS(polycysticovarian syndroe) as that can lead to hormonal imbalance that leads to an incrase in male hormone and weight gain. This syndrome is characterized by male patterened growth of hair along the body(darker then normal hair on the legs, armpit, groin, and face) A red ringed rash along the chest and abdomen that is not dermatitis related. A over zellous craving for sweets and carbs and weight gain that does not respond to diet. Your suggars (AlC) is also effected. You can see an endocrinologist who specializes in reproductive medicine and have them do an infertility diagnosis(check with your health insurance to see if it is covered). Some will do the workup on you just to make a diagnosis. The treatment for this is Insulin sensitisers such as metformin and weightloss and a low carb diet. I wish you all the best in restoring your body to proper health. I have pcos and struggled with my weight since i was ten years old. I was not diagnosed with pcos until 2008 and i was put on a almost vegan diet and addtion of metformin and blood glucose monitoring did help. But what set me off with the weightloss was regular exercise and getting the lapband. I've lost around seventy two pounds in almost a year. I have another 80 or so to go. My symptoms of pcos are less and I don't feel as crappy. Lapband is a good decision if you have the disorder and are looking for pregnancy.

first off congrats on your news, that is awsome. Your lapband doctor and nurtional team should be able to guide you so youdon't balon durring your pregnancy but ain enoug weight to keep your obgyn happy. Some need a complete unfil durring the vomit phase durring th first trimester. so talk wth your octors about what is best for you. enjoy your pregnancy rest when tired and workout as your doctor allows.

I'd wait till your staples come out personally. When you are able to rejoin hubby in the bedroom maybe try postions that don't involve your abdominal muscles . I' d stay away from missionary maybe try chick on top instead

question for you: Do you still have staples/sutures? if yes then no swimming or weights or treadmill work. You can however take light walks and trust me you will work up a sweat just doing that

Huge cyber hug. It absolutely sucks when even your own MOM won't be suportive. I get the same flack from my mom too. I've lost seventy four pounds so far, and she is telling me to go out and buy elastic jeans omg I did not loose seventy four pounds to ware a pair of elastic jeans! Mom's can be so cruel to their daugthers especially if there is a weight issue between mom and daughter. She has to understand that bypass is a completely different method for treating obesity then the lapband. Is she maybe regretting her decision for bypass? and is jelous of your slow and steady weight loss because maybe you are not getting skin sagg? this is your journey and not hers. If she continues to be hurtful tell her you will not discuss WLS with her anymore and continue to do your own thing and ignore her. My mom and I have always had an unhealthy rivalry with our weight I was the brunt of many jokes as a kid and as an adult because I was the bigest one in house. I just hope you and your mom can find peace with the issue of weight. just like you realized that your mom chose bypass as her surgical option and is now healthier, she needs to allow you to grow and change via your weightloss jouney with the band. I no longer talk to my mom about the WLS because she thinks if i had just done WW and worked out all day and only ate once a day i'd be fine. Mom has no understanding of the body or how nutrtion works for someone with PCOS. The next time i probally see my mom I will be hopefuly at goal and she will be speachless. and I'll have my lapband and nutrtional team to thank and not WW or starving myself.

sixty pounds in a year? that is fabulous My surgon told me it takes about two years for most to loose all their excess weight. This second part of the jouney, where the body starts fighting you is the hardest part. You got to work out religously keep track of your portions and what you are eating and make sure you hydrate get in those 64 oz. of water or other low cal water baised drink daily. You are awosme and you will get to goal. I'm aobut 1/2 way thru my jouney too, I've lost about sixty with the band after placement 17lbs preop for a total of around 74lbs. gone. I have aproximately another eighty to go till i reach my goal. I'm giving myself another year to get there. My doctor says some bodies go into a resting phase cuz rapid weightloss leads to dramatic skin sagg wich is not good. Take this time to maybe do a massive closet overhaul? Go window shopping at some regular sized clothes to prepare yourself for the new clothes you might want to puchase after you hit your goal. My husband actually encourages me to go into some of the smaller sized dress shops and start trying on clothes just to get use to how regular cothes feel. It is actually very encouraging to get a pair of regular sized slacks on and have them almost fit. Because i can say to myself ok i'll come back in three months or 30 more pounds down and see what happens. You are doing amazing keep me posted.

Hi sure: Weight before surgery 317lbs. Height 5 ft 8 inches surgery date: 12/13/11 current wt: 245.5lbs. loss of 71.5lbs. What helpes me is taking my MD advice as far as diet and hydration are key, if you don't drink you won't loose. Also working out is essential even an hour a day of cardio at a moderate level works wonders for getting the weight off. See your MD monthly and be honest about what is working and what is not so the can fill/unfill you apropriately . You need to eat to loose if your not eating right you won't loose if your band is to tihg. Take your weight loss in 10 pound incriments it helps then to look at omg...i have xxx. of weight to loose . It helps you to stay focoused on your goal. Also as you start dropping the weight get yourself a good belt you are going to need it because for many that first fifty pounds comes off quicker then we think. come in for support groups if that is your thing and be honest with yourself. and remember it did not all come on at once it won't all come off at once either.

Talk to your surgon about other Vitamins i take a cvs adult chewable twice a day other bariactric brands are out there bariactric advantage is pretty bad some nutrtion stores sell liquid Vitamin formulas that can be blended with a shot of juice or take 4 flinstone vits. a day? i got no clue

does anyone know the symptoms of dilation?