stevegoad

Over the last 4 years, I can't even begin to count the number of times I've had my doubts. I was private pay, so going back was not an option. But in spite of my success, and in spite of loving some of the effects of that success (being able to travel with my wife for one... for some reason she did not like sitting on an airplane next to a 400 pound man), every time I eat I hate it... I hated paying thousands of dollars for hernia repair, only having the surgeon tell me that the hernia was cause by my gastric surgery. I hate when I go to a restaurant having to scope out the rest rooms (just in case). I know, people around here claim I'm strange hating my band (though I bet there are other successful banders that have the same feelings I do who just won't speak up), but that's the truth. I love the results, I love my life... but I couldn't tell you how many times I have felt it was not right.

I eat sushi about once every could of months... It works fine, although I have to eat it slowly (it's normal in Japan to eat a piece whole... that's not going to happen now, no matter how much I chew). But as long as I take it slowly, it's not a problem.

Well, I tend to do slim fast or a granola bar around Breakfast time. lunch will be something light. Some tuna or a weight watchers dinner. maybe a bar or a slim fast for a snack Supper is whatever is cooked. Tonight was grilled chicken and some cooked cauliflower (overdone, but a bit mushy is easier). It's not so much the diet as whatever I can handle.

I work at a church, so it's a close-knit staff. We visit, we share time, and we've shared a fair number of meals. =I told one co-worker about my surgery, a woman who I had no doubt would not say a word, and yet if there was problems getting back would cover for me. So when I had surgery on Friday (a day off anyway) and got back on Monday, she watched out for me. I hurt like heck when I got back, but just said my back was out. I told one person at the office; 4 years later, she is still the only one who knows. Many of these co-workers, I've visited with, eaten with, and had many conversations with... But I don't talk about the surgery because, honestly, I don't want questions. I don't want people asking a lot of questions about the band, I don't want them watching me to see if I will eat something wrong... I don't want them watching me if I get up from the table during a meal wondering if I'm going to throw up. Like I said, I don't want the crap. It's you business, and your choice.

Oh, and BTW... Don't let that addictive thinking hit you... You do have control over your eating. The stess didn't cause you to eat; it made it easier, it might have given you opportunity and desire... but you ate the calories. The stress didn't... Not trying to be mean. But the lapband is only a tool. You still have to control your behavior. So just hang in there.

Well, this isn't really anything band related. I'm married to a retired teacher, who taught 31 years and retired at 50. My gut instinct is that it's just end-of-summer stress you're talking about, and odds are once you get back in the groove, you'll be fine. Just go in, do it. I don't know how long you've taught, but you'll be fine. Just hange in there.

It's no biggie, other than the calories. Beer could be problematic, since it can stretch your pouch... But non-carbonated alcohol is no problem as far as the band goes. Just limit yourself so as not to put too many calories.

I was banded at True Results. I don't remember the surgeon's name, since he left Houston right after my surgery (I met him the day of, and never saw him again). Haven't been back there since my one-year followup... but over all the staff seem like nice people and knowledgeable. And I will admit that their counselors seem very willing to talk to you. But in the end, they are a weighloss surgery mill... they have the job of getting you in, getting you out, and moving on. In my case, after the first couple of months, they were not pro-active at contacting me. At one point, I went for a fill, and they told me my band at stretched. That was the last time I was there. In 3 years since, I never received a note seeing if I had taken their advice, never checked up on me. Not that I am blaming them. It is the patient's job to follow their plan. As it was, I did follow through, and my band has been working well for those years since... but I didn't feel I needed them to tell me, and I didn't feel I needed to pay $100+ to walk in and have them tell me "you're doing good." So if you want lap band, they are great. But don't expect them to worry about you... you have to be the one who takes care of yourself.

I kept my band a secret from most. My thought.. who the heck needs to know. If you don't want to be under the microscope... don't place yourself on the slide.

It's been a while since I got on the list... so a quick re-introduction. I was banded on July 25, 2008 at True Results here in Houston. These guys are one of those quicky banding. Since I am private pay, I was approved and had the surgery in about 2 weeks time. I went in for regular fills for the first year, and have been reasonably restricted since (even though I have lost touch with the clinic, and the surgeon quit practicing in Houston about a month after my surgery). At my highest, I weighed 420. On the day of my surgery, I was 372. Today, I weighed in at 251 and have been steady in the 250 area for nearly 3 years. And while I am happy of the results, I have HATED THE BAND EVERY DAY FOR THE LAST 4 YEARS. I know it's unpopular. While I like that I can get around better, that I have been able to walk, snorkel, fly without being insulted, and in general, live a better life, I hate the pain, the inability to eat even simple, healthy things like salad. I hate the fact of risking having to run to the bathroom after I eat. THe surgery cost me 12,000 out of pocket... except that's now up to about 40,000 since the surgery weakened me, causing a hernia which strangulated last week (and yes, I have the surgeon's word that the lap band was the cause). After the surgery and the removal of 6" of small intestine, I am now recovering. I have gotten good results as far as weight... but I will suggest anything before surgery. It is a bad thing, and if anyone is thinking about it... think again. You might lose weight... but you might also hate it.

The key to this one comes right at the beginning... It's only a tool. Too many people go into surgery thinking it will do all the work for you. If you don't make the right choices, if you don't use the tool right, it will do you no good... and then the band is not to blame.

Is it an issue really? I'm not trying to be flippant, but why are you worried about telling him? I've played my band fairly low-key. My wife (obviously) knows, as does my pastor, and a few close friends... most people who know me, including people who I have known and eaten with for years, have no clue... and that's the way I like it. If you get to the point that you are talking marriage, when discussion of medical issues comes into play, then it becomes an issue. If you are not that serious, than it just doesn't matter.

Doubtful that it would show erosion of the band (at last it wouldn't show erosion any more than a regular X-ray. The barium swallow shows the stomach, and the intestinal track... it wouldn't highlight the band, since it's outside the stomach. The most it would show is if there is the restriction level. Actual levels of erosion of the band would not be as visible.

What is "messing up?" After all, we're not on a diet; we're in a lifetime plan. Some days are going to be better than others as far as making the right choices in our eating. Each day, each meal, each snack, each minute, you have to chose who to use the tool that we've chosen to help us lose weight. The band won't do it for you. But if you are facing depression 3 or 4 times a week because you feel you're not using the tool correctly, and you just don't feel you can make the right choices, it sounds like it's not so much your band or your diet. You might seek a counselor as to the root of your problem.

I fly several times a year... the first time post-op was about 10 days after surgery. On occasion, I might have a little discomfort, but since the most I do is drink a bloody-mary mix (not the alcohol... who wants to spend that kind of money on an airplane) and some nuts, it's not a problem. Flying is no problem at all with the band.

I'm off the CPAP. And I am one of the reluctant ones. I slept on a CPAP for 12 years (diagnoses in 1998 before apnea was a popular diagnosis) and I loved it. It took me a couple of years after I lost weight to try going without it... but I started trying because my wife loves to go on cruises, and it's a bit difficult finding plugs close to the bed on a ship... so I tried it, knowing that it was possible. I didn't snore on the trip, and after about a week, I started getting used to it. It really took me about a month to start gettting really comfortable without the mask (as I said, I loved it), but now, a year later, I am still doing great without the CPAP, and doubt I will go back.

The chicken and tuna salad, if you really make is small (puree means smooth) might be OK... No pickle relish in it... just tuna mushed up fine and mayo. Same with the carrots... if they are cooked to the point of mush. Peanut Butter.... well, it's pretty sticky, and as it goes down, it doesn't get much better. Even after 4 years, I eat it, but I have to take it in small bits because of it sticking on the way down. I would say that's a no-go during the puree stage. If in doubt, put it into the blender. While it's been a while, it seems the puree week was the worst of my post-op eating days... but Remember, it's just a week... you can handle it.

Simple. I love my wife. We got married in 2006. Since she is retired, and I am semi-retired (I know, 52 is young for semi-retirement... and I am extremely thankful that I have the chance), we enjoy being able to travel. In 2007, we went to Hawaii. After the trip, my wife let me know that while she loves me and wants us to spend our lives together, she would rather travel alone than sit next to my 400+ pounds on an airplane. That was when I decided I needed to do something. So now, I am hovering in the 250 range, and thinking about pulling off a few more (I've been in this area for 3 years now), and glad to travel with her, and look forward to many more years together.

From a male prospective, it doesn't c hange much. Now, I speak from the experience who was nearly 400 when I got married, and now at 250 am still madly and passionately in love with my wife (and it's pretty nice having a woman who I know has seen me at my very worst and loves me no mattter what. Such feelings are, in and of themselves, a turn-on). If you are single and looking around, you might have some feelings change as your self-confidence improves... seeing youself healthier, you might find it easier to see yourself with a healthier woman. But in general, such things are related to your self image; who you see yourself with. So the short answer is... only time will tell, Things might change in proportion to how you see yourself change, but the values you put into a relationship with remain the same.

I don't even remember the name of the surgeon now... It wasn't Spivak (I didn't even want him because of his big billboard presence... it was a bit disturbing for me... I was with one in the practice who didn't advertise as much). I doubt I need therapy. Let me be clear. Even though I hate the band, I am very happy with my life. I have been blessed, and I am quick to embrace the blessings of life. But if I had it to do over again, I would have made a much more serious attempt to lose naturally and keep it off. I was one who had done it before, losing over 100 on slim fast, but then gaining it back. Again, had I had known then what I know now... I would have made better choices. But again, I love my life. it's just the band I hate...

Hey Gang, Lap Band Talk has so many subgroups that it is easy to get lost (probably why there is only one long Christian thread active). So this is beyond just the standard "I praise God for my band" statement... Let's talk the band and our faith. I will start out by saying that while I have had my band for nearly 8 months, and I am a strong Christian, I have to say that I am one who does not equate the two directly. So I would like to know how you balance the two, so to speak. I have a master of divinity from SMU, pastored for 7 years in smaller United Methodist Churches in east Texas (1991-98). As a musician, Off and on during the past 30 years, I would also do Christian concerts that incorporated faith. Since I am a good songwriter, but have a bit of Bob Dylan in my voice, I incorporated a lot of comedy in my concerts (both in my songs and in my "between song banter"). Since I have at times weighed as much as 450, I never had any problem joking about my weight, and weight never was a problem with my weight. I say all that to say that weight and faith have not been in conflict with me - I have not noticed a difference now that I am losing. God's love is still there for me fat or thin. But in glancing through the 95 pages of Christian bandsters thoughts, mostly surface thoughts, I see all sorts of comments about "I praise God for my band." So I am asking, what is it about the band, about weight loss, or even about your fat life prior to the band, that relates to you as a Christian. Thanks for sharing.

My wife weats shorts over her swimsuit all the time. (actually, she won't go to the pool in without them). Not a problem.

I went in for a "survey group" a few months ago, and the leader introduced the TOGA... Same cost as Lap Band, no need for fills, and lots less pain. I would have been there in a shot had it been available a year ago.

OK, so the video is not about my losing weight, but it is the first video of me since lapband - so the first public showing in over 100 pounds. The video is a song called "Pray In the Eye" a song I wrote on September 13, 2008 as hurricane Ike was passing over my home. The video features pictures of the storm, as well as video of me playing "The Ike Special" a three-stringed box guitar I built from debris from the hurricane (siding from a house, a fence board, carpet, sticks, etc.) the thinner me can be seen at Let me know what you think. Thanks

On the day of my surgery, I set a goal of 230 pounds. My reason was simple... On surgery day, I weighed 370. Going down to 230 meant I could easily celebrate making the halfway point, and getting to 300 in one whack. But now that I am within 40 pounds of that goal, my looking at my saggy body, it is time to renegotiate that goal... and drop it down a bit. So why a new goal of 212? Also simple. On January 1, 2008, I woke up New Years day weighing 412. :eek::thumbup::confused::wink: Between then and July 25th when I had surgery, I lost 42 pounds, but that 412 is as real to me as my surgery weight. To reach 212 would mean 200 pounds down. So my new goals... 230 by July 25 (my one year banding anniversary) 212 by January 1 (200 down in 2 years). Not that there is really a lot to say about this, but just thought I would share. Thanks for listening.