skiingj

Hi Ladies! Not much to report just hanging in. Glad you are all doing so well with your diets!! I'm not doing that great. I should do better during the week as its easier to keep on track. Have a great week!

Hi Ladies!! Candra thanks for the kind words!!! I was just looking at the calendar and realize I will not be able to make a PW group meeting for months. :thumbup: I'm working next weekend and between vacation and the holidays it puts me out until February. Then thats around the time I'm planning on the Sleeve... Disappointed as I was looking forward to another meeting. You are all doing so well! Congratulations to all those with orientation & surgery dates!

Hi Ladies!! The walk on Saturday was excellent! My wife and I met Donna’s husband and two boys. What a great cause and some really inspirational stories. The Mercy home is very nice. 300+ people attended so I was very surprised that Rich found my wife and I as there were quite a few people with dogs! We may have come in last or near last but many people bailed after the first half and didn’t finish. Found out Donna is from a town next to the one I grew up on Long Island, NY and they both spent time in the Air Force. Small world… If we could just get real NY bagels and pizza out here, not that I need any. Still gaining some weight, need to turn around and start losing again. I hope you all have a great week!

Hi Jes - Wish I could attend the Richmond group but I live too far away and work ten hour days... Would be great to meet more Sleeve folks. R U doing the walk Saturday?

Hi Ladies! You are all doing so well! Looking forward to the walk on Saturday in Lincoln and meeting everyone. My wife and I will be walking with my Mom's small mutt. Sorry to hear Donna that you will not be able to make it, we'll be thinking of you! Not doing so well with the diet as I've gained some of the 85 pounds back. Need to get back on the wagon. Have a great weekend everyone!

Hi Pat! Welcome to the group! No better place to be! Great group of people here! I went into the first surgery down 45 pounds. My goal was 34 pounds and I lost 10-12 pounds a couple weeks before orientation. The first failure was due to my liver being too large and fatty. My surgeon fells it is because of the fact that I lost all my weight fast and then there was a five week period that I just maintained the lose. I had a vacation planned long before I entered the program and is why I had to put surgery off one month and didn't lose any more weight. Orientation to first surgery was three months. I was also told I'm pre-disposed o f a large / fatty liver. My surgeon was very supportive and told me we can try LAP-BAND®®®® again. I was given another goal of losing 40 pounds. Six weeks after the first failure I made goal at my follow-up surgeon visit and he wanted me back on the table soonest. Ten days later and 62 days after the first failure I was back in the OR. The second failure was due to Adhesions from the first surgery. Too much risk when trying to place the band and a high possibility of band failure even if they placed it due to all the adhesions. I'm my doctor's first and second band failure so your success rate is very high whichever doctor you have as band install failures are not that common in Richmond. I was also told I'm the only one at Richmond to return for another surgery after a failure which I find very surprising. I would do another Band attempt but I'm no longer a candidate. My doctor has been very supportive and has offered me the Sleeve. I will probably go forward with it but both he and I both agree that I should take a break. Once I'm ready which will probably be sometime after the New Year they will give me another surgery date. I don't have to lose any more weight and don't need to repeat any classes which is nice. After losing 85 pounds I'm quite a bit below the BMI needed to get into the program. I believe Richmond will start offering the Sleeve in the next couple months at orientation. But that is just my opinion... I feel very lucky to have lost 85 pounds, have such a great support group, an excellent/supportive doctor and I believe the Richmond program is excellent. Good luck on your journey, I'm sure it will all work out. Stick with the ladies here they will help you tremendously!

Hi Ladies! It was awesome meeting all of you yesterday! It was great to have a post-op Sleeve patient to speak with. Yes Candra I'll have to do lunch next time. Looking forward to the walk on 10 Oct. Have a great week everyone!

Hi Maria - I'm here just chillin. Good luck with your case manager appointment. I was to honest in that appointment and didn't appreciate the approach of the CM. I knew what she was going to ask and could have easily lied. I lost 35 pounds in six weeks and still was read the riot act. Good luck! She is nice if you get past the interrogation...

Reggie - Looking at your stats and following this thread for so long you have done so well! Keep pushing! I know how hard it is. On a lighter side for a while I thought and hoped you were a guy but something probably gas in the boobs or cramps indicated you were not. :thumbdown: I almost popped into this thread a long time ago thinking you were a guy. Please don't take any of this the wrong way. Most of us would admit we are all struggling somehow. This week I have probably put back 5-10 pounds and all I think about is why didn't I get a band cause I worked so hard not once but twice. We are so lucky to get these surgery opportunities, it will still be a challenge but we can and will loose weight and inches. I hope you can make it Saturday.

Hello Ladies!!!!!!!! I hope everyone is having a great day! Looking forward to our mtg Saturday. Who is all going so I can try and learn your names?

Hi Jes! Just a lurkin! :blushing: Sounds like you are doing very well with your new band. Looking forward to meeting everyone at the mtg and walk. Donna - My wife asked if we could walk with my mom's small dog?

Morning ALL! Donna- I have joined the walking team!

Hello Ladies! Yes Candra I'm planning on attending the support group on the 26th at Pointe West. Congrats on the band! I'm jealous! Unfortunately I can't have a third attempt at a band as I'm no longer a candidate due to my two failures. Personally I have no interest in the RNY so that leaves me with the Sleeve. From what some of you are going through I'm wondering if maybe the Sleeve is a better option for me but I really don't like the idea of having 80% of my stomach removed. The band would have been great, it's still hard to look at my stomach scars and think I had two band surgeries this summer but there is no band inside. I have a few months to rest and I'll make my decision on the Sleeve later this year. Looking forward to meeting everyone at the support group and the walk/run! Jes - You're up! Best wishes!

Hello Ladies!!!!!!!!! Candra - I'm so excited for you! Best wishes. Let us know how things went! Jes - Very soon! The walk sounds like fun. I think my wife and I would be interested. Let me know what I need to do to register. Is anyone going to the support group on the 26th? I have a few questions; about how many people attend? What’s the agenda/structure of the meeting? Sorry for all the questions I have never been to a support group meeting. My wife will be out of town so I’m thinking of going. Thanks!

Never been to a support group meeting. Maybe the 26th will work. The clothing exchange sounds great, can’t wait to show up at work with a dress. JK :thumbup:

Funny, but aren't those links based on what you search for? What you look'in for girl?!? I'm a tell'in Doc Fisher ;0

Candra - I live in Roseville and work at Beale AFB. I’d love to come to a support group but I’m not sure I want to attend something with a large group. Maybe one of your small sessions someday would work. I can’t login to this site at work so I would show up as a guest lurker…

Hi Candra, Hi Everyone! I did look them up but could only find wasabubblebutt and did see some of their posts on the Sleeve forum. Not much going on just in a holding pattern for a few months and then I’ll make my final decision on going forward with the Sleeve. You are in very good hands Monday, I wish you all the best! Everything will be just fine for you and Jes. I think I filled the negative statistics for awhile.

Hi Jes - I'm good, you? Glad your stuff is working itself out. Can't post from work as it’s blocked when I try and login. Maybe that’s why I have never posted. Sounds good. :thumbup: Heard from a friend today who has had a band for a couple years and lives out of state. She has done very well and looks great. She had a couple operations and they had to empty the band, one of them was a tummy tuck. She claims amazing results. Hope not to need any plastic surgery. Trying to keep the 85 pounds off when my wife is out of town is not going to be easy. She is gone most of the next month. I've been longing for food outside the meal plan for months. Just hope I don't overdo it. Long Islands or Rum & Cokes don't help either. I'll probably go and see my doc in November for a Sleeve presentation so hopefully that will force me to keep the weight off. Night all!

Sure. They do give you something in the pre-op area before going into surgery, I think it was anti-nausea stuff. First surgery it was a drink and the second it was injected into the IV. The staff in there are great. The barium swallow is gross, glad I didn’t have to do that again during the last failure. Though I never got a band I did go back to work a few days later just avoided lifting and took it easy. I wish you all the best!!!!!!!!!

Jes - It sounds like you might not have been setup for the appointment with Tom Greenwood as he was the one to issue the nausea pills for my first surgery. The second I had to remind my doctor as I didn’t go through the same process. My second surgery was setup so fast the girls in the bariatric office appeared upset that I hadn't been routed through them. I actually got a kick out of what happened as I think some of the control goes to their heads...

Not sure how many Sleeves if any the other surgeons have done. The Sleeve forum is not doing it for me, hard to follow, hard to relate to as many people are not in this area, not with Kaiser and I've studied the band for a couple years... Interesting how many have converted from a band to a sleeve. This forum has been so good and I've followed you all for soooo long. We are all so lucky to have such a great Kaiser program and doctors!

During both my surgeries I never saw any of the other docs so they must come in after you are asleep. My Doc has only done four Sleeves but they have fixed many that had been done outside Kaiser. Thanks everyone for the kind comments!!

I sat about three rows from the front. On the middle isle on the right side of the room. Some guy who sat on the other end of my table screamed out as he hit his leg on the chair or table. He was a bit wimpy and complained about traveling in from Oakland. I was thinking how about Roseville! The lady next to me was told to have bariatric surgery before she could have a breast reduction. Not sure if that helps…

Thanks for the kind remarks. I’m very happy with my surgeon but I'd prefer not to list them. Each surgery is attended by two surgeons. So you all have had someone else assisting. Dr. Im is the only one that wasn't present during my two. They all had the same opinion which was to abort each surgery. Richmond has been doing Sleeves for awhile but they are only done if a surgeon feels its best. It’s not a patient choice at the moment. There have been huge advances in the Sleeve this past year and they feel it’s a much better procedure. Unfortunately there are not much statistics or history with the new Sleeve procedure which gives me some hesitation...