lellow

My old band sprung a leak. No fault of mine, just bad luck. So I chose to get a new band, because after extensive testing, it was proven that the band works really well for me. Good weight loss, good maintenance and I've suffered no physical damage from having had the band long term.

Nana I don't think you get it. It's not what you're saying, it's how you're saying it. I have been known to be a bit short myself at times, and I won't lie, I get frustrated too, but I think what everyone is trying to say is that you make it out like you know better than ANYONE else, and I'm sorry, I don't think that's true. You may have read heaps, been through heaps, but I can assure you, others can read, others have experience too. But anytime anyone has a difference of opinion from you, you immediately revert to "oh wait til you've had your band as long as me". That's not helpful and it alienates people. Pulling that card out has a time and place, not as a counter-argument for every single time someone disagrees with you. I have been banded 5 years now. I am, by all accounts, a successful bander. My one complication was not from non-compliance and I have no physical damage as a result of being long term banded. Yet I try (mostly) to relate by telling posters of my own experiences and letting them make their own minds up. Read my posts in this thread alone as an example. I tossed up replying to you, and did in the end because I think you have masses of great information that could assist but you need to work on your delivery. Hell, so do I sometimes. So take this as constructive feedback from one vet to another.

I actually lost from the beginning because I stuck to band sized portions. It was hard but I figured I only had to keep it up until the band kicked in, and lo and behold, I ended up losing most of my weight before it actually started working! But yeah, 60lbs in 6 weeks, wt? Lol! I did do a lot of educating of my family and friends and said it would take a long time for me to lose the weight. I think by saying that, and explaining that the band wasn't working yet, most were surprised when they saw me losing anyway. Though the first time I ever got stuck (at 6.5cc) was at a family party and THEN they knew the band was working. Me jumping around like I was doing a rain dance, then throwing up what I had just eaten, was a bit of a wake up call for them AND me!

I've always eaten carbs and I lost weight just fine. I'm Asian, take away my rice, fine, but if you tell me I can't have noodles as well, we'll have a problem lol. Luckily my band tolerates noodles and Pasta easily. My doctor is not of the belief that I should be restricting myself from any one food group, and I'm good with that. So I don't restrict carbs at all, never have, albeit I try to get my Protein in first most times. I still however will chow down on noodles and pasta if the urge takes me.

I have a 10cc band and felt nothing until 6cc. Sometimes some people just need a little more fill than others do.

I gather that not everyone gets the complete loss of hunger at the green zone, so I am careful about saying that it's what people should look for. But for me, being in the green zone does mean zero hunger. I can go all day without eating, and end up shaking up the end of the day from the lack of food. I had to set my alarm to remind myself to eat. I am no longer in the green zone but that's my choice (I'm trying to be in maintenance but still losing slowly), so I'm closer to the other 'ideal' of not being hungry between meals. That's a good place to be too!

I don't have to be tight not to tolerate rice. For some it's easier than for others. I can still eat most things now but rice is usually a no-no even with minimal restriction. My old band wouldn't tolerate shrimp early on too but with the new band, I don't have any problems eating it. Neither intolerance affected how long I could stave hunger off before needing to eat again, so I put up with the intolerances as they occur, and just avoid those foods henceforth without using them as a yardstick on whether I'm too tight or not.

It did for me! There was another thread here where I suggested that we start a group called "Lapband Nymphos" because it seems that weight loss certainly made some women's libidos go through the roof!

Fear of failure was in all of us. Too many diets that didn't work and now you have a chance to succeed, and it seems so unrealistic considering your history? All of us have btdt. You're not alone. But now is the time to get your head in the game. Learn, read, understand the new habits you will have to take on, and know it is in you to succeed if you want it. As carolinagirl so succinctly puts it, it's ALL about want power. There are so many success stories on this board, and that is because, if you're willing to work with your band, it will work for you. So start now to resolve to being a success, to do the things you need to do to succeed. It's all you need to do - make the decision.

I agree, it's obvious to me that I am in fact not helping, so I will not be replying to you henceforth. I have in the past been a lot less forthright but that doesn't make a bit of difference if it's not what someone wants to hear. I agree that I should not have replied, because let's face it, I don't have any investment in your success. So take from this what you will, and dismiss me if that's your choice, but just because I didn't sugar coat the truth doesn't mean it's not the truth. Like I always say, take the advice, leave it, block me, whatever, no skin off my nose. I don't know you at all, whereas I know plenty of people here support me and have my support. Good luck with your band, btw. No sarcasm intended. For those who know me know that all I want is for others to succeed with it as I have done, and wanting that sometimes means dishing out tough love as others have done for me in the past. But as usual, sometimes no matter what you say, or how many times you say it, or in how many different ways you say it, it's for nothing if someone's made their mind up already.

