WASaBubbleButt

(ahem) Wasn't that about 2 weeks ago? ;o) It's man time, right? I mean... like, a minute in football time can take an hour! Is this 24-72 hours man time? ;o))))))))

That's FANTASTIC! Congrats to you, YOU DID IT! I'm thrilled for you, good job!

food Technologists (IFT) Annual Meeting in Anaheim, California. "Contrary to its name, high fructose corn syrup is essentially a corn sugar," stated sweetener expert John S. White, Ph.D., president of White Technical Research. "Recent marketing claims that sugar is healthier than high fructose corn syrup are misleading to consumers." "By every parameter yet measured in human beings, high fructose corn syrup and sugar are identical. This is not surprising since high fructose corn syrup and sugar are metabolized the same by the body, have the same level of sweetness and the same number of calories per gram," noted James M. Rippe, M.D., cardiologist and biomedical sciences professor at the University of Central Florida. "This is a marketing issue, not a metabolic issue," stated David Klurfeld, Ph.D., national program leader for human nutrition in USDA's Agricultural Research Service and editor of the June 2009 Journal of Nutrition supplement, "The State of the Science on Dietary Sweeteners Containing Fructose," in response to recent reformulations by manufacturers of products that once contained high fructose corn syrup. "The real issue is not high fructose corn syrup. It's that we've forgotten what a real serving size is. We have to eat less of everything," he noted. Increased Caloric Intake, Not a Single Sweetener, the Likely Cause of Obesity Fructose-containing sweeteners - such as sugar, invert sugar, honey, fruit juice concentrates, and high fructose corn syrup - are essentially interchangeable in composition, calories, and metabolism. Replacing high fructose corn syrup in foods with other fructose-containing sweeteners will provide neither improved nutrition nor a meaningful solution to the obesity crisis, according to Dr. White. "In light of similarities in composition, sweetness, energy content, processing, and metabolism, claims that such sweetener substitutions bring nutritional benefit to children and their families appear disingenuous and misguided," White says. Growing Body of Evidence The American Medical Association helped put to rest a common misunderstanding about high fructose corn syrup and obesity, stating that "high fructose syrup does not appear to contribute to obesity more than other caloric sweeteners." Even former critics of high fructose corn syrup dispelled myths and distanced themselves from earlier speculation about the sweetener's link to obesity in a comprehensive scientific review published in the December 2008 American Journal of Clinical Nutrition. Source: Audrae Erickson Weber Shandwick Worldwide

Mark.... I kinda think that trans fats are the culprit for much of our obesity problem in the world today. They are evil... as is Ghrelin. ;o) As for sugar of any type, we eat too much of it. Did you read where they are considering a tax on sugar like they have on cigarettes? I have mixed feelings about it. I don't think sugar is our biggest issue, again... trans fats are what cause so much damage. I wouldn't mind a heavy duty tax on that! Thanks for correcting the misinformation in the article. It is much appreciated!

What insurance do you have? I might have the guidelines you need.

If you PM me I will put you in touch with the credit person, Mindy. She's great!

No, there are not more nutritional problems with the sleeve vs. band. They are both restrictive procedures, not malabsorptive. You have a small stomach, so do I. You have no intestinal rerouting, neither do I. Actually, banded folks have far more food intolerances than sleeved people. When I was banded I couldn't eat broccoli, bread, or fibrous foods. Today I can eat anything I want since we don't get stuck and such. We absorb nutrition just like you do.

Seems like... First they had the mesh band, then the non-adjustable band, then the small adjustable band, then the mega huge adjustable band.. now the "no-band band"? The "Staple" band? The "Band without a band-band"? Heh... I don't know what to call it since it still seems to function like a freak'en band! A band is a band... not for me. The gov't doesn't print enough money to pay me to get another one. I like my sleeve, wouldn't trade it for anything.

