NeenBand

Hey all, it may be coincidental, but I woke up today not feeling well. Yesterday was my first fill. I'm feeling a little dizzy and nauseous, stomach is bothering me, headachy and my bowels are a little loose (sorry) ANyone else? Could be my CFS or Fibromyalgia flaring up.

Hi All! 7 years of being banded myself. I wanted to hear from the really long timers (if your on this board) and your story. How are you doing? I have to make a decision about a revision to a new band this week, and not sure about. Just wondering how successful people have been, if they have their bands, how many surgeries or issues they have had, etc. etc.

http://thinforlife.med.nyu.edu/ I'm in NJ but am willing to take the drive for the best.

Oh my gosh, I'm so glad to hear a positive story! Good for you!

I would love to hear more success stories. I see/read more of the negative than the positive. 7 years this month and needing a revision. Surgery is in 2 days. Not sure if it's the old band or something is damaged inside. I will find out this Friday morning. Doc wants a decision from me if I want a new Realize band (if there are no issues) or to go unbanded. All the negative stories, and my own issues have me leaning very far to the latter.

Hi all, It's been a while since last post. I was banded in 2006 so I'm going to make a long story short. I have not lost any weight with my band. Some of it's my fault and some of it is because the band didn't work with my anatomy or something is wrong with it. The after care with my first surgeon wasn't that great. I had no fills for many, many months due to insurance issues. So...after I moved to a different town a few years ago, I found a great new surgeon who really took me under his wing. Fills every 6 weeks. I started to lose weight Then in December...I started to really work out a lot, weight was starting to slowly drop, then my band just felt like it "opened up." I could eat anything, didn't have to chew, taking in two cups of food under 15 mins. They have tried to fill me and it wasn't tightening. They also felt a lot of resistance and pressure in my port. Now they can't even draw saline OUT and are reluctant to put saline in. It could get too tight and they would have no way of unfilling. So after bariums and xrays, all seems fine with the band and pouch. They think it may be the port, the tubing or a leak. Doctor says instead of just replacing the port, let's replace the whole thing with Realize band, especially since the old band doesn't seem to work great for me. He said he has seen it work better for some people who have had issues with the old. They have me scheduled for March 1st and I'm really scared and not sure if I should do it. Pros: I could finally lose this weight if it's my band. I'm starting to get high blood pressure due to my family history and weight.They want me on meds for it. I have a hianal hernia they can fix while in there. I can't lose weight on my own. I know this, that is why I risked the first surgery. Could I finally get to my goal now??? Maybe?? Perhaps?? That would be awesome and very important to my life. Cons: I don't do well under anesthesia.It takes me a while to climb out of the fog of it and I get really sick. Back in 2000 I had a surgery that they had trouble waking me up and kept me overnight. So I'm really scared. Really scared. Other than not losing weight and having no fills, I have had no issues with my old band. No slips, no issues. It's just kind of sitting there. Maybe I should just leave it alone. What if it's my body and this new band doesn't work either? All of the surgery and the risks for nothing. Really need some support on this. I'm about ready to cancel, but I go back and forth. My friends and family don't know how to advise me, so I thought you wonderful folks would be the best to bounce this off on. Thank you.

Thank you. And god bless you too. Well, I had decided on having it out...and then my surgeon called today. He seems very confident that the new Realize band will help me to lose weight and that it does not have the complications that the old band had. He said it's like night and day. He seemed to think that is the way I should go. But I read so many terrible complication stories all over the Internet! So confused. I am really confused about what to do again.

Hi ladies, again, your responses are thoughtful and they are appreciated. I have decided to have the band taken out and not replaced. I don't think I will ever undergo weight loss surgery again. I know the risk of being overweight is bad, but the thought of multiple surgeries and altering my body does not sit right with me. I'm thinking of thinking an Overeaters Anonymous group nearby. One fear I really do have is about erosion. I have that old Allergen band and I'm really scared that in Friday, things will be found that can put me in a life threatening situation. This may sound paranoid, but in reading some medical journals online, it's something that does happen. I really, really hope that this surgery is smooth sailing and then I can put it behind me and start taking steps to get myself to a healthy weight.

Thank you so much. I spoke to my cardiologist and he made me feel a little better about it. He said the anesthesia will eventually clear my seystem, even if it takes time or if they need to give support with it. It will eventually leave. So that made me feel better about "waking up." My concern now is infection and that sort of thing. But I have to make the decision before Friday, to either let him put a new Realize band in, or to just have him take it out and be done with the LapBand and not have to deal with potential erosion, slips, etc.in the future. I see many happy bandsters for the first few years, but in trying to research people 10 or more years out, I can't find out how they are. I have until this coming week to make my decision. I literally cannot find people 10 or more years with testimony! If I could see more positive long term, I'd think about the new band.

Thank you for posting your struggles. I have to make the decision too and I only have a week left to do it. All the best to you too.

Thanks Tom, much appreciated. Stacey, click on my posts in my profile and you will see what I have been going through.

I'll be in this group in about 2 weeks. I can't say I'm happy to be here, but from all that I have been reading about long term banding and complications, having it out may be a blessing in disguise. This surgery was a last resort 6 years ago, so I wonder what the future holds. The important thing is that my body heals from any damage that I have done to it, having the band.

Hey firefaerie, I hope I'm like your mom this time. I wanted to give you an update and let you know I'm going to have the band removed, not revised. My surgeon is probably going to be shocked. I did some research over the weekend on long term banded and ....not good. In fact some vagus nerve damage posts really made me scared, as I have been having the same symptoms. I can only hope that it can repair. Who knew about all of this 6-7 years ago? It was only good things we read. I thank you for your help and if you could send some good vibes my way on March 1 as I go into surgery, I would appreciate it.

Hi All! 7 years of being banded myself. I wanted to hear from the really long timers (if your on this board) and your story. How are you doing?

Hey firefaerie, I never lost weight with the band. We are not sure if it's due to a defective band or my anatomy. The thought about replacing it came from my doc and that perhaps it would work this time. I'm skeptical and leaning to not going under.

Good idea! I just saw the new forum and posted in it. Holly Dolly, I'm not doing great. I only lost 5 lbs in 7 years. Yup..you read that right...lol I'm scheduled for a new band on March 1st and I'm struggling with the decision to have it done.

Thank you for taking the time to respond lellow. I was reading your story here last night. You look amazing. But I'm sorry your having this issue too. May I ask you a question? How do you feel about going under anesthesia so often? And the prospect of having to do that again with being banded? For someone like me who is so sensitive to it, that scares me. It scares me that i chose something that requires numerous surgeries as an upkeep. If I had known that, I don't know if I would have done this, especially with the lack of results I have had. My surgeon is on vacation so I told the snippy surgery coordinator that I need to speak with him. I'm going to tell him if he can fix the port under a local and sedation, then that's fine, otherwise I'm not going under anesthesia again. Not right now. I am deciding on NOT to revise and just let this non working band sit here until it has to come out, which judging by the posts I read, is a "when" not an "if." If I saw more long term success stories I'd think more on it, but I don't see them. I wish I did! And hey, if you folks can point me to some heartening long term stories, I'd be so grateful. Even then, my going under just scares me too much. I'll let you know what he says when I speak with him.

Hey everyone! It's Leenerbups! It's been a while! I drifted away from the forums because the band was not working for me. I didn't have any issues with it either. Now I am in a place where my new surgeon wants to replace my old band with the new one. He thinks this will get me to my goals. I'm leaning to not getting it. Back in 2006, we didn't know then what we know now and that is it's not successful for everyone, and that there are risks developing that we didn't realize back then. You can read about what I am going through right now here: http://www.lapbandta...n/#entry1943564 I'd love your old timer input. *hugs to all*

I just got off the phone with the surgery coordinator who was rather exasperated with me, it seems. It was the first time I ever spoke with her. I understand she must schedule this stuff constantly, but there are real live beings here with concerns. It's not deciding on what vacation to take. I wanted to ask her if we could replace the port under a local, and see where that got us first. She responded with "He wants to replace the entire thing" in a dismissive, impatient tone. I told her I am leaning to canceling this surgery and need the perspective of my surgeon to help me make my decision. After I spoke with her, unless something really comes through that changes my mind, I'm not going to have the revision. If something happens to the band (other than not working anymore) I will have it taken out. But of course, later today I'll probably tell myself to do the revision..and so on and so on! LOL I am so happy for those who were able to achieve long term goals and success. Really. Kudos to you because I know to have surgery, we hit a wall. It was a last resort. But for me, after 7 years and no weight loss, it was unsuccessful. Not all the band's fault either. I mean, there is a reason I'm fat and if it was just about food,I wouldn't have a problem. I would love to hear some success stories. Most of what i read are not. Then again, if people are not having an issue, they are out probably living their lives and not on forums? I could be wrong!