Ok, I have to admit I have gotten the 'tone' sometimes that you all accuse hazel of. While for you, this is your first time, for some of us who have been around a long time, seeing the VERY similar posts of 'I was told not to eat by medical team but I did anyway, will I be okay?' starts to get very frustrating. And no you don't have to be 'going through something in your life' to get tired of the frequent non-compliance you see from new bandsters EVERY SINGLE DAY. Make no mistake, just because you can today doesn't mean you will be able to for the next fill. If you fool yourself into thinking you know better than the medical instructions you get, you run the risk of getting stuck while your stoma is swollen, cause more swelling, cause vomiting, dehydration, a possible slip, possible erosion. It's amazing to me that people don't take this more seriously. If you broke your arm, would you question whether you would need to wear a cast? No, of course not. No difference here. I think the worst thing that happens on this board are people thinking that support means other people telling you that what you're doing is fine, and you'll be ok. I've been around long enough, seen WAY too many complications as a result of non-compliance to know it's not true. So I won't say it. And if the tone comes out wrongly, it's only because I've said it so many times to so many people, who just don't bother to listen because I'm not saying what they want to hear. Which is why so many veterans, with amazing knowledge and amazing experience and with so much to share, don't post any more.

My doctor had said before 'sometimes we can't get it all out' yet over time, it became clear it wasn't just them not getting it out, it was actually going missing. It took lots of visits spaced a few months apart for it to become undeniably apparent that I had a leak. Though in your case, 1.5cc in 3 weeks is not that slow anyway. That's 0.5cc a week. I was losing half that.

When I was in maintenance before my leak, many asked me why I didn't remove my band because obviously I was eating better and was far more active than I ever had been. But the leak taught me one thing, and that is that without the band, I struggle with hunger, and what that does, despite my best efforts, is make me gain weight. 10 months, I gained 35lbs, not from over-eating, but from struggling with eating band sized portions. I still ate very well and was active, but it wasn't enough. You won't know how you manage until you don't have the band. I agree with Nana, if you really want to see how you'll go, get a complete unfill and see where you are in 12 months. If you're maintaining without it, then get it removed if that's what you really want. That seems like the less risky way forward, to me.

How long between when you had 6.5cc in there and when you had 5cc? I ask because my leak was slow. The Fluid was NOT discoloured either. I lost about 0.25cc a week. Attrition (loss of fluid from the band) is said to happen but I actually think it's more about a loss of the level of effectiveness in the band in a patient who has had it a long time than actually fluid loss. I could be wrong, of course! But a 1.5cc loss in a relatively short period of time is a leak. Pure and simple.

People will always think that their choice is the superior one. I had a colleague get the sleeve on the same day I got my band 5 years ago. She was very adamant that I was going down the wrong path and that the band was 'out-dated'. As a result, I had huge sleeve envy to start with, right after I got my lapband. I did feel like maybe I did the wrong thing. Then the months started passing. I initially lost more slowly than her, but as I got fills, my weight loss picked up. By the time she'd hit goal, so had I. I went back to my old workplace last year, 4 years out of both our surgeries, and I saw her again. She's gained about 1/2 her lost weight back. I had a leak and still had not gained as much as her. And for me, a replacement band has meant that I then went on to lose the weight I had gained and am back in maintenance. I got a chance at a new start. What choices does she have?? So the moral of the story is this: weight loss surgery is only as good at the person who is willing to work at it. There is NO magic surgery. If anyone ever says you should have got this or that, next time say, 'well we'll see where we both are in 5 years, shall we?"

Nope I don't burp at all.

I suspect that bayou and I would DEFINITELY get arrested... wanna come along CG?

Nawww Guy, perhaps we just need to get to know each other better....?

The fact is you don't wake up from surgery and the band has changed everything about you. The only way to lose weight is to eat less calories than you expend. In the first few weeks post surgery, your body has been traumatised, you have 'shocked' your body with a liquid diet and you're recovering. Given all these factors, why would anyone expect to be losing huge amounts of weight in this time?? The liquid diet, imo, sets people up with unrealistic expectations. They lose big numbers on the liquid diet by virtually starving their body in order to reduce the fattiness of the liver, and then wonder why they aren't losing big numbers after their band is placed. Except the liquid diet serves a medical purpose, not a vanity purpose. No one can lose weight in a healthy way by only drinking VLCD liquids. It's a short term thing only. Once banded, you go through a period of healing from the abdominal surgery you just had. Healing is what is important. However, if you want to lose weight in this time, by all means exercise, burn off more calories than you consume. It's simple math. Eat less calories and exercise to lose. But the band will not likely even be working yet at this point. Once you start getting fills and feel the band working, controlling your hunger will be easier, but it still won't control the amount or type of food you choose to put in your mouth. Most banders could be too tight and still gain weight by eating ice cream (and I see them on this board often). So there you have it. Understand your band, understand the process, and be realistic. Otherwise you're going to quickly get disillusioned by the band when in fact it can be really effective for most people.

Year ago I asked if anyone felt like their band got tighter when they were aroused and I swear, all I got back was crickets. So let me ask this way: do you get funny noises coming from your tummy when you're in the mood? My boyfriend can tell if he's going to get lucky if he makes overtures and my tummy starts making rumbling noises lol. It actually gave him a complex when my band was leaking and the noises stopped. He started thinking I'd lost interest!