mjacot35

Hello Jersey, My Surgeon is Marc Neff, he is wonderful. Awesome bedside manner and actually listens to me and my issues and really works with me to find the solution. He is in Cherry Hill, SJ. My pre-op diet was normal then nothing after midnight the day before surgery. Post-op was liquid for at least 24-48 hours then soft food like applesauce, mashed potatoes you get the idea. Then I was making dinner for the family and putting mine in the food processor so it looked like it was already chewed(sorry to be so gross). He told me to progress as tolerated. The reason for the liquid into soft food was so that your stomach can get used to having something around it right after surgery(healing). Mine was NOT filled during surgery. I went back 4 weeks after for post-op visit then we filled it a week after that. Then 6 weeks after I went back for another fill(3 days before Christmas) and didnt have another fill for 2 years. I only lost 35-40lbs then for 2 years I was stuck at the same weight. Since my 3rd fill(march of this year) I gained 4lbs and then we found out about my port not being connected to my body anymore so we replaced it and unfilled my completely. I go back June 16th for a post-op visit and will schedule my 1st fill all over again and pray that my troubled days are behind me. I'm trying to stay positive but I'm very discouraged.

Hi I'm from Jersey too! South Jersey. I was on here alot in the begining. I was banded in Sept of 08. Have had a really bad experience with the band this far. I actually just came back to work today because for 8-10 months I have been having horrible pain. 3 CT scans and 2 US's later we saw that my port was not attached anymore and was flipping over in my belly. I also had an exploratory surgery at the same time and my tubing and intestines were wrapped around each other and scar tissued together, yeah fun stuff!! Oh well, It's fixed and time to get back to loosing. Hopefully you have a much better experience than me.

Potato skin, well done meat and french fries. Some days everything bothers me and it all gets stuck

I still get the pain and I was banded in Sept 08. It feels like a pinching, sharp pain. Only once in a while not on an everyday basis. Good Luck!!!

I was so bad with the pain that my surgeon met me at the hospital and re admitted me for 2 days. He called the band company and asked if anyone had ever reported this horrible pain, as a matter of fact they did a whole study on it. It was gas combined with the referred pain from the swelling and placement of the band on my diaphram. It only felt good when I laid on my left side with a heating pad. So that is what I did. It did finally go away but not for at least a month especially after I ate something it came back. Good luck it will go away eventually.

That was an awesome book!!! LOL You made me want to try one more fill w/my band before calling it quits. I feel the restriction but not fullness, does that make sense? I am hungry and hear my stomach growling but to restricted to eat more!

I am exercising. I'm chewing and chewing but some times something goes down not totally chewed. It's weird that I can some days go all day eating and no problem, but then there are days like yesterday that I get the first bite stuck and I'm screwed. I'm tired of hearing my kids and hubby say "its stuck already?" Like I'm making it up or its impossible because they are still eating fine. I just called a personal trainer to set up a consult because maybe I'm not doing the right things that would benefit me.

Thank you for responding. I thought the same thing another fill would be worse. I'm now doing research about the sleeve and am very scared about another surgery. My boss doesn't even know that I had the first surgery. I know that its nothing to be ashamed of but I work for dr.'s and I just dont want them to look at me in a different way. The band was supposed to be a "slow" weight loss which was perfect for me and w/ exercising, good toning along the way(not very noticable) just good job dieting. Now I havent lost anything since dec08 but am still choking on things I feel I have no other choice but the sleeve. A few family memebers had the RNY and have had weight loss sucess but alot of problems along the way and tons of sagging skin from losing so fast. My dr. told me that I would be in the hospital 2 to 3 days because of the band removal and then the sleeve. I am the office manager and dont know how much time I should take to recover. My band was very easy 1 week and back to work. That includes the ER trip the weekend before I went back because of left sided shoulder pain which my surgeon never had come across. He then told me the creator of the band did a study on people that suffered the same thing as me. I was his first for this issue. So now do you get why the sleeve freaks me out??? Just nerves I guess. I dont want to be fat anymore but at what cost to myself and family?

I am trying to decide wether I want to have the band reversed and get the sleeve. My band is making me very unhappy. My family is now at the point of annoyance at meals. I cook every night and sit down to eat w/ my family. First or second bite gets stuck and I'm off to the bathroom. Not alot of fun, then once I bring up whatever was stuck I can eat but they are all usually finished and its wrecking family time. My Dr. is a sweetheart and told me that the band is only one of many things that we can try. That I shouldn't give up the band is not for everyone!!!! The reason I went with the band is because I have never heard of any deaths related to the surgery or complications. Also that I love to cook and we are very healthy eaters I'm the only one that is over weight in my house and we all eat the same things. Plus if I were to have complications I could have it fixed. I'm so scared to have the sleeve, just a bad fear of problems arising and having no where to go and to live very unhappy. I got banded in sept 08 and have only lost 15-20lbs. All of which was by dec 08. I'm grateful that the weight came off but like all other things I've tried 20lbs gone then some how found again. Dr. told me that we can try a fill again but the stuff i can actually get down will not be able to go down. I need some help here please anyone with advise good or bad!!!!

My band only got me to lose 15-20 lbs in 8 months. I have restriction on certain foods(protein,cheese,etc) but not the foods that I shouldn't be eating like chips, crackers and cereal. My dr. said since I haven't had good luck since the begining that I might want to consider the sleeve. I'm scared to death to have stuff remove from my body that can not be put back or reversed if problems should arise. I'm always the exception to the rule. The band doesn't usually have a death rate and can be fixed if it's not for me, but the sleeve is scary. Anyone that had it change and wish they didn't?? Any advise I'm looking for good and bad.

I had the same thing for a couple of weeks. The dr. said that it is a burp. Because the band is in place and you are still swollen from the surgery the burp comes to the top and has no where to go but backwards. Yes it does hurt like hell but it will pass. I had my second fill Dec 22, 2008 and I still get that weird burp once in a while but its not as scary or as painful as in the begining. Hopefully this helps hang in there!! I'm down 16lbs since sept 29, 2008.

I just had my 2nd fill two days ago. I'm afraid to push it to see if I have restriction. First day I did liquids and was fine not hungry till 2nd day around 11am. I ate onion Soup no problem with 2 crackers and was satisfied. I had a little home fried potatoes n onions with creammed chip beef about a cup full, more than enough! I have never had a fill in the dr's office, we went to the surgery center twice now to do the fill under fluro. Does anyone have any clue why that would be??

I'm having such a hard time not eating all the chocolate and I love choc chip cookies. Luckily we had a big party on sat for my daughter who was in Scotland at college so all the goodies are almost gone. We are going out to dinner tonight and what helped me with that is I went online last night to look at the holiday menu to help me with what I can eat today or not eat. Also I had 2cc put in my band on mon 12-22-08 so I am a little afraid of over eating and getting sick. Good luck to you the holidays and goodies wont be here forever and you can get back on track.

Hello, I was banded on sept 29,2008. I was wondering if anyone else was banded around the same time? What is your progress and also what are you eating? Everything w/out restriction like myself. I am not feeling full unless I eat alot so I am stoping myself but am not feeling satisfied, anyone else here w/me? I had my first fill 11-10-08 2cc no restriction after the first 2 days.

I too didnt have much encouragement from family. My mom and friends don't think I'm fat enough, lol I guess I should wait till I cant get out of bed. No thanks!! Now that its done, They are all watching and waiting, they said if it works for me (because nothing in the past has)they might consider doing it. My husband thought it would have been a faster melt away but again I've tried for years to take the weight off without go success. I have only been really heavy since 1996 after my second child was born, I lost all of the weight and gained it all back in about a 6 week time period. I went to the dr for depression because of the weight gain and got put on Phen Fen. It did NOT work the only thing I lost was a Healthy Heart. I now have a heart condition from it and found out through bloodwork that I have hypothyroidism which causes weight gain. Maybe if the dr was more helpful he would have read the blood results before putting me on weight loss drugs and my heart wouldn't have damage. Oh well, do this for you and only you if they love you they will come around. Good luck with Aetna thing. I have Horizon and had to to everything in my power to get it approved even with weight history, diabetes, etc. I was approved 1 day before my surgery talk about going crazy. Well anyway best of luck and welcome to the family.

