Nanook

I chiming in on this one as I've noticed that many people have to travel far or choose to travel far to have surgeries. I'm speaking of all WLSs not just LB. It might be me but there is comfort with knowing my surgeon and his team are only 45 minutes away from me. With my daughter's RNY and my LB (now gone bye bye) and my revision (hopefully in my future) and the few times we've had emergency situations that could only have been dealt with a team familiar with WLS I could or would not choose a surgeon much further away than that. This of course has limited the type of surgery revision I choose but I suppose I'd rather them be close than have to worry when something goes wrong and who would treat me in that situation. Nancy:smile:

Wow that's pretty traumatic. Erosion seems to be a pretty tricky thing and it's amazing to me that something like that can be happening inside you and you not really know. Glad your friend insisted and I wish you a speedy recovery, Nancy.:thumbup:

I posted about it a long time ago. Mine were sharp and quick but came back and they put me in the ER to rule out heart. It ended up being acid reflux which I suppose can be stress related too but mine was related to the band. They put me on protonix and I had my band removed because of it and the fact the band didn't work for me. I never had the reflux that went up to my throat and felt like heart burn so that's kind of why the reflux thing flew me for a loop even though I knew it wasn't my heart. Get it checked out, you know you should, take care, Nancy.:smile:

Does she seem to have good self esteem? I know it's difficult when you want the best for your daughter, all moms do but you have to be careful not be too critical about her weight. It's a difficult time for her. There are books out there about dealing with teenage girls and their bodies that you may want to read. I always thought if I wasn't critical of my daughters' weight they would grow up loving their bodies as I had not. But they still picked up my hatred for my own body even though I didn't verbalize it. She is tall and if she's athletically inclined encourage that so that she's enjoying herself. As you said she's a different body type than many of her classmates but explain to her that everyone's body types are different and that's OK. My daughter was 6 feet tall and well over 300 lbs and ended up having RNY surgery but that was because she wanted it not because I ever, ever suggested it. It was really important to her. I think there must be a way to sit down and discuss your surgery with her and find out how she feels about it also. I wish there was a book out there I could suggest for you but basically if you search on Amazon.com for those types of books so many will pop up. I'm a believer in therapy when needed but that's something we used in our family and doesn't mean it's necessary for yours. Good luck with your surgery and with your daughter, Nancy. PS you can find her a good sports bra in her size on line at JMS.com, Lane Bryant etc...

Can't share anything about a revision surgery but having the band removed was a breeze for me as it was OP this time and had none of the gas pains as I did prior. I thought the port would be an issue but it really wasn't. It's the looks the same as all my other scars. We're all dif but that's my story, Nancy. Good luck to you.

I was offered RNY about 4 years ago, the only surgery my surgeon did a the time but had to put it off due to some famliy issues. Then I went back to my surgeon when the time was right to go through the surgery and at the last minute I chose lap band over RNY because I was afraid of the dumping syndrome and the drastic nature of RNY. This time lap band was part of his repertoire. I finally did have my surgery in 8/07 and as most of you know who have read my posts it did not work for me and it was removed last October. My daughter had her RNY the following 5/08 and has since lost over 140 lbs. Not without a few complications which to me were always tragic but she got through it and I got through it and the change this has made in her life has been remarkable. I don't know if she'd still be with me right now if she had not had the surgery. She was that distraught. She also had to decide which surgery to choose and it seemed easy to her as she wanted one that she could be a success with. So far so good. She's never had "dumping syndrome" and she is young which I suppose is a good thing and may make a difference in her success and health. I can only hope she'll continue to be healthy. I know it's not an easy decision and sometimes it's easier to pick one for the wrong reason like I had. I'm now in a situation where I'll be meeting with my surgeon again this time discuss having the RNY. I had to decide will I be happy with myself in a year if I do not do anything even if I risk complications due to my age and drastic side of this surgery. At this point in my life I'm more afraid of being miserable in my own skin one more year than having RNY. Go to as many sites as you can and read as much as you can and I wish you luck on making the right decision your first time! Nancy:smile:

Don't know your story but sorry it ended up not working out for you, did you chew your food and exercise, it's only a tool you know, jk! I had mine removed last October after 14 months trying to get it to work and figured out it in the end it was just not the right procedure for me. It can be very emotionally taxing on you to go through such a dramatic experience so make sure you realize that it's not your fault and it happens to many, many people just like you! Take care Nancy.

Go up to the top right corner where it says "Welcome" and your screen name and there will be a number where there's a private message press on that number and see if you can read the private message from me. I sent it so look where it says up at the right corner under your name "your notifications" and a number and click there.

Had my band removed because I never lost weight with it and developed acid reflux. My daughter had the RNY about 9 months after my lap band and has lost over 140 lbs since May 08. She did have two strictures which caused the vomiting but had two endoscopies to open her up. This was in the beginning stages which I think if you're going to have strictures is when they happen. Since then she's been fine but she's still shy one year post-op. I haven't made up my mind yet of whether I will revise or not but if I do it's likely it would be RNY as my surgeon only does that or lapband. Good luck on your search I didn't vote, Nancy.

Go to the left side of the top of your screen where it says "userCP" and press on that then go to "Control Panel" on the left top and go down to "Settings and Options" where it says "edit ignore list" then I believe you can put in the name of the person whose posts you want to ignore. I hope that helps! I can't imagine you and your husband going through cancer at the same time. I remember flying down to MD to be with my sister when she was having chemo and the nurse was not very good at getting the needle into her port. This was before I got the lap and and at that time I remember how much pain she was in with the jabbing and afterwars how I worried what a fill would be like. But her port for chemo was placed over bone so I think it was much more painful. So far she's clear and it's going on five years so that's a good thing, you're on seven and that's good too! You really don't hear much about EC, PC yes and I knew that was a death sentence. I wonder if certain people should just get the endoscopies if they are at risk, like my husband's older brother who still drinks and smokes very heavily but he's not likely to listen. Anyway if you ever have a problem you can email "Alex" directly for an assist. Take care, Nancy.

Was this her initial gastric bypass or a revision type surgery, I'm a bit confused.

I think she attempted to get them eating healthier but I can't remember. I think I remember she had them all go on a walk and of course they suffered. Aren't they the family that had the ATVs and that's how they exercised. They do this on purpose though, they take people who are total opposites and place them together just for the shits and giggles. The other show similar to this is Trading Spouses but on that one they are each given $50,000 and each told the other family how they were to spend that money. I have no idea how much money the get on Wipe Swap though do you? Also the "superior" family acted like they were so well to do but they did this for the money even though they pretended they were teaching another family how to live a better lifestyle.

I looked at my results from the endoscopy I had done and they only took tissue from my stomach polyps. They didn't make a big deal about the esophagus but put me on one of those standard reflux plans and on the medication. I had an irregular Z line but I suppose that's not a problem and redness in the first part of the duodenum. I mentioned to my husband today about it and I'll have to work on him. He'll be 49 this year, his dad died when he was 46 and like I said everyone on his side died young of heart attacks but they tend to smoke and drink a lot. My husband quit smoking many years ago and doesn't drink often but I know when he drinks a beer in the evening once in a while that's when he gets reflux issues at night so it makes sense. Did they test your kids to see if the gene for that specific cancer? I know my sister, her breast cancer was about 4 years ago was thinking her daughters should get tested to see if they had that gene but then there was a scare that if that information was in the insurance/medical system they might have a hard time getting insurance. They never had the test. My sister isn't really what you'd call overweight like I am but like I said had smoked for many years, probably since she was 12. My mother died when she was 51 of lung cancer which metastasized into a brain tumor. Scary things to have to worry about. But my husband always thought he'd die of a heart attack just like his dad but to me this is more worrisome. When I was in the hospital for the chest pains the woman next to me was there because of chest pains also. She had a heart attack about 2 years ago and wasn't over weight at all. Her husband had died of one 4 years ago. So they had her there for precautionary reasons like I was but I thought it was odd how they both had heart attacks like that. Anyway thanks for warning people of something that most bandsters seem to brush off but also that most seem to suffer with. I know I read somewhere that just where the band is placed has something to do with the acid washing up abnormally. Take care and hope you all stay healthy, Nancy.

Thanks for the info, that's really awful what you and your husband went through! It's good that your children are seeing doctors to prevent it also and I hope they are well. Everyone on my husband's father's side of the family has died of a heart attack, his older brother and sister both have had either heart attacks or some blockage but both survived. My husband and his younger brother have both been seeing cardiologists for years to prevent any problems. This has been a real relief for me. I think I'll heed your advice about getting him to see a specialist. Often when he has a bad attack of acid reflux he'll end up sleeping sitting up. The man can sleep through anything so even though it looks awful he can still sleep. I also have to look into Barrett's as I'm not familiar with it but will check it out on line to learn what it is. My younger sister was a smoker and quit about a month before they discovered she had breast cancer and also had the acid reflux problems and has been treated for it. I think it had something to do with smoking and coffee. I should make sure she gets that looked into also. I knew that Maureen O had two brothers that were in the film. I'll have to look up her house on the internet too and see if there are any pics. Take care and thanks for the info, Nancy.:sneaky:

