dstclair

I work in Champaign and live in Villa Grove. Was banded by Dr. Rohrscheib in January 09. I also love his staff and am glad the new office in Champaign is open. Makes it closer for the fills. Also for those who are close, they are starting a new lapband support group at his new office in Champaign. The first meeting will be Wed., Sept 2 at 6:45 pm.

The hair loss will get better but it will not be a quick fix. I had my band placed in January and started having major hair loss about 4 months out. There are a variety of reasons for this and yours may be one or a combination of more than one. I had bloodwork to monitor my protein levels and iron. All were ok. I do take thyroid medication and lab test showed that I needed a small dose increase so have had that in place for about 5 weeks. I work on getting in at least 80 gm of protein per day. Had been getting about 70 and NUT said to increase to 80-90. I use Nioxin hair products and also take Biotin 5000mcg per day. Each of these things may or may not be doing what I want them to do but I figure in tandem, it will prove to be a benefit. I was at my hairdressers last week and we can now see new hair coming in. While the hair loss is still continuing, the rate of loss is slowly decreasing. Thankfully I have always had lots of hair because literally I could just turn my head to the side and hair would fall out. Instead of pet hair, I am cleaning up my hair from where I sit in a chair. Makes me crazy. While this is frustrating, it does appear to be a relatively normal side effect of WLS surgery. I was just not expecting this much.

My insurance company has a year long waiting period during which they require completion of certain medical/psychological requirements. Most of these are the same as what many of you have posted. This included monthly visits with my physician and daily food logs. Let me just say that after a year, I had a lot of papers to submit. Darn near killed a forest. I started my journey in July 2007 and was finally banded in Janaury 09. (actual approval came through in Nov. 08). Even with this wait and all the hoops, it was worth it and I would do it again. Maybe this was a test of my committment to make sure that I would use this as the great tool that it is.

:cool2: I love my band. I was banded in January and have lost 81 pounds so far. Like others have said, you do have to work at this but it is well worth the effort. I have never once looked back or regretted having this done.

I will agree about most of the powdered protein drinks. They were horrible. Like someone else mentioned, I came across the Isopure protein drinks with 40 gms of protein per bottle. You can find them at GNC or even order them online. I have tried several flavors and have found them to be the best. If it wasn't for sugar free jello, I think I would have caved. For me it was one of the little things that made a huge difference. The key is to be willing to try new things. I have a local nutrition store that has sample type servings in some of their products which is what I tried because prior to that I was tossing out some protein drinks I had purchased because they were too nasty to drink. I do find that the premixed ones are better tasting than the powdered ones you have to do yourself.

I am almost 6 months out from banding and over the past 2 months have had a significant amount of hair loss. I can just move my head and it falls out. Won't even mention what's in the hair brush or shower. I have faithfully watched my protein intake. The lowest I go is 60 and usually shoot for at least 70 grams. This does seem to make a difference. I did start the Biotin and also use the Nioxin products as recommended by my hairdresser. I also had tons of bloodwork done to check for anemia, iron deficiency, etc. What we did find was that my thyroid level was not where it should be so increased my Synthroid again and that is seeming to make a difference. The bloodwork was done at the recommendation of my primary care physician who is helping to make sure that this surgery is successful. My hair loss is just starting to show signs of improvement so am hopeful that the tide is turning. While we might make jokes about going bald, I actually had some real concerns about this.

While it is tough to be patient, it is worth it. That time will help you to get everything in order so that you can make this tool really work for you. I had my first consultation visit in June 2007. My insurance company requires a full year of various requirements before they will authorize this surgery. By the time I was approved, it was November 2008 with me scheduling the surgery (because of my schedule) on January 23, 2009. It was well worth the wait and I used that time to study, read, interact on everything I could about the band. It has paid off for me. And like the Ann Landers quote, which I have used from time to time, that 1 1/2 years would have gone by with or without me preparing for this event. Best of luck to you.

Everyone is so different. Most of the things that you mentioned, I cannot eat after almost 6 months. I do not do well with lettuce salad or cole slaw. I have not tried bread of any kind or in any way simply based on the numerous problems that people seem to have. I also stay away from pasta. Part of this comes from problems a lot of people have with it and the other is that this would have been one of my great weaknesses and frankly don't want to find out if I can eat it or not. Why tempt myself when I find that I don't miss it. I do like Mexican food and find that I eat the taco meat just don't eat the taco shell or lettuce but everything else is fine. I pretty much stick to protein sources and veggies and do fine. Just try things slowly and in small quantities. You will find out what works for you. Thinking about the food will not seem so overwhelming once you are off the post-op liquids and are moving forward toward "regular" food items.

Congratulations. My surgery was 01/23/09 and I am now down 80 pounds. I am so thrilled and have never regretted making this decision. I can tell you feel the same way.

I had my lap band surgery in January and have had 3 fills plus one additional time when they removed saline from the port. I have had to have more than one stick each time and it has never been painful. I don't think I can even describe it as uncomfortable. Generally quick and painless. If needles bother you, just don't look. My clinic does not use any numbing medication either. Don't see a need for it as that would be just one extra stick that I don't see a need for. I generally go in about every 4-5 weeks though last time I went back a little over 2 because for the first time I could recognize that I needed some extra restriction. Good luck for those getting ready for your first fill. It will be much easier than you ever expect.

I have to second the other comments you have received. This will be fine. I was banded on 01/23/09 and it was an easy outpatient surgery. I must say that I was worried. Had already had several major surgeries all with complications and was wondering what the heck am I doing having an elective surgery. The day of the surgery itself I was asking my husband if he was going to try talking me out of this because I was so nervous. My surgeon was great. Addressed all of my fears and made sure that I had extra medication/attention for nausea and vomiting which for me were an always complication with anesthesia. Everything turned out great. Some general soreness, more so at the port site but other than that no problems. Returned to my desk job in 3 days. I have never once been sorry I did this. While everyone is different, this should go well with only minor and short-lived discomfort. Just follow the guidelines they give you.

Everything you are feeling is perfectly normal and will definitely get better. As the diet allowances move forward and you start seeing normal food again, you will be glad you had this done. I was banded 01/23/09 and have lost 78 pounds. I have never been sorry but there are defintitely adjustments you have to make. I remember my first bite of mashed potatoes after surgery. Thought I had died and gone to heaven. "Real" food never tasted so good. Hang in there. Use this group as you need and know that you will continue to have ups and downs but by far will probably look at this as a new beginning.