I'm there with you. I only lost like 10 or 11lbs all the first 3 days post-op. I go up and down every couple of days. I've had one fill so far and the dr. is talking about another fill maybe before Christmas. I feel so bad about myself I hate it I can eat and eat all day if I want(I don't) but I could!! I just started exercising last week I still am trying to fit it into my life its hard. I feel better when I exercise. Due to having a stroke 2 years ago, I pull muscles very easy and did it twice already,then I dont want to do anything but sit with an ice pack. I am amazed that you had 4 fills my dr wanted me to wait till feb09 for the 2nd fill. I said no way!!! I'm gaining and have no restriction. Any advise???

I've had one fill and don't feel very much restriction at all. I goto see the dr in 1 week to talk about another fill. I'm glad I'm not alone!!! I always need support especially from people who get it.

I have been with my husband for 20 years, faithfully having sex. It was not until this year that he found my g-spot and OMG does it feel awesome, also it turns him on sooooo much hes all over me all the time now. Everytime we have sex he wont stop until he hits it. He always gave me oral orgasms until now he was determined to make it happen. And yes I squirt, drip or whatever you wanna call it. Don't give up if you truely want to experience it. We found it by chance having sex, then oral, then with the fingers(I was very swollen). Maybe that has alot to do with it. Good Luck!

Starrgirl, What is the reason that you are contemplating the sleve?? Did you not lose well w/the band? When were you banded? I was banded 9-29-08 and as of today had one fill and only lost 13lbs total. I went up 7lbs after my first fill then back down still total of 13. My dr told me that the band isn't for everyone and that the sleve could be an option down the road. please respond. Thanks, Michele

I only told 3 girls that I am very close to at work. I also work in the medical field w/surgeons and didn't want to hear any negatives. I told my boss that I went on vacation (girls week) because my husband had to take my daughter to her cheerleading games and my bosses daughter is on the same squad. I had some severe left sided shoulder pain and was readmitted to the hospital the day before I was due back to work. I only took a week vacation. So that was a little hard to come up with an excuse to explain how I went from vacation to the hospital. I do not usually lie and my husband was very pissed and thought that I should have told the truth. He doesn't understand how people are especially to someone that has weight loss surgery. It's a lie that I was willing to live with. I had 3 c-sections and I knew the pain would be nowhere near that pain. If I didnt have the shoulder pain I could of went back in 4 days. My mother-in-law told her side of the family the night I was readmitted because I was not w/my husband and kids at their family party. I had a stroke 2 years ago and they wouldn't let up w/the questions. They thought it was something along those lines so she blurted it out.

Terilyn, you sound like you just described me! I'm also 5'4 and large bones. Everyone thought I was crazy for gettin the band done, but when I can't breathe bending over to shave my legs there's a problem. I'm also a diabetic w/insulin sensitivity. I was banded on 9-29-08 and only lost 10lbs as of today. It's alot harder than most people think. I have not given up I just started exercising today. Maybe that will help.

How did you determine that you should go from the band to the sleve?? My dr said the band doesnt work for everyone and that might be an option for me in the future. I'm nervous about the removal of part of my stomach. Can you please respond, Thank you!

Silversurfer, I can only assume you can have hot liquids the day after surgery in the hospital they gave me hot broth. As far as coffee I feel you I love my coffee. You have to watch your sugar intake. I used sweet and low but I have for years because of diabetes. Hot chocolate is sold in sugar free packets that are good. As far as eating regular I did the same thing I ate mush for a week and then to solids as tolerated. My dr. told me it was fine just to watch what kind of solids I ate. Good luck!