Mac, I did look into DS but the surgeon is far away and eventually I canceled my appt. with him a few months ago. (I'm not affraid of being stanky) I was going for the stats then. Also I personally don't do "anyathons" but I know my brothers do and 1,500 cals doesn't sound like enough to sustain you for training, I could be wrong, just concerned for your health. BJean, The only time I feel a compulsion to eat is when I'm PMSing or when I was banded. I always had in the back of my head I needed food, good food but I couldn't eat good food so I ate whatever food I could get in. When my band was first removed I noticed that I didn't eat as much as I did pre-banded because my stomach had shrunk over the 14 months banded. Since then I definitely eat more but find my hormonal eating is when I tend to overeat. Once I get my period I feel so normal again. We're all different but just getting to eat healthy food again was worth the removal to me. As you know I didn't revise and never lost any weight so I'm still in "limbo" stage. I think having it covered by insurance makes things much easier also and anyone who is self pay has a much harder time with these kinds of decisions unless they they have unlimited monies. I wish you well Nancy.

I watched this episode when it was on a few weeks ago. He deserves all the he's getting. It's obvious the show is edited well and they always put extreme opposites together but he and his wife were jerks and that's putting it nicely.

I didn't know Maureen O. lived in Ireland all the time now? She was/is such a beautiful actress. My dad died three years ago and always wore one of those tweed caps so I kept two of them to remind me of him. They're kind of pretty in a way. I love Maureen O'Hara's tweed jacket in that movie. I bought the collectors DVD last year but it was always on TCM every year and is again this year on 3/17. My pain wasn't that bad but was enough to help me get my band removed and paid for since it wasn't working. So in a way it was a good thing and I'm not in any pain anymore. Is your son on it as he has the same problems your husband had? My husband is the type of person who will wake up in the middle of the night with acid in his throat coughing, I wonder if I should worry about him now! He's always popping Tums. Sorry again you lost your husband but glad that you have such happy memories of him. Nancy

I know a lot of people have problems at first, my daughter had one for her "disturbed" sleep due to snoring but didn't even have apnea so we ended up sending hers back after a fee of course. She just could not use it. I had to get one before my surgery also and I had severe apnea so I adapted to it because it really did help with my sleep. I have one that just covers my nose. I also joined the WWW.CPAPTALK.COM forum when I got it and they were very helpful with questions I had. I got mine from a respiratory therapist after seeing the pulmonologist and they're seem like they're apt not to try too many masks because once they try them on you they can't sell them to other people. I guess I was lucky that the one I have worked out for me. Good luck and check out that forum and see if they can help you a bit. But it sounds like you may not even need one. Good luck Nancy.

MistyD65, Very well said!:tt2:

What I mean is that she's right there to ask what something is like and what can go wrong and what can go right. I know if I don't revise I'm not going to be thin, that's a given. But some people have real issues with failure and I suppose I'm one of them. I guess you're saying that it's better to take a chance with surgery and fail than to stay fat but it's the failure part that I'm afraid of more so than being fat in the first place. I know I sound a bit of a loon but that's how I feel.

OK, Now I remember who you are as you changed your screen name too. You know I worry more about my daughter than myself. I know because I've gained back weight quickly twice that it happens. I know because I've seen all the famous people on TV who have had the RNY done and you see it come back on. My daughter is the only person I know personally who has had this surgery. She is only post-op May 08. I don't want my daughter doing an emotional downhill spiral if that happens to her. I suppose I've been prepared though for it from the beginning on how to help her. She's still in therapy and I think it helps her and am hoping that will help her also if/when that happens. Of course once she had the surgery I joined a forum just when I had questions as she is not a forum girl. I know from Obesityhelp.com's revision section that every surgery has been revised to every surgery. I think I've seen someone have 3 different ones, I don't know what the high number is yet. But I assume they all can fail in one way or another. I never go to the point where I lost the weight but gaining it back is very stressful on the psyche. Having WLS and gaining weight is very damaging to the psyche too. My psyche is a bit fragile so that's why I'm back and forth about what I'm going to do. Either way I'm damned if I do or damned if I don't! My opinion is that the sleeve wouldn't work for me if the lap band didn't work. Maybe I'm wrong but I don't think it's an option anyway. I remember you said you daughter had children too right? Do you think there is a connection between the pregnancy/(s) and the weight gain at all? My daughter has never had dumping syndrome, I guess I expected that to happen too.

