chasingadream

Im NO doctor but I just came back from my upper gi series and there was a newbie doctor with the doctor watching as I drank the Fluid...he told me to tighten my stomach and he told the other newbie doctor it was to see if i had reflux....don't know if that helps any but thats what they said!? Good luck...let us know how your appt goes! Best of luck to you!

You guys are truly saving me right now....Im still finishing testing and after the number of "bad" news posts lately I have been doubting my decision to be banded. I was seeing more bad than good and letting it get the best of me.... I know everyone is different and from your experiences you are working the band the way it is meant to be but sometimes there is so much "negative" stuff around here that as a wanna-be and workin' to be bandster it gets really scary to read it all. So for you that posted above THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU

Im NOT banded (yet) but I had stomach spasms several years back and they told me it was gastritis...I felt like I was going to die it hurt so bad....I feel your pain....and they doctor did give me meds to stop the spasms.... Feel better soon!

You guys are ALL amazing.... seasoned bandsters always there to give support, advice, and honest experiences... newbies, sharing the immediate good, bad , ugly and uncomfortable, and then the "soon to be's" hanging on every post...ummm THATS ME.... Finishing up some of my pre-op testing and hoping for a surgery date sometime soon.... Seems as though the possiblity of ACTUALLY being banded seems so far away and impossible to reach...ugh... So for now I will continue to listen and learn from all of your experiences! Thanks for that!

Thanks for your story dalia93-- I am in the pre-testing phases and am hoping for a surgery date in sept (ugh--seems sooooo far away) ...and YES...you are an inspiration. I too lurk for hours at a time looking for the success stories and trying to learn all I can from the success stories and the strugglers as well! Im hoping by the time my surgery comes I will have fully "wrapped" my head around all of the information I am taking in. I do know there is WORK involved and happily I am not afraid of that!!!! Perhaps you could post a before and after pic on your profile....I always find the pics to be so powerful! Thanks again for the inspiration!

Ok...thanks....just wanted to check on that...that is good to know...good luck to you!

LOl...that is GREAT! Thanks for the chuckle!

Glad to hear you are feeling better...oh my, that is the same doc I am using...have things been better with them in dealings with the office? Just wondering!

Thanks to all of you for putting a smile on my face and hope in my heart ....just waiting and waiting these days...still pre-op testing!

You look amazing...thank you for the inspiration....looking to have a surgery date scheduled soon! Always great to see such a success!

How long since you had the banding...have you had any problems or has your experience been a postivie one??? Do you have any addt'l info from your surgeon about the plication and long term results etc.... Still trying to get as much info and feedback as possible....thanks!

Hi, It was offered to me by my surgeon when i went for my consult....im in the testing phase and am planning on doing it with the lap band. Plication is when they fold your stomach in on itself and stitch it closed so your stomach looks like a banana. Its like the sleeve but they do not cut part of your stomach away. My surgeon explained it like this ,because i wanted to know what is actually done to your stomach with plication.....he said, your stomach is like a book and is made up of layers...they stitch the cover of the book together so they are not stitiching thru your entire stomach. I was also told because they don't "invade" the stomach it is potentially reversible....my doc is part of an investigational study documenting the cases he has.... so that is my understanding of the procedure....i've put up a couple of requests on here as well about plication and have had several responses....perhaps you can locate them...im still trying to figure my way around here... i've seen several people here who have had it and many of them have not had any fills in the band because the plication is helping them...im sure many of them will share their experiences....everyone i've spoken to on here has said good things. It is not recognized by insurance yet since it is still relatively new to the US but has been done in other countries for some time from what i've found online.

That's great...congrats to you....thats sooo motivating

I found this topic "Would You Have Weight Loss Surgery Again?" under Forums Home in the Post Op section...sorry I dont know how else to get you directly there.... I found reading these was great....i am in the testing phase and understand the nerves and going back and forth with your decision. This really helped confirm the great things that can happen with the band....im ready and willing to give it a try and to make it work for me..... Good luck to you...keep us posted!

Thank you all...as someone in the testing phase who often flounders back and forth with this decision (although I know I must do this and have chosen lap band w/ plication)....it helps when those moments of self-doubt and panic do set in.... this site and its phenomenal "bandsters" are truly amazing to me.....

Sadly enough that person is just mean and he will be mean to someone else for some other reason throughout HIS pathetic life. Good job to your friend for saying something to him. People like that get away with it all too often! I know for me when someone does something mean I try to go out of my way to do something NICE for someone else. It only takes one good deed to make someone else smile. Eventually all those nice acts will overtake those RUDE beings we must deal with. Hold your head high!

Its 9:08AM in NY...im sure you are prepped and ready....good luck....lets us know how you are feeling on the "other" side.....still testing here....look forward to hearing all of your positive experiences and your success! GOOD LUCK TO YOU!

Just wondering what the recovery times were for many of you...I know this is also an individual process but I was just looking for "round-about" figures. My doc feels a couple of days out of work and I would feel good enough to return to work....i know it also depends on your job. Mine is working with 3-4 children in a small group setting. No heavy lifting of any kind...just walking and sitting and talking (lol) primarily. I am also going to have lap band with plication (where they fold the stomach and stitch it--like the sleeve but no removal of stomach). thanks so much as always!!

Sorry, Nothing inspirational since im still in the testing phase...but please keep us posted on your progress, I am also planning to have lapband with plication and would love to hear your experiences and success when you have your surgery! Good luck to you!

Thank you all....you are all super and i appreciate the pre-band support!!!

Hi there, i am in the testing phases...but you just answered my question about how long some people are out of work for after surgery....trying to plan since my surgery will be when the school year has resumed for me.....wishing you well...look forward to following your success story!

That's great...congrats to you!

HI....had my consult and went to a support meeting...he seems very nice, honest and caring....really like his team...everyone has been so nice! I'm in pre-op testing now and every doctor I've gone to (and the referrals were from my primary) have said that he is "great at what he does"....i've yet to hear anything to the contrary. It was my primary that recommended me to him and I trust his judgement!