babyblue71us

HI All, I live on the northwest side of Houston and I am looking for people who might want to start a support group. I know that I could certainly use it right now! I am at a plateau and need some encouragement! I am around the Jersey Village area, and you know there is a Starbucks around every corner...LOL That sounds like a good place to start.... :thumbup: Please let me know if anyone would be interested. Sharon

Hey there! I am thinking about getting the sleeve with Dr. St. Laurant also. I have my surgery date set for January 12th, but would love to talk with more of his patients about what to expect. I got the band a little over 2 years ago and hate it! I want to make sure that I am doing the right thing this time. Would it be possible to talk with you? I can send you a PM with my info if that works for you. Appreciate any help I can get! Sharon

HI All: I am new to this forum and thinking of making the switch from lap band to the gastric sleeve. I just got the call from my insurance company that I have been approved, which is great, but I dont want to jump into anything, the way I did with the lapband. I believe that if I knew about all the "issues" that came along with the band, I dont think I would have ever done it! At that point in my life, I was excited that my insurance approved it and wanted to get the surgery done before the insurance company changed their minds! LOL I got my lapband a little over two years ago and have been unsuccessful at it. I did pretty good in the beginning, just like I am sure everyone does, but I was never able to lose more than 25 pounds. I have since gained the weight back. At my last appointment my doctor suggested that I try the sleeve. I am asking for honesty here. I would really like to know just what to expect with this surgery. I understand the liquid diet and the reasons for it at the beginning, but my questions are more towards "life" with the sleeve. :scared0: First and foremost, sliming, PBing, throwing up, gurggling? Do you have these issues with the sleeve? I was also told by my surgeon that with the sleeve, you hardly ever feel hungry. Is this true? When you eat, do you have to eat really slow like with the band? Small pieces and chewing really well? Is there some food that you just can't eat? Do you have issues of food getting stuck, like with the band? If you eat to much, what happens? Well, that all I think of right now....any help would be greatly appreciated to help me decide if this surgery is the best for me. Thanks Sharon

Hey Guys, I am looking for a "buddy" who might be able to help me thru the hard times I have been having lately. I am a year out with my band, and have only lost around 20 pounds. I have been doubting my decision to get the band, when I know if I had the right support, I would be able to work thru these issues. Is there anyone that could help me? Sharon :wink2:

What is TOM?

Roslyn, I have lost around 20 pounds. I do think that a support group could help, because you can hear some of the issues that others have, which may be similar to yours and how they have worked thru them. Sharon

Gail, My biggest complaint about the band is the issue of gurgling. It is the most embarassing thing, to be talking on the phone at work and you make a gurgling noise into the phone. You have to wonder if the person on the other side of the line heard it or not! My second complaint is not knowing when you are going to have issues with your restriction. There will be days when you have issues with just about everything that you eat. You never know when it is going to be either. There is also this thing called delayed restriction that happens to some people, and I have found that it has happened to me....usually a week or two after a fill, I will have all sorts of issues with food going down....even the simplest of things. I have to admit that I was one of the people that thought the lapband would kind of be an easy way out...boy did I find that is not the truth! And it is with this that I have to wonder if it is even worth it, with the small amount of weight that I have lost. Sharon

I am pretty much open...if you ever want to meet up. I kinda wish I knew more about some of the "band isues" I am having now, that were not explained in the seminar that I went too. Might have thought twice about having the surgery. :thumbup: Sharon

HI Misty.... It has been so long since I posted that blog, that I forgot about it! I am still interested in meeting with people though. I am a year out, this July 31st to be exact....and I am having a hard time. Let me know what works best for you. Sharon

Feel free to hit me up again when you move off 290. And you are correct, the Starbucks is on Jones road! :huh2: Sharon

Jersey Village is around 290 and the Beltway, so it would take me about 30 minutes for me to get to the Woodlands. Guess it would depend on when you guys meet. During the week is out of the question! I might be able to do a weekend though. Thanks! Sharon

Hi Guys, It has been a while since I have been to the site, but I am in need of some help. I am about 7 months out from surgery and roughly 25 pounds down. I am having a VERY hard time keeping up with the diet (protein, protein, protein). I was such a carbo addict before surgery that it is hard to turn of that carving overnight. And sweets, dont even get me started on that! And the same goes for food in general. Has anyone else lost their momentum during their adventures with the band? And if so, how can you go about changing your mindset to food? I so want to get over this plateau that I seem to be on and reach my goal. HELP! Sharon

I understand where you are coming from. I am obviously not at my "sweet" spot yet either. All I would hear before surgery was how when you have it done, you lose your constant hunger. That is sooooo not true in my case! It is weird thought because I have days where I feel like I can eat anything and everything, and then there are other days that I can hardly eat anything. When I got my last fill, I asked the doctor about this and he said that it is common. He said that it happens to everyone, banded and not banded, the only thing is, since we are banded, we are more sensitive to how much we are actually eating. Which is true, because I remember days before I was banded that I was just not as hungry as usual. Well, we will get there one day. Until then, we are members of the slow losers club! Sharon

Hi All, I am a week out from my 3rd fill and I am having some very uncomfortable symptoms. Was curious if anyone else has had them and what can be done to help them. A couple of days ago I started getting these horrible pains when I attempt to eat something. Like I said, I only attempt to eat these foods, because I have to stop because the pain is so horrible. I may have had one to two bites of foods in the past few days. The only thing that I can compare this pain to is when food is stuck. It hurts so much that the only thing that alleviates it is if I PB. I spoke with my doctor this morning and he seems to think that I am having gas pains and I am letting in to much air when I am eating. He said to go back and retrain myself in how to eat, taking 30 minutes to eat most meals. Well I tried this just a few minutes ago, and was only able to get in a couple of bites, probably within a 15 minute window, but still had to stop because of the pain and the only thing that relieved it was to PB. Has anyone else experienced these symptoms? I am so confused because it started happening a week after my fill. It just does not seem normal to me. I am close to 6 months with the band now and would love to hear from some of the more experienced bandsters to see if this is something that has happened to them. In need of help... Sharon:help::help:

Hey guys, I was banded on July 31st and have currently lost around 22 pounds to date...slow and steady. That is the problem, I am losing my focus and eating the things that I know that I shouldn't. Can anyone help me with suggestions of what has worked for them? And exercise, don't even get me started on that! LOL Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated! Sharon:help:

I totally understand where you are coming from having self paid your surgery. After I found out that my insurance would not cover the surgery unless you had a BMI of 40 over for 3 years, I was sure I would not be covered. But I think the "weightloss Gods" were looking over me that day, because the doctors office called back and said that I would be covered! I was so estatic. I guess they must have seen something in my doctor's notes that would warrant cover it. But anyway, what I was getting at was that I was already making plans to pay some things off and get a loan to have the surgery at the beginning of 2008. Just goes to show you, where there is a will, there is a way! That first week was the hardest for me, I will admit. By the end of the week, I was so hungry and so tired of the gas pains in my shoulder that I was actually thinking "OMG, what have I done". I just had my first fill yesterday and have to do the Clear liquids for a day, full liquids, and then soft foods again. I thought I was finished with this! LOL Anyway, keep me posted on how the band is working for you. I am down around 15 pounds, in a month and a half. Sharon

I just received one on July 31st. I am in Houston and my doctor is Matthew St. Laurent. I just went in for my first fill today (9/14) and I asked what band he used (because I did not think of asking before hand) LOL He told me it was the AP and that it had 4cc of saline in it at the time of surgery. That came as a shocker to me. I had a fill of 2cc today, so we will see how things go. Sharon

Hi Guys, I will be getting my first fill on 9/15 and I am scared to death. Any advice for those of us getting our first? Does it usually take a while to get use to the new restriction? BabyBlue:help:

Hey there! Was curious if you guys still had a support group? I live on the NW side (290 and Beltway) and was recently banded at the end of July. Let me know if you guys still meet. Sharon

Hi All....my name is Sharon and I was banded on July 31st, 2007. Since the surgery I have lost around 13 pounds, mostly in the first week....(gotta love those clear liquids). I have not had my first fill yet, that will be coming on 9/15. I am looking forward to it, but I am also anxious because I do not know how my body is going to react, if I will have problems with foods, etc. As of right now...I have had no problems, but I am also more hungry than I thought I would be! Looking forward to reading everyone's posts and getting some much needed advice during this major change in my life... Sharon :girl_hug: