Nanook

Susan, They're mainly mice but they're very tiny and cute and usually have themes like Christmas or other holidays. Go to weeforestfolk.com and you can see some. Sorry, I'd cut and paste but I'm bad at it, Nancy. Oh and besides being very tiny they're really expensive!

Obviously the people that are happy are those who the band is working for. As the other poster said if you're having problems losing weight you need to speak with your surgeon about it. I could not live with the band as it was and the comps I got with it but others seem to do well, it maybe a crap shoot but it's up to you and your doc to figure out. Good luck Nancy.

I wish I could help with ideas but as my band was always too tight I suffered myself. I believe somewhere here is a recipe section though.

I personally didn't revise after my removal but my 20 yo daughter is doing well now with her RNY. I would suggest posting this new so you'll get more responses. Good luck to you Nancy:smile:

joiful, you do know that the band doesn't stop most of the sweets and junk food. That was a big problem for me because I was always way too tight even with no saline but to compensate for lack of food because the Protein and veg wasn't going down I would eat the unhealthy stuff that would. Wish you luck in getting what you need and at a cheaper price, Nancy.:thumbup:

I had mine removed by the same surgeon who put it in and it cost $10,000 which was a combo of the surgeon's fee and the hospital charges. I have insurance so I don't know if it would be cheaper without, good luck Nancy.

Just from reading some of these threads and others and my own experiences with the band there are many inconsistencies. Some people are stuck rather easily some hardly ever. Some never get restriction even at the fullest amount and some like me even without any saline in the band could never eat bread and still food would get stuck.

I've been on meds for the past 20 years after my last baby was born. I didn't develop anxiety related to driving until I started working in DC and living in Montgomery Village and taking a bus every day. I think the act of not driving in that traffic made it easier for me to develop the anxiety. It also runs in my family and my siblings have it also but we're not all driving phobic like I am. I went a whole year without even driving so I'm much better but still the thought of driving in MD again scares me. Where I live now there is really no public transportation so you have to drive everywhere but there's always something I avoid. I did find it interesting about the thyroid I'll have to look more into that thanks. MY eldest daughter gets ticks every times she switches lanes on the highway here. I hope things get better for your also! Take care Nancy.:cursing:

Falloutgirl, Enjoy your 30th over here and don't worry about your size, some of us are actually a little large here! Don't let that stop enjoying your life take care Nancy.:cursing:

travelinsnorkel, you sound very similar to me. I also have some driving anxiety but never heard a connection between that and the thyroid, my thyroid is underactive also and I'm on meds for that too. I also suffer much more with depression during the winter months and up where I live February is a killer and luckily they give a week off then so many head south. I also am on Klonapin but usually just a night unless I'm really anxious and Cymbalta for depression. I was down in the DC/Md area over Thanksgiving and know the traffic there is much more stressful and feel sorry for you as I grew up there and it's only gotten worse! I know some people are able to go off their meds but for me thick or thin I need them and am much better on than off! There's still a stigma associated with depression and any sort of mental illness and makes some people want to go off their meds prematurely if they should at all. It's not a weakness of character and I wish people would understand it better. Take care Nancy.:cursing:

Sorry to hear that, did you have your band replaced after the removal or just removed? Take care Nancy.:cursing:

I think her last post speaks for itself

FalloutGirl, Not sure how old you are but you sound like a pretty smart person to me! I can't believe your doctor made is sound so easy with the lap band anyway but unfortunately some doctors do. The band didn't work for me and I ended up gaining and then having other comps afterwards. You knew something was amiss with this doctor and you made the right choice for yourself. Don't let people tell you that you can't do something because you can do whatever you want to do! And you're on the mark with the yo yo dieting. That's what put the pounds on me in the first place. Best to listen to your body and give it what it needs. Take care Nancy:smile:.

When diagnosed with sleep apnea, which of course can happen to heavy people as well as thin people I learned some of the connections with sleep loss and weight gain. When you have sleep apnea you appear to be sleeping but you are not getting a good quality sleep because you stop breathing. Each time you are awakened because of the apneas you are not fully awake but it does affect that quality. Many people overeat during states of sleep deprivation and some do it mindlessly. It has something to do with your body's energy. So that's one reason why sleep is so important besides the fact she is wounded and should be in bed as her doctor had instructed her. Nancy:smile:

Katri, It sounds like you're having some problems with your esophagus too although I am no doctor. You could be having esophageal spasms. The pains I was having were in the center of my chest and went away quickly. I still don't know what exactly they were if they were spasms or not but I've never really had an issue with swallowing like you have. I still get pains in the area where my port was and am not sure why. I had mine removed by the same surgeon who placed mine. Because of my chest pains and was checked into a hospital to make sure it wasn't my heart and it wasn't so they could only attribute it to acid reflux and had an upper GI done. That showed the acid reflux and also a small hiatal hernia. So with that and the fact that I gained as opposed to losing on the lap band I was able to have it removed last month and it was covered by my insurance. I had been following up all along with my lap band surgeon or someone in his team during the year I was banded. So it was no surprise in the end when I had it removed. I had plenty of fills and unfills it just was not the right procedure for me and I believe after research has caused the problems with my esophagus and the hernia/reflux issues. I am having an endoscopy on Friday to see what damage has been done. I ended up having the procedure after my father passed so I know what emotions play with these decisions and weightloss in general. I can tell you that it was done out-patient and the hospital charge was about $7,600 and the surgeon fee was about $2,400 for a total of about $10,000. Insurance covered most of my costs so I don't know if you had it removed in Mexico if it would be a lot less. I think getting the lap band was about 3 times as much but I did spend the night in the hospital. Now I'm seeing a gastroenterologist for the endoscopy so of course any complications will just add more money to the bill. I hope I was helpful and sorry that you are going through bad times with your band also. The best thing to do is keep up with it and see a doctor who can help with the complications to get things rolling and then you can decide whether or not you need or want to have yours removed. Take care Nancy.:thumbup:

I was told because I was put in the hospital because of the chest pains that was why I was approved so quickly for removal. I was going to have it removed further down the road but this sped up the procedure. I would speak to your surgeon about it. I met with mine prior and he said when I was ready to go through his surgery coordinator. They handle all the insurance at their office but he knew if it wasn't covered I wasn't interested. I think it's best to start a trail with your surgeon since you're having problems. I had mine removed after having it for 14 months. Good luck to you Nancy.

I think sometimes when you have complications with your lap band the surgeon can go in and find something that you don't expect. Mine removed my band but did not do anything to see what damage was done to my esophagus I had to be proactive and find another surgeon. I think sometimes they're paranoid that they will get sued or something. My band removal was covered and I knew ahead of time. If your insurance covered getting the band I'd hope they'd cover the removal due to the fact that you were having issues and that's why it was removed. I know it's hard to be positive right now as you're not in the ideal situation as you had hoped previously to getting banded but give yourself some time and see if there's a way to deal with yourself without beating yourself up over gaining a couple of pounds. I gained weight on the lap band and am losing it now that it's gone. Sometimes it's hard to predict what will happen after banding. Good luck, Nancy.

anon... Good luck with your surgery! Even though I have probs with the reflux and a possible hernia, having my endoscopy in a couple weeks, I still feel much better without the band and like being in control of my body again. Take care Nancy:smile:

I'd discuss that with your prescribing doctor.

If you are pbing why do you say you have very little restriction? I would think if you can't eat bread or Protein very well that you have restriction. Is it possible you have too much restriction? Are you eating around the band with slider foods and high sugar/fat foods? If you got on the phone with the doctor's office you want to see and explain to them your situation and how you'd really want to see them maybe they'd bend a bit and make an appt. for you. I think with your situation you really need to have the backup of a good fill doctor. I understand being a struggler as I was also and now am without a band. Don't feel bad as you're not alone. Good luck to you, Nancy:smile:

That doesn't sound so good, I know that the band can cause acid reflux in people and am seeing a specialist on Friday to see what issues I have now that mine has been removed. I suppose it happens to some people and not all of course but yours definitely needs to be treated. I hope it gets better once you get some fill removed but mine never got any better even without any fill so good luck to you Nancy.

I saw my primary yesterday and he knows my history with my diabetes II, hypothyroidism, PCOS etc... and brought up something that I don't remember the name of but instead of taking my metformin for my diabetes I can inject myself twice a week with some hormone and people have lost up to 30 pounds on it. Is this the same thing? I don't have the info from him because we weren't even going to do it until after my bloodwork came back with the right numbers. Let me know if this sounds familiar or if they are two totally separate things, Nancy:smile:.

Don't delve, it's not worth your time, lol. It doesn't work for everyone and I'm one of those few and now have to deal with esophagus/hernia issues in the aftermath. But as you can see here most people seem to do well with it so keep positive. Plus I found it to be one of the easiest surgeries to deal with out of the ones I'd had previously. Just wanted to wish you luck as I saw it was coming up for your soon take care Nancy.

I just don't know why you feel the need to fight me?

Good luck with your surgery Beth, I'm not a good example of a bandster but wish you luck and health anyway, Nancy.:rolleyes2: