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Okay first question... "dumping" is a phenomenon seen frequently in gastric bypass patients. It refers to a dumping of insulin into your system typically following ingestion of simple sugars or carbohydrates. Symptoms can include feeling faint, sweating, heart racing, nausea, abdominal pain (sometimes severe). Though this explanation is by no means exhaustive, and from memory of reading done some time ago- hopefully it sheds some light for you. now for getting stuck- believe me when i say, you will know it when it happens. Most of the time you will have a sensation of something stuck (as if you need to take a drink) or even pain. But these symptoms are not always present. You will start to produce an insane amount of saliva (referred to as sliming on this board). Eventually, it will resolve one way or another (coming up or going on down- typically the former). If you do get stuck, just relax, walk around, keep spitting (lol) and wait for it to pass. Follow your surgeons instructions for what to do after you vomit (mine says to go back to phase 2 for 48 hours). good luck with your journey!

Elliptical is the way to go!! You burn twice the calories almost. If you can get up to at least 45 minutes on it, you will definitely see a difference. Good luck!

hello everyone! It has been a while since I have been on here, but I need to get my self back in gear. I have 30 pounds left to go and am soooo stuck in a rut. :thumbup: Anyway...I plan on purchasing an elliptical trainer and have pretty much decided I like the Smooth brand models the best. I am looking at the the CE 7.4 or the DMT X1. But the lower end model may be just as good. Does anyone have a Smooth brand elliptical? What is your level of satisfaction with the product?? Are you satisfied with the level of service? Any problems? I really would like to see one and try one, but they sell directly from the manufacturer online only. any input would be appreciated!

HappyHome, I too have been looking at ellipticals online. Two great resources I have found were ellipticaltrainers.com and treadmilldoctor.com. I also looked at Amazon.com and the manufacturer websites and looked at consumer reviews. So far the 2 best that i have seen have been the Sole brands and Smooth brands. You may need to consider spending a little more money to get a quality machine. I spent $700 on an elliptical a few years ago and it lasted less than a year with light use. almost all online reviewers will tell you that you cannot get a quality machine for less than $1K. Wish i knew that then. Best wishes to you!!:thumbup:

First of all, I am a wife and a mommy to two beautiful children- though somedays it feels like I have 3 children if you know what I mean. Secondly, I am a part time Emergency RN and I LOVE it. Insane, I know. :thumbup:

thank you for this thread!! I am having trouble getting back to basics with these last 32 stinkin' pounds. Except I have this irrational fear that I need to hurry up and get to goal in case something happens and they have to remove the band. talk about non-productive internal dialogue. We can do this y'all!! best wishes to everyone.

Wallisj- I would like to strongly encourage you to see your primary physician or OB. Sleeping for 12 hours and yet not feeling rested means something is wrong. Can depression do that? Yes, but so can a host of other conditions that are not mental health issues. I agree that an unfill can give your body (and mind) the break it needs from this additional stressor. Perhaps after you are better, you can have a fill and reclaim this journey. Best wishes and keep us posted.

Annie- weight has so little to do with self esteem, really it does. Either you think you are worth it or you don't. Do you really want to be the girl that makes out with some guy you have only known for less than a minute? Do you really want a guy like that interested in you? You deserve to be thin and healthy. You deserve a guy who will want you for you- not just some simpleton who responds to batting eyelashes. Any man can do that! Decide the kind of woman you want to be and surround yourself with women who have healthy self esteems. Not narcissistic mind you, but healthy. I'm not flaming on you- just trying to give you some encouragement Congrats on your weight loss and best wishes to you!!