Initially I lost weight prior to banding on the 4 week medifast liquid diet about 20+ pounds. Then I had surgery and lost a bit after that and then when I started to eat normal food I chewed and chewed until one day I discovered I didn't need to because they never really put anything in the first 3 fills, the fill nurse thought I had the smaller band. So I finally got the surgeon to do the next fill and he got me up to about 3.5, not that the number really matters it just made me super tight, this was about 3 months after my surgery. So I was basically too tight at that point but I didn't know any better. So I started eating around the band, mainly yogurts and Jello and Cereal or if it was salad or meat it had to have a lot of dressing or mayo to get it down. I did my fair share of PBing, it was almost normal at this point. Since that fill every time I went to the office after that I was slowly putting back the weight I lost in the beginning and because I was "gaining" the fill tech put in more fill so I kept getting worse and gaining until finally she put in too much as she had written in the wrong amount and I was puking in a church parking lot a block from their office. I didn't know if this was abnormal either, hadn't come to the LBT forum yet. I ended up calling the on-call surgeon and my husband drove me to their office at midnight where a different surgerion discovered the mistake and took out enough to go back to the old amount where I was still too tight but could swallow my own saliva again. This went on for a year of trying and failing getting fills and unfills and never getting to that sweet spot until my surgeon finally unfilled me and then you know the rest. After my stay in the hospital my surgeon sent me for an upper GI which they saw the acid reflux and a small hiatal hernia and that's when they scheduled my removal within the next two weeks. I chose to see a specialist aftewards to make sure there was no damage done to my insides. I still had the pains after my band was removed another reason why I went for an endoscopy because my protonix script had run out I believe that was helping me. I'm on it now and have not had any pains in a long time. I'm not a soda drinker, have to watch the chocolate though, I know there are a lot of things that can aggravate it. I was surprised when they told me that I couldn't drink Water when I went to bed though and still have a hard time stopping that as I like to have my water. Watch "The Quiet Man" if you haven't yet, my favorite Irish flick. Take care Nancy.

Mac, I agree it is a leap of faith that's why this time I spending more time on whether or not I'm going to do it. Before I knew I wanted WLS but which one. Now I want to be sure it will work for me before I decide to have it as I don't think I could really "deal" with another failed WLS. My daughter had none of the comorbs I had just a really high BMI. I'm also perimenopausal and have an underacitve thyroid and type II diabetes and on antidepressants. The whole hormonal thing plays a large roll in my life now that I didn't have when I was her age and then was able to drop 100 pounds twice but of course put it back on both times. We're close in body types but with her age and lack of other issues has a lot to do with her success. I still wonder if I could be successful not to be self prophetic but I need to be really sure this time. I suppose it's not just that I'm related to my daughter that makes me think I could do better but I've been with her through her whole journey and know more what it's like you know what I mean. There are no guarantees though.

I think genetics play a big role in weight. Maybe in some people they happen to sit on their asses and eat all day long but the majority of people aren't like that. Obesity is a very complicated issue. Ghrenlin may play a major roll in some people's weight issues but not every one's as far as we know. I think in many ways this big "obesity" scare that everyone is on can be part of the problem. If the band is working and you're able to keep it off forever that's wonderful but those of us who grew up fat and dieted, lost, gained even more, dieted, loss, gained more again - yo yo'd most of our lives and there are many of us like this it has made us fatter. There are many of us who were fat and have made it worse by dieting as we know dieting doesn't really work. So we're told we're obese and need to lose weight and diet and exercise and as you know there are plenty of us who exercise and don't lose a pound. If we want to lose weight and keep it off we're basically stuck with some form of WLS. Now if you try that and it doesn't work then we're apt to revise to a "better" one. We all want to get to a smaller us but getting there and keeping it off is still a problem for most of us. I still have hope that the medical community will come up with something in our near future that will help us, hopefully less drastic than WLS and hopefully something that won't bring about another yo yo in our lives. They seem to spend a lot of time and money saying we're all obese and we need to lose weight but they really don't seem to have much of a clue as how to really fix the problem in my opinion. I don't know about you but I don't sit on my couch all day and eat bon bons but I have spent most of my life dieting and have had WLS and I'm still close to the weight where my body seems to want to go to.

Upstate NY and we got hammered again today. Grew up outside DC which can get cold too but the snow is something that I still just can't get used to. My husband and I are both part Irish, he more so than I but his full name is Irish and never pronounced correctly which is silly as it's a simple name! That's nice you can remember your husband every year that way. I had the band about 14 months and was removed last October. It never worked for me although I gave it the best try I could and eventually got the reflux issues. At my one year anniversary of being banded I saw my surgeon and that's when we discussed the obvious, a year is long enough and because I was always way too tight all the time he took all the fill out and asked me to wait a month before I decided to have it removed to make sure that's what I wanted to do. I waited more than a month and they removed it pretty quickly after I was in the hospital for the reflux chest pains. I am thinking of RNY because my daughter had it last May and has lost over 140 lbs so far. I have an appt. to meet with my surgeon next month to see if it's feasible etc...and I have decided yet if or what I'll do. I really don't want to make any rash decisions and am glad I didn't revise immediately and have given myself some time to adjust to the removal. Anyway that's about it and Happy pre-St. Patrick's Day Nancy.