Maggie63

i saw my lap band doc the other day. he looked at my endoscopy and upper gi. he thinks all I need is a slight unfill and my troubles will go away. i am scheduled for that today. he does not think my band has slipped so much that i need surgery....i am so thankful we figured it out....i was up 6 times last night feeling like a was drowning...waking up coughing with stomach acid in my nose and mouth...it has been a horrible experience. sureed - tell your doctor that you need an upper gi and endo...these tests can tell him alot...he should not be allowing you to be miserable like this!! good luck to all...i will let you know if the unfill helps

ToniaPatt- You hit the nail on the head. I had a breast reduction last april...i was happy with the size at the time. Now that I have lost more weight they are much too small...and sagging again after only a year!! For those of you thinking of a reduction...it is my advice to wait until after you are close to goal weight. I recently went to a plastic surgeon to discuss a lift with implants...i should have been patient and waited until I was closer to my goal weight!!!! Just my 2 cents.

i have not had a fill since sept of last year..........

i agree with the rest. i am down 117 and can sometimes feel my port (but can't see it)...never my band

it makes me feel better that some of you are having these issues but do not have a slipped band..that is what I thought it was. i was terrified. i go see the doc monday...i hope he can help me. those of you you had the coughing, no sleeping, vomiting bile symptons...did they ever figure out what it was? thanks and wenyr hope you feel better soon.

had the exact same symptons. i was up 10 times a night..coughing, throwing up..it was a nightmare. i had an endoscopy and upper gi done..my band is fine...just a terrible case of acide reflux...doc and i are working on a solution. go get a endoscopy today so they can see what is wrong..you should not have to live like that!

welcome mj- is insurance going to pay for the band? if so you may need to be referred by your regular doc...check with your ins company. the same thing with the 6 month wait. sometimes it is not the doc but the ins company that says you have to diet for 6 months first (like we all have not been dieting our whole darn lives!!) i did not have to do either (although i did discuss with my doc cause we get along very well) i can tell you that it is the BEST thing i have ever done for myself...i COULD NOT BE MORE PLEASED. it changed my life..i am living again. don't wait any longer...make a appt today!! just my two cents : ) good luck!

down 114 lbs and could not feel better...please add me to your list : )

i am scheduled for an endoscopy next month....it is waking me up at night now and it painful.....they put me on protonix (nexium like drug)..i hope it helps..... everything else is just great... i love my band

i had it bad 5 years ago...and really did not have it much since....until now. it is not the feeling i used to have...it is burning between my breast area and little burps....i have had the band since dec 2005 and it just started about a month ago. i guess it is off to the doc to get a (is it called a barium swallow...i can't remember) i feel like the area between my breasts is on fire!!!

110 pounds down...please add me to the list. i don't really "diet" anymore...i eat what i want only small amounts..i do make better choices now than i did before the band....i exercise every day and that is my secret to success!!! i cold not be happier with my band.....

Karla- Thanks so much for you post. Like you, I did not tell in the beginning because I was afraid of failure. Now that I am so close to goal that fear is no longer there. You are right about the "Marshas" of the world. If it were not me she was gossiping about....it would be someone else. All I can do is feel sorry for someone like her. Still not sure what the right decision is. Has anyone else had to deal with this situation?

Well, my plans to keep it a secret might be changing. I have a new friend from work (we have gotten to know each other over the last year). She is a lovely girl with a big heart...but she does like to gossip...as do many of the other women we work with. Well she called me yesterday to tell me that she was talking to "Marsha" at work (major gossip and often makes stuff up about people if she feels like it) and Marsha told her I had gastric bypass. Deb asked me outright if I had had it .... and of course I said no. I told her that Marsha was just making it up to see if she would spill the beans. I did end up telling Deb about the lapband because I felt that it was the right thing for me to do. Now my dilemma....should I take this oppurtunity to start telling people (those I know could benefit from the band). I do not care about the Marshas of the world...she is a hater who talks about everyone. But since she has planted that seed with people...maybe it is a good time to start educating. I had always planned on telling after I was successful...I was just afraid that I would not be. What do you guys think?

This is a great thread. I was banded in 2005...and have only told family and 1 close friend. My fear was once again not being successful. Now that I am so close to goal...I am thinking of sharing. From past experience I know I will be judged for my decision not to tell (a lot of the gals at work are constantly telling me how good I look and how did I do it.....they will consider me not telling a lie). I don't feel that way. It is a very personal decision...it is NO ONEs business. I always preface whatever I say with "it is the hardest thing I have ever done" Which is very true. After I reach my goal I may tell...only to educate and help others. I think it is sad that we have to feel bad about the band......we should be shouting it from the mountain tops!!!!!