I don't agree that we need less protein the less we weigh. That is old thinking. Today most doctors base protein requirements on lean body mass. Our fat stores don't really need protein. Now, protein makers will tell you that you need astronomical amounts of protein but they are trying to sell the stuff. ;o) However, I do agree with you that we do not need more protein merely due to WLS. That's for bypass and DS due to malabsorption.

Welcome, Helen! I am a revision from band to sleeve and I can't tell you how much better the sleeve is. I was prepared for "hard" when everyone kept telling me how hard the band is. I thought they meant hard work and dealing with head issues. I had no idea the kind of hard it would be. I did not realizze the constant band problems was the hard part. Puking, getting stuck, restriction issues, reflux, foaming, sliming... I had no idea. After banding I was a little gun shy about another WLS, I was scared to death what I was experiencing with the band was what WLS is all about. It became a way of life. I was afraid that the sleeve would make my problems permanent. That scared the heck out of me. I finally decided that I did not want to be fat more than I was afraid of complications and such. Turns out, it's the best thing I have ever done. I just wish I would have done the sleeve the first time around, it would have saved me a ton of money. ;o) Don't let a risk of a leak scare you away from sleeves. It's possible, but the risk of being fat is greater than the risk of a leak. They are rare. Since this will be a revision for you I would suggest you make sure you go to a true revision surgeon. Not just any surgeon but a revision surgeon. I will tell you that a risk for leaks, perforation, and bleeding are three fold for revisions vs. working on a virgin stomach. But if you go to someone who has done a ton of revisions you stand the best odds for a safe surgery. Welcome to the forum!

Folks.... At the top of this thread you will find a bar that has all kinds of icons. One is to "rate" this thread. Since the OP has done such a beautiful job of outlining what so many of us go through would you guys mind rating this thread? It will show stars or something and hopefully catch the attention of noobs coming here. Thanks!

WOW... You are a fantastic writer! I love the way you convey your thoughts and feelings. Soooo much of it we will all relate to. You know, this is why I wanted this section of the forum. We all feel like we might be taking the easy way out, that nobody else understands, we don't deserve help with eating, we know what we are doing but we just can't stop. When people read enough posts written by others that 'get it' and relate/understand, then we can start moving forward. Then we realize we are not alone in this and others may even have it worse! Then things can be put in their proper perspective and that is exactly what you have done. You have put into words what so many of us feel but we don't know how to express it. People do not realize what leads up to obesity. We know we are growing bigger. I think for many there is a bit of denial that it has gotten as out of hand as it has. Then one day we wake up and realize we are *really* fat! So... the next step, what to do about this? We try every diet, every weight loss gimmick, we spend a fortune trying to lose weight and tomorrow when we get on the scale we might even be bigger than before we set out to lose weight. It's just this horrible cycle and you have outlined it beautifully. As for your sleeve.... what can we do to help you get your sleeve? I have a friend that is a credit pro! She does not charge, she's not a professional. She just knows a lot about the topic, the laws involved, how to get things done. She can help you with that. We all have our little corner of the world that we like work from. She's a credit expert. Another person I know is an insurance expert, she's great at appeals if your ins covers but is picking apart petty details. I like to help people research their surgeon, another person I know is good at helping people get medicaid if they should qualify. So what can we do to help you get your sleeve?

Isn't your husband banded? How is he doing with his band?

According to the little thingy at the bottom that Alex puts on the main page, today is your birthday? Happy happy happy birthday!!!