Hello and thank you for the thoughtful posts. Can I just say never read through OH if your having issues because it will give you a panic attack. LOL To be honest, I'm going back and forth and leaning to not having it revised. I spent last night doing some research and I am reading that most long timers seem to have had to have multiple surgeries with the band. Surgery is dangerous and again, if it's elective it's something I avoid. If this thing must be operated on, then perhaps I will have it either taken out to avoid future surgeries or replaced. But then again....losing this weight that is harming me is a lure. But there are no guarantees a new band will do that for me. I can eat about 1 1/2 -2 cups of food in 15 minutes.Can you folks do that? If you can than maybe it's time I really think that it's me, and no matter what I do, unless I get tough with my eating, nothing will work. My surgeon said to replace the port I'd be under anesthesia anyway, so let's just replace the whole thing.. But I heard it can be a local. I'm going to ask him again. Ugh. I just don't know. I am torn and confused and it shows.Later today I could change my mind and go for it for a healthy weight. I envy people who just do these types of things without much concern. Fear is a terrible thing.

Hey all, I'm really, really down. In March it will be my 1st anniversary with banded life. I'm only down 15 lbs. I got off to a rocky start due to Medicare not paying for my fill until 6 months later. I'll be going for my second fill this week. The fill tschedule did not help, I know but also an issue is that I am out of control with what I am eating. I'm eating poorly. Bad choices. I have NO discipline when it comes to eating the right and wrong things. People say "Just do it" "don't eat the junk", but it's impulsive, compulsive for me. I'm a junk food junkie. Granted, i went through a severe depression for a large chunk of the year, but Doctors, friends and family are disappointed in my weight loss and so am I. I did this for my physical and mental health. My cholesterol is very high, asthma, GERD, etc. I was so very much hoping this band would help me lose weight. I'm also concerned that I will do my esophagus and band harm because of poor choices in eating. Any support would be great. :help:

Hi all, Good news: After 2 years, I finally hit my "sweet spot" on my third fill. However it's not without it's issues and I'd like your thoughts if you would. I'd really appreciate the voices of experience. On the day of my third fill I was fine. However, the next day I could not even swallow my own saliva and had to go back to get some removed. I felt pretty wide open until a week ago and that fill kicked in! I actually am satisfied with 1/2 cup to 1 cup of food and am not hungry all day long like before. OH MY GOSH!! :tt2: What a great feeling. This is what all of you who lose weight with the band feel and I finally arrived there! The bad news: I have a cranky stomach and it's swelling and irritated. I am also having reflux problems and feel irritation in the band area. I had IBS and GERD wayyyy before the band, so my stomach not liking the tightening of the fills is not a surprise, but my GERD medicine is not taking care of the reflux. I had a very sore throat for a couple of days, I went on liquids for a few days and it seemed to help with both the stomach and the throat. It's getting better everyday but the irritation and such is still present. So, my question is, will my stomach calm down and get used to this? Am I too tight? Should I wait it out or do I get an unfill and never get to this sweet spot and lose weight?

Thanks! Yes, it is ridiculous price isn't it? $400 for the docs and then the hospital fees. I live in NJ. Well, every day it's getting better. I've always taken a Pepsid everyday anyway, but now added Prevacid to the mix. I'm supposed to go today to the doc but wondering if I should drive the 200 miles if it's all calming down. I did call the doc and got the nurse instead, who really isn't the mostsupportive person, IMHO. Sounds like she is overworked or something because she is very impatient on the phone. She said "We can't keep filling and unfilling you". I never had this happen before and so was pretty ticked off at her response.

Thanks for that advice. My insurance abandoned me when they decided a month after my surgery they would not cover fills out of the surgeon's hospital and I was not offered a discount by the surgeon, so at over $600 they charged I was pretty much dead in the water with my band.

Hi everyone, wishing all here good health and success. I hope you can help me with this. I went through a extremely stressful few months where I also began to overeat and also eat very fast. I've been banded 2 1/2 years and my restriction has not been great. I've lost 35 lbs in that time and not because of the band. My last (and 3rd in 2 years) was last month. I can eat anything and I'm usually hungry all the time. I've noticed I'm getting more acid reflux and my throat is getting irritated. Today I ate 4 pieces of toast. Yup, I can eat it like that... and a few hours later my throat became really, really sore, and feels like it's getting even more so. I also have a dull "swollen" pain feeling in my chest.. I need some help here. :-/