Justmel is right!! I mourned food for a good 2 months. But now it is just "part of the life". I enjoy pretty much anything (though sometimes bread and salads do not agree with me) but just much smaller amounts. And... that is sooo exciting. I am down 68 pounds and have 32 to go. I have no doubts now that I can reach goal when at one time it seemed so hopeless. Glad you had an otherwise ok holiday, next year will be different. good luck and keep us posted!!!!

glad it passed without too much trouble. Good luck!

two weeks out and melba toast/crackers??? that sounds pretty advanced to me. My advice- don't drink! Get up walk around, take a hot shower (that always helps me). It will either go down or come up- but you will be miserable in the meantime. When it does, stick with liquids for 48 hours as your stoma is probably pretty swollen. If it does not resolve in a couple of hours you may need to contact your surgeon- or whatever they have you do at 1 in the morning. though I do not wish to contradict what your surgeon says, being more conservative could not hurt. My surgery center's protocol was liquids for 2 weeks, mushies 2 weeks, then regular foods as tolerated. And crackers were not on our mushies list. I will be online for a little while longer if you want to PM or ask anything else. Let us know how it goes!! Good luck.

People are funny... All along, my colleagues and coworkers have been very supportive- everyone knows I had surgery. Recently one of the physicians I work with (I am an ER nurse) told me I "looked different". As we were all laughing, one of the other nurses told him I was wearing a different shade of lipstick. I had to rescue him from his confusion "Helloooo? I have lost 65 pounds." To his credit, he has not seen me in several weeks and my scrubs are waaaay too big. THe moral of the story- some people are afraid to offend, some people are mean, and some are just plain clueless.:laugh: Keep up the good work!!!

Am I the only one so over The Biggest Loser?? I know it is a game, but Vicky is a little annoying to me. I don't believe for one minute any of that crap that there is no alliance- did you see her grin as Brady was denying it?? Also, they were cooking something up. How else do account for that Cheshire cat smile during weigh ins? Ok- I am done with my rant. Just my 2 cents.

Tlynn- if you go to a Center of Excellence for Bariatric Surgery they have to take you. A colleague friend of mine who works for the Center that did my surgery told me that as part of their accreditation as a COE, they have to take any bariatric patient regardless if they did their surgery or not. Of course, you may have to pay upfront, but they cannot turn you away outright. Hope this helps.

Liz, glad you are feeling better. If in the future you are finding you may need the services of the ER for your band, I have some information that may make things go more smoothly for you. If you have access to one, go to a medical center with a Surgical Weight Loss center (preferably a Center of Excellence) that way if you do go to the ER with a surgical emergency, they can take care of it there and don't have to transfer you-which costs alot of $$. If you do research now, then you will know which hospital to go to in the event you need one. Also, if you need to find a surgeon in the states (for non emergency care), a Center of Excellence has to accept you. Now, they may require some type of payment up front, but they cannot turn you away outright. THis is part of their COE accreditation. Secondly, any emergency department (county or otherwise) cannot turn you away regardless of ability to pay. A federal law entitles you to receive a medical screening exam and any stabilizing treatment necessary regardless of ability to pay. Now you may have a long wait in the ER (hours- alot of hours), but you will get seen eventually. I just wanted to be of some help in case you find yourself in this situation again. Hope this wasn't too much info. Best wishes!!!

Nikkoli, your RN friend is mistaken.She is speaking as an expert and I can assure you most RNs are sooo unfamiliar with this procedure and possible complications. Banding is what you put into it. Although complications are not rare, life-threatening complications are. Do your research. Ask your surgeon for complication rates from the band at 1 year and 5 years (the rates increase). Challenge your friend to research the same. I would like to caution anyone who is being advised by their nurse friends, family, and neighbors regarding this procedure. Talk to your surgeon!! I am an ER nurse in the facility where I was banded and have become the "resident band expert" for my department. I say that to tell you that simply being an RN does not make one informed enough to speak as an expert on the matter. My colleagues will tell you that. Good luck in your endeavors whatever you decide regarding the band. PS- I hope this post comes across as I am intending. I do not wish to be a know-it-all. Just hoping to be informative.

Jmegirl, first congrats on your marriage and your band. Second, good luck on Turkey Day! Nothing really much to say but to warn you that your appetite may be back in full force by then so preparing Thanksgiving may be a form of torture. At least it would have been for me at 21 days!! Make sure you have a game plan to not graze all day (it is soooo easy to do). I completely understand where you are coming from with regards to not being able to say no to this. And believe me, I have no trouble telling people no. but sometimes you do things you don't want to for your family. Best wishes and let us know how it goes!!! Cookie

Welcome Amanda!! We live in the same area! I had my surgery done at KDMC by Dr. Wheeler. If you need a band buddy, PM me anytime!! Best wishes and you will be amazed at how different you feel at Christmas.

