lellow

I'm in my 5th year with the band, had complications (a leaky band) and opted to have it replaced with another band last year. I hit goal in 7 months from my first band placement, have been under goal for most of the last 5 + years except for a couple of months when the band was leaking. I'm back under goal now, got there within weeks of my new band being placed. The bands placed 10 years ago are also different from the bands placed 5 years ago, and again different from ones placed more recently. Like any new medical innovation, it takes years to learn and improve on it. So the longevity of the bands placed 10 plus years ago shouldn't be compared to the longevity of the ones placed now. I would keep replacing any band that 'gave out' between now and the end of my life if they were to fail, as long as I could do that. I hope every band I get will last forever, but I'm also prepared if they do not.

Refilling by removing all the Fluid and then replacing it actually causes more swelling than just a normal fill imo. I have had both because of a leak, and removing all the fluid is much harder on me. I would not prefer to do that if I can help it. I feel for you, OP. I think it's horrendous that your slip was not picked up as soon as you experienced some symptoms. I felt a quick loss of restriction in Jan 2012, and my surgeon immediately began investigation, though it did take many many months to resolve. I'm horrified to hear that your complication was not picked up until it had done so much damage. I worry sometimes that the band requires SUCH a high level of aftercare that if patient and doctor are not in sync, bad things happen. And that you would have to pay so much to have it removed when it was damaging you, astounds and saddens me. I'm in Australia, where we have universal healthcare. That wouldn't have happened here. I have been lucky in that aside from the leak and the issues associated with that (repeated operations to resolve) the band has worked incredibly well for me. I'm sorry your band has caused you so much pain and suffering. And I don't blame you for wishing you'd never had it done, given your particular circumstances.

You lose a lot of weight in your pre-op diet. You're eating next to nothing. Of course you will lose. But that sort of massive weight loss is not common or particularly healthy. I won't lie, I was you, it KILLED me those weeks when the scale didn't move. I didn't get it, how could it possible be? It's coz we're not machines. The math of calorie counting looks great on paper, but the truth is there are a tonne of biological and environmental reasons why someone will lose weight. So it might go fast, then slow, then fast, then nothing. The trick though is to be consistent. Continue to eat well, continue to exercise, and it will happen OVER the course of several months or years. The biggest hurdle all of us, as weight loss patients, face is those plateaus, those slow losing periods, when we feel like it's ALL for nothing, and it's never going to work for us. That's why diets constantly fail. But this is not a diet, THIS is your new lifestyle. Keep at it. There will be many times of the coming years when you will lose and gain and maintain and then put on 5 lbs (like I did recently) but knowing and embracing your new lifestyle and not giving up on it will get you the results you need. Don't panic.

yes there are people who won't lose. Or more like what B52 said, they lose and then they gain back. A small number may be the result of complications, but most won't be. I have lived without a functioning band for 15 months when it was leaking and I gained. Because it is harder without the band. The flipside of that is, it's EASIER with the band. What the band doesn't do though, is make sure you get regular aftercare to ensure you get the right fill level. It doesn't make sure you're informed and learning about how to live life with a band. It doesn't make you exercise and get more active. It DOESN'T stop you putting food in your mouth, or grazing all day long on milkshakes and chocolate, if that's your inclination. So yes ^^ there are lots of little ways people can NOT lose weight. Assuming the band is going to do it all for you is probably the fastest way to failure. It makes it easier, it doesn't do it for you. And as long as people have free will, some will still choose not to do what it takes to lose weight, and that's ok, as long as they own their choices. Just choose to not be one of those people.

Good luck! I knew I would need some surgery when I got to goal, so I guess I wasn't surprised. Hopefully it is affordable for you, I don't regret my surgery for a second!

Weight loss made me more confident, which made me speak up more at work, take on more and assert myself more. The other side of that was that once where I was the 'invisible' heavy girl in the room, my hard work actually got noticed, and I was encouraged and headhunted for bigger and better things. So yes, I pursued a career change that I would never have had the belief in my myself to try for before. And I've been really successful in it.

I'm going in for a fill in a few days. I can eat Breakfast, eat rice and bread, I don't even feel the band unless I've eaten way too much and it kicks back. I can't go 3 - 4 hours without hunger right now. And I'm asking for 0.25cc. If you're close, or think you're close, go slow. It doesn't hurt to go slow. In fact if you get too filled and overtight, you actually reverse all the good work by causing your stoma to swell and cause discomfort. I got a 1cc fill and was throwing up Water. I had it taken out and have since had 5 x 0.25cc fills with no issue, and I need another. If you feel like another might be in order, take it really easy, especially if you think you're close.

I have had a gooood (and in good, I mean bad) Christmas break. I don't think I stopped eating for the whole month of Dec. I've gained some weight but that's not the hard part, the hard part is getting back OUT of the habit of eating even when I'm not hungry. I have been trying to get back into good eating habits since the new year and I can feel those habits gnawing at my resolve. One cookie, one handful of nuts, just itty bitty things that all add up. I think it's one of the biggest fights we'll have, this addiction to eating. It's like being a smoker, you may not smoke anymore, but when you have a drink, or are in a social setting, you FEEL like it. And giving into the temptation of a food addiction is SO damned easy, because it's EVERYWHERE. It sucks and I wish it was easier for us all, but it's just not, so all we can do is vent to each other.

I lost almost all of my weight with a stationary bike. I sold me when I moved states and I still miss it. I eventually graduated to a real bike and even today, I love cycling! It's tough at first but keep at it, I promise you, you will get stronger, and soon you'll love how it feels!