BetsyJane-Right on. I am 44 years old and was overweight the majority of my life. I have acomplished a lot in my life....weight was the ONE thing I absoultely could not control. I fought the urge I had to get surgery for years....one day I finally woke up and said.... ENOUGH!!! I am tired of people who say they are all lazy slobs....give me a break!! ) Is anyone having success with the band restrictions only, meaning no real excercise regime. I have time to walk a couple of times a day, but no time to go to a gym. You must exercise. Of course you will lose weight but you will be an unhealthy skinny person without exercise. Just do it. Don't join a gym...just walk for now... 2) How soon did you go back to work? Do you think you could have gone back to work sooner? To a desk job? I was back in a week and probably could have been sooner but it was nice not having to go in. Do what feels right. I had very little pain and discomfort. 3) Has anyone regreted this surgery? How many reversals are you aware of? NOT FOR A MINUTE. I could not be happier.....don't wait as long as i did... But remember...this is no miracle cure...you have to WORK at it. I have met people on here who lost only 20 lbs in a year.....they were not following the rules. You can do it!!!! Let us know how your wife reacts.....

Everyone looks just amazing. You are all such an inspiration!!!!!!

Diane- It is so interesting that you brought the guilt thing up. I have lost 100 lbs and feel great. I see some of my friends that are still struggling...and it does make me feel bad.....I wish there bodies reacted the way mine had to the band...or that they would look into getting the band....I don't want them to continue to fail as I did for years. It is interesting to see how some so called "friends" treat me now. When I was 100 lbs heavier this one gal at work (really just a work friend....not someone I am partically close to) would make mean comments about my weight every once in a while...(why don't I do something....work out, etc). Well now that I have lost he 100 lbs...she is going around telling people I think I am hot cause I lost the weight and I have changed.... Give me a break....your mean when I am in a size 24...now your mean with me in a size 12. The bottom line is who cares what she says...it only matters how I feel. She is obviously just jealous. It does make my feel bad though.....it makes me feel guilty that I was able to do it when so many others have failed......

LEsherick2007- If you have it done in Ohio would will do your follow up care? I am without a doctor now and have been having a hard time getting a doc in PA to take on another doctors lapband patient. Will you go back to Ohio for fills? Welcome to labandtalk. Having my lapband changed my life...I could not be happier!!!

i was walking in the mall yesterday and men actually stopped to watch me go by...that has not happened in a LONGGGGG time!!! : )

Mia-Welcome. This site is great to get a lot of your questions answered. Let me tell you getting a lapband was the BEST thing I have ever done for myself. I hit 100 lbs lost this week....100 lbs!!! I could have never done that on my own. The lapband is a wonderful tool to get you to your goal. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. Good luck in your journey !!!!!!

Down 100 lbs as of this morning......I love my band : ) Please add me to the list.

synicalchick- i was initially denied by my insurance company. i sent in the first appeal myself. they denied. i hired kelley and walter lindstrom from obesitylaw.com for my second appeal and won. i was reinbursed by the doctors office and the hosptial. i strongly suggest you appeal, and if you feel like you need a lawyer call kelley and walter. i actually self paid but continued to fight anyway and eventually won......you have to fight to win...right? feel free to pm me if you need any more details.

i reached my goal last week...and have decided to keep going. i feel GREAT...but am STILL considered obese...my bmi is still in the 30s...i have lost almost 100 lbs...hope to hit that landmark in the next few weeks. i went from a size 24 to a 14....look out 12...here i come : ) the lapband has saved my life...no doubt about it. i do give myself some credit...and all of you should give yourselves credit too. many people get the band and still eat poorly or don't exercise and are not successful...it makes it easier but it does not cure all. everyone should congratulate themselves on their great success!!! good luck all!

congrats everyone...i am so close to 100..i can't wait to be a part of this club ousooner..that is amazing...did you exercise? i am just getting into the exercising and it REALLY seems to help. for the skin elasticity question..i have lost and gained my whole life and my skin was always pretty good at coming back into shape...until now...i am 43 and will definetely need some surgery...i think for me it is my age...although my sis (47) is losing and hers is not as bad. best of luck all!

I love this country...I really do. I support our President and have done enough research to know why we went into Iraq and who (both democrats and republicans) voted for it, then changed their minds when things got hard...really hard. Unlike most people, I volunteered to go to Iraq for 8 months to assist our military and support the Iraqi's and their new government however I could. I talked with many Iraqi's and understand the torture they went through...the family members they lost and liberties they did not have under Saddam Hussein. That is why I love this country. We can call our pres satan..stupid...make fun of him, his wife, his girls... Had you lived under Saddam in Iraq you'd all be dead right now.... Isn't our country great???