Speck, although everyone is different I can tell you my 7 day post op experience. I had a hard time post op getting anything down. It was a good 4 days before I wanted anything. By day 7 I could drink a 16-20 oz water bottle over about 30-45 minutes. I could take several big drinks at first and then drink the rest like a civilized person. I felt like I could chug- but made myself not do it. I am now 6 months out and guzzle down!!!

To answer your question... Intubation is required to maintain adequate control of your airway. This helps to protect you from aspiration as well. You need an airway in place because not only are you unconscious, you are also paralyzed- you couldn't breathe if you wanted to. There is another type of airway called a laryngeal mask airway (LMA) that covers your larynx like a mask. However, it is not appropriate for laproscopic procedures because of the pressure created by the insufflation of the abdominal cavity- it could be easily dislodged. I am unsure about spinal anesthesia. As another poster explained, intubation is done after you are unconscious and removed before you awaken. You can discuss options with the anesthesiologist. Make sure you tell your surgeon that you want to talk with them beforehand because in many cases, you don't see the anesthesiologist until the day of surgery. Sorry this is long, hope this helps.

OK- for the most part, everyone I know has been nothing but supportive. Plus, I have a really good self esteem and it takes alot to bother me. but I have to share this funny story. I am an ER nurse and we see some pretty crazy people sometimes. This young girl (about 20) comes in for a psych eval by ambulance and is immediately placed on a 72 hour psych hold for her protection. She was a bitch and uncooperative and overly dramatic. When the female EMT(who is also heavy) and I went into the room to take care of her, she said "Oh I would rather be dead than fat!!!" I just smiled so sweetly and said "THat may be true, but I wouldn't trade your life for mine for one second! Plus, I get to go home today." I would rather be fat, smart, and productive than skinny, stupid, and a skank anyday!!! LOL

AuntLucy- if I remember my college A&P correctly the LDLs are the bad lipids and HDLs are the good ones (they actually help keep your chol and triglycerides levels decent). LDLs come from diet- trans fats are horrible for this and they are in EVERYTHING almost (even low fat things). HDLs are produced by exercise. THe more you move the more you produce. THere are individuals who are predisposed to have higher levels of triglycerides and cholesterol due to many factors. If the levels do not improve with diet and exercise, medications may be prescribed. Hope this helps. Just keep following up with your doc so this can be straightened out. good luck!!

Welcome to Bandsterland Cass!! What you are describing sounds very normal. Those gurgling noises are to be expected. As far as the vomiting, more than likely you are fine. Personally, I vomited continuously for 12 hours after my surgery and my band remained intact. As far as being ravenous all the time... you are entering the period in your journey known as bandster hell. Your appetite has returned, but you are still restricted to liquids/mushies, plus you are unfilled. this will pass but it will be a very difficult time (at least it was for me). When you start eating regular foods again and get a fill- it will get easier. It took 5 fills for me to find my sweet spot, but I wasn't ravenous all the time once I got back on real food. Best wishes to you!!

Gumbo, first of all congratulations on taking this step to better health. Now on to your question... My advice would be to get a statement in writing that your ins. company does not require this 6 month supervised weight loss plan. Insurance companies are notorious for telling you different things at different times- they count on you giving up out of sheer frustration. After you get this statement, then your center can submit for approval. Most SWL centers are familiar with the various plans and what they cover, so I would not completely reject what they are telling you until you have this. Make notes of who you speak with every time and what they tell you. Best wishes in your endeavor!!!

No, I don't regret waiting. I first considered and even started the process about 4 years ago (with a different surgeon). Exactly four days after my consultation and scheduling of preop workup- I found out I was pregnant. Fast forward about 3 years and I look into WLS surgery once again. In these 3 years, there have been more studies, improvements in surgical technique, and generally more experience. My surgery was Feb 19th and have lost 52 pounds since then. So.... I believe the waiting was very beneficial for me and was so glad I had the surgery when I did verus 3 years prior. Hope this helps. Best wishes!!