It is common to have these feelings after surgery. Our whole world revolves around food. Social settings, family settings, we deal with emotional issues with food, etc. When the license to eat is taken away it is very hard and I think most of us go through what you are. The hip surgery is just adding to the emotional and physical stress on your body. Extra skin... yep, I have that, too. But you know, I'd rather have excess skin than excess fat. I can move better, I can run, I can fit into chairs, I can do all kinds of things that I could not do before. If you only had the surgery so you could have your hip surgery then this makes sense. People have to really want weight loss. Maybe you weren't in that place yet? Celebrate vitamins... GAG! OMG, those are horrible. I can't GIVE mine away. I have the Calcium chewables, cocoa flavored. They are disgusting. Nobody who has ever tried them is willing to take them, not even for free. I finally threw them away. Hang in there, just realizing how much our worlds focused on food is a huge head thing. It happens with time, just give yourself some space. At least with surgery you can live longer and healthier, now that you have had your hip surgery you can live in less pain as well. Maybe focus on the upsides? Good luck to you!

How does he cover complication costs? Does he cover it or do you? Leaks happen but they are rare. I think this is a big reason I am such a huge advocate of keeping people in the hospital at least 48 hours, that's when leaks are likely to show up and hopefully, they can fix it right then and there. You just do not want to be at home when you have a leak, you need to be in a hospital setting. I wouldn't let a potential leak stop you from getting your life back. Your risk from being obese is much worse than a less than 1% chance of a leak.

Interesting. I hate running, just hate it. I catch myself chanting this mantra while running, "I HATE THIS I HATE THIS!" HA! I have been trying to change my thinking and now I think to myself while running, "I am in control, I control the size of my body." Not sure if that is going to help but it has to be better than telling myself over and over again how much I hate running. ;o) Do you find the behavior modification helping?

Please be sure to let us know what is the scoop on your problems. It could prove helpful to others that might be having the same problems. Good luck!

Please be sure to go to a doctor that does ALL the procedures. If you go to a doctor that only does bands/bypass he isn't going to tell you how great sleeves are, he's going to tell you how great the procedures HE does are. If you go to someone that does all the procedures maybe they can work with you and focus on your eating habits and help you decide which procedure is best for you vs. which procedure is best for their bank account. ;o) My band issues are not uncommon at all. YEAH JULIBROWN! ;o) Whenever someone asks me about bands I just suggest to them that they find 5 banded people that have been banded 10 years or longer. They do not exist. We hear about them, we see studies about them, but in 3 years of posting on WLS boards I have never met one. There was one person that was 9 years out and she was contacting me about sleeve info, she wanted a revision. First they came out with the mesh band, that failed. Then they came out with the non adjustable band, that failed. Then they came out with the small adjustable band (what I had) and that failed. Then they came out with the mega adjustable band and not only are people having the same exact problems with the mega band, now they can't even get proper restriction. There was a doctor posting on the band boards and he said he was talking to a person that works for a sister company to Inamed (Inamed is owned by Allergan and this is a company that is also owned by Allergan). She said that even they know the band will be obsolete soon. They've tweaked it, tested it, come up with every possible option and it still does not work. Usually about 2 years after surgery the problems really kick in. Reflux, no sweet spot, revisions, etc. Good for you for thinking through your options! Sleeves are like bands that actually work without all the risks and complications.

I wouldn't be so quick to rule out the sleeve. I switched from band to sleeve and I love it. It's like having a band that actually works without the complications, slow weight loss, and puking. It's 100x easier (and safer) than banding.

I had a lot more fear of dying from obesity issues than I did from a simple surgery. Your risks are quite high to die of obesity related issues, it's quite minimal to die of surgical complications with banding. I think to put it in perspective you might want to ask yourself if you are spending as much time fretting over obesity and losing your life? Your risks are much higher now just being overweight.

Welcome to the forum! I'm always impressed when people know what to do with those big computers in the kitchen, you know.... the things that get really hot. ;o) Congrats on your weight loss!

I have a 32F stomach. I think the word you are looking for is Bougie. It's not as much the bougie size that matters as the technique. There is a doc in TJ that uses a 32F and her patients can eat a LOT after surgery, triple what I can. Yet other docs use a larger bougie but a better technique and have a smaller stomach. As long as you go to someone uber experienced and uses a bougie in the 30s, that is good.

Leave it to you to defend the coordinators. Good job, Ms. Admin!