I've gained a fair bit over Christmas. My band is loose and I've eaten around it. I won't lie, it was my choice, I own it and the bigger butt is the proof of it. But I know I need to get back on top of it. Make the decision and start NOW. If I can, you can too. We've had our fun, now is the time to set our minds to changing it. Because it's that easy, if you don't like where you are, change it. Feeling discouraged won't change a thing. We need to decide that this is something we can fix and fix it. You have to want it more than you want food, and the 'comfort' that food brings you, because it's a false comfort. You enjoy for the moment, hate yourself after. Break that cycle. I fall into the same cycle every now and again and you have to decide to change it. Only you can. I'm booking in a fill on Monday. You have yours coming up. Make the decision to not sabotage yourself any longer. I know you can do it.

Haven't read everything but wanted to say that I come, I go, I come back again. I leave when I start getting sick of the infighting, or if I am all "talked out" about the lapband, I come back when I feel like chatting again. This place isn't real life for me, it's a forum and forums are for exchanging info. If I don't feel like talking, I don't, if I feel like it, I come back and chat, sometimes in the forums when I want to help, sometimes in the chat room when I just want to shoot the breeze. I doubt I'd ever leave for good. Like the band, it's a tool for me, my weight loss and now my weight maintenance. I will always get something out of this site. I've made great friends and will probably continue to, and in that alone there is a value to me. If you piss me off (and people do, I'm only human) I walk away and realise my life is bigger than this place. So within seconds I forget to give a crap about the opinions of someone I don't know and am not invested in. So I may be MIA sometimes but no one is ever getting rid of me for good I don't think.

(((lellow)) where you been........so good to see YOU maybe after you get to feeling better, you can reschedule sexy thang I had some health issues (completely NOT band related, just to clarify) with vestibular migraines so have been laying low for a bit. But I'm feeling almost 100% so I'm baaaaccckkkk!! Muahahahahahah!! I have missed you, girl!

Banded 5 and a bit years now. I had a replacement when my band was leaking earlier this year too. If I can help it, I'll be banded forever.

This was me, until I finally did have the fill that 'stuck' and I felt nearly no hunger. Don't lose heart, it can be finicky until you get to that point.

I had to cancel my half sleeve tattoo scheduled for Feb because I've had to go on aspirin for migraines recently. Someone get a tattoo and allow me to live vicariously through you!!

I was met with some resistance after each time my port was replaced when I kept saying I still thought I had a leak. You do need to be your own advocate. You know what a working band feels like. If it's not working like that anymore, you need to find out why, and don't stop until you do. I was the biggest PITA for my doctor, but in the end, I was right about the leak, even though they never found it. I'd still be struggling with no restriction if I had given up, and trust me, there were times I felt like giving up. My insurance paid for all three surgeries. My band was faulty and they cover revisions due to faulty bands. BUT I am in Australia so it works differently here. P.S. Hi tmf!!

I'm here. Busy at work just lately but I always pop by and check in. I need this place to keep me sane, even if it sometimes drives me insane! You're not getting rid of me that easy. Been through a couple of site changes now and people always work out the kinks after a few weeks

No not all leaks are in the port or tubing. I had my port/tubing replaced twice and still had a leak. I had every test known to man to try to locate the leak but they couldn't find it. So they replaced everything about 4 months ago and I am back to having restriction. I have been told that a leak can't always be located, and while it's common to occur in the tubing or port (especially a slow leak, I was told) it's not impossible that it should occur elsewhere.

I guess not being "thrilled with the results" doesn't tell me much, so I'll hazard a guess that you can eat more than you thought, that you haven't reached a good fill level and you haven't lost (enough) weight. It's true with the sleeve you get immediate restriction. The band requires maintenance after placement. But my success is partly to do with the band removing a lot of my physical hunger, but should also be attributed to a lifestyle change. I understand when someone finds the band difficult to live with (reflux, pain, whatever) revising seems like a good idea (though sleeve surgery has it's own 'side effects) but the lack of success should be analysed for cause, because that cause MAY not have anything to do with the type of surgery you had (e.g food addictions) and may prevent your success whatever weight loss surgery you have. Just my two cents.

5.5 years with the lapband and still love it. And I guess you see haters all over the internet, because if you don't have problems, why would you go looking to talk about nothing? I got a band replacement earlier this year because of a leak, and I returned to this site. And already Im back at goal and maintaining, and I'm drifting away. So what you see on the internet is NOT representative of the bandster population. I think that's something to keep in mind. I don't argue with those who bash the band anymore because everyone is entitled to their opinion based on their experiences, but they have no right to MY opinion. I am proof the band works, works well and provides good long term prognosis. I don't need to argue my reality with someone who refuses to accept it.

Haz, this will be your first bikini of many, dollface. I remember that first bikini, I was so pleased! Now that bikini, if cut up, would make 3 of the ones I know wear! LOLOL! I complete forget I have scars most of the time, and I have some BIG scars! Gonna go perve on your bikini pics now.

I'm looking down the barrel of a full band replacement. I've had two port revision surgeries already in the last year - one where they replaced the port and tubing and one where they didn't, not that it made a difference to my recovery at all. The operations were tough on me. The anesthesia knocked me around, and I had significant swelling in my stomach, but I suspect it was because he'd done it all via one incision in the middle of my belly (through my old body lift scar). Now I'm looking at a full band replacement due to the fact that my band is still leaking. I am looking for anyone who has had a full band replacement who might give me an idea on recovery. And if you had port revision surgery once before too, that's even better, coz you would be able to compare the two. Is replacement as taxing as having the surgery in the first place? Do you suffer from wind and have that 'tightness' afterwards where you can't eat for a week? Do you need as much time to recover as the original surgery? I'm trying to prepare myself for it. I need to work around work so want to know how much time I'll need off, whether I need to stock up on peppermint tea again and mushies etc. Any help would